Abbott and the Abbott Fund Provide $2 Million in Additional Relief to Help Families Affected by Hurricane Maria and the Earthquake in Central Mexico

- Total support for relief efforts following earthquakes in Mexico and Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria is $4.25 million in products and funding

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Sept. 22, 2017 - Abbott and its foundation, the Abbott Fund, are providing $2 million in additional grants and products to support relief efforts and help families recover from Hurricane Maria in the Caribbean, and the earthquake in Central Mexico. This builds on earlier aid for Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and the earthquake in Southern Mexico. To date, Abbott and the Abbott Fund have provided $4.25 million in funding and nutrition and healthcare products to help with relief efforts in recent weeks.

'Our thoughts, and our actions, are focused right now on how we can help our colleagues and the many families across Mexico, the Caribbean and in the U.S. who are coping with the recent hurricanes and earthquakes,' said Miles D. White, chairman and chief executive officer, Abbott. 'We hope our assistance will meet critically urgent needs as well as help support rebuilding these communities in the weeks and months ahead.'

Mexico Earthquakes

Abbott and the Abbott Fund are providing $1 million in relief to help communities in Central Mexico affected by the recent earthquake. The Abbott Fund is providing $750,000 in grants to the Mexican Red Cross and Direct Relief, and Abbott is donating $250,000 in nutrition products and medicines, including donations to the National Chamber of the Pharmaceutical Industry (CANIFARMA) to support the government's relief efforts.

This support builds on an earlier $250,000 in funding and product donations for relief efforts following the earthquake in Southern Mexico. The Abbott Fund provided $50,000 to Direct Relief, and Abbott provided $200,000 in nutrition products and medicines to support the government's relief efforts in Chiapas and Oaxaca.

Altogether, Abbott and the Abbott Fund are providing $1.25 million in support for relief efforts following the earthquakes in Mexico.

Hurricane Relief

Abbott and the Abbott Fund are providing $1 million in additional relief to help communities in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands affected by Hurricane Maria. This includes $750,000 in grants from the Abbott Fund to the American Red Cross, Americares, Direct Relief, Feeding America and Heart to Heart International, and $250,000 in donated Abbott nutrition and healthcare products to relief organizations.

Abbott and the Abbott Fund previously announced $1 million in grants and products to support Hurricane Irma relief efforts in the Southeastern U.S., Puerto Rico and other affected islands in the Caribbean. This includes $900,000 in grants from the Abbott Fund to the American Red Cross, Direct Relief and Feeding America, and $100,000 in donated Abbott nutrition and healthcare products to relief organizations.

Abbott and the Abbott Fund also previously announced $1 million in donations to support Hurricane Harvey relief efforts in Texas and Louisiana. This includes $900,000 in grants from the Abbott Fund to the American Red Cross, Americares and Direct Relief, and $100,000 in donated Abbott nutrition and healthcare products to relief organizations.

The donations following Hurricanes Irma, Harvey and Maria also build on earlier work with our partners Direct Relief and Feeding America to help communities prepare for the 2017 hurricane season. Abbott nutrition and healthcare products were stored at health clinics and food banks in advance of hurricane season in Florida, Louisiana, Puerto Rico and Texas. As a result, these clinics and food banks were able to quickly respond to meet immediate needs following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

Altogether, the combined Abbott and Abbott Fund support for hurricane preparation and relief is $3 million in products and grants to help families in affected areas.

About Abbott and the Abbott Fund

As part of its commitment to helping people build better lives and stronger communities, Abbott has a long history of providing humanitarian relief around the world. Over the past decade, Abbott and its foundation the Abbott Fund have provided more than $40 million in funding and products to help meet both immediate needs and support long-term recovery efforts. In recent years, this included a rapid response to earthquakes in Chile, China and Haiti, typhoons in the Philippines and Vietnam, and hurricanes in the U.S.

At Abbott, we're committed to helping people live their best possible life through the power of health. For more than 125 years, we've brought new products and technologies to the world - in nutrition, diagnostics, medical devices and branded generic pharmaceuticals - that create more possibilities for more people at all stages of life. Today, 94,000 of us are working to help people live not just longer, but better, in the more than 150 countries we serve. Connect with us at www.abbott.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and on Twitter @AbbottNews and @AbbottGlobal.

The Abbott Fund is a philanthropic foundation established by Abbott in 1951. The Abbott Fund's mission is to create healthier global communities by investing in creative ideas that promote science, expand access to healthcare and strengthen communities worldwide. For more information on the Abbott Fund, visit www.abbottfund.org.

Abbott Laboratories published this content on 22 September 2017 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
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