Healthy Returns: Investing in health care innovation

How innovators and investors are working with patients and providers to develop dynamic new solutions and create healthy returns.

CNBC presents a one-day event at NYC’s Roosevelt Hotel that brings together top health care investors, CEOs and technologists to explore the innovations that will drive better outcomes, financially and clinically.

Every health care company seeks to scale the best technology and develop profitable ways to cover the massive cost of research and development, investors are looking for actionable intelligence on who’s breaking through, and patients are hungry for affordable and effective care. Healthy Returns is a convening of leaders who are improving patient outcomes, maximizing innovation, building great new companies and reinventing incumbents.

Led by CNBC’s anchors and reporters and with input from a world-class advisory board, Healthy Returns will hone in on groundbreaking ideas that will transform the health care industry, cutting through the noise and weeding out the “sales pitch.”

Attendees should expect to walk away with smart strategies and actionable insights from people who are shaping the industry, including:

  • Investment ideas and intelligence from the biggest and best health care hedge funds, venture capitalists and portfolio managers.
  • Strategic perspective from top health care CEOs.
  • An early, inside look at groundbreaking, transformative innovations.
  • Unique networking opportunities to connect with leaders in multiple disciplines – investors, executives, entrepreneurs and innovators.

Who should attend: Health care investors, VCs, C-Suite executives from the biotech, pharma, health care and life sciences industries, health care IT BDMs.

Speakers

Amy Abernethy

Amy Abernethy serves as chief medical officer, chief scientific officer and senior vice president, oncology, where she leads the research oncology, clinical operations and data science teams, and contributes to the strategic vision of Flatiron Health.

Before joining Flatiron, Abernethy was professor of medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, and ran the Center for Learning Health Care in the Duke Clinical Research Institute and Duke Cancer Care Research Program in the Duke Cancer Institute. For more than a decade, she has pioneered the development of technology platforms to spur novel advancements in cancer care, including the development of systems by which big data can support personalized medicine, outcomes research, cancer care quality monitoring, and scientific discovery.

With over 400 peer-reviewed publications, Abernethy is an internationally recognized expert in clinical trials, cancer outcomes research, health policy, health services research, patient reported outcomes, clinical informatics and patient-centered care. She maintains a close affiliation with Duke, and is an appointee to the Institute of Medicine’s National Cancer Policy Forum, past president of the American Academy of Hospice & Palliative Medicine, secretary of the board of directors for the Personalized Medicine Coalition, and recent leader within several federally-funded research networks. She also serves on the board of directors for athenahealth.

Amy Abernethy received her MD at Duke University, where she also did her internal medicine residency, served as chief resident and completed her hematology/oncology fellowship. She has her PhD from Flinders University in Australia, focused on evidence-based medicine and clinical informatics, and her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Anthony Blau

Tony founded All4Cure after 27 years as a Professor of Medicine/Hematology and physician scientist at the University of Washington (UW). His research has spanned hematopoiesis, gene therapy, stem cell biology, genomics and cancer, consistently focusing on bringing the very latest research advances to patients with heretofore incurable diseases. At UW he founded the Center for Cancer Innovation, which brings together a distributed network of investigators to help patients with advanced cancer. Tony co-founded the UW Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine and chaired the Molecular and Cellular Hematology Study Section for the National Institutes of Health. He has authored more than 90 scientific publications.

Diagnosed himself with myeloma in April 2015, Tony infuses All4Cure with an incredible sense of urgency to improve the prospects for cancer patients now and in the future.

Abbie Celniker

Abbie Celniker joined Third Rock in 2016 bringing thirty years of experience in R&D and senior leadership roles. Celniker focuses on the formation, development and strategy of their portfolio companies and has active leadership roles in the following:

- Board member and interim chief executive officer of Goldfinch Bio
- Former president and chief executive officer of Eleven Biotherapeutics

Prior to joining Third Rock, she served as president and CEO of Eleven Biotherapeutics since 2011. Previously, Celniker was the president and CEO of Taligen Therapeutics from 2008 to 2011, when Taligen Therapeutics was acquired by Alexion Pharmaceuticals; following the acquisition, she served as Alexion’s executive vice president, translational medicine. She has served as the global head of biologics of Novartis AG, the senior vice president of R&D strategy and operations of Millennium Pharmaceuticals (now Takeda) and the vice president of protein technologies of the Wyeth Research facilities. Abbie Celniker is a member of the MassBio board of directors, a member of the board of ImaginAb, where she was previously the chair, and a member of the scientific advisory board for Adimab. She is also a member of the board of directors of the nonprofit Unitio and T1D.

Abbie Celniker has a B.A. in biology from the University of California, San Diego, and a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of Arizona.

