Senators John Boozman and Patty Murray and CARB-X partnership honored with GHTC Innovating for Impact Awards

The Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC) today honored Senator John Boozman (R-AR) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) for their leadership in supporting global health research and development (R&D) with its 2020 Innovating for Impact Awards, which celebrate the US policymakers and partnerships driving global health innovation. GHTC also recognized the CARB-X partnership for its progress in accelerating research to combat the urgent threat of drug-resistant bacteria.

“We can be proud of our nation's leadership in advancing medical research and developing vaccines and treatments to improve the lives of people around the globe,” Senator Boozman said in accepting the award. “The COVID-19 emergency illustrates the importance of research and development in fighting deadly diseases. This outbreak demonstrates how globally connected we are and why helping solve health issues abroad also helps our own country.” Senator Boozman, who serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee, was honored with a Congressional Champion Award for his longstanding work to grow funding for US global health initiatives and protect Army and Navy malaria research programs, as well as his unwavering commitment to international cooperation and global health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

GHTC also recognized Senator Murray, who is ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and member of the Appropriations Committee, with a Congressional Champion Award for her instrumental role in strengthening the R&D ecosystem across multiple US agencies and her efforts to bolster US preparedness and response to global health threats including COVID-19. “As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rage, the value of investing in global health research and partnerships has never been so painfully clear,” Senator Murray said in accepting the award. “We know new diseases are not stopped by borders. They are stopped by new discoveries and by partnerships that help those discoveries reach every corner of the world.”

Additionally, GHTC honored CARB-X and its partners with the Partnership Award for their work to advance next-generation tools to combat antibiotic resistance. This unique multisector partnership, which is helping developers bring new antibiotics, vaccines, and other products to market, is led by Professor Kevin Outterson at Boston University and supported by the US government—via the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases—and additional global partners including the Wellcome Trust, UK and German governments, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Since its inception in 2016, CARB-X has supported 75 diverse projects across ten countries with its portfolio now representing the world’s largest early development pipeline of antibacterial innovations. With several of these projects progressing and meeting research milestones on the path to regulatory approval, CARB-X is fueling an expanding pipeline of tools to respond to this pressing global health challenge.

“The CARB-X team is deeply honored to receive this award. It recognizes the work we do together with our funders, leading scientists and experts, and outstanding research teams around the world to achieve a common vision: protect humanity from the most serious bacterial threats by accelerating innovative antibacterial product development,” said Professor Outterson, executive director of CARB-X. “The COVID-19 pandemic is a bitter reminder of the need to be prepared for global public health crises. As we struggle with COVID-19, we must also address the antibiotic-resistance crisis.”

While in past years GHTC’s Innovating for Impact Awards have been presented in person at a recognition event in Washington, DC, in light the of COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 awards were unveiled via an online multimedia campaign.

“GHTC is thrilled to honor Senators Boozman and Murray and the CARB-X partnership with our Innovating for Impact Awards,” said Jamie Bay Nishi, director of GHTC. “US leadership in global health R&D has helped fuel tremendous progress in generating new cures and vaccines to fight the world’s deadliest health threats, and we’re so delighted to recognize the outstanding work of our honorees who are helping make this progress possible.”

Global health R&D is vital to conquering the world’s greatest health challenges and to building a safer, healthier world for all. Now in its fourth year, the Innovating for Impact Awards celebrates US commitment to global health R&D and honors the multisector partnerships and policymakers helping to transform breakthrough scientific research into lifesaving technologies for unmet global health challenges.