Baguettes, berets…and biotech!

Since the time of Louis Pasteur, France has been a world leader in life sciences. The onset of COVID-19 spurred a renewed determination by the Macron government to strengthen this critically important sector.

BIO’s Joe Damond led a discussion on the opportunities and challenges for biotech in France with Franck Riester, Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness in France, and Elvire Gouze, PhD, Founder and CEO of InnoSkel, a biotech focused on rare skeletal diseases.

France is the first European country for patents filed in biotech/pharma products, first in clinical trials, and home of many vaccine and medicine plants, said Minister Riester.

Biotech is “an important sector for the future,” he said.

Companies starting out need “resilience,” said Gouze.

It’s important for biotechs to have “global positioning from the start,” and a global perspective—whether in the United States or France, she said.

How is France supporting the biotech sector?

The Macron government plans to invest more than EUR 1 billion to help biotech companies invest in research.

“For the vaccine, we think we have to support our companies in this field,” he said. He noted that Sanofi had a successful second COVID-19 vaccine trial and expects to commercialize it at the end of the year. Another part of the strategy is increasing private-public collaboration.

Minister Riester said the Macron government is reducing corporate, income, and production taxes. They’re creating “more flexibility in the organization of the company and how people work in the company, more support for innovation, the best quality of life for talent.” They’re facilitating as negotiations for the organization of workers. (Also, it’s not so difficult to recruit talent to France, especially the Riviera!)

When the COVID crisis came, Macron decided to invest in protecting the economic ecosystem—companies and the people in them—to speed up growth and the market, continued Minister Riester.

Gouze noted that biotech companies get good support through the early phases in France. They eventually need finance to get through the later stages of R&D.

When the COVID crisis came, Macron decided to invest in protecting the economic ecosystem—companies and the people in them—to speed up growth and the market, continued Minister Riester.

Gouze noted that biotech companies get good support through the early phases in France. They eventually need finance to get through the later stages of R&D.

Damond asked if acquisition of a small company by a big pharma—and a possible move away from France—is viewed as a success.

“I don’t see acquisition by a big pharma as not a success,” said Gouze—it’s just a step in development.

In the past, some startups weren’t able to find finance in France to scale up—but this is “an obsession for President Macron” to help companies from start-ups to global multinationals have an opportunity to scale up, said Minister Riester.

The cost factor

State-of-the-art technology like gene and cell therapies focused on “specific, small populations…tend to be costly,” which can be a challenge for the healthcare system in France, said Minister Riester. If it’s difficult to pay for or create access to these drugs, this can impact the ability of small companies to do research.

“We have to deal with this issue”—and ensure companies have a return on investment. “We know we have work to do but we have made progress,” he added, noting an agreement between France’s price regulator and the industry to reward innovation and give patients access, as well as a new system for temporary authorizations for therapeutics “so we can go faster.” He reiterated that it’s important for companies that are investing in innovation to have a return on it, and that there is an obligation to balance ROI for companies and general interest.

Gouze added care can already be quite expensive—so we must weigh that against the cost of new technology or a potential cure.

“If I asked everyone watching this session today to give me one reason for why you do what you do, I think we all share a similar response. And that’s patients. They are the purpose and the driving force for all that we do and their role in healthcare is changing,” said Eric Dube, President and CEO of Travere Therapeutics.

He moderated a session on the patient perspective featuring:

• Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala, Founder & Vice President, ICANSERVE Foundation; Cancer Coalition Philippines
• Dr. Michael Robinson, ALS Patient & Advocate
• Lilly Stairs, Interim President & Chief Executive Officer, American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association

Each panelist spoke about their journey from patient to patient advocate.

Dr. Michael Robinson spoke from his several perspectives: from his role as a physician, work with the pharmaceutical industry, and as a patient.

“One thing I learned from being a patient with ALS is nothing can prepare you and no one can truly understand what the patient experience is but the patient. We have to have and make our voices heard because it’s easy to lose sight of the patient in our work in terms of clinical research,” Robinson advised.

Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala recounted how 24 years ago in her home country of the Philippines she was dealing with doctors who talked down to her as a patient. It took two years with the support of family to get a biopsy, which determined she had breast cancer. While looking for a second opinion in the United States, she found the process to be more mindful of patient perspectives. A few years after going into remission, she and some friends started the ICANSERVE Foundation.

