Inspire’s Thomas Staab Named CFO of the Year by Triangle Business Journal

Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISPH) announced today that Thomas R. Staab, II, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, was named CFO of the Year in the Small Public Company category in Triangle Business Journal’s 2009 CFO of the Year Award program. Awards were presented to professionals in the Triangle area of North Carolina who exemplify excellence as corporate financial stewards.

Inspire was recently named an honoree for the second year in a row in Business Leader magazine’s "Triangle’s Healthiest Companies” awards, which honors organizations with outstanding health programs and achievements in the Triangle community. In addition, Inspire was also recognized for the second year in a row by the American Heart Association as a Start! Fit-Friendly Company, receiving a Gold-level award. This recognition is awarded to companies that offer employees physical activity support, increase healthy eating options at work and promote a wellness culture in the workplace.

About Inspire

Inspire is a biopharmaceutical company focused on researching, developing and commercializing prescription pharmaceutical products for ophthalmic and pulmonary diseases. Inspire’s goal is to build and commercialize a sustainable portfolio of innovative new products based on its technical and scientific expertise. The most advanced compounds in Inspire’s clinical pipeline are Prolacria^™ for dry eye and denufosol tetrasodium for cystic fibrosis, which are both in Phase 3 development, and AzaSite^® for blepharitis, which is in Phase 2 development. Inspire receives revenues related to the promotion of AzaSite for bacterial conjunctivitis, the co-promotion of Elestat^® for allergic conjunctivitis and royalties based on net sales of Restasis^® for dry eye. For more information, visit www.inspirepharm.com.