Exhibit 99.1

HOSPIRA REPORTS FIRST-QUARTER 2012 RESULTS

— Maintains sales and adjusted* earnings projections for 2012 —

LAKE FOREST, Ill., May 1, 2012 — Hospira, Inc. (NYSE: HSP), the world’s leading provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies, today reported results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012. Net sales for the quarter were $966 million and adjusted* diluted earnings per share were $0.47. (Adjusted* measures exclude certain specified items as described later in this press release and the attached schedules.)

“Hospira delivered first-quarter results in line with our expectations, which reflects a difficult  year-over-year comparison and the impact of our quality improvement initiatives,” said  F. Michael Ball, chief executive officer. “Going forward, we remain firmly focused on advancing our remediation efforts and, at the same time, expanding our global footprint and capacity to capitalize on our growth opportunities. We believe these initiatives will position Hospira with an even stronger competitive advantage, creating sustainable, long-term shareholder value.”

First-Quarter 2012 Results

The following table highlights selected financial results for the first quarter of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011:

Results under U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) include items as detailed in the schedules attached to this press release.

Net sales were $966 million in the first quarter of 2012, a decrease of 4 percent compared to the first quarter of 2011. The decrease is due primarily to a difficult year-over-year comparison related to the first-quarter 2011 U.S. launch of the generic oncolytic docetaxel, as well as the adverse impact to supply of the company’s quality-improvement and remediation initiatives.

Adjusted* income from operations decreased 49 percent to $104 million in the first quarter of 2012, compared to $203 million in the first quarter of 2011. The majority of the decline reflects the decrease in net sales as well as the impact of costs associated with certain quality actions and inventory losses. Operating costs also increased in the first quarter of 2012 due to expected higher research and development spending, as well as higher selling and promotional costs.

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The effective tax rate on an adjusted basis* in the quarter was 19.0 percent compared to  23.0 percent in the first quarter of 2011. The decrease is primarily due to lower operating income in higher-tax-rate jurisdictions.

Cash Flow

Cash flow from operations for the first quarter of 2012 was $87 million compared to $6 million in the first quarter of 2011. The increase is a result of lower investments in working capital, offset by lower net income in the first quarter of 2012.

Capital expenditures were $67 million for the first quarter of 2012, compared to $62 million for the same period in 2011. The increase was mainly due to the company’s manufacturing capacity expansion initiatives in Vizag, India.

2012 Projections

Hospira is maintaining guidance for net sales for full-year 2012, projecting a net sales change in a range of negative 1 percent to positive 2 percent on a constant-currency basis, with foreign exchange expected to detract from results by a negative 1 percent.

Adjusted* diluted earnings per share projections for full-year 2012 remain in a range of $2.00 to $2.30.

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The reconciliation between the projected 2012 adjusted* diluted earnings per share and GAAP diluted earnings per share follows:

The adjusting items are shown net of tax in aggregate of $86 million, which is calculated for the specified adjustments stated above, based on the statutory tax rates in the various tax jurisdictions in which the items are expected to occur.

The company continues to project that cash flow from operations in 2012 will be between  $575 million and $625 million. Depreciation and amortization is expected to be between  $240 million and $260 million, and capital expenditures are projected to range between  $350 million and $400 million.

*Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Adjusted measures used in this press release are reconciled to the most comparable measures calculated in accordance with GAAP in the schedules attached to this release.  For more information regarding these non-GAAP financial measures, please see Hospira’s Current Report on Form 8-K furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date of this press release.

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Webcast/Complementary Material

Hospira will hold a conference call for investors and media at 8 a.m. Central time on Tuesday, May 1, 2012. A live webcast of the conference call will be available on Hospira’s website at www.hospirainvestor.com. Listeners should log on approximately 10 minutes in advance to ensure proper setup for receiving the webcast. In addition, complementary information will be available on the presentations page of the Investor Relations website at the beginning of the conference call. A replay will be available on the Hospira website for 30 days following the call.

About Hospira

Hospira, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies. Through its broad, integrated portfolio, Hospira is uniquely positioned to Advance Wellness™ by improving patient and caregiver safety while reducing healthcare costs. The company is headquartered in Lake Forest, Ill., and has approximately 15,000 employees. Learn more at www.hospira.com.

Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 — A Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including projections of certain measures of Hospira’s results of operations; projections of certain charges, expenses, and cash flow; and other statements regarding Hospira’s goals, plans and strategy. Hospira cautions that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, including adequate and sustained progress on the company’s quality initiatives, that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Economic, competitive, governmental, regulatory, legal, technological, manufacturing supply, quality and other factors that may affect Hospira’s operations and may cause actual results to be materially different from expectations include the risks, uncertainties and factors discussed under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Hospira’s latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Forms 10-Q, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are incorporated by reference. Hospira undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements as the result of subsequent events or developments.