Where do you see patient-centered drug development working best?

“I see it working best when companies engage with patients. Any time a company is engaging with a patient, that’s making an impact on the decisions that are being made,” said Lilly Stairs.

Improving patient engagement Internationally

Kara Magsanoc-Alikpala spoke about the lack of clinical trials where she lives in the Philippines.

"First we have to find out where these trials are – we really don’t know.” More transparency in planning clinical trials will likely result in more participation.

What can the biotech and pharmaceutical industries do better when it comes to patient engagement?

The panelists spoke about patient engagement and investing in an employee who solely focuses on patient engagement who can champion the patient voice internally.

How can patient advocacy organizations and the pharma-biotech sector empower patients to share and advocate for their health?

There needs to be support for patient involvement in clinical trial design and more transparency, said Magsanoc-Alikpala.

"There's so much more work to be done."

How are patient advocacy organizations working to remove the barriers to achieving equity in healthcare?

The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association is working on a project to examine disparities in time to diagnosis and proper treatment in auto-immune patients of color.

Magsanoc-Alikpala's organization is establishing partnerships between different patient groups so patients can learn from one another's experiences.

The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized how patient advocacy death truly is "life and death" work, she added.

AD | Thank you Dr. Ger Brophy, EVP of Biopharma Production at @Avantor_News for your insights and introduction of Monday's #BIODigital 2021 keynote address, "Breaking Barriers in Vaccine Development." If you missed it, catch it on demand in the BIO Digital Event Hub.

— BIO Convention (@BIOConvention) June 16, 2021

Japan has set the goal of becoming the “world’s most advanced bioeconomy” society by 2030. What are the prospects for Japan to grow as a global leader in life sciences? How are investors looking at the Japanese market today? Amy Jackson, Japan Representative of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), led a discussion on key policy issues that will shape Japan’s effort to promote biotech innovation. 

Panelists include:

• Osamu Nagayama, President of the Japan Bioindustry Association, and Senior Advisor and Honorary Chairman of Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
• Steve Sugino, President and Representative Director, Amgen K.K.
• BT Slingsby, Founder and Managing Partner, Catalys Pacific

“Forming internationally recognized clusters of bio industry and research institutions with networking with the scattered smaller clusters in Japan to promote foreign investment,” said Osamu Nagayama, is one of the five basic principles in Japan’s Bioeconomy Strategy.

“In 2010, the Japanese government took the bold decision to strongly support innovation and support patient care in Japan. They passed a number of important policy changes which encouraged this innovation and actually resulted in that acceleration [of biopharmaceutical investment in Japan] ... The important part of this was that it eliminated the drug lag of between 3 and 5 years,” said Steve Sugino. This lag is in reference to Japanese patients at the time receiving innovative medicines for cancer, for cardiovascular health, 3 to 5 years after the United States. 

“However, we have seen over 50 pricing changes to the pricing system in Japan just in the last five years. Many of these have been unexpected, surprising, and, in some cases, inconsistent with the prior existing policy changes around pricing … What the concern here is that we are at risk of turning back, with the great progress that was made in eliminating that drug lag for patients in Japan,” added Steve Sugino.

“Japan is at an intersection right now … On the one hand, you are looking at a very aggressive approach to try to create a bio-ecosystem here that is internationally connected and that will entice more international investment into Japan … On the other hand, we have seen that … some of the potential policy changes that have been implemented over the last 5-6 years have potentially stalled and acted as a hinderance to bringing more innovation to Japan and bringing more international investment to Japan,” said BT Slingsby.

“The discussion has shifted … to now, questions about Japan’s commitment to innovation [and to] a stable pricing environment to enable a return for those investments and risk capital. And that is a constant struggle … not only for multinational colleagues but also the heads of Japanese businesses,” added Steve Sugino.

“Capacity is very important. I believe that currently [for] a number of leading Japanese pharmaceutical companies, their size and capacity to carry out R&D and manufacturing are not strong or big enough… Speed requires a lot of funding and financial resources. Therefore, maybe you can argue that we cannot go ahead without addressing the issue of the size of the companies and [their] investment capability,” commented Osamu Nagayama.

