Today Colleen Goggins, Worldwide Chairman, Consumer Group, Johnson & Johnson, is appearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to discuss the recent McNeil recall of certain infants’ and children’s products. Here are some excerpts from her testimony:

All of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies realize that we have a responsibility to provide consumers with the highest quality products possible, and we have worked hard to fulfill that responsibility for more than a century. We are proud that our products help millions of people around the world improve their health and well-being. Across our organization, we believe our first responsibility is to the doctors, nurses, and patients, to mothers and fathers, and all others who use our products and services. In this instance, we have not lived up to that responsibility, and the recall is therefore a disappointment to our Chairman Bill Weldon, to me personally, and to the thousands of employees in the Johnson & Johnson family of companies.

The quality and process issues that we found at McNeil, those which led to the recall and others, are unacceptable. On behalf of McNeil and Johnson & Johnson, I apologize to the mothers, fathers, and caregivers for the concern and inconvenience caused by the recall.

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To help inform employees of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies, McNeil Consumer Healthcare today released a description of its plans to assess and address quality issues which precipitated the recent recall of certain McNeil infants’ and children’s liquid medicines and the suspension of production at the Fort Washington PA manufacturing facility on April 30. Last Friday, McNeil submitted materials to the U. S. Food & Drug Administration which outlined its actions and plans to help ensure quality moving forward, and address the FDA’s observations at the plant. And this Thursday, Colleen Goggins, Worldwide Chairman, Consumer Group will represent Johnson & Johnson before the U. S. House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which has called a hearing on the recall. The following is the description of McNeil’s plans:

McNeil is taking steps to bring its operation back to a level of quality that Johnson & Johnson demands of its companies, and that the public rightly expects of us, and that we expect of ourselves.

First, even before the most recent recall was announced, McNeil retained an independent third-party expert to assist the Fort Washington facility in identifying immediate, interim, and long-term corrective actions that it needs to take.

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Last week, Johnson & Johnson was advised that the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform was planning to hold a hearing on May 27th on the recent McNeil Consumer Healthcare recall, at which Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Weldon was invited to provide testimony. There have been some questions from the media about the company’s plans for the hearing, and I thought I’d pass on the statement we’ve been sharing with reporters:

We are working very closely with the Committee and the FDA on these important issues related to the recent recall of certain McNeil over-the-counter medicines. We look forward to addressing the Committee’s questions and concerns. As the FDA has stated, the risk of a serious medical event is remote. The recall was not undertaken on the basis of adverse medical events. McNeil and Johnson & Johnson remain committed to placing consumer safety first and have committed to a number of already-announced actions to begin remediation.

Prior to receiving the Committee’s invitation, Mr. Weldon was scheduled for back surgery today, from which he is currently recovering. Johnson & Johnson promptly informed the Committee upon receiving its request that Mr. Weldon would not be able to testify while he recovers from surgery.

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From Megan Farina, Manager, Corporate Communications, Centocor Ortho Biotech Inc.

With the launch of New Way RA^TM last year, our hope was to offer support to people living with RA, as well as their caregivers. Over the past ten months, we’ve continued to learn from the RA social community through their posts as well as direct conversations with authors of blogs such as RA Warrior, All Flared Up, and Arthritis is a Journey. Listening to their insights helped us understand the deeper impact of contending with unpredictable and untimely flares of stiff, swollen and painful joints – we learned that participating in everyday activities with family & friends and maintaining relationships can quickly become overwhelming.

Because of their insights and honest feedback, New Way RA^TM has evolved from one pilot episode to a second season of episodes that will run year-long.

Today, we’re pleased to announce the premiere of Season 2 with a new mix of experts having candid discussions about personal style, dating, intimacy and the myths of RA. We’ve also expanded the format to include two panelists living with RA – author and RA advocate Amye Leong, and Sara Nash, the blogger behind the Single Gal’s Guide to Rheumatoid Arthritis.

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The following is from my friend and colleague, From Efrem Dlugacz who is Vice President Global Total Rewards & Health Resource.

