Item 1. Business.
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Item 1. Business.
INDEX TO BUSINESS
General
McKesson Corporation together with its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company,” “McKesson,” “we,” “our,” or “us” and other similar pronouns), which traces its business roots to 1833, is a diversified healthcare services leader dedicated to advancing health outcomes for patients everywhere. Our teams partner with biopharma companies, care providers, pharmacies, manufacturers, governments, and others to deliver insights, products, and services to help make quality care more accessible and affordable.
The Company’s fiscal year begins on April 1 and ends on March 31. Unless otherwise noted, all references in this document to a particular year refers to the Company’s fiscal year. The Company was incorporated on July 7, 1994 in the State of Delaware.
Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”), are available free of charge on the Company’s website (www.mckesson.com under the “Investors — Financials — SEC Filings” caption) as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The content on any website referred to in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Annual Report”) is not incorporated by reference into this report, unless expressly noted otherwise. The SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers, including the Company, that file electronically with the SEC. The address of the website is www.sec.gov.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Business Segments
The Company operates its business in four reportable segments: U.S. Pharmaceutical, Prescription Technology Solutions (“RxTS”), Medical-Surgical Solutions, and International.
Our U.S. Pharmaceutical segment distributes branded, generic, specialty, biosimilar and over-the-counter (“OTC”) pharmaceutical drugs, and other healthcare-related products in the United States (“U.S.”). This segment also provides practice management, technology, clinical support, and business solutions to community-based oncology and other specialty practices. In addition, the segment sells financial, operational, and clinical solutions to pharmacies (retail, hospital, alternate sites) and provides consulting, outsourcing, technological, and other services.
Our RxTS segment helps solve medication access, affordability and adherence challenges for patients by working across healthcare to connect patients, pharmacies, providers, pharmacy benefit managers, health plans, and biopharma companies. RxTS serves our biopharma and life sciences partners, delivering innovative solutions that help people get the medicine they need to live healthier lives. RxTS offers technology services, which includes electronic prior authorization, prescription price transparency, benefit insight, and dispensing support services, in addition to third-party logistics and wholesale distribution support designed to benefit stakeholders.
Our Medical-Surgical Solutions segment provides medical-surgical supply distribution, logistics, and other services to healthcare providers, including physician offices, surgery centers, nursing homes, hospital reference labs, and home health care agencies. We offer more than 245,000 national brand medical-surgical products as well as McKesson’s own line of high-quality products through a network of distribution centers in the U.S.
Our International segment provides distribution and services to wholesale, institutional, and retail customers in Canada and Norway where we own, partner, or franchise with retail pharmacies, and support better, safer patient care by delivering vital medicines, supplies, and information technology solutions. During fiscal 2025, we completed the sale of Rexall and Well.ca businesses in Canada. Refer to Financial Note 2, “Business Acquisitions and Divestitures,”, to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report for more information.
U.S. Pharmaceutical Segment:
Our U.S. Pharmaceutical segment provides distribution and logistics services for branded, generic, specialty, biosimilar, and OTC pharmaceutical drugs along with other healthcare-related products to customers. This business provides solutions and services to pharmacies, hospitals, oncology and other specialty practices, pharmaceutical manufacturers, biopharma partners, physicians, payors, and patients throughout the U.S. We also source generic pharmaceutical drugs through our ClarusONE Sourcing Services LLP joint venture with Walmart Inc. (“ClarusONE”).
Our U.S. Pharmaceutical segment operates and serves customers through a network of 27 distribution centers in the U.S., including two strategic redistribution centers. We invest in technology and other systems at all of our distribution centers to enhance safety, reliability, and product availability. For example, we offer McKesson ConnectSM, an internet-based ordering system that provides item look-up and real-time inventory availability as well as ordering, purchasing, third-party reconciliation, and account management functionality. We make extensive use of technology as an enabler to ensure customers have the right products at the right time in the right place.
To maximize distribution efficiency and effectiveness, we follow the Six Sigma methodology, which is an analytical approach that emphasizes setting high-quality objectives, collecting data, and analyzing results to a fine degree in order to improve processes, reduce costs, and enhance service accuracy and safety. We provide solutions to our customers including supply management technology, world-class marketing programs, managed care, repackaging products, and services to help them meet their business and quality goals. We continue to implement information systems to help achieve greater consistency and accuracy both internally and for our customers, as well as make investments to increase capacity and automation.
