Sandeep Patel

Sandeep Patel, PhD, is the former inaugural Director of BARDA’s Division of Research, Innovation, and Ventures (DRIVe), within the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services (HHS), where he built and led a team that managed over $700M in funding in translational sciences and early stage companies to enhance our preparedness for future health security threats. Previously, Sandeep was a key figure in the Immediate Office of the HHS Secretary, where he founded and led a public-private partnership, KidneyX, that catalyzed the development of breakthrough therapies for kidney disease. He also spearheaded the Presidential Advancing American Kidney Health Initiative, aimed at reforming the nation's organ transplant system, getting more patients off dialysis, and increasing focus to prevent kidney failure. He led HHS' program to use novel methods, including incentive prizes and crowdsourcing, to solve complex health problems across the family of HHS agencies. He is the recipient of the American Society of Nephrology's President's Medal, and a Secretary's Distinguished Service award. Prior to that he was a scientific analyst for Thomson Reuters, scientist for an SBIR-backed startup, and a Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the National Academy of Sciences.