Philip R. Lee, MD

Philip R. Lee, MD, was a distinguished physician, health policy expert, and public health advocate whose contributions significantly shaped U.S. health policy and public health administration. With a career spanning academia, government service, and international health, Dr. Lee was widely recognized as a pioneer in healthcare reform and policy development.

Dr. Lee served as a Senior Scholar at the Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), which he helped found in 1972 and where he served as its director. He was also a Professor Emeritus of Social Medicine at UCSF. His government service included roles as Assistant Secretary for Health and Scientific Affairs in the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (1965–1969) under President Lyndon Johnson, during which he played a pivotal role in the implementation of Medicare, and as Assistant Secretary for Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (1993–1997) under President Bill Clinton.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Lee directed the Health Services Division at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) from 1963 to 1965, overseeing U.S. health initiatives in developing nations. He also served as the first president of the San Francisco Health Commission in 1985 and was appointed chair of the Physician Payment Review Commission by Congress in 1986.

Dr. Lee’s work was characterized by a commitment to evidence-based policymaking, addressing the intersection of healthcare delivery, medical practice, and social medicine. Over his career, he authored or co-authored more than 150 articles and numerous books on health policy, influencing generations of healthcare practitioners and policymakers.

Dr. Lee earned his medical degree from Stanford University in 1948 and a Master of Science degree from the University of Minnesota in 1955. He was a member of the Institute of Medicine and received numerous prestigious awards, including the David Rogers Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges in 1998, the Gustav O. Lienhard Award from the Institute of Medicine in 2000, the Sedgwick Medal from the American Public Health Association in 2000, and the Henrik Blum Award from the California Public Health Association in 2001.

Dr. Lee’s legacy is defined by his transformative impact on healthcare systems, his advocacy for equitable health policies, and his enduring influence on public health and social medicine. His life’s work continues to inspire advancements in health policy and reform.

Larry Smarr, PhD

Larry Smarr contributions have been pivotal in shaping the modern digital landscape. Dr. Smarr originally trained as an astrophysicist and his expertise in this field laid the foundation for many of his innovations in computational science and technology. He is the founding director of the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Cal-(IT)²), a collaborative effort between the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), and University of California, Irvine (UCI). The institute focuses on interdisciplinary research at the intersection of telecommunications, information technology, and engineering.

In 1985, Smarr became the founding director of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), a position that allowed him to spearhead initiatives that advanced high-performance computing and supercomputing. While at NCSA, he played a crucial role in the development of Mosaic, the web browser that was one of the first to bring the World Wide Web to the general public. This product eventually formed the basis for browsers developed by companies like Netscape and Microsoft, revolutionizing the internet.

In 1997, Dr. Smarr became the founding director of the National Computational Science Alliance, which connected over 50 universities, government labs, and corporations. The alliance’s goal was to develop and prototype the information infrastructure for the 21st century, aiming to establish a national-scale virtual enterprise for scientific collaboration. Throughout his career, Smarr has been at the forefront of designing national and global information infrastructure, recognizing early on the importance of high-performance computing, data, and networks to drive innovation in science, engineering, and industry.

Smarr is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and his contributions to physics, particularly in computational methods and astrophysics, have earned him recognition as a fellow of the American Physical Society (APS). He is also a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Smarr has served on several high-profile advisory committees, including the President’s Information Technology Advisory Committee, the National Institutes of Health Advisory Committee, and the NASA Advisory Council.

Larry Smarr’s career has made lasting contributions to both the development of the internet and to advancing scientific computing. His early recognition of the importance of infrastructure for a connected world, combined with his leadership in creating institutions that bridge academia, government, and industry, makes him a key figure in the evolution of modern technology.

Peter Szolovits, MD

Dr. Szolovits is Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, MIT and Director of the Clinical Decision-Making Group, MIT  Laboratory of Computer Science.

