Dr. Richard Bookman Named Chair of Beacon Council Life Science & Health Care Committee
Richard J. Bookman, Ph.D., senior advisor for program development and science policy at the Miller School of Medicine and director of the UHealth Care Lab, has been appointed chair of the Miami-Dade Beacon Council Life Science & Health Care Committee for the 2020-2021 fiscal year.
Dr. Bookman has served in a number of leadership roles in research, including vice provost at the University of Miami and executive dean at the Miller School, and has been central to promoting innovations in health care at the University of Miami Health System and throughout the state of Florida. At the Beacon Council his priority is to build Miami’s reputation as a center for innovations in health care delivery, particularly in improving health care access and outcomes for the underserved. This is a continuation of the focus of the 2018 symposium he organized with UHealth Care Lab co-founder German Rueda on “Health Care Innovation in the Medicaid Space.”
“Serving as a leader of the Life Science & Health Care Committee is an essential function of your commitment to support economic development in Miami-Dade County,” Gary Goldfarb, chair of the Beacon Council, and Michael A. Finney, president and CEO, said in the letter announcing Dr. Bookman’s appointment. “Your voice is critical to ensuring the Miami-Dade Beacon Council’s attainment of our strategic economic development goals.”
Dr. Bookman has been active on the state level for decades through his championing of the Florida Biomedical Research Program and his service as chair of the state’s Biomedical Research Advisory Council. Since 2013, he has worked with the deans of Florida’s medical schools to create the Florida Medical Schools Quality Network. As vice president of the network, Dr. Bookman worked to bring the medical schools’ research capacity to bear on problems facing the state’s Medicaid program and patients.
His leadership on the Beacon Council is bringing South Florida health care organizations together to continue this work to extend the reach and effectiveness of Medicaid. “This role provides me a unique opportunity to ensure that the focus of innovation in health care serves our entire community,” Dr. Bookman said. “Collaboration and shared purpose are key: we already have UHealth, Jackson and Nicklaus Children’s collaborating on doing a joint Community Health Needs Assessment. The Beacon Council Health Care Committee looks forward to using that report as one of our roadmaps for better health and economic growth in Miami-Dade County.”
Tags: Beacon Council, Dr. Richard Bookman, Life Science & Health Care Committee