Amgen Supported Initiatives


Amgen supports the work of patient advocacy groups and professional organizations that share a common goal of developing solutions to improve health outcomes and work toward patient empowerment and well-being. These are a few examples of the initiatives Amgen currently supports.

Cardiovascular Disease

American Heart Association (AHA): The AHA is leading a multi-year campaign, with Amgen as the national sponsor, to improve understanding, testing and treatment of LDL cholesterol, an important indicator of heart attack and stroke risk. The LDL-C Campaign educates patients, particularly those who have had a heart attack or stroke, about the importance of knowing their LDL-C level and encourage them to take action through active conversations with their healthcare team to set up an appropriate care plan. In addition, AHA's EmPOWERED to Serve™ Health Lessons, also supported by Amgen, are accelerating community-driven solutions for reducing cardiovascular risk disparities, including elevated LDL-C, in under-resourced communities and communities of color.

Too many organizations are working in isolation from one another. Building more powerful public-private healthcare partnerships is vital to moving the needle in addressing public and population health challenges.
— Eduardo Sanchez, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for Prevention for the American Heart Association.

Black Heart Association: Guard Your Heart is a national campaign to combat cardiovascular disease disparities in underserved communities. This initiative will bring LDL ("bad") cholesterol and Lp(a) testing directly to communities through targeted advocacy, education and empowerment. The program focuses on not only bringing crucial health services to those often left out of the healthcare system, but also providing a culturally immersive experience that resonates with and fulfills the distinct needs of each community.

There's a saying, if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. Through its support, Amgen has created a space for us to go farther together to reduce the impact of cardiovascular disease for as many people as we possibly can.
— Fredrick Robinson, Director of Operations & Co-Founder, Black Heart Association.

Family Heart Foundation: Getting on Appropriate Lipid Management (GOAL) campaign connects the dots between hereditary risks for heart disease—elevated Lp(a) and LDL-C levels—and cardiovascular disease, helping individuals at risk to get an accurate diagnosis and appropriate, timely management to lower their LDL-C and Lp(a) levels per guideline recommendations.

Effective solutions to pervasive challenges like heart disease must work at many levels and for diverse groups. Multi-stakeholder collaborations are our best way to find the strongest solutions.
— Katherine Wilemon, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Family Heart Foundation.

Asthma

Allergy & Asthma Network: Not One More Life Trusted Messengers is a community outreach and virtual asthma coaching program bringing quality healthcare into under-resourced communities that are disproportionately impacted by asthma.

We are grateful to Amgen for supporting this impactful health equity work. The results speak for themselves. People enrolled in our coaching program report greater knowledge in managing their asthma, fewer asthma attacks and more confidence in asking questions at their healthcare appointments.
— Lynda Mitchell, MA, CAE, Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Allergy & Asthma Network.

Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America: Health Equity Advancement and Leadership (HEAL) program addresses disparities in communities of color that bear the heaviest burden of asthma.

With Amgen’s support, the HEAL program has been a great opportunity for us to expand into the local community and learn from the local leaders about the challenges their communities face when it comes to asthma.
— Kenneth Mendez, President & Chief Executive Officer of Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

Psoriasis

Global Healthy Living Foundation: Psoriasis: An Inside Out Disease empowers patients to take an active role in their disease, including Black, Indigenous and People of Color in whom diagnosis and treatment are often delayed because many healthcare providers are not aware of differences in how psoriasis appears on people with darker skin tones. To help reach more patients and connect them to the Inside Out resources, HEROES (Health Education + Reliable Outreach + Empathetic Support) encourages hair professionals to deliver education about psoriasis to affected clients. This program is designed by, with, and for stylists, salons and barbershops, with input from patients and healthcare professionals.

Our dedication to showcasing diverse patient voices in psoriasis education is about fostering understanding, empathy and inclusivity. By sharing varied experiences, we empower every individual to be seen and heard, and ultimately, feel confident in making treatment decisions about their psoriasis.
— Sarah Shaw, Associate Director, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Community Outreach.

