GIC SLCI Signature Event Long Covid: Research, Policy and Economic Impact — Session II and Special Report

VIDEO May 20, 2022

Speaker / Author

Oved Amitay

Chief Executive Officer at Solve M.E.

Oved Amitay is the Chief Executive Officer at Solve M.E. He has dedicated most of his professional career to the development of life-changing therapeutic options for people affected by rare genetic diseases. Throughout his career, Oved had extensive engagements with healthcare systems and patient advocacy organizations around the world, forging collaborations to address the needs of people affected by rare genetic diseases. Oved is frequently invited to speak on topics related to orphan drugs, the development and commercialization of therapies for patients with rare diseases. Oved is a registered pharmacist, trained at the School of Pharmacy, Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and holds ... Read More

Barbara B. Comerford

Founder of the Law Offices of Barbara B. Comerford

Barbara B. Comerford has been practicing disability law in Bergen County, New Jersey for over 30 years primarily in the area of ERISA long-term disability insurance claims and litigation; and Social Security Disability claims and litigation. She has lectured extensively on ERISA Long term disability insurance and Individual Disability Insurance law, as well as, Social Security disability law throughout the United States on behalf of many organizations including the American Association of Law Schools, the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives, the Association of Administrative Law Judges; the American Bar Association, the New Jersey Bar Association, and The New ... Read More

Thomas K. Equels, M.S., J.D.

CEO, Aim Immunotech

Thomas Equels, M.S., J.D. was named Chief Executive Officer of Aim Immunotech in February 2016 and has served as President since August 2015. Equels’ successful legal career included extensive experience in the pharma sector. He has over the years served as a court-appointed receiver turning around businesses in a number of different fields. Equels received his J.D. with high honors from Florida State University. He is also a summa cum laude graduate (Bachelor of Science) of Troy University and obtained his Master of Science Degree from Troy. Equels is also a highly decorated combat aviator, twice awarded the Distinguished Flying ... Read More

Leora Horwitz, MD, MHS

Director, Center for Healthcare Innovation and Delivery Science, NYU Langone Health

Dr. Horwitz is director of the Center for Healthcare Innovation and Delivery Science at NYU Langone Health, director of the Division of Healthcare Delivery Science in the Department of Population Health at NYU School of Medicine, tenured professor of population health and of medicine, and a practicing internist. Her work focuses on improving the safety and quality of healthcare delivery. She is currently co-PI of the Clinical Science Core for the NIH’s RECOVER program to study post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2. She also conducts federally-funded research on value in health care; has developed quality measures for the Centers for Medicare & ... Read More

Rich A. Moscicki, M.D.

Executive Vice President for Science and Regulatory Advocacy and Chief Medical Officer of PhRMA

Richard (Rich) A. Moscicki (Mo-shis-ke), M.D., is the Executive Vice President for Science and Regulatory Advocacy and the Chief Medical Officer at Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). Dr. Moscicki came to PhRMA in 2017 after serving as the Deputy Center Director for Science Operations for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) since 2013. While at FDA, Dr. Moscicki brought executive direction of Center operations and leadership in overseeing the development, implementation, and direction of CDER’s programs. Previous positions include serving as Chief Medical Officer at Genzyme Corporation from 1992 to 2011, ... Read More

Nalini Raju, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A

Senior Medical Director, Cigna

Dr. Raju is a Senior Medical Director at Cigna. As Cigna's COVID Medical Director, she works closely with key matrix partners across the enterprise to coordinate Cigna's COVID response. Her efforts have been focused on improving clinical outcomes and quality. This includes ensuring that customers are supported and have access to vaccines, testing, and treatments. In addition, she has extensive experience with utilization management, coverage policy, and case management. Dr. Raju graduated from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons in 2000. She then completed a residency in General Surgery and a fellowship in Colon and Rectal Surgery at the ... Read More

Melissa Smallwood

Co-Author: Long Covid Impact on Adult Americans: Early Indicators Estimating Prevalence and Cost

Melissa Smallwood (MS 2021, MA 2016) is a Science and Technology Policy researcher with a background in neuroscience, psychology, social science, and disability studies. She is a recent graduate of Arizona State University's School for the Future of Innovation in Society, where she worked on her Master's Thesis with Brian David Johnson's Threatcasting lab. Her current work explores the long-term policy implications of Long-Haul COVID-19 and other enduring consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Smallwood is working with the Solve M.E. Research Team to develop models and write a white paper on the prevalence and economic impact of Long-Haul COVID in ... Read More

Emily Taylor

Vice President of Advocacy and Engagement, Solve M.E.

Emily Taylor is the Vice President of Advocacy and Engagement for Solve M.E. She brings to the organization over fifteen years of policy, organization, and advocacy experience in both the non-profit and government sectors. With five years’ experience on Capitol Hill, Emily contributes a keen understanding of both state and federal policy processes while cultivating strong grassroots organization and patient representation. Prior to joining the Solve M.E., Emily served as the director of policy and advocacy for an award-winning autism organization. There she spearheaded major overhauls in disability, early intervention, and education policies. She is also a veteran of several successful ... Read More