What American Dermatological Association does

The American Dermatological Association (ADA), founded on September 7, 1876 in Philadelphia by six physicians, is the first national dermatological society in the United States and operates as an independent, non-profit, self-funded professional medical association. The organization was formally incorporated in New York State in 1930 and received 501(c)(6) tax-exempt status in 1956, with its affiliated American Dermatological Association Research and Educational Fund (ADARE) operating as a 501(c)(3) entity since 1952. The ADA is the institutional progenitor of the American Academy of Dermatology, the American Board of Dermatology and Syphilology (1932), and the Society for Investigative Dermatology (1937), and since 1934 has required American Board of Dermatology certification for active membership.

The ADA's core products are a five-day annual meeting offering CME and MOC credits, a portfolio of policy statements co-sponsored with peer organizations (covering herpes zoster vaccination, HPV vaccine, PBMs, transplant patient screening, climate change, and access to care), the Early Career Research Award, periodic newsletters, historical archives, and ADARE-funded research grants for medical students, residents, and fellows. Membership is by nomination and election based on meritorious contributions to dermatology and is capped at 250 active members (a limit in place since 2001), with an unlimited senior member category; 1,127 dermatologists had been inducted as active members cumulatively through 2020.

The business model is subscription-recurring membership dues supplemented by tax-deductible donations to ADARE; the organization has explicitly stated it has no external or commercial sources of support. Operations are run by a small staff (1-10 employees) at a Pompano Beach, Florida office, under the leadership of Executive Manager Julie Odessky and a Board of Directors comprising elected dermatologists including President David Cohen, MD and Secretary-Treasurer Thomas Helm, MD. The ADA's geographic footprint is concentrated in the United States and Canada, with member resources distributed through the ada1.org website, email newsletters, and the annual meeting.

Name

American Dermatological Association

Legal name

American Dermatological Association, Inc.

Website

https://ada1.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1876

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The American Dermatological Association is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional medical association founded in 1876, serving up to 250 elected board-certified dermatologists in the U.S. and Canada through annual CME/MOC meetings, peer-reviewed policy statements, research grants via ADARE, and historical archives, funded entirely by membership dues and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Medical Association

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Dermatopathology (HLAKACAC)

Keywords

• Professional medical association
• Dermatology membership
• Medical education meetings
• Research grants dermatology
• Healthcare policy advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

Pompano Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: The American Dermatological Association is funded entirely from membership dues. There are no external or commercial sources of support.
2. Donations to ADARE: ADARE (American Dermatological Association Research and Education Fund) accepts donations to support research grants for medical students, residents, and fellows, as well as lectureships and historical archives preservation. ADARE is a 501(c)(3) entity with Tax ID: 13-6034117.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The American Dermatological Association (ADA) is a non-profit professional medical society that provides dermatologists with selective membership, annual scientific meetings offering CME/MOC credits, research grants via its 501(c)(3) arm ADARE, and publishes policy statements on dermatologic public health issues. It is funded entirely by membership dues and operates as the first national dermatological society in the United States, founded in 1876.

