Building a Better Future: Bristol Myers Squibb 2023 ESG Report

Originally published on Bristol Myers Squibb News & Perspectives

Since 1887, BMS has enabled positive change for patients around the world, and I am honored to continue this legacy as Board Chair and CEO. Our obligation to advance this legacy is profound. It calls for us to honor and uphold the values and principles that are the cornerstone of our past successes as we write the next chapter in BMS’ history.

As we navigate an increasingly complex global landscape, our cohesive strategy, inclusive of our ESG performance, has never been more important. That’s why, in 2023, we engaged a number of stakeholders, including patient advocacy partners, shareholders, suppliers, employees, multinational organizations and our Board to understand their views on ESG topics most important to our business and to society. Based on these insights, we evolved our ESG strategy to focus primarily on advancing patient health around the world and fostering a high-performing, inclusive workforce while expanding the boundaries of science and doing our part to reduce environmental impact.

Advancing patient health around the world

Patients, regardless of where they live, still encounter challenges to accessing medicines and adequate healthcare services. We believe in long-term sustainable solutions to address health inequities globally, and we are allocating specific resources and developing new pathways and models to expand access to patients in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

To enable this strategy, we are embedding access considerations as a core tenet across our business, fundamentally changing the way we operate. Our approach ranges from raising awareness about the social burden of medical conditions, to obtaining broader public reimbursement that reflects the value of our innovative medicines or providing copay assistance 
to reduce the patient’s out-of-pocket burden.

In LMICs, for example, we are developing tailored programs to help improve access to our innovative portfolio. Through new pathways we have made access possible to 12 transformative products for patients across 80+ LMICs. Of these, more than 40 are low-income countries receiving products at not-for-profit pricing, or at adjusted pricing that accounts for factors related to ability and willingness to pay. Additionally, we have forged global policy partnerships to help strengthen healthcare systems to better address local needs with the goal of delivering sustainable impacts for patients and communities.

Expanding the boundaries of science

We are committed to scientific excellence and investment in our R&D capabilities to provide more medicines to more patients faster. We leverage our expertise to accelerate drug discovery and development, and we entrust our scientists to drive research and development to reduce the burden of diseases.

We believe we have one of the most diversified portfolios and pipeline in the pharmaceutical industry. Thus, we are uniquely positioned to drive continued innovation and expand treatment options across therapeutic areas based on our differentiated research platforms that include cell therapy and targeted protein degradation.

These newly approved medicines and those in our near-term pipeline are the result of strong execution and collaboration across every part of our organization. Over the past three years, we have received more than 50 global regulatory approvals.

As part of our commitment, we understand the importance of enrolling clinical trial populations that are more reflective of the real-world population and aligned with the epidemiology of the diseases we study. In doing so, we believe we can better address barriers to achieving health equity and deepen our clinicians’ understanding of the safety and efficacy of transformative medicines for diverse populations.

We know there is much work ahead to broaden these efforts to better understand what diversity in clinical trials means for other countries and across multiple patient characteristics.

Building a better future. Learn more about the 2023 Bristol Myers Squibb ESG Report

Fostering a high-performing and inclusive global workforce

Our values at BMS—Integrity, Innovation, Passion, Inclusion, Accountability and Urgency—are the foundation of our high-performing, patient-centric culture. Bringing these values to life enables our people to be at their very best so we can deliver for patients.

Cultivating an inclusive and diverse workplace supports our ability to drive innovation. Our goal is to ensure our colleagues’, patients’ and communities’ unique perspectives are heard and valued, and that everyone can contribute to our vision of transforming patients’ lives through science. This begins with integrating inclusive practices across all facets of our organization, including our talent and engagement strategy, leadership development programs and online learning platforms.

Supporting the health and wellbeing of our workforce is a top priority at BMS. To ensure we have the appropriate resources in place to meet the current and future needs of our employees, we consistently assess the programs and resources needed to support their physical, emotional, work life and financial wellbeing.

As a company, we are aware of our responsibility to minimize the impact of our operations on the environment to preserve the planet for future generations. We have designed and implemented environmental goals—including our goal to achieve Net-Zero emissions in Scopes 1, 2 and 3 by 2050—that not only reflect our science-led, innovation-focused approach, but that also ensure accountability to those we serve through strong governance and transparent reporting practices.

BMS has long been committed to corporate responsibility, and our evolved ESG strategy is the result of the commitment by the entire organization to advance our sustainability. Together, we are building a legacy that combines our rich history with a future of innovation, responsibility and growth.

Thank you for your interest in Bristol Myers Squibb.

Christopher S. Boerner, Ph.D. 
Board Chair and CEO 
Bristol Myers Squibb

About Bristol Myers Squibb

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. As global citizens, we work sustainably and responsibly to create a positive impact in the communities where we live and work. 
out Bristol Myers SquibbBristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. As global citizens, we work sustainably and responsibly to create a positive impact in the communities where we live and work.

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. As global citizens, we work sustainably and responsibly to create a positive impact in the communities where we live and work.

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