How are investors looking at Japan right now?

“There is increased amount of interest in terms of investing into Japanese science and technology … Most investors on VC end see that Japanese molecules are very high-quality molecules … and the majority of those are small molecules,” said BT Slingsby.

“In terms of how much foreign investment will [come] into clinical trials in Japan to bring more international innovation to Japanese patients, unfortunately, I don’t see that actually on the up ... And that is related to some of the pricing [issues] around pharmaceutical products here in Japan,” added BT Slingsby.

"There is a strong level of belief, enthusiasm, and hope for Japan ... if we look at what is drawing in the investment and the enthusiasm, clearly there are things like the universal healthcare system, the history of a strong regulatory framework, a stable and transparent intellectual property framework for our discoveries. ... I think the question is ... we are at an intersection ... either go forward and accelerate or is it going to be a u-turn?" added Steve Sugino. He then cited concerns over pricing changes, the regulatory framework, and if those are taking the sector back.

Now more than ever, science is entering the public consciousness – from COVID-19 to climate change.

That's why we're excited to announce the launch of Nature's Building Blocks, a BBC StoryWorks series created exclusively for BIO to uncover the stories of innovative companies using nature’s building blocks to change the world every day through biotechnology. Watch the trailer:

To celebrate the launch, Dr. Tara Shine, Director, Environment and Development Consultant, Change by Degrees, brought together some of the innovators featured in the series:

• Beth Bannerman, Chief Engagement & Sustainability Officer, Amyris, Inc., which makes sustainable ingredients for consumer brands
• Nathalie Le Bastard, PhD, Marketing Manager, FujireBio, which produces lab diagnostics
• Patrice Sellès, PhD, CEO, Biotalys (Belgium, Agriculture), which is replacing chemical pesticides with simple proteins inspired by nature

What is biotechnology?

“Biotechnology is the power, the ability to harness the biology processes that naturally occur in nature all around us as well as inside us to be able to address some of the key challenges that humanity’s facing today,” in health, food, and manufacturing, said Sellès.

“There still seems to be a hesitation around understanding it,” said Bannerman. This is why storytelling is important.

How do we reach audiences and explain the benefits? 

“Transparency and credibility are really important,” said Bannerman. Everything in the series was backed by facts and fact-checked by the BBC team.

You have to “balance the simplicity and clarity around what we do without deluding or diminishing the complexity with how we do it,” she continued.

Analogies can help. For example, Amyris programs “yeast to create molecules just like programmers in computer science would create software to develop applications.”

“What people do not understand, they fear,” added Sellès.

“We are now in a sustainability revolution.”

One closing thought: “In learning from nature, we can better protect nature,” said Dr. Shine.

Dr. Francis Collins M.D., Ph.D. was appointed the 16th Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) by President Barack Obama and continues to serve in that role today. 

He joins Cartier Esham, PhD, Chief Science Officer of BIO to discuss what we’ve learned through the COVID-19 pandemic, best practices for clinical trials, vaccines, the importance of collaboration.

How far we’ve come in a year

Commitment to collaboration

In the spring of 2020, people came together through the Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) public-private partnership to bring the best of research and technologies to speed up the development of the most promising COVID-19 treatments and vaccines.

“To see the way in which the scientific community has responded to this in a selfless, incredibly disciplined hardworking way is a wonderful testimony and is a bit of a bright light in what otherwise has been a very dark year for our nation and our world," he said.

What surprised him about COVID-19?

While there were many surprising things we saw with COVID-19, Dr. Collins highlighted the emergence of the variants with multiple mutations.

“That was a surprise – you could have that significant change in the viral spike protein and the consequences for that which we’re dealing with right now. Well, first of all, does the vaccine still work? And if it’s starting to show some cracks, in terms of its effectiveness, do we need to think about redesigning it for booster purposes?"

"Fortunately, right now, we seem to be okay – but if there’s another variant out there that we haven't seen yet, that’s even a little more different than the original strain, then we might fall below that threshold.”

But mRNA technology should provide some comfort given the speed at which scientists could adjust the vaccines.

“You should be able to readily generate an upgraded version that wouldn't have to go through a full 30,000-person trial to demonstrate safety and efficacy.”