Tony Coles

Dr. Coles is a founding investor and the chairman and chief executive officer of Yumanity Therapeutics, a Cambridge, MA-based biotechnology company focused on transforming drug discovery for neurodegenerative diseases caused by protein misfolding such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Coles also serves as chairman and chief executive officer of TRATE Enterprises,LLC, a privately held company.

Previously, Coles was chairman and chief executive officer of Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which was acquired by Amgen in late 2013. Under his leadership, Onyx introduced two new innovative cancer medicines to patients and established the company’s international presence outside of the U.S. Prior to joining Onyx in 2008, he was president, chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors of NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Before joining NPS Pharmaceuticals in 2005, Coles was senior vice president of commercial operations at Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc., and earlier, held a number of executive positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and positions of increasing responsibility at Merck & Co.,Inc.

Educated at Johns Hopkins University, he earned an M.D. from Duke University and a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University. He completed his cardiology and internal medicine training at Massachusetts General Hospital and was a research fellow at Harvard Medical School.

Coles currently serves as chairman of the board of CRISPR Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing transformative gene-based medicines for patients with serious diseases. He also serves as a member of the board of directors of McKesson Corporation (NYSE: MCK) and Regeneron (NASDAQ:REGN) and is a member of the board of trustees for Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Medicine. Coles also serves as a member of the Council for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.; a member of the board of trustees for The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City; a member of the board of directors of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher; and a member on the Harvard Medical School Advisory Board.

David Cordani

David Cordani became president and CEO of Cigna in 2009 and has spearheaded its transformation into a leading global health service company, doubling the size of the company in six years. He is a prominent voice addressing key health challenges, such as the empowering of individuals to manage their own health, innovating new health delivery models focused on patients’ health improvements and partnering with physicians to focus on wellness, and improving clinical quality. With operations and capabilities in more than thirty countries, Cordani leads Cigna’s approximately 43,000 employees in improving the health, well-being and sense of security of more than 95 million customer relationships.

Cordani joined Cigna in 1991; his leadership experiences cross critical disciplines of health care services including distribution, marketing, clinical management, underwriting, finance and operations.

Prior to joining Cigna, Cordani was with Coopers & Lybrand. He actively works with the Achilles International Freedom Team of Wounded Veterans and ChildObesity180, where he is a charter board member. He also supports organizations including March of Dimes and The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In addition, he is founder of The David and Sherry Cordani Family Foundation, reflecting the Cordani family’s deep commitment to supporting community health and well-being. Cordani was named to the General Mills Board of Directors in 2014 and to the U.S.-India Business Council Board of Directors in 2015.

David Cordani is an accomplished triathlete, having competed in more than 125 triathlons. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M, and an MBA from the University of Hartford.

Delos Cosgrove

As chief executive officer and president, Dr. Cosgrove presides over an $8 billion healthcare system including Cleveland Clinic’s main campus, 10 community hospitals, 18 family health and ambulatory surgery centers, Cleveland Clinic Florida, the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in Las Vegas, Cleveland Clinic Toronto, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi and Cleveland Clinic London (opening in 2020). His leadership has emphasized patient care and patient experience, including the re-organization of clinical services into patient-centered, organ and disease-based institutes. He launched major wellness initiatives for patients, employees and communities.

Under his leadership, Cleveland Clinic has been ranked the No. 2 hospital in America (U.S. News & World Report) and only two hospitals named among “America’s 99 Most Ethical Companies” (Ethisphere Institute).

Cosgrove received his medical degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in Charlottesville and completed his clinical training at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston Children’s Hospital and Brook General Hospital in London. His undergraduate work was at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

He was a surgeon in the U.S. Air Force and served in Da Nang, Republic of Vietnam, as the Chief of U.S. Air Force Casualty Staging Flight. He was awarded the Bronze Star and the Republic of Vietnam Commendation Medal.

Joining Cleveland Clinic in 1975, Cosgrove was named Chairman of the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular surgery in 1989. Under his leadership, Cleveland Clinic’s heart program was ranked No. 1 in America for 10 years in a row (U.S. News & World Report), a ranking it now holds for 22 consecutive years.

He has published nearly 450 journal articles, book chapters, one book and 17 training and continuing medical education films. He performed more than 22,000 operations and earned an international reputation for expertise in all areas of cardiac surgery, especially valve repair. As an innovator, Cosgrove has 30 patents filed for developing medical and clinical products used in surgical environments.

In 2014, Cosgrove authored “The Cleveland Clinic Way: Lessons in Excellence from One of the World’s Leading Health Care Organizations,” which takes an in-depth look at today’s healthcare system. It describes the eight trends shaping the future of medicine in this country to be more efficient, more effective and more affordable than it is today. The book acknowledges the challenges facing the industry but takes a “strongly optimistic” view of what lies ahead by illustrating how Cleveland Clinic is helping to shape the future of medicine by working toward one goal: putting patients first.

