Mid-Atlantic Bio

Sep 09, 2010

The Future of Public Health: FDA’s Joshua Sharfstein to Address Mid-Atlantic Bio Conference

WASHINGTON (September 9, 2010)—Joshua M. Sharfstein, MD, Principal Deputy Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, will address the 2010 Mid-Atlantic Bio Conference on October 28 at the North Bethesda Marriott Convention Center in Bethesda, Md. Dr. Sharfstein will discuss the importance of regulatory science and share specific FDA policy initiatives that support the link between cutting-edge science and technology to provide safe and effective new medicines and therapies for the American people.

Regulatory science is the critical bridge between biomedical research and new medical products. “FDA is seeking to use science to streamline the regulatory pathway, so patients can access safe and effective treatments for serious illness,” said Dr. Sharfstein. “It is important for the agency to engage with a wide array of experts to achieve this progress.”

Dr. Sharfstein was appointed by President Obama to be the FDA principal deputy commissioner in May 2009. He served as acting commissioner for Food and Drugs from March 29 to May 25, 2009. From December 2005 through March 2009, Dr. Sharfstein was the commissioner of health for the City of Baltimore. In this position, he led efforts to expand literacy efforts in pediatric primary care, facilitate the transition to Medicare Part D for disabled adults, engage college students in public health activities, increase influenza vaccination of health care workers, and expand access to effective treatment for opioid addiction. Under his leadership, the Baltimore Health Department and its affiliated agencies have won multiple national awards for innovative programs, and in 2008, Dr. Sharfstein was named a Public Official of the Year by Governing Magazine.

Mid-Atlantic Bio is the only globally-focused, yet regionally-based, event to combine components of a bioscience industry convention with an investor conference under one roof. More than 800 national and international industry leaders, government representatives, executives, researchers, investors, entrepreneurs, and professional services firms will gather to promote networking, business expansion, and technical-knowledge sharing. Home to industry-critical regulatory and research agencies; federal policymaking; and business and scientific centers of excellence, the Mid-Atlantic is a unique center for the global bioscience industry.

“For the past six years, the biotechnology arena has looked to Mid-Atlantic Bio to unite key thought leaders and advance science, technology, and regulatory goals for the region,” said Tech Council of Maryland, MdBio Division Executive Director Richard Zakour, PhD. “Dr. Sharfstein and the FDA’s presence at the Mid-Atlantic Bio conference will provide access to information about the latest regulatory reform efforts that attendees can bring back to their businesses, so that they can expedite the process of delivering the next generation of products to patients.”

Conference Sessions:
Designed to be a platform that brings together science, company builders, commercial interests and collaborators, capital sources, and federal and regulatory thought-leaders, the 2010 program includes a variety of important industry topics—ranging from the latest in policy and regulatory matters, business and financing opportunities, and CEO War Stories to advances in science and technology—and showcases exciting companies from the biosciences field. A few of the highlighted sessions include:

• An Insider’s View on Washington
• Synthetic Biology – Applications and Implications
• Accessing the Regulatory Risk: Your Path to Approval
• CEO Roundtable
• Plenary presentations by Frederick Frank, Vice Chairman, Peter J. Solomon Company; Martine A. Rothblatt, PhD, JD, MBA, Chairman and CEO of United Therapeutics Corporation; and H. Thomas Watkins, President and Chief Executive Officer, Human Genome Sciences

Company Presentations:
Each year at Mid-Atlantic Bio, a number of life science companies are chosen to present before an audience of capital sources, including corporate business development professionals, peer scientists and company leaders, venture capitalists, angel investors, and various other qualified financing sources along with important industry professionals and potential strategic partners.

BioMatch:
Mid-Atlantic Bio’s signature networking program, BioMatch, is designed specifically for the life sciences and biotech industries, and provides registered attendees access to advanced partnering software that facilitates personalized, one-on-one meetings between the leading bioscience organizations and industry leaders.

Partial List of Conference Sponsors:
Cooley LLP, Hogan Lovells US LLP, Grant Thornton LLP, MedImmune, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, E&Y, BioMed Realty Trust, Inc., Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., Janelia Farms Research Campus of Howard Hughes Medical Institute, NIH Federal Credit Union, George Mason University, Virginia Tech, Deloitte & Touche LLP, H.I.G. Bioventures, Intersouth Partners, New Enterprises Associates, Oxford Finance, TEDCO, Third Security, LLC

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ABOUT MID-ATLANTIC BIO
The Mid-Atlantic Bio Conference, scheduled October 27-29, 2010, in Bethesda, Maryland, is co-hosted by the Tech Council of Maryland (TCM),  the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA), and the Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO). Mid-Atlantic Bio benefits from broad regional support from the investor and greater business communities, academic institutions, government agencies, and partnering regional associations. For more information, or to register or sponsor, please visit www.midatlanticbio.org.

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