Amgen 2006 Annual Report Download - page 14

Download and view the complete annual report

Please find page 14 of the 2006 Amgen annual report below. You can navigate through the pages in the report by either clicking on the pages listed below, or by using the keyword search tool below to find specific information within the annual report.

Page out of 38

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15
  • 16
  • 17
  • 18
  • 19
  • 20
  • 21
  • 22
  • 23
  • 24
  • 25
  • 26
  • 27
  • 28
  • 29
  • 30
  • 31
  • 32
  • 33
  • 34
  • 35
  • 36
  • 37
  • 38

Amgen 2006 Annual Report 12
With industry-leading assistance
programs, we are reaching out
to patients.
More than ever before, new medicines are putting better health
within reach. Ironically, for too many people, the very medicines
that hold the greatest promise are out of reach, whether it’s
because patients themselves cannot pay for them or are not
adequately insured or because the medicines are not made
available to them by a health care decision maker.
At Amgen, fulfilling our mission to serve patients includes
working to make sure our medicines reach everyone who may
benefit from them.
“We recognize that our industry needs to find new ways to
ease the financial burden on patients, their families and society,”
says Kevin Sharer, chairman and chief executive officer. “We
want to ensure that no patient is denied access to our medicines
because of their financial situation.”
The company offers a range of patient assistance programs,
including the following:
Amgen™ Oncology Assistance
The Amgen™ Oncology Assistance program, launched in 2006,
is a comprehensive, multifaceted financial assistance program
through which patients in the United States who are uninsured,
underinsured or unable to afford their insurance co-payments
can receive help obtaining financial support for the company’s
cancer medicines. As part of this program, Amgen introduced
the Vectibix™ Cap, the first cap on out-of-pocket co-payments
for colorectal cancer patients. “Our goal is to create the most
comprehensive oncology access program in the industry, and
we are starting with Amgen™ Oncology Assistance,” Sharer says.
SAFETY NET® Foundation
Established in 2001, the SAFETY NET® Foundation has provided
tens of thousands of people with access to Amgen’s vital
medicines. SAFETY NET® allows access for patients who have
an annual household adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less,
making it one of the most generous programs in the industry.
The SAFETY NET® Foundation covers all Amgen products
except Enbrel® (etanercept), which is covered under a separate
program (see ENcourage Foundation information below).
Vectibix™ Cap
The Vectibix™ Cap limits total patient co-payments for Vectibix™
(panitumumab) in the United States to five percent of a patient’s
adjusted gross income regardless of income or insurance status.
Once patients reach the cap, they become eligible to receive
Vectibix™ at no cost through the SAFETY NET® Foundation. In
addition, to help enable patient access to Vectibix™, Amgen
priced it at approximately 20 percent less than the other anti-EGFr
antibody on the market.
ENcourage Foundation®
The ENcourage Foundation® was established in 1998 to provide
ENBREL free of charge to qualifying patients. The foundation,
jointly funded by Amgen and Wyeth, has helped tens of
thousands of people receive ENBREL. In fact, approximately
one in 10 ENBREL patients has received assistance from the
ENcourage Foundation®.