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Sustainability Goals and Indicators
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Executive SummaryThe Bristol-Myers Squibb sustainability website addresses three main areas: our business context and the key issues we face as a health care company; our definition of and approach to sustainability; and our performance and how we report on our progress toward sustainability. We define sustainability as doing business in a manner that contributes meaningfully to strong communities, to a healthy environment and to economic prosperity, now and into the future. Business Context and IssuesBristol-Myers Squibb is a global health care leader that seeks to make a real difference in the lives of people all over the world, by discovering, developing and providing innovative pharmaceuticals and other health care products. We work together with others in government, academia, the private sector and the community to better understand and manage the issues that are most material to our company and of concern to our stakeholders. Product FocusMedicine and other health care products have saved and extended the lives of countless people throughout the world. Through innovation, the pharmaceutical industry has fundamentally changed the opportunity for patients to prevail in the face of serious diseases. Our industry must continue to discover and develop medicines and other treatments that will help meet the health care needs of people globally. We are a competitive industry, with strong demands for financial performance from our product portfolio to attract investment. As a result, our focus on diseases includes many that affect the entire world, including hepatitis, HIV/AIDs, diabetes and cancer. Access to Health CareThe health care industry is a heavily regulated industry around the world. We struggle with many of the complex and challenging issues facing society. These include striving to provide access to health care among people in developing countries and those who are uninsured or underinsured in the United States. Our products must be appropriately priced in a manner that allows them to be accessible to those who need them while providing enough revenue for the research and development of the next generation of medicines. Intellectual Property ProtectionIntellectual property law provides incentives for innovative pharmaceutical research through the issuance of patents. Patents provide protection for our company's intellectual property. Bristol-Myers Squibb invested $3.1 billion in 2006 in research and development, so the responsibility to secure our inventions is an integral part of our work and an obligation to our shareholders, our patients and our employees. IntegrityOur industry is expected to meet the highest levels of integrity and transparency. The expectation is that Bristol-Myers Squibb will go beyond compliance norms as needed to assure patients and doctors that our products are safe and effective. Our relationships with scientists, doctors, patients and business partners must be transparent and ethical. WorkplaceWe must remain focused on attracting and retaining the best employees, by offering competitive salaries and benefits, providing opportunities for professional development, supporting diversity in the workplace and creating a work environment that helps employees balance their responsibilities at work and at home. EnvironmentThe research and development, manufacturing, distribution and ultimate disposal of our products may have an impact on the natural environment. We actively seek opportunities to minimize our environmental impact and reduce waste. Bristol-Myers Squibb is focusing on multiple aspects of environmental performance, with particular attention on protecting the quality and availability of water and reducing greenhouse gas emissions through energy conservation. Supply ChainAs a purchaser of materials and services from others, we are called upon increasingly to monitor and encourage improvement of the environmental and workplace practices of our key suppliers and third-party manufacturers, by setting expectations through our audit process and other mechanisms. Our Material Sustainability IssuesBristol-Myers Squibb has worked with internal and external stakeholders to identify the following sustainability issues as most material to our company:
These five material issues are highlighted in our sustainability website, where we provide detailed information on the systems we have in place to manage these issues, our efforts to engage with stakeholders, our goals for the future and the results of our performance. Sustainability at Bristol-Myers SquibbSustainability at Bristol-Myers Squibb means delivering on our mission to extend and enhance human life in a way that supports the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Sustainability is integrated throughout our operations as it is embedded in the guiding principles and values behind our business strategy: the Bristol-Myers Squibb mission—to extend and enhance human life—and our Pledge to all of our stakeholders: “To act on our belief that the priceless ingredient of every product is the honor and integrity of its maker.” Our PledgeEvery policy, program and strategy within Bristol-Myers Squibb flows from and supports the Bristol-Myers Squibb Pledge. It is a fundamental element of our corporate culture. The Pledge is a formal commitment to conscientious citizenship. It supports environmental and economic progress, a safe work environment, and policies and practices that fully embody