NORTHBROOK, Ill., May 28, 2013 – Astellas Pharma US, Inc., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Astellas Pharma Inc. (Tokyo: 4503),  announced today that Margaret Long has been promoted to Vice President of Government Advocacy and Michael Ruggiero has been promoted to Vice President of Government Strategy as part of a restructuring of the Astellas Government Affairs function. Both will be reporting to Percival Barretto-Ko, Senior Vice-President of Corporate Strategy & Government Affairs at Astellas.

“Both Margaret and Michael joined Astellas in 2006, and have since created two best-in-class federal and state government affairs functions at Astellas. Under their strong leadership, we’ll transform the government affairs function at Astellas from a geographically-based structure (i.e., Federal and State) to one based on function to reflect the evolution of government policy and government advocacy activities in the United States,” said Barretto-Ko. “We look forward to their continuing contributions to the company’s success.”

Long has more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, with roles of increasing responsibility initially at Novartis Pharmaceuticals and now Astellas. Most recently at Astellas, Long was national director, state government affairs leading the state policy and government affairs organization in the United States and Puerto Rico. Throughout her career, Ms. Long has participated in professional and industry organizations focused on healthcare issues and the advancement of opportunities for women, including: Healthcare Businesswomen's Association, New York Health Products Council, Governor Pataki’s Advisory Council on Women and Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Psychology from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Ruggiero joined Astellas in 2006 as head of the federal policy and government affairs function. Prior to joining Astellas, Mr. Ruggiero practiced law in Washington, D.C. at the law firms of Arnold & Porter LLP and King & Spalding LLP, where he counseled healthcare industry clients on a range of legal, policy, and regulatory matters. Mr. Ruggiero is a former Vice Chair of the American Health Lawyers Association Life Sciences Practice Group and serves as adjunct faculty at the American University Washington College of Law. He earned a J.D. cum laude from the Georgetown University Law Center and received his B.A. in Economics from Syracuse University.

About Astellas

Astellas Pharma US, Inc., located in Northbrook, Illinois, is an affiliate of Tokyo-based Astellas Pharma Inc. Astellas is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to improving the health of people around the world through the provision of innovative and reliable pharmaceutical products. For more information on Astellas, please visit our website at www.astellas.us.