William Helms: “as my father always said, there are two types of people, talkers and doers. Anyone who knows Robert Ingram will agree…”

“as my father always said, there are two types of people, talkers and doers. Anyone who knows Robert Ingram will agree with me that he is a ``doer extraordinaire.'' Bob, of course, is the distinguished Chief Operating Officer and President, Pharmaceutical Operations of GlaxoSmithKline, GSK. A few weeks ago, October 15, Bob announced his intention to retire at year's end from his daily responsibilities as the second-highest executive officer at GSK, the world's premier pharmaceutical company. Through the years, GSK and more importantly, countless people around the world have benefitted immeasurably from Bob Ingram's compassion, energy, vision and intelligence. In recent years, many politicians have engaged in a virtual sport, unjustifiably criticizing pharmaceutical companies and the senior executives who lead them. Thankfully, the American people have seen though many of these attacks for what they are, political expediency. Americans are sophisticated enough to know that politicians do not develop life-saving and life-improving medications. Rather, it is the research-based pharmaceutical and biotech industries that invest billions of dollars each year to develop products that both extend our lives and improve the quality of life for billions of citizens around the world. Bob Ingram has served as a beacon, consistently, respectfully and thoughtfully explaining the public health tradeoffs involved in implementing proposed new pharmaceutical regulations.”