Chuck Leitgeb elected HealthCare Institute of New Jersey chairman

Chuck Leitgeb, a former New Jersey Assembly Republican communications director who now oversees state government relations for Bayer in the Northeast, has been elected chairman of the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey’s board of trustees.

He succeeds Leo Farber, formerly of Novartis and now Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, BD.  HINJ also reappointed Johnson & Johnson’s Adam Taliaferro, a former Democratic assemblyman from South Jersey, as chairman of its steering committee.

Leitgeb began his career as a political reporter for the Bergen Record, and later served as press secretary to Essex County Executive Nicholas Amato and for Rep. Jim Courter’s gubernatorial campaign in 1989.  He was Assemblyman Rodney Frelinghuysen’s press secretary in his 1990 congressional campaign.

His time in politics coincided with the career of Bob Franks, a former assemblyman, congressman, and GOP state chairman who later became president of the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey and built it into a potent statewide lobbying group.  Leitgeb joined the Assembly Republican staff in 1992 while Franks was serving in leadership and serving his last year in the legislature before his election to Congress.  Franks died of cancer in 2010 at age 58.

A member of Bayer’s government relations team since 2014, Leitgeb manages state government and legislative activity affecting the company’s pharmaceutical, consumer health and crop science businesses across the Northeast.  He also leads state government relations efforts for Bayer’s radiology business.

Before joining Bayer, Leitgeb served as vice president of the Insurance Council of New Jersey, a Trenton-based trade association representing the property and casualty insurance industry, and as assistant vice president of the New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association.

The board also elected Adam Brand, vice president of government affairs and public policy corporate affairs at Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, as vice chairman, and Sanofi’s George Coutros as vice chairman.

Christopher Guiton of Johnson & Johnson will serve as treasurer, while Derek Naten of Keenova Therapeutics was elected board secretary.

Other board members include Andrew Antrobus of Novo Nordisk, Domenick Argento of Merck, Adam Lotspike of BD, Joseph McGowan of Novartis and Melissia Whitmarsh of Daiichi Sankyo.