Zimmer Biomet Signs Global Health Equity Network's Zero Health Gaps Pledge and Expands Longstanding Commitment to Advancing Health Equity

News provided by

Feb 12, 2024, 07:30 ET

-- Company's Recently Established Health Equity Division Leads Efforts to Address Disparities in Health Access and Outcomes --

WARSAW, Ind., Feb. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc. (NYSE and SIX: ZBH), a global medical technology leader, signed the Global Health Equity Network's (GHEN) Zero Health Gaps Pledge, a commitment from CEOs across industries and regions for their organizations to embed health equity in core strategies, operations and investments. Zimmer Biomet's Health Equity division, established in 2023, has made meaningful strides on core areas of the 10-point pledge, including understanding the drivers of disparity in orthopaedic care, forging partnerships to collaborate on community-based solutions to reduce healthcare inequities, and establishing clear measures to track progress against short and long-term goals. Zimmer Biomet has a well-established legacy of addressing healthcare disparities through its philanthropic efforts, and now its Health Equity division has been working to integrate health equity goals into the company's business strategy.

"I am proud to sign the Zero Health Gaps Pledge to affirm Zimmer Biomet's decades-long commitment to tackling musculoskeletal health disparities and hold ourselves accountable on the global stage for driving measurable and impactful strategies to bring quality medical care to underserved communities," said Ivan Tornos, President and CEO at Zimmer Biomet. "Forming a dedicated health equity-focused division that sits outside our philanthropic organization not only reinforces health equity as a broader corporate core value, but also elevates it to a business imperative and growth driver."

Since its inception in early 2023, the Health Equity division assembled a 12-member strategic advisory board of surgeons and is currently working on building a Community Centered Care (C3) framework which aligns the interests and incentives of surgeons, hospitals, payors, and the community to increase patient access to quality care within underserved communities.

"Traditionally, an organization's health equity efforts have been supported through corporate philanthropy, and Zimmer Biomet has made tremendous progress on that front for more than 10 years," said Edmond Davis, Senior Director, Health Equity division at Zimmer Biomet. "In 2023, we made a bold decision to focus on directly addressing Social Drivers of Health (SDOH) by building health equity into our business strategy and integrating its principles within all cross-functional business units, ranging from medical education to commercial innovation."

The C3 framework implements a multi-pronged executional approach that includes engaging surgeons in target communities, increasing minority representation among the next generation of orthopaedic surgeons, and forging partnerships with renowned healthcare and research institutions to collaborate on insights and innovation to improve patient outcomes. Long-term, the Health Equity division hopes to establish healthy living villages in underserved communities that provide residents with access to wellness services and quality medical care to holistically support their health and well-being.

In 2010, Zimmer Biomet founded Movement is Life, a philanthropic, multi-disciplinary coalition focused on decreasing musculoskeletal health disparities through community-based programs, clinician education, and health policy advocacy. Twelve years later, Zimmer Biomet established Movement is Life as an independent 501(c)(3) organization and committed to supporting the operating costs of the new organization through the Zimmer Biomet Foundation. Zimmer Biomet's health-equity-focused philanthropic efforts include supporting organizations like the J. Robert Gladden Orthopaedic Society, and Ruth Jackson Orthopaedic Society, and serving as founding partner of Nth Dimensions, which supports the advancement of women and underrepresented minorities in orthopaedic surgery. Learn more in the latest Sustainability Report.

About Zimmer Biomet
Zimmer Biomet is a global medical technology leader with a comprehensive portfolio designed to maximize mobility and improve health. We seamlessly transform the patient experience through our innovative products and suite of integrated digital and robotic technologies that leverage data, data analytics and artificial intelligence.

With 90+ years of trusted leadership and proven expertise, Zimmer Biomet is positioned to deliver the highest quality solutions to patients and providers. Our legacy continues to come to life today through our progressive culture of evolution and innovation.

For more information about our product portfolio, our operations in 25+ countries and sales in 100+ countries or about joining our team, visit www.zimmerbiomet.com or follow on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/zimmerbiomet or X / Twitter at www.twitter.com/zimmerbiomet.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terms such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "aims," "anticipates," "plans," "looking forward to," "estimates," "projects," "assumes," "guides," "targets," "forecasts," "continue," "seeks" or the negatives of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning the Company's expectations, plans, intentions, strategies, prospects, business plans, product and service offerings, new product launches, potential clinical successes, and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. Some of these risks and uncertainties can be found in Zimmer Biomet's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 and subsequent periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.zimmerbiomet.com or on request from the Company. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in the Company's filings with the SEC. Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers of this press release are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, since there can be no assurance that these forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate. This cautionary statement is applicable to all forward-looking statements contained in this press release.