Cosgrove is a sought-after speaker worldwide. He has addressed the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting at Davos, Switzerland, and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, in Washington, D.C. He is regularly quoted and featured in national magazines and newspapers, including a cover story in Time, and major articles in Newsweek, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. He has appeared on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, NBC, CBS, “The Charlie Rose Show” on PBS, and other national media outlets.

Cosgrove was elected to the National Academy of Medicine (2013). He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (2015) and Castle Connolly National Physician of the Year.

Recent honors include the Deming Cup and Horatio Alger Award. He is a 2016 Fortune Businessperson of the Year (No. 14), and has topped Inside Business’s “Power 100” listing for Northeast Ohio. He is highly ranked among Modern Healthcare’s “100 most powerful people in healthcare” and “most powerful physician executives,” and is an inductee of the Cleveland Medical Hall of Fame.

Cosgrove has been consulted by successive presidential administrations and served on the Veterans Administration Commission on Care (2015).

Alex Denner

Alex Denner is the founding partner and chief investment officer of Sarissa Capital Management LP, a registered investment advisor, which he founded in 2012. Sarissa Capital focuses on improving the strategies of companies to enhance shareholder value. From 2006 to 2011, Denner served as a senior managing director at Icahn Capital, an entity through which Carl Icahn conducts his investment activities. Prior to that, he was a portfolio manager at Viking Global Investors, a private investment fund, and Morgan Stanley Investment Management, a global asset management firm. Denner currently serves as a director of Biogen Inc., Bioverativ Inc. and The Medicines Company, all health care companies. He previously served as a director of the following health care companies:

- ARIAD Pharmaceuticals Inc., where he also served as chairman
- Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc., VIVUS Inc.
- Enzon Pharmaceuticals Inc.
- ImClone Systems Inc., where he also served as chairman of the executive committee

Alex Denner received his S.B. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his M.S., M.Phil and PhD degrees from Yale University. Denner has a strong background overseeing the operations, capital allocation and research and development of health care companies and evaluating corporate governance matters. He also has extensive experience as an investor, particularly with respect to health care companies and has broad health care industry knowledge.

Esther Dyson

Esther Dyson is chairman of EDventure Holdings. Her primary activity is investing in and nurturing start-ups, with a recent focus on health care, human capital and aerospace. Overall, she is fascinated by new business models, new technologies and new markets (both economically and politically). From October 2008 to March 2009, she lived in Star City, outside Moscow, training as a backup cosmonaut. Apart from this brief sabbatical, she is an active board member for a variety of start-ups.

She has a BA in economics from Harvard and was founding chairman of ICANN from 1998 to 2000. In addition, she wrote the best-selling, widely translated book “Release 2.0: A Design for Living in the Digital Age,” published by Broadway Books in 1997.

Andrew Farnum

Andrew is the Director of Program-Related Investments at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he manages the foundation’s $2 billion strategic investment program.

Andrew formerly worked at the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, where he was responsible for developing private sector projects in Africa and India. Previously, Andrew was an investor at TPG Capital’s Aqua International Partners, where he focused on investments in the developing world, and was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs.

Andrew has a master’s degree in international development from the Harvard Kennedy School and an AB in molecular biology from Princeton University.

Bill George

Bill George is a senior fellow at Harvard Business School, where he has taught leadership since 2004. He is the author of: Discover Your True North and The Discover Your True North Fieldbook, Authentic Leadership, True North, Finding Your True North, 7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis and True North Groups.

George is the former chairman and chief executive officer of Medtronic. He joined Medtronic in 1989 as president and chief operating officer, was chief executive officer from 1991-2001, and board chair from 1996-2002. Earlier in his career, he was a senior executive with Honeywell and Litton Industries and served in the U.S. Department of Defense.

George currently serves as a director of Goldman Sachs. He has served recently on the boards of ExxonMobil, Novartis, Target Corporation, Minnesota’s Destination Medical Center Corporation and the World Economic Forum USA. Bill George is currently a trustee of the Mayo Clinic, and has served as board chair for Allina Health System, Abbott-Northwestern Hospital, United Way of the Greater Twin Cities, and Advamed.

In April 2014 the Franklin Institute awarded him the Bower Award for Business Leadership. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2012. He has been named one of “Top 25 Business Leaders of the Past 25 Years” by PBS; “Executive of the Year-2001″ by the Academy of Management; and “Director of the Year-2001-02” by the National Association of Corporate Directors. George is a CNBC Contributor and has made frequent appearances on television and radio.