We have four primary customer pharmaceutical distribution channels: (i) retail national accounts, which include national and regional retail chains, food and drug combinations, mail order pharmacies, and mass merchandisers, (ii) community pharmacies and health (formerly described as independent, small, and medium chain retail pharmacies), (iii) institutional healthcare providers such as hospitals, health systems, integrated delivery networks, and long-term care providers, and (iv) oncology, biopharma, and other specialty partners.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Retail National Accounts: We provide business solutions that help our retail national account customers increase revenues and profitability. Solutions include:
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Central FillSM – Prescription refill service that enables pharmacies to more quickly refill prescriptions remotely, more accurately, and at a lower cost, while reducing inventory levels and improving customer service.
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Strategic Redistribution Centers – Two facilities totaling over 740,000 square feet that offer access to inventory for single source warehouse purchasing, including pharmaceuticals and biologics. These distribution centers also provide the foundation for a two-tiered distribution network that supports best-in-class direct store delivery.
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McKesson SynerGx® – Generic pharmaceutical purchasing program and inventory management that helps pharmacies maximize their cost savings with a broad selection of generic drugs, competitive pricing, and one-stop shopping.
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Inventory Management – An integrated solution comprised of forecasting software and automated replenishment technologies that reduce inventory-carrying costs.
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ExpressRx Track™ – Pharmacy automation solution featuring state-of-the-art robotics, upgraded imaging, and expanded vial capabilities, and industry-leading speed and accuracy in a small footprint.
Community Pharmacy and Health: We strengthen the overall health of community pharmacies and elevate the role they play in people’s lives. We accomplish this by providing supply chain excellence, pharmacy and patient solutions, as well as supporting independent pharmacies through industry and legislative advocacy. Our pharmacy and patient solutions include:
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Health Mart® – A national network of approximately 4,400 independently-owned pharmacies and one of the industry’s most comprehensive pharmacy franchise programs. Health Mart provides solutions for franchisees to promote excellence in business operations, team development, patient health, marketing and merchandising, and protects financial health through proactive audit support.
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Health Mart Atlas® and Atlas Specialty – Comprehensive managed care services that connect the continuum of care to help community pharmacies, health systems and physician practices save time, access competitive reimbursement rates, and improve cash flow.
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McKesson Reimbursement AdvantageSM (“MRA”) – MRA is one of the industry’s most comprehensive reimbursement optimization packages, comprising financial services (automated claim resubmission), analytic services, and customer care.
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McKesson Provider Pay® – Provider Pay is an automated reconciliation and payment management solution designed to maximize third-party cash flow and pursue unpaid claims.
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McKesson Amplify – Provides resources for state pharmacy associations in all 50 states, including dedicated support funding, resources, and opportunities to participate in best practice sharing consortia. The funding helps to support advocacy initiatives that address the unique challenges faced by independent pharmacies and promote their sustainability and growth.
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McKesson OneStop Generics® – Generic pharmaceutical purchasing program that helps pharmacies maximize their cost savings with a broad selection of generic drugs, competitive pricing, and one-stop shopping.
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Pinpoint Community Solutions – McKesson’s perpetual inventory management system targeted to independent pharmacy owners with five or fewer stores. The solution provides customers the opportunity to improve cash flow and increase efficiency with inventory visibility to help maximize operational performance.
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FrontEdge™ – Strategic planning, merchandising, and price maintenance program that helps community pharmacies maximize store profitability.
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McKesson RxOwnership Program – A confidential, no-fee resource for pharmacists and pharmacy owners interested in buying, starting, or selling an independent pharmacy, regardless of their pharmacy affiliation.
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Institutional Healthcare Providers: At McKesson, we are relentless in our pursuit of opportunities to achieve operational efficiency, reduce waste, and improve the financial performance of our customers so they can achieve more of their goals today and into the future. Solutions include:
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Professional and Advisory Services – Comprehensive suite of advisory and consulting services designed to support health system business of pharmacy initiatives, including patient care, business operations, ambulatory services, inpatient operations, data and digitization, pharmacy workforce management, leadership, and compliance with safety, quality, and regulatory standards. Specialized consulting areas include 340B optimization, orphan drug support and retail pharmacy payer solutions.
