Abbott Laboratories is an American medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known drugs; today, it sells medical devices, diagnostics, branded generic medicines and nutritional products. It split off the research-based pharmaceuticals into AbbVie in 2013. Abbott has a broad range of branded generic pharmaceuticals, medical devices, diagnostics, and nutrition products. The company’s in-vitro diagnostics business performs immunoassays and blood screening. Its medical tests and diagnostic instrument systems are used worldwide by hospitals, laboratories, blood banks, and physician offices to diagnose and monitor diseases such as HIV, hepatitis, cancer, heart failure and metabolic disorders, as well as assess other indicators of health. In 1985, the company developed the first HIV blood-screening test. Abbott Point-of-Care manufactures diagnostic products for blood analysis to provide health care professionals diagnostics information at the point of patient care. Abbott also provides point-of-care cardiac assays to the emergency department.

AmerisourceBergen Corporation is an American drug wholesale company that was formed by the merger of Bergen Brunswig and AmeriSource in 2001.[2] They provide drug distribution and related services designed to reduce costs and improve patient outcomes, distribute a line of brand name and generic pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter (OTC) health care products and home health care supplies and equipment to a wide variety of health care providers located throughout the United States, including acute care hospitals and health systems, independent and chain retail pharmacies, mail-order facilities, physicians, clinics and other alternate site facilities, as well as skilled nursing and assisted living centers. They also provide pharmaceuticals and pharmacy services to long-term care, workers’ compensation and specialty drug patients. AmerisourceBergen is a market leader in pharmaceutical distribution handling about 20% of all of the pharmaceuticals sold and distributed throughout the country and ranked 12th on the Fortune 500 list for 2018 with over $153 billion in annual revenue.[3] In terms of revenue (79.49 billion in 2012) the firm is the largest based in Pennsylvania.

Eli Lilly and Company is an American pharmaceutical company headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, with offices in 18 countries. Its products are sold in approximately 125 countries. The company was founded in 1876 by, and named after, Col. Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical chemist and veteran of the American Civil War. Lilly’s notable achievements include being the first company to mass-produce the polio vaccine developed by Jonas Salk, and insulin. It was one of the first pharmaceutical companies to produce human insulin using recombinant DNA including Humulin (insulin medication), Humalog (insulin lispro), and the first approved biosimilar insulin product in the US, Basaglar (insulin glargine).[3] Lilly is currently the largest manufacturer of psychiatric medications and produces Prozac (fluoxetine), Dolophine (methadone), Cymbalta (duloxetine), and Zyprexa (olanzapine). The company is ranked 123rd on the 2019 Fortune 500.[4] It is ranked 221st on the Forbes Global 2000 list of the largest public companies in the world[5] and 252nd on the Forbes list of America’s Best Employers.[6] Eli Lilly is a full member of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America[7] and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA).[8] As of 1997, it was the largest corporation and the largest charitable benefactor in Indiana.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. /???li?d/, is an American biotechnology company that researches, develops and commercializes drugs. The company focuses primarily on antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and influenza, including Harvoni and Sovaldi. Headquartered and founded in Foster City, California, Gilead is a member of the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index and the S&P 500.

Johnson & Johnson is an American multinational corporation founded in 1886 that develops medical devices, pharmaceutical and consumer packaged goods. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company is ranked No. 37 on the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. J&J is one of the world’s most valuable companies. Johnson & Johnson is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the consumer division being located in Skillman, New Jersey. The corporation includes some 250 subsidiary companies with operations in 60 countries and products sold in over 175 countries. Johnson & Johnson had worldwide sales of $70.1 billion during calendar year 2015.[3] Johnson & Johnson’s brands include numerous household names of medications and first aid supplies. Among its well-known consumer products are the Band-Aid Brand line of bandages, Tylenol medications, Johnson’s Baby products, Neutrogena skin and beauty products, Clean & Clear facial wash and Acuvue contact lenses.

Merck & Co., Inc., d.b.a. Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD) outside the United States and Canada, is an American multinational pharmaceutical company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Merck is incorporated in New Jersey. [4] The company was established in 1891 as the United States subsidiary of the German company Merck, which was founded in 1668 by the Merck family. Merck & Co. was expropriated by the US government during World War I and subsequently established as an independent American company in 1917. While it operates as Merck & Co. in North America, the original Merck based in Darmstadt holds the rights to the Merck name everywhere else. Merck & Co. is the world’s seventh largest pharmaceutical company by market capitalization and revenue. Its headquarters is located in Kenilworth, New Jersey.[5] The company ranked No. 78 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue.[6] Merck & Co. publishes The Merck Manuals, a series of medical reference books for physicians, nurses, technicians, and veterinarians. These include the Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy, the world’s best-selling medical reference. The Merck Index, a compendium of chemical compounds, was formerly published by Merck & Co. before being acquired by the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2012.

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. is an American holding company headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, that owns Walgreens, Boots, and a number of pharmaceutical manufacturing, wholesale, and distribution companies. The company was formed on December 31, 2014, after Walgreens purchased the 55% stake in UK and Switzerland-based Alliance Boots that it did not already own. The total price of the acquisition was $4.9 billion in cash and 144.3 million common shares with fair value of $10.7 billion.[2] Walgreens had previously purchased 45% of the company for $4.0 billion and 83.4 million common shares in August 2012 with an option to purchase the remaining shares within three years.[3] Walgreens became a subsidiary of the newly created company after the transactions were completed.[4] The company is organized into three divisions: Retail Pharmacy USA (Walgreens and Duane Reade), Retail Pharmacy International (Boots and other retail operations internationally), and Pharmaceutical Wholesale, incorporating Alliance Healthcare.[5] The new holding company began trading on the NASDAQ on December 31, 2014.[6] The combined business has operations in over 25 countries. Walgreens had formerly operated solely within the United States and its territories, while Alliance Boots operated a more international business. In October 2018, Walgreens Boots Alliance published its fourth quarter earnings report. Fiscal year 2018 sales were $131.5 billion, up 11.3% from fiscal 2017, and GAAP net earnings increased to $5.0 billion.[7] On June 26, 2018, Walgreens Boots Alliance replaced General Electric on the Dow Jones Industrial Index.