Joseph C. Papa
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LAVAL, Quebec—Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (NYSE: VRX and TSX: VRX) today announced that its board of directors has named Joseph C. Papa to become Valeant's new chairman and chief executive officer, succeeding J. Michael Pearson. In March, the Valeant board initiated a search to identify a candidate to succeed Pearson as chief executive officer. At the time, Pearson had recently returned from a two-month medical leave.

Papa will join Valeant from Perrigo Company plc, a leading global health care supplier that develops, manufactures and distributes over-the-counter and prescription pharmaceuticals, where he served as chairman and chief executive officer.

Papa is expected to join Valeant by early May. He will also join Valeant's board of directors and will succeed Pearson, who is expected to remain as CEO and a director until Papa arrives at Valeant.

Papa, 60, has more than 35 years of experience in the pharmaceutical, health care services and specialty pharmaceutical industries, including 20 years of branded prescription drug experience. He has been CEO of Perrigo since 2006 and was appointed as chairman of the board of directors of Perrigo in 2007.

During his tenure, he led dramatic and consistent growth across the company, building it into a global leader with net sales of more than $5 billion. Prior to Perrigo, Papa served from December 2004 to October 2006 as chairman and chief executive officer of the Pharmaceutical and Technologies Services segment of Cardinal Health, Inc.

From 2001 to 2004, he served as president and chief operating officer of Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. While at Novartis and Pharmacia /Searle, he was responsible for overseeing the successful launches of Diovan, Celebrex and Lotrel.

Robert Ingram, chairman of the board for Valeant, stated, "The board has conducted a thorough search process and believes that Joe is the ideal leader for Valeant at this time. He has a strong shareholder orientation, a background in science, and an unmatched track record of accomplishments, highlighted by his ability to lead companies through times of transition and drive excellence across commercial, manufacturing and R&D platforms.

“In addition, fostering an ethical culture and creating opportunities for professional development have always been high priorities for Joe, and we look forward to Joe's arrival at Valeant."

"I am excited to take on the challenge of leading Valeant and helping the company chart a new course," said Papa. "Valeant has world-class franchises, important treatments for patients across numerous therapeutic areas and a very talented and dynamic workforce, and I am confident that the company has a bright future ahead.

“We have an opportunity to move forward with a renewed focus on operating with integrity across all areas of the business and providing customers with safe and affordable products that improve their lives," Papa said.

Papa has held management positions at DuPont Pharmaceuticals, Pharmacia Corporation, G.D. Searle & Company and Novartis AG. He serves as a director of Smith & Nephew, a developer of advanced medical devices. He is a graduate of the University of Connecticut with a bachelor's degree in pharmacy and he earned his MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management.