Last summer, Pope Francis asked the U.S. based Papal Foundation to direct $25 million to the Istituto Dermopatico dell'Immacolata (IDI), a dermatological hospital in Rome that has been plagued with corruption and financial scandal for years.
Founded in 1990, the Papal Foundation has a noble record of assisting popes in helping the poor in under-developed countries. Therefore, the $25-million grant requested by Francis has lay members of the Foundation up in arms, seeing that the money is going to the corruption-plagued, Church-owned dermatological institute accused of money laundering and which has liabilities of over $1 billion USD – an amount larger than the national debt of many nations.