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Novo hires US pharma veteran Miley as head of global

corporate

affairs

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Danish drugmaker trying to navigate political risks under

Trump

administration

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Hire comes as Novo works to revive investor confidence

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New CEO is restructuring, 9,000 jobs to be cut

By Maggie Fick and Stine Jacobsen

LONDON/COPENHAGEN, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Novo Nordisk

has appointed U.S. pharmaceutical executive Greg

Miley as its new global head of corporate affairs, as the

obesity drugmaker faces growing pressure from U.S. President

Donald Trump on drug pricing.

Miley recently served as senior vice president of government

affairs at U.S. pharmaceutical giant AbbVie ( ABBV ). He posted

a statement on LinkedIn on Friday and Novo Nordisk shared the

statement with Reuters.

Novo is turning to an American executive with deep U.S.

pharmaceutical experience to help navigate political risks under

the Trump administration in the United States, its largest

market.

NEW HIRE TO FOCUS ON RELATIONS WITH TRUMP ADMINISTRATION

The appointment comes as new CEO Mike Doustdar tries to revive

investor confidence through a restructuring to sharpen Novo's

focus in a fierce obesity drug battle against U.S. rival Eli

Lilly ( LLY ). The overhaul includes cutting 9,000 jobs, with

5,000 positions being eliminated in Denmark and layoffs underway

across multiple U.S. departments.

"In this new role, I see great potential to strengthen our

Global Communication and Public Affairs efforts," Miley wrote on

LinkedIn, adding that he would begin his new role next month and

would relocate to Denmark, Novo's home market.

Miley's urgent priority will be improving Novo's relations

with the Trump administration, said a source familiar with the

matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss

confidential information.

Other big pharmaceutical companies have hired public affairs

experts with long backgrounds in Republican circles in order to

navigate the administration's pressures on the industry, a

source at a European drugmaker told Reuters on Friday.

TRUMP SAYS OZEMPIC PRICE IN US WILL BE LOWERED

Shares of Novo and Lilly fell on Friday after Trump said that

the price of Novo's Ozempic diabetes treatment would be lowered.

Ozempic contains the same active ingredient as its weight-loss

drug Wegovy.

Miley spent the past decade at AbbVie ( ABBV ) in Chicago and was

promoted two years ago to senior vice president of government

affairs, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has worked in the

pharmaceutical industry since 2004, building his career at U.S.

drugmakers including more than four years in public affairs at

Abbott and nearly five years at Pfizer.

AbbVie ( ABBV ) did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Miley did not reply when contacted by Reuters earlier on

Friday.