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July 17, 2012 7:08 am ET

Five Inaugural Fellows Will Use Skills and Talents to Help Enhance Quality and Scalability of PSI’s Country Operations

Today Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and
Canada, announced the first partnership and inaugural class of fellows
for its newly formed Richard T. Clark Fellowship program. Five Merck
employees are spending three months working with PSI, a global
non-profit organization dedicated to improving the health of people in
the developing world.

Named in recognition of retired Merck Chairman and CEO Richard Clark,
and his philosophy of “Passion, Purpose and Commitment to Corporate
Responsibility,” the global program leverages the skills and talents of
Merck employees to build and support humanitarian organizations’ efforts
to answer the health needs of the underserved.

“The Richard T. Clark Fellowship is one more way Merck is fulfilling its
mission to save and improve lives,” said Geralyn Ritter, senior vice
president, global public policy and corporate responsibility at Merck.
“We have a strong commitment to employee volunteerism and supporting
underserved communities. Through this program and many others, Merck
employees are actively engaged in making a meaningful difference in
people’s lives around the world.”

The program aims to strengthen the capability and reach of charitable
organizations focused on improving access to health services and health
outcomes. At the same time, it will provide Merck employees with unique
development opportunities that help expand their understanding of
critical health needs in different parts of the world.

“What really excites me is the opportunity the Fellowship gives
employees to apply their dedication, skills and abilities to put Merck’s
mission into action,” said Richard T. Clark, Merck’s retired chairman
and CEO. “Working with humanitarian organizations around the world in
this way allows us to have a truly unique effect on people’s lives and
better understand the future of healthcare.”

The PSI Partnership

The first Merck Fellows will be working with PSI to enhance the quality
and scalability of its franchise operating model. Specifically, the
Fellows will work to establish standards and procedures in areas such as
brand management, field support and supervision, finance mechanisms and
mobile health technologies that will be used by PSI to improve the
quality and scalability of their country operations. The team’s
recommendations will be piloted in several countries and ultimately
implemented in PSI locations throughout the world.

“The Richard T. Clark Fellowship program represents the best of what is
possible in private-public partnerships for global health. It is a
win/win. Merck benefits from PSI’s existing, on-the-ground network of
health programs and our understanding of the local market for health
products. We benefit from the Fellows’ energy, ideas, expertise and
commitment to innovation – allowing PSI to further enhance health impact
across the world,” said Karl Hofman, President and CEO, PSI.

About PSI

PSI is a global health organization dedicated to improving the health of
people in the developing world by focusing on serious challenges like a
lack of family planning, HIV/AIDS, barriers to maternal health, and the
greatest threats to children under five, including malaria, diarrhea,
pneumonia, and malnutrition. www.psi.org

About Richard T. Clark

Richard Clark served as chairman from April 2007 until December 2011. He
was CEO of Merck from May 2005 through December 2010. He also was
president of Merck from 2005 until May 2010. During his nearly 40 years
with the company, Richard led the Merck Manufacturing Division, Merck
Medco and the company’s merger and integration of Merck and
Schering-Plough in November, 2009. In December 2011, he retired from the
company and the board of directors.

About The Merck Company Foundation

The Merck Company Foundation is a U.S.-based, private charitable
foundation. Established in 1957 by Merck, a global healthcare leader,
the Foundation is funded entirely by the company and is Merck’s chief
source of funding support to qualified non-profit, charitable
organizations. Since its inception, The Merck Company Foundation has
contributed more than $700 million to support important initiatives that
address societal needs and are consistent with Merck’s overall mission
to help the world be well. www.merckgiving.com

Merck Forward-Looking Statement

This news release includes “forward-looking statements” within the
meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may include,
but are not limited to, statements about the benefits of the merger
between Merck and Schering-Plough, including future financial and
operating results, the combined company’s plans, objectives,
expectations and intentions and other statements that are not historical
facts. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and
expectations of Merck’s management and are subject to significant risks
and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the
forward-looking statements.

The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to
differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: the
possibility that all of the expected synergies from the merger of Merck
and Schering-Plough will not be realized, or will not be realized within
the expected time period; the impact of pharmaceutical industry
regulation and health care legislation in the United States and
internationally; Merck’s ability to accurately predict future market
conditions; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck’s patents and other
protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation
and/or regulatory actions.

Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking
statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ
materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be
found in Merck’s 2011 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at
the SEC’s Internet site (www.sec.gov).