Management Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
The management of Abbott Laboratories is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Abbott’s internal control system was designed to provide reasonable assurance to the company’s management and board of directors regarding the preparation and fair presentation of published financial statements.
All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.
Abbott’s management assessed the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2011. In making this assessment, it used the criteria set forth in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on our assessment, we believe that, as of December 31, 2011, the company’s internal control over financial reporting was effective based on those criteria.
Abbott’s independent registered public accounting firm has issued an audit report on their assessment of the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. This report appears on the next page.
Miles D. White
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer
Thomas C. Freyman
Executive Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
Greg W. Linder
Vice President and Controller
February 21, 2012
