LAVAL, QC, May 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Labopharm Inc. today announced that Mr. Santo J. Costa has been appointed as chairman of the Company’s Board of Directors.
Previously, Mr. Costa held the role of President and Chief Operating Officer of Quintiles Transnational Corporation , an international provider of a full range of pharmaceutical product development and commercialization activities, from early compound development, laboratory services and regulatory submission through sales and marketing. Mr. Costa joined Quintiles at the time of its initial public offering and, during his tenure, oversaw the successful integration of more than 40 acquisitions. During that same period, Quintiles’ annual revenue grew from $90 million to $1.6 billion and its employee base grew from 1,000 to 20,000. Prior to joining Quintiles, Mr. Costa held the positions of General Counsel and Senior Vice- President Administration with Glaxo Inc. , US Area Counsel with Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals and Counsel, Food & Drug with Norwich Eaton Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Costa is currently Of Counsel with Maupin Taylor P.A. of Raleigh, North Carolina specializing in corporate law for healthcare companies.
Mr. Costa currently serves as director of a number of health sciences companies, including NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , CV Therapeutics, Inc. , Digiscripts and Constella Group and is chairman of NeuroMedix Inc. . He also sits on the Board of Advisors of the North Carolina Outward Bound School, the Duke Brain Tumor Advisory Committee, the Duke University Medical Center Board of Visitors and the Duke Cancer Patient Support Program Board. Mr. Costa is an Adjunct Professor in the clinical research program at the Campbell University School of Pharmacy. Mr. Costa holds a B.S. in Pharmacy and a J.D., both from St. John’s University. He is a member of the North Carolina Bar Association, the New York Bar and the Ohio Bar.
The Company also announced that, at the 2006 Annual Meeting held on Thursday, May 4, 2006 in addition to Mr. Costa, the following individuals were also elected to the position of director: James R. Howard-Tripp, Richard J. MacKay, Anthony C. Playle, Frederic Porte, Robert Raich, Jacques L. Roy and James S. Scibetta.
About Labopharm Inc.
Labopharm Inc. is an international, specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development of drugs incorporating Contramid(R), the Company’s proprietary advanced controlled-release technology. Labopharm’s lead product, a once-daily formulation of the analgesic tramadol, is marketed in Germany and has received regulatory approval in 21 other European countries. In the U.S., the Company’s NDA for once-daily tramadol is under review at the FDA and the Company has secured a licensing and distribution agreement with Purdue Pharma, a premier marketer of long-acting pain medications. The Company’s pipeline includes a combination of proprietary and partnered programs with products both in clinical trials and in preclinical development. For more information, please visit www.labopharm.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect the Corporation’s current expectations regarding future events. The forward- looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Actual events could differ materially from those projected herein and depend on a number of factors, including the successful and timely completion of clinical studies, the uncertainties related to the regulatory process and the commercialization of the drug thereafter. Investors should consult the Corporation’s ongoing quarterly filings and annual reports for additional information on risks and uncertainties relating to these forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. The Corporation disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
Labopharm Inc.
CONTACT: At Labopharm: James Howard-Tripp, President and Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Tel: (450) 686-1017, ir@labopharm.com; At The Equicom Group: JasonHogan - Toronto, Investor and Media Relations, Tel: (416) 815-0700,jhogan@equicomgroup.com
