PACE: BIO’s 15th annual patient advocacy event focuses on access

America’s biotech industry has facilitated 50 years of innovative breakthroughs that have changed the landscape of healthcare as we know it—offering the promise of giving people more time with the people they love.

But none of these breakthroughs mean anything if they can’t get into the hands of patients. That is why the patient voice is so important to biotech and the policy around it.

To amplify the voice of patients and their advocates, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization’s (BIO) 15th annual Patient Advocacy Changemakers Event (PACE) will convene October 22–23 in Washington DC. PACE is an opportunity for patient advocates to build community, connect with fellow patient groups and BIO members, and discuss policy issues that impact patient access, affordability, and the promise of future innovation.

“PACE is a unique event among all the gatherings of patients and caregivers and advocates in our community,” says John F. Crowley, president and CEO of BIO. “It’s the one chance we have to bring together people living with disease, people who care for those living with disease, researchers, government policymakers, and industry leaders to come together in a forum to discuss all the different ways in which we can partner, share ideas, and advance therapies for everybody in need.”

“Getting 21st Century medicines to patients requires a 21st century approach to affordability and access, and PACE brings patients, advocates, and BIO members together to shape access today and deliver hope for tomorrow,” says Michele Oshman Chief Patient Advocate and Senior Vice President, Patient Advocacy Center of Excellence.

So what can participants expect from the event, and what is BIO working to facilitate?

Some changes for 2026

This year’s PACE makes some additions, focusing on specialized breakout sessions, new keynote speakers, and timely policy issues (like access and affordability) that are affecting patients immediately.

“We have multiple specialized breakout sessions for folks who are truly DC experts and who work on policy every day, as well as breakouts for organizations that may be building that capability,” explains Oshman. 

“This year’s PACE program goes a little bit deeper into policy than perhaps in past years. And there are a couple of reasons for that,” Oshman says. “One is that we’re gearing up for PDUFA VIII (the Prescription Drug User Fee Act reauthorization), and we want to make sure that patient advocates share their voice as part of that process. We’re also at a unique time in terms of patient access to therapies. We recognize the affordability and access challenges patients are facing, and now is the time to prepare for the next congressional session and bring your voice to the Hill.”

Additionally, BIO is welcoming baseball’s all-time Iron Man, Cal Ripken Jr. as the keynote speaker to the event. He will talk about his career and philanthropic work, and how his own patient journey shaped his work, in a conversation with Crowley.

“I used to say that I have two hats,” recalls Crowley, “on one hand, I was the entrepreneur, the CEO, the drug developer. On the other hand, I was the father of two children with a very rare disease. I came to realize that it really is just one hat with one aligned mission.”

It was that spirit of storytelling that helped Crowley, and patient advocates like him, understand that advocacy is a holistic endeavor, not a mission of parts.

“I think early on there was a view that people living with diseases or their loved ones weren’t sophisticated enough or weren’t objective enough,” he explains. “The opposite is actually true. We are the ones oftentimes who care the most, who know the best, and who have the unique ability to convene everybody who may bring any value toward advancing therapies that might alleviate suffering, and extend and enhance life. So that patient perspective I’ve come to learn is not only one important part, it is the most important part of everything we do in biomedical research.”

Patient advocates are the keystone when it comes to driving innovative medicines into the hands of patients, and events like PACE provide the ideal space for these conversations.

“If we simply innovate and we don’t ensure access for everybody in need, we will have failed,” says Crowley. “And that’s why this conference is so important: to not only talk about what it takes to advance what we call the virtuous circle of innovation, but how we actually then make sure that everybody has access to that medicine.”

These conversations and more will permeate the week’s event, not only helping keep advocates more informed, but connecting them to colleagues that can collaboratively help them reach their goals.

“My hope for PACE this year is that it’s the beginning of a conversation, not the culmination of one,” says Oshman.

Find out more and register for PACE.

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