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McKesson Plasma and Biologics – Specialty and plasma drug distributor that leads in market exclusive drug access; partner to health systems customers in navigating the complexities of limited distribution drug; and optimization of McKesson Distribution benefits.
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Outpatient, Retail, and Specialty Pharmacy – A portfolio of services and solutions customized to each customer’s business and clinical strategy.
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Contracting and Contract/Purchasing Optimization – Solutions across generics, specialty, branded products, biosimilars, and 340B products, for inpatient and outpatient settings.
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Supply Assurance – Solutions and strategies to enhance product availability and proactively manage inventory of critical items.
The U.S. Pharmaceutical segment also offers solutions which enable its customers to drive greater efficiencies in their day-to-day operations, effectively managing their inventories and complying with complex government regulations. Solutions include McKesson Pharmacy Systems, MacroHelix, and Supply Logix, all of which provide innovative software technology and services that support retail pharmacies and hospitals.
Oncology, Biopharma, and Other Specialty Partners:
The U.S. Pharmaceutical segment provides a range of solutions to oncology and other specialty practices and offers community specialists (oncologists, rheumatologists, ophthalmologists, urologists, neurologists, and other specialists) an extensive set of customizable solutions and services designed to strengthen core practice operations, enhance value-based care delivery, and expand their service offering to patients. Community-based physicians in this business have broad flexibility and discretion to select the products and commitment levels that best meet their practice needs. Services in provider solutions include specialty drug distribution, group purchasing organizations (“GPO”) like Onmark®, technology solutions, practice consulting services, and vaccine distribution, including our exclusive distributor relationship with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (“CDC”) Vaccines for Children program.
This business provides a variety of solutions, including practice operations, healthcare information technology, revenue cycle management and managed care contracting solutions, evidence-based guidelines, and quality measurements to support The U.S. Oncology Network (“USON”), one of the nation’s largest networks of physician-led, integrated, community-based oncology practices dedicated to advancing high-quality, evidence-based cancer care. SCRI Oncology, LLC, an oncology research business in which we own a 51% controlling interest, is one of the nation’s largest research networks and specializes in enhancing clinical trial access and availability across the country.
This segment includes Ontada®, McKesson’s oncology technology and insights business providing software to support the clinical, financial, and operational needs of our oncology practice customers. Ontada also partners with oncology providers and biopharma partners to perform real-world evidence studies, retrospective research, and to provide clinical data insights, advisory solutions and education opportunities.
When we discuss specialty products or services, we consider the following factors: diseases requiring complex treatment regimens such as cancer and rheumatoid arthritis; plasma and biologics products; ongoing clinical monitoring requirements, high-cost, special handling, storage, and delivery requirements and, in some cases, exclusive distribution arrangements. Our use of the term “specialty” may not be comparable to that used by other industry participants, including our competitors.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Prescription Technology Solutions Segment:
Our Prescription Technology Solutions segment works across healthcare to connect patients, pharmacies, providers, pharmacy benefit managers, health plans, and biopharma to deliver medication access solutions that support patients from first prescription fill to ongoing therapy, regardless of their insurance coverage. RxTS has connections with most electronic health record systems, over 50,000 pharmacies, approximately 950,000 providers, most pharmacy benefit managers and health plans, and has supported over 650 biopharma brands representing most therapeutic areas. Through its industry connections and ability to navigate the healthcare ecosystem, RxTS offers innovative solutions created to benefit healthcare stakeholders. Its comprehensive solution suites and technology services span across the entire patient journey, including medication access and affordability, prescription decision support, prescription price transparency, benefit insight and dispensing support services, as well as third-party logistics and wholesale distribution support, to help increase speed to therapy, reduce prescription abandonment, and support improved health outcomes for the patient. In the past year, RxTS helped patients save more than $10 billion on brand and specialty medications, helped to prevent an estimated 12 million prescriptions from being abandoned due to affordability challenges, and helped patients access their medicine more than 100 million times.