Product overview

The American Dermatological Association is a professional medical association founded in 1876, offering a membership-based platform centered around annual educational conferences, research awards, and policy advocacy. Its core offerings include the annual five-day ADA Annual Meetings with CME/MOC credits, the Early Career Research Award program for dermatology trainees, the ADARE Research and Education Fund for grants, ADA Newsletters for communication, Member Resources for exclusive content, ADA Archives for historical preservation, and Published Policy Statements on public health initiatives. The organization is funded entirely from membership dues with no external commercial support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ADA Annual Meetings Annual five-day conferences featuring recognized leaders in dermatology research, education, organizational medicine, and patient care, offering CME and MOC credits to ADA members.
• Early Career Research Award Prestigious award for dermatology residents, fellows, and board-certified dermatologists within five years of training completion, offering a $500 monetary stipend and complimentary meeting attendance.
• ADARE Research and Education Fund A 501(c)(3) entity organized to promote research in dermatology, providing funding for research grants to medical students, residents, and fellows, supporting lectureships and preserving the Society's historical archives.
• ADA Newsletters Periodic newsletter publications including daily newsletters from annual meetings and seasonal publications such as the ADA Spring Newsletter.
• Member Resources Exclusive resources for ADA members including conference programs, annual meeting materials, downloadable PDFs, and embedded videos.
• ADA Archives Historical records of the Association including member photographs, meeting programs, minutes, financial records, and artifacts documenting the organization's history since 1876.
• ADA Published Policy Statements Official position statements on dermatology-related public health issues including climate change, access to care, HPV vaccination, and herpes zoster vaccination.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• American Academy of DermatologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ADA was responsible for the development of the American Academy of Dermatology. Both organizations collaborate on dermatologic initiatives and the ADA's archives are maintained at the AAD headquarters in Rosemont, Illinois.
• American Board of DermatologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ADA was instrumental in establishing the American Board of Dermatology and Syphilology in 1932. Since 1934, ADA membership has required Board Certification.
• Society for Investigative DermatologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ADA contributed to the formation of the Society for Investigative Dermatology in 1937 to accommodate research work in dermatology published in non-dermatologic journals.
• American Academy of OphthalmologymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerADA co-sponsored the American Academy of Ophthalmology's recommendation on Herpes Zoster (Shingles) vaccination for patients 50 years and older - the ADA's first public health statement.
• American Cancer SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerADA co-sponsored the American Cancer Society's HPV Vaccine Policy, addressing vaccination against human papillomavirus.
• American Dermatological Association Research and Education Fund (ADARE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerADARE is the 501(c)(3) research and education fund of the ADA, established in 1957 to promote research in dermatology, provide grants to medical students, residents, and fellows, and support lectureships and historical archives.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• American Board of Dermatology: Certifying body for U.S. dermatologists, established in 1932 with ADA's sponsorship. ADA membership has required ABD certification since 1934, making it a structurally intertwined peer serving the same dermatologist audience.
• Women's Dermatologic Society: U.S. dermatology society organized around a member segment of board-certified dermatologists. Comparable model: membership society, annual meeting, awards, and advocacy for a defined dermatologist cohort.
• Society for Investigative Dermatology: Research-focused dermatology society founded in 1937 with ADA's direct involvement. Highly comparable as a specialty society serving academic dermatologists, with overlapping leadership and member bases.
• American College of Mohs Surgery: U.S. specialty society for Mohs surgeons (a dermatology subspecialty). Comparable operating model — small membership organization, annual meeting, fellowship standards — and overlapping dermatologist member pool.
• American Academy of Dermatology: Largest U.S. dermatology professional society with 20,000+ members. Founded from ADA in 1938 and shares governance overlap, joint policy work, and houses ADA's archives — the closest functional and historical peer.
• American Osteopathic College of Dermatology: Osteopathic specialty college for dermatology. A smaller but directly comparable professional society serving board-certified dermatologists with annual meetings, CME, and advocacy work.

Regional players

• European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology: Europe's largest dermatology specialty society. Functions as a direct functional peer for ADA — annual congress, CME, policy statements, research grants — but operates across a different geography.
• British Association of Dermatologists: The primary U.K. national dermatology society with analogous mission (research, education, advocacy, annual meeting). Comparable in structure and offerings though geographically distinct from ADA's U.S./Canada footprint.

Broad incumbents

• American Medical Association: Umbrella professional association under which ADA's founders were organized. Comparable membership-society model at a multi-specialty scale; ADA's historian/journal lineage traces directly to the AMA's Archives of Dermatology.
• American Academy of Ophthalmology: Large specialty society that co-sponsored ADA's first public health statement (Herpes Zoster vaccination). Functions as an analogous specialty society at much greater scale — useful benchmark for ADA's broader ambitions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about American Dermatological Association