Boehringer Ingelheim receives prestigious Rare Disease Award
EURORDIS-Rare Diseases Europe has selected Boehringer Ingelheim for the first time as recipient of the prestigious Black Pearl Award 2020 in the category “Company Award for Patient Engagement”. The prize commends companies' early and comprehensive engagement with rare disease patients.

As a non-governmental patient-driven alliance of patient organisations, EURORDIS is the voice of 30 million people affected by rare diseases throughout Europe and represents 884 rare disease patient organisations in 72 countries.
All eyes on patients
Rare Disease Day in February
About EURORDIS
EURORDIS is a non-governmental patient-driven alliance of patient organisations representing 884 rare disease patient organisations in 72 countries (including China, Germany, Japan and the US). By connecting patients, families and patient groups, as well as by bringing together all stakeholders and mobilising the rare disease community, EURORDIS strengthens the patient voice and shapes research, policies and patient services. www.eurordis.org
About the Black Pearl Award
The EURORDIS Black Pearl Awards is an annual event held in Brussels to recognise the outstanding achievements and exceptional work of people making a difference for the rare disease community. The broader rare disease community, including EURORDIS patient organisation members, staff, volunteers and the general public submit nominations towards 12 award categories. The black pearl symbolizes these unique individuals, organisations and companies who demonstrate an incredible combination of hard work and dedication in their daily lives. www.Blackpearl.eurordis.org
Rare diseases
The European Union considers a disease as rare when it affects less than 1 in 2,000 citizens. Over 6,000 different rare diseases have been identified to date, affecting an estimated 30 million people in Europe and 300 million worldwide. Due to the low prevalence of each disease, medical expertise is rare, knowledge is scarce, care offering inadequate and research limited. Despite their great overall number, rare disease patients are the orphans of health systems, often denied diagnosis, treatment and the benefits of research.