Stamford, Conn. – Jan. 24, 2012 – AstraZeneca, the global
biopharmaceutical company, has donated $3.8 million worth of prescription
medicines to AmeriCares for chronically ill Americans who rely on safety net
clinics for their medical care. The donation is one of the largest AmeriCares received
in the past year for its domestic aid deliveries.
AmeriCares is delivering the
medicines to free clinics and community health centers through its U.S. Medical
Assistance Program, which provides free medicines and medical supplies to 400
health care facilities serving the poor and uninsured across the United States.
The AstraZeneca products are expected to benefit patients of about 100 clinics in
28 states.
“The medicines donated by
AstraZeneca are among the most frequently requested products by our partner
clinics,” said Morgan White, manager of AmeriCares U.S. Medical Assistance
Program. “Thanks to our partnership with AstraZeneca, we are helping the most
vulnerable Americans.”
Among the clinics receiving
AstraZeneca products are:
- The Way
Free Medical Clinic in Florida, where patients have been hard hit by the
collapse of the housing market.
- Traverse
Health Clinic in Michigan, where the unemployment rate is one of the
highest in the nation.
- Sacred Heart
Community Clinic in Texas, where 25 percent of state residents are
uninsured – the highest rate in the country.
Christy Fitzgerald, executive
director of The Way Free Medical Clinic in Green Cove Springs, Fla., which
received nearly $50,000 worth of AstraZeneca medicines, said the donation has greatly
helped patients in the construction industry who have lost jobs or had their
hours cut and can no longer afford health insurance. The asthma medicines have
been particularly beneficial, she said, because they have allowed the clinic to
begin treating patients on the spot.
“Donations like this one are
critical because we could never afford to purchase these medicines for our
patients,” Fitzgerald said.
This is the third consecutive year AstraZeneca has
supported AmeriCares aid deliveries in the U.S. with a major donation. The
company also supports AmeriCares global disaster response work and aid
deliveries in the developing world with product donations. Since 2003,
AstraZeneca has donated essential medicines to AmeriCares valued at more than $63
million.
