Pharmaceutical Companies Donate Nearly $130 Million To Hurricane Victims Along the Gulf Coast
December 13, 2005
Washington, DC – In an effort to streamline the process of providing much-needed prescription medicines to hurricane victims along the Gulf Coast, PhRMA and the Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) will make it easier for people from devastated areas to enroll in established patient assistance programs.
“We want to make certain that every single person who needs help gets it during the difficult weeks and months ahead,” said PhRMA President and CEO Billy Tauzin, who represented parts of the devastated Gulf Coast region for 25 years in Congress. “These people include an estimated 400,000 unemployed residents of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama as well as tens of thousands of additional people who could be displaced by Hurricane Rita when she moves ashore. We’re here to offer a helping hand at a time when so many people need it the most.”
The Partnership for Prescription Assistance, funded by America’s pharmaceutical research companies in partnership with more than 1,200 healthcare providers and community groups nationwide, is committed to providing access to free or nearly free drugs to millions of Americans who are uninsured, underinsured or low-income. Since its launch on April 5, nearly 1 million people have been matched to a private or public patient assistance program.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, PhRMA’s member companies have donated nearly $130 million in refrigerated insulin, vaccines, antibiotics, antiseptics, non-prescription pain relievers and other drugs, wound care products, surgical equipment, millions of cans of infant formula, tens of thousands of personal care kits, a wide range of other supplies and large amounts of cash.
Hurricane Katrina contributions also have included three 80-foot long “labs on wheels” that provide health care staffs working at mobile hospitals with the most modern diagnostic equipment, an emergency diabetes clinic at Louisiana State University’s Pennington Medical Center, company aircraft to transport critically ill patients to emergency treatment centers and tens of thousands of doses of tetanus vaccine for both victims and emergency relief workers.
The contributions have been made directly to ravaged areas and to the American Red Cross, AmeriCares, the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation and other public and private relief organizations.
The following is a summary of company contributions to date:
ABBOTT
- Provided $2 million in cash donations to key relief organizations.
- Donated and shipped $4.5 million in nutritional, medical and pharmaceutical products to help victims of the disaster.
- Three 80-foot-long “labs on wheels” are providing healthcare staff working at mobile hospitals with the latest advanced diagnostic equipment.
AMGEN
- Has committed to $2.5 million in corporate donations to support general relief efforts and to organizations that support patients.
- In addition, the Amgen Foundation donated $275,000 to be divided among America’s Second Harvest, the American Red Cross of Ventura County, the American Red Cross Alabama Gulf Coast Chapter, the American Red Cross Mississippi Gulf Coast Chapter and the American Red Cross Southeast Louisiana Chapter.
- Also, Amgen's hurricane-related matching gifts program has so far raised $1 million – half of that contributed by Amgen staff members, the other half a match from the Amgen Foundation.
- Working to ensure uninterrupted distribution of products to suppliers, physicians and most importantly, patients in the impacted areas.
AMYLIN
- Donated $100,000 to the American Red Cross and will match all employee contributions up to an additional $100,000.
- Also donating $50,000 to the Pennington Medical Center at the Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge for the establishment of an emergency diabetes clinic to serve individuals who are now homeless or unable to access proper care and medications.
ASTELLAS
ASTRAZENECA
- Initial cash donation of $1 million to the American Red Cross.
- Will provide up to $5 million in free medicine to victims of Hurricane Katrina.
- Provided a $250,000 donation to support an emergency psychiatric assistance program that aids community mental health centers in states across the country that are reaching out to displaced and relocated hurricane evacuees with serious mental illnesses.
- Will match company employee donations to the American Red Cross dollar-for-dollar.
- Will continue to provide free medicines to patients and clinics through the company’s Patient Assistance and Caring Partners Programs, and to national and local disaster relief organizations aiding hurricane-affected areas.
BAYER
- Donations have doubled since their initial pledge and are now close to $4 million in cash and goods.
- Donated and shipped two tractor-trailer loads of materials including employee-donated supplies, over-the-counter products and blood glucose monitors.
- Will match Bayer employee donations dollar-for-dollar, which will then be donated to the American Red Cross. Employees have already donated $381,581.