Medical-Surgical Solutions Segment:
Our Medical-Surgical Solutions segment delivers medical-supply distribution, logistics, biomedical maintenance, and other services to healthcare providers across the alternate-site spectrum. Our more than 340,000 customers include physician offices, surgery centers, post-acute care facilities, hospital reference labs, and home health agencies. We partner with manufacturers and channel partners to support our key target end-markets, including primary care, extended care, government, and other markets. We distribute medical-surgical supplies (such as gloves, needles, syringes, and wound care products), infusion pumps, laboratory equipment, and pharmaceuticals. Through a network of distribution centers in the U.S., we offer more than 245,000 products from national brand manufacturers and McKesson’s own brand of high-quality products. Through the right mix of products and services, we help improve efficiencies, profitability, and compliance. We also never lose focus on helping customers improve patient and business outcomes. We develop customized plans to address the product, operational, and clinical support needs of our customers, including inventory management, reducing administrative burdens, and training and educating clinical staff. We deliver for our customers, so they can deliver and care for their patients. In May 2025, the Company announced its intention to separate this segment into an independent company.
International Segment:
Our International segment includes operations in Canada and Norway. McKesson Canada is one of the largest pharmaceutical wholesale and retail distributors in Canada. The wholesale business delivers products to retail pharmacies, hospitals, long-term care centers, clinics and institutions in Canada through a national network of distribution centers and provides logistics and distribution services for manufacturers.
Beyond wholesale pharmaceutical logistics and distribution, McKesson Canada provides automation and technology solutions to its retail and hospital customers. Additionally, McKesson Canada provides comprehensive specialty health services to Canadians and provides biopharma services to manufacturers, including a national network of specialty pharmacies, personalized patient care and support programs, and INVIVA, Canada’s first and largest accredited network of private infusion clinics. McKesson Canada also owns and operates PDCI, Canada’s leading market access consultancy, supporting manufacturers as they introduce new products into the Canadian market.
The Canada retail business includes approximately 2,700 banner pharmacies under the IDA®, Guardian®, The Medicine Shoppe®, Remedy’sRx®, Proxim®, and Uniprix® banners. During fiscal 2025, we completed the previously announced transaction to sell our Rexall and Well.ca businesses. This divestiture is further described in Financial Note 2, “Business Acquisitions and Divestitures,” to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report.
In July 2021, we announced our intention to exit our businesses in Europe. We divested the majority of our European businesses during fiscal 2022 and fiscal 2023. Our remaining operations in Europe provide distribution and services to wholesale and retail customers in Norway where we own, partner, or franchise with retail pharmacies. We continue to evaluate suitable exit alternatives for our retail and distribution businesses in Norway. Refer to Financial Note 2, “Business Acquisitions and Divestitures,” to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report for additional information on our European divestitures.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Investments, Restructuring, Business Combinations, and Divestitures
We invest in new and existing distribution centers to increase scale and capacity, improve efficiency through automation and technology, and enhance regulatory compliance capabilities. Additionally, we invest in data and analytics to support our growth priorities, including artificial intelligence (“AI”). We are in the early stages of exploring potential AI capabilities and related data and analytics across our enterprise to improve productivity and efficiency, as well as enhance our products and services to better support patients, employees, and customers.
We have undertaken additional strategic initiatives in recent years designed to increase operational efficiencies, focus on our core healthcare businesses, execute our business strategy, and enhance our competitive position. These initiatives are detailed in Financial Note 2, “Business Acquisitions and Divestitures,” and Financial Note 3, “Restructuring, Impairment, and Related Charges, Net,” to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report.
Competition
We operate in highly competitive environments in North America and Norway. In recent years, the healthcare industry has been subject to increasing consolidation. In the pharmaceutical distribution environment in which our U.S. Pharmaceutical and International segments operate, we face strong competition from international, national, regional, and local full-line, short-line, and specialty distributors, service merchandisers, self-warehousing chain drug stores, manufacturers engaged in direct distribution, third-party logistics companies, and large payer organizations. We consider our largest competitors in distribution, wholesaling, and logistics to be Cencora, Inc. and Cardinal Health, Inc.
