Corrected: Zevra CEO resigns as board of directors sees change

Drug developer Zevra Therapeutics, formerly known as KemPharm, is continuing to make some changes to its leadership structure.

Richard Pascoe

On Monday, the Florida-based company announced that CEO Richard Pascoe has resigned effective on June 1. An interim CEO will be appointed by the board as soon as possible, per a press release with that process starting immediately. Pascoe was also not reelected to the board last month as well.

Zevra shareholders have also elected John Bode, owner of Aerie Investments, Douglas Calder, president of the life science company Cycellix, and Corey Watton, the CFO of Fusion Medical Staffing, to its board of directors. Tamara Favorito was appointed chair of the board. Two directors at the developer, Matthew Plooster and Joseph Saluri, are also planning to retire as soon as replacements are found.

Last month, Bode, Calder and Watton were nominated to become board members by minority shareholder Daniel Mangless, who urged for their election in a letter. Mangless also stated in his letter that Zevra had a “lagging stock price” and a “lack of vision.”

Tamara Favorito

“As we look ahead, we will prioritize a search for a Chief Executive Officer who will continue to execute upon the Company’s rare disease strategy and drive value creation for all shareholders. In the interim, I am confident in the existing management team’s ability to execute on the Company’s strategy,” Bode said in a release.

In February, Zevra rebranded from KemPharm to evoke the Greek word for zebra, which the company says is a well-known symbol for the rare disease community.

Editor’s Note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Richard Pascoe’s resignation is effective on June 1, not effective immediately. 

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