Merck Announces Appointment of Dr. Julie Gerberding as Executive Vice President for Strategic Communications, Global Public P...
December 10 2014 - 9:30AM
Business Wire
Merck (NYSE:MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and
Canada, today announced the appointment of Dr. Julie Gerberding,
59, as executive vice president for strategic communications,
global public policy and population health, effective Dec. 15. In
this newly created Executive Committee position, Gerberding, who
most recently served as president of Merck Vaccines, will be
responsible for Merck’s global public policy, corporate
responsibility and communications functions, as well as the Merck
Foundation and the Merck for Mothers program. Gerberding will also
lead new partnership initiatives that accelerate Merck’s ability to
contribute to improved population health, a measure of impact that
is increasingly valued by governments and other global health
organizations.
"Julie has been instrumental in making Merck’s vaccines more
accessible and affordable, particularly in emerging markets and
many of the world’s most resource-limited countries,” said Kenneth
C. Frazier, chairman and chief executive officer, Merck. “Julie’s
leadership of our vaccines business and her exceptional track
record in both the public and private sectors make her ideally
suited to lead these areas and to advance our engagement with
organizations around the world that, like Merck, are working to
advance population health.”
Gerberding joined Merck as president of Merck Vaccines in
January 2010. Since then, Merck’s vaccines are reaching more people
than ever, and Merck became the global leader in the vaccine market
based on sales. In addition, the Sanofi Pasteur MSD joint venture
in Europe, Merck’s European vaccine business for which Gerberding
is the Board co-chair, has improved in both population reach and
financial performance. She also helped lead the successful launch
in India of the Merck Wellcome Trust non-profit joint venture for
vaccine development, the MSD Wellcome Trust Hilleman
Laboratories.
Prior to joining Merck, Gerberding served as director of the
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from
2002-2009 and before that served as director of the Division of
Healthcare Quality Promotion. Before joining the CDC, Gerberding
was a tenured faculty member in Infectious Diseases at the
University of California at San Francisco (UCSF). She continues as
an Adjunct Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCSF.
"People across health systems everywhere are realizing that no
single organization can solve the complex challenges we face.
Whether containing the current Ebola outbreak, increasing
vaccination rates or improving the overall health of people in
communities, partnerships between public and private sector
organizations are essential,” Dr. Gerberding said. “Merck has a
unique role and a responsibility to contribute, and I welcome this
opportunity to lead teams of experts who will help us achieve our
mission of saving lives and improving health around the world.”
Jacques Cholat, currently vice president, global vaccines
marketing and commercial operations, has been appointed interim
president of Merck Vaccines. “Jacques’ leadership has enabled Merck
to significantly expand the global reach of its global vaccines
business,” Mr. Frazier said. Cholat joined Merck from Sanofi
Pasteur in November 2011, where he had served as vice president of
Sanofi Pasteur international commercial operations since July
2002.
About Merck
Today's Merck is a global healthcare leader working to help the
world be well. Merck is known as MSD outside of the United States
and Canada. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic
therapies and animal health products, we work with customers and
operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health
solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access
to healthcare through far-reaching policies, programs and
partnerships. For more information, visit www.merck.com and connect
with us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
Forward-Looking Statement
This news release includes “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements
are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Merck’s
management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties.
If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or risks or
uncertainties materialize, actual results may differ materially
from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.
Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to, general
industry conditions and competition; general economic factors,
including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations;
the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care
legislation in the United States and internationally; global trends
toward health care cost containment; technological advances, new
products and patents attained by competitors; challenges inherent
in new product development, including obtaining regulatory
approval; Merck’s ability to accurately predict future market
conditions; manufacturing difficulties or delays; financial
instability of international economies and sovereign risk;
dependence on the effectiveness of Merck patents and other
protections for innovative products; and the exposure to
litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory
actions.
Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any
forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause
results to differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements can be found in Merck’s 2013 Annual
Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC’s
Internet site (www.sec.gov).
MerckMedia:Steven Cragle, 908-740-1801Lainie Keller,
908-236-5036orInvestors:Joe Romanelli, 908-740-1986Justin Holko,
908-740-1879
Merck (NYSE:MRK)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Merck (NYSE:MRK)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024