Our RxTS business experiences substantial competition from many companies, including other biopharma services companies, software services firms, consulting firms, shared service vendors, and internet-based companies with technology applicable to the healthcare industry. Competition in this business varies in size from large to small companies, in geographical coverage, and in scope and breadth of products and services offered.
Our Medical-Surgical Solutions segment experiences competition from a wide range of national and regional medical supply and equipment distributors throughout the U.S.
In addition, we compete with other service providers and healthcare manufacturers, as well as other potential customers of our businesses, which may from time to time decide to develop, for their own internal needs, supply management capabilities that might otherwise be provided by our businesses. We believe that our scale and diversity of product and service offerings are our primary competitive advantages. In all areas, key competitive factors include price, quality of service, breadth of product lines, innovation, adoption of new and evolving technologies, and, in some cases, convenience to the customer.
Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, and Licenses
McKesson and its subsidiaries hold patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets related to McKesson products and services. We pursue patent protection for our innovations and obtain copyright protection for our original works of authorship when such protection is advantageous. Through these efforts, we have developed a portfolio of patents and copyrights in the U.S. and worldwide. In addition, we have registered or applied to register certain trademarks and service marks in the U.S. and in foreign countries.
We believe that, in the aggregate, McKesson’s confidential information, patents, copyrights, trademarks, and intellectual property licenses are important to its operations and market position, but we do not consider any of our businesses to be dependent upon any one patent, copyright, trademark, or trade secret, or any family or families of the same. We cannot guarantee that our intellectual property portfolio will be sufficient to deter misappropriation, theft, or misuse of our technology, nor that we can successfully enjoin infringers. We periodically receive notices alleging that our products or services infringe on third-party patents and other intellectual property rights. These claims may result in McKesson entering settlement agreements, paying damages, discontinuing use or sale of accused products, or ceasing other activities. While the outcome of any litigation or dispute is inherently uncertain, we do not believe that the resolution of any of these infringement notices would have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
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We hold inbound licenses for certain intellectual property that is used internally, and in some cases, utilized in McKesson’s products or services. While in the future it may be necessary to seek or renew licenses relating to various aspects of our products and services, we believe, based upon past experience and industry practice, such licenses generally can be obtained on commercially reasonable terms. We believe our operations as well as our products and services are not materially dependent on any single license or other agreement with any third party.
Human Capital
Everything we do at McKesson begins with our employees, who bring our mission and purpose to life every day. As of March 31, 2025, we had approximately 45,000 employees worldwide, which includes 2,000 part-time employees. We had approximately 36,000 employees in the U.S., 5,000 employees in Canada, and 4,000 employees in the rest of the world. We also supplement our work-force with contractors and/or consultants for certain business projects, processes, and/or operations as demand requires.
Culture and Leadership: One of McKesson’s defining characteristics is our strong culture. We take pride in fostering a sense of belonging, finding meaning in our work, and caring for each other, our customers, and all those who depend on us. Our I2CARE values (Integrity, Inclusion, Customer-First, Accountability, Respect, Excellence) and ILEAD leadership behaviors (Inspire, Leverage, Execute, Advance, Develop) are at the core of our daily actions – from how we interact with each other and our customers, to how we make decisions, both big and small. We also offer all employees the opportunity to join employee resource groups (“ERGs”), which are voluntary, employee-led, company-sponsored networks that aim to make a positive impact on our employees’ lives. Each ERG is non-exclusive and open to every employee. Our ERGs focus on helping employees make authentic connections, celebrate and learn from each other, showcase leadership skills and find ways to nurture and support belonging and empowerment.
Investment in Employees: We are committed to investing in our employees, so that they, in turn, can focus on furthering our purpose of Advancing Health Outcomes for All®. We offer employees health and wellness benefits focused on physical, mental, and social well-being, savings programs to help prepare them for retirement and flexible work arrangements, and other offerings. We also offer employees regular training, coaching, and 360-degree assessments, and financial assistance programs for higher education opportunities.
We seek to attract and retain the best talent through competitive compensation and pay for performance, while prioritizing recognition of merit and compliance with laws. Our compensation philosophy is rooted in a fair and transparent program that regularly conducts benchmarking to assess market rates for talent, based on geography and other factors.
