Amgen CEO Kevin Sharer has been named the new chairman of PhRMA following the resignation of Peter Dolan, ousted CEO of Bristol-Myers Squibb. Sharer, named chairman-elect last March, was set to assume the chairmanship in 2007 but was promoted when Dolan resigned from the post shortly after being stripped of his chief executive role at BMS. The position of PhRMA chair is always held by one of the leaders of the largest pharmaceutical companies. The group held a board meeting last Thursday to discuss Dolan’s replacement but did not announce his appointment until late Friday afternoon. Dolan was not the only PhRMA board member suddenly between jobs. Karen Katen, PhRMA board treasurer, resigned earlier this year from her last job as Pfizer vice chairman and has yet to announce a new position. Dolan was elected PhRMA chairman in March, succeeding Johnson & Johnson chief executive Bill Weldon.Meanwhile, Dolan, who was also director of the board at American Express, stepped down from that post just a few days after his resignation from Bristol-Myers Squibb, The Wall Street Journal reported today.