Gary Cohen Named to Chair CDC Foundation Board

ATLANTA – Gary Cohen, executive vice president, BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), has been named chair of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Foundation (CDC Foundation) board. Cohen joined the board in 2006.

“Gary’s keen business acuity and passion for global health make him an ideal person to lead our board,” said Charles Stokes, president and CEO of the CDC Foundation. “He is a respected and accomplished leader who is committed to giving back to the community. We have been fortunate to have him as a board member, and we look forward to his leadership as our board chair.”

In addition to his leadership responsibilities at the CDC Foundation and BD, Cohen serves as a board director of the US Fund for UNICEF, the Accordia Global Health Foundation and the Perrigo Company. He also serves as Chair of the CDC/Corporate Roundtable on Global Health Threats and as an advisor to the Clinton Global Initiative.

Cohen and BD are extensively engaged in collaborations across the public, private and NGO sectors to address health needs in developing and emerging countries. He has served as an advocate, speaker and expert panelist on global health, child immunization, HIV/AIDS and health system strengthening in venues including the United Nations, World Bank, U.S. State Department, World Economic Forum (Davos) and Council on Foreign Relations.

In September 2009, Cohen and leaders from CDC, UNICEF, UNAIDS, UNFPA, UN Women, the Nduna Foundation and other partners launched Together for Girls, a new initiative to address the public health impacts and human rights violations associated with sexual violence against girls. In September 2010, the US Department of State – Office of the US Global AIDS Coordinator and Office of Global Women’s Issues, and BD also joined as partners. Cohen has been honored with the Corporate Leadership Award by MESAB (Medical Education for South African Blacks), the Distinguished Humanitarian Award by B’nai B’rith International and the Helenka Pantaleoni Award by the U.S. Fund for UNICEF.

Cohen began his career with BD, a leading global medical technology company, in 1983. He became an executive officer of the company in 1998 and has held his current position of executive vice president since 2006. He earned his B.A. and M.B.A. from Rutgers University and previously served as a member of its Board of Trustees.

Cohen succeeds Phil Jacobs, a retired executive at AT&T/Bellsouth, who will remain on the board as an active member.

Established by Congress, the CDC Foundation helps the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) do more, faster, by forging effective partnerships between CDC and corporations, foundations, organizations and individuals to fight threats to health and safety. The CDC Foundation manages approximately 200 programs in the United States and in countries around the world. For more information, please visit www.cdcfoundation.org.
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