AMPE Ampio Pharmaceuticals Inc

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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

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FORM 10-K/A

(Amendment No. 1)

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(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

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Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes   ◻     No   ⌧

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act.   Yes   ◻    No   ⌧

Indicate by a check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports) and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.   Yes   ⌧     No   ◻

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).   Yes   ⌧    No   ◻

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

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If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ◻

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over

financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit

report. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).   Yes   ☐    No   ⌧

The aggregate market value of common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant as of June 30, 2021, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was $329.7 million based on the closing price of $1.67 as of that date.

As of April 20, 2022, 227,186,867 shares of the registrant’s common stock, par value $0.0001 per share were outstanding.

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DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

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None.

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Explanatory Note

This Amendment No. 1 to the Annual Report on Form 10-K (this “Amendment”) amends the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, of Ampio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “Company,” “we,” or “our”) which we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 29, 2022 (the “Original Filing”). This Amendment is being filed to amend and restate Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Part III of the Form 10-K in their entirety to provide the information that the Company indicated that it would incorporate by reference from its Proxy Statement for the 2022 annual meeting of the stockholders in reliance on General Instruction G(3) to Form 10-K.

In addition, as required by Rule 12b-15 under the Securities Exchange Action of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), this Amendment revised Item 15 of Part IV to include currently dated certifications by the Company’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer as exhibits to this Amendment and updates the Exhibit Index to reflect the inclusion of these certifications.

Other than the items outlined above, this Amendment does not attempt to modify or update the Original Filing. This Amendment does not reflect events occurring after the date of the Original Filing or modify or update those disclosures that may be affected by subsequent events. Such subsequent matters are addressed in subsequent reports filed by the Company with the SEC. Accordingly, this Amendment should be read in conjunction with the Original Filing. Capitalized terms not defined in this Amendment have the meaning given to them in the Original Filing.

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This Amendment refers to trademarks, such as Ampio and Ampion®, which are protected under applicable intellectual property laws and are our property. This Amendment also contains trademarks, service marks, copyrights and trade names of other companies which are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, our trademarks and tradenames referred to in this Amendment may appear without the ^® or ™ symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate in any way that we will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, our rights to such trademarks and tradenames.

Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context otherwise requires, references in this Amendment to the “Company,” “Ampio,” “we,” “us,” or “our” relate to Ampio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

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Emergency Medicine at Denver Health Medical Center under the direction of Professor Peter Rosen. Dr Bar-Or practiced Medicine for 24 years and directed the department of Emergency Medicine at a large level I trauma center for 5 years. Dr Bar-Or has been engaged in biological research for 50 years. Dr. Bar-Or’s medical expertise and experience, extensive experience with pharmaceutical research, and leadership role in his hospital affiliations are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

Philip H. Coelho has served as a member of our Board since April 2010. Mr. Coelho is the Chief Technology Officer of ThermoGenesis Corp., a firm he founded in 1986, retired from in 2007, and rejoined in 2017, which invents and commercialized products that isolate, purify and cryopreserve stem, progenitor and immune cells derived from a donor or the patient’s own body to treat human disease. Prior to rejoining ThermoGenesis Corp., Mr. Coelho founded SynGen Inc. in October 2009, and merged that company with ThermoGenesis Corp., in 2017. Mr. Coelho was the President and CEO of PHCMedical, Inc., a consulting firm, from August 2008 through October 2009. From August 2007 through May 2008, Mr. Coelho served as the Chief Technology Architect of ThermoGenesis Corp. From 1989 through July 2008, he was Chairman and CEO of ThermoGenesis Corp. Mr Coelho served as Vice President of Research & Development of ThermoGenesis from 1986 through 1989. Mr. Coelho has been in the senior management of high technology consumer electronic or medical device companies for over 30 years. He was President of Castleton Inc. from 1982 to 1986, and President of ESS Inc. from 1971 to 1982. Mr. Coelho has also served as a member of the board of directors of NASDAQ-listed company, Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Partners, Inc. (CPRX) since October 2002, and previously served as a member of the board of directors of NASDAQ-listed Mediware Information Systems, Inc. (MEDW) from December 2001 until July 2006, and commencing again in May 2008 until it was sold in December 2012. Mr. Coelho received a B.S. degree in thermodynamic and mechanical engineering from the University of California, Davis and has been awarded more than 50 U.S. patents in the areas of cryopreservation, cryogenic robotics, cell selection, blood protein harvesting, surgical homeostasis and lateral flow immunotherapy devices. Mr. Coelho’s long tenure as a CEO of a public medical device company, as director of a public pharmaceutical company, prior and current public company board experience, and knowledge of corporate finance as well as his demonstrated success in developing patented technologies are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

