Owens & Minor to Host 5th Annual Healthcare Supplier Diversity Symposium

RICHMOND, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Owens & Minor, Inc. (NYSE-OMI) will host its 5^th Annual Healthcare Supplier Diversity Symposium on September 14-15, 2010, in Richmond, Virginia. Joining Owens & Minor in hosting the event are the National Association of Health Services Executives (NAHSE), the Healthcare Supplier Diversity Alliance (HSDA), and the Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council (VMSDC). The annual symposium brings together over 200 participants, including women-, minority-, and veteran-owned business leaders, as well as representatives from healthcare systems, medical device and product manufacturers, pharmaceutical firms, healthcare distributors, academia and government. The objective of the annual symposium is to explore how an increasingly diverse society can influence the future of healthcare and play a role in the healthcare supply chain.

“Owens & Minor has long been committed to supporting the well-being of the communities we serve, and we believe that commitment includes advancing the success of minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses”

“Owens & Minor has long been committed to supporting the well-being of the communities we serve, and we believe that commitment includes advancing the success of minority-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses,” said Craig R. Smith, President & Chief Executive Officer of Owens & Minor. “We know that our society and our marketplace are becoming increasingly diverse, and we believe that expanding the range and diversity of the companies in the healthcare supply chain will serve to strengthen and invigorate our industry.”

The theme for this year’s event, to be held at the Westin Richmond, is From Inclusion to Partnership: Shaping a New Era in Supplier Diversity. The event will begin on September 14^th with a dinner featuring keynote speaker Marc H. Morial, President of the National Urban League.

In a distinguished, 25-year professional career, Morial has been an entrepreneur, a lawyer, a professor, a legislator, mayor of New Orleans, President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and President of the National Urban League, the nation’s largest civil rights organization. He is widely recognized as one of the most accomplished servant-leaders in the nation. As President of the National Urban League, Morial created the National Urban League Empowerment Fund, which has funneled almost $200 million into urban impact businesses. A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Economics and African American Studies, he also holds a law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C., as well as honorary degrees from Xavier University, Wilberforce University, and the University of South Carolina Upstate.

On September 15^th, the second day of the symposium will feature networking opportunities, a panel discussion, breakout sessions, and a luncheon. The keynote speaker for the symposium luncheon is David Hinson, National Director of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). Part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the MBDA is a federal agency created specifically to foster the establishment and growth of minority-owned businesses in America. As head of the MBDA, Hinson oversees five regional offices and a network of 48 minority business centers.

Prior to joining MBDA, Hinson was President & CEO of Wealth Management Network, Inc., a multi-million dollar financial advisory firm. During his career, Hinson also managed a 10-state sales region for a $70 billion financial advisory firm. In addition, Hinson also worked at Bank of America, Morgan Stanley & Company, First Chicago (now JP Morgan Chase) and the Village Foundation. Hinson received an MBA in finance from The University of Pennsylvania Wharton School, and a bachelor's degree in insurance and finance with honors from Howard University. In addition, he completed a fellowship in international finance with honors from the Stockholm School of Economics and graduate-level studies in French with honors at the University of Abidjan, in Ivory Coast, West Africa.

The various symposium events will allow participants to interact with senior leaders from healthcare businesses, as well as representatives from leading healthcare providers, group purchasing organizations, manufacturers and distributors, policy makers, academics and key executives. Other scheduled speakers include Laurel Junk, Vice President of Supply Chain, Kaiser Permanente, and Ralph G. Moore, President & CEO of RGMA Associates.

For more information about the symposium, please visit www.owens-minor.com. Owens & Minor uses its Web site as a channel of distribution for material company information, including news releases, investor presentations and financial information.

Owens & Minor, Inc., (NYSE: OMI) a FORTUNE 500 company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, is a leading national distributor of name-brand medical and surgical supplies and a healthcare supply-chain management company. Owens & Minor is also a member of the Russell 2000^®Index, which measures the performance of the small-cap segment of the U.S. equity universe, as well as the S&P MidCap 400, which includes companies with a market capitalization of $750 million to $3.3 billion that meet certain financial standards. With a diverse product and service offering and distribution centers throughout the United States, the company serves hospitals, integrated healthcare systems, alternate site locations, group purchasing organizations, and the federal government. Owens & Minor provides technology and consulting programs that improve inventory management and streamline logistics across the entire medical supply chain--from origin of product to patient bedside. For news releases, or for more information about Owens & Minor, visit the company Web site at www.owens-minor.com.