Valeant Pharmaceuticals Announces the Launch of the zelaCARD for Parkinson's Disease Patients Taking Zelapar(R)

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Valeant Pharmaceuticals North America (NYSE: VRX) recently introduced a rebate program for eligible Parkinson’s disease patients with a Zelapar (selegiline HCl) Orally Disintegrating Tablets prescription. The zelaCARDTM, a rebate card provided to patients, can offer significant savings to patients regardless of their prescription drug benefit coverage. Once daily Zelapar is indicated as an adjunct to levodopa/carbidopa, for patients experiencing a deteriorating response to this therapy. The zelaCARD is easy for patients to use. Similar in size to a credit card, the zelaCARD is simply given to the pharmacist at the time a Zelapar prescription is filled. If the patient uses a mail-in prescription program, a form is available with the zelaCARD to send in along with the prescription.

The patient is entitled to receive up to a $40 rebate per prescription, or up to a $480 value per year.

Patients are encouraged to ask their doctor about this program to see if it is right for them. They can also contact Valeant Pharmaceuticals Customer Service at 1-800-556-1937 or visit www.Zelapar.com for more information about Zelapar and the zelaCARD program.

"With more than 1.5 million Americans suffering from Parkinson’s disease, we are not only looking for new ways to treat patients, but also ways to ease the financial burden of their disease.

The zelaCARD is one way we are working to improve patients’ access to treatment,” said Wes Wheeler, Valeant’s President North America, Global Product Development. About Parkinson’s Disease An estimated 1.5 million Americans are afflicted with Parkinson’s disease, with more than 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year – a number expected to increase as the baby boomer generation ages. Globally, there are an estimated four million people affected by Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease affects nearly equal numbers of men and women, with no obvious social, ethnic, economic or geographic boundaries.

There presently is no cure for the disease, and the cause is unknown. Important Safety Information Zelapar is contraindicated in patients with a known hypersensitivity to any formulation of selegiline or any of the inactive ingredients of Zelapar. Zelapar is also contraindicated for use with meperidine and should not be administered with the analgesic agents tramadol, methadone, and propoxyphene. Zelapar should not be used with the antitussive agent dextromethorphan and should not be administered along with other selegiline products. Daily doses of Zelapar should not exceed 2.5 mg/day because of the risks associated with nonselective inhibition of MAO. In general, the combination of Zelapar and tricyclic antidepressants, as well as Zelapar and serotonin reuptake inhibitors, should be avoided. In clinical trials, the incidence of adverse orthostatic hypotension was higher in geriatric patients than in nongeriatric patients. Zelapar may potentiate the dopaminergic side effects of levodopa and may cause or worsen preexisting dyskinesia. Decreasing the dose of levodopa may improve this side effect. Zelapar should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit to the mother justifies the potential risk to the fetus. The most commonly observed adverse events reported during clinical trials were dizziness, nausea, pain, headache, insomnia, rhinitis, dyskinesia, back pain, skin disorders, stomatitis, and dyspepsia. In addition, 5.2% of patients discontinued Zelapar therapy due to adverse events (vs 1% with placebo). Please contact Valeant customer service with any questions on Zelapar or other Valeant products at 800.548.5100 or visit www.Zelapar.com for full prescribing information. About Valeant Pharmaceuticals Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (NYSE:VRX) is a global, publicly traded, research-based specialty pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets products primarily in the areas of neurology, infectious disease and dermatology. More information about Valeant can be found at www.valeant.com.