Richard B. Giles, CPA, has served as a member of our Board since August 2010. Mr. Giles was the CFO and Treasurer of Ludvik Electric Co., an electrical contractor headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado, a position he held from 1985 until October 2021. Ludvik Electric is a private electrical contractor that has completed electrical contracting projects throughout the United States, South Africa and Germany. As CFO and Treasurer of Ludvik Electric, Mr. Giles was responsible for accounting, risk management, financial planning and analysis, financial reporting, regulatory compliance, and tax-related accounting functions. Since October 2021, Mr. Giles serves as a Corporate Accounting Consultant to Ludvik Electric and to other business entities. He also served as the trustee of Ludvik Electric Co.’s 401(k) plan. Prior to joining Ludvik Electric, Mr. Giles was an Audit Partner for three years with Higgins Meritt & Company, then a Denver Colorado CPA firm, and during the preceding nine years he was an Audit Manager and a member of the audit staff of Price Waterhouse, one of the legacy firms which now comprises PricewaterhouseCoopers. Mr. Giles received a B.S. degree in accounting from the University of Northern Colorado. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Colorado Society of Certified Public Accountants, and Construction Financial Management Association. Mr. Giles’ executive financial management, accounting and financial reporting, corporate accounting are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

David R. Stevens, Ph.D., has served as a member of our Board since June 2011. Dr. Stevens has worked in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulated life science industry since 1978. He has also been a consulting research pathologist since December 2006 for Premier Laboratory, LLC. He has been a board member of Cetya, Inc. since December 2013. He has served on the boards of several other public and private life science companies, including Micro-Imaging Solutions, LLC (from 2007 to 2018), Poniard Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (from 2004 to 2013), Aqua Bounty Technologies, Inc. (from 2002 to 2012), Advanced Cosmetic Intervention, Inc. (from 2006 to 2011) and Smart Drug Systems, Inc. (from 1999 to 2006), and was an advisor to Bay City Capital (from 1999 to 2006). Dr. Stevens was previously President and CEO of Deprenyl Animal Health, Inc., a public veterinary pharmaceutical company, from 1990 to 1998, and Vice President, Research and Development, of Agrion Corp., a private biotechnology company, from 1986 to 1988. He began his career in pharmaceutical research and development at the former Upjohn Company, where he contributed to the preclinical evaluation of Xanax and Halcion. Dr. Stevens received B.S. and D.V.M. degrees from Washington State University, and a Ph.D. in comparative pathology from the University of California, Davis. He is a

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Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists. Dr. Stevens’ experience in executive management in the pharmaceutical industry and knowledge of the medical device industry are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

J. Kevin Buchi is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., having also served as corporate vice president of global branded products at Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited after Teva acquired Cephalon in October 2011. Mr. Buchi also served as President and Chief Executive Officer of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals and of Biospecifics Technologies. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various leadership positions during his tenure, including Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, before becoming Cephalon’s Chief Executive Officer in 2010. In addition, Mr. Buchi currently serves as a Director of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Benitec Biopharma Ltd. Mr. Buchi previously served on the boards of several pharmaceutical companies, including Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, EPIRUS Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Forward Pharma A/S. He holds a B.A. in Chemistry from Cornell University and a Master of Management, Accounting, and Finance from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management. Mr. Buchi has served on our board since October 2021. Mr. Buchi’s extensive experience as a senior executive and board member in the pharmaceutical industry provide him with knowledge of a broad range of unique insights into the industry of our business, and these are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

