MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA INC

Programs

1. Patient services: msaa's mri access program provides assistance for ms patients or individuals who have a suspected ms diagnosis or who have an ms diagnosis and need mri scans for the purpose of providing a diagnosis or tracking progression. Msaa's mri, cooling and equipment program serves individuals whose income is below 300% of the federal poverty guidelines and are otherwise unable to afford mri's, cooling vests and safety equipment items. During fy24-25, msaa approved more than 144 eligible individuals for mri scans with a value in excess of $155,549.msaa's equipment distribution program helps individuals with ms obtain equipment items that they need in order to best manage their ms. Msaa's cooling program provides cooling apparel that helps to alleviate heat sensitivity issues for ms patients throughout the country. During fy24-25 msaa delivered nearly 2,200 pieces of safety, mobility, and cooling products to individuals affected by ms with a value in excess of $269,000. Msaa's national toll-free helpline is avaible monday-friday 8:30am-8pm est. Program applications for our cooling and equipment programs are available as pdf downloads in both english and spanish from the…

   $486,947 spentof which $486,947 as grants$115,525 earned by the program
   7% of program spending

2. Public education, information & referral: msaa's national educational programs deliver high-quality, informative programming to individuals with ms, care partners, and healthcare professionals nationwide. These programs cover a variety of topics all aimed at improving health outcomes for individuals living with ms. Msaa partners with a national network of healthcare professionals to present programs of scientific and educational value. These in-person and virtual educational programs cover a wide breadth of topics, ranging from advances in disease research and symptom management, to nutrition and wellness activities, as well as programs for underserved populations. (continue in schedule o)msaa also regularly offers virtual and digital programming focused on scientific updates in disease management and best practices in treatment protocol for healthcare professionals who treat those living with ms. In 2019, msaa developed an african american advisory board and a hispanic/latinx advisory board comprised of ms healthcare professionals, individuals living with ms, and care partners, to develop initiatives to serve the african american and hispanic/latinx ms patient communities.…

   $6,702,285 spent
   93% of program spending

3. Msaa received the following awards during fy25: silver digital health award in the web-based digital health category for msaa's 2024 art showcase; silver digital health award in the digital health media and publications category for msaa's educational video, your ms and the family journey; merit digital health award in the digital health media and publications category for msaa's summer/fall 2024 edition of the motivator magazine; apex award in the social media and content creation category for best series of blog posts for msaa's ask the expert series; apex award for msaa's about ms publication in the one-of-a-kind publications category; bronze national health information award for the cover story, "seeking balance in ms," in the summer/fall 2024 edition the motivator magazine. In addition, there were more than 465,000 cumulative views of msaa's 199 on-demand video programs; 72,000+ total cumulative downloads of msaa's mobile app, my ms manager; more than 3,600 total downloads of episodes of msaa's podcast; and more than 9,800 cumulative members on my msaa community, msaa's online peer-to-peer forum.

4. In 2022, msaa developed the ultimate ms treatment guide, a first-of-its-kind comprehensive tool that aides those living with ms and their loved ones in better understanding the wide array of disease-modifying therapies available to the ms community. The ultimate ms treatment guide provides information about each disease-modifying therapy and is interactive, allowing users to filter available therapy options by type of ms, mode of administration, and alphabetically or by most recently approved by the fda. The tool also includes a comparison option, allowing users to compare two or more treatment options. In addition, the ultimate ms treatment guide features educational videos from healthcare professionals as well as patient advocates.

5. The latest research and best practices in treating and managing ms series during fy25, msaa expanded its educational series to 12 in-person programs, reaching medically underserved communities across california, puerto rico, texas, arizona, louisiana, mississippi, kentucky, illinois, arkansas, oklahoma, and new hampshire. These programs were designed to address the unique challenges faced by individuals living with ms and their support networks in rural and underserved areas. Led by expert ms neurologists, each session provided comprehensive guidance on best practices in ms management, wellness strategies, and the latest research developmentsincluding updates to the mcdonald diagnostic criteria and ongoing ms studies. Programs also focused on strategies for building care support in rural settings and improving access to critical services. Each session was tailored to the needs of its participants and concluded with interactive q&a discussions, fostering community engagement, knowledge-sharing, and peer support.

6. Ms ecosystem frameworkmsaa launched the first intervention of phase 3 with an ms public awareness educational campaign. Over a three-week period, the pilot campaign tested a variety of video-based advertisements and calls to action (ctas) across facebook, linkedin, and paid search ads, targeting upstate new york and atlanta. The pilot revealed notable regional differencesatlanta generated the highest visibility, while upstate new york drove deeper engagementhighlighting the importance of localized strategies. Video-driven, human-centered storytelling, particularly voice-acted content on linkedin, outperformed other formats, boosting both emotional resonance and time spent on site, while retargeting efforts increased return on investment (roi) and mid-campaign engagement. These findings provide a strong foundation for national scaling. These findings not only laid a strong foundation for national scaling but also guided us in maximizing engagement through high-impact videos, increasing visibility, reinforcing key messages, and tailoring health literacy initiatives to regional and community-specific concerns.

7. Multiple sclerosis implementation network (msin)the multiple sclerosis implementation network (msin) is an innovative, patient-driven research network that connects participating multiple sclerosis (ms) care centers across the country. In sharing data and experiences, participating centers can learn from each other with the goal of improving care for people living with multiple sclerosis. This patient-centric initiative is focused on creating a practice-based research network (pbrn) for medical professionals to best support individuals with ms. Msin is guided by two advisory boards one of which is comprised of people living with ms and their care partners. The other advisory board is comprised of healthcare professionals, research scientists, and advocacy partners.

The 7 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $7,189,232.