(SAN FRANCISCO, CA) – April 3, 2007 – The Institute for OneWorld Health, the first nonprofit pharmaceutical company in the United States, announced today the appointment of Donald R. Joseph, JD, as Chief Operating Officer.
“We are extremely pleased that Don has decided to join the organization full time after assisting in his interim role for the last two months,” said Dr. Victoria Hale, Founder and CEO. “His impressive range of knowledge, skills, and experience in biopharmaceutical operations will be a great help as we execute on our mission.”
Joseph has served as Interim Senior Vice President, Operations, for OneWorld Health, since January 2007. He brings more than twelve years of biopharmaceutical leadership experience to OneWorld Health, following fifteen years of practicing business law. His most recent senior executive positions include biopharmaceutical, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical companies Renovis, Inc., where he was Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and General Counsel; and Abgenix, Inc., where he served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel until the company’s acquisition by Amgen, Inc., in early 2006.
Joseph has also held senior legal and business positions at Amarin Corp., a London-based drug development company; Elan Pharmaceuticals, the drug discovery and development subsidiary of Elan Corp.; and Athena Neurosciences, a biotech company focused on neurology that was acquired by Elan. Joseph also co-founded Alekta Group, a biopharmaceutical consulting group, and prior to entering the biopharmaceuticals industry was a partner in the San Francisco office of Baker & McKenzie, a prominent international law firm, where he practiced corporate and commercial law. Since 2000, he has served as a member of the board of directors of Legal Community Against Violence, a gun violence prevention group formed to promote reasonable gun laws.
“OneWorld Health is showing the way forward in global healthcare by providing safe, affordable, and effective medicines to the people who need them the most, in some of the most remote places on earth,” said Joseph. “Our work at OneWorld Health is making a remarkable difference, at a low cost, among people who otherwise often go without treatment. I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity to help advance this important work.”
Joseph holds a J.D. degree from the University of Texas Law School, with honors, and received his B.A. from the University of Oklahoma, with highest honors.
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR ONEWORLD HEALTH The Institute for OneWorld Health, the first U.S. nonprofit pharmaceutical company, develops safe, effective, affordable medicines for people with diseases of the developing world. OneWorld Health applies its entrepreneurial business model to the unmet medical needs of the developing world through its staff of experienced pharmaceutical scientists and professionals who identify promising leads and drive drug development from pre-clinical studies to clinical trials through regulatory approval. The Institute for OneWorld Health was founded by Dr. Victoria Hale in 2000 and receives funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other donors. The Institute for OneWorld Health, headquartered in San Francisco, USA, is a tax-exempt 501(c) (3) U.S. corporation. More information can be found at www.oneworldhealth.org. Media resources are available at www.oneworldhealth.org/media/index.php/
CONTACT Hal Kane (415) 307-7092 hkane@prandcompany.com
Brenda Dos Santos (415) 277-6974 bdsantos@prandcompany.com
Pat Reilly (415) 277-6971 pr@prandcompany.com