Elizabeth Varki Jobes has nearly three decades of legal and compliance experience. As a practicing attorney, she has built and guided compliance and legal programs for small- and medium-size biopharmaceutical corporations. She currently serves as the Senior Vice President and Global Chief Compliance Officer at Amryt Pharmaceuticals Inc., where she led the development and implementation of a global compliance program following the acquisition of Aegerion Pharmaceuticals. Previously, Ms. Jobes held leadership positions at many biopharmaceutical companies, including: Senior Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer North America for EMD Serono, Inc.; Global Chief Compliance Officer and Legal Counsel for Spark Therapeutics, Inc.; Senior Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer for Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer for Adolor Corporation; and Senior Director, Global Compliance for Cephalon, Inc. Ms. Jobes has served on our board since February 2022. Mrs. Jobes extensive experience as a senior executive in the pharmaceutical industry, with an extensive focus developing and implementing industry specific regulatory and compliance programs for small to medium-size biopharmaceutical companies, are the attributes that qualify her to serve as a member of our Board.

Michael Macaluso founded DMI Life Sciences Inc. and was a member of the board of directors of DMI Life Sciences Inc., our predecessor, from its inception until the merger of DMI Life Sciences, Inc. with Chay Acquisitions, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Chay Enterprises, Inc. (together “Chay Enterprises”). Mr. Macaluso has been a member of our Board since the merger with Chay Enterprises in March 2010, our CEO from January 2012 to November 2021, and the Chairman of our Board from May 2010 in each case until November 2021. In addition, Mr. Macaluso has been a member of the board of directors of NASDAQ-listed Aytu BioScience’s (AYTU) since April 2015. Mr. Macaluso was appointed President of Isolagen, Inc. (ILE), which has since been acquired, and served in that position from June 2001 to August 2001, when he was appointed CEO. In June 2003, Mr. Macaluso was re-appointed as President of Isolagen, Inc. and served as both CEO and President until September 2004. Mr. Macaluso also served on the board of directors of Isolagen, Inc. from June 2001 until April 2005. From October 1998 until June 2001, Mr. Macaluso was the owner of Page International Communications, a manufacturing business. Mr. Macaluso was a founder and principal of International Printing and Publishing, a position Mr. Macaluso held from 1989 until 1997, when he sold that business to a private equity firm. Mr. Macaluso’s knowledge of the Company and prior experience leading pharmaceutical companies are the attributes that qualify him to serve as a member of our Board.

Holli Cherevka has served as our President and Chief Operating Officer (“President/COO”) since October 2021 and previously as Chief Operating Officer (“COO”) as of September 2017. Prior to taking her current role, Ms. Cherevka served as our Vice President of Operations and oversaw the clinical, regulatory, and manufacturing operations. Since starting at Ampio in January 2013, she has held the following additional roles of increasing responsibility including: Director of Clinical Trials (from January 2013 to November 2013), Senior Director of Clinical Trials (from November 2013 to May 2015), Vice President of Operations (from May 2015 to September 2017) and Chief Operating Officer (from September 2017 to October 2021) and President and Chief Operating Officer (from October 2021 to current). Previously, Ms. Cherevka was the Director of Business Development at the American College of Radiology (ACR) Image Metrix from 2011 to 2013. Ms. Cherevka earned a B.A. degree from California State University, Chico,

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and an M.S. degree in biomedical and molecular sciences research from King’s College, London. Ms. Cherevka is a member of the Parenteral Drug Association, Colorado Bioscience Association and the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers, and a board member of the Professional Science Master’s in Biomedical Sciences (PSM) program at the University of Denver. She has represented Ampio Pharmaceuticals at conferences for the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers as well as at Global Investment Conferences and shareholder meetings.