National Psoriasis Foundation (NPF): In Focus: #ThisIsPsoriasis highlights the plaque psoriasis patient journey through storytelling. This program spotlights candid reflections from patients and educational tools to foster proactive treatment discussions with healthcare providers and help patients to understand the systemic nature of their disease regardless of severity.   

There is so much hope and promise in the work we do with Amgen's support. Collecting patient stories is particularly exciting. We hear patients really talk about their journey and their challenges, and how they're addressing and overcoming them.
— Jennifer Fagerstrom, Chief Development Officer, National Psoriasis Foundation.

IFPA (International Federation of Psoriasis Associations): UPLIFT Innovation Program fosters the development of actionable solutions to address the challenges faced by the psoriatic disease community and their healthcare providers. Organizations around the world are awarded grants for projects that promote open dialogue about a patient’s health and treatment goals.

Significant areas of unmet need remain for people living with psoriatic disease. We chose to work with Amgen on the UPLIFT Innovation Program as a global opportunity fitting to the IFPA mission to improve the lives of all people living with psoriatic disease.
— Frida Dunger Johnnson, Executive Director of IFPA.

Oncology

HEAL: The Health, Education, Advocacy and Learning (HEAL) Collaborative forms meaningful partnerships with faith-based organizations to help improve the health of Black communities. They leverage relevant health education resources to help Black communities learn about healthy lifestyles, wellness and disease prevention, navigate local healthcare systems, access the latest medical treatments and technologies, and learn about early detection, health screenings and clinical trial enrollment. HEAL's "Lung Cancer Education & Awareness Community Conversation" series allows for expansion into small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) that encompasses African Americans who are current smokers, former smokers and those diagnosed with SCLC.

Partnering with Amgen on its commitment to health equity has given us the opportunity to challenge the status quo on how and by whom trusted health information is presented in Communities of Color. We look forward to continuing this forward momentum with Black communities through our SCLC series.
— Howard Mosby, CPA, Board Member, Corporate Treasurer and Interim Chief Operating Officer of the HEAL Collaborative.

GO2 for Lung Cancer: GO2's Centers of Excellence are recognized for providing best-in-class lung cancer care. The Centers of Excellence (COE) program fosters and promotes the highest-quality early detection and treatment standards in lung cancer across a national network of local community hospitals, clinics, and academic and VA medical centers.

Since 2010, GO2 has been building our Centers of Excellence network to share expertise, disseminate resources and transcend barriers to solve the challenges facing the lung cancer community. With more than 900 COEs, we serve tens of thousands of people across the US, including underserved, vulnerable and at-risk populations, to ensure the highest standard of care.
— Laurie Fenton Ambrose, Co-Founder, President & CEO of GO2 for Lung Cancer.

Lazarex Cancer Foundation: Cancer Wellness HUB is a safe space that brings resources and services needed to overcome historical and cultural barriers to cancer care into communities, providing the greatest opportunity for a successful result.

With funding from Amgen, we built a service network and launched our inaugural ‘pop-up’ Cancer Wellness HUB in several underserved communities of color throughout Los Angeles. Our expansion will bring us one step closer to a viable solution for the reduction of cancer health disparities and a platform of equitable access.
— Dana Dornsife, Founder, Chief Mission and Strategy Officer of the Lazarex Cancer Foundation.

LUNGevity Foundation: No One Missed encourages people with non-small cell lung cancer to follow a talk, test and treat approach to learn about and seek precision care based on cancer biomarkers. Navigating KRAS is the foundation’s online resource to help patients learn about the most common mutation that drives non-small cell lung cancer.

With the generous support of Amgen, we are building on our success nationally while refining our efforts to ensure underserved audiences have access to our resources.
— Andrea Ferris, President & CEO of LUNGevity Foundation.

Health Equity

StoryCorps: Every Patient Counts, Every Story Matters: Health Equity Series is putting a human face on healthcare challenges by illuminating the shared experiences of individuals either facing health disparities or working to change them.

Storytelling is a trust-building exercise. With this innately human process of storytelling, we can get a clearer picture of where and how we can support communities as they pursue health.
— Murphy Barney, StoryCorps’ program lead for the Amgen partnership.