Advancing global health
Expanding access to care around the world is at the heart of what we do and is exemplified by our team members’ dedication to our purpose. It takes a targeted approach to create healthier futures, and we accomplish that through both our business and philanthropic strategies to impact as many lives as possible. Through the efforts of our health equity working group, we are weaving equity considerations throughout our business. Whether it’s through an innovative solution or working closely with our partners, we carry out our purpose every day as we work in service of our customers, their patients, and our shared communities.
Facilitating innovation and collaboration
Contributing to the future of quality global care relies on curiosity and innovation. In 2022, we created AB Health Ventures, a dedicated corporate venture capital fund, now known as Cencora Ventures, to help identify entrepreneurs who are looking to revolutionize healthcare with us. By investing in innovative healthcare start-ups, we will spark new ideas, generate additional value, accelerate product development, and bring forward potential solutions that will benefit our customers. Cencora Ventures has committed to donating 10% of future realized profits to support the efforts of the Cencora Impact Foundation and its continued work to improve healthcare access globally.
In FY23, we established a Health Equity Working Group to oversee and drive the many initiatives that are being developed and carried out at Cencora to address issues around access to healthcare. This group consists of 16 senior leaders from various roles across the organization, and they meet regularly to create strategic alignment and move this important work forward.
To further fuel innovative ideation, our Global Products and Solutions team hosts a Community of Practice (CoP) to foster a collaborative product culture that gives team members the guidance and the tools to be part of innovation at Cencora, and provides opportunities to network and problem solve across the organization as we continue to globally integrate. The CoP has grown to more than 1,100 team members, who are invited to meet monthly to discuss products in development and share best practices.
Photo: International Medical Corps
Cencora Healthier Futures Grant Program
Photo: International Medical Corps
Additionally, the Cencora Impact Foundation launched the Cencora Healthier Futures Grant Program to identify opportunities to support those on the frontlines of healthcare in underserved populations who are driving innovation in global health. Targeted donations will support charities around the world that are advancing access to care and directly impacting communities in need. The inaugural donation was a $500,000 grant made to the UNICEF Health Fund. The fund focuses on programs and system-wide responses that aim to reduce the number of maternal and newborn deaths, provide children with immunizations, reduce malnutrition, address adolescent mental health, and combat the rise of non-communicable diseases.
Photo: International Medical Corps
“We are grateful for support from the Cencora Impact Foundation to help UNICEF deliver large-scale, sustainable results in ensuring the health of the world’s most vulnerable children.”
V. Renée Cutting
Chief Philanthropy Officer, UNICEF USA
Leading in times of health challenges
Cencora’s purpose drives us to action during supply disruptions. We collaborate across the supply chain and work with our suppliers, industry groups, nonprofits, government agencies, and our customers to advocate for patients. We also offer programs, like Sure Supply to support health systems’ access to high-risk or sensitive items. In urgent situations, our Customer Care and Replenishment Operations team members help facilitate patient access in shortage situations in various ways, including working with suppliers for reserved inventory or helping find other pharmacies that may have the medication on hand.
We continued to support COVID-19 vaccination efforts, including serving as a network administrator for the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to ensure our Good Neighbor Pharmacy independent pharmacy customers received access to vaccines. To date, Cencora has allocated more than 8 million COVD-19 vaccines to independent pharmacies participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program across the country. Approximately 50% of our pharmacies participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program were in areas with high to moderate social vulnerability, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We participated in this program until its end in FY23. In addition, we are distributing COVID-19 vaccines to our customers across the United States as vaccine distribution moved from a centralized, government-managed process to a traditional distribution model in September.
Antimicrobial resistance
As a healthcare leader, we are continuously focused on what we may face next as a global population, such as the growing public health issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The Cencora Impact Foundation contributed to the CDC Foundation’s AMR Fund to bring together partners and make meaningful progress in addressing AMR, including improving access to vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for better prevention, treatment, and detection.
In FY23, the Cencora Impact Foundation donated a grant that will support an in-person roundtable of global subject matter experts, policy makers, and industry partners on AMR. This will serve as a catalyst for the creation of a new annual survey that will support global data collection on current public awareness, understanding, and attitudes of AMR and antibiotic and antifungal use. The data from this survey will help accelerate progress towards achieving the goals outlined in WHO’s Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance and the U.S. National Action Plan to Combat Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. We continued to support World AMR Awareness Week, through activities in Alphega pharmacies to drive greater public awareness of the risks of AMR and promote the role of pharmacy stewardship.
