Research!America Honors Leading Research Advocates

New Media Wire via Webwire
 
Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Bob Casey (D-PA), Diane Rehm, John F. Crowley, Drs. John Mendelsohn and Mark Rosenberg, California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to Receive 2013 Research!America Advocacy Awards
 
Alexandria, Va.—March 13, 2013—Research!America will honor extraordinary leaders in biomedical and health research advocacy at the 17th Annual Advocacy Awards on Wednesday, March 13, 2013 at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC. The awards dinner attracts more than 400 leaders from government, industry, academia and health advocacy organizations to recognize top medical and health research advocates who have made an impact in strengthening our national commitment to research. 
 
This year’s Advocacy Award Winners are: Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Bob Casey (D-PA);Diane Rehm, author and host of WAMU 88.5 and NPR’s “The Diane Rehm Show”; John F. Crowley, patient advocate, inspirational entrepreneur, and chairman and CEO of Amicus Therapeutics, Inc.; John Mendelsohn, MD, director, Khalifa Institute for Personalized Cancer Therapy and former president of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Mark Rosenberg, MD, president and CEO, The Task Force for Global Health; and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).
 
“The leadership demonstrated by this year’s award recipients has inspired others to push boundaries to improve the health of Americans and maintain our competitive edge in science and innovation,” said Mary Woolley, president and CEO of Research!America. “As advocates, they have contributed significantly to making biomedical and health research a higher national priority.”
 
Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC) and Bob Casey (D-PA) will receive the 2013 Edwin C. Whitehead Award for Medical Research Advocacy for their leadership and strong support of federal and private sector medical research and innovation. Sens. Burr and Casey have worked individually and in a bipartisan manner to promote a robust medical research pipeline in the U.S. and ensure patients have access to new, safe and effective treatments and technologies on a timely basis. 
 
Diane Rehm, author and host of WAMU 88.5 and NPR’s “The Diane Rehm Show,” will receive Research!America’s 2013 Isadore Rosenfeld Award for Impact on Public Opinion for emphasizing the value of research and increasing the level of awareness and understanding among policy makers and the public about science and health.
 
Patient advocate and inspirational entrepreneur John F. Crowley, chairman and CEO of Amicus Therapeutics, Inc., will receive Research!America’s 2013 Gordon and Llura Gund Leadership Award for his outstanding efforts to accelerate new treatments for Pompe disease, ultimately saving the lives of his children. The major motion picture, Extraordinary Measures,starring Brendan Fraser and Harrison Ford, is inspired by Crowley’s story.
 
John Mendelsohn, MD, director of the Khalifa Institute for Personalized Cancer Therapy and former president of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, will receive Research!America’s 2013 Geoffrey Beene Builders of Science Award for pioneering translational research that has provided the foundation for targeted cancer therapies and for his advocacy to increase our nation’s support for biomedical research.
 
Mark Rosenberg, MD, president and CEO of The Task Force for Global Health, will be honored with Research!America’s 2013Raymond and Beverly Sackler Award for Sustained National Leadership for advancing injury prevention, road safety and improved traffic safety not only in the U.S. but also in many developing countries.  
 
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) will receive Research!America’s 2013 Paul G. Rogers Distinguished Organization Advocacy Award for accelerating stem cell research and the potential development of a new generation of promising therapies for previously untreatable human disorders.
 
Major sponsors of the 2013 Research!America Advocacy Awards dinner include Elsevier, Johnson & Johnson, and UnitedHealth Group.
 
For more information about the honorees, visit www.researchamerica.org/advocacy_awards .
 
About Research!America’s Advocacy Awards Dinner
The annual Research!America Advocacy Awards program was established in 1996 by the Board of Directors to honor outstanding advocates for medical, health and scientific research. Recognized individuals and organizations are those whose leadership efforts have been notably effective in advancing our nation’s commitment to research. This year the awards event will take place on March 13, 2013, at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, DC. For more information, visitwww.researchamerica.org/advocacy_awards .
 
About Research America
Research!America is the nation’s largest nonprofit public education and advocacy alliance working to make research to improve health a higher national priority. Founded in 1989, Research!America is supported by member organizations representing 125 million Americans. Visit www.researchamerica.org .

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Contact: Anna Briseño
571-482-2737
 

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Anna Briseno

571-482-2737

Research!America

(1) 571-482-2737

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