Having worked for many years handling benefits for Johnson & Johnson, I can tell you that employee wellness and disease prevention is as important as to me as ensuring employees have access to different treatment options. For many years, we’ve been encouraging employees to develop healthy lifestyles, and one of the most pressing challenges we face is figuring out a way to address the impact that inactivity and obesity have on our workforce.

In that, of course, we aren’t alone. Did you know that about two-thirds of adults are overweight or obese in the US and the direct and indirect cost of obesity-associated conditions in the United States is estimated at nearly $80 billion a year? People who are overweight or obese are at a greater risk for developing diabetes, stroke, hypertension, high cholesterol and certain types of cancers – and for an employer, that can mean greater absenteeism and higher healthcare costs compared to non-obese employees.

But employers can help make a difference.

We’ve found that employees who are inactive, overweight or obese, benefit greatly from company sponsored programs that focus on healthy living, eating, and exercise.

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For more than a year now, I’ve been Tweeting on behalf of Johnson & Johnson over at @JNJComm and have found it to be a great way to meet and interact with new people, keep up with the latest news and be available when people have different questions about what we are doing as an organization.

Well, now I’m pleased to welcome a few of my colleagues to the Twittersphere. Over the last few days, my colleagues including Rob Halper, who is responsible for the Johnson & Johnson YouTube Channel, Margaret Gurowitz who writes the Kilmer House blog, Mark Krajnak, who is responsible for the corporate website (and a photographer extraordinaire) and fellow JNJBTW contributor Melissa Waggenspack, have set up their own Twitter accounts and are starting to Tweet.

Those accounts include:

@JNJStories – where Mark and Melissa will share stories about our company, our people, our partners, our patients and our customers.

@JNJvideo – where Rob Halper will be posting a variety of tweets that touch on his world of video content.

@JNJHistory – where Margaret will post about different historical facts, figure and stories

I, of course, will continue to Tweeting about different Johnson & Johnson-related news and events, announcements, interesting posts and content that’s been uploaded to our sites and other musings on stuff I find cool and interesting.

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I just wanted to share the following open letter from Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Weldon about the recent recalls at our McNeil Consumer Healthcare company. He asked us to publish it by posting on JNJBTW:

To All Who Use Our Products,

We have a responsibility at Johnson & Johnson to provide you with the highest-quality products possible, and we have worked hard to fulfill that responsibility day-by-day for over a century.

The recent recalls of some over-the-counter medicines from our McNeil Consumer Healthcare operating company are a matter of great concern. They are a disappointment to me, and to the employees of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies. You can be confident that we will make whatever changes are needed at McNeil to fully restore the quality of its manufacturing.

As reported, McNeil has suspended all manufacturing operations at its facility in Fort Washington, Pa., until we can be sure that they are operating under the standards we demand of ourselves, and which our customers expect of us. McNeil has also retained independent quality experts to assist in this regard and is re-evaluating quality systems and manufacturing processes across the organization.

I have been assured that the chance of a serious medical event from the recalled products is remote.

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Earlier today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a report describing manufacturing-related observations from inspections of the McNeil Consumer Healthcare facility at Fort Washington, PA related to the recent recall announcement and later held a press conference to go over their findings. In response, McNeil issued a public statement. You can read the entire statement, but I thought the following passage is important to note:

We have no higher concern than providing parents with the highest quality products for their children. The quality issues that the FDA has observed, many of which we had recently identified in our own quality reviews and communicated to the FDA, are unacceptable to us, and not indicative of how McNeil Consumer Healthcare intends to operate. While the chance of serious adverse medical reaction is remote, we apologize to those who rely on our medicines for the concern and inconvenience this recall may have caused. We will provide a detailed response to the FDA on their observations, and work diligently to ensure that they are addressed.

A complete list of the products involved and additional information about the recall can be found on their website, www.mcneilproductrecall.com or by calling 1-888 222-6036.

