On Feb. 16, I will be participating in a panel on the possible direction the new administration’s policies may take toward the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries as part of the Council for Entrepreneurial Development’s 18th annual biotech conference. I will be joined by Robert Ingram, Dennis Gillings, Victor Dzau and Maureen Kelley O’Connor, some of [...]

This week Barack Obama becomes our 44th President.

In a host of ways it is evident that Americans yearn for new leadership
and new politics for our nation.

I recently discussed my thoughts on health policy issues the new president should address with my alma mater, the University of Alabama – Birmingham School of Medicine, for its alumni newsletter. I talked about health insurance, budget needs for federal health programs and the possible reorganization of the Department of Health and Human Services. To read the Fall 2008 issue, click http://www.uab.edu/images/uabmagazine/uabmedicine/fall2008/uabmedicine_fall2008.pdf here.

The news this week, both in North Carolina and nationally, features distinguished people who are alumni of the White House Fellows program.

This great program was founded by President Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s. UNC President Bill Friday played a major role in the early years of the White House Fellows.

With much talk these days of dramatic health reform for the Nation, it is important to pay some attention to the infrastructure that carries it out.

A few months ago, I was asked to highlight key issues that the next
president should address. This was well before the election.
Here is what I said…