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Health equity

Everyone deserves a fair opportunity to get the medicine, vaccines, and clinical services they need to live a healthier life, but unfortunately that’s not the reality for millions of underserved people around the world. Racial and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and rural residents are just a few of the groups that face considerable barriers to quality care.

Watch this video to gain a deeper understanding of the disparities that exist in healthcare and what we can do together to make a difference. It captures what health equity means to us and provides a glimpse into the important work our team members are doing to create healthier futures in communities far and wide. Links to versions with translated captions are also included below.

"In addition to shaping the culture of our organization and inspiring our 44,000 team members around the world, our commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion compels us to address the systemic barriers that exist within the healthcare ecosystem, reduce the disparities that unjustly impact vulnerable communities, and empower more equitable health outcomes for all patients."

Steve Collis
Chairman, President, and CEO

Steve Collis

Advancing health access globally and health equity locally

To ensure the change we’re making is maximized and meaningful as we move forward, we’ve developed a strategic framework to guide our health equity initiatives. Our teams across the enterprise can use this framework to develop holistic plans that address each of the following activation pillars to be more intentional about improving outcomes for our team members and in our communities.

  • Healthcare services
  • Strategic partnerships
  • Awareness and advocacy
  • Employee resource groups
  • Benefit design

4.2 million

doses of COVID-19 vaccine allocated in FY22 — primarily in areas with a high social vulnerability score

36,100

direct-to-patient clinical trial shipments delivered worldwide in FY22

10%

reduction in hospital readmission using language translation on nearly 5,000 calls in FY22

1,200

individuals tested in FY22 with 900 identified as having underlying conditions

90%

of hire rate for students in the Xavier University of Louisiana sales course in FY22

1st

Disparities in Cancer Care Summit hosted in August 2022
 
An independent pharmacy team administering COVID-19 vaccinations via drive-thru

Going the extra mile to ensure equitable COVID-19 vaccinations

COVID-19 vaccine allocation is secured for independent pharmacies and resources are offered to help them target high-risk and vulnerable groups.
A delivery person transporting a package containing clinical trial medicine

Direct-to-patient logistics holds the key to expanding access to new treatments

Shipping supplies and investigational medicinal products directly to patients’ homes enables more diverse clinical research trials.
A translator provides language translation services over the phone

Tearing down language barriers by offering real-time translation to patients

By partnering with a global vendor to provide language translation services, patients are able to connect fluently with care providers in 60 different languages.
A care provider performing a test on a patient

Preventative screening for diabetes and cardiovascular disease reaches rural Romania

A traveling caravan brings healthcare to rural localities and provides those underserved communities with testing, consultations, and education.
A Black female pharmacy student working in a classroom

Empowering the next generation of pharmacists to bring culturally competent care to Black communities

Xavier University of Louisiana launches an APPE course that gives students hands-on experience improving patient outcomes.
Attendees at the Disparities in Cancer Care Summit

Addressing disparities in cancer care to improve patient outcomes

A diverse group of stakeholders unites around a common goal of fostering discussion and collaborating to address pressing issues related to equitable cancer care for all patients.

Tracking progress and being fully transparent

Built into our health equity strategic framework is a new system of measurement that will quantify our global contributions — the Health Equity Index. As we put our initiatives into the framework, we’ll be able to measure the tangible impact we have on our team members and communities around the world. This includes the number of people in underserved groups who gained access to healthcare or the decrease in specific health disparities. These metrics will be reviewed on a yearly basis, validated through a third party, shared in our annual DEI Report, and used to shape our long-term DEI goals.

Working together to advance health equity

As the critical link between pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers, we have an extraordinary opportunity to engage our team members and partners for broader equity and impact in healthcare.
A care provider helping a patient understand a new treatment