The American Heart Association Names Johnson & Johnson Chairman & CEO Alex Gorsky as Chairman of its CEO Roundtable

The American Heart Association Names Johnson & Johnson Chairman & CEO Alex Gorsky as Chairman of its CEO Roundtable
The American Heart Association—the world’s leading voluntary organization dedicated to building healthier lives, free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke—proudly welcomes Alex Gorsky, Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson, as the new chairman of its CEO Roundtable. Gorsky assumes the role from founding co-chairmen Henry Kravis (KKR) and Terry Lundgren (Macy’s.) The CEO Roundtable is the Association’s leadership collaborative, established in 2013, with more than 35 CEO members who represent some of the nation’s largest employers committed to science-based approaches to improve their employees’ overall health and the health of their communities. Kravis and Lundgren remain active Chairman Emeritus members.

The American Heart Association works toward equitable health and well-being for all, for patients and health consumers everywhere, regardless of where they live. The AHA CEO Roundtable is uniquely positioned to influence and transform the communities where employees live and work.

“It’s been a privilege to establish the CEO Roundtable as a premier CEO collaborative that can contribute to real changes in health and well-being by engaging our employees,” said Henry Kravis, Co-CEO and Co-Chairman of KKR. “Alex has been an enthusiastic member from our early days and I know how deeply he believes in the vision. We can truly transform the health of our nation, starting with our workforce.”

“One of our foundational principles is that CEO Roundtable members should lead by example and Alex perfectly represents this principle in action,” said Terry Lundgren, Executive Chairman of Macy’s, Inc. “I look forward to watching this group grow under Alex’s leadership to promote even better health outcomes for America’s workers.”

CEO Roundtable members are pioneering new and innovative ways to help meet the Association’s goal of improving the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent by 2020 with simple behavior changes that produce significant results. Achievements to date include the Workplace Health Achievement Index that uses science-based best practices to evaluate the overall quality and comprehensiveness of workplace health programs and recognizes companies that meet scoring criteria.

“I am delighted to have Alex’s visionary leadership to guide our CEO Roundtable, expanding upon the powerful legacy that Henry and Terry have built. Under Alex’s guidance, Johnson & Johnson is highly regarded for their corporate culture of health. I know he will bring new and innovative thinking to the CEO Roundtable, allowing us to make an even bigger impact in the future,” said Nancy Brown, CEO of the American Heart Association. “Our CEO members have a shared commitment to integrate health and well-being into the overall fabric of their workplaces and into their communities. There is no question that Alex will help the Roundtable achieve even greater success in the months and years to come.”

“When our people feel their best, they perform at their best,” said Alex Gorsky, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Johnson & Johnson. “That’s why, at Johnson & Johnson, it’s so important to prepare our employees for the mental, emotional and physical challenges of work and life today. Investing in people is one of the best investments a company can make. And as Chairman of the CEO Roundtable, I’m excited for the opportunity to help other companies build a workplace culture of health for their people.”

Cardiovascular diseases impact the multinational workforce as the world’s most urgent health threat in terms of mortality, suffering and economic burden. More than 17.5 million people die from cardiovascular disease every year, making it the leading cause of death and disability in the world today. By 2030, this figure is expected to reach approximately 23 million, with an estimated global cost of more than a trillion dollars by 2030.1 Fueled by the trusted science of the American Heart Association, CEO members take bold action to help create scalable solutions that have the broadest health impact on people across the country and to engage and improve the lives of their more than nine million employees and family members. For more information visit www.heart.org/workplacehealth.

1 American Heart Association – Heart and Stroke Statistics at a Glance, 2017.