Contacts:

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Hospira, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income

(Unaudited)

(dollars and shares in millions, except for per share amounts)

Statistics (as a % of net sales, except for income tax rate):

(1) Adjusted financial measures exclude certain specified items as described and reconciled to comparable GAAP financial measures in the Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Measures contained in this press release.

(2) Gross profit is defined as Net sales less Cost of products sold. Adjusted gross profit excludes certain specified items, as indicated in the previous footnote.

Hospira, Inc.

Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Measures

(Unaudited)

(dollars in millions, except for per share amounts)

Three months ended March 31, 2012 Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Measures:

GAAP results for the three months ended March 31, 2012 include:

(A)           Amortization of certain intangible assets reported in Cost of products sold resulting from acquisitions including Mayne Pharma Limited (“Mayne Pharma”), Javelin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Javelin Pharma”) and a generic injectable business by Hospira Healthcare India Private Limited (“Hospira India”).

(B)            Certain quality and product related charges reported in Cost of products sold primarily include third party oversight and consulting costs, reduced production volume related costs and penalties for failure to supply certain products to customers. These charges are directly associated with Hospira’s response to the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) 2010 warning letter and subsequent Form 483 observations and charges related to Hospira’s comprehensive device product review and certain device related remediation activities.

(C)            Capacity expansion related charges reported in Cost of products sold include start-up charges related to manufacturing capacity expansion in India.

Three months ended March 31, 2011 Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP Financial Measures:

GAAP results for the three months ended March 31, 2011 include:

(A)          Project Fuel and related charges: $5.0 million reported in Cost of products sold, $3.4 million reported in Restructuring, impairment and (gain) on disposition of assets, net and $1.2 million reported in Selling, general and administrative. Project Fuel initiatives include costs for process optimization implementation, severance and other employee benefits, exit costs, and other asset charges.

(B)            Facilities Optimization charges: $0.8 million reported in Cost of products sold and $0.3 million reported in Restructuring, impairment and (gain) on disposition of assets, net. These charges relate to facilities optimization from the closure or departure from certain manufacturing and research and development (“R&D”) facilities and include costs for severance and other employee benefits, accelerated depreciation and relocation of production and R&D operations.

(C)            Amortization and impairment of certain intangible assets: $19.4 million reported in Cost of products sold and $1.7 million reported in Restructuring, impairment and (gain) on disposition of assets, net resulting from acquisitions including Mayne Pharma, Javelin Pharma and a generic injectable business by Hospira India.

(D)           Other restructuring charges: $7.8 million reported in Restructuring, impairment and (gain) on disposition of assets, net for distribution contract termination charges related to certain Latin America operations.

(E)            Settlement of IRS tax audit benefit of $19.7 million reported in Income tax expense.  This discrete income tax benefit is related to the completion and effective settlement of U.S. tax return audits.

(1)             Gross profit is defined as Net sales less Cost of products sold.

(2)             Adjusted Net Income is shown net of tax of $19.3 million and $12.3 million exclusive of the 2011 tax audit settlement for the three months ended March 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively, based on the statutory tax rates in the various tax jurisdictions in which the items occurred.

(3)             The Non-GAAP financial measures contained in this press release (including adjusted gross profit, adjusted income from operations, adjusted net income and adjusted diluted Earnings Per Share) adjust for certain specified items. All Non-GAAP financial measures are intended to supplement the applicable GAAP measures and should not be considered in isolation from, or a replacement for, financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP. Refer to Hospira’s filing on Form 8-K filed on May 1, 2012 for additional information.

Hospira, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Unaudited)

(dollars in millions)

Hospira, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

(dollars in millions)

Hospira, Inc.

Net Sales by Product Line

(Unaudited)

(dollars in millions)

(1)       The Non-GAAP financial measures contained in this press release include comparisons at constant currency rates, which reflect comparative local currency balances at prior period foreign exchange rates. Hospira calculated these percentages by taking current period reported net sales less the respective prior period reported net sales, divided by the prior period reported net sales, all at the respective prior period’s foreign exchange rates. This measure provides information on the change in net sales assuming that foreign currency exchange rates have not changed between the prior and the current period. Management believes the use of this measure aids in the understanding of our change in net sales without the impact of foreign currency and provides greater transparency into Hospira’s results of operations. Management uses these measures internally to monitor business unit performance and in evaluating management performance. These measures are intended to supplement the applicable GAAP measures and should not be considered in isolation from or a replacement for, financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP.