The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) appointed new leadership to its board of directors. David Ricks, chairman and CEO of Eli Lilly and Company, was named chairman-elect and Ramona Sequeira, President of Takeda Pharmaceuticals, USA assumed the role of board treasurer.

Giovanni Caforio, M.D., chairman and CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb, assumed the role of chairman of the PhRMA board of directors last month.

"I am thrilled to have Dave and Ramona in their new leadership roles on the PhRMA board of directors," said Stephen J. Ubl, president and CEO of PhRMA. "They are highly-regarded leaders and their expertise will be invaluable to our board as we work to collaborate with policymakers and stakeholders on policy solutions that improve patient affordability and foster medical innovation."

Ricks has served as CEO of Lilly since January 1, 2017 and became chairman of the board of directors on June 1, 2017. A 20-year Lilly veteran, he previously served as president of Lilly Bio-Medicines and as president of Lilly USA, the company's largest affiliate. Ricks also served as president and general manager of Lilly China, operating in one of the world's fastest-growing emerging markets, and general manager of Lilly Canada after roles as director of pharmaceutical marketing and national sales director in that country. He is the president of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) and serves on the boards of Adobe and the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership. He also chairs the Riley Children's Foundation board of governors.

Ricks is a graduate of Purdue University and earned his MBA from Indiana University.

Sequeira has served as the president of Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA since May, 2015. She is a member of Takeda's executive team. Prior to joining Takeda, Sequeira held various senior roles of increasing responsibility at Lilly. Throughout her career in the biopharmaceutical Industry, which began in 1991, Sequeira has led successful businesses across multiple countries and healthcare systems including Canada, the U.S. and Europe where she was a member of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. She is known for delivering patient centric strategies that provide sustainable business growth. Since Takeda's January 2019 acquisition of Shire, Sequeira leads Takeda's US Business Unit, focused on the areas of Neuroscience, Gastrointestinal Disease, Immunology, and Hematology and Rare Disease.

Sequeira earned a degree in molecular genetics at the University of Toronto followed by an MBA at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

About PhRMA

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country's leading innovative biopharmaceutical research companies, which are devoted to discovering and developing medicines that enable patients to live longer, healthier, and more productive lives. Since 2000, PhRMA member companies have invested more than $900 billion in the search for new treatments and cures, including an estimated $79.6 billion in 2018 alone.