We solicit employee feedback through annual and mid-year employee opinion surveys, which assesses our employees’ levels of engagement, commitment and overall satisfaction using industry benchmarks, and then design action plans to improve those metrics. We also seek feedback on our people leaders through our annual manager quality survey, which is an opportunity for employees to help their managers grow professionally and build valuable leadership skills that help to promote a positive and productive workplace.
Health and Safety: Our security and safety teams employ systems designed to continually monitor our facilities and work environment to help identify and prevent or mitigate risks. This includes having procedures and investing in equipment for both physical and electronic security. Our employees receive specialized training related to their role, work setting, and equipment used in their work environment.
Government Regulation
We operate in many highly regulated environments and are subject to oversight by various federal, state, and local governmental entities in the U.S. and elsewhere. We incur significant expense and make large capital expenditures and investments to enable us to comply with laws and guidance promulgated by governmental entities.
The regulatory framework affecting our business and industry is continuously evolving and influenced by conditions such as public policy developments; shifts in governmental priorities, initiatives, and focus areas, including due to changes in federal, state, and local representation; and varied interpretations of laws and agency rulemaking conventions. These conditions create uncertainties for our business, and we are unable to predict the impact of future changes to the regulatory framework, or any prolonged uncertainty, on our operations and compliance costs.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
See “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of Part I below for information regarding material risks associated with our compliance with governmental regulations.
Operational Licenses and Permits; Controlled Substances: We are subject to the operating and security standards of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), various state boards of pharmacy, state health departments, and comparable agencies in the U.S. and other countries. Certain of our businesses may be required to register for permits and/or licenses with governmental agencies, depending upon the type of operations and location of product development, manufacture, distribution, and sale. For example, we are required to hold valid DEA and state-level registrations and licenses, meet various security and operating standards, and comply with the Controlled Substances Act and its accompanying regulations governing the sale, marketing, packaging, holding, distribution, and disposal of controlled substances. We maintain extensive controlled substance monitoring and reporting programs at considerable expense in order to help us meet those standards.
Government Contracts: Our contracts with governmental entities typically are subject to procurement laws that include socio-economic, employment practices, environmental protection, recordkeeping and accounting, and other requirements. These statutory and regulatory requirements complicate our business and increase our compliance burden. We are subject to audits, investigations, and oversight proceedings about our compliance with contractual and legal requirements.
Healthcare Program Regulation: Federal, state, and local governmental entities in the U.S. and elsewhere continue to strengthen their position on, and scrutiny of, practices that may indicate fraud, waste, and abuse affecting government healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Our relationships with pharmaceutical and medical-surgical product manufacturers, healthcare providers, and other companies and individuals, as well as our provision of products and services to governmental entities, subject our business to statutes, regulations, and government guidance that are intended to prevent fraud and abuse. Among other things, those laws: (1) prohibit persons from soliciting, offering, receiving, or paying any remuneration in order to induce the referral of an individual for, or to induce the ordering or purchasing of, items or services that are in any way paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, or other government healthcare programs; (2) prohibit physicians from referring certain “designated health services” to an entity with which they have a financial relationship, unless an exception applies; and (3) prohibit knowingly submitting, or causing to be submitted, a false or fraudulent claim for payment to the government; and (4) require certain entities to report and return an overpayment by Medicare or Medicaid within 60 days of identifying the overpayment.
Many of these healthcare fraud and abuse laws are vague or indefinite and are often subject to varied and evolving interpretations by courts, regulators, and enforcing agencies and, as such, may be interpreted or applied by a prosecutorial, regulatory, or judicial authority in a manner that could require us to make changes in our operations at added expense.
In the U.S., the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) significantly expanded health insurance coverage to uninsured Americans and changed the way healthcare is financed by both governmental and private payors. The implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) has begun to change benefit design and how Medicare pays for drugs, which are all intended to reduce the price of drugs. Three central features of the IRA have authorized the government to negotiate drug prices for certain Parts B and D drugs over time, establish an inflation rebate program, and cap patient cost sharing under Medicare Part D.
