AstraZeneca's Chip Davis Joins PhRMA
To Assist Organization in Leadership Transition
Washington, D.C. (April 7, 2010) - Chip Davis, Vice President of Corporate External Relations, AstraZeneca, is joining the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) as Senior Operating Officer to help with the Association's leadership transition. Davis will report directly to PhRMA President and CEO Billy Tauzin, who announced recently that he is leaving PhRMA on June 30 after five-and-a-half successful years.
Davis will assume this full-time leadership role on April 12 and will be on a leave of absence from AstraZeneca until a replacement for Tauzin has been named. Davis will work closely with David Brennan - Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of AstraZeneca and head of PhRMA's search committee - as well as the entire committee to identify Tauzin's replacement. Brennan concluded his term as PhRMA Board Chairman in March.
"We couldn't have found a better person to serve during the transition than Chip Davis," Tauzin said today. "He has played a key role in AstraZeneca's advocacy efforts during a very challenging time for the biopharmaceutical research industry. He not only understands our industry from top to bottom, but he also has forged close relationships with many of our board members and senior staff. He is the perfect choice for this important position, and I look forward to working with him over the next few months."
In his current role at AstraZeneca, Davis oversees the company's government relations and reimbursement teams in the U.S., as well as strategic alliances, community relations and employee volunteering efforts. Since 2004, he has served as AstraZeneca's official liaison to PhRMA. While in that capacity, he played a key role during Brennan's chairmanship at PhRMA and spearheaded the company's efforts related to the biopharmaceutical industry's health care reform platform. In 2007, Davis was one of the inaugural winners of the AstraZeneca CEO Award, given to global executives who best demonstrate AstraZeneca leadership capabilities in their accomplishments.
Davis holds an undergraduate degree in accounting from the University of Delaware and a Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Baltimore School of Law. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware, the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce and the AstraZeneca Political Action Committee. He resides in Delaware with his wife Tina and their three children.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country's leading pharmaceutical research and biotechnology companies, which are devoted to inventing medicines that allow patients to live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. PhRMA companies are leading the way in the search for new cures. PhRMA members alone invested an estimated $45.8 billion in 2009 in discovering and developing new medicines. Industry-wide research and investment reached a record $65.3 billion in 2009.
PhRMA Internet Address: www.phrma.org
For information on stories of hope and survival, visit: http://sharingmiracles.com/
For information on how innovative medicines save lives, visit: www.innovation.org
For information on the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, visit: www.pparx.org
For more information on public health emergencies, visit: www.rxresponse.org
For information on the danger of imported drugs, visit: www.buysafedrugs.info