Certain Salix Officers and Directors Adopt 10b5-1 Trading Plans for Stock Options that are Scheduled to Expire During 2010

RALEIGH, N.C.--(Business Wire)--
Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. (NASDAQ:SLXP) today announced that certain officers
and directors of the Company have adopted predetermined trading plans to
exercise expiring stock options over time in accordance with guidelines
specified under Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
and with Salix` policies regarding stock transactions and ownership. Rule 10b5-1
allows corporate officers and directors to adopt written, pre-arranged stock
trading plans when they do not have material, non-public information.

The Salix officers and directors who have entered into Rule 10b5-1 stock trading
plans include:

Thomas W. D`Alonzo - Director;

Carolyn J. Logan - President and Chief Executive Officer and

Adam C. Derbyshire - Executive Vice President, Finance and Administration and
Chief Financial Officer.

These individuals have stock options that are scheduled to expire beginning in
June 2010. The stock trading plans have been established to insure that these
individuals have the ability to exercise their options and sell shares to cover
taxes and/or diversify their portfolios in an orderly and timely fashion prior
to the expiration of their options. After the sales contemplated, all these
parties expect to remain well above the Company`s applicable minimum stock
retention requirements.

Transactions under the plans will be disclosed publicly through Form 144 and
Form 4 filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Form 4 filings
also will be accessible in the "Financial and Investors - Financial Reports"
section of Salix` website by clicking on the link "For SEC Filings - Section 16
Reports Please Visit Here."

Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd., headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, develops
and markets prescription pharmaceutical products for the treatment of
gastrointestinal diseases. Salix`s strategy is to in-license late-stage or
marketed proprietary therapeutic drugs, complete any required development and
regulatory submission of these products, and market them through the Company`s
gastroenterology specialty sales and marketing team.

Salix trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol "SLXP."

For more information please visit our web site at www.salix.com. Information on
our web site is not incorporated in our SEC filings.

Please Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding
potential future stock option exercises and sales of shares.Such statements are
just predictions and exercises and sales might not occur if, for example an
individual`s price threshold is not met.In addition, because any of these
exercises and sales will occur pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan, you should not
infer anything about the Company or its prospects from them.Any investment in
the Company is subject to risks and uncertainties, including, among others: the
unpredictable nature of the duration and results of regulatory review of new
drug applications; market acceptance for approved products; our need to return
to profitability; generic and other competition; the possible impairment of, or
inability to obtain, intellectual property rights and the costs of obtaining
such rights from third parties; and the need to acquire new products.The reader
is referred to the documents that the Company files from time to time with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.

Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd.
Adam C. Derbyshire
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
or
G. Michael Freeman
Associate Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
919-862-1000

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