PITTSBURGH, May 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Viatris Inc. (NASDAQ:
VTRS), a new kind of healthcare company formed in November 2020, today released its inaugural
sustainability report, reinforcing its strong foundation in
corporate social responsibility and commitment to doing its part to
address some of the world's most pressing health needs by providing
sustainable access to high-quality medicine, regardless of
geography or circumstance. The report provides a comprehensive,
enterprise-wide overview of Viatris' operations as they relate to
environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters and outlines
efforts from the past year across five key areas of impact:
patient health, employee health, environmental health, global
public health and community health. The report also includes a
deeper look at Viatris' role in the fight against COVID-19.
Viatris CEO Michael Goettler
said: "With only about half of the global population able to
receive essential health services – a figure further exacerbated by
the COVID-19 pandemic – there is much to be done to ensure
sustainable access to medicines worldwide.1 At Viatris,
our global platform and broad portfolio uniquely position us to
make a difference. Sustainability is fundamental to our mission and
essential to the achievement of our overall business priorities. We
believe that companies can be a force for good, which is why
Viatris is a proud signatory to the UN Global Compact and its 10
principles."
Among the areas of focus addressed in the report, Viatris'
actions included:
Fight Against COVID-19
- Supporting the health and safety of colleagues and their
families around the world as a top priority.
- Participating in the World Health Organization's (WHO)
SOLIDARITY trial, an unprecedented global effort to investigate
potential remedies.
- Ramping up production of the antiviral medicine remdesivir and
continuing to work with government authorities in India to further reduce the cost of the
medicines and educate more than 20,000 healthcare professionals
about product usage during second COVID wave in 2021.
Patient Health
- Establishing the Global Healthcare Gateway® which offers
partners ready access to the Viatris operating platform, expanding
patients' access to medicine and amplifying our organic R&D
efforts.
- Meeting the broadest possible set of patient needs through our
own R&D efforts while maintaining an unwavering commitment to
quality and compliance. Among many other accomplishments, in 2020,
we received WHO prequalification (PQ) approval for five new
products for infectious disease: one for HIV, two for hepatitis C,
and two for TB. Prequalification allows for U.N. and other
multilateral donor procurement, and accelerated registration
processes in low-and lower-middle-income countries.
Employee Health
- Sustaining dual focus on employee health and wellness, and
talent development. Transitioned ~10,000 employees to remote work
and adhered to protocols to keep those working onsite safe – while
introducing new resources like on-demand and virtual instructor-led
training where 68,000 courses were completed, and 1,000 leaders
were trained on the company's new coaching model.
- Expanding company-wide efforts to strengthen diversity and
inclusion, including creating the organization's first four
Employee Resource Groups around Blacks, Women, LGBTQ+ and Working
Parents.
Environmental Health
- Committing to executing scenario and risk analysis to establish
a new company baseline for climate change, water and waste.
Outcomes will inform future targets in each area, including
science-based targets and strategies.
- Increasing the use of renewable energy by more than 400% in
five years and achieving zero-waste to-landfill at two additional
facilities in India, bringing our
global total to 13 sites with this status.
Global Public Health
- Engaging with more than 100 trade associations in more than 40
countries on topics including generics, biosimilars, originator
brands, OTC, medical technologies and devices, food supplements,
consumer health and industry groups. Held executive roles in more
than 25 industry associations, educating and influencing at global,
regional and local levels.
- Pursuing policy advocacy priorities, engaging with partners,
patient advocacy groups and industry associations to preserve
access to quality medicines, build healthier markets, and
strengthen a safe and resilient supply of treatments across
borders.
Community Health
- Donating more than 500 million doses of medicine in a variety
of therapeutic areas to those in need around the world affected by
emergencies or poverty. Made product donations including needles
and insulin pens and HIV self-tests.
- Collaborating with Sesame Workshop to create resources to
support the social and emotional needs of families across
generations and around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, the company cited areas of unique benefit to its
future, including:
- Engaging employees as the primary drivers of the company's
performance objectives.
- Embedding sustainability throughout the business – from
strategy to operations – as opposed to treating it as a program or
campaign.
View our full 2020 Sustainability Report: "Because Good Health
Matters to Everyone, Everywhere."
