James Mazzo has long been known for his ability to juggle roles as corporate executive and industry ambassador, and none of that changed after his company was bought a few years back.
The president of Santa Ana-based eye-device and contact-lens care company Abbott Medical Optics Inc. recently finished a third role as liaison to federal regulators. Mazzo last month completed a two-year term as chairman of AdvaMed, the Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group for medical-device makers.
Mazzo took on the duties at AdvaMed at a crucial time, overseeing negotiations with the Food and Drug Administration on medical device user fees. He also worked on the FDA’s update of its 510(k) regulatory process, which covers the majority of devices, and assisted in crafting regulatory and ethical guidelines for a number of countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Abbott Takeover
His volunteer responsibilities started about a year after Abbott Laboratories Inc., a publicly traded drug and medical device company based in Abbott Park, Ill., bought Advanced Medical Optics Inc. for $2.8 billion.
Mazzo had been chief executive of Advanced Medical since its 2002 spin-off from Allergan Inc., the Irvine-based maker of Botox and other drugs. He was named senior vice president of Abbott Laboratories and president of the renamed Abbott Medical unit in Santa Ana.
The AdvaMed post had to fit in between those jobs.
“Holding the position of chairman of AdvaMed had its challenges, and managing time was among them,” Mazzo recently said. “The role required 20% to 30% of my time on average, which was substantial.”
Helpers
He credits several Abbott Medical colleagues with helping him juggle his roles, including executive assistant Patty Romine; Andy Stapars, head of government affairs; Steve Chesterman, speechwriter and head of communications; and Kristen Morris in Abbott’s Laboratories government affairs department.
Abbott Laboratories Chief Executive Miles White and John Capek, executive vice president for medical devices, also were supportive during his AdvaMed tenure, Mazzo said.
“I was not only the first Abbott executive to hold this position but the first person from the vision care industry, which I am proud of,” he added.
“Being AdvaMed chair is like having another full-time job, and it speaks to Jim’s dedication and passion for our industry that he was able to so effectively lead the association on top of all the many responsibilities he has at [Abbott Medical],” AdvaMed Chief Executive Stephen Ubl said.
Mazzo now serves as AdvaMed’s executive chairman, overseeing its nominating and governance committees.
David Dvorak, chief executive of Warsaw, Ind.-based device maker Zimmer Holdings Inc., succeeded Mazzo as chairman.
“It’s easy to sit back and realize how much you enjoyed it,” Mazzo said. “It was tough during the two years. You would be at the beck and call of having to deal with the [FDA].”
• Headquarters: Abbott Park, Ill.
• Business: drug maker
• Founded: 1888
• Ticker symbol: ABT (NYSE)
• Market value: about $96.10 billion
• Notable: parent of Santa Ana-based Abbott Medical Optics Inc.
Mazzo followed a local colleague in the post, taking the torch from Michael Mussallem, chief executive of Irvine-based Edwards Lifesciences Corp. Mussallem led the lobbying group’s efforts during the legislative debate over the federal healthcare reform that passed in 2010.
Tax
Mazzo’s tenure saw AdvaMed continue efforts to repeal the medical device tax that’s part of the healthcare law. The group sent a letter last July urging congressional leaders to take “timely action” on legislation introduced to repeal that tax.
Mazzo said a highlight of his tenure was interviewing former President George W. Bush during an AdvaMed event.
“It was just great, regardless of what side of the (political) fence you’re on, to meet a president, to have a chance to sit with the president, to be able to pick his brain,” Mazzo said.
He recalled Bush as a “very candid, very open” interview subject who managed to impress even some of those in the audience who weren’t supporters before the event.
Mazzo said other memories from his industry service include interviewing journalist Katie Couric and FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, and meeting U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
