HHS Announces Appointment of New Public Members to the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee

The Department of Health and Human Services today announced the appointments of Wendy Chung, M.D., Ph.D. and Robert Ring, Ph.D. as public members of the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC), a federal advisory Committee composed of federal agency officials and appointed community stakeholders that provides coordination and a forum for public input on issues related to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Prior to her departure, former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius appointed Dr. Chung, Director of Clinical Research for the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI), and Dr. Ring, Chief Science Officer of Autism Speaks, to join the IACC in order to provide additional perspectives and expertise to the Committee. Dr. Chung and Dr. Ring serve as leaders within the two organizations that are the largest private funders of autism research in the United States. Both organizations were previously represented on the Committee by individuals who were appointed in 2012, but who have since left or changed affiliation.

Dr. Insel, Chair of the IACC and Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, welcomed the expertise and dedication that Dr. Chung and Dr. Ring bring to the IACC. "Both Dr. Ring and Dr. Chung will be important additions to the Committee, given the depth of their scientific and clinical experience, and their dedication to improving the lives of people on the autism spectrum," he said.

Dr. Chung, in addition to directing clinical research at SFARI, served as a member of SFARI's scientific advisory board. Dr. Chung is also the Herbert Irving Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Medicine and the Director of Clinical Genetics at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, where she is the principal investigator for the Simons Variation in Individuals Project (Simons VIP), funded by the Simons Foundation.

Dr. Ring, who has been the Chief Science Officer of Autism Speaks since 2013, also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Delivering Scientific Innovation for Autism (DELSIA), the venture philanthropy arm of Autism Speaks, and leads Autism Speaks' collaboration with the Simons Foundation to launch the Autism BrainNet, a privately-funded multisite brain banking effort, focused on supporting autism research. Dr. Ring previously served as Autism Speaks' Vice President of Translational Research. He holds adjunct faculty appointments in the Departments of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai School of Medicine and Pharmacology and Physiology at Drexel University College of Medicine. Prior to his work at Autism Speaks, Dr. Ring served as Senior Director and Head of the Autism Research Unit at Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development and worked in the area of psychiatric drug discovery at Wyeth Research.

These two new members of the Committee will serve for the remaining months of IACC activity under the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act of 2011, which will expire on September 30, 2014. If reauthorized, the IACC will be open for nominations of new potential public members in late 2014.

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The IACC is a federal advisory committee that was created by Congress in an effort to accelerate progress in ASD research and services. The IACC provides advice to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on activities related to ASD, and works to improve coordination and communication across the Federal government and work in partnership with the autism community. The Committee is composed of officials from many different federal agencies involved in autism research and services, as well as people with ASD, parents, advocates, and other members of the autism community. The documents and recommendations produced by the IACC reflect the views of the Committee as an independent advisory body and the expertise of the members of the Committee, but do not represent the views, official statements, policies or positions of the Federal government. For more information on the IACC, please visit: www.iacc.hhs.gov.