the responsibility, integrity and decency required of free enterprise if it is to merit and maintain the confidence of our society. The Pledge addresses a full range of sustainability issues, from fair wages and equitable treatment for employees to ethical practices with our contractors and suppliers. GovernanceBristol-Myers Squibb has developed Standards of Business Conduct and Ethics to help employees live up to the terms of the Pledge in daily business life. The standards also help employees comply with various laws and regulations pertaining to corporate ethics and responsibilities. The company's Business Conduct Guidelines are incorporated in the standards and cover issues such as marketing practices, antitrust compliance and the prohibition of payments to government officials. Bristol-Myers Squibb is overseen by a Board of Directors, of which the majority of members are independent directors, including the chairman. The board’s Committee on Directors and Corporate Governance of the Board of Directors is responsible for considering matters of corporate social responsibility and matters in areas related to corporate public affairs and the company's employees and stockholders. Sustainability is integrated into the different functions and operations, from the Corporate EHS Steering Committee, to committees on governance and compliance. We have a performance management system that rewards behaviors as well as results. Our employees must perform effectively in many areas that are not measured specifically by financial or operational results. These are included in our company’s core behaviors, which are fundamental expectations for all employees. Performance is also assessed against the company's Standards of Business Conduct and Ethics. Reporting on Our Sustainability PerformanceSustainability performance is reported through the Bristol-Myers Squibb Sustainability website (www.bms.com/sustainability). We have organized our website in response to stakeholder feedback to make it more user friendly. The major components of the site address:
The website is a G3-based report. To make the site as useful as possible, we provide an extensive subject index and a Global Reporting Initiative index, based on the October 2006 G3 guidelines for sustainability reporting. In addition, the site has a glossary, links to outside sources, benchmarking results, verification statements and frequently asked questions. Key ResultsCommitment to corporate governance, compliance and transparencyIt is a Bristol-Myers Squibb priority to build a world-class global compliance program and maintain a culture of integrity and unwavering commitment to the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct. Our compliance program has a broad scope and reach. Bristol-Myers Squibb has policies to report potential compliance incidents, trains personnel on compliance issues, protects privacy and appropriately assesses and manages business risk. In June 2005, Bristol-Myers Squibb voluntarily agreed to not conduct direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising of our new products for a period of at least one year following their introduction into the marketplace. We also announced a new policy to disclose the results of any completed Bristol-Myers Squibb–sponsored clinical trials conducted in patients, regardless of development phase or outcome, for the company’s marketed medicines. At the time of launch of our new medicines, we will post the results or reference the publication status for completed clinical trials conducted in patients. We also will disclose, on a timely basis, the results of all completed Bristol-Myers Squibb–sponsored clinical trials in patients that complete post-launch. For our investigational compounds, Bristol-Myers Squibb provides comprehensive data to all physicians conducting clinical trials via detailed investigator brochures, ensuring they are educated on the safest, most effective use of investigational compounds. Focus on serious diseases with significant unmet medical needsOur medications are extending and enhancing the lives of millions of patients battling schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders, HIV/AIDS, cancer, chronic hepatitis B, rheumatoid arthritis, atherosclerosis/thrombosis, hypertension and other serious diseases. Reyataz® (atazanavir sulfate), the first protease inhibitor for the treatment of HIV/AIDS with once-a-day dosing, was introduced in the U.S. in July 2003 and approved for marketing in Europe in March 2004. On March 29, 2005, the FDA approved Baraclude® (entecavir). Baraclude, discovered by Bristol-Myers Squibb scientists, is indicated for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B infection. Bristol-Myers Squibb announced the FDA approval of Orencia® (abatacept) for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis on December 23, 2005. Orencia is the first in a new class of medications for this disease. On February 12, 2004, the FDA approved ERBITUX® (Cetuximab), codeveloped and comarketed with ImClone Systems Incorporated. In November 2002, the FDA approved Abilify® (aripiprazole) for the treatment of schizophrenia. It is jointly marketed in the U.S. by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. Bristol-Myers Squibb and Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., are also collaborative partners in the development and commercialization of aripiprazole in major European and Latin American countries. On February 28, 2006, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Somerset Pharmaceuticals announced FDA approval of