He received his BSIE with high honors from Georgia Tech, his MBA with high distinction from Harvard University, where he was a Baker Scholar, and honorary PhDs from Georgia Tech, Mayo Medical School, University of St. Thomas, Augsburg College and Bryant University. During 2002-03 he was professor at IMD International and Ecole Polytechnique in Lausanne, Switzerland, and executive-in-residence at Yale School of Management.

Bill George and his wife Penny reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Scott Gottlieb

Scott Gottlieb, MD is a physician and served as the 23rd Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Gottlieb’s work focuses on advancing public health through developing and implementing innovative approaches to improving medical outcomes, reshaping healthcare delivery, and expanding consumer choice and safety.

Dr. Gottlieb is an aggressive advocate for advancing the health of patients, promoting healthcare access, and driving innovation. The agency’s historic and prolific advances in new policy distinguished his tenure as the FDA’s commissioner, in addition to a record-setting number of approvals of novel drugs, medical devices, and generic medicines.

Under his leadership, the FDA advanced new frameworks for the modern and safe and effective oversight of gene therapies, cell based regenerative medicines, targeted drugs, and digital health devices. The agency implemented new reforms to standardize drug reviews and make historic improvements of post market data collection and the use of real world evidence. He promoted policies to reduce death and disease from tobacco, improve food innovation and safety, and aggressively confront addiction crises.

Previously, Dr. Gottlieb served as the FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Medical and Scientific Affairs and before that, as a Senior Adviser to the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, where he helped advance policies to improve healthcare quality and promote the effective use of new medical technologies. A healthcare futurist, he works as a venture capitalist and has been a founder and board member to companies that have developed new medicines and advance the delivery of healthcare.

Dr. Gottlieb is widely published in leading medical journals and periodicals, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. He has held editorial positions on the British Medical Journal and the Journal of the American Medical Association. Fortune Magazine recognized him as one of the “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders” in 2018 and again in 2019. Modern Healthcare named Dr. Gottlieb as one of the “Most Influential Physician Executive and Leaders” in its annual survey of 50 physician executives, and Time magazine named Gottlieb one of its “50 People Transforming Healthcare in 2018.”

Dr. Gottlieb was a practicing hospitalist and a Clinical Assistant Professor at the New York University School of Medicine. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and a Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, DC.

Julie Grant

Julie Grant leads investments in biopharma and digital health companies at Canaan and is laser focused on identifying companies that will tangibly improve patient care. In 2015, Julie led the Series C financing for Protagonist Therapeutics (PTGX), which is developing orally stable peptides to treat autoimmune disorders. The company went public in 2016 and entered into a $990 million partnership with Janssen Pharmaceuticals in 2017.

During her time at Canaan, Julie also led the investment for Cellular Research and supported Dermira, Labrys Biologics, CytomX, Unchained Labs, Chrono Therapeutics, Genome Medical, Glooko and Truveris. Julie serves on the board of the Biden Cancer Initiative. She also co-chairs Planned Parenthood Northern California’s IT Advisory Board. In 2017 Julie was named one of Silicon Valley Business Times’ 40 Under 40.

A seasoned athlete, Julie biked 4000 miles across the country to raise money for Habitat for Humanity, and was a college sailing national champion.

Prior to joining Canaan, Julie worked at Genentech to bring oncology products to market, holding roles in development, business development and marketing. She holds an M.B.A. from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, a M.Phil. from Cambridge University in BioScience Enterprise and a B.S. in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from Yale University.

Fred Hassan

Fred Hassan is based in New York and joined Warburg Pincus in 2011. Hassan was Chairman of Bausch & Lomb, until its sale in 2013, and serves on the board of Time Warner Amgen and Intrexon. Hassan is the former Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Schering-Plough Corporation.

Prior to joining Schering-Plough in April 2003, he was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pharmacia Corporation, a company that was formed in March 2000 as a result of the merger of Monsanto and Pharmacia and Upjohn. Mr. Hassan joined Pharmacia & Upjohn as Chief Executive Officer in 1997. Previously, he was Executive Vice President of Wyeth with responsibility for its pharmaceutical and medical products businesses, and was elected to Wyeth’s board in 1995. Earlier in his career, Hassan spent 17 years with Sandoz Pharmaceuticals (now Novartis) and headed its U.S. pharmaceuticals business.

He received a B.S. degree in chemical engineering from the Imperial College at the University of London and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Mr. Hassan has chaired significant pharmaceutical industry organizations including The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Associations (IFPMA). He is also a member of The Business Council. Mr. Hassan’s book, “Reinvent, A Leader’s Playbook for Serial Success,” was published by Wiley in February 2013.