Daniel G. Stokely has served as our CFO and Secretary since July 2019 and has more than 30 years of experience in finance and accounting. He began his career at Deloitte & Touche and since that time, he has spent the majority of his career in positions of financial leadership within both publicly traded and privately held pharmaceutical companies. Most recently, since 2012, he served as Executive Vice President and CFO of Sentynl Therapeutics Inc., a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company focused on licensing, acquisition, marketing, and distribution of development stage and commercially marketed prescription pain products, which was sold to Cadila Healthcare Ltd. in January 2017. From 2004 to 2012, Mr. Stokely served as Vice President of Finance and Chief Accounting Officer (“CAO”) of Victory Pharma, a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company focused on in licensing, internal product development, marketing, and distribution of pain specialty products, which was sold to Shionogi, Inc., a Japanese pharmaceutical company, in 2011. From 2001 to 2004, Mr. Stokely served as the Corporate Controller and CAO for Wireless Facilities, Inc. (currently Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.), a publicly traded, global provider of communications and security services for the wireless communications industry. From 1994 to 2001, Mr. Stokely served as Corporate Controller of Dura Pharmaceuticals, a publicly traded pharmaceutical company that was sold to Elan Pharmaceuticals in late 2000. He has a B.S. degree in accounting from San Diego State University and is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in California.

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our executive officers, directors and persons who beneficially own greater than 10% of our Common Stock to file certain reports. Forms 3, 4 and 5, with the SEC with respect to ownership and changes in ownership of our Common Stock. To our knowledge, we do not have a single stockholder who beneficially owns more than 10% of our Common Stock. See Item 12 for further information on beneficial ownership. Based solely on our review of the copies of such forms received by us, or written representations from certain reporting persons, we believe during the most recent fiscal year (or prior fiscal years if not already disclosed), all filing requirements applicable to our officers, directors, and 10% beneficial owners did not fail to file on a timely basis reports required by Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act.

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that is applicable to all of our employees, officers, and directors, all of which have read, acknowledged, and agreed to comply with such code. The code is available on our web site, www.ampiopharma.com, under the “Investors” tab. We intend to disclose future amendments to, or waivers from, certain provisions of our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, if any, on the above website within four business days following the date of such amendment or waiver.

Committees of the Board

Our Board has an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee and a Nominating and Governance Committee, each of which has the composition and the responsibilities described below. The Board also has other committees and may from time to time constitute other committees. The Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee operate under separate charters approved by our Board. The charters for each such committee are available on our website at www.ampiopharma.com.

Audit Committee. Our Audit Committee, established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act, oversees our corporate accounting and financial reporting process. This committee also assists our Board in monitoring our financial systems and our legal and regulatory compliance. Our Audit Committee is responsible for, among other things:

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The members of our Audit Committee are Messrs. Giles, Buchi and Dr. Stevens. Mr. Giles is our Audit Committee Chairman and was appointed to our Audit Committee in August 2010. Our Board has determined that each member of the Audit Committee meets the financial literacy requirements of the national securities exchanges and the SEC, and Mr. Giles qualifies as our Audit Committee financial expert as defined under SEC rules and regulations. Our Board has concluded that the composition of our Audit Committee meets the requirements for independence under the current requirements of the NYSE American stock exchange (“NYSE American”) and SEC rules and regulations.

Compensation Committee. Our Compensation Committee oversees our corporate compensation policies, plans and programs. The Compensation Committee is responsible for, among other things:

The members of our Compensation Committee are Mr. Giles, Ms. Jobes and Dr. Stevens. Dr. Stevens is the Chairman of our Compensation Committee. Each member of our Compensation Committee is a non-employee director, as defined in Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act, and satisfies the independence requirements of the NYSE American. We believe that the composition of our Compensation Committee meets the requirements for independence under the applicable requirements of the NYSE American and SEC rules and regulations.

