Pharma Boardroom Interview: Marc Boutin, CEO, National Health Council

Below is an excerpt from NHC CEO Marc Boutin’s interview with Pharma Boardroom. Read the full interview here.

“Marc Boutin, JD, CEO of the National Health Council (NHC), introduces the organization and its mission to provide a united voice for the 160 million people in the US living with chronic diseases and disabilities and their family caregivers. He addresses the challenge faced by patients living with chronic diseases and disabilities. Boutin goes on to describe the transformation in healthcare in which patients are becoming more engaged and increasing the visibility of their own desired health outcomes. Lastly, he describes how the current COVID-19 health crisis has highlighted the need for improvement in US public health infrastructure.

This year, the NHC celebrates 100 years of existence. Can you please introduce the organization and its structure?

The NHC was created 100 years ago by patient organizations for patient organizations. Our members include representatives from a broad array of patient groups such as the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association on one end of a spectrum and smaller patient associations representing rare diseases on the other end. The NHC focuses on systemic issues that are important to all people living with chronic conditions such as access to care and driving patient-centered innovation. In order to truly have an impact on these issues, we need to understand the different perspectives of all stakeholders. Therefore, we have representatives across the entire health spectrum in membership, including the biopharmaceutical, generic drug, device, diagnostic, payer, researcher, and caregiver communities.”