Biogen Foundation Commits $10 Million to Support COVID-19 Relief Efforts in the U.S. and Around the World
- Most of the funds will be directed to support the global response and the immediate needs of communities hardest hit by COVID-19
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 16, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Biogen Inc. (Nasdaq: BIIB) today announced that the Biogen Foundation has committed $10 million to support global response efforts and communities around the world impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds will be used to address immediate critical needs, with the majority of donations going to support non-profit organizations in the U.S., including Massachusetts and North Carolina, in Italy and in other impacted countries worldwide. This donation will be used to help expand testing options, ease the strain on medical systems, provide training for front line health workers and support access to necessities like food. This adds to the donation made by Biogen China to the Red Cross Society of China.
The company has also provided medical equipment and supplies to Partners HealthCare in Massachusetts, to help diagnose COVID-19 in a greater number of people. Partners HealthCare is one of the largest providers of healthcare services in the Boston area. Biogen will also be supporting Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital directly as they work on the front line to treat and contain the virus.
“We are deeply affected by the impact of COVID-19 globally and we understand the critical importance of access to testing and other materials to support healthcare providers,” said Michel Vounatsos, CEO at Biogen. “It is vital that we act immediately to support those who are on the front lines caring for the health and well-being in all communities affected around the world. Our hope is that this commitment will support these courageous organizations, and the vulnerable, during this unprecedented time.”
“This pandemic is precipitating a series of unprecedented challenges and it is having a critical impact in our community and on people around the world,” said Anne Klibanski, M.D., President and CEO of Partners HealthCare. “I believe it is how we rise to meet these challenges that defines us.”
About the Biogen Foundation
The Biogen Foundation supports access to science education and to essential human services for children and their families in the communities in which Biogen facilities are located. The Biogen Foundation is committed to sparking a passion for science and discovery, supporting effective science education initiatives and strengthening efforts to make science education and science careers accessible to diverse populations.
About Biogen
At Biogen, our mission is clear: we are pioneers in neuroscience. Biogen discovers, develops and delivers worldwide innovative therapies for people living with serious neurological and neurodegenerative diseases as well as related therapeutic adjacencies. One of the world’s first global biotechnology companies, Biogen was founded in 1978 by Charles Weissmann, Heinz Schaller, Kenneth Murray and Nobel Prize winners Walter Gilbert and Phillip Sharp. Today Biogen has the leading portfolio of medicines to treat multiple sclerosis, has introduced the first approved treatment for spinal muscular atrophy, commercializes biosimilars of advanced biologics and is focused on advancing research programs in multiple sclerosis and neuroimmunology, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, neuromuscular disorders, movement disorders, ophthalmology, immunology, neurocognitive disorders, acute neurology and pain.
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