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Our Compensation Committee meets at least once per year and on a more frequent basis as it deems appropriate. However, from time to time, various members of management and other employees as well as outside advisors or consultants may be invited by the Compensation Committee to make presentations, to provide financial or other background information or advice or to otherwise participate in Compensation Committee meetings. Our CEO may not participate in, or be present during, any deliberations or determinations of the Compensation Committee regarding his compensation or individual performance objectives. Our Compensation Committee has the sole authority to retain compensation consultants to assist in its evaluation of executive and director compensation, including the authority to approve the consultant’s reasonable fees and other retention terms. In general, the Compensation Committee has set executive compensation to be in line with peer companies identified by the Compensation Committee and to incentivize the Company’s executive officers to achieve the Company’s corporate goals. In May 2021, the Compensation Committee engaged a third-party consultant to review the Company’s compensation structure as well as benchmark it against the Company’s peer group.

In fulfilling its responsibilities, the Compensation Committee is permitted under its charter to delegate any or all of its responsibilities to a subcommittee comprised of members of the Compensation Committee or the Board, except that the Compensation Committee may not delegate its responsibilities for any matters that involve compensation of any officer or any matters where it has determined such compensation is intended to be exempt from Section 16(b) under the Exchange Act pursuant to Rule 16b-3 by virtue of being approved by a committee of independent or nonemployee directors.

Nominating and Governance Committee. Our Nominating and Governance Committee oversees and assists our Board in reviewing and recommending corporate governance policies and nominees for election to our Board. The Nominating and Governance Committee is responsible for, among other things:

The members of our Nominating and Governance Committee are currently Mr. Giles, Ms. Jobes and Dr. Stevens. Ms. Jobes is the Chair of our Nominating and Governance Committee. Our Board has determined that each member of our Nominating and Governance Committee satisfies the independence requirements of the NYSE American.

Our Nominating and Governance Committee and the Board have not yet established a succession plan for our CEO. Mr. Martino is currently serving as our CEO and is performing to the satisfaction of the Board. The Nominating and Governance Committee will evaluate the succession needs of the Company in the course of its duties.

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On January 1, 2021, each non-employee director was awarded an annual stock award valued at $20,000 or 13,513 shares. The non-employee director compensation for fiscal 2021 also included an annual stock option grant to each non-employee director to purchase 75,000 shares of our Common Stock. The options have an exercise price equal to the fair value on the grant date and vest monthly over twelve months. In addition, as a result of the independent compensation study which was finalized in 2021, the existing non-employee Board members each received an incremental stock option grant to purchase 120,000 shares of our Common Stock. These options have an exercise price equal to the fair value on the grant date and vest monthly over six months. Finally, non-employee directors joining the Board during the year received a stock option grant to purchase 150,000 shares of Common Stock. These options have an exercise price equal to the fair value on the grant date and vest equally on a monthly basis over thirty-six months.

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Our non-employee directors are reimbursed by us for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred, reviewed and approved in connection with business activities conducted on our behalf.

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Our executive officers are reimbursed by us for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred, reviewed and approved in connection with business activities conducted on our behalf.

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The following table provides a summary of restricted stock awards outstanding for each of the named executive officers as of December 31, 2021.

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Employment Agreements

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We entered into a one-year employment agreement with Mr. Michael A. Martino, Interim CEO, effective November 22, 2021 (the “Effective Date”). This agreement provided for an annual salary of $550,000, and an annual discretionary bonus of up to fifty percent (50%) of Mr. Martino’s base salary, with the exact amount to be determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board based on achievement of individual and Company performance objectives established by the Compensation Committee. In connection with the Employment Agreement, Mr. Martino was awarded 750,000 options to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock, with 500,000 of such options vesting immediately and the remaining 250,000 options vesting on the one-year anniversary of the Effective Date. In addition, the Company agreed to grant Mr. Martino an additional 250,000 options to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock on January 1, 2022, with all of such options vesting on the one-year anniversary of the Effective Date.