Lara Ramsburg, Head of Corporate
Affairs, added: "Our first sustainability report has allowed us to
truly examine and strengthen efforts across the organization to
make a positive impact and operate responsibly. Our commitment to
sustainability is a fundamental driver of our performance. Because
we know that good health matters to everyone, everywhere, we are
dedicated to doing our part to make a meaningful difference in the
lives of patients, our colleagues and in communities around the
world."
The content and activities presented in the report demonstrate
how Viatris is working to empower people worldwide to live
healthier at every stage of life. The publication reinforces the
company's ambition to lead as a new kind of healthcare company with
a unique and differentiated business model, high-quality
operational platform and clear focus on ensuring its sustainability
priorities and financial commitments are met.
Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the company will continue to
provide regular updates on its sustainability efforts via its
website and social platforms. Our priorities remain protecting the
health and safety of our workforce; producing critically needed
medicines; deploying our resources and expertise through potential
prevention and treatment efforts; and supporting the communities in
which we operate.
Additional Resources:
- Viatris 2020 Sustainability Report
- Viatris 2020 Sustainability Report Fact Sheet
- Viatris Corporate Social Responsibility Web Resource
1 Sustainable Development Goal 3
About Viatris
Viatris Inc. (NASDAQ: VTRS) is a
new kind of healthcare company, empowering people worldwide to live
healthier at every stage of life. We provide access to medicines,
advance sustainable operations, develop innovative solutions and
leverage our collective expertise to connect more people to more
products and services through our one-of-a-kind Global Healthcare
Gateway®. Formed in November 2020,
Viatris brings together scientific, manufacturing and distribution
expertise with proven regulatory, medical and commercial
capabilities to deliver high-quality medicines to patients in more
than 165 countries and territories. Viatris' portfolio comprises
more than 1,400 approved molecules across a wide range of
therapeutic areas, spanning both non-communicable and infectious
diseases, including globally recognized brands, complex generic and
branded medicines, a growing portfolio of biosimilars and a variety
of over-the-counter consumer products. With a global workforce of
approximately 45,000, Viatris is headquartered in the U.S., with
global centers in Pittsburgh,
Shanghai and Hyderabad, India. Learn more at
viatris.com and investor.viatris.com, and connect with us on
Twitter at @ViatrisInc, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release
includes statements that constitute "forward-looking statements."
These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward
looking statements may include statements about Viatris' ESG
initiatives. Because forward-looking statements inherently involve
risks and uncertainties, actual future results may differ
materially from those expressed or implied by such statements.
Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include,
but are not limited to: the potential impact of public health
outbreaks, epidemics and pandemics, including the ongoing
challenges and uncertainties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic; the
integration of Mylan N.V. and Pfizer Inc.'s Upjohn business (the
"Upjohn Business"), which combined to form Viatris (the
"Combination") and the implementation of our global restructuring
initiatives being more difficult, time consuming or costly than
expected, or being unsuccessful; the ability to achieve expected
benefits, synergies and operating efficiencies in connection with
the Combination or its restructuring initiatives within the
expected timeframe or at all; actions and decisions of healthcare
and pharmaceutical regulators; changes in healthcare and
pharmaceutical laws and regulations in the U.S. and abroad; any
regulatory, legal or other impediments to Viatris' ability to bring
new products to market, including but not limited to "at-risk"
launches; Viatris' or its partners' ability to develop, manufacture
and commercialize products; the scope, timing and outcome of any
ongoing legal proceedings and the impact of any such proceedings;
any significant breach of data security or data privacy or
disruptions to our information technology systems; risks associated
with international operations, including our operations in
China; the ability to protect
intellectual property and preserve intellectual property rights;
changes in third-party relationships; the effect of any changes in
Viatris' or its partners' customer and supplier relationships and
customer purchasing patterns; the impacts of competition; changes
in the economic and financial conditions of Viatris or its
partners; uncertainties and matters beyond the control of
management; and the other risks Viatris' filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Viatris routinely uses its
website as a means of disclosing material information to the public
in a broad, non-exclusionary manner for purposes of the SEC's
Regulation Fair Disclosure (Reg FD). Viatris undertakes no
obligation to update these statements for revisions or changes
after the date of this release other than as required by law.
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SOURCE Viatris Inc.