Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation (Princeton, NJ)
Bristol Myers Squibb and the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation (BMS Foundation) announced a combined investment of $300 million as part of a series of commitments. The commitments are designed to address health disparities, increase clinical trial diversity, and for Bristol Myers Squibb to increase the company’s spend with diverse suppliers and continue to increase Black and Hispanic/Latino representation at all levels of the company. These commitments build on each entity’s experience addressing health disparities and, for Bristol Myers Squibb, its investments in increasing the diversity of its workforce.
The combined $300 million investment to health equity focuses on raising disease awareness and education, increasing health care access, and improving health outcomes for medically underserved populations. The BMS Foundation’s commitment to clinical trial diversity focuses on building clinical trial infrastructure in diverse communities and high disease burden areas in the United States and increasing the diversity of investigators through a fellowship program over five years.
This investment follows Bristol Myers Squibb’s previous announcement to expand its existing patient support program to help eligible unemployed patients in the United States who have lost their health insurance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent months, though, COVID-19 has exposed the severity of social and health disparities in the United States that increase the risk for infection and poorer health outcomes for Black and Hispanic/Latino communities.
Bristol Myers Squibb and the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation recognize the need to take concrete steps to better serve and collaborate with an increasingly diverse United States population and underserved communities around the world.
The commitments include:
- Increasing clinical trial diversity—Bristol Myers Squibb will extend the reach of clinical trials into underserved patient communities in urban and rural United States geographies. BMS Foundation will train and develop 250 new racially and ethnically diverse clinical investigators who will have mentorship and training opportunities, and ultimately to enroll underserved patients into clinical trials.
- Strengthening health equity work across the business—Bristol Myers Squibb will accelerate its efforts to reach at-risk patients with disease awareness and education programs and information about its patient support programs, including programs for people who cannot afford their medicines. It will also continue to advocate for policies that promote health equity.
- Increasing its spend with diverse suppliers—Bristol Myers Squibb will spend $1 billion globally by 2025 with Black and other diverse-owned businesses to help create jobs and generate positive economic impact in diverse communities.
- Increasing the diversity of its workforce—Bristol Myers Squibb will expand the diversity of its workforce and leadership to ensure it reflects the evolving demographics of the patients the company serves. The company achieved gender parity across its workforce in 2015. By 2022, Bristol Myers Squibb aims to achieve gender parity at the executive level globally; double executive representation of Black employees in the United States; and double executive representation of Hispanic/Latino employees in the United States.
- Expanding its employee giving program—BMS Foundation will provide a two to one match for United States employee donations to organizations that fight health disparities and discrimination.
The commitments by the BMS Foundation build on the more than 100 active grantee projects funded by the foundation globally to improve access to care and support and health outcomes that have reached nearly 1.5 million people worldwide.
For more information, click here.
Contact: 609.252.3345 or media@bms.com.
The California Wellness Foundation (Los Angeles, CA)
The California Wellness Foundation announced $11.3 million in grants and Program-Related Investments (PRIs) to advance health equity in California during the COVID-19 pandemic, address racial disparities in pandemic response, and invest in racial justice for communities of color. Of the total amount, $5.3 million was for immediate response grants to support communities disproportionately harmed by the pandemic: people of color and low-income, immigrant, undocumented, and homeless people. An additional $4 million in grants fortify Cal Wellness’ long-term strategy of increasing access to health care, quality education, good jobs, and safe neighborhoods. PRIs totaling $2 million will provide loans to businesses and nonprofits run by people of color in rural and less affluent communities.
This new round of funding totaling $5.3 million provides continued relief to community partners, protects access to health care and prioritizes well-being in communities of color, which are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.
Twenty-five grants totaling almost $1 million support community health centers, community clinics, and regional clinic consortia, which are facing major funding challenges. Community health centers and community clinics provide health care to the most vulnerable populations in California: people of color, poor, undocumented, and the uninsured. Every Regional Association of Clinics across the state received $50,000 to boost their capacity to serve and advocate on behalf of clinics. The California Primary Care Association received $250,000 to meet the urgent needs of community clinics across the state.
Seven grants totaling $440,000 support organizations addressing COVID-19-related concerns exclusively within communities of color. Grantees like the California Black Women’s Health Project and the Latino Community Foundation respond to the unique needs and circumstances of Black and Latinx people impacted by the pandemic.
In addition to its immediate response grants, Cal Wellness is forging ahead with its mission-critical grantmaking by awarding $4 million in grants as part of its Advancing Wellness program that aims to increase access to health care, quality education, good jobs, healthy environments, and safe neighborhoods.
- Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science—to build a new generation of diverse health care workers by enabling underrepresented minority students to pursue careers in health professions. After graduation, many of these students will go on to practice in underserved areas and in community health centers. ($450,000)
- Advance Peace—to support alternatives to increasing policing in urban neighborhoods by investing in community building as a strategy to reduce and prevent gun violence. Cal Wellness believes that investing in the development, health, and wellness of people at the center of the gun violence crisis is an important strategy for building safer communities. ($425,000)
Cal Wellness is committed to leveraging more of its endowment to improve the lives of Californians. To that end, the foundation supplements its grantmaking with PRIs. The latest round of PRIs totaling $3 million will provide financial support and capital to underserved communities of color across California.
To see the complete list of grants, click here.
Tufts Health Plan Foundation (Watertown, MA)
Tufts Health Plan Foundation committed $1 million to support investments on issues facing diverse communities. The funds will go to the New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund, the Latino Legacy Fund, and the Asian Community Fund. It will be divided equally among the three funds over the next five years. Each fund supports priorities identified by communities of color. The foundation funding will advance work on health disparities and flaws in the health care delivery systems stemming from racism.
The foundation has also pledged additional resources for racial justice initiatives in Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. This new funding is in addition to the $5.5 million already allocated for community investments by the Tufts Health Plan Foundation in 2020.
Contact: Alrie McNiff Daniels at 617.301.2715 or alrie_daniels@tufts-health.com.