Aerie Pharmaceuticals Expands Management Team, Names Michael McCleerey as Vice President, Marketing

Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AERI), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class glaucoma therapies, today announced that Michael McCleerey has been named to the newly established position of Vice President, Marketing at Aerie, reporting directly to Thomas A. Mitro, President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. McCleerey has more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare industry and ophthalmology-focused companies, with deep experience in marketing and strategic planning. He will be responsible for preparing for the commercial presence of Aerie’s lead product candidates. His appointment at Aerie is effective immediately.

Most recently, Mr. McCleerey served as Director Strategic Marketing, and previously, Director of Marketing at ISTA Pharmaceuticals. In these capacities, he was an instrumental member of the leadership team under which ISTA grew into the third largest branded prescription eye care business in the United States. During his tenure at ISTA, three of the company’s four products were number one in their markets, and their net sales more than tripled. Prior to joining ISTA, Mr. McCleerey held senior marketing positions, including Senior Product Manager, at Allergan, Inc., where he played a key role in the successful launch of Acular LS®. Mr. McCleerey received his B.A. degree in business administration and management from California State University at Fullerton and his M.B.A. degree from Pepperdine University.

“Aerie’s continued progress in its lead development programs, including the recent reporting of positive results from our Phase 2b study of Roclatan™, brings us closer to becoming a commercial-stage company. In light of this, we are pleased to announce the addition of Mike McCleerey to manage our marketing programs,” said Vicente Anido, Jr., Ph.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Aerie. “Mike and many of Aerie’s leaders have had strong track records of success in their previous roles at ISTA and Allergan, and we are excited to effectively reassemble a world-class team in ophthalmology.”

“I am very excited to join Aerie at this important time in its development, as the Company continues to advance its lead programs and nears commencement of registration studies of RhopressaTM for patients with glaucoma,” said Mr. McCleerey.

About Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Aerie is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of first-in-class glaucoma therapies. The Company is commencing two Phase 3 registration trials in the United States, named “Rocket 1” and “Rocket 2,” where the primary efficacy endpoint will be to demonstrate non-inferiority of intraocular pressure (IOP) lowering for RhopressaTM compared to timolol, along with a third Phase 3 registration safety-only trial, named “Rocket 3,” in Canada. The Company also recently completed a Phase 2b clinical trial where RoclatanTM met the primary efficacy endpoint, demonstrating the statistical superiority of Roclatan™ to each of its components.

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