A view of Zimmer Biomet’s headquarters along North Detroit Street in Warsaw. InkFreeNews photo by Dan Spalding.

News Release

WARSAW — Zimmer Biomet announced on Thursday, June 30, that the company has established an independent non-profit group, Movement is Life Inc., a philanthropic, multi-disciplinary coalition that was founded by the company in 2010.

Movement is Life seeks to decrease musculoskeletal health disparities among women, racial and ethnic minorities and women living in rural communities.

The new non-profit organization will continue its focus on raising awareness of the impact of disparities on chronic disease management and quality of life through programs that focus on early intervention, education, behavior change and advocacy.

“We’re excited to take this next step in the evolution of Movement is Life as we continue on our path to address disparities in underserved communities and populations,” said Mary O’Connor, MD, co-founder, chief medical officer and chief compliance officer, Vori Health and chair of the Movement is Life board of directors. “The inaugural Movement is Life Board of Directors shares my gratitude to Zimmer Biomet for their incredible support in our growth. We are excited and eager to work together as an independent organization to accomplish our goals.”

The Zimmer Biomet Foundation has made a multi-year, multi-million dollar commitment to continue to support the operating costs of the new organization while enabling it to establish an independent coalition and scale its programs.

“Over the past 12 years, Movement is Life has been the premier organization addressing health disparities in orthopedics. This new nonprofit status will allow the organization to expand partnerships and develop new relationships to continue the important work of the coalition,” said Keri P. Mattox, Zimmer Biomet chief communications and administration officer and Zimmer Biomet Foundation board member. “Zimmer Biomet and the Zimmer Biomet Foundation remain fully committed to ensuring equity in care in our communities, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to continue to support Movement is Life in their growth as an independent organization.”

Movement is Life has named the following distinguished leaders to the inaugural independent Board of Directors:

• Mary I. O’Connor, MD, co-founder and chief medical officer, Vori Health; professor emerita of orthopedic surgery, Mayo Clinic; chair
• Carla Harwell, MD, medical director, University Hospitals Otis Moss Jr. Health Center; associate professor of medicine, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine; vice-chair
• Ramon Jimenez, MD; co-founder and president, American Association of Latino Orthopaedic Surgeons; treasurer
• Charla B. Johnson, DNP, RN-BC; system director, Nursing Informatics, Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System; secretary
• Verona Brewton, director of Minority Initiatives, Zimmer Biomet
• Michelle Leak, DEd, MBA, operations administrator, Mayo Clinic
• Chad Phipps, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, Zimmer Biomet
• Rolf Taylor, founder and executive director, Project Advocacy

Association management company Smithbucklin, in collaboration with Verona Brewton, Zimmer Biomet’s director of Minority Initiatives, has managed the transition process to ensure seamless execution and continuation of current Movement is Life programs. Millicent Gorham has been appointed as executive director to lead the Movement is Life organization. More information is available at www.movementislifecaucus.com.

Zimmer Biomet is a global medical technology leader with a comprehensive portfolio designed to maximize mobility and improve health. We seamlessly transform the patient experience through our innovative products and suite of integrated digital and robotic technologies that leverage data, data analytics and artificial intelligence.