Brand story
Five lessons from the healthcare supply chain’s response to COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has tested the resiliency of the healthcare supply chain. At AmerisourceBergen, we have long recognized that partnerships, data, efficiency, and sheer human spirit are vital components to ensuring supply chain stability and meeting our customers’ needs.
Be prepared for anything
As the pandemic took hold in the United States, AmerisourceBergen’s newly formed COVID-19 task force focused energies on maintaining inventory and stabilizing the supply chain
- We implemented PPE requirements and introduced increased cleaning protocols and temperature checks for our distribution center associates. Our office-based associates transitioned to remote work.
- We leveraged pre-established business continuity and crisis response plans—that had proven results during natural disasters—to ensure seamless continuation of labor and transportation. Our line of action allowed us to manage both COVID and an earthquake near our Salt Lake City distribution center.
- As state and local governments issued stay-at-home mandates, our daily orders spiked from 4M to 6.5M so patients could continue to access a full supply of their prescriptions.
- When the FDA issued emergency use authorization for SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, we secured 150 ultra-low-temperature freezers. In addition to our existing 16,240 square feet of dedicated frozen product storage space, this made us ready to transport and store vaccines.
Data enables innovation
The COVID-19 pandemic forced all participants in the healthcare supply chain to accelerate and expand how we use data to meet patient needs
- AmerisourceBergen utilized data to adjust our allocation strategy to accommodate areas and health systems in the United States with the highest demand for certain products—such as sedatives, inhalers, and antivirals used for COVID-19 therapies.
- From hospital capacity to real-time data from Johns Hopkins, we think like epidemiologists to track community spread of COVID-19. This abundance of data predicts demands, helping our manufacturer partners plan operations 30, 60, and even 90 days in advance.
- Existing data paired with intelligent modeling guides manufacturers’ long-term plans for 2021 and beyond.
Partnerships are key to success
Goal-oriented, strategic relationships give patients sufficient access to the medications and care they need, where they need it
- Customers along the healthcare supply chain rely on the products and services distributors provide. It’s crucial that any disruptions to operations cannot impact our ability to deliver. AmerisourceBergen communicates regularly with our customers and manufacturer partners on how we have evolved to meet needs during this unpredictable time.
- We continue to develop and deepen relationships with manufacturers, non-profits, and governments to enable faster distribution and a more durable supply chain. Public-private partnerships with the United States federal government, FDA, FEMA, HHS, and state governments have been crucial to meet shifting demands.
- Our partnership with Healthcare Ready allows us to support the Essential Medicines Strategic Stockpile Act of 2020, which disseminates pharmaceuticals to high-infection areas in the United States.
- Globally, the AmerisourceBergen family of companies has built strong partnerships in the fight against COVID-19. Innomar Strategies is partnering with the Canadian government to provide specialized cold-chain packaging and vaccine distribution capabilities. World Courier is working with multiple international governments to support the business continuity of the biopharma supply chain.
Pharmaceuticals are efficient and effective
Modern pharmacotherapy improves lives, prevents some of the most devastating diseases, and inspires bold research to find better treatments for COVID-19 and other complex medical conditions
- The delivery and use of pharmaceuticals continue to be the most efficient form of healthcare.
- Our distribution model enables turnkey pharmaceutical access and allows AmerisourceBergen to be an effective and efficient partner to tens of thousands of community providers nationwide.
- As the FDA issued Emergency Use Authorizations (EUA) for Veklury (remdesivir) and monoclonal antibodies and other COVID-19 therapies, AmerisourceBergen partnered with the United States government and manufacturers to facilitate the swift movement of those therapies to sites of care.
- Good Neighbor Pharmacy and Elevate Provider Network are participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to distribute vaccines to their local communities across the United States. This will enable people living in some of the most rural communities to have access to COVID-19 vaccines.
The human spirt is resilient
We're proud of all we've accomplished, but we're most proud of our people and their tireless effort to get therapies where they are needed during these trying times
- Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, our frontline team members have gone above and beyond to enable the delivery of continuous care.
- From our distribution center teams to our associates working from home, and from our manufacturer and provider customers to our network of independent community pharmacies, countless examples of everyday, humble heroism show we are doing our part to help end the pandemic around the world.
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“It's been very humbling for me to see the empathy and the support from our entire company. There's this continual focus on asking, How can we be better? How can we treat more patients? How can we live the purpose of AmerisourceBergen? There are days where we get personal outreach from patients as a thank you. And they'll say, 'It was my grandfather, or my niece, or my nephew, or my wife, or myself, who received this therapy.' It's very touching and powerful to be a part of that."
- Heather Zenk, RPh, PharmD, Senior Vice President, Strategic Global Sourcing