A world authority and pioneer in artificial intelligence, Dr. Szolovits led the medical artificial intelligence community in moving toward reasoning about the physiological mechanisms of disease, quantitative considerations, temporal evolution of disease, and model-based reasoning. His research centers on the application of AI methods to problems of medical decision-making and the design of information systems for health care institutions and patients. Szolovits focuses this research on solving problems of diagnosis, therapy planning, execution, and monitoring for various medical conditions; the computational aspects of genetic counseling; controlled sharing of health information; and privacy and confidentiality issues in medical record systems. His interests in AI include knowledge representation, qualitative reasoning, and probabilistic inference. His interests in medical computing include Web-based heterogeneous medical record systems, life-long personal health information systems, and design of cryptographic schemes for health identifiers. Szolovits is Professor of Computer Science and Engineering in the MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and an associate faculty member in the MIT Institute of Medical Engineering and Science and its Harvard/MIT Health Sciences and Technology program. He is also head of the Clinical Decision-Making Group within the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. Szolovits was elected to the National Academy of Medicine and is a Fellow of the American Association for Artificial Intelligence, the American College of Medical Informatics, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the International Academy of Health Sciences Informatics. He recently served as a member of the National Research Council’s Computer Science and Telecommunications Board and of the National Library of Medicine’s Biomedical Library and Informatics Review Committee. He is the 2013 recipient of the Morris F. Collen Award of Excellence from the American College of Medical Informatics, which is part of the American Medical Informatics Association.

Brian Biles, MD, MPH

Dr. Brian Biles, MD, MPH, is a Professor and Emeritus Chair of the Department of Health Services Management and Policy at the School of Public Health and Health Services, George Washington University. With a career spanning decades in health policy, public administration, and academia, Dr. Biles has made substantial contributions to healthcare services and policy development, focusing on informed medical decision-making and effective health system design.

Dr. Biles served as staff director of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health for seven years, where he played a critical role in guiding debates on Medicare and health financing legislation. Subsequently, as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services during the Clinton Administration, he led policy development efforts on health reform and public health issues. In Maryland, he served as Deputy Secretary for the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, overseeing state programs in public health, Medicaid, and health regulation.

Since joining the George Washington University faculty in 2000, Dr. Biles has continued his impactful work in health policy. He served as Director of the National Commission on Nursing Workforce for Long-Term Care, releasing a key report on workforce retention and recruitment in 2005. He chairs the Medical Administrators Conference, is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine, and is an Invited Lecturer at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Dr. Biles has also contributed to several esteemed organizations. He has served on the Institute of Medicine’s Board on Health Care Services and the New York Academy of Medicine’s Committee on Medicine and Society. His governance roles include membership on the Governing Council and Action Board of the American Public Health Association, the Board of Directors for the Foundation for Health Services Research, and chairing the Board of Trustees for the American Medical Student Association Foundation.

Dr. Biles’ career is marked by his commitment to improving healthcare policy, enhancing public health systems, and addressing workforce challenges, making him a prominent figure in health services research and policy analysis.

David Lawrence, MD

Chairman Emeritus of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals

Dr. Lawrence is former CEO and Chairman of the Boards of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, retiring in 2002. Dr. Lawrence began his career with Kaiser Permanente with the Northwest Permanente Medical Group in 1981, and he has held the positions of CEO and Chairman since 1992. Dr. Lawrence currently serves on the Boards of Agilent Technologies, Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation, Raffles Medical Group of Singapore, McKesson Corporation, and the RAND Health Advisory Board, among others. He also serves in advisory roles to the biotechnology industry. Prior to joining Kaiser Permanente, Dr. Lawrence worked in academic medicine, public health, and international health. He is board certified in general preventive medicine, attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard, and is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Society and the Institute of Medicine. Lawrence earned his M.D. at the University of Kentucky and his MPH at the University of Washington.

Marilyn Moon, PhD

Marilyn Moon, PhD, is an esteemed economist and nationally recognized expert in Medicare, aging, and health care financing. She is Emeritus Vice President and Director of the Health Program at the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and has had a distinguished career in health policy research and analysis.

Dr. Moon served as one of two public trustees of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds, where she provided oversight and guidance on these critical programs. As a Senior Fellow at the Urban Institute, she conducted in-depth research on health policy and testified frequently before Congress. Additionally, she serves as the Program Director for the Commonwealth Fund’s Program on Medicare’s Future and is a founding Director of the Public Policy Institute of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).