BERLEX
- Will match employees’ contributions to the American Red Cross.
- Company will contribute products free-of-charge through October 31 to pharmacies that are donating prescription medications to the victims of Hurricane Rita and Katrina.
BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM
- Cash donations up to $600,000 to aid various relief and charitable organizations.
- More than $2 million in free branded and multisource product donations have been designated to clinics and patients. Will continue to make substantial donations as needs are assessed.
- Funded a mobile medical clinic operated by AmeriCares Free Clinics, which was requested to provide medical assistance in Louisiana.
- Supporting the relief initiatives of our Pharmacy Retail Partners. Initiatives include providing free product for those individuals displaced by this disaster.
- Additionally, the company has taken extra steps to ensure that its Patient Assistance Program can quickly respond to patients in the impacted area.
BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB
- Donated $1.1 million in cash to the American Red Cross.
- Product donations valued at over $2 million (through our relief agency partners Direct Relief International, Project HOPE, and Americares).
- Donations of over $450,000 to the American Red Cross through the company’s Employee Matching Gift program, which matches U.S. employees’ contributions dollar for dollar. To date, over 2,400 employees have participated in this program.
- Mead Johnson & Company has donated approximately $700,000 worth of infant formula, children’s nutritional products and feeding accessories.
- Through Convatec, the company is donating ostomy, wound care and skin care (no-rinse bathing cloths) products worth approximately $200,000 for the aid of Hurricane Katrina victims.
CEPHALON
- Matching employee donations to hurricane relief organizations.
- Donating product to emergency workers that treats excessive sleepiness associated with shift work sleep disorder.
DAIICHI
- Donating $10,000 to the American Red Cross.
- Company match of employee contributions will result in an additional $25,690 for relief efforts.
EISAI
- Donating a total of $1.25 million in cash -- $1 million from parent company Eisai Co., Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, and $250,000 from Eisai U.S.
- Will also match employee donations.
ELI LILLY
- Donated $1 million to the American Red Cross.
- Donated $1 million in insulin products to Heart to Heart.
- Additional $2.2 million in direct shipments of insulin and mental health products to more than 53 hospitals, clinics, and health care centers in 10 different states.
- Donated more than $284,000 from employees to the American Red Cross through the company's employee matching gift fund program, which matches employees' contributions dollar-for-dollar. Approximately, 1,350 U.S. employees have donated.
- Company is providing 2-weeks paid leave for its employees who volunteer to assist in relief efforts.
- Entered into agreements with retail pharmacies to dispense free Lilly medicines to those affected by the hurricane.
GENZYME
- Will make product donations.
- Matching employee contribution program.
GLAXOSMITHKLINE
- Donated one million dollars to relief funds -- $500,000 to the American Red Cross, $250,000 to the Mississippi Hurricane Fund and $250,000 to the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation.
- Donated $7 million dollars in prescription drug products including medicines for diabetes, heart disease, antibiotics, asthma and vaccines.
- International relief organizations are distributing $1.5 million of GSK medicines to hospitals and shelters.
- Consumer products such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, antacids and pain relievers are also being donated.
- Matching employee contributions through gift program and United Way.
JOHNSON & JOHNSON
- Donating $5 million in cash to various relief and charitable organizations.
- In addition, donated approximately $4.4 million worth of essential disaster relief products including personal care kits and Disaster Relief Modules to MAP International.
- Donations have included non-prescription pain relievers, wound care products, prescription medicines and surgical products.
- Working closely with disaster relief organizations to meet the immediate needs for personal care and medical products and determine ongoing requirements.
- Matching employee and retiree donations to relief organizations. Donations will be matched dollar-for-dollar.
MERCK
- The Merck Company Foundation made an immediate $1 million donation to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund to support relief efforts associated with Hurricane Katrina.
- To date, Merck has donated more than U.S. $10.8 million in medicines and vaccines to assist Hurricane Katrina relief efforts across 10 states.
- This includes nearly $10.1 million in vaccines and more than $725,000 in non-vaccine pharmaceutical products. Included in our vaccine donations is a donation of 1,470 doses of hepatitis B vaccine for AmeriCorps volunteers headed to the Gulf Coast.