Jeff Jonas

Jeff joined SAGE as CEO in 2013 and has more than 20 years of experience on both the scientific and business sides of the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, particularly in the CNS field. Before joining the SAGE team, Jeff served as President of the Regenerative Medicine Division of Shire plc and previously as Senior Vice President of Research and Development, Pharmaceuticals at Shire. Prior to Shire, he served as the Executive Vice President of ISIS Pharmaceuticals, as the Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President of Forest Laboratories, Inc. and in senior-level positions at Upjohn Laboratories. Jeff founded AVAX Technologies, where he served as CEO and President, and SCEPTOR Industries, where he served as Chairman, President and Chief Technology Officer. Earlier in his career, he served as Independent Director at Cara Therapeutics, Inc. and Director of AVAX Technologies. He has published more than 70 scientific papers and chapters, authored more than 100 books, scientific articles and abstracts, and has received numerous awards.

Jeff received his B.A. from Amherst College and M.D. from Harvard Medical School. He completed a residency in psychiatry at Harvard and then served as Chief Resident in psychopharmacology at McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School.

Jeffrey Kahn

Jeffrey Kahn, PhD, MPH, is the Andreas C. Dracopoulos Director of the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, a position he assumed in July 2016. From 2011, he has been the inaugural Robert Henry Levi and Ryda Hecht Levi Professor of Bioethics and Public Policy. He is also Professor in the Dept. of Health Policy and Management of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He works in a variety of areas of bioethics, exploring the intersection of ethics and health/science policy, including human and animal research ethics, public health, and ethical issues in emerging biomedical technologies.

Prof. Kahn has served on numerous state and federal advisory panels. He is currently chair of National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Board on Health Sciences Policy, and has previously chaired its committee on the Use of Chimpanzees in Biomedical and Behavioral Research (2011); the committee on Ethics Principles and Guidelines for Health Standards for Long Duration and Exploration Spaceflights (2014); and a committee on the Ethical, Social, and Policy Considerations of Mitochondrial Replacement Techniques (2016). He also formerly served as a member of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee.

In addition to committee leadership and membership, Prof. Kahn is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and an elected Fellow of The Hastings Center. He was also the founding president of the Association of Bioethics Program Directors, an office he held from 2006-2010.

Prof. Kahn is a co-principal investigator with Berman Institute faculty member Gail Geller, ScD, MHS, on GUIDE: Genomic Uses in Infectious Disease and Epidemics, an NIH-funded project to study the largely unexplored ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) of genomics as applied to infectious disease.

Prof. Kahn’s publications include Contemporary Issues in Bioethics; Beyond Consent: Seeking Justice in Research; and Ethics of Research With Human Subjects: Selected Policies and Resources, as well as over 125 scholarly and research articles. He also speaks widely across the U.S. and around the world on a range of bioethics topics, in addition to frequent media outreach. From 1998-2002 he wrote the bi-weekly column Ethics Matters on CNN.com. Prior to joining the faculty at Johns Hopkins, Prof. Kahn was Director of the Center for Bioethics at the University of Minnesota.

Jessica Mega

Jessica L. Mega, M.D., M.P.H., is the Chief Medical Officer at Verily Life Sciences. As CMO, Mega’s focus is on translating scientific insights and technological innovations into partnerships and programs that improve patient outcomes. She oversees all of Verily’s clinical research efforts, including the Baseline Study.

Faisal Mushtaq

With over 25 years of healthcare experience, Faisal Mushtaq’s focus as CEO of Truveris is to ensure that the company delivers on its passion – helping employers, payers, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies and consumers improve drug pricing transparency across the prescription drug ecosystem. Prior to joining Truveris, Faisal held a variety of executive leadership positions at Allscripts Healthcare Solutions.

Most recently, Faisal served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Payer and Life Sciences Business Unit, one of the fastest growing markets for Allscripts. In that role, he worked with some of the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers, pharmacy benefit management (PBM) companies, clinical research organizations (CRO) and health plans to bring to market innovative analytics and operational improvement solutions.

In his 8 years at Allscripts, he was one of the executive leaders responsible for growing the company from 1,500 to over 7,000 employees and from $350 million to over $1.6 billion in annual revenue. Before Allscripts, Faisal worked as Chief Product and Development Officer at Neoforma, Chief Product Officer at Biz360 and Chief Operating Officer at CresSoft. Faisal completed postgraduate studies at Harvard Business School and earned a BS in computer science and electrical engineering from University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Faisal has co-authored five patents and has served as board member at various entrepreneurship and Industry development organizations.

John Noseworthy

Dr. John H. Noseworthy is chief executive officer and president of Mayo Clinic, a not-for-profit organization operating in five states that is dedicated to medical care, research and education. Every year, more than a million people from all 50 states and nearly 150 countries come to Mayo Clinic for care.

Prior to his current appointment, Noseworthy served as chair of Mayo Clinic’s Department of Neurology, medical director of the Department of Development, and vice chair of the Mayo Clinic Rochester Executive Board.