We also continue to advocate for vaccine equity across the world. In 2022, the Cencora Impact Foundation made an initial grant to the United Nations Foundation’s Shot@Life campaign to protect marginalized communities from devastating vaccine-preventable diseases. In 2023, the Foundation increased its support to protect the health of refugees and internally displaced people globally, and to vaccinate approximately 400,000 children around the world against polio.
Our stories of purpose
Across the enterprise, our team members collaborate with each other and our partners to advance global health and save lives. Here are just a few of our stories from FY23 that show how we lived our purpose and created meaningful impact.
Expanding access to quality care
In FY23, Cencora patient services continued its mission to create healthier futures by helping more patients access critical therapies. Leveraging new technologies, our team was able to support:
- 1.1 million+ active patients
- 180,000+ active providers
- 300,000+ for Patient Assistance Program enrollment
- 400,000+ benefits verified
Partnering with Healthcare Ready in times of need
Our nonprofit partner, Healthcare Ready, leverages unique relationships with government, nonprofit, and medical supply chains to build and enhance the resiliency of communities before, during, and after disasters. They work to overcome health disparities caused by disasters and disease outbreaks so that everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic or medical status, can thrive after a hazardous event. During the simultaneous pediatric respiratory surge in 2023, Cencora and the Cencora Impact Foundation enabled Healthcare Ready to provide situation reports and critical tools, such as maps by state showing pediatric bed availability, to help decision-makers, healthcare providers, and patients understand how to best navigate and access care.
Empowering pharmacists in the fight against breast cancer
More than 228 Alphega pharmacies in Spain participated in a breast cancer awareness campaign in partnership with numerous organizations to provide care items, patient and family support resources, and a special webinar in Barcelona with Kalida Center, which provides emotional, social, and practical support for cancer patients and their loved ones. Additional support enabled community pharmacists in six European countries to access the Alphega Pharmacy Oncology Support Program, which upskills pharmacists to augment the advice and support they can offer patients living with cancer.
Overcoming supply chain disruptions through collaboration and action
In 2023, when a pharmaceutical manufacturer partner’s facility in North Carolina was struck by a tornado, our team was in contact with them within the hour, assuring that their team was safe and assessing the potential impact. We also hosted Angels for Change, a volunteer-supported organization on a mission to end drug shortages, at their SummitONE conference, which connected changemakers nationwide focused on providing equal drug access to patients in need. Attendees from health systems, patient advocacy groups, manufacturers, industry groups, and distributors shared knowledge and generated new ideas at the two-day event.
Evolving our operations in sync with pharmaceutical innovation
A pharmaceutical manufacturer entrusted Cencora and our dedicated World Courier team to transport a cutting-edge gene therapy from the U.S. to the UK to save the life of an infant born with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a rare genetic disease that leads to the progressive loss of muscle control and weakness. Utilizing a thermal container to maintain a consistent temperature and monitoring the shipment by GPS locator around the clock, we also ensured that each piece of documentation complied with local regulations in both countries to avoid any customs-related delays as the shipment successfully made its way to the patient.
Working seamlessly across our united enterprise
Our team members from ICS, part of the Cencora portfolio of companies, recently received an emergency shipment order from a client who was seeking treatment for an 18-month-old child in critical condition. With the product stored in ICS’ Brooks, KY distribution center, ICS enlisted the help of World Courier colleagues to support delivery to Montreal, Quebec the following day. In less than six hours, the emergency shipment order had been received, the drug had been packed, and it was on a flight to Montreal, resulting in a positive outcome for the patient.
Solving the complex challenges of global logistics
When an Australian patient with Pompe Disease, which can cause weakness in the heart and skeletal muscles, traveling in Greece needed access to a next generation medication listed on Australia’s Life-Saving Drug program, the pharmaceutical manufacturer called our World Courier teams in Australia and Greece to transport the time and temperature-sensitive medicine to Athens. This shipment involved a complex logistics plan that required careful execution and additional paperwork and compliance with regulations in both countries. Even when delays were encountered at customs, the team worked with extraordinary commitment to ensure the patient started the infusion treatment on time.
“This shows not only how World Courier supports our purpose to create healthier futures, but also our commitment to maintain quality of life for patients. This is what we call a “traveling patient” shipment, which allows patients to travel on holidays around the world and still be able to receive the essential treatments they need. We are taking ‘Direct-to-Patient’ to the ultimate level.”
Andrew McDonald
Country Manager, World Courier Australia
