Media Release

Basel, 2 October 2007

Jürgen Schwiezer named new CEO Division Roche Diagnostics
Succession to take effect as of January 1, 2008

Roche today announced that Jürgen Schwiezer, currently Roche Diagnostics’ president for the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and Latin America, has been appointed CEO Division Roche Diagnostics. Schwiezer will assume his new role on 1 January 2008. He succeeds Severin Schwan, who, as previously announced, will take over from Franz B. Humer as CEO of the Roche Group on 4 March 2008. Schwiezer will also join Roche’s Corporate Executive Committee at the start of the new year, and will relocate to Group headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.

Burkhard G. Piper, Head of Roche Diabetes Care and a member of Roche’s Enlarged Corporate Executive Committee, will report directly to the Group CEO from 1 January 2008.

Commenting on Schwiezer’s appointment, Roche Chairman and CEO Franz B. Humer said, ‘In naming Jürgen Schwiezer Divisional CEO, we have chosen a manager who not only has in-depth understanding of the diagnostics business, but who also has a long and outstanding track record in the division’s largest market region. Under Schwiezer, our European organisation has significantly strengthened its leadership in the in-vitro diagnostics market.’

Schwiezer (62), who is a German citizen, earned a PhD in chemistry at the University of Münster in 1975. In 1976 he joined Boehringer Mannheim, which was acquired by Roche in 1997. During his career at Boehringer and Roche he has held a number of management posts in marketing and sales. Schwiezer is currently Chairman of the Executive Board of Roche Diagnostics GmbH and in charge of operations in the EMEA region and Latin America.
Burkhard G. Piper was born in Germany in 1961 and holds a degree in business administration. He joined the Boehringer Mannheim Group in 1985 and after serving in a number of management posts in marketing was appointed General Manager of Roche Diagnostics Canada in 1999. He became Head of Roche Centralized Diagnostics in 2002 and has been Head of Roche Diabetes Care since 2005. Piper has been a member of Roche’s Enlarged Corporate Executive Committee since 2006.

About Roche
Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Roche is one of the world’s leading research-focused healthcare groups in the fields of pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. As the world’s biggest biotech company and an innovator of products and services for the early detection, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases, the Group contributes on a broad range of fronts to improving people’s health and quality of life. Roche is the world leader in in-vitro diagnostics and drugs for cancer and transplantation, a market leader in virology and active in other major therapeutic areas such as autoimmune diseases, inflammation, metabolism and central nervous system. In 2006 sales by the Pharmaceuticals Division totaled 33.3 billion Swiss francs, and the Diagnostics Division posted sales of 8.7 billion Swiss francs. Roche employs roughly 75,000 worldwide and has R&D agreements and strategic alliances with numerous partners, including majority ownership interests in Genentech and Chugai. Roche’s Diagnostics Division offers a uniquely broad product portfolio and supplies a wide array of innovative testing products and services to researchers, physicians, patients, hospitals and laboratories world-wide. For further information, please visit our website at www.roche.com.

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