Mylan co-founder Milan "Mike" Puskar to retire

PITTSBURGH The chairman of the board and co-founder of generic drug maker Mylan will retire from his position, Mylan announced Thursday.

Milan “Mike” Puskar will step down as chairman of the board, replaced by vice chairman and CEO Robert Coury. Puskar said he will retire as a director effective Oct. 1.

“On behalf of the board of directors and all of Mylan’s employees and shareholders, I would like to personally thank Mike Puskar for his many accomplishments; his impact on the industry; and for his service and leadership,” Coury said in a statement upon his election as board chairman. “Mike will truly, truly be missed.”

Puskar co-founded the company as a privately held drug distributor in 1961 with Don Panoz. He has been chairman of the board since 1993 and a director in the company for 33 years, serving as president from 1976 to 2000 and as CEO from 2000 to 2002.

“The time has come for met o step down as chairman, and I am more than confident that under Robert’s passionate and strategic direction, Mylan will continue to provide leadership for an industry that is continually evolving,” Puskar stated. “Robert has taken what we started almost 50 years ago and turned it into a global powerhouse with a vast reach that is unique among our peers.”