ASH Announces Recipients of 2022 Advocacy Awards
(WASHINGTON, Dec. 7, 2022) – The American Society of Hematology (ASH) will honor physician Keith Hoots, and Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Barrasso (R-WY), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) for their outstanding advocacy for hematology research and clinical care at the 2022 ASH Annual Meeting, December 10-13, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Dr. Keith Hoots, MD, former director of the Division of Blood Diseases and Resources at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), will receive the 2022 ASH Outstanding Service Award, which recognizes individuals in either the public or private sector who have displayed effective behind-the-scenes leadership in areas relevant to the mission of the Society. Dr. Hoots is being honored for his decade of service to the NHLBI and his unwavering commitment to advocating for hematology research throughout his career.
Dr. Hoots joined NHLBI in 2009 after working at the University of Texas (UT) Medical School at Houston in a number of important roles including professor of pediatrics and division head of Pediatric Hematology; section head of Pediatric Hematology, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center; and medical director, Gulf States Hemophilia and Thrombophilia Treatment Center.
Dr. Hoots, who retired from NHLBI earlier this year, has been an active ASH member since 1980. Throughout his career at NHLBI, Dr. Hoots was a champion for classical (non-malignant) hematology and was a valued resource to ASH on issues impacting hematology research. He served as an author for ASH publications, served as a faculty member at the ASH Clinical Research Training Institute, and participated in many of the Society’s programs and activities.
“Under the leadership of Dr. Hoots, the Division of Blood Diseases and Resources has continued to be a leader in research on the causes, prevention, and treatment of non-neoplastic blood diseases through the launch of efforts such as the Cure Sickle Cell Initiative and the development of programs to support the workforce in classical hematology,” said Dr. Winter.
Senators Rosen, Barrasso, and Baldwin will receive the 2022 ASH Public Service Award, which recognizes unparalleled leadership by an elected public official on issues of importance to hematology research and practice.
“ASH is pleased to honor Senators Rosen, Barrasso, and Baldwin, who have been passionate and vocal champions of legislation that ensures crucial clinical services for people with hematologic disorders,” said ASH President, Jane N. Winter, MD, of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University. “These Senators have fought tirelessly to ensure that patients with blood diseases have access to high quality end-of-life care.”
Senators Rosen, Barasso, and Baldwin will be honored for their work as lead sponsors of the Improving Access to Transfusion Care for Hospice Patients Act (S. 2566), which seeks to ensure that patients with blood cancers and other hematologic diseases and conditions have greater access to high-quality end-of-life care, including palliative blood transfusions. The legislation, which was introduced in July 2021 and is strongly supported by ASH, establishes a demonstration program that would provide a separate Medicare payment to promote the provision of palliative blood transfusions in hospice.
The senators serve as co-chairs of the bipartisan Senate Comprehensive Care Caucus, which was established to raise the public’s awareness and promote the benefits of palliative care. Together, they’re focused on finding opportunities to expand access to palliative care services, improve coordinated care, and increase caregiver wellbeing.
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) (www.hematology.org) is the world’s largest professional society of hematologists dedicated to furthering the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disorders affecting the blood. For more than 60 years, the Society has led the development of hematology as a discipline by promoting research, patient care, education, training, and advocacy in hematology. ASH’s flagship journal, Blood (www.bloodjournal.org), is the most cited peer-reviewed publication in the field, and Blood Advances (www.bloodadvances.org) is the Society’s online, peer-reviewed open-access journal.
Contact:
Kira Sampson, American Society of Hematology
ksampson@hematology.org; 202.499.1796