VALLEY FORGE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 16, 2015--
AmerisourceBergen Corporation (NYSE: ABC) today announced that Ornella
Barra, Executive Vice President of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc.
(Walgreens Boots Alliance) (NASDAQ: WBA) and President and Chief
Executive of Global Wholesale and International Retail has been elected
to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Ms. Barra has been
appointed by the Board to fill the vacancy created by Gregory D.
Wasson’s resignation from the Company’s Board on January 9, 2015
following Mr. Wasson’s retirement from Walgreens Boots Alliance. Ms.
Barra has not been appointed to serve on any committees of the Board.
Walgreens Boots Alliance is entitled to designate a director (including
any successor director to fill an unexpired term) to the
AmerisourceBergen Board of Directors as part of its strategic long-term
relationship with the Company.
“We are very pleased to have Ornella join the AmerisourceBergen Board of
Directors,” said Richard C. Gozon, Chairman of the Board of
AmerisourceBergen. “Her extensive experience in wholesale pharmaceutical
distribution and international health and pharmaceutical retail
industries and strategic insight will be an asset to our Board,
particularly as we continue to grow our global operations. Ms. Barra
also provides a valuable perspective on our strategic relationship and
collaboration with Walgreens Boots Alliance.” Commenting on Mr. Wasson’s
resignation from AmerisourceBergen’s Board, Mr. Gozon said “Mr. Wasson
has garnered tremendous respect from the Board during his tenure and the
Board wishes to thank him for his contributions to the continuing
success of AmerisourceBergen.”
“I am thrilled to have Ornella join our Board of Directors,” added
Steven H. Collis, President and Chief Executive Officer of
AmerisourceBergen. “She has a deep understanding of the needs of our
customers, including pharmacists, and the demands of running a global
enterprise. I am confident that Ornella will contribute in countless
ways as we continue to advance AmerisourceBergen’s strategic goals and
objectives.”
Ms. Barra is currently serving as Executive Vice President of Walgreens
Boots Alliance and President and Chief Executive of Global Wholesale and
International Retail. Prior to this, she was Chief Executive Wholesale
and Brands of Alliance Boots. Ms. Barra had previously been Chief
Executive of the Pharmaceutical Wholesale Division of Alliance Boots
(from January 2009 to September 2013), and before that, Wholesale &
Commercial Affairs Director. In her role, she was responsible for the
Pharmaceutical Wholesale Division as well as the overall development of
International Health & Beauty and Brands of Alliance Boots. Ms. Barra is
Chairman of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Wholesalers
(IFPW) and is also a member of the Board of Directors of Assicurazioni
Generali. Ms. Barra began her career as a pharmacist in Italy and is
Honorary Professor at the University of Nottingham School of Pharmacy.
About AmerisourceBergen
AmerisourceBergen is one of the largest global pharmaceutical sourcing
and distribution services companies, helping both healthcare providers
and pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturers improve patient access to
products and enhance patient care. With services ranging from drug
distribution and niche premium logistics to reimbursement and
pharmaceutical consulting services, AmerisourceBergen delivers
innovative programs and solutions across the pharmaceutical supply
channel. With nearly $120 billion in annual revenue, AmerisourceBergen
is headquartered in Valley Forge, PA, and employs approximately 14,000
people. AmerisourceBergen is ranked #28 on the Fortune 500 list. For
more information, go to www.amerisourcebergen.com.