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Last night, the McNeil Consumer Healthcare business of Johnson & Johnson announced the voluntary recall of certain lots of over-the-counter infants’ and children’s products. In their press release, the company said the following that explains why this is happening:

“McNeil Consumer Healthcare is initiating this voluntary recall because some of these products may not meet required quality standards. This recall is not being undertaken on the basis of adverse medical events. However, as a precautionary measure, parents and caregivers should not administer these products to their children. Some of the products included in the recall may contain a higher concentration of active ingredient than is specified; others may contain inactive ingredients that may not meet internal testing requirements; and others may contain tiny particles. While the potential for serious medical events is remote, the company advises consumers who have purchased these recalled products to discontinue use.”

A complete list of the products involved and additional information about the recall can be found on their website, www.mcneilproductrecall.com or by calling 1-888 222-6036 (Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern Time, and Saturday-Sunday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Time). Any adverse reactions may also be reported to the FDA’s MedWatch Program by fax at 1-800-FDA-0178, by mail at MedWatch, FDA, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20852-9787, or on the MedWatch website at www.fda.gov/medwatch.

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As I was wrapping everything up for the day, I thought that for those who weren’t following @JNJComm this morning ‘d share my tweets from today’s annual shareholders meeting. The meeting started at about 10 AM Eastern Standard Time.

10:04 — Johnson & Johnson Chairman and CEO Bill Weldon addresses shareholders at company’s annual meeting #JNJAM10

10:37 — CEO Weldon says 70% of sales are from products with #1 or #2 market share positions #JNJAM10

10:37 — CEO Weldon says it is the 48th consecutive year Johnson & Johnson has increased quarterly dividend #JNJAM10

10:38 — CEO Weldon says that in 2009, Johnson & Johnson delivered total shareholder return of 11.3 percent #JNJAM10

10:40 — Shareholders elect nominees to the J&J Board of Directors/ratify PricewaterhouseCoopers as independent auditors for 2010 #JNJAM10

10:41 — Johnson & Johnson increased quarterly dividend from 49 cents a share to 54 cents a share http://bit.ly/bnhLmx #JNJAM10

10:46 — CEO Weldon outlines 4 factors that enable growth that will be focused on: 1) innovative products, 2) robust pipelines #JNJAM10

10:47 — CEO Weldon outlines 4 factors that enable growth that will be focused on: 3) global presence, 4) talented people #JNJAM10

10:49 — WW Chairman of Consumer, Colleen Goggins addresses the Johnson & Johnson shareholder meeting #JNJAM10

10:50 — Goggins describes opportunities for the consumer business: emerging markets, digital media, non-traditional retail channels, sustainability

10:55 — Johnson & Johnson increased quarterly dividend from 49 cents a share to 54 cents a share http://bit.ly/bnhLmx #JNJAM10 $JNJ

11:03 — Goggins highlights Text4Baby initiative (http://bit.ly/9mo0nK and http://bit.ly/csUdPt) at J&J shareholder meeting #JNJAM10

11:04 — WW Chairman of Medical Devices and Diagnostics Alex Gorsky addresses Johnson & Johnson shareholder meeting http://bit.ly/2mgd9k #JNJAM10

11:10 – Gorsky says MD&D segment is “largest in the world” and then highlights some of the breakthrough innovations the company is bring to market

11:19 — WW Chairman of Pharmaceuticals Sheri McCoy addresses Johnson & Johnson shareholder meeting http://bit.ly/2mgd9k #JNJAM10

11:23 — McCoy describes how the global pharmaceutical market is roughly $775 billion and projected to grow to over a trillion by 2014 #JNJAM10

11:39 — CEO Weldon describes the company’s Bridge to Employment program — and how it builds HC systems and lives http://bit.ly/b34Q83 #JNJAM10

11:42 — CEO Weldon talks about how Johnson & Johnson responded to the earthquake in Chile http://bit.ly/dwGAXm #JNJAM10

12:23 — That’s the end of the presentations at the J&J annual shareholders meeting.

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