How Eli Lilly’s CEO Plans to Defeat Pharma’s Boom-Bust Cycle
Bloomberg 2026-06-23 17:00:25
Context: In 2017, Dave Ricks took over as CEO of Eli Lilly & Co., a company with a 150-year history, during a tumultuous time for the pharmaceutical industry. The industry was facing intense public scrutiny over high drug prices, with President Donald Trump criticizing them and reports emerging of diabetics rationing insulin due to soaring costs. Under Ricks' leadership, the company has undergone a significant transformation, driven in part by the success of its diabetes and obesity treatments, Mounjaro and Zepbound.
Key Facts
- Dave Ricks became the 11th CEO of Eli Lilly & Co. in 2017, taking over during a period when the pharmaceutical industry was facing significant public backlash over high drug prices and reports of diabetics rationing insulin.
- President Donald Trump was actively criticizing pharmaceutical companies for their high prices when Ricks assumed the CEO role at Eli Lilly & Co.
- Eli Lilly & Co.'s diabetes treatment, Mounjaro, and obesity treatment, Zepbound, have been instrumental in transforming the company's fortunes and public image over the past decade.
- The pharmaceutical industry was held in lower esteem than airlines, law firms, and the federal government by Americans during the time Ricks took over as CEO of Eli Lilly & Co.
- Ricks, in a reflection of the company's past challenges, concedes that the industry's reputation was a public-relations nightmare during his early days as CEO.