During his tenure as CEO, Noseworthy and his leadership team have implemented a plan to ensure that Mayo Clinic remains a trusted resource for patients amid a rapidly changing health care environment – extending Mayo’s mission to new populations, providing care through more efficient delivery models, and increasing the personalization and immediacy of health care for all people. Examples of new initiatives include a proton beam cancer therapy program with two treatment centers – one in Phoenix and one in Rochester, Minn. – and development of a Mayo Clinic-affiliate network of high-quality medical practices throughout the country.

Noseworthy is a professor in the Department of Neurology. He specialized in multiple sclerosis and spent more than two decades designing and conducting controlled clinical trials with generous support from the Medical Research Council of Canada, the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (USA) and the National Institutes of Health. Noseworthy also is the author of more than 150 research papers, chapters, editorials and several books, including the three-volume textbook Neurological Therapeutics: Principles and Practice now in its second edition. He also served as editor-in-chief for Neurology, the official journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Born in Melrose, Mass., Noseworthy received the M.D. degree from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. He completed his neurology training at Dalhousie University and the University of Western Ontario, and a research fellowship at Harvard Medical School. He joined Mayo Clinic in 1990. He has received the Alumnus of the Year award from Dalhousie University (2005), an honorary doctorate of science degree from the University of Western Ontario (2012), an honorary doctorate of laws from Dalhousie University (2015). Noseworthy was named an Officer of the Order of the Orange-Nassau (2015) and received the Research!America, Geoffrey Beene Builders of Science Award (2016). He is a Health Governor of the World Economic Forum.

Noseworthy and his wife, Patricia, have two sons, Peter and Mark.

Chris O'Connor

Chris O'Connor is a Partner at Perella Weinberg Partners and Co-Head of the firm's U.S. Advisory Business.

He has more than 25 years of investment banking experience. Prior to joining Perella Weinberg Partners in 2011, Mr. O'Connor was a Managing Director at JPMorgan where he helped build a leading healthcare practice and advised a broad range of healthcare clients. He previously served in positions of increasing responsibility at The Beacon Group, a private equity and advisory firm that was acquired by JPMorgan Chase in 2000.

Mr. O'Connor received a Bachelor of Arts in English and American Literature from Harvard College and a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

Kyu Rhee

Dr. Rhee serves as Chief Health Officer of IBM, where he has global responsibilities for Watson Health and assuring a culture of health at IBM.

Prior to joining IBM, Dr. Rhee was Chief Public Health Officer at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), where he served on and led numerous national initiatives related to prevention, quality, and public health. Dr. Rhee also served as the Director of the Office of Innovation and Program Coordination at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he led initiatives related to eliminating health disparities and promoting health equity. Prior to his federal government service, he worked in community health settings as the Chief Medical Officer of Baltimore Medical System Inc. Dr. Rhee performed his medical residency training in both internal medicine and pediatrics at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Southern California and holds a master’s degree in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Leonard Schleifer

Leonard S. Schleifer, MD, PhD, founded Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in 1988 while serving as an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medical College. Leveraging a lifelong passion for science and an entrepreneurial spirit, he has served as a director, its president and chief executive officer since its inception and acted as chairman of the board from 1990 through 1994. Schleifer received his MD and PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Virginia, and he is a licensed physician certified in neurology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

Todd Sisitsky

Todd B. Sisitsky is a partner of TPG, the global alternative asset management firm. He is the managing partner of TPG Capital, co-head of the firm’s global health care investing platform and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He has played leadership roles in connection with TPG’s investments in:

- Adare Pharma (drug delivery and technology company)
- Aptalis Pharma (GI-focused specialty pharmaceutical company)
- Biomet (leading orthopedic implant manufacturer)
- Fenwal Transfusion Therapies (blood product technologies business)
- IASIS Healthcare (Tennessee-based acute care hospital company)
- Surgical Care Affiliates (ambulatory surgery center business carved out from HealthSouth Corporation)
- HealthScope (hospital and pathology company based in Australia)
- IMS Health (leading global data services and consulting business to several segments of the healthcare industry)
- Immucor (leading automated blood screening and testing business)
- Par Pharmaceutical (leading manufacturer and distributor of generic pharmaceutical products)

Sisitsky also serves on the board of directors of the global not-for-profit organization, the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, as well as on the Dartmouth Medical School Board of Overseers. Prior to joining TPG in 2003, Sisitsky worked at Forstmann Little & Company and Oak Hill Capital Partners. He received an M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar, and earned his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College, where he graduated summa cum laude.

Craig Venter

J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., is regarded as one of the leading scientists of the 21st century for his numerous invaluable contributions to genomic research. He is founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), a not-for-profit, research organization with approximately 250 scientists and staff dedicated to human, microbial, plant, synthetic and environmental genomic research, and the exploration of social and ethical issues in genomics.