There are also consequences for therapeutics, particularly monoclonal antibodies. "Single monoclonals are always going to be frustrated by the appearance of variants," Dr. Collins stated.

Another surprise: while we got several home runs on vaccines, we didn’t find a home run therapeutic treatment for patients with symptoms. 

Do you need a booster COVID-19 vaccine?

The research is still ongoing – but the good news is that while the presence and level of antibodies in the blood trend down, they are still above what is believed to be the necessary threshold for protection.

Addressing diversity in clinical trials and issues of health inequities

The COVID-19 vaccine trials had to be diverse and must continue to be more diverse going forward, he said. It was not possible to adequately test the efficacy of the vaccine on a trial population that was not representative of the country or the world.

“The realities of the way in which research is structured still carry with it all kinds of connotations of 400 years of how we in this country have not really treated everybody as equals. And we are now – if we can look at that without flinching – given a chance to try to do something about it."

"COVID-19 has shown an incredibly bright and distressing light on health disparities in the United States, where African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans shouldered a much higher burden of severe illness and death than did the majority population in the United States.”

The establishment of the Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against COVID-19 Disparities by NIH was important in fostering collaboration with community organizers in 11 states where there were particularly severe  outbreaks.

"We have got to learn how to really work effectively with communities. And I think we learned a lot," said Dr. Collins.

Dr. Collins said he senses "that same commitment from BIO. Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath has been a wonderful partner in our thinking about how we might do this on a broader scale."

The NIH UNITE Initiative

For NIH to better serve patients and communities, it too must work to become more representative of those that it serves. 

"We are still way below what you would want to see to be truly representative. so we are going to redouble those efforts to make our workplace appeal to people who otherwise don't see it as very welcoming."

"We've got a lot of work to do here," he said.

Five years from now, what would you like to say we've achieved?

Dr. Collins would like to see advances in:

• Gene therapy and gene editing
• Immunotherapy for cancer treatment
• Understanding of neuroscience through the Brain Initiative at NIH
• Speeding up diagnostic development and other technologies such as hearing aids and ambulatory blood pressure cuffs
• ARPA-H - The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health could be key in funding groundbreaking and innovative research

Strong representation of AAPI innovators in the biotechnology sector is of the utmost importance to future economic development – and given the rise in anti-AAPI hate crimes, it’s critically important that we have this conversation, said BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath.

She moderated this important session with panelists including: 

• Juliet Choi, JD, President and CEO, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
• Paul Hastings, President and CEO, Nkarta Therapeutics, Inc.
• Nancy Hong, PhD, Managing Director, RiverVest Venture Partners
• Evan Loh, MD, CEO, Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Choi spoke of anti-AAPI discrimination and hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic. “In the last 15, 16, 17 months, we have all really heard, seen, learned firsthand, how leadership matters, words matter – and we've had an extraordinary surge of anti-Asian American violence."

What can the biotech industry do?

Nkarta Therapeutics’ Paul Hastings (and new BIO chair) sought feedback from AAPI community members that work at his company because of anti-AAPI hate crimes that have been happening in the San Francisco area,

"It's very troubling" to his employees. "Most of our employees feel unsafe to walk around the city of San Francisco, particularly Market Street, where a lot of these hate crimes have taken place, and have voiced concerns over it."

Loh spoke about the "model minority myth" – the assumption that because of the success achieved by some in the AAPI community, concerns over discrimination should not be further examined. 

He urged members of the AAPI community (and allies) to speak out, against both micro-aggressions that occur on a daily basis as they occur as well as larger macro-aggressions such as hate crimes.

Venture capital firms can play an important role in improving conditions for members of the AAPI community in the biotech sector, said Hong. They can use their investments to influence the culture of the companies they invest in and make it clear they must stand up against hate.

The impact of healthcare inequities on AAPI communities

Isolation created by COVID-19 has prevented opportunities for engagement, said Loh.

As of February 2021, approximately 3,500 frontline healthcare workers had died due to the COVID-19 pandemic – and 20% were members of AAPI communities.

At the same time, "the willingness for dialogue has improved," said Choi. There are "more media stories" regarding "language accessibility and the need to understand the demographics and communities of color as it relates to COVID and the devastating consequences."

