Valeant CEO Pearson Remains Hospitalized For Pneumonia: Bloomberg

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. Chairman and CEO J. Michael Pearson has been moved to another hospital where he is being treated for a severe case of pneumonia, a company representative told Bloomberg News Sunday. Elaine Andrecovich, a public-relations manager at Morristown Medical Center, where Pearson initially was admitted for treatment Friday, confirmed that Pearson is not at the hospital but declined to provide more details.

Laurie Little, a Valeant representative, told Bloomberg that Pearson is still in a hospital but declined to say where. Little did not immediately respond to a Reuters email requesting comment on Pearson's condition.

Pearson, 56, joined Valeant as CEO in September 2010 after a 23-year career at McKinsey & Co. He became chairman in 2010.

Pearson's illness came as investors are amping up the pressure on the Canadian drugmaker to provide a more detailed plan on how it will grow profits in 2016. Under Pearson's leadership, the company has come under U.S. government scrutiny for acquiring off-patent drugs and drastically hiking the prices.

Valeant's U.S.-listed shares, down about 20 percent this year, closed at $114.11 Thursday.