FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 22, 2000

Today, the Coalition for Nonprofit Health Care ("CNHC") begins its nationwide campaign to inform nonprofit health care providers of the need to fully report community benefit expenditures and activities on the IRS Form 990, Annual Information Return. With generous support from the Coalition's association members, colorful brochures outlining the necessity of fully reporting community benefit on the Form 990 will be distributed by mail and electronically to nonprofit hospitals, HMOs, nursing homes, home health agencies, and other providers. CNHC states in the brochure, "We recommend that all nonprofit health care organizations renew their commitment to providing, and documenting, the unique community benefit that sets them apart and underlies their tax exemption." In addition, the brochure gives several pointers on how to make the Form 990 a more effective vehicle for communicating information about nonprofit activities.

The recent development of an Internet site designed to give the public unprecedented access to tax-exempt organizations' Forms 990 offers nonprofit organizations a new opportunity to publicize community benefit and underlies CNHC’s campaign. Last October, the Urban Institute and Philanthropic Research, Inc., established a free Internet Web site called GuideStar, intended to provide instant access to the Forms 990 of hundreds of thousands of nonprofit organizations, including many health care organizations. The Coalition's brochure shows an example of one of its member's Form 990 – including community benefit information – that GuideStar already makes available.

CNHC, established in 1997, works to preserve our nation's primarily nonprofit health care delivery system through an active agenda of research, education, and advocacy.

Click to view brochure

For more information on CNHC please call (202) 408-7170 or visit our Web site at www.cnhc.org.

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