CARY, NC (June 16, 2020) Global biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb, based in Princeton, NJ, has earned the prestigious global CEO Cancer Gold Standard^TM accreditation for its ongoing commitment to reduce cancer risk for employees and their family members around the world.

This accreditation recognizes the Company’s exceptional efforts worldwide to reduce cancer risk by promoting healthy lifestyle choices, encouraging early detection through cancer screenings, and ensuring broad access to innovative cancer therapies that are extending lives, improving quality of life and increasing productivity for employees and their family members around the globe.  

“We are proud of this prestigious accreditation as it demonstrates our long-standing commitment to the health and safety of our employees,” said Giovanni Caforio, M.D., chairman and chief executive officer, Bristol Myers Squibb. “As a company focused on helping patients with serious disease, we are committed to making health and wellness a priority for our employees and their families through a range of programs focused on mental and physical health.  We are proud to be recognized for these efforts, which we believe support our ability to deliver on our vision of transforming patients’ lives through science.”

The CEO Roundtable on Cancer, a nonprofit organization of CEOs, founded by former President George H.W. Bush, created the Gold Standard to recognize employers for taking extraordinary steps to promote health and wellness of their employees and family members. Today, more than seven million people are benefiting from the vision and leadership of over 200 employers who have chosen to become Gold Standard accredited employers.

“Adopting the global Gold Standard is a tribute to the extraordinary leadership of Giovanni Caforio, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Bristol Myers Squibb, and to his determination to provide inspiration to organizations large and small that are committed to playing an active role in winning the battle against cancer,” said Robert A. Bradway, chairman and chief executive officer of Amgen and chairman of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer.

In recognition of his expertise, Dr. David Shepperly, Head of Employee Health and Fitness at BMS, will join the Gold Standard Task Force to ensure that it remains current with scientific evidence, to recommend changes and enhancements to the Gold Standard requirements, and to help evolve the program so it continues to foster improved health and wellness for employees and their family members.

To be accredited as a global Gold Standard organization, employers must achieve and maintain CEO Cancer Gold Standard accreditation in the U.S. and China, maintain a tobacco-free policy worldwide, and satisfy the essence and spirit of the five key areas of workplace wellness that are foundations of the Gold Standard: emphasize prevention by prohibiting tobacco use and supporting tobacco cessation efforts; promoting physical activity, healthy nutrition and weight management; providing health insurance options that include detecting cancer at its earliest stages, ensuring access to quality care and participation in cancer clinical trials; promoting employee awareness of these initiatives; and supporting the needs of cancer survivors in the workplace.

In addition to NCI and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 18 NCI-designated cancer centers and more than 100 other hospitals have earned Gold Standard accreditation. CEOs from many industries are keenly aware of the critical impact on employee health and healthcare costs as well as productivity gains when they address cancer and other chronic diseases. Other Global Gold Standard employers include: GlaxoSmithKline, Helsinn Healthcare SA, Johnson & Johnson and Novartis. Other Gold Standard employers in the U.S. and China include: Amgen, the China CDC, CVS Health, GE Healthcare, Merck and Independence Blue Cross and many other Blue Cross affiliates.

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. For more information about Bristol Myers Squibb, visit us at BMS.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.