A nonprofit organization Joe Biden established after his son died of cancer has cut big checks to executives.
The Biden Cancer Initiative spent nearly two-thirds of its $4.8 million in funding on salaries and benefits for its executive members, according to a Thursday report from the Washington Free Beacon based on the organization’s tax documents from 2017 and 2018.
The nonprofit organization was established in 2017 to continue the Obama administration’s work on the “Moon Shot” program, in response to the nation’s “lack of a cohesive, comprehensive and timely approach to cancer prevention, detection, diagnosis, research, and care.” The organization’s mission was to address a disparity in cancer treatments, but very little of the group’s funding went toward that goal that year and the next.
Of the organization’s total revenue of $4.8 million over the two years, more than $3 million went toward salaries, and $1.7 million went toward other initiatives. Of the $1.7 million, $740,000 was spent on conventions, conferences, and meetings. The organization used these gatherings to facilitate the promotion of data-sharing between health organizations, patient support, and other medical initiatives to help cancer patients.
The Biden Cancer Initiative did not cut a single grant check to outside organizations. The Biden Cancer Initiative, however, was not established as a grant-providing entity.
Charity watchdogs recommend that nonprofit organizations spend only 25% of their revenue on overhead expenses, such as salaries. Charity Navigator, an organization that rates nonprofit organizations to advise donors on the most effective charities, reported that the average mid-sized nonprofit organization paid its top executive $126,000 per year. The Biden Cancer Initiative paid its top executive, Greg Simon, $429,850 in 2018.
The organization had dozens of partnerships, which included businesses in health insurance industries, to help in its fight against cancer. Its website said it accepted contributions from individuals and, if applicable, “their affiliated private and/or corporate foundations or donor-advised funds.” The initiative said it did not accept donations from biopharmaceutical companies, their executives, or foreign entities.
Biden stepped away from the nonprofit organization on July 11, 2019, and it halted operations as Biden geared up for his presidential bid.
“For more than two years, the Biden Cancer Initiative has focused on creating and implementing programs and platforms that accelerated progress against cancer,” Simon said in a statement about the organization’s suspension.
“Today, we are suspending activities given our unique circumstances. We remain personally committed to the cause, but at this time will have to pause efforts. We thank the community for their incredible response to our mission to improve the cancer journey for patients and to improve outcomes for all patients for generations to come,” he said.
Biden has listed finding a cure to cancer as a top goal he would continue working toward as president. His son Beau died of brain cancer in 2015.
Editor’s note: This report has been corrected to clarify details about BCI’s funding.
