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Ra Pharmaceuticals Appoints John C. King as Chief Commercial Officer

Ra Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:RARX), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on the development of next-generation therapeutics for the treatment of complement-mediated diseases, today announced the appointment of John C. King as Chief Commercial Officer, effective April 16, 2018. Mr. King brings to Ra Pharma more than 20 years of senior, global, commercial leadership experience within the biotechnology rare disease space, most recently with Alexion Pharmaceuticals.

“Having led the successful launch and commercialization of Soliris® for generalized myasthenia gravis (gMG) in the U.S. and growth of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) in markets around the world, John is ideally suited to help us build the commercial foundation for RA101495 SC in complement-mediated diseases,” said Doug Treco, PhD, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ra Pharma. “With enrollment in our Phase II trial of RA101495 SC in gMG progressing rapidly, and continued advancement of our PNH program, we look forward to John’s contributions to the leadership team.”

“RA101495 SC has the potential to provide patients with a more convenient, flexible, and accessible first-line treatment for PNH, gMG, and other lifelong, complement-mediated diseases,” said Mr. King. “With compelling clinical data to date, strong support from the investigator community, and a focused clinical strategy, now is a uniquely exciting time to join the company. I look forward to working with the talented and dedicated team at Ra Pharma to build a plan for commercializing this promising treatment candidate.”

Mr. King comes to Ra Pharma from Alexion Pharmaceuticals, where he served most recently as Vice President, U.S. Neurology Business Unit. In this role, he was responsible for building and leading the team launching Soliris® (eculizumab) for gMG in the U.S. At Alexion, he also served as Vice President, Head of Global LAL-D Franchise and Vice President, Head of Global PNH Franchise. Prior to joining Alexion in 2009, Mr. King served in commercial roles of increasing responsibility at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. He began his career at Ernst & Young LLP. Mr. King obtained his BS in business logistics and labor relations and his MBA in finance and management from Pennsylvania State University.

About Ra Pharmaceuticals

Ra Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on the development of next-generation therapeutics for complement-mediated diseases. The Company discovers and develops peptides and small molecules to target key components of the complement cascade. For more information, please visit: www.rapharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding the potential, safety, efficacy and regulatory and clinical progress of our product candidates, including RA101495; trial design, timeline and enrollment of our ongoing and planned clinical programs; plans to commercialize RA101495; and Mr. King’s anticipated contributions to Ra Pharma. All such forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include the risks that Ra Pharma's product candidates, including RA101495, will not successfully be developed or commercialized; the risk that topline results as of February 7, 2017 from the Company's global Phase 2 clinical program evaluating RA101495 for the treatment of PNH may not be indicative of final study results; as well as the other important factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section in Ra Pharma's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K and other risks detailed in Ra Pharma's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There can be no assurance that the actual results or developments anticipated by Ra Pharma will be realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, Ra Pharma. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and Ra Pharma undertakes no duty to update this information unless required by law.

Contacts:

Argot Partners
Investors:
Natalie Wildenradt, 646-681-8192
natalie@argotpartners.com
or
Media:
David Rosen, 212-600-1902
david.rosen@argotpartners.com

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