alkermes seeing gains of 20% over the past year.in an exclusive interview from the bio ceo and investor conference in new york city is richard pops, the ceo of alkermes. thank you for joining us on cnbc. let's cut straight to the chase if you may. you're obviously at the cutting edge of your industry. on your third attempt, you've now managed to get the once weekly diabetes drug that you're partnering with past the fda. >> that's right. >> why did it take you so long to get that through? what's wrong here in the united states that we're lagging europe now by six months on the approval process? >> i think as a general matter, we're not lagging europe as badly at those statistics might make it seem. but this drug, i think the fda and other regulators realize that once approved, it could affect literally millions of people. i think the standards for standards and efficacy are so high that the regulators want to be very careful these drugs are ready for show time. it's now available for patients. >> this is an investors network. we make