The Alliance for Biosecurity, a collaboration among pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, has elected Anders Hedegaard, president and chief executive officer of vaccine-focused biotechnology Bavarian Nordic, and Elizabeth Posillico, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of antibody therapeutics developer Elusys Therapeutics, its new co-chairs.

They will represent the Alliance before the U.S. government and other agencies to advance the development of new medical countermeasures to be used against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. Hedegaard and Posillico will each serve a two-year term, which began in June.

The Alliance for Biosecurity was formed in 2005 to improve the nation's biosecurity through the development of medical countermeasures (MCMs) to address bioterrorism and natural pandemic threats. Activities of the Alliance include educating Congress and other government stakeholders about biosecurity and drug development issues, promoting the success of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), advancing the science of animal model development, accelerating MCM development and presenting consensus policy proposals.

The Alliance has successfully advocated for preserving the BioShield Special Reserve Fund and BARDA to maintain funding for the development and procurement of MCMs.  In addition, several Alliance recommendations for enhancing the regulatory pathway for MCMs and integrating the FDA into the development process were adopted in recently enacted legislation.