“Data matters,” in demonstrating AAPI representation and ensuring the visibility of AAPI communities, added Choi. In more than 20 states, members of AAPI communities are categorized as “Other”.

What are some of the best practices that individuals and organizations can support and implement to support the diversity of AAPI communities as well as support members of these communities as individuals?

Panelists discussed the importance of one-on-one conversations to develop greater understanding of members of AAPI communities, as well as ally-ship and sponsorship.

What would you tell an up-and-coming AAPI talent today?

"Highlighting others that are making an impact on our incredibly important industry is a good place to start and really sends a message to the next generation," said Hong, noting the importance of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.

Everyone here has a role, said Loh. We can't "underestimate the impact we can have individually but also collectively in helping move this conversation forward." (He encouraged viewers to reach out to the panelists, whose "doors are open".)

Young people "can lead" in their own right and they "have no boundaries," said Hastings. Do not be afraid to speak out against anti-AAPI hate.

"Create and hold the space" regardless of age, added Choi, who also emphasized the importance of "ally-ship and sponsorship." 

We’ve all been touched by the COVID-19 crisis.  But rural America – where access to therapies, vaccines, supplies, and broadband technology is often lacking – has been especially vulnerable. President Biden has called on his administration and the business community to take action, but a broader American commitment is needed to reverse years of inequity.

In this candid and personal conversation, BIO’s Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack discuss the urgency and steps needed for “Building Access & Equality for Rural Families.”

Science is a social justice issue

This is a point on which Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath and the Secretary agree. “The role of science and innovation is critically important,” says Secretary Vilsack.

“Science has led the fight against COVID-19, and it will also drive our efforts to strengthen rural America, decrease hunger, and improve the sustainability of our environment," said Dr. McMurry-Heath.

“USDA is a health department."

“When people think of USDA, they think of farms, they think of food," Secretary Vilsack explains. "But they don’t necessarily think of health. But in reality, we are a health department. It’s about the economic health of rural places and rural people. It’s about the environmental health of the planet. It’s about the health of animals and of plants. And through our nutrition efforts, about human health."

“And the key to health is science and innovation.”

How do we get rural America vaccinated?

According to the CDC, COVID-19 vaccination coverage is lower in rural counties compared with urban ones. How is USDA addressing this?

“It’s about trusted voices,” says Vilsack. We’re micro-targeting audiences by reaching out to the Farm Bureau, Farmers Union, commodity groups, the co-ops, the farm media and rural community leaders and asking them to be visible in encouraging vaccinations.

“And we’re stressing that this is a responsibility – not just to yourself, to your family, and to your community – but a responsibility to your country, which is a message that resonates in rural America.”

USDA is walking the walk: “We’ve put our own people to work with more than 1,600 USDA volunteers in vaccination locations in rural communities, and they have successfully been responsible for 2 million shots already administered.”

USDA is also using $500 million provided by Congress and the President through the American Rescue Plan to provide resources to rural health clinics to help defray vaccination-related expenses and to expand tele-health opportunities.

Closing farming’s racial gap

The American Rescue Plan is also providing $4 billion for loan forgiveness to Black and minority farmers.

For the last 100 years, white farmers have had access to loans, incentives, and other assistance programs, while black and minority farmers have had less advantages.

“It’s important for us to acknowledge the cumulative effect of discrimination, and it’s reflected in the COVID relief efforts,” explained Vilsack, pointing to studies on the COVID relief packages that show white farmers received $5.5 billion in assistance while black farmers received $20 million.

The American Rescue Plan is one way that Congress is directing the USDA to begin to close that gap and to level the playing field for minority producers.

We want to stand with like-minded countries to elevate and defend science.

The adoption of biotechnology in agriculture is a critical tool for domestic priorities, but these tools should be utilized internationally as well. Dr. McMurry-Heath points out that biotechnology can provide life-changing benefits to the most underserved areas of the globe.

So, how is the administration and USDA leveraging its climate ambitions to address international barriers to biotechnology? 

Secretary Vilsack points to the value of alliances: “There is safety in numbers.”

We confront a series of barriers in a number of international fora that are based on a belief that our science is too risky.