EMSAM® (selegiline trasdermal system), the first transdermal patch for the treatment of major depressive disorder. SPRYCEL® (dasatinib), discovered by Bristol-Myers Squibb scientists, was approved by the FDA on June 28, 2006, for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead Sciences announced the FDA approval of ATRIPLA™ (efavirenz 600 mg/ emtricitabine 200 mg/ tenofovir disoproxil fumarate 300 mg) on July 12, 2006. ATRIPLA is the first-ever once-daily single tablet regimen for HIV. Please click on the product name to see Full Prescribing Information for Abilify®, Reyataz®, ERBITUX®, Baraclude®, Orencia®, EMSAM®, SPRYCEL® and including boxed WARNINGS for ERBITUX®, Baraclude®, EMSAM® and ATRIPLA™. Enabling Research and Development through Protection of intellectual property rights and pricingWe will rigorously protect our intellectual property, which enables us to conduct important clinical research in developing innovative medicines to treat serious diseases. Bristol-Myers Squibb will seek to obtain intellectual property rights and patents that we believe to be valid. We will place the highest priority on obtaining patents for those innovations that provide the greatest medical benefit to patients and return to our shareholders. Without the enforcement of patents and the protection of intellectual property rights, it would be difficult to obtain the return on investment made in the patented medicines to continue to discover, develop and provide innovative new medicines to patients. Pharmaceutical companies invest an average of $800 million and 15 years to discover, develop and launch a new medicine. After approval for marketing of a new medicine, there is continued clinical development and surveillance to find new uses and benefits for patients. It is difficult for a company to continue to invest the resources needed in developing a medicine if it must defend patent challenges years before the original patent expires. expanding access to medicines and health care: Compassion for PatientsBristol-Myers Squibb was an early proponent of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)–sponsored Partnership for Prescription Assistance, launched in April 2005, which links over 475 access programs across the United States and already has helped more than 2.4 million people. In 2005, the company intensified its efforts to improve access to healthcare, including taking a leadership role in an initiative to make it easier for people in need to obtain their medications free of charge or at deeply discounted prices. In addition, through our company’s own access programs—among the oldest and most generous in the industry—we provided more than $418 million in free medicines in 2006 to more than 570,000 patients. Outside the U.S., Bristol-Myers Squibb assists more than 36 developing countries with discounts of up to 93 percent off the U.S. prices for two of our HIV medicines. In sub-Saharan African countries, the company is committed to maintaining prices at no profit to the company. Bristol-Myers Squibb also broke new ground in its philanthropic programs focused on the HIV/AIDS crisis in sub-Saharan Africa through SECURE THE FUTURE, an innovative, comprehensive, public and private initiative that Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation launched in 1999. We recently opened two pediatric AIDS centers in Lesotho and Swaziland, where an estimated 36,000 children are infected with HIV, in addition to one in Botswana. We announced that centers will be built in the African countries of Uganda and Burkina Faso, and in China. In 2005, we funded the first-ever Pediatric AIDS Corps of physicians, who will work in our treatment clinics as well as in remote areas of Africa where good medical care is scarce. These physicians will also train local health care practitioners to provide the specialized care that children with HIV require. According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy, we are among the top U.S. companies for corporate charitable giving. The company donated more than $750 million in product donations, cash contributions and programs, including disaster relief following the tragic tsunami in South Asia in late 2004, Hurricane Katrina in the U.S., Hurricane Stan in Central America and the massive earthquake in Pakistan. Conserving energy and water to Protect the Global EnvironmentBristol-Myers Squibb is committed to reducing energy use, greenhouse gases and water use throughout our discovery, development, manufacturing and distribution processes. This focus results in more efficient, cost-effective operations, while conserving natural resources vital to our operations and the communities in which we operate. The company’s Sustainability 2010 Goals are far-reaching, and we are on track to meet and exceed our greenhouse gas and water use goals. Among Bristol-Myers Squibb’s recent EHS recognitions, we were ranked number one among pharmaceutical companies and received the only overall A+ grading for sustainability reporting, according to the Roberts Environmental Center, an environmental research institute at Claremont McKenna College. More informationFor much more information about our sustainability performance and to provide your feedback, visit www.bms.com/sustainability. Last updated October 26, 2007 . Italicized product names are registered trademarks of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company or one of its divisions or subsidiaries. Copyright © 1998-2006 Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. 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