Why a Big Pharma Exec Embraced Rare Neurological Diseases

Jeremy Levin’s high-profile success at building the pipeline at Bristol-Myers Squibb through deal-making and driving the company into immunotherapies, has given him the ability to take virtually any job he’d like in the biopharmaceutical sector. Given that, it may seem surprising the Big Pharma executive chose to become CEO of a development-stage company focused on rare neurological conditions. We spoke to Levin, CEO of Ovid Therapeutics, about why he took the job, the conditions the company is targeting, and whether his interest in rare diseases will shape the agenda of BIO now that he serves as chairman of the trade group.