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Tuesday June 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
Component Type: Session
Level: Intermediate

This plenary session will bring together first-hand perspectives from academic and pharmaceutical experts involved in the development of the GLP1 therapies that first achieved regulatory approval for the treatment of obesity. Speakers will reflect on the scientific and clinical journey that enabled these breakthroughs, while examining how innovation in this space continues to evolve. The session will also address the persistent access gap facing patients worldwide and explore how global companies are working closely with regulators to expand access in a sustainable and equitable manner. Key health policy implications will be discussed, setting the stage for subsequent sessions within the new Chronic Disease and Obesity Pathway.

Learning Objectives

Analyze the key scientific and clinical milestones that led to the first regulatory approvals of GLP-1 therapies for obesity using expert perspectives; Assess how innovation in GLP-1 therapies is evolving and consider its impact on future obesity and chronic disease treatment; Examine global access gaps to obesity therapies and identify policy and regulatory strategies to expand equitable and sustainable patient access.

Chair

Maria Vassileva, PHD

Speaker

Panelist
Robert M. Califf, MD

Panelist
Brad Jordan, PHD

Panelist
W. Scott Butsch, MD, MSC


Speakers
avatar for W. Scott Butsch

W. Scott Butsch

International Medical Vice President - Obesity, Novo Nordisk A/S, Denmark
avatar for Robert Califf

Robert Califf

Instructor, Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine, United States
Dr. Robert Califf is an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at Duke University and a practicing cardiologist. He served as FDA Commissioner (2016–2017) and Deputy Commissioner for Medical Products and Tobacco. At Duke, he was Vice Chancellor for Clinical and Translational Research and... Read More →
avatar for Brad Jordan

Brad Jordan

Associate Vice President, Regulatory Policy and Strategy, Eli Lilly and Company, United States
Brad Jordan is the Associate Vice President of Regulatory Policy and Strategy at Eli Lilly, where he is responsible for the regulatory policy strategy for Lilly’s cardiometabolic and immunology therapeutic areas.
avatar for Maria Vassileva

Maria Vassileva

Chief Science and Regulatory Officer, DIA, United States
Dr. Vassileva has decades of experience with managing complex multi-stakeholder biomedical research programs. She spent most of her career in the nonprofit sector, leading the Science Team at the Arthritis Foundation, and working at the Foundation for NIH and the American Association... Read More →
Tuesday June 16, 2026 8:00am - 9:00am EDT
114 The Pennsylvania Convention Center 1101 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19107 USA
  00: Plenary, Session |   02: ClinicalTrialOps-Innovation, Session |   08: RegPolicy-Strategy-GlobalCollaboration, Session

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