CAMBRIDGE, MA– MassBio’s State of Possible Conference (Wednesday, April 24, 2024) is the premier event for the Massachusetts life sciences industry. A packed agenda will feature top pharmaceutical and biotech leaders taking the stage to speak to the conference theme of Meeting the Moment.
“Massachusetts is a place where collaboration and partnerships unlock incredible innovation for patients around the world, and we have assembled some of the state’s leading pharma and biotech executives to deliver insights on where the industry is now, and more importantly, where it is going next,” said MassBio CEO and President Kendalle Burlin O’Connell. “We look forward to welcoming hundreds of attendees from across the Commonwealth’s life science ecosystem to learn, network, give back, and celebrate.”
Devin McCourty, three-time Super Bowl champion with the New England Patriots and sickle cell disease advocate, will speak about what it takes to be a leader, how bringing awareness and funding to sickle cell disease has advanced health equity, and why Greater Boston continues to meet the moment for patients and their families. Reshma Kewalramani, CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, will then join Devin to discuss recent progress on transformative treatments for sickle cell disease.
For a second straight year, Governor Maura Healey will offer morning remarks on her administration’s priorities, including policy initiatives designed to grow the state’s economic competitiveness. The Governor will provide an update on her filing to reauthorize the Life Sciences Initiative at $1 billion over 10 years with support for capital programs, tax incentives, career training, and early-stage biotech companies.
This year’s conference will feature two Possible Talks. John F. Crowley, who assumed the position of President and CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) in March, will speak about the future of the organization and provide an update on federal policy. John’s decades of biotech experience and deep passion for the field have made him a strong supporter of policies that empower innovation, enable entrepreneurship, and put people and patients first. Peter Kolchinsky and Tess Cameron of RA Capital Management will present about connecting with and inspiring the biomedical industry’s true customers.
MassBio will recognize Susan Windham-Bannister, Ph.D., with the 2023 Henri A. Termeer Innovation Leadership Award. For the Massachusetts life sciences community, Windham-Bannister is perhaps most well known as the founding President and CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), serving from 2008 to 2015. New this year, MassBio will also present three local companies with awards recognizing their contributions: Spirit of Massachusetts, Drive Startup of the Year, and Scientific Impact of the Year. Winners will be announced at the conference.
Two panels will include top biopharma CEOs and leaders who will share insights into their company’s recipe for success in research and development, how they pushed their companies (and their science) forward in choppy waters, what technologies and trends will be making headlines next, and the role that Massachusetts will continue to play in drug development success.
New for this year’s conference, attendees will be invited to participate in one of two volunteer activities directly impacting students and patients: building lab kits for students in Boston Public Schools and assembling care packages for patients undergoing treatment at Boston Medical Center’s Sickle Cell Disease Center of Excellence.