- In the aftermath of Hurricane Rita, Merck is working closely with the Departments of Health of Texas and Louisiana and the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services to assess the need for donated Merck vaccines, antibiotics and other necessary medicines. At the same time, we continue to work with state and local officials to assess the on-going needs in the states affected by Hurricane Katrina.
- Merck also has made a commitment to replace prescription medicines for patients (through retail pharmacies or Merck's U.S. Patient Assistance Program) who may have lost their existing prescriptions as a result of the two hurricanes. This program has been extended to include patients impacted by Hurricane Rita and will now run through October 15.
- U.S.-based Merck employees and retirees may make cash contributions to relief agencies responding to the disaster through the Company's matching funds program. Donations made through this program will be matched dollar for dollar with funds from The Merck Company Foundation.
MILLENNIUM
- Employees have contributed more than $17,000 to the American Red Cross and AmeriCares.
- Through VELCADE Reimbursement Hotline, Millennium is working with physicians and patients to locate new treatment facilities and care for displaced patients.
NOVARTIS
- Donated more than $10.5 million dollars in pharmaceutical and over-the-counter products, including infant and baby and nutritional products.
- Donated $1 million dollars cash to relief efforts, which includes employee donations, company dollar-for-dollar matching gifts, and US Novartis Group Companies corporate contributions.
- Working with local government officials and third party organizations to ship products (AmeriCares, American Red Cross).
NOVO NORDISK
- Donating $1 million, with half the monetary donation to provide immediate care for people with diabetes and the other half for general relief efforts.
- Donated and shipped $3.8 million worth of insulin products and delivery devices into the Gulf Coast area.
- Will provide clinics and shelters with refrigerators and generators as needed.
- Will match all personal employee donations to the American Red Cross through November 30, 2005.
ORGANON
- Will make cash donations.
- Matching employee donations.
- Independently raising money for relief efforts.
OTSUKA
- Cash donation to the American Red Cross.
- Other Otsuka Group companies in the U.S. have donated additional funds.
- Made product donations to hurricane victims in the area.
PFIZER
- To date, Pfizer has contributed over $9 million in cash contributions from the company, its employees and the Pfizer Foundation as well as the donation of medicines, consumer and animal health products. Product donations total more than $5.3 million.
- Providing Pfizer medicines to patients at shelters and relief sites through Pfizer hospital partners in Baton Rouge, Houston, and Dallas.
- Donating anti-infective medicines and first-aid supplies, including the antibiotic Neosporin, among other consumer products.
- Ensuring that patients displaced by displaced by Katrina can obtain emergency supplies of their Pfizer medicines through a pharmacy partnership program.
- More than $2 million donated as part of a matching fund program.
PROCTER & GAMBLE
- Donated $8 million in combined cash and products.
- Shipped more than 130 truckloads of product to victims of Hurricane Katrina.
- Continuing to work with the American Red Cross to assess additional needs.
- Encouraging employees to contribute to the American Red Cross.
PURDUE PHARMA
- Will match donations made by employees to the American Red Cross and AmeriCares, up to $50,000.
- Working with AmeriCares to provide medications such as antibiotics and antiseptics ($800,000 worth of Betadine).
ROCHE
- Matching employees’ time off for up to five days of volunteer service with The American Red Cross, The Salvation Army or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ volunteer program through the Offices of the Surgeon General and Public Health Emergency Preparedness.
- Providing special aid to Roche employees in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.
- Providing Roche products to eligible individuals through existing Patient Assistance Program (http://www.rocheusa.com/programs/patientassist.asp), at no charge.
- Supporting retail chain pharmacies in their provision of free drug to hurricane evacuees, as necessary.
- Providing HIV products, such as Fuzeon® (enfuvirtide) and Invirase® (saquinavir), to state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs) that are assisting displaced patients from the ADAP programs in the affected areas.
- Providing immunosuppressive drugs, such as CellCept® (mycophenolate mofetil) and Valcyte™ (valganciclovir), to transplant centers and hospitals for transplant recipients who have lost their medications or who have been made indigent by the disaster.