Dr. Venter is also a co-founder, chairman, chief executive officer of Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI), the genomics-based, health intelligence company focused on extending the healthy, high performance human life span. HLI combines the largest database of genomic and phenotypic data with machine learning to drive discoveries and revolutionize the practice of medicine.Dr. Venter is co-founder, executive chairman and co-chief scientist of Synthetic Genomics, Inc. (SGI), a privately held company focused on developing products and solutions using synthetic genomics technologies.

Dr. Venter began his formal education after a tour of duty as a Navy Corpsman in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968. After earning both a Bachelor's degree in Biochemistry and a Ph.D. in Physiology and Pharmacology from the University of California at San Diego, he was appointed professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo and the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. In 1984, he moved to the National Institutes of Health campus where he developed Expressed Sequence Tags or ESTs, a revolutionary new strategy for rapid gene discovery. In 1992 Dr. Venter founded The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR, now part of JCVI), a not-for-profit research institute, where in 1995 he and his team decoded the genome of the first free-living organism, the bacterium Haemophilus influenzae, using his new whole genome shotgun technique.

In 1998, Dr. Venter founded Celera Genomics to sequence the human genome using new tools and techniques he and his team developed. This research culminated with the February 2001 publication of the human genome in the journal, Science. He and his team at Celera also sequenced the fruit fly, mouse and rat genomes.Dr. Venter and his team at JCVI continue to blaze new trails in genomics. They have sequenced and analyzed hundreds of genomes, and have published numerous important papers covering such areas as environmental genomics, the first complete diploid human genome, and the groundbreaking advance in creating the first self- replicating bacterial cell constructed entirely with synthetic DNA.

Dr. Venter is one of the most frequently cited scientists, and the author of more than 280 research articles. He is also the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, public honors, and scientific awards, including the 2008 United States National Medal of Science, the 2002 Gairdner Foundation International Award, the 2001 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize and the King Faisal International Award for Science. Dr. Venter is a member of numerous prestigious scientific organizations including the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Society for Microbiology.

AGENDA

8:00am - 9:00am

Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00am - 10:40am

Welcoming Remarks

Tyler Mathisen, Co-Anchor, “Power Lunch,” CNBC

The Gatekeeper: Opening Conversation with FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb

When he took the lead at the FDA, Scott Gottlieb was seen as a pro-pharma choice. His legacy thus far, however, has been far more complicated. He’s taken on market inefficiencies, is approving generics at a record pace and trying to bring down drug prices. We’ll talk to him about what’s next at the FDA, including his vision for attacking the opioid crisis and his plans to balance public safety with faster drug approvals.

Scott Gottlieb, M.D., Commissioner of Food and Drugs, U.S. FDA

Interviewer: Meg Tirrell, Biotech and Pharma Reporter, CNBC

The Investor Angle: What We’re Excited About Now

Leading investors give brief presentations on what they view as the most exciting and investable opportunities in health care for 2018 and beyond.

Venture Capital: Esther Dyson, Executive Founder, Way to Wellville; Board Member, 23 and Me and Open Humans Foundation

M&A: Christopher O’Connor, Partner, Perella Weinberg Partners

Moderator: Jim Cramer, Host, “Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer;” Co-Anchor, “Squawk on the Street,” CNBC

Getting Personal: Why It Matters

Thirteen-year-old Paige Whorton lives her life with great gusto. “I like parasailing, exploring and ziplining — daredevil stuff,” she says with a giggle. But she developed debilitating, degenerative pain in her joints, and doctors couldn’t diagnose its cause. That’s where genetic testing and personalized medicine came in — and saved her life.

Paige Whorton

John Noseworthy, M.D., President and CEO, Mayo Clinic

Editing Ethically: Big Hopes And Big Fears About CRISPR

Few medical innovations have engendered as much excitement as CRISPR, but the gene-editing technology raises serious ethical questions: Will the power to edit our own DNA outpace our ability to decide as a society how far we want to go? In a global race for advancements, how do we balance the quest for innovation and better health against worries about “designer babies” and unleashing irreversible genetic changes?

Luke Dow, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Biochemistry in Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine

Jeffrey Kahn, Ph.D., Director, Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics

Moderator: Meg Tirrell, Biotech and Pharma Reporter, CNBC

10:40am - 11:10am

Networking Break

11:10am - 12:30pm

Innovation at Scale: Is Bigger Better... or Worse?

Many of the most innovative companies in the pharmaceutical industry today are smaller, more agile companies that focus on a limited number of technologies to drive innovation. More than ever, pharma giants are buying these upstart ventures to spur research and development. Is there an inverse relationship between company size and innovation?