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On October 11, 2021, the Company entered into a new three-year employment agreement (the “Macaluso Employment Agreement”) with Michael Macaluso, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and principal executive officer. The Macaluso Employment Agreement supersedes and replaces the Company’s prior employment agreement with Mr. Macaluso entered into on December 14, 2019. The Macaluso Employment Agreement provides for an annual base salary of $550,000 and an annual discretionary bonus of up to fifty percent (50%) of Mr. Macaluso’s base salary, with the exact amount to be determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board based on achievement of individual and Company performance objectives established by the Compensation Committee. In connection with the Macaluso Employment Agreement, Mr. Macaluso was awarded 950,000 shares of restricted stock, with 150,000 shares vesting upon the effective date of the Macaluso Employment Agreement, 200,000 shares vesting on January 1, 2022 and 200,000 additional shares vesting annually each year thereafter, such that all shares of restricted stock will be fully vested on January 1, 2025.  

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If Mr. Macaluso’s employment is terminated by the Company without Cause (as defined in the Macaluso Employment Agreement) or by Mr. Macaluso for Good Reason (as defined in Macaluso Employment Agreement), he

would be entitled to a lump sum severance payment equal to six months of his base salary in effect at the date of termination, less applicable withholding. In addition, the vesting and exercisability of all then outstanding options and restricted stock awards held by Mr. Macaluso will accelerate in full. Upon the occurrence of a Change in Control (as defined in the Macaluso Employment Agreement), all then outstanding stock options, restricted stock and other stock-based grants held by Mr. Macaluso would immediately and irrevocably vest and become exercisable and any restrictions thereon shall lapse.

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On October 11, 2021, the Company entered into a new three-year employment agreement (the “Stokely Employment Agreement”) with Daniel Stokely, the Company’s Chief Financial Officer and principal financial officer. The Stokely Employment Agreement supersedes and replaces the Company’s prior employment agreement with Mr. Stokely entered into on July 9, 2019. The Stokely Employment Agreement provides for an annual base salary of $335,000 and an annual discretionary bonus of up to fifty percent (50%) of Mr. Stokely’s base salary, with the exact amount to be determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board based on achievement of individual and Company performance objectives established by the Compensation Committee. In connection with the Stokely Employment Agreement, Mr. Stokely was awarded 335,000 shares of restricted stock, with 67,000 shares vesting upon the effective date of the Stokely Employment Agreement, 67,000 shares vesting on January 1, 2022 and 67,000 additional shares vesting annually each year thereafter, such that all shares of restricted stock will be fully vested on January 1, 2025.

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If Mr. Stokely’s employment is terminated by the Company without Cause (as defined in the Stokely Employment Agreement) or by Mr. Stokely for Good Reason (as defined in the Stokely Employment Agreement), he would be entitled to a lump sum severance payment equal to six months of his base salary in effect at the date of termination, less applicable withholding. In addition, the vesting and exercisability of all then outstanding options held by Mr. Stokely would accelerate in full. Upon the occurrence of a Change in Control (as defined in the Stokely Employment Agreement), all then outstanding stock options, restricted stock and other stock-based grants held by Mr. Stokely would immediately and irrevocably vest and become exercisable and any restrictions thereon shall lapse.

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On October 11, 2021, the Company and Ms. Cherevka entered into the Cherevka Employment Agreement. The Cherevka Employment Agreement supersedes and replaces the Company’s prior employment agreement with Ms. Cherevka entered into on September 16, 2019. The Cherevka Employment Agreement provides that Ms. Cherevka will serve as the Company’s President and COO for an annual base salary of $375,000 and an annual discretionary bonus of up to fifty percent (50%) of Ms. Cherevka’s base salary, with the exact amount to be determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board based on achievement of individual and Company performance objectives established by the Compensation Committee. In connection with the Cherevka Employment Agreement, Ms. Cherevka was awarded 500,000 shares of restricted stock, with 100,000 shares vesting upon the effective date of the Cherevka Employment Agreement, 100,000 shares vesting on January 1, 2022 and 100,000 additional shares vesting annually each year thereafter, such that all shares of restricted stock will be fully vested on January 1, 2025.

