[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 139 (Wednesday, September 19, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1928]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               ENDO PHARMACEUTICALS INC. 10TH ANNIVERSARY

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                            HON. JOE SESTAK

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 19, 2007

  Mr. SESTAK. Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize Endo 
Pharmaceuticals Inc., on the occasion of the company's 10 Year 
Anniversary. Endo, whose corporate headquarters are located in Chadds 
Ford, Pennsylvania, in the heart of the 7th Congressional District, is 
an American success story on many important levels.
  The company's roots as a pharmaceutical enterprise actually run quite 
deep, dating back to the 1920s when a family-run pharmaceutical 
business named Intravenous Products of America was established in New 
York. Its name was changed to Endo Products in 1935. In 1969 E.I. du 
Pont de Nemours and Company (DuPont) acquired since renamed Endo Labs. 
In the early 1990s DuPont, in a joint venture with Merck and Company, 
formed DuPont Merck Pharmaceuticals, and named its generics business 
Endo Laboratories LLC.
  In 1997, Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., an independent company, was 
formed through the vision of former DuPont Merck executives led by 
Carol Ammon and Mariann MacDonald. The vision they shared was to create 
a leading pain management company focused on the needs of patients and 
physicians. Leaping ten years forward to today, it is plain to see that 
Endo has already accomplished its initial goal and is looking toward 
new horizons, and bolder challenges.
  Endo's initial success came on the heels of meeting physician and 
patient pain management needs by introducing new dosage strengths of 
its well-known pain reliever PERCOCET , and in-licensing LIDODERM , 
the first FDA-approved topical patch for pain associated with post-
herpetic neuralgia, a dreaded complication from shingles.
  And recently, Endo launched the newest strong opioid for patients 
with chronic moderate-to-severe pain, OPANA ER, together with a 
comprehensive risk management plan to ensure appropriate physician 
prescribing and patient education of pain medicines.
  As Endo continued to grow throughout the late 1990s and into this 
decade, the company, with the help of employees at its research and 
development laboratories in New York, began developing new, novel 
products, including those for the treatment of acute pain and moderate-
to-severe chronic pain. As it did so, Endo also created an internal 
specialty sales force. By 2003, the company grew to nearly 500 
employees. This growth and the company's success in the pharmaceutical 
industry did not go unnoticed. During that same year, co-founders Carol 
Ammon and Mariann MacDonald were honored with the Greater Philadelphia 
Ernst & Young ``Entrepreneur of the Year'' award in the Health Sciences 
category, and Endo was named ``Company of the Year'' by the Eastern 
Technology Council.
  Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. has further distinguished itself by being 
voted one of the ``100 Best Corporate Citizens'' by Business Ethics 
Magazine and reaching #35 on Business Weeks' ``Hot Growth Companies'' 
list. Endo's mission clearly incorporates a humanitarian as well as a 
corporate vision. The company contributes to Community Volunteers in 
Medicine, a Chester County, PA organization that provides health care 
to people who don't qualify for Medicaid and do not have health care 
insurance. Endo began contributing to this organization in 2004 at the 
$15,000 level and has increased their contribution each year. In 
addition, the company has given over $300,000 to the Susan G. Komen 
Foundation; and been a sponsor of the Komen Pink Tie Ball and Komen 
Race for the Cure. Also, since 2002, Endo employees have participated 
in the MS150, a 150 mile bicycle race to raise funds for the Multiple 
Sclerosis Society. Individual pledges, a corporate contribution and 
matching gift from Carol Ammon, one of Endo's co-founders, also have 
contributed to this event.
  Now in its tenth year, the company employs more than 1,300 
individuals in the United States, including laboratories in Westbury, 
New York, and Boulder, Colorado. Endo's is a highly skilled workforce, 
as 98 percent of its employees hold a bachelor's degree or higher. The 
company is further solidifying its presence in Pennsylvania and Chadds 
Ford, in particular, recently breaking ground on a new 48,600-square-
foot building at its headquarters. This new building in Chadds Ford 
will have space for an additional 175 employees, and is expected to be 
completed next year.
  However, Endo is growing in other areas, too, and positioning itself 
to be the leading pain company in the world. Endo's President and CEO, 
Peter Lankau, says the company is indeed focused on the future and 
continuing to provide patients and physicians with clinically 
innovative pain therapy products.
  Madam Speaker, again, I would like to congratulate Endo 
Pharmaceuticals Inc., and especially its employees at the Chadds Ford 
headquarters, for the company's accomplishments. In just ten years Endo 
has realized the vision of its founders. It is an entrepreneurial 
success and is recognized as an outstanding corporate citizen. It is 
now the world leader in developing pain therapy products focused on 
patients' and physicians' needs. I, for one, look forward to the 
promise of the next ten years for Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc., and its 
talented individuals in Chadds Ford and throughout the nation.

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