Mid-Atlantic Bio

PhRMA CEO Billy Tauzin to Keynote 2008 Mid-Atlantic Bio Dinner

Program to Focus on Global Policy Implications for the Bioscience Industry

Chantilly, Va. - August 13, 2008 - The 2008 Mid-Atlantic Bio conference today announced that Billy Tauzin, president and chief executive officer of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), will address this year’s conference as keynote speaker for a special, separately ticketed international dinner, October 23 at the Westfields Marriott in Chantilly, Va. Dedicated to promoting the growth of biotechnology in the Mid-Atlantic region, the conference, collectively sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic’s most influential bioscience and investor associations, Tech Council of Maryland/MdBio (TCM), the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA), and the Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO), attracts more than 800 senior executives from the life sciences industry, as well as regulatory officials, researchers, university administrators, investors, and professional services firms.

Tauzin, who served 13 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and chaired the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee, now plays a leading role in advocating for pharmaceutical research and biotechnology in the United States and globally.

Among the scientific, government, and business leaders addressing the conference, Tauzin will join a line-up of prominent bioscience experts, including Kary Mullis, Ph.D., the Nobel Prize-winning chemist known for his invention of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Andrew C. von Eschenbach, M.D., Jeremy Levin, D.Phil., senior vice president, External Science, Technology and Licensing, Bristol-Myers Squibb; and Lex Van der Ploeg, Ph.D., vice president and head of Merck’s Boston/Cambridge Research Site.

“Biotechnology is a global industry, affected deeply by international policies and business partnerships,” said Mid-Atlantic Bio’s chairman, Douglas Doerfler, president and CEO of MaxCyte, Inc. “As a leading private sector advocate for companies engaged in the development and commercialization of new medicines and a former Congressional leader, Billy Tauzin is uniquely qualified to shed light on the global policy implications for the future of bioscience; we are honored to have him at our conference, which is just two weeks before our national elections,” Doerfler added.

Sponsored by McDermott, Will & Emery LLP, the October 23 “Around-the-World Dinner” will provide an opportunity for networking with bioscience leaders from across the mid-Atlantic region as well as an occasion to welcome conference participants from outside the United States.

About Billy Tauzin

Billy Tauzin was named president and chief executive officer of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) in 2005. Previously, he served 13 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing the 3rd Congressional District of Louisiana.

While in Congress, he held several leadership positions, beginning with his chairmanship of a Merchant Marine Subcommittee, which oversaw legislation related to the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska. In 1995 he was named Deputy Majority Whip and is the first American to have been part of the leadership of both parties in the House. In an effort to promote a spirit of bipartisan cooperation on Capitol Hill, he co-founded co-chaired the Mainstream Conservative Alliance, known as Republican “Blue Dogs.” Until 2004, he served as the Chairman of the influential House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which has jurisdiction over all interstate and foreign commerce, including energy, telecommunications, health care, biomedical research, consumer protection, the environment and travel and tourism. During his tenure, he left his mark on issues ranging from natural gas, airline, trucking and electricity deregulation to the Clean Air Act, Superfund and the historic Telecommunications Reform Act of 1996. In addition, he was the original author of the Securities Litigation Reform Act and the Cable Act - the only bills over the past decade to become law despite a Presidential veto. As chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, he helped President George W. Bush win passage of a Medicare prescription drug bill.

He was first elected to the U.S. House in 1980 as a Democrat. Because his conservative views increasingly led him to vote with GOP House members despite his Democratic affiliation, he switched parties in 1995.
Tauzin began his public service career in the Louisiana State Legislature where he chaired the House Natural Resources Committee and served as Chief Administration Floor Leader.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Nicholls State University in 1964 and a law degree from Louisiana State.

About Mid-Atlantic Bio

Mid-Atlantic Bio is the only regional event to combine components of an industry convention and investor conference under one roof. Co-hosted by the Tech Council of Maryland/MdBio, the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA), and the Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO), the initiative benefits from broad regional support, including the investor and greater business communities, academic institutions, government agencies, and partnered regional associations.

The event aims to bring together a critical mass of public and private stakeholders, including biotechnology and pharmaceutical senior executives, scientists and researchers, academia, policy makers, legislators, and venture capitalists to provide a premiere mid-Atlantic networking and business development forum, leverage the region’s world-renowned R&D resources and opportunities, and favorably position the region’s biotechnology industry in terms of its collective strengths, resources and competencies among key constituencies. For more on the Mid-Atlantic Bio Conference, program agenda and speaker information, as well as registration information, please visit www.midatlanticbio.org.

About Tech Council of Maryland

The Tech Council of Maryland (TCM) is Maryland’s largest technology trade association with over 500 members in Maryland, DC, and Virginia. TCM’s mission is to create an environment where technology companies can collaborate, grow and succeed. For more information, please visit www.techcouncilmd.com.

About Mid-Atlantic Venture Association

Founded in 1986, MAVA represents the collective interests of venture capitalists investing in the mid-Atlantic, including more than 500+ venture professionals, at 125 firms, with more than $90 billion in capital under management. For more information, please visit www.mava.org.

About Virginia Biotechnology Association

Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO) is the 150-member statewide trade group that promotes the considerable scientific and economic impact of the life sciences industry in the Commonwealth of Virginia. For more information, please visit www.vabio.org.