sanofi-aventis donates 100m doses of
A(H1N1) flu vaccine to WHO

18 June 2009

During the opening session of the Pacific Health Summit, being held in Seattle, Washington, Christopher A. Viehbacher, Chief Executive Officer of sanofi-aventis, declared: “I want to back Director-General of WHO’s call for common action to fight the influenza pandemic. This is our collective responsibility, as companies, as an industry, as national health authorities, as NGOs, as Foundations, to pool our collective strengths as well as our dedication and our motivation to find solutions that are affordable for every patient throughout the world.”

“Exceptional times request exceptional responses. We need to act responsibly, and we all have to play our part. That is the reason why we intend to donate 100 million doses of influenza vaccine to
the World Health Organization (WHO) to help developing countries face the influenza pandemic”, Christopher A. Viehbacher added.

This donation is tailored to respond to the 2009 influenza pandemic due to the emergence of the novel A(H1N1) influenza strain and includes a previous commitment made by the company in 2008 in
the context of the A(H5N1) pandemic threat.

“The emerging A(H1N1) and A(H5N1) influenza viruses are currently present in many countries including some of the poorest regions of the world. This flexible donation aims to help the WHO address the needs of these most vulnerable populations,” said Christopher A. Viehbacher.

Once production of A(H1N1) vaccine begins, Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of sanofi-aventis Group, will reserve 10 percent of its output for the WHO as a donation to help address the influenza
pandemic in developing countries. In the event that Sanofi Pasteur’s manufacturing facilities become fully committed to the production of pandemic vaccine, the company will also supply this vaccine under a tiered-pricing policy for developing countries.

“Becoming a global healthcare leader, and not just a pharmaceutical company focused on the US and Europe is the heart of sanofi-aventis strategy”, said Christopher A. Viehbacher. “The future of our industry is linked to the healthcare solutions that will be found for emerging countries.

"In addition to supporting the efforts of governments, we are working with international organizations such as WHO, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and other global health players. By pooling our collective strengths as well as our dedication and our motivation, we can save millions of lives.”

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