Abbie Celniker, Ph.D., Partner, Third Rock Ventures

Fred Hassan, Special Limited Partner, Warburg Pincus; Chairman, Caret Group; Former Chairman and CEO, Schering-Plough

Jeff Jonas, M.D., CEO, SAGE Therapeutics

Moderator: Jim Cramer, Host, “Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer;” Co-Anchor, “Squawk on the Street,” CNBC

Onstage Demonstration: Virtual Treatment for Real Pain

Presenter: David Sackman, Co-Founder and Chairman, appliedVR

WWAD: What Will Amazon Do?

The news that Jeff Bezos’ behemoth was partnering with J.P. Morgan Chase and Berkshire Hathaway to create a new health care venture sent health insurance stocks plummeting. It’s just a hint at Amazon’s potential disruptive, transformative role in health care. What’s next, and what’s their endgame?

Faisal Mushtaq, CEO, Truveris

Bill George, Senior Fellow, Harvard Business School; Former Chairman and CEO, Medtronic

Julie Grant, Partner, Canaan Partners; Board Member, Biden Cancer Initiative

Moderator: Christina Farr, Technology and Health Reporter, CNBC.com

12:30pm - 1:45pm

Lunch

Join us for lunch in the Terrace Room on the lobby level. Select tables will feature hosted discussions. Please see your programs and posted information for details.

1:45pm - 2:55pm

Sponsor Remarks

Neil De Crescenzo, President and CEO, Change Healthcare

Capitalizing Cures: Do Investors Inhibit Innovation?

It costs billions of dollars to develop revolutionary treatments and cures at scale, and often the only place to get that much funding is in the public markets. Investors, however, are focused on quarterly results and often have little patience with clinical trial setbacks and the years-long process of developing drugs. Is there a way to address this conflict?

Tony Coles, M.D., Chairman and CEO, Yumanity Therapeutics

Alex Denner, Ph.D., Founding Partner and CIO, Sarissa Capital Management

Leonard S. Schleifer, M.D., Ph.D., Founder, President and CEO, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals

Moderator: Jim Cramer, Host, “Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer;” Co-Anchor, “Squawk on the Street,” CNBC

The Investor Angle: What We’re Excited About Now

Leading investors give brief presentations on what they view as the most exciting and investable opportunities in health care for 2018 and beyond.

Private Equity: Todd B. Sisitsky, Managing Partner, TPG Capital

Private Investment: Andrew Farnum, Director of Program-Related Investments, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Moderator: Tyler Mathisen, Co-Anchor, “Power Lunch,” CNBC

Onstage Demonstration: Alphabetizing Health Care

Presenter: Jessica L. Mega, M.D., M.P.H., Chief Medical Officer, Verily Life Sciences

2:55pm - 3:25pm

Networking Break

3:25pm - 5:00pm

Aligning Interests: New Models for Health Care Companies

With the urgent need to bring down the unsustainable costs of health care, many companies are pursuing toward M&A. Some health economists and insurance companies are also seeking a change from fee-for-service to an outcome-based model, offering incentives for successful and efficient treatments. Quality over quantity. Will these measures indeed provide better outcomes at lower costs?

David Cordani, President and CEO, Cigna

Delos ‘Toby’ Cosgrove, M.D., Former President and CEO, The Cleveland Clinic

Moderator: Bertha Coombs, Correspondent, CNBC

Getting Personal: Why It Matters

How one cancer researcher turned his own myeloma diagnosis into an opportunity, giving others the potential for greater control – and better outcomes – over their own care.

J. Anthony Blau, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Co-Director, Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine; Director, Center for Cancer Innovation, University of Washington School of Medicine; Founder, All4Cure

Data vs. Disease: New Approaches

Cancer: Amy Abernethy, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer, Chief Scientific Officer and SVP, Oncology, Flatiron Health

Opioids: Kyu Rhee, M.D., VP and Chief Health Officer, IBM

Interviewer: Meg Tirrell, Biotech and Pharma Reporter, CNBC

I Wanna Live Forever: A Conversation with Craig Venter

One of the leading scientists of our time, J. Craig Venter has been on the cutting edge of science for more than two decades. His institute is a leading organization dedicated to genomic research, and he’s the co-founder, executive chairman and CEO of Human Longevity. His institute is a leading research organization dedicated to genomic research, and he’s the co-founder, chairman and CEO of Human Longevity. We’ll find out what this visionary sees on the horizon in health care, science and medicine.

J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., Co-Founder, Executive Chairman and CEO, Human Longevity; Founder, Executive Chairman and CEO, J. Craig Venter Institute

Interviewer: Joe Kernen, Co-Anchor, “Squawk Box,” CNBC

5:00pm - 6:00pm

Cocktail Reception

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