MELVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Henry Schein, Inc. (Nasdaq: HSIC) announced today its partnership with the Black Coalition Against COVID-19 (BCAC) in support of the BCAC’s recent virtual town hall, “Making It Plain: A COVID-19 Town Hall for Minority Health Professionals.” Henry Schein’s collaboration with the BCAC reinforces the Company’s advocacy for vaccine equity and the vital role primary-care physicians and other office-based health care practitioners play in expanding COVID-19 vaccinations nationwide.
Launched in 2020 by the BCAC, Making It Plain is a national-level series of educational, open-forum virtual town hall conversations led by senior government officials and leading minority health professionals on the epidemiology, prevention, treatment, and vaccination efforts for COVID-19. Henry Schein has supported two of the BCAC’s Making It Plain events:
- December 17, 2020 Making It Plain: Minority Health Professionals and COVID-19 Vaccine Dissemination
- March 23, 2021 Making It Plain: A COVID-19 Town Hall for Minority Health Professionals
The latest town hall, “Making It Plain: A COVID-19 Town Hall for Minority Health Professionals,” emphasized the vital resource primary-care physicians are in the COVID-19 vaccination effort because of the high level of trust they have with their patients, their understanding of a patient’s health history, and their physical presence in every community across the country. Ann Marie Gothard, Vice President of Global Corporate Media Relations at Henry Schein, spoke at the event, discussing the need for office-based partnerships in minority communities to have access to the vaccine and the opportunity to complement existing distribution efforts by ensuring that all health care providers – in close partnership with Community-based and Faith-based organizations – have ready access to vaccines to administer to their patients.
“Henry Schein is pleased to partner with the BCAC to further our efforts in strengthening equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Stanley M. Bergman, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Henry Schein, Inc. “Henry Schein has been advocating on critical issues during the COVID-19 period – initially in making personal protective equipment (PPE) and point-of-care rapid testing available to office-based physicians and dentists, and most recently for the increased leveraging of the nation’s trusted community of physicians and dentists in partnership with Community-based organizations in the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine. More effective activation of primary-care physicians will open-up hundreds of thousands of additional vaccination sites in the U.S., allowing much broader reach into communities, particularly in minority communities, where hesitancy rates are high and access to vaccination sites may be limited.”
For the past several months, Henry Schein and the BCAC have partnered closely to determine recommendations and strategies to accelerate equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine. Henry Schein supports a broad array of providers in a variety of settings, many of whom are frontline office-based and community health providers. Being close to this critical part of the health care infrastructure has given the Company insights into the public health needs of underserved populations. Because of this experience, Henry Schein is uniquely positioned to collaborate with the BCAC in the effort to strengthen equitable vaccination in the country.
In addition to its participation with BCAC, Mr. Bergman recently issued a statement of support for congressional efforts to expand COVID-19 vaccine distribution, highlighting these significant lags in vaccination rates, particularly in communities of color, rural communities, and among the elderly and disabled. The Company continues to speak with government officials, calling for more effectively involving primary-care physicians and other office-based health care professionals in the vaccine dissemination process. Mr. Bergman also participated in the BCAC’s “Making It Plain: Minority Health Professionals and COVID-19 Vaccine Dissemination” panel to discuss the supply, allocation, distribution, and administration of the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Our partnership with Henry Schein and the opportunities it presents to engage with office-based physicians and dentists to address urgent COVID-19 pandemic concerns is critical," said Reed Tuckson, M.D., Co-founder of the Black Coalition Against COVID-19 (BCAC). “Their support of our Making It Plain virtual town hall series, which addresses concerns of the Black community and minority health professionals, has helped us produce high-value events that offer trustworthy and actionable information from respected research and clinical experts.”
Leading experts such as the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as the National Medical Association, the Black Nurses Association, Meharry Medical College, Howard University College of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, Charles R. Drew University, the National Urban League, and other national associations, co-hosted “Making It Plain: A COVID-19 Town Hall for Minority Health Professionals.” Along with Henry Schein, Janssen Pharmaceuticals and the Biotechnology Innovation Organization provided educational grants for the event.
“Henry Schein stands ready to support the efforts of this Coalition to strengthen health equity,” said Mr. Bergman. “Together with the BCAC, we have the ability to help contribute to accomplishing the goal of ensuring every American has access to the vaccine.”
To watch recordings of the Making It Plain conversations, please visit Facebook.com/BlackDoctor.org or YouTube.com/BlackDoctor.org.
About the Black Coalition Against COVID-19 (BCAC)
The Black Coalition Against COVID-19 is a Washington, D.C.-based community initiative which seeks to provide trustworthy, science-based, information curated on behalf of and for the Black community about COVID-19 and the vaccine development process in an effort to help save Black lives at the national and local levels. For more information about BCAC, visit blackcoalitionagainstcovid.org. Follow BCAC on Twitter at @BCAgainstCOVID and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BCAC19.
About Henry Schein, Inc.
Henry Schein, Inc. (Nasdaq: HSIC) is a solutions company for health care professionals powered by a network of people and technology. With more than 19,000 Team Schein Members worldwide, the Company's network of trusted advisors provides more than 1 million customers globally with more than 300 valued solutions that help improve operational success and clinical outcomes. Our Business, Clinical, Technology, and Supply Chain solutions help office-based dental and medical practitioners work more efficiently so they can provide quality care more effectively. These solutions also support dental and medical laboratories, government and institutional health care clinics, as well as other alternate care sites.
Henry Schein operates through a centralized and automated distribution network, with a selection of more than 120,000 branded products and Henry Schein private-brand products in stock, as well as more than 180,000 additional products available as special-order items.
A FORTUNE 500 Company and a member of the S&P 500® index, Henry Schein is headquartered in Melville, N.Y., and has operations or affiliates in 31 countries and territories. The Company's sales reached $10.1 billion in 2020, and have grown at a compound annual rate of approximately 12 percent since Henry Schein became a public company in 1995.
For more information, visit Henry Schein at www.henryschein.com, Facebook.com/HenrySchein, Instagram.com/HenrySchein, and Twitter.com/HenrySchein.