AmerisourceBergen's Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
Certain of the statements contained in this presentation are
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934. Words such as "expect," "likely," "outlook," "forecast," "would,"
"could," "should," "can," "will," "project," "intend," "plan,"
"continue," "sustain," "synergy," "on track," "believe," "seek,"
"estimate," "anticipate," "may," "possible," "assume," variations of
such words, and similar expressions are intended to identify such
forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's
current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and change in
circumstances. These statements are not guarantees of future performance
and are based on assumptions that could prove incorrect or could cause
actual results to vary materially from those indicated. Among the
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
projected, anticipated, or implied are the following: changes in
pharmaceutical market growth rates; price inflation in branded and
generic pharmaceuticals and price deflation in generics; declining
economic conditions, increased costs of maintaining, or reductions in
AmerisourceBergen's ability to maintain, adequate liquidity and
financing sources, and interest rate and foreign currency exchange rate
fluctuations; the disruption of AmerisourceBergen's cash flow and
ability to return value to its stockholders in accordance with its past
practices, disruption of or changes in vendor, payer and customer
relationships and terms, and the reduction of AmerisourceBergen's
operational, strategic or financial flexibility; volatility and
disruption of the capital and credit markets; economic, business,
competitive and/or regulatory developments in countries where
AmerisourceBergen does business and/or operates outside of the United
States; supplier bankruptcies, insolvencies or other credit failures;
customer bankruptcies, insolvencies or other credit failures; the loss
of one or more key customer or supplier relationships resulting in
changes to the customer or supplier mix; the retention of key customer
or supplier relationships under less favorable economics or the adverse
resolution of any contract or other dispute with customers or suppliers;
risks associated with the strategic, long-term relationship between
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (including its subsidiaries Walgreen Co.
and Alliance Boots GmbH) and AmerisourceBergen, including the occurrence
of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the
termination, cross-termination or modification of any of the transaction
documents among the parties (including, among others, the distribution
agreement or the generics agreement), an impact on AmerisourceBergen's
earnings per share resulting from the issuance of the warrants to
subsidiaries of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., an inability to realize
anticipated benefits (including benefits resulting from participation in
the Walgreens Boots Alliance Development GmbH joint venture),
AmerisourceBergen's inability to implement its hedging strategy to
mitigate the potentially dilutive effect of the issuance of its common
stock under its special share repurchase program due to its financial
performance, the current and future share price of its common stock, its
expected cash flows, competing priorities for capital, and overall
market conditions; increasing governmental regulations regarding the
pharmaceutical supply channel; federal and state government enforcement
initiatives to detect and prevent suspicious orders of controlled
substances and the diversion of controlled substances, federal and state
prosecution of alleged violations of related laws and regulations, and
any related litigation, including shareholder derivative lawsuits or
other disputes relating to our distribution of controlled substances;
changes in federal and state legislation or regulatory action affecting
pharmaceutical product pricing or reimbursement policies, including
under Medicaid and Medicare, and the effect of such changes on
AmerisourceBergen's customers; frequent changes to laws and regulations
in respect of healthcare fraud and abuse and the increased scrutiny of
the federal government related thereto; qui tam litigation for alleged
violations of fraud and abuse laws and regulations and/or any other laws
and regulations governing the marketing, sale, purchase and/or
dispensing of pharmaceutical products or services and any related
litigation, including shareholder derivative lawsuits; the acquisition
of businesses that do not perform as AmerisourceBergen expects or that
are difficult for it to integrate or control or AmerisourceBergen's
inability to successfully complete any other transaction that it may
wish to pursue from time to time; risks associated with international
business operations, including non-compliance with the U.S. Foreign
Corrupt Practices Act, anti-bribery laws and economic sanctions and
import laws and regulations; risks generally associated with the
sophisticated information systems on which AmerisourceBergen relies,
including significant breakdown or interruption of such systems; risks
generally associated with data privacy regulation and the international
transfer of personal data; changes in tax laws or legislative
initiatives that could adversely affect AmerisourceBergen's tax
positions and/or AmerisourceBergen's tax liabilities or adverse
resolution of challenges to AmerisourceBergen's tax positions; natural
disasters or other unexpected events that affect AmerisourceBergen's
operations; and other economic, business, competitive, legal, tax,
regulatory and/or operational factors affecting AmerisourceBergen's
business generally. Certain additional factors that management believes
could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those
described in forward-looking statements are set forth (i) in Item 1A
(Risk Factors) and Item 1 (Business) in the Company’s Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2014 and elsewhere in
that report and (ii) in other reports.
Source: AmerisourceBergen Corporation
AmerisourceBergen Corporation
Barbara Brungess
Vice
President, Corporate & Investor Relations
610-727-7199
bbrungess@amerisourcebergen.com