(Business Wire)  Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACOR) rang today’s Opening Bell at the NASDAQ Stock Exchange to recognize the 20^th anniversary of the Company’s incorporation. Ron Cohen, M.D., Acorda Therapeutics’ President and CEO, who founded the company in 1995, was joined at the NASDAQ with a group of Acorda employees, friends and family members.

“I founded Acorda to develop therapies that restore function and improve the lives of people with neurological disorders. As with most start-up ventures, the mission is straightforward, yet difficult to achieve,” said Dr. Cohen. “Twenty years has brought many achievements and many challenges. Our launch of AMPYRA, a novel therapy that has helped tens of thousands of people with multiple sclerosis improve their walking, is Acorda’s first significant contribution to emerge from our mission of advancing the care of people with neurological disorders. Importantly, its commercial success has provided us with an opportunity to invest in developing additional therapies that have the potential to improve the lives of people with conditions including Parkinson’s disease, stroke, epilepsy and heart failure.”

“These accomplishments have been made possible by our shareholders, who have supported our work on behalf of people with neurological disorders, our scientific and medical advisors and collaborators, who have contributed their time and expertise to help us realize our mission, and by our Board of Directors, who have provided invaluable guidance. Most of all, they are owed to the more than 500 Acorda associates who come to work every day focused on producing life-changing therapies.”

Photos from the event can be found on the company’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/AcordaTherapeutics, Twitter, http://www.twitter.com/AcordaNews, and Instagram, @acordatherapeutics.

AMPYRA (dalfampridine) Important Safety Information

Do not take AMPYRA if you

• have ever had a seizure,

• have certain types of kidney problems, or

• are allergic to dalfampridine (4-aminopyridine), the active ingredient in AMPYRA.

Take AMPYRA exactly as prescribed by your doctor.

Before taking AMPYRA, tell your doctor if you

• have kidney problems or any other medical conditions

• are taking compounded 4-aminopyridine

• are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if AMPYRA will harm your unborn baby.

• are breast-feeding or plan to breast-feed. It is not known if AMPYRA passes into your breast milk. You and your doctor should decide if you will take AMPYRA or breast-feed. You should not do both.

• are taking any other medicines

Stop taking AMPYRA and call your doctor right away if you have a seizure while taking AMPYRA. You could have a seizure even if you never had a seizure before. Your chance of having a seizure is higher if you take too much AMPYRA or if your kidneys have a mild decrease of function, which is common after age 50. Your doctor may do a blood test to check how well your kidneys are working before you start AMPYRA.

AMPYRA should not be taken with other forms of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP, fampridine), since the active ingredient is the same.

AMPYRA may cause serious side effects, including

• severe allergic reactions. Stop taking AMPYRA and call your doctor right away or get emergency medical help if you have shortness of breath or trouble breathing, swelling of your throat or tongue, or hives;

• kidney or bladder infections.

The most common adverse events for AMPYRA in MS patients were urinary tract infection, trouble sleeping, dizziness, headache, nausea, weakness, back pain, problems with balance, multiple sclerosis relapse, burning, tingling, or itching of your skin, irritation in your nose and throat, constipation, indigestion, and pain in your throat.

Please see the Patient Medication Guide at www.ampyra.com/local/files/MedicationGuideConsumer.pdf.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA.

Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

About Acorda Therapeutics

Founded in 1995, Acorda Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on developing therapies that restore function and improve the lives of people with neurological disorders.

Acorda markets three FDA-approved therapies, including AMPYRA® (dalfampridine) Extended Release Tablets, 10 mg, a treatment to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), as demonstrated by an increase in walking speed. The Company has one of the leading pipelines in the industry of novel neurological therapies. Acorda is currently developing a number of clinical and preclinical stage therapies. This pipeline addresses a range of disorders including post-stroke walking deficits, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, heart failure, MS and spinal cord injury.

For more information, please visit the Company’s website at: www.acorda.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, regarding management's expectations, beliefs, goals, plans or prospects should be considered forward-looking. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including the ability to realize the benefits anticipated from the Civitas transaction and to successfully integrate Civitas' operations into our operations; our ability to successfully market and sell Ampyra in the U.S.; third party payers (including governmental agencies) may not reimburse for the use of Ampyra or our other products at acceptable rates or at all and may impose restrictive prior authorization requirements that limit or block prescriptions; the risk of unfavorable results from future studies of Ampyra or from our other research and development programs, including CVT-301, Plumiaz, or any other acquired or in-licensed programs; we may not be able to complete development of, obtain regulatory approval for, or successfully market CVT-301, Plumiaz, or any other products under development; we may need to raise additional funds to finance our expanded operations and may not be able to do so on acceptable terms; the occurrence of adverse safety events with our products; delays in obtaining or failure to obtain regulatory approval of or to successfully market Fampyra outside of the U.S. and our dependence on our collaboration partner Biogen Idec in connection therewith; competition; failure to protect our intellectual property, to defend against the intellectual property claims of others or to obtain third party intellectual property licenses needed for the commercialization of our products; and, failure to comply with regulatory requirements could result in adverse action by regulatory agencies.

These and other risks are described in greater detail in Acorda Therapeutics' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Acorda may not actually achieve the goals or plans described in its forward-looking statements, and investors should not place undue reliance on these statements. Forward-looking statements made in this release are made only as of the date hereof, and Acorda disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this release.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20150316005991/en/