Best and Brightest Forum on Medical Innovation: Chicago
Best & Brightest Forum on Medical Innovation: Chicago
Wednesday, April 15, 2009, 1-3pm
Fairmont Hotel, Chicago
On April 15, 2009, the Council for American Medical Innovation held the second "Best &Brightest Forum on Medical Innovation" in Chicago, Illinois. The event was highly successful, with over 70 attendees, including business leaders, medical experts, academics, education advocates and other innovation stakeholders, as well as several members of the media.
The event featured a panel discussion on the importance of medical innovation to patient health and to the economy, and the speakers and audience members discussed a number or key policy recommendations.
The panel was moderated by Dick Gephardt, former Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, and featured:
- David Brennan, CEO of AstraZeneca
- Chris Coburn, Executive Director of Cleveland Clinic Innovations
- Bart Kamen, Ph.D., M.D., Chief Medical Officer of the Leukemia &Lymphoma Society
- Alicia Löffler, Ph.D., Director of the Kellogg Center for Biotechnology at Northwestern University
- David Miller, Executive Director of the Illinois Biotechnology Association
Congressman Gephardt opened with an overview of the Council for American Medical Innovation, and discussed the purpose of the forum: to gather input on how to advance policy solutions that ensure America maintains its global leadership in medical innovation. Congressman Gephardt also introduced the speakers, who discussed the following:
- Alicia Löffler gave a presentation on the issue of medical innovation, concluding that the U.S. has an historic opportunity to establish a long-term position as a global "hub" of medial innovation. But, in order to reach that position the U.S. needs to adopt progressive policies to advance medical innovation
- Bart Kamen emphasized the importance of medical innovation for patients dealing with serious diseases – noting that too few new therapies have been introduced in the past several years. He said the low average salaries for advanced researchers is problematic: "You tell me how we're going to keep the best and the brightest in medical research field? We're losing them; it's too hard to make a living." Kamen also discussed the need for improvements at FDA.
- David Brennan discussed the importance of innovation to combat chronic conditions, which are plaguing patients and plaguing our economy. He also noted that other countries are proactively investing in medical innovation. He called for the U.S. to adopt an innovation agenda that creates and environment to spur medical innovation.
- David Miller discussed the impact of medical innovation on the Illinois economy, and made the following suggestions: the U.S. needs to adopt a regulatory pathway for follow-on biologics that protects patient safety and retains incentives for pioneer innovators; industry needs to maintain a proactive approach through initiatives like the Council for American Medical Innovation; and individuals need to take greater responsibility for maintaining their health.
- Chris Coburn discussed some of the incredible progress that has been made, but noted the immense challenges with bringing ideas and new products to the market. The economic climate, he said, is making it even more difficult for innovators to obtain the resources needed to bring new products to market.
