B&L leader retires; new CEO, chairman are named

Will Astor//March 15, 2010//

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Bausch & Lomb Inc. chairman and CEO Gerald Ostrov has stepped down, the eye-care company said Monday.

Fred Hassan has been named as chairman and Brent Saunders as CEO. Until last November when Schering-Plough was taken over by Merck & Co., both of the new Bausch & Lomb leaders were Schering-Plough Corp. officials.

Ostrov, who is retiring, plans to serve as a consultant to his replacements.

Since November, Hassan has been an adviser to Warburg Pincus LLC, the New York City-based private equity group that took over Bausch & Lomb in 2007. Effective as of its takeover, Warburg Pincus named Ostrov, a former Johnson & Johnson executive, as chairman and CEO to replace Ronald Zarrella.

Bausch & Lomb had improved its operations and financial performance under Ostrov and now Hassan and Saunders would lead the eye-care company, into its next stage of growth, said Joseph Landy, co-president of Warburg Pincus, in a statement.

Hassan praised Ostrov for stabilizing “a very challenging situation at Bausch & Lomb and help(ing) move us toward a stronger global organization.” He and Saunders would initiate “a new phase to take Bausch & Lomb to an even higher level of performance,” Hassan said.

Saunders served under Hassan at Schering-Plough since 2003 in several positions. He most recently headed Schering-Plough’s consumer health care unit.

“My goal is to power up Bausch & Lomb to its rightful position as the global innovation leader in eye health,” Saunders said. “We are forging the talented people of Bausch & Lomb into a winning team with a winning attitude, with a relentless focus on execution.”

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