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If Ms. Cherevka’s employment is terminated by the Company without Cause (as defined in the Cherevka Employment Agreement) or by Ms. Cherevka for Good Reason (as defined in the Cherevka Employment Agreement), she would be entitled to a lump sum severance payment equal to six months of her base salary in effect at the date of termination, less applicable withholding. In addition, the vesting and exercisability of all then outstanding options held by Ms. Cherevka would accelerate in full. Upon the occurrence of a Change in Control (as defined in the Cherevka Employment Agreement), all then outstanding stock options, restricted stock and other stock-based grants held by Ms. Cherevka would immediately and irrevocably vest and become exercisable and any restrictions thereon shall lapse.

This description of the above employment agreements does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by, the full text of the aforementioned agreements, which were filed as exhibits to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

Each officer is eligible to receive a discretionary annual bonus each year that will be determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board based on individual achievement and Company performance objectives established by the Compensation Committee. Included in those objectives, as applicable for the responsible officer, are (i) obtaining successful clinical trial results, and (ii) preparation and compliance with a fiscal budget. The targeted amount of the annual bonus for Messrs. Martino, Macaluso, and Stokely, and Ms. Cherevka is 50% of the applicable base salary, although the actual bonus may be higher or lower.

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Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change in Control

Under each of our Executive Employment Agreements, the respective member of our executive team (each, an “Executive”), if their employment is terminated by the Company without Cause or by the Executive for Good Reason, would be entitled to a lump sum severance payment equal to six months of his or her base salary in effect at the date of

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termination, less applicable withholding and certain offsetting payments. In addition, the vesting and exercisability of all then outstanding equity awards (excluding the performance-based awards) held by our Executive would accelerate in full. Any performance-based award held by such Executive would become vested and exercisable only if the applicable performance-based criteria are satisfied at the end of the applicable period relating to such award, at which time such performance-based award would become vested and exercisable on a pro-rated basis by multiplying such award by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of full months such executive was employed by the Company during the applicable performance period, and the denominator of which is the total number of months in such performance period. Any performance-based award for which the performance criteria are not satisfied within the applicable performance period would terminate at the end of such period. All severance payments, less applicable taxes and withholdings, are subject to our Executive’s execution and delivery of a general release in a form acceptable to us, and is further conditioned upon complying with the confidentiality, non-solicitation, non-competition, intellectual property and post-termination cooperation obligations under his or her employment agreement. If the employment is terminated by the Company for Cause or by the Executive without Good Reason, no severance would be payable by us.

“Good Reason” means, without our Executive’s written consent:

“Cause” means, with respect to Mr. Martino, in the sole discretion of a majority of the Board:

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“Cause” means, with respect to Messrs. Macaluso and Stokely and Ms. Cherevka, in the sole discretion of a majority of the Board:

Our employment agreements with our Executives do not provide for the payment of a “gross-up” payment under Section 280G of the Code.

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below, the address of each stockholder listed on the table is c/o Ampio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 373 Inverness Parkway, Suite 200, Englewood, Colorado 80112.

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* Represents ownership of under 1% of the Company’s outstanding common stock.

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involved exceeded or will exceed the lesser of $120,000 or 1% of the average of our total assets at year-end for the last two completed fiscal years, and in which any director, executive officer, or holder of more than 5% of any class of our voting stock, or any member of the immediate family of or entities affiliated with any of them, had or will have a material interest.

