In 2017, Larry S. Schlesinger, MD became President/CEO of Texas Biomedical Research Institute, whose vision is to protect us from infectious diseases. The Institute has worked for years with government and private and public partners on studies that have helped bring the hepatitis B vaccine, hepatitis C therapies, and the current Ebola therapy to the FDA and ultimately to patients. That work continues with a team of more than 40 scientists who have been working around the clock on COVID-19 research, focusing on safety, efficacy, and quality assurance/control. This week, a study was published by Texas BioMed and Southwest National Primate Research Center on their animal model study of SARS-CoV-2.
Dr. Schlesinger is a recent NIH NIAID Council member and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Association of American Physicians and American Academy of Microbiology.
Also joining the committee this week was new President/CEO of BioMed SA Heather Hanson. BioMed SA was created in 2005, with the support of Chamber Chairman Henry Cisneros, in order to promote San Antonio’s healthcare and bioscience assets and accelerate their growth. Ann Stevens led the organization from the beginning and announced her retirement late last year. In April, after an exhaustive search, the BioMed SA board selected Heather Hanson to lead the organization.
Heather’s career has spanned manufacturing, research and development, and operations as a mechanical engineer and an executive. She is an inventor on 24 US patents and has led multiple companies through medical device development and commercialization.
In her brief few weeks on the job, she has expanded the digital footprint of the organization and prioritized items from the 2018 Action Plan developed by Frost & Sullivan on how to support and advance the industry’s ecosystem. A unique asset to the San Antonio industry is collaboration across institutions, and Heather is set to build on the 15 years of that work of this organization. To learn more and get involved in BioMed SA, visit their website.
The Health Care and Bioscience Committee is chaired by T.J. Mayes, partner at Phipps Deacon Purnell and chair of the Bexar County Opioid Task Force. For additional information on the committee, contact Belinda Garza Hartwig, Vice President of Economic Development, at bhartwig@sachamber.org.
