Chiron Foundation Announces First Grant Recipients

From: PR Newswire (press release) - Jun 8, 2004

EMERYVILLE, Calif., June 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Chiron Corporation (Nasdaq: CHIR) today announced that the Chiron Foundation has designated 11 organizations as the recipients of the Foundation's inaugural grants. The Chiron Foundation was established earlier this year to advance Chiron Corporation's commitment to transform the practice of medicine, improve human health and enhance the quality of life in the communities where the company has a presence.

"We are tremendously proud of all the good that Chiron and Chiron employees have been able to accomplish," said Howard Pien, Chiron's chairman and chief executive officer. "Through our businesses in blood testing, vaccines and biopharmaceuticals, Chiron has touched millions of lives around the world. At the same time, through Chiron's philanthropic endeavors and the individual and collective efforts of Chiron employees, we have a rich tradition of giving back to our local communities. The Chiron Foundation is testament to our commitment to extend our reach to improve even more lives."

The 11 organizations receiving inaugural grants totaling more than $400,000 match the Chiron Foundation's areas of interest. The Chiron Foundation focuses its grant-making and initiatives in three strategic areas:

-- Improving lives through better healthcare. The Chiron Foundation supports organizations engaged in disease prevention and treatment, patient education, health policy dialogue and advocacy on behalf of those with serious medical needs. Emphasis is given to the areas of cancer, infectious disease, vaccines and immunization services, and blood safety.

-- Empowering lives through better education. The Chiron Foundation supports improving student access to quality educational resources and learning opportunities, especially in the sciences, in communities where the company has a presence.

-- Enriching lives through better communities. The Chiron Foundation supports organizations in communities near Chiron that are working for positive social change and providing health and human services to those in need, particularly at-risk children and youth.

The 11 organizations receiving grants are:

-- Foundation for America's Blood Centers, a national network of blood centers committed to raising public awareness about the nation's need for a safe and stable blood supply, to develop a Spanish-language version of an award-winning science education program about blood biology and the importance of blood donation geared toward children and youth.

-- Hep C Connection, a support network assisting hepatitis C-challenged individuals, for an education and outreach initiative aimed at preventing the spread of hepatitis C and improving the quality of life and life expectancy of people living with the disease.

-- Sustainable Healthcare Enterprise Foundation, an organization dedicated to improving access to basic health services and essential medicines in the developing world, to expand its franchise network for delivering life-saving drugs and vaccines to children and their families in rural Kenya

-- VillageReach, an organization dedicated to improving health and quality of life in the most remote areas of developing countries, to provide equipment and training needed to improve injection safety in clinics in northern Mozambique.

-- The Heuga Center, a group dedicated to improving the lives of individuals living with multiple sclerosis and their families through education, wellness, health management and counseling.

-- Friends of Cancer Research, an organization that raises awareness and provides public education on cancer research in order to accelerate the nation's progress toward prevention and treatment of cancer.

-- National Children's Cancer Society, a pediatric oncology program dedicated to improving the quality of life for children with cancer and their families through financial and in-kind assistance, advocacy, support services, and education.

-- ARCS (Achievement Rewards for College Scientists) Foundation, a national organization dedicated to helping the best and brightest U.S. graduate and undergraduate students by providing scholarships in natural sciences, medicine and engineering, to fund a Chiron scholarship in the life sciences.

-- Teach for America, a national corps of outstanding recent college graduates who commit two years to teach in low-income urban and rural communities, to sponsor the recruitment, training and development for a science teacher placed in the Oakland Unified School District.

-- Center for the Education of the Infant Deaf, an early intervention program for babies and young children with hearing loss and severe speech impediments, to expand the content and geographic reach of the Center's comprehensive, physician- and family-targeted resource guide on all aspects of deafness and speech impairment.

-- Treehouse, an organization committed to helping foster children attain self-esteem, confidence and their fullest potential, through a unique combination of enrichment, mentoring and educational programs.

The Chiron Foundation will only consider applications for funding from organizations whose mission fits within the Foundation's stated areas of interest. For further information about the Chiron Foundation and its guidelines, please visit http://www.chiron.com.

About Chiron

Through its global Blood Testing, Vaccines and BioPharmaceuticals businesses, Chiron Corporation addresses human suffering with more than 50 diverse products to detect, prevent and treat disease worldwide. The company's consistent success has come from its pioneering science, skill in delivering innovations in biotechnology and disciplined business approach. Chiron believes that science has the power to improve people's lives and harnesses that power to transform public health.

This year, Chiron Vaccines celebrates 100 years of advancing medicine with the anniversary of two founding companies. In 1904, Emil von Behring and Achille Sclavo independently started companies in Germany and Italy, respectively, dedicated to the research, development and manufacture of vaccines to protect humanity from infectious disease. As the fifth-largest vaccine manufacturer in the world, Chiron remains dedicated to the legacies of von Behring and Sclavo to prevent disease and develop new vaccines to improve human health globally.

SOURCE Chiron Corporation Web Site: http://www.chiron.com

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