Arthritis is a thief. People with arthritis know this full well. It steals everyday joys and long-term dreams. It isolates and ostracizes. It is painful. It induces a spirit of No. 

Arthritis is the #1 cause of disability today affecting over 50 million Americans including 300,000 children.  Arthritis costs the US economy over 128 billion dollars a year in healthcare costs.  But, it doesn’t have to be this way. 

The Arthritis Foundation is a Champion of Yes, leading the fight for the Arthritis Community.  We are in a unique place of authority and action, with the purpose of finding a cure, but also fighting for the everyday victories.

We Exist to Conquer Arthritis
The Arthritis Foundation is focused on finding a cure and championing the fight against arthritis with life-changing information, advocacy, science and community.

Plan for Yes
We chart the course for the arthritis community, helping families develop personalized plans for saying Yes — day after day.

The Arthritis Foundation leads the way in:
•  Access and Advocacy
•  Scientific Discovery   
•  Help and Support
•  Juvenile Arthritis
• Community Connections

There are a lot of great reasons to support and get involved with the Arthritis Foundation.  Today, the Foundation is ready for new opportunities – and a new and better way of helping people with arthritis and their loved ones live life to its fullest … and find their YES moments.

The Arthritis Foundation has a rich history and we’re committed to building an even brighter future for families who live every day with arthritis and chronic pain.

RESPONSIBLE STEWARD OF DONATIONS
Every year, the Arthritis Foundation exceeds the nonprofit health sector financial standard: We expend at least 75 percent of donor contributions toward mission priorities.  (78 percent in Fiscal Year 2013)

OUTREACH: AT LEAST 16 MILLION PEOPLE
Throughout the year, the Arthritis Foundation reaches approximately 11 million consumers online:
• 1.3 million via online newsletters
• 9.6 million unique visitors to our Web pages
• More than 100,000 social media fans and followers
An estimated 4.2 million people read each issue of our award-winning Arthritis Today, according to an independent magazine auditor.

On the ground, nationwide: Approximately 9,500 active volunteers serve the Arthritis Foundation (more than doubled from six years ago).

In total, the Arthritis Foundation touches the lives of more than 16 million constituents.

WHEN AND WHERE YOU NEED US
The Arthritis Foundation is the most trusted source of information about arthritis and chronic joint pain.
• Today we’re expanding our reach to even more people – through trusted information, powerful health tracking tools and ways to connect with others.
• We’re working with health care providers and other partners to strengthen our educational and interactive offerings.
• The Arthritis Foundation is also building a state-of-the-art digital enterprise so you can customize your online experience and live better than ever.
• Almost 1 million people use the Arthritis Foundation’s online tools and resources.


CUTTING-EDGE SCIENCE
Since we began seven decades ago, the Arthritis Foundation has been the largest nonprofit contributor to arthritis-related research – spending almost half a billion dollars so far in scientific investigation, thanks to donor dollars.
• The Arthritis Foundation has initiated most of the scientific discoveries that benefit people with arthritis today.
• We supported research that resulted in the first biologics for many forms of arthritis.
• Today, the Arthritis Foundation is activating a new scientific strategy that takes advantage of new science and technology – and opens up the quest for a cure, including young or experienced scientists, entrepreneurs, engineers and technology experts.
• By strengthening the pipeline for arthritis research and facilitating the movement of basic science for arthritis into the full spectrum of possible solutions, we’re leading the way to a faster cure for arthritis and related diseases.
• Learn more at www.arthritis.org/science.


STEPPING UP, SPEAKING OUT
About 70,000 advocates have stepped up to the plate and joined the Arthritis Foundation’s advocacy network.
• They regularly urge lawmakers and medical professionals to make health care more accessible, affordable and effective.
• Laws have been introduced or passed in several states in favor of arthritis patients and people who have chronic pain, thanks to our advocates’ efforts.
• People with arthritis face unique barriers to care: high costs of treatment, difficulty accessing medications, scarcity of specialists and more.  The Arthritis Foundation is committed to breaking down barriers on both the state and federal levels.


KIDS GET ARTHRITIS, TOO
For nearly 70 years, the Arthritis Foundation has upheld our unwavering promise to assist families living with juvenile arthritis (JA).
• Every year since 1984, the Arthritis Foundation’s Juvenile Arthritis Conference has given kids, teens and their caregivers the chance to meet other families facing similar challenges.  Over the past decade, we’ve seen far fewer children depending on wheelchairs, thanks to medical discoveries supported by the Foundation.
• The Arthritis Foundation’s JA Power Pack is our gift to kids and teens newly diagnosed with arthritis or other rheumatic conditions, now available nationwide.
In communities around the country, the Arthritis Foundation hosts local camps, family days and other get-togethers that unite 

Local Champions of Yes 
Locally the Arthritis Foundation provides funds to send local children with Juvenile Arthritis to tuition-free summer camps, provides medical care to arthritis patients without access to rheumatology and provides local wellness programs including Tai Chi classes. 

For more information about arthritis and the Arthritis Foundation, visit www.arthritis.org