Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
TO ASSURE AND ADVANCE QUALITY LEARNING FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS THAT DRIVES IMPROVEMENTS IN PATIENT CARE, MAINTENANCE OF COMPETENCE AND INCORPORATION OF NEW KNOWLEDGE TO IMPROVE QUALITY MEDICAL CARE FOR PATIENTS AND THEIR COMMUNITIES.
- Income
- $11.0 million
- Spending
- $10.5 million
- Spent on programs
- 87%
- Reserves
- 15 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 95%
- Employees
- 43
- Volunteers
- 156
- Highest pay
- $969,590, president, ceo and secretary
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 85 out of 100. Higher than 79% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 15.0 months of spending.
Debt
10 of 20It owes 39% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 5% of income.
Income trend
10 of 15Income fell 1% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1587% of spending went to programs.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 50% of charities in its peer group (education, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2518 of 18 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (4)
- $3.3 million spent. ACCREDITATION INCLUDES CME STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT, PROMOTION OF THE STANDARDS TO EXTERNAL GROUPS AND STAKEHOLDERS AND THE PROCESS FOR INITIAL AND CONTINUING EVALUATION OF ORGANIZATIONS AND INSTITUTIONS THAT PROVIDE CME FOR PHYSICIANS. 233 ENTITIES WERE EVALUATED AT VARIOUS STAGES IN 2025.
- $2.2 million spent. EDUCATION INCLUDES LIVE, WEB-BASED AND TELECONFERENCE EDUCATION PROVIDED TO ACCREDITED CME PROVIDERS AND RECOGNIZED ORGANIZATIONS. IN 2025, THROUGH ITS LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, ACCME ACADEMY, ACCME PROVIDED MULTIPLE ON-LINE EDUCATION RESOURCES TO ITS COMMUNITY OF PROVIDERS AND RECOGNIZED ORGANIZATIONS. ALSO IN 2025, ACCME PRESENTED 1 ACCREDITATION WORKSHOP DESIGNED TO TEACH ABOUT ACCME STANDARDS FOR CME AND THE REVIEW PROCESS FOR ACCME ACCREDITATION, AS WELL AS AN ANNUAL MEETING FOR CME PROVIDERS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS TO SHARE AND LEARN ABOUT BEST PRACTICES IN CME AND ACCREDITATION.
- $2.3 million spent. DATA SERVICES INCLUDE THE COLLECTION AND REPORTING OF CME ACTIVITY AND LEARNER DATA FOR PURPOSES OF PHYSICIAN RE-LICENSURE AND MAINTENANCE OF CERTIFICATION, AS WELL AS IN SUPPORT OF THE FDA'S OPIOID ANALGESICS REMS PROGRAM. IN 2025, ACCME PROVIDED CME COMPLETION DATA TO THE FDA AS WELL AS 9 CERTIFICATION BOARDS AND DOZENS OF STATE MEDICAL LICENSING BOARDS.
- $1.3 million spent. RECOGNITION INCLUDES RECOGNITION STANDARDS DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION TO SUPPORT THE RECOGNITION OF STATE MEDICAL SOCIETIES TO ACCREDIT INTRA-STATE PROVIDERS OF CME. 28 RECOGNIZED ACCREDITORS WERE EVALUATED AT VARIOUS STAGES IN 2025.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since October 2004.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.