Bausch + Lomb Corporation has announced that Brent Saunders, who has served as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bausch + Lomb, the eye-health subsidiary of Bausch Health, a specialty pharmaceutical and aesthetic medical devices company, since 2023, is stepping down as CEO. Thomas J. Appio, currently CEO of Bausch Health and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bausch + Lomb, has been appointed Interim CEO, effective immediately (as reported on October 20, 2026). Appio will continue to serve as CEO of Bausch Health while assuming leadership of Bausch & Lomb.  

Valeant Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical company (now Bausch Health) was acquired by Bausch + Lomb in 2013 for $8.7 billion and subsequently renamed as Bausch Health in 2018. Sanders joined Bausch + Lomb in 2010 and served as CEO until 2013. He then held leadership roles with several other companies, overseeing a series of mergers and acquisitions that ultimately led to his role as Chairman, President and CEO of Allergan. Sanders returned to Bausch + Lomb in 2023 as CEO.  

Appio has served as CEO of Bausch Health since 2022 and was appointed Chairman of the Bausch + Lomb Board of Directors in August 2026. He held several leadership roles within Bausch + Lomb prior to the company’s initial public offering in 2022. He joined Bausch + Lomb in 2010 as Managing Director, China, and in 2016, assumed the role of President, Bausch & Lomb International. 

Source: Bausch + Lomb