Prestwick Recruits Veteran to Build Finance Function

Washington, D.C. – November 17, 2004 – Prestwick Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a CNS specialty pharmaceutical company, announced today that William H. Washecka has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Washecka will lead Prestwick’s finance team in the management of its U.S. and Canadian operations.

“ Bill is a valuable addition to our team at a time when Prestwick is positioned for significant growth,” said David Cory, President and Chief Operating Officer, Prestwick Pharmaceuticals. “His strategic expertise in the areas of finance and business planning will be essential as we approach our most critical milestones including the NDA filing for tetrabenazine, future financing, and the continued development of additional promising therapies for CNS disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and schizophrenia.”

Over the course of his career, Mr. Washecka has worked with more than 300 high-growth companies in the mid-Atlantic region. Most recently, as the CFO at Usinterworking, Inc., he was responsible for strengthening the company’s financial platform through the restructuring of debt, taking the company private, generating investor funding, facilitating a company merger, and establishing a new finance organization with enhanced reporting metrics and controls. Prior to this role, Mr. Washecka was senior partner at Ernest & Young, where he established and managed the High Technology and Emerging Business Practice in the Mid-Atlantic area. He is the co-founder of the Mid-Atlantic Venture Capital Conference and remains an active member in the venture capital community. He resides on the boards of multiple privately held companies.

“I am excited to join Prestwick Pharmaceuticals as the company is quickly emerging as a forerunner in CNS disease research and treatment,” commented Mr. Washecka. “I am impressed by the company’s product development programs and believe that my experience will help further strengthen our financial positioning as we enter the marketplace.”

Prestwick Pharmaceuticals
Prestwick Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is an emerging specialty pharmaceutical company that focuses on treatments for CNS disorders. The company has multiple product candidates in clinical development for Huntington’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease and schizophrenia.

Prestwick recently announced positive Phase III results of the investigational drug tetrabenazine for chorea associated with Huntington’s Disease. The company anticipates filing a New Drug Application (NDA) for tetrabenazine with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the near future. Prestwick was granted fast track and orphan drug status by the FDA. Tetrabenazine is available in some European markets and Australia as XENAZINE™ and in Canada as NITOMAN® for the treatment of hyperkinetic movement disorders. For more information, visit www.prestwickpharma.com.