Interim CEO for BioSpecifics

The board of directors of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. appointed Joseph Truitt as interim CEO. He will also serve on the company’s board of directors. Truitt succeeds J. Kevin Buchi, who served as CEO since October 2019, and has departed the company.

“We are delighted to have Joe on board and believe he will play a major role in helping to shape the future of BioSpecifics,” says Chairman Jennifer Chao. “Joe is a highly experienced biopharma executive with a strong track record of clinical, commercial, and operational leadership. The board of directors remains strongly focused on its corporate strategy of fully maximizing near- and long-term sustainable value creation, including full exploration of opportunities within the CCH portfolio of commercial and pipeline assets, as well as identifying external strategic opportunities. We believe BioSpecifics is poised for a new leg of growth bolstered by strong fundamentals.

“As we continue on this path, we would like to thank Kevin for what he accomplished during his tenure with the company and wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Before joining BioSpecifics, Truitt was most recently CEO of Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. since May 2018. He joined Achillion in 2009 and had previous roles of chief operations officer and chief commercial officer. Under his leadership, the company was acquired by Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. for $1.2 billion. Truitt joined Achillion from Viropharma Inc. following its acquisition of Lev Pharmaceuticals. At Lev, Truitt was VP of business development and product strategy and led the build-out of the commercial team and infrastructure in preparation for product launch. Truitt joined Lev from Johnson & Johnson, where he was VP of sales and operations and directed commercial operations and had P&L responsibility for sales, operations, and national accounts at the company’s OraPharma subsidiary. He holds a BS degree in marketing from LaSalle University, Philadelphia, and an MBA degree from St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia.

“I am excited to take on the role of interim CEO of BioSpecifics,” Truiit says. “There are very significant value creation opportunities and I look forward to working closely with the board of directors and team to fully execute on the company’s clearly defined corporate objectives.”

BioSpecifics discovered and developed a proprietary form of injectable collagenase which is marketed by BioSpecifics’ partner, Endo International plc, as Xiaflex in North America for the treatment of Dupuytren’s contracture and Peyronie’s disease.