Provincial governments in Canada that provide partial funding for the purchase of pharmaceuticals and independently regulate the sale and reimbursement of drugs have sought to reduce the costs of publicly funded health programs. For example, provincial governments have taken steps to reduce consumer prices for generic pharmaceuticals and, in some provinces, change professional allowances paid to pharmacists by generic drug manufacturers.
McKesson continues to advocate for policies that would improve drug cost transparency under a patient's drug plan to better inform prescribing decisions, and also address access to care, affordability, and treatment regimen adherence, all designed to improve clinical outcomes and reduce the health spending burden.
FDA Regulation and Supply Chain Integrity: In the U.S., the FDA is the principal federal authority that regulates the safety, efficacy, quality, testing, premarket approval, manufacture, labeling, storage, distribution, and post-market surveillance of healthcare products, such as drugs and medical devices, foods, and cosmetics.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Federal and state laws regulate the pharmaceutical drug supply chain in order to prevent the distribution of counterfeit, stolen, contaminated, or otherwise harmful prescription drugs in interstate commerce. At the federal level, the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (“DSCSA”), among other things, requires standardized, unit-level traceability of pharmaceutical products along the entire drug supply chain and requires all trading partners to cooperate in an electronic, interoperable prescription drug traceability system. In October 2024, the FDA extended the compliance deadlines for the DSCSA interoperable unit-level traceability requirements to May 27, 2025, for manufacturers, August 27, 2025 for distributors, and November 27, 2025 for dispensers. The FDA stated that these extensions apply to trading partners who meet certain conditions. The Company believes its businesses are eligible for the extensions. The DSCSA also sets forth national standards for the licensure of wholesale drug distributors and third-party logistic providers and other requirements applicable to these entities and the FDA has issued a proposed rule with respect to these requirements. These federal and state regulatory requirements have increased, and may further increase, our compliance burden and distribution costs.
Additionally, federal and state governments may adopt other laws intended to protect the integrity of the supply chain, and those laws could affect our distribution business. For example, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and HHS issued a request for public comment in 2024 on how the practices of pharmaceutical wholesalers and group purchasing organizations impact generic drug shortages. Various industry stakeholders responded to this request, but no further action has been taken by the FTC or HHS.
Cybersecurity, Data Security, Privacy, and AI: We are subject to many cybersecurity, privacy, and data protection laws that change frequently and have requirements that vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Our efforts to comply with these laws complicate our operations and add to our costs. We are subject to significant compliance obligations under privacy laws such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, the General Data Protection Regulation in the European Union, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act in Canada, and an expanding list of comprehensive state privacy laws in the U.S. Some privacy laws may prohibit the transfer of personal information to certain other jurisdictions or otherwise limit our use and disclosure of data. Many of these laws also require us to provide access or other data rights (modification, deletion, portability, etc.) to consumers’ and patients’ individual personal data records within specified periods of time. Cybersecurity laws such as the federal Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022, proposed changes to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and SEC reporting requirements may require us to provide notifications of certain cybersecurity incidents within short timeframes. Regulations and guidance targeting critical infrastructure entities, including McKesson, continue to be a focus of regulators. We are subject to privacy and data protection compliance audits or investigations by various governmental agencies. There is also an emerging trend of governmental entities proposing and providing regulatory guidance related to AI, including generative AI. If we or our third-party providers are restricted from using AI as a result of any regulatory views, laws or other measures, it could impact our operations, increase our compliance expense and burden, and cause us to incur costs to replace or modify our use of AI.
Environmental Regulation: We are subject to various federal, state, local, and foreign laws concerning the environment, including laws addressing the discharge of pollutants into the air and water, the management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, and the cleanup of contaminated sites, as well as laws governing the operation of radiation-emitting equipment at U.S. Oncology Network practices.
We sold our chemical distribution operations in 1987 and retained responsibility for certain environmental obligations. Agreements with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and certain states have required and may require environmental assessments and cleanups at several closed sites. These matters are described further in Financial Note 17, “Commitments and Contingent Liabilities,” to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report.
