Pioneering Access for Patients

Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company Sandoz came to be an independent company in October 2023. For 20 years prior to that, it was the generic businesses division of Novartis. Now, Sandoz is a global leader in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars with the focus on bringing high quality medicines early to patients at affordable cost. The local subsidiary, Sandoz Hungaria Ltd., is part of the company’s Central Eastern European group.

In Sandoz's 2024 annual report, Chief Executive Richard Saynor stated that it was "a year of consistent delivery, consolidating our promise as a standalone company." Commenting on that success, Matt Bell, Country Head Hungary, tells Diplomacy&Trade that the company has a rich history of ‘firsts’, like developing oral penicillin in 1951 or launching the world’s first biosimilar in 2006, which is still experiencing an expanding market. “2024 was our first year as an independent company. In terms of what that actually meant for Sandoz, that didn’t change our purpose: pioneering access for patients. But really, the first step was solidifying the Sandoz culture and finding our voice as a company. Obviously, there are many operational pieces that we also delivered upon in 2024 like the launch of three specific biosimilars, one of which is also available in Hungary. We have advanced the biosimilar development pipeline; right now, we have an industry leading 28 molecules. I don't think anyone else in the industry looks like that. We have further advanced our own in-house biosimilar development and manufacturing infrastructure. Previously we had relied on our parent company. Being independent, we have had to invest notable CAPEX to do many things ourselves; including building up our IT infrastructure. We have also had successes on the small molecule front, to note some, we have recently just launched two other generic prescription products in Hungary, altogether seven in the last two years.”

In the off-patent drugs market
The Sandoz strategy is to compete strictly in the field of more affordable and accessible off-patent drugs. As the Country Head explains, essentially, once the patent(s) has/have expired, competition is able to enter the market. “Following a period of time where one originator, who has generally invented the product, is the only company able to commercialize the given product for a period of generally ten years (depending on the patents landscape), we (as a generic and biosimilar company) come in and can compete in free competition. So, this is really our objective, bring more affordable medicines to a larger population – that's really key for us. Our company broadly challenges patents where we think we have a strong case to do so to, again, try to bring access to these specific medicines earlier for patients. We're also cooperating with regulators and legislators across different markets within Europe and elsewhere to shape policy and regulation to help patients get access to affordable medicines more quickly; ‘pioneering access for patients’, our clear purpose at Sandoz.”

Hungary is an important market
Regarding Sandoz Hungaria’s contribution to the global achievements of the mother company, Matt Bell notes that Sandoz is present in over 100 markets with roughly USD 10 billion in revenue globally. “Hungary is in the heart of Europe. Sandoz is a European company. Globally, we provide about 900 million patient treatments in 2024, an outstanding number, and of that, 17 million in Hungary based on internal calculation, roughly 1.5% of what Sandoz provides globally. We also provided USD 19 billion in savings to the European and US healthcare systems. Estimated contribution of USD 250 million hereto was delivered in Hungary; I feel that is a notable impact we have to global society.”

Solid ESG pillars
Nowadays, society increasingly expects ethical behavior from global health care companies especially. As to what sort of policy Sandoz has to conform to this expectation, the Country Head points out two key elements. “The first is our very ethical corporate governance framework, and the second is our ESG (environmental, social and governance) approach, which consists of four pillars. (1) ‘Driving impact & access’ totally aligned with our purpose. Then, we have (2) ‘Championing sustainability’, which is in reference to climate, pollution, antimicrobial resistance (in reference to manufacturing, use and handling of antibiotics) and ensuring that we validate our suppliers correctly. We also ensure we are always (3) “Empowering our People”, fostering principles of diversity, equity and inclusion – we're very proud of that. The corporate culture at Sandoz is ‘the Sandoz Way’, defining the values and principles we follow on a day-to-day basis. Additionally, with our health and safety policy, we make sure that everyone goes home safely. We want to ensure everyone lives the culture within the company to support success. The fourth pillar is (4) ‘Governing with Integrity’ – that's really about the ethics, we want to ensure everyone does the right thing. We also ensure our product quality and safety meet the highest standards, and that all data privacy and security policies and laws are respected so that personal data is secure,” the Country Head emphasizes.

Giving back to society
Understandably, the company’s social responsibility activities are tied to the fundamental issues that Sandoz is involved in professionally. When talking about the guidelines of the CSR policy at Sandoz, Matt Bell finds it important to mention that “over the last five years, we have donated more than USD 45 million in products to NGOs and for relief of natural disasters in areas of need globally. We have established formal partnerships with two notable aid organizations for on-going initiatives. As for recent examples in Hungary, in the last two years we supported more than ten patient organizations and stakeholder groups within the country; that support comes through various donations, whether that be financial, patient materials, educational materials or even volunteering with our time – so, really just giving back to society. We have a very strong community within the office here that donates time to volunteer efforts. We have had examples like planting, and we will work with the Hungarian Food Bank to do a kind of cooking course, a little bit of an educational event for our employees as well: the food is provided, we prepare it and then, it's given to those in need. Our volunteering colleagues also made donations of tangible items in early May to new mothers that are in need of support. We have also done some fun creative recycling activities. We are always willing to take ideas from the team as to how we can be more sustainable, be more environmentally savvy and give back to the community. In addition to that, the real purpose that we have at Sandoz and what I think really drives our people to get up in the morning and feel they are making a difference at work is that they know they are doing good for individuals, creating an impact on patients' lives every day, and driving and supporting health care across the world, and in Hungary."