CHI Spotlight: CHI Recognizes Member Companies During 20th Anniversary

In honor of CHI’s 20th anniversary celebration, CHI President and CEO David L. Gollaher, Ph.D. will be recognizing member companies with commemorative plaques suitable for hanging or displaying at company headquarters.

 

Michael Mussallem and David Gollaher



On Feb. 19, CHI recognized Edwards Lifesciences’ leadership and dedication to improving California’s environment for biomedical innovation. Edwards Chairman and CEO Michael Mussallem, who serves as a CHI board member and past board chairman, received the plaque from CHI's Gollaher at the company’s Irvine headquarters. Edwards is the global leader in the science of heart valves and hemodynamic monitoring. Driven by a passion to help patients, the company partners with clinicians to develop innovative technologies in the areas of structural heart disease and critical care monitoring that enable them to save and enhance lives.

 David Pyott and David Gollaher

On Feb. 26, Gollaher visited the Irvine headquarters of Allergan, where he presented a commemorative plaque to Allergan Chairman, President and CEO David E.I. Pyott, who serves as chairman of CHI. Allergan was honored for its continued commitment to California’s biomedical community. Pyott joined Allergan in January 1998 as President and CEO. As one of only three CEOs in the 63-year history of the company, Pyott has transformed Allergan from a small eye care business to a global specialty pharmaceutical and medical device company, with leadership positions in six medical specialties.

CHI is recognizing all of its members during this 20th anniversary occasion. Check your mailbox soon for the chance to display your own 20th anniversary plaque.

CHI-Advancing California biomedical research and innovation

Community Spotlight: CHI Supports Volunteer Reading Program



CHI Communications Specialist Heather Chambers with OB Elementary students.

























While the end of the school year is typically a time for celebration, for me, it was bittersweet to say goodbye to a group of students in Ocean Beach Elementary School’s classroom 7.

For the second year in a row, I had the opportunity to share my love of reading with a classroom full of first and second graders. I am grateful that CHI values its employees and their personal pursuits and has allowed me the time to read to the children each Wednesday morning.

The Rolling Readers program is designed to reach underprivileged children and encourage lifelong learning that starts with reading at the grade-school level. It pairs adult volunteers with schools that offer the free lunch program.

Research shows that children who aren't reading proficiently by the end of third grade are four times less likely to finish high school on time. If they are poor and not reading proficiently, they are 13 times less likely to finish high school. And for children who live in areas of concentrated poverty, the prospects are even grimmer.

In order to encourage leaning in this fun, “free time,” we explored the world of fantasy, adventure, mystery and even foreign language.

The highlight of the Rolling Readers program is its annual book drive. This year, each student took home a copy of “City Dog, Country Frog” by author Mo Willems. It is satisfying to know that they will have a book to call their own, to share with friends and encourage reading among family members.

As these students move forward with their education, hopefully they will find comfort and joy in reading. I certainly found joy in reading to them.

CHI-Advancing California biomedical research and innovation

Event Spotlight: CHI Hosts Annual Reception and Hill Meetings in Washington, D.C.



House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton accepts CHI Chairman's Award from CHI President and CEO David Gollaher, Ph.D., and CHI Chairman and Gen-Probe CEO Carl Hull.

CHI honored House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) with the CHI Chairman’s Award during a reception May 9 in Washington, D.C., at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Guests at the reception and private dinner enjoyed an evening with the California delegation and leaders driving biomedical innovation at the event, called “Invest. Innovate. Compete.” During the dinner, Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-San Diego) expressed his support for the biomedical community and stressed the importance of bringing life-saving cures to patients in need.

Prior to the event, CHI board members participated in meetings on Capitol Hill to discuss the impact of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and user fee reauthorizations, the importance of National Institutes of Health funding, and the significance of the California life sciences community to continued innovation and job creation. Meetings were held with Energy and Commerce Committee members including: Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-Carlsbad), Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara), Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Atherton), Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA), and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI). Other member meetings included Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Rep. David Dreier (R-San Dimas), Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Hillsborough), House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) and key legislative staff at the Senate Health, Labor, Education and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Over the course of the day, one message was repeatedly conveyed: the important and successful role of CHI in communicating and contextualizing the importance of consistent, predictable and efficient FDA regulatory processes to continued biomedical research, investment and innovation in our state.

Also that day, CHI released a report on FDA with respect to the agency’s approval of drugs and biologics, building on our earlier study, Competitiveness and Regulation: The FDA and the Future of America’s Biomedical Industry (2011). The report, Managing Priorities: Therapeutic Area Variation in FDA Drug Regulation, presents new data that illustrate important differences in FDA performance from one therapeutic area to another and examines misalignment between regulation and public health needs. It comes as Congress considers critical legislation that would renew and expand fees paid by drug and medical-device companies to help fund the FDA. Current legislation allowing the FDA to collect fees from drug and medical-device companies expires Sept. 30.

Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News highlighted the report’s findings in a recent article and The Burrill Report featured a one-on-one interview between CHI CEO David L. Gollaher, Ph.D., and Burrill’s Daniel Levine.

CHI-Advancing California biomedical research and innovation