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Innovators in Health Awards

Our annual Innovators in Health Awards recognize pioneers whose efforts reflect NEHI’s spirit of innovation and collaboration, and whose work advances NEHI’s mission to improve the quality of health care for patients and their families. 

The Revolution in Obesity Treatment: A Report from the Front Lines

This year's IIH event featured a panel discussion titled "The Revolution in Obesity Treatment: A Report from the Front Lines," moderated by NEHI's Tom Hubbard. Leaders from payor, provider, and patient advocate organizations shared insights into innovative strategies driving positive change. 

2024 Panelists:


Thank you to our 2024 Sponsors

GOLD SPONSORS

SILVER SPONSORS

BRONZE SPONSORS


Past Honorees:

2023

Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, MAS
  • Editor in Chief, JAMA, and JAMA Network
  • Lee Goldman, MD Endowed Professor of Medicine and Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of California, San Francisco
Renee Salas, MD, MS, MPH
  • Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School
  • Yerby Fellow, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
David Blumenthal, MD, MPP
  • President, The Commonwealth Fund
Mark McClellan, MD, PhD
  • Director, Robert J. Margolis Center for Health Policy at Duke University
Christopher Molaro, MBA
  • CEO, NeuroFlow
  • Inaugural NEHI Member Innovation Award
Andrew Dreyfus
  • Chief Executive Officer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
  • Henri A. Termeer Memorial Award

2022/2021

Kathrin Jansen, PhD
  • Senior Vice President, Head of Vaccine Research and Development, Pfizer
Toyin Ajayi, MD, MPhil
  • Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Cityblock Health
Uǧur Şahin, MD, PhD
  • Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, BioNTech
Iyah Romm
  • Co-Founder and Board Member, Cityblock Health
Özlem Türeci, MD
  • Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer BioNTech
Robert Coughlin
  • Managing Director, Life Sciences, JLL
Jewel Mullen, MD, MPH, MPA
  • Associate Dean, Health Equity, University of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical School
Bay Gross
  • Co-Founder and Chief Technical Officer, Cityblock Health

2020

2019

Rebekah Gee, MD, MPH, FACOG
  • Chief Executive Officer of Health Care Services, LSU Health
Joan Reede, MD, MPH
  • Dean for Diversity and Community Partnership, Harvard Medical School
John Maraganore, PhD
  • Chief Executive Officer, Alnylam
Sonia Vallabh, PhD and Eric Minikel, PhD
  • Associated Scientists, Prions@Broad, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Myechia Minter-Jordan, MD, MBA
  • President and Chief Executive Officer, DentaQuest Partnership for Oral Health Advancement and Catalyst Institute
Red Sox Foundation
  • Accepted by Bekah Salwasser, Executive Director

2018

2017

Scott Gottlieb, MD
  • Commissioner of Food and Drugs, U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Charlie Baker
  • Governor of Massachusetts
Senator Orrin Hatch
  • United States Senator for Utah
Patrick Conway, MD, MSc
  • Former Deputy Administrator for Innovation and Quality, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; Incoming President and CEO, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina
Colleen LaBelle, MSN, RN-BC, CARN
  • Director, State Office Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT); Director, Boston Medical Center’s OBAT
Former Congressman Henry Waxman
  • Chairman, Waxman Strategies; Former United States Representative for California
Jessie Gaeta, MD
  • Chief Medical Officer, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program

2016

2015

Edward J Benz Jr, MD
  • Former President and CEO, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Henri Termeer
  • Former Genzyme CEO and leader in life-sciences
Diane Rehm
  • Host, The Diane Rehm Show
Karen DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MSc
  • Acting Assistant Secretary, HHS, and health IT leader
Janet Woodcock, MD
  • Director, the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, the Food and Drug Administration
Partners In Health
  • Accepted by Gary Gottlieb, MD, President and CEO

2014

2013

Dr. Margaret Hamburg
  • Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Susan Dentzer
  • Senior Health Policy Advisor, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Rebecca Onie
  • Co-Founder and CEO, Health Leads
Harvey V. Fineberg, MD, PhD
  • President, Institute of Medicine
James Park
  • Co-Founder and CEO, Fitbit
The Honorable Deval L. Patrick
  • Governor of Massachusetts

2012

2011

Robert J. Beall, PhD
  • President and Chief Executive Officer, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Donald M. Berwick, MD
  • Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
The Honorable Regina Benjamin, MD
  • U.S. Surgeon General
Dean Kamen
  • Founder, DEKA Research and Development Corporation
Christine Cassel, MD
  • President and CEO, American Board of Internal Medicine and ABIM Foundation
Joseph and Kathy O'Donnell
  • The Joey Fund
Eric Olson, PhD
  • Vice President, Vertex Pharmaceuticals
The Honroable Thomas M. Menino
  • Mayor of Boston

2010

2009

Carolyn Clancy, MD
  • Director, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Christina Economos, PhD
  • Associate Professor, Tufts University; Principal Investigator, Shape Up Somerville
Patricia Gabow, MD
  • CEO, Denver Health
Atul Gawande, MD
  • Research Director, Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Staff Writer, The New Yorker
Jennie Chin Hansen
  • CEO, American Geriatrics Society
Jamie Heywood
  • Co-Founder & Chairman, PatientsLikeMe; d’Arbeloff Founding Director, ALS Therapy Development Institute
Jack Wennberg, MD
  • Peggy Y. Thomson Professor (Chair) in the Evaluative Clinical Sciences, Founder & Director Emeritus, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice
Eric S. Lander, PhD
  • President and Director, Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT
Barry Zuckerman, MD
  • Chief of Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center; Founder, Project HEALTH, Medical-Legal Partnership for Children, Reach Out and Read

2008

Jack Connors
  • Founding Partner and Chairman, Hill Holiday; Chairman, Partners HealthCare
Richard C. Lord
  • President and CEO, Associated Industries of Massachusetts
The Honorable Sal DiMasi
  • Massachusetts House Speaker
John McDonough
  • Executive Director, Health Care for All
Andrew Dreyfus
  • President, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation
The Honorable Richard T. Moore
  • Massachusetts State Senator
Paul Guzzi
  • President and CEO, Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
The Honorable Mitt Romney
  • Governor of Massachusetts
Reverend Hurmon Hamilton
  • President, Greater Boston Interfaith Organization
The Honorable Robert Travaglini
  • Massachusetts Senate President
The Honorable Edward M. Kennedy
  • United States Senator
Nancy Turnbull
  • President, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation
The Honorable Patricia Walrath
  • Massachusetts State Representative