Money Woes May Force Six Shriners’ Hospitals to Close

By News on the Net —— Bio and Archives April 11, 2009

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WASHINGTON, April 10 -- The Shriners organization may shutter six of its 22 free hospitals for children, citing rising costs, lagging donations, and a dwindling endowment.

The Florida-based organization uses $1 million a day from its endowment to keep its hospitals operating, Shriners executives told the Associated Press. In less than a year, the endowment fund has dropped to $5 billion from $8 billion as the poor economy has put a major dent in philanthropic donations across the nation, the Associated Press reported. More...