Her leadership extends to governance roles, including serving on the Board of Directors of the Medicare Rights Center and chairing the Maryland Health Care Commission. Dr. Moon is also a member of the Institute of Medicine and has contributed her expertise to the National Academy of Social Insurance. Earlier in her career, she worked as a senior analyst at the Congressional Budget Office.

Through her extensive experience and contributions, Dr. Marilyn Moon has shaped policies and programs that address the challenges of aging, health care access, and Medicare’s sustainability.

John Rother

John Rother is a prominent figure in the realm of senior citizen policies and health care in Washington, D.C., recognized for his extensive experience and leadership in shaping policies that impact older Americans. With a career spanning decades, Mr. Rother has served in influential roles, including his tenure as the Director of Policy and Strategy at the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), where he played a pivotal role in advocating for the interests of over 42 million senior citizens.

Prior to his work with AARP, he spent eight years in the U.S. Senate, serving as Special Counsel for Labor and Health and as Staff Director and Chief Counsel for the Special Committee on Aging. His expertise encompasses health care, long-term care, Social Security, pensions, and employment policies.

He has served on numerous boards and commissions, including the Corporation for National Service, the National Committee for Quality Assurance, the Foundation for Accountability in Health Care, and the Institute of Medicine’s National Roundtable on Health Care Quality. Additionally, Mr. Rother has been a member of the ERISA Advisory Council for the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary’s Blue-Ribbon Advisory Commission on the FDA (Edwards Commission), and the Commonwealth Fund’s Commission on Elderly People Living Alone. In 1996, he undertook a special assignment to examine the retirement challenges faced by the baby boomer generation.

John Rother is widely regarded as an authority on aging and health care policy, dedicating his career to addressing the needs of senior citizens and improving systems that support their well-being and financial security.

Robert Swanson

Robert “Bob” Swanson was a pioneering figure in biotechnology, best known for co-founding Genentech, one of the world’s first biotechnology companies, in 1976. Swanson, who was 29 at the time, partnered with Dr. Herbert W. Boyer, a renowned scientist, to launch the company that would go on to revolutionize the field of biotechnology and medical treatments. His background as a venture capitalist at Kleiner & Perkins in San Francisco helped him identify the potential for combining cutting-edge science with business innovation.

After his time at Genentech, Swanson retired and founded K&E Management, a private investment firm. In the late 1990s, he became involved with MedExpert. From 1998 until his death in December 1999, Swanson worked closely with MedExpert to refine medical decision systems and played a key role in developing business cases for calculating evidence-based medicine (EBM) answers. Swanson’s work focused on accelerating the pace at which individuals could access evidence-based solutions, contributing significantly to the evolution of healthcare decision support systems.

Swanson was also the last person to work with MedExpert’s manual algorithms before the company transitioned to automated AI-driven systems. MedExpert’s automation was completed and incorporated in 2000, just after Swanson’s passing, marking a significant milestone in the intersection of artificial intelligence and healthcare.

Swanson’s legacy lives on not only through Genentech, which remains a powerhouse in biotechnology, but also through his contributions to improving the way individuals access and apply medical knowledge to patients care.

James Bottum

James Bottum is a distinguished research professor in the College of Engineering, Applied Science, and Computing at Clemson University and a Presidential Fellow at Internet2. With an extensive career in academia and technology leadership, Professor Bottum has played pivotal roles in advancing research computing and cyberinfrastructure.

At Clemson University, he served as Vice Provost and Chief Information Officer, where he significantly contributed to the institution’s technological advancement. He has also been an influential voice in national science and technology policy, serving on two advisory committees for the National Science Foundation (NSF). These include the NSF Advisory Committee for Cyberinfrastructure and the agency’s Advisory Committee for GPRA Assessment, which evaluates NSF’s strategic outcomes in discovery, learning, and research infrastructure as part of its accountability under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993.

Before his tenure at Clemson, Professor Bottum was the Executive Director of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he played a key role in advancing supercomputing research and applications.

Through his leadership roles and advisory contributions, James Bottum has had a lasting impact on research computing, cyberinfrastructure, and the broader field of science and engineering education.