Pharma funds The CDC Through The CDC Foundation
Grock reads the CDC's web sites
Major Pharmaceutical/Biotech Donors (Examples from Recent Years) Here are recurring or notable pharmaceutical-related donors from FY 2020–2023 reports (and similar in other years):
Amgen Inc. (and Amgen Foundation) — Frequently listed in higher tiers.
AstraZeneca PLC — Regular supporter.
Bayer Corporation (and related entities).
Genentech (Roche subsidiary).
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK, including Biologicals and Foundation).
Johnson & Johnson (and Foundation).
Merck & Co., Inc. (Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Merck Foundation)
Moderna Charitable Foundation.
Pfizer Inc. (and Pfizer Foundation)
Roche Diagnostics (and related).
Sanofi (e.g., Sanofi-Aventis).
Takeda Pharmaceuticals (and related entities).
Other frequent or notable mentions include: AbbVie, Abbott Laboratories, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead, Novartis, Regeneron, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, and diagnostics/lab companies like Quest Diagnostics, LabCorp, and Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics.
cdcfoundation.org
Context and Notes
Scale and transparency: The Foundation has received hundreds of millions from corporations overall (e.g., ~$80M from companies in FY2014–2018). It publishes donor lists and program-specific funding. Some critics have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest (e.g., donations tied to specific drugs or campaigns like flu prevention from Roche). The Foundation and CDC use disclaimers on materials.
science.org
Recent trends: Lists evolve yearly; government grants and large foundations (e.g., Gates, Robert Wood Johnson) often dominate totals, but pharma companies contribute notably to infectious disease, vaccines, and chronic disease efforts. Check the latest FY reports on cdcfoundation.org for full, current lists.
cdcfoundation.org
Examples of funded work: Pfizer for cryptococcal disease prevention; Merck for maternal mortality; Biogen for newborn screening.
lowninstitute.org
Cumulative support from the Gates Foundation appears to be in the range of tens of millions of dollars (likely $40–80+ million) in the last decade.
Good info. I am astounded of the sparse reaction to this. Societal fatigue? History will not speak kindly of this era.
I was not aware of the CDC Foundation, so thank you for writing about this. It seems like quite a big conflict of interest, though probably not as blatant as the PDUFA (Prescription Drug User Fee Act) fees paid by pharma alongside their drug applications being used to fund the salaries of the FDA scientists who are reviewing those applications!