Michael A. Jacobsen Joining Omeros Corporation as Vice President, Finance and Chief Accounting Officer

SEATTLE, Aug. 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Omeros Corporation (NASDAQ: OMER), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering, developing and commercializing products targeting inflammation, coagulopathies and disorders of the central nervous system, has announced that Michael A. Jacobsen is joining the company as vice president, finance and chief accounting officer.

“Mike’s experience leading finance teams responsible for the commercial launch of biopharmaceutical products including Cialis^®, one of the most successful drugs on the market, will be instrumental as we anticipate marketing approval for OMS302 next year,” stated Gregory A. Demopulos, M.D., Omeros’ chairman and chief executive officer. “With his deep background in accounting, business management and finance, I expect that Mike will begin contributing immediately to Omeros’ planned transition to a commercial company.”

“I am impressed by what the Omeros team has accomplished and by the tremendous potential of Omeros’ development programs,” said Mr. Jacobsen. “These are exciting times for Omeros, and I look forward to helping the company achieve commercial success for a long line of products, starting with OMS302.”

Mr. Jacobsen brings over 30 years of senior business management and accounting experience to Omeros and led the finance teams responsible for the commercial launch of Cialis® and Recothrom^®. His experience includes more than a decade of service as a senior finance and accounting officer with publicly traded medical research, drug development and biotechnology companies. Omeros’ board of directors will appoint Mr. Jacobsen to his position of vice president, finance and chief accounting officer.

Most recently, Mr. Jacobsen was vice president of finance and chief accounting officer of Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc. (formerly AVI BioPharma, Inc.). From 2007 to 2011, he was vice president and chief accounting officer at ZymoGenetics, Inc., a publicly traded biotechnology company acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) in October 2010, where his responsibilities included managing all aspects of accounting and financial information, tax planning and compliance, SEC reporting, annual audit and quarterly reviews, and purchasing. Subsequent to the merger, Mr. Jacobsen was responsible for migrating the ZymoGenetics financial operations and systems to BMS. Prior to ZymoGenetics, Mr. Jacobsen held various roles from 2001 to 2007 at ICOS Corporation, a publicly traded biotechnology company acquired by Eli Lilly in January 2007, including senior director of finance and corporate controller. Before joining ICOS, Mr. Jacobsen held the position of vice president of finance/chief financial officer at two publicly traded e-commerce and software companies. Mr. Jacobsen is a certified public accountant and received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Idaho State University.

About Omeros Corporation
Omeros is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering, developing and commercializing products targeting inflammation, coagulopathies and disorders of the central nervous system. The Company’s most clinically advanced product candidates, OMS302 for lens replacement surgery and OMS103HP for arthroscopy, are derived from its proprietary PharmacoSurgery platform designed to improve clinical outcomes of patients undergoing a wide range of surgical and medical procedures. Omeros has six clinical development programs. Omeros may also have the near-term capability, through its GPCR program, to add a large number of new drug targets and their corresponding compounds to the market. Behind its clinical candidates and GPCR platform, Omeros is building a diverse pipeline of protein and small-molecule preclinical programs targeting inflammation, coagulopathies and central nervous system disorders.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are subject to the “safe harbor” created by those sections for such statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, the potential commercial launch timeline for OMS302; the potential benefits of Omeros’ product candidates; and its capability, through its GPCR program, to add a large number of new drug targets and their corresponding compounds to the market. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information available to management only as of the date of this press release. Omeros’ actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements for many reasons, including, without limitation, the risks, uncertainties and other factors described under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 9, 2013. Given these risks, uncertainties and other factors, you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, and the Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements publicly, even if new information becomes available in the future.

SOURCE Omeros Corporation