- Donating the antibiotic Rocephin® (ceftriaxone sodium), for emergency use including, quantities to Project Hope, which is providing medical assistance to victims of the hurricane.
- Matching employee contributions to the American Red Cross to support Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
SANKYO PHARMA
- $100,000 corporate contribution to the American Red Cross.
- Creation of a special fund, Sankyo Shares, an employee-to-employee assistance program set up for Sankyo employees to help their colleagues living and working in the New Orleans area to recover from the disaster.
- Direct product contributions to a disaster relief organization which manages distribution in areas where the need is most urgent.
- 100% company match for donations made to qualified relief organizations.
SANOFI-AVENTIS
- Will donate $500,000 to the children’s hospitalof New Orleansto help re-open and address the healthcare needs of children.
- Will donate $500,000 to Save the Children to address the mental health needs of children throughout the GulfCoastregion.
- To date, the company has donated more than $4 million worth of products.
- Within days of the catastrophe, the company had successfully delivered over 10,000 vials of our diabetes treatment to the Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans. Nearly 20,000 additional vials of Lantus have also been delivered recently to the disaster area through bulk and much needed individual shipments, and the company is continuing to receive and fulfill requests on a daily basis.
- sanofi pasteur, the vaccines business of the company, has donated 200,000 doses of influenza vaccine.
- Also donated tens of thousands of doses of tetanus vaccine for use by victims and emergency responders as well as a variety of pediatric vaccines.
- Matching employee donations.
- Continuing to deliver many essential medicines including sleep aids, antibiotics, heart medications and cancer treatments to those in need.
SCHERING-PLOUGH
- Donated $5 million in medicines and other products.
- $500,000 cash contribution including $150,000 to the Children’s Health Fund.
- Converted 15,000 square feet of office space in Schering-Plough's Memphis, Tennessee location into a Red Cross "satellite" service center in partnership with the local Memphis Red Cross office. Hundreds of families are receiving services at the facility, which will stay open as long as needed.
- Waiving certain PAP program requirements for patients in affected areas.
- Company employee match program.
SCHWARZ PHARMA
- Donated $50,000 to the American Red Cross.
- Providing up to $100,000 of free product to support hurricane victims.
- Pledged additional donation to the American Red Cross via employee match program. Employees have already donated more than $25,000.
SEPRACOR
- Offering a matching gift program.
SERONO
- Offering a matching gift program.
- Assisting employees who have been impacted in the regions of the hurricane.
- Assessing needs of victims and donating products as necessary.
SOLVAY
- Over $100,000 donated to American Red Cross as part of company’s employee match program.
- Participating in a number of product donation efforts through retailers and working with alliances to provide prescription drugs to individuals along the gulf coast. Also donating first aid kits.
TAKEDA
- Cash donation of $200,000 to the American Red Cross.
- Donating products.
- Matching employee contributions.
3M
- 3M contributions to Hurricane Katrina Relief efforts have reached $2.5 million, including $1 million in product donations, more than $750,000 in employee and retiree contributions and a $750,000 company match.
- Product donations to date include: 3M Particulate Respirators, 3M Ultrathon Insect Repellent, Nexcare Bandages and other medical products.
VALEANT
- Match employee donations.
- Donate appropriate medicines to relief efforts.
- Provide support for any affected employees.
- Allow time off for employees that want to provide assistance.
WYETH
- Donating $1 million, which will be distributed to several organizations including the American Red Cross and the Children’s Health Fund.
- Established two initiatives to help provide access to prescription medications to victims who have been tragically affected by Hurricane Katrina.
- Working with major retail pharmacies to provide free replacement products to hurricane victims. Hundreds of independent pharmacies have also expressed interest.
- Matching employee donations to the American Red Cross.
- Donating needed pharmaceutical products to relief efforts.
PhRMA
- Matching all employee donations.
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country’s leading pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines that allow patients to live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. PhRMA members alone invested an estimated $38.8 billion in 2004 in discovering and developing new medicines. PhRMA companies are leading the way in the search for new cures.
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