In the past we have gone this alone. And yet we’re bucking a forum where our friends in the EU, for example, will go in and represent – not the position of a single country – but of a group of countries.

“So, we’ve begun the process of reaching out to other like-minded countries that understand and appreciate the role of science, the role of innovation, and who feel as strongly as we do about the necessity of defending it."

“That is not to say that we don’t respect other approaches to this. But we think you can have a common vision, but different pathways to that vision – and all pathways should be open.”

“Embrace diversity and inclusion in all its aspects,” says Secretary Vilsack. Diversity in people, diversity in agriculture systems, and diversity in size. Respecting and acknowledging that there are lots of ways to grow and produce food, and farms of all sizes should have the opportunity to be profitable.

“We need to make sure we are transforming our food systems to be a more resilient, vibrant, inclusive, and diverse set of systems. There is great strength in that notion.”

Biochemist. CRISPR pioneer. Nobel Laureate. 

We're beginning Day 3 of BIO Digital with this one-on-one conversation with the one-and-only Dr. Jennifer Doudna, sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.

“Breaking barriers to innovation has the power to change the world,” said Dr. Paul Stoffels, Vice Chairman of the Executive Committee and Chief Scientific Officer of Johnson & Johnson, in his introduction.

“No other industry has the power to so profoundly impact people’s lives."

CRISPR can be a huge part of that.

We have to know. What was her reaction when she heard she won the Nobel Prize?

“Total shock!”

The future of CRISPR

"All of us had the sense we were onto something very exciting" when she and Emmanuelle Charpentier published their 2012 research paper.

"I've been astounded by the pace" CRISPR has moved along in just nine years.

"Already there are patients that have been cured of sickle cell disease using CRISPR," and many more trials and research are underway.

She’s most excited about CRISPR as both a research tool and a therapy—to cure diseases of the blood, eye, and liver, as well as cancer.

“This is where the future lies—in using the technology to treat or frankly even to cure some of the most challenging diseases we face.”

CRISPR can also help solve climate change and make crops with better nutrition, better yields, and better resilience in the face of drought, as a few examples.

"It's a precision tool. Plant breeding has been doing on forever, certainly as long as there have been humans," she said. CRISPR "speeds up the pace" and gives breeders "a tool for understanding the function of genes."

"Over the next few years, we're going to see a rapid acceleration of the use of CRISPR in agriculture." This brings up questions about how it will be viewed by the public and be regulated.

The challenges of new technology like CRISPR

“It’s really important for scientists to be engaging with the broader community about the work that we do.”

“There’s a growing distrust of science and scientists,” she said. “I think partly scientists are to blame. We need to be better at explaining what we do, why we do it, why it has value to society.”

New discoveries can come with risk and ethical concerns—especially when it comes to CRISPR. And scientists need to address them. (She’s organizing a summit on the ethical concerns of CRISPR in London in spring 2022.)

Access is another concern. CRISPR is expensive or otherwise inaccessible. Scientists need to team up to find out how to reduce costs, scale the technology, and enable wider access.

What’s the most helpful advice she’s received?

“It’s always all about people.”

Having a great team is just as important—if not more important—than having a great idea.

“If you have someone who is really engaged and really digging in, they can pivot,” she said. The same is true at companies.

“It’s a myth, isn’t it, that science happens by an individual in a lab. Science has become more and more of a team exercise,” adds Seema Kumar, Vice President, Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies.

CRISPR and COVID-19

Her lab is looking at CRISPR-based diagnostics, including reducing the costs of COVID-19 testing to as low as $1.49/test.

"You can get a lot done very quickly when you work together and focus on a goal,” she said.

What gives her hope as we move out of the pandemic?

“What a triumph for science—that we’re actually able to see the light at the end of the tunnel,” at least in some parts of the world. “The reason we have vaccines is because of all of the fundamental scientific research that’s gone on over the last couple of decades.” If the pandemic had happened even a few years ago, it might have been more difficult.

We also have opportunities to build on things we’ve seen during the pandemic: teamwork, collaboration, and new science and technologies. For example, are there ways we can use what we’ve learned in vaccination programs for other disease?

“Collaboration has defined the past year,” said Kumar.

This session was sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.