Uniphar Regulatory News (UPR)

Board Changes

Highly Experienced Global Healthcare Executive to Join Uniphar Board

Dublin, London | 18 September 2020

Uniphar plc (the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Jeffrey ("Jeff") Berkowitz to its Board as an independent non-executive Director with immediate effect.

Mr. Berkowitz has extensive global healthcare experience, having held senior executive positions across most key business areas in the global healthcare supply chain at UnitedHealth Group/Optum, Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. and Merck & Co Inc.

He has been recognised three times in PharmaVoice magazine as one of the 100 Most Inspiring Leaders in the Life Sciences in the past decade and was the recipient of PharmaVoice's inaugural Red Jacket Award.

Jeff Berkowitz is CEO of Real Endpoints LLC, a leader in insights, supports and tools to strengthen access to pharmaceutical innovation for an evolving healthcare landscape with specific focus on value-based arrangements, patient services and access support for pharma manufacturers and payors. 

Mr. Berkowitz also serves on the board of directors of H. Lundbeck A/S, Esperion Therapeutics, Inc., and Zealand Pharmaceuticals, Inc. He is an Editorial Advisor to Life Science Leader and Pharmaceutical Commerce magazines and has previously served on the Board of Directors of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce.

Mr. Berkowitz's wide-ranging healthcare expertise, coupled with his executive and board experience across multiple publicly quoted companies, brings a depth of expertise to the Uniphar board and is an important step in the Company's board transition strategy as outlined at IPO.

Other Board Developments

The Company also announces that Heather Ann McSharry is stepping down from the Board with immediate effect.

The Company also announces the following non-executive director changes to the Committees of the Board with immediate effect:

· Sue Webb, Independent Non-Executive Director, has been appointed to the Audit Committee.

· Jeff Berkowitz and Paul Hogan, Independent Non-Executive Director, have been appointed to the Nominations Committee, with Jeff Berkowitz also appointed as Chair of the Nominations Committee; and

· Paul Hogan is also assuming the role of Senior Independent Director.

The updated composition of the Committees of the Board will be available on the Company's website: www.uniphar.com.

Maurice Pratt, Chairman of Uniphar plc, commented:

"We are delighted to attract a candidate of Jeff Berkowitz's experience and stature to the Uniphar Board. With over 25 years' service in a variety of senior level roles in global healthcare businesses, Jeff will add significantly to the depth and breadth of industry insights available to the Board and the senior team in line with our international growth strategy. On behalf of all our Directors, I would like to take this opportunity to warmly welcome Jeff to the Board of Uniphar."

"I would also like to thank Heather Ann for the valuable contribution she has made to Uniphar since joining the Board. Heather Ann's experience and expertise were a great support in executing the successful IPO of Uniphar in 2019 and transitioning Uniphar to operating as a public company, and we wish her well for the future."

Additional Information: 

Jeff Berkowitz (a US citizen, aged 54 years) does not hold any ordinary shares or share options in the Company.

Prior to Real Endpoints, Mr. Berkowitz served as an Executive Vice President of UnitedHealth Group/Optum, where he led Optum's International division as CEO while also driving key strategic initiatives within its pharmacy benefits management division, OptumRx.

Before this, he was a member of the Executive Committee of the Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. ("Walgreens"), where he served as President of Pharma and Global Market Access. Jeff was responsible for generic and branded procurement, inventory management, relationships with pharmaceutical companies as well as the companies pricing and reimbursement strategies. He also led Walgreens specialty pharmacy business with over $10 billion in revenue and 5,800 employees.

Before joining Walgreens in 2010, Mr. Berkowitz was Senior Vice President of Global Market Access for Merck & Company, Inc.

Mr. Berkowitz had held a similar position at Schering-Plough, where he started as legal director for Schering-Plough's managed care and commercial group in 1998.

Before joining Schering, Mr. Berkowitz was a healthcare attorney for the international law firm Proskauer LLP in New York and Washington, D.C.

Mr. Berkowitz earned his bachelor's degree in political science from Union College in Schenectady, N.Y., and his Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School in Brooklyn, N.Y.

The Company confirms that there is no other information that is required to be disclosed in accordance with Rule 17 of the AIM Rules for Companies and Rule 5.22 (b) of Chapter 5: Additional Rules for the Euronext Growth Market operated by Euronext Dublin.

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About Uniphar Group

Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Uniphar plc is an international diversified healthcare services business, servicing the requirements of more than 200 multinational pharmaceutical and medical technology manufacturers across three divisions - Commercial & Clinical, Product Access and Supply Chain & Retail.

The Group has strong established relationships with 7 of the top 10 pharma companies and 6 of the top 10 medical device companies. With a workforce of more than 2,300, the Group is active in Ireland, the UK, the Benelux, the Nordics and the US, delivering unlicensed and specialty medicine on a global basis.

The Group's vision is to improve patient access to pharmaco-medical products and treatments by enhancing connectivity between manufacturers and healthcare stakeholders. Uniphar represents a strong combination of scale, growth and profitability.

Commercial & Clinical

In Commercial & Clinical the Group provides sales, marketing & distribution solutions to multinational pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers on an outsourced basis. Active in Ireland, the UK, the Benelux, and the Nordics, the Group is growing with its clients to provide pan-European solutions. Uniphar has built a fully integrated multi-channel solution that is supported by highly experienced, clinically trained teams to deliver exceptional outcomes for all clients.

Product Access

In Product Access the Group is growing two distinct service offerings: 1) "On Demand Access", which are pharmacy led solutions for sourcing and supplying unlicensed medicines to meet the needs of both retail and hospital pharmacists; and 2) "Exclusive Access", which are manufacturer led solutions for controlling the release of speciality medicines for specifically approved patient populations in agreed markets. The Group currently delivers product access solutions on a global basis.

Supply Chain & Retail

Uniphar is an established market leader in Ireland with c.50% market share in the wholesale/hospital market, supported by a network of c.300 owned, franchised and symbol group pharmacies. The business supports the diverse customer base through the provision of strong service levels coupled with innovative commercial initiatives. Supply Chain & Retail is an Irish only business for the Group, although the manufacturer relationships and infrastructure are utilised for the benefit of the growth divisions, Commercial & Clinical and Product Access.