Community investment

The Alexion Charitable Foundation (ACF) exists solely to fund organisations supporting the rare disease community and underserved populations in the communities where Alexion operates. The Foundation's mission is to bring promise, hope and belonging to people living with a rare condition and those who care for them. Its ambition is to address health disparities within and among the rare disease community and ensure that all underserved communities have equitable pathways to the care, services, and resources they need to live healthier lives. ACF creates a positive impact on communities around the world through two funding streams: its signature initiative, Rare

Belonging®, and its community giving programme, Local Needs.

We donate our medicines through non-profit partners who support patients in medically underserved communities for genuine public health need or as part of disaster relief and humanitarian response. 

Our global product donation partners include Direct Relief, and International Health Partners UK.

In 2024, we provided more than $10.4 million (2023: $7.5 million) in product donations for disaster relief and as a response to public health crises (included in disaster relief donations).

We also donate medicines free-of-charge through patient assistance and access programmes, the largest of which is AZ&Me in the US, and to support our rare disease community through the Alexion Access Foundation, also in the US. 

Our processes are aligned to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Guideline for Medicines Donation, Revised 2010, with regard to the selection, quality assurance, presentation, packing and labelling and the management of appropriate distribution of donated medicines. We only donate product as a response to an expressed need.

We are also members of the Partnership for Quality Medical Donations (PQMD) and coordinate global product donations through established partners which adhere to the PQMD Guidelines for Quality Medical Donations and that have experience working and responding in humanitarian settings.

Providing support for disaster relief and humanitarian work is an important part of our contribution to society. 

Through partnerships with trusted non-profit partners, we enable support through the provision of financial donations, product donations, and other solutions to allow greater access to care. We are committed to working with all health system stakeholders to enable the supply of medicines to patients and to support the resilience and recovery of healthcare facilities in communities with the greatest unmet need.

No two humanitarian emergencies or disasters are alike in nature or impact as each event creates a unique variety of challenges. We consider a needs assessment to determine our ability to respond. As we respond, our priorities are always to ensure the safety of our employees, that patients continue to be supplied with life-saving medicines, and to support the humanitarian relief efforts.

We focus on meeting urgent health needs and considering the complexities that come with long-term needs such as recovery and rebuilding, with a focus on the needs of the most vulnerable populations and marginalised groups. We recognise that the right to adequate healthcare is linked to rights to clean water, sanitation, food, and shelter, and therefore take a holistic approach to improve access to integrated, quality essential healthcare that is safe, effective, and patient-centred.

Our global partners include Americares, Direct Relief, The British Red Cross, International Health Partners UK, International Medical Corps, Project Hope and UNICEF. We may also work with local teams and partners in our response.

In 2024, we contributed $11.2 million in financial and non-financial donations (2023: 12 million) through disaster relief and public health responses.