Supply chain and stewardship
Our commitment to healthier futures begins with our promise of efficiency and security at the first point a product enters the supply chain. As the distributor of tens of thousands of products, our infrastructure is built to enable secure, daily ordering and distribution.
When there is strain on the supply chain, securing the supply chain is even more critical. We rely on our “fair share” allocation program, which takes a data-driven approach to allocation based on historical purchasing data. When products are in short supply or may become so — either due to a surge in demand or a loss of production — these products are placed on allocation. This means that any one customer can only order a certain volume of that product so that all sites of care can maintain some level of access. We engage a medical ethicist to provide guidance regarding product distribution practices in the case of shortages or other distribution challenges. In FY23, Cencora began working with nonprofit Civica as their exclusive distributor and to provide supply chain support to ensure the stability of supply of essential generic medicines across the U.S.
Across Europe, Alliance Healthcare operates in nine markets, each with its own approach towards allocation and fair share related to the specifics of the market. We work on a market-by-market level with allocations largely determined by manufacturers against specific market requirements.
We also seek to buy goods and services from suppliers, contractors, and vendors who share our responsible-sourcing goals. We expect partners to uphold our values as exemplified in our Supplier Code of Conduct.
Product integrity and patient safety
Our state-of-the-art infrastructure and technology collectively comprise an efficient and secure pharmaceutical supply chain, supporting our regulatory compliance.
We continuously improve the traceability of our business processes and technology, further enhancing patient safety. We employ a packaging portfolio offering a variety of reusable solutions for transporting sensitive medical shipments with advanced monitoring to ensure all products maintain appropriate temperatures while in our possession. Our process includes assessing any temperature excursions to ensure only products deemed salable are distributed to our downstream partners. Additional safeguards include purchasing pharmaceuticals for distribution directly from manufacturers or their authorized representatives, warehousing the products, and delivering them to healthcare providers on a just-in-time basis.
As a wholesaler, Cencora has taken a leading role in educating its stakeholders on the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA). Currently, we are leading the effort on technology solutions that will verify serial numbers at the unit level on pharmaceutical products as part of the DSCSA regulatory requirement. In FY23, Cencora continued its efforts to address the DSCSA requirements with cross-industry engagement and regulatory collaboration. With respect to product safety, the European equivalent to DSCSA is the Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD), which has been in place since 2019. This introduced the European Medicines Verification System, which we adhere to within each of our European Union markets. We undertake extensive due diligence on all the products we purchase from manufacturers and other licensed suppliers, including using the FMD system to check authenticity, as required.
Cybersecurity, data protection, and privacy
We are committed to safeguarding security. Our teams regularly monitor for data breaches and cyberattacks and are committed to having leading protections standards and regular team member trainings.
Cencora maintains an information security program and a privacy program designed to ensure compliance with regulations (such as GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA, where applicable), customer commitments, and industry standards. This program, which is led by our Chief Information Security Officer, Data Protection Officers, information security and global privacy teams, is also guided by a concept of trust and accountability, and includes, for instance, comprehensive policies and annual training of all team members. Role-based training may mean more frequent training such as the monthly training required of our IT team.
These security and privacy programs implement leading data protection standards and are designed to support that any gathering of personal data is done in a compliant manner. All third parties are vetted and are also required to comply with all relevant Cencora policies, standards, and procedures to meet our data security and privacy requirements. We also monitor for any data breaches or cyberattacks and are ready to respond to any potential issues. Internal testing and external audits are regularly conducted to monitor for any vulnerabilities.
Cencora has been assessed and certified by multiple external independent auditors as part of its ISO/IEC 27001:2013 (Information Security Management Systems), ISO/IEC 27701:2019 (Privacy Information Management Systems, as a data processor), and ISO/IEC 27017:2015 (Cloud Security controls as a cloud service consumer) and SOC2 Type 2 for its data center (infrastructure) environments and online ordering systems. Cencora also maintains cyber insurance.
Disaster response and emergency preparedness
We rely on our vast global footprint and network, taking a proactive approach to finding alternative solutions to maintain customer access to critical pharmaceutical products during disasters and emergencies. Our team of analysts gathers information ahead of weather events and other potential crises to share with global operations teams who can enact their critical incident responses or business continuity plans. We work closely with government officials to convey the critical role Cencora plays in global healthcare, sharing our expertise and partnering with them to sustain the supply chain for our customers and continue the delivery of critical shipments.
The Cencora Impact Foundation supports charitable organizations year-round through a robust grantmaking process that includes proactive disaster response support to our strategic partners, including Americares, Direct Relief, and more. In the aftermath of natural and human-caused crises that have disastrous effects on society’s ability to function, the Foundation aims to activate supplementary funds, which enable communities to rebuild, enact preventative measures, and remain resilient. In FY23, our response included the Foundation’s commitment of $250,000 for relief efforts in the aftermath of the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria and $50,000 to aid emergency relief efforts in communities that were impacted by the Maui wildfires.
The Cencora Impact Foundation supports charitable organizations year-round through a robust grantmaking process that includes proactive disaster response support to our strategic partners, including Americares, Direct Relief, and more. In the aftermath of natural and human-caused crises that have disastrous effects on society’s ability to function, the Foundation aims to activate supplementary funds, which enable communities to rebuild, enact preventative measures, and remain resilient. In FY23, our response included the Foundation’s commitment of $250,000 for relief efforts in the aftermath of the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria and $50,000 to aid emergency relief efforts in communities that were impacted by the Maui wildfires.
“We are seeing weather events and disasters happening in areas where they didn’t used to occur. Our team is playing an even more critical role every day to support our business operations with the information they need to be proactive as we continue to be resilient in the face of increasing environmental and other challenge.”
Robert Crow,
Senior Director, Emergency Response and Crisis Management
Sustainable food production
We are taking a leading role in finding ways to feed a growing, hungry world. The Food and Agriculture Division of the United Nations predicts that world meat production will double by 2050. Micro Technologies, part of our animal health business, offers advanced technology solutions for livestock operations, helping producers optimize animal production and reduce the resources needed in that production process. By increasing the efficiency of feeding and caring for protein-producing livestock, we reduce the quantity of agricultural resources required.
National FFA Foundation
We need a new generation of talent and leadership to address sustainable food production. The Cencora Impact Foundation partners with the National FFA Foundation to ensure we cultivate that talent by supporting the school-based agricultural education model, which offers training necessary for students to be successful in the areas of STEM within agriculture as well as other fields of study.
Through our partnership with National FFA in support of its Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) Grant program, we aim to ensure that the next generation of talent and leadership builds the skill sets needed to take us into tomorrow. In FY23, the Cencora Impact Foundation funded 50 SAE Grants to FFA members in 7th-12th grades across 15 states. Grant funds provided students with opportunities to purchase and care for protein-producing livestock, construct hog buildings to ensure healthy animals, and raise goats to produce milk, cheese, soap, and lotion.