Policies and Procedures for Related Party Transactions

We have a policy that our executive officers, directors, nominees for election as directors, beneficial owners of more than 5% of any class of our common stock and any member of the immediate family of any of the foregoing persons, are not permitted to enter into a related party transaction with us without the prior consent of our Audit Committee, subject to the pre-approval exceptions described below. If advance approval is not feasible then the related party transactions will be considered at the Audit Committee’s next quarterly scheduled meeting. In approving or rejecting any such proposal, our Audit Committee is to consider the relevant facts and circumstances available and deemed relevant by our Audit Committee, including, but not limited to, whether the transaction is on terms no less favorable than terms generally available to an unaffiliated third party under the same or similar circumstances and the extent of the related party’s inters in the transaction. Our Board has delegated to the chair of our Audit Committee the authority to pre-approve or ratify any request for us to enter into a transaction with a related party, in which the among involved is less than $120,000 and where the chair is not the related party. Our Audit Committee will also review certain types of related party transactions that it has deemed pre-approved even if the aggregate amount involved will not exceed $120,000 including, employment of executive officers, director compensation, certain transactions with other organizations, transactions where all stockholders receive proportional benefits, transactions involving competitive bids, regulated transactions and certain banking-related services.

Director Independence

Our Common Stock is listed on the NYSE American. The listing rules of the NYSE American require that a majority of the members of the Board be independent. The rules of the NYSE American require that, subject to specified exceptions, each member of our Audit, Compensation, and Nominating and Governance Committees be independent. Audit Committee members must also satisfy the independence criteria set forth in Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange Act. Under the rules of the NYSE American, a director will only qualify as an “independent director” if, in the opinion of that company’s board of directors, that person does not have a relationship that would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director.

In order to be considered independent for purposes of Rule 10A-3, a member of an audit committee of a listed company may not, other than in his or her capacity as a member of the audit committee, the board of directors or any other board committee: (i) accept, directly or indirectly, any consulting, advisory or other compensatory fee from the listed company or any of its subsidiaries; or (ii) be an affiliated person of the listed company or any of its subsidiaries.

In May 2021, our Board undertook a review of its composition, the composition of its committees and the independence of each director. Based upon information provided by each director concerning his or her background, employment and affiliations, including family relationships, our Board has determined that none of Messrs. Coelho, Giles or Dr. Stevens, representing three of our five directors, at the time, had a relationship that would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director and that each of these directors was “independent” as that term is defined by the NYSE American. Our Board also determined that Messrs. Giles, Coelho and Dr. Stevens, who comprised our Audit Committee, our Compensation Committee, and our Nominating and Governance Committee during 2021, satisfied the independence standards for those committees established by applicable SEC rules and the NYSE American rules.

In December 2021 and February 2022, our Board undertook a similar review of its composition as a result of the addition of Mr. Buchi and Ms. Jobes, respectively, and determined that Mr. Buchi and Ms. Jobes did not have a relationship that would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director and that each of these directors is “independent” as that term is defined by the NYSE American. Our Board also determined that Mr. Buchi and Ms. Jobes, members of our Audit Committee and, our Compensation Committee,

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satisfies the independence standards for those committees established by applicable SEC rules and the NYSE American rules.

In making the above determinations, our Board considered the relationships that each non-employee director has with our Company and all other facts and circumstances our Board deemed relevant in determining their independence, including the beneficial ownership of our Common Stock by each non-employee director.

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Prior to the engagement of the independent registered public accounting firm, the Audit Committee pre-approves these services by category of service and estimated cost as further noted in the engagement letter. The fees are budgeted as part of the Company’s annual/periodic budgeting and forecasting process, and the Audit Committee requires the independent registered public accounting firm and management to report actual fees versus the budget periodically throughout the year by category of service. During the year, circumstances may arise when it may become necessary to engage the independent registered public accounting firm for additional services not contemplated in the original pre-approval. In those instances, the Audit Committee requires specific pre-approval before engaging the independent registered public accounting firm for such services.

The Audit Committee may delegate pre-approval authority to one or more of its members. The member to whom such authority is delegated must report, for informational purposes only, any pre-approval decisions to the Audit Committee at its next scheduled meeting.

All of the services of Moss Adams LLP described above were pre-approved by the Audit Committee in advance of such services being provided.

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† Previously filed with the Original Filing.

(a)(2) Financial Statement Schedules

Not Applicable.

(a)(3) Exhibits

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