FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media and Organization Contact:
Marianne Foss-Skiftesvik
(203) 434-2383
marianne@whamnow.org

DR. LORI FRANK APPOINTED PRESIDENT OF WHAM

Women’s Health Access Matters (WHAM) Welcomes Distinguished Scientist to Lead Innovations in Women’s Health Research

Greenwich, CT (January 12, 2024) — WHAM, a non-profit organization founded in 2019 by a group of leading businesswomen, is pleased to announce the appointment of Lori Frank, PhD, as President, effective January 22, 2024.

In her role as President, Dr. Frank will lead the expansion of WHAM’s research and analytical work while further enhancing WHAM’s position as the leading, innovative resource for women’s health data, showing the economic impact of accelerating investment in research and business focused on the health of women.

Dr. Frank is a distinguished scientist and research leader committed to inclusion and equity in healthcare. She joins WHAM following her tenure as Senior Vice President for Research at the New York Academy of Medicine. Dr. Frank’s career has been dedicated to enhancing clinical care, health policy, and health technology assessment by incorporating the perspectives of all healthcare stakeholders.

WHAM was founded with the objective of accelerating investment in women’s health research as an economic imperative that would yield a significant return to the economy. WHAM commissioned the RAND Corporation to study diseases across WHAM’s pillar areas of brain health, heart health, cancer and autoimmune disorders, which resulted in The WHAM Report, a series of studies that examine the impact of accelerating sex and gender–based health research on women, their families, and the economy. Dr. Frank served as the Senior Scientist in creating this report.

“Since WHAM’s launch in 2019, our ongoing partnerships with leaders in different parts of the ecosystem provide a trusted, objective convening ability which will be amplified by this announcement of Dr. Lori Frank as President. Dr. Frank’s extraordinary background and achievements as a researcher and a scientist make her unique in adding to WHAM’s ability to convene organizations focused on women’s health research, work across sectors and leverage connections to achieve shared goals, especially those focused on data collection and use,” said Carolee Lee, Founder and CEO, WHAM.

Dr. Frank, sharing her enthusiasm, stated, “WHAM has led exceptional progress to advance women’s health research. It’s a privilege to now expand on the impressive work underway and use the power of collaboration to increase awareness of the value of investment in women.”

With a notable career, Dr. Frank founded and directed the Evaluation and Analysis program at the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), establishing research to optimize funding and improve stakeholder engagement. Prior to joining PCORI she served as Executive Director and Senior Research Leader with MEDTAP International/United BioSource Corporation, where she led the scientific and financial performance of the Center, overseeing international operations focused on pharma and biotech. She has led programs on health outcomes and health economics and served as Principal Investigator of the Cognition Initiative, a multi-sponsor patient-reported outcome measure development for clinical dementia research.

She has held research and teaching positions with the Pardee RAND Graduate School, Georgetown University Department of Psychiatry, the National Institute on Aging, Medimmune LLC/AstraZeneca, and the Veteran’s Administration.

She is Past President of the International Society for Quality of Life Research, a professional society devoted to health outcomes assessment, and she serves on the Board of the Personalized Medicine Coalition and on the Medical, Scientific, and Memory Screening Advisory Board of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. She completed her Health and Aging Policy Fellowship through the Congressional Fellowship Program, working with the National Institute on Aging. Dr. Frank obtained graduate degrees from the Pennsylvania State University and the Johns Hopkins University. Her publications span women’s health, measurement of health outcomes, and dementia care and policy.

To stay informed about WHAM’s initiatives, including the WHAM 3Not30 Campaign, sign up for WHAM’s newsletter here. Follow WHAM on Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (formerly Twitter) to stay updated on other #3Not30 activities and the latest in women’s health research.

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About WHAM (Women’s Health Access Matters) 

Women’s health is an economic issue we can’t afford to ignore. WHAM works to increase awareness of and funding for women’s health research and investment by accelerating scientific discovery in women’s health in four primary disease verticals – autoimmune disease, brain health, cancer, and heart health. The WHAM Report quantifies the economic opportunity for investing in women’s health, looking across diseases that impact women differently and differentially, including coronary artery disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer’s disease. Learn more at www.thewhamreport.org and www.whamnow.org.