Climate Change Regulation: Governments in the U.S. and abroad have adopted or are considering new or expanded policies and laws to address climate change. Such policies and laws may necessitate reductions in greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions; mandate that companies implement processes and controls to monitor and disclose climate-related matters; and impose additional taxes or offset charges on specified energy sources, among other requirements. Compliance with climate-related policies and laws may be further complicated by disparate regulatory approaches in various jurisdictions. Methodologies for reporting climate-related information may change and previously reported information may be retroactively adjusted, if required. New or expanded climate-related policies and laws could impose costs on us, including capital expenditures to develop data gathering and reporting systems, third-party attestations, and additional GHG reduction measures. Until the timing and extent of climate-related policies and laws are clarified, including due to legal challenges, we cannot predict their potential effect on our capital expenditures, results of operations, or competitive position.
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McKESSON CORPORATION
Antitrust Laws: Antitrust and competition laws in the U.S. and elsewhere prohibit types of conduct deemed to be anti-competitive. Antitrust enforcement in the healthcare industry remains a focus of the FTC and the U.S. Department of Justice. Some of our strategic transactions may require review by competition regulators, with inherent delays. Violations of the antitrust laws can result in sanctions and other adverse actions, including criminal and civil penalties. Private plaintiffs also may bring civil lawsuits for alleged antitrust law violations, including claims for treble damages. These laws contribute to our compliance efforts and expense, and their enforcement might materially adversely affect our operations and growth strategy.
Other Information about the Business
Customers: During fiscal 2025, sales to our ten largest customers, including group purchasing organizations (“GPOs”) accounted for approximately 72% of our total consolidated revenues. Sales to our largest customer, CVS Health Corporation (“CVS”), accounted for approximately 24% of our total consolidated revenues in fiscal 2025. In fiscal 2023, we extended our pharmaceutical distribution partnership with CVS to June 2027. Our ten largest customers comprised approximately 48%, and CVS was approximately 23% of our total trade accounts receivable at March 31, 2025. We also have agreements with GPOs, each of which functions as a purchasing agent on behalf of member hospitals, pharmacies, and other healthcare providers, as well as with government entities and agencies. The accounts receivable balances are with individual members of the GPOs, and therefore no significant concentration of credit risk exists. Substantially all of these revenues and accounts receivable are included in our U.S. Pharmaceutical segment.
Suppliers: We obtain pharmaceutical and other products from manufacturers and our largest supplier accounted for 11% of our total purchases in fiscal 2025. The loss of a supplier could adversely affect our business if alternate sources of supply are unavailable. We believe that our relationships with our suppliers are generally sound. The ten largest suppliers in fiscal 2025 accounted for approximately 69% of our total purchases.
Some of our distribution arrangements with manufacturers provide us consideration based on a percentage of our purchases. In addition, we have certain distribution arrangements with pharmaceutical manufacturers that include an inflation-based consideration component whereby we benefit when the manufacturers increase their prices as we sell our existing inventory at the new higher prices. For these manufacturers, a reduction in the frequency and magnitude of price increases, as well as restrictions in the amount of inventory available to us, could have an adverse impact on our gross profit margin.
Research and Development: Research and development expenses were $91 million, $77 million, and $89 million for the years ended March 31, 2025, 2024, and 2023, respectively.
Financial Information About Foreign and Domestic Operations: Certain financial information relating to foreign and domestic operations is discussed in Financial Note 20, “Segments of Business,” to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report as well as in “Foreign Operations” in Item 7 of Part II of this Annual Report. See “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of Part I below for information regarding risks associated with our foreign operations.
Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report, including “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Item 7 of Part II of this report and the “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of Part I of this report, contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 (“Securities Act”) and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. Forward-looking statements may be identified by their use of terminology such as “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seeks,” “approximately,” “intends,” “projects,” “plans,” “estimates,” “targets,” or the negative of these words or other comparable terminology. The discussion of trends, strategy, plans, prospects, assumptions, expectations, or intentions may also include forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, anticipated, or implied. Although it is not possible to predict or identify all such risks and uncertainties, they include, but are not limited to, the factors discussed in Item 1A of Part I of this report under “Risk Factors” and in our publicly available SEC filings and press releases. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date such statements were first made. Except to the extent required by federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date the statements are made, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
| Table of Contents | Item 1 Index |
McKESSON CORPORATION
Available Information
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