Johanna Mercier serves as Gilead’s Chief Commercial & Corporate Affairs Officer, responsible for driving top-line revenue growth and expanding access to Gilead’s therapies across virology, oncology and inflammation for patients around the world. She has been central to Gilead’s portfolio diversification, improving the company’s long-term growth prospects, expanding patient access and developing commercial strategy. In late 2025, she took on additional responsibility for the company’s Public Affairs and Government Affairs functions worldwide, helping shape Gilead's messaging, bolstering its reputation with stakeholders and strengthening its relationships with global policymakers.
Johanna orchestrated the historic launch of a novel, long-acting option for HIV prevention and the swift delivery of its first shipments to low- and middle-income countries within five months of U.S. approval. Today, she leads efforts to establish it as a standard of care and to expand access around the world in pursuit of ending the HIV epidemic. Johanna also led the rapid launch and global access efforts for Gilead’s COVID-19 antiviral on an accelerated timeline during the height of the pandemic, while also driving Gilead’s response to the crisis, including product donations. She’s a champion of responsible, ethical use of artificial intelligence to speed medicine to patients.
A passionate advocate for the future of transformational healthcare and improving patient access on a global scale, Johanna serves on the boards of Arcus Biosciences, Neurocrine Biosciences and the University of Southern California’s Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics. Prior to joining Gilead in 2019, Johanna spent 25 years at Bristol Myers Squibb, where she held senior leadership roles across the U.S. and international markets. She received her bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Montreal and her MBA from Concordia University.
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