Our Team
For far too long, people have suffered stigmatization and daily pain from this disease. Together, we can modernize sickle cell disease treatment and help people live better lives.
Dr. Brett Giroir
Senior Advisor, Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
The Sickle Cell Disease Partnership welcomes inquiries from stakeholders, prospective members, the news media, and others. The Partnership is managed by Leavitt Partners.
Dr. Brett Giroir
Senior Advisor to the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
Brett Giroir, M.D. is a physician scientist and innovator whose career has been dedicated to improving public health and medicine. He is a pediatric critical care specialist by training and a physician-scientist who has served in a number of leadership positions in the federal government, as well as in academia.
Formerly, Dr. Giroir served as the 16th Assistant Secretary for Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and as an admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. In that role, he led development of HHS-wide public health policy recommendations and oversaw several of the Department’s core public health offices, including the Office of the Surgeon General. His office led many critical national initiatives, including an historic new plan to end the HIV Epidemic in America, the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, the revised Common Rule, and a cross-agency effort to improve outcomes for patients living with sickle cell disease. Dr. Giroir also served as Senior Adviser to the Secretary for Opioid Policy, responsible for coordinating HHS’s efforts across the Administration to fight America’s opioid crisis. He also served as Acting FDA Commissioner.
Dr. Giroir has been a patient advocate and leader in the Sickle Cell Disease space for many years now. He did his medical training in Dallas, Texas, where there was a large population of people with Sickle Cell Disease. At the time, there was not universal screening for sickle cell, and he diagnosed many cases of sickle cell in children that had not been diagnosed at birth. Sickle Cell caused children to wither away in front of him, and he became personally involved as he and his wife mentored children with Sickle Cell Disease. During his time at HHS, Dr. Giroir advocated for a unified approach across government agencies to providing high-quality, comprehensive care for Sickle Cell Disease patients. Dr. Giroir’s work and advocacy in the Administration helped spur government action, including in 2020, the National Institutes of Health providing $20 million in funding for the Cure Sickle Disease Initiative. Since his departure from the Administration, Dr. Giroir continues to advocate for Sickle Cell Disease patients in his role within the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership.
Dr. Giroir has authored or co-authored more than 100 scientific publications, editorials, and book chapters. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the U.S. Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, the American Heart Association’s President Lyndon Baines Johnson Research Award, and the American Society of Nephrology’s President’s Medal. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology magna cum laude from Harvard University, and a medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.
Josh Trent
Advisor to the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
Josh Trent is a principal based in Leavitt Partners’ Washington, D.C. office. Josh has more than a decade and a half of experience in the federal government—from the White House, to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, to the U.S. Senate and U.S. House on Capitol Hill.
In his role at Leavitt Partners, Josh develops and manages multi-sector alliances and advises clients throughout the health care sector on federal health care policy and strategy. He specializes in public insurance under Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, commercial health insurance, the 340B program, and the Affordable Care Act.
Prior to joining Leavitt Partners, Josh served as Chief Health Counsel for Chairman Greg Walden of the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the U.S. House of Representatives. In that role, Josh was the lead House staffer for the landmark legislation to combat the opioid crisis, The SUPPORT Act (P.L. 115-271). He also led the House’s work to reauthorize The Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, which was eventually enacted the following year (P.L. 116-22).
Josh previously served under both Walden and Chairman Fred Upton as Deputy Chief Health Counsel. In this role, he played a key part in crafting the Medicaid, Medicare, and state Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) provisions in the House’s Bipartisan Budget Act (P.L. 115-123), and he led the House’s work to enact the longest extension of the CHIP in the history of the program (P.L. 115-120). Previously, as Professional Staff under Chairman Upton, Josh assisted in the development and passage of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (P.L. 114-198) and the sweeping law to advance the discovery, development, and delivery of cures and treatments, The 21 st Century Cures Act (P.L.114-255). Prior to working in the House, Josh served for five years as Health Policy Advisor for U.S. Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK). In that role, Josh was involved in the legislative process leading to the enactment of the Affordable Care Act.
Before coming to Capitol Hill, Josh spent six years in the administration of President George W. Bush, including three years as an executive recruiter in the Office of Presidential Personnel at the White House helping identify and recruit individuals for senior Administration roles. He also spent a year and a half as deputy director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Josh received his bachelor of arts from Union University and received his master’s degree in international politics from the University of Bath in Bath, England.
Victoria Gemme
Advisor to the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
Victoria Gemme is a director based in Washington, D.C., focused on federal health care policy issues related to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Victoria brings more than a decade of experience in health care and legislative and regulatory policy, including in the rare disease space. She most recently served as the Director of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD), where she led policy development and advocacy strategy to advance research, drug development, and health care access for individuals living with rare diseases. Victoria previously served as the Assistant Research Director at Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy, overseeing a multi-million-dollar cooperative agreement with FDA to support regulatory research and convenings related to the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA). Prior to her time at Duke-Margolis, Victoria worked for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation managing a policy portfolio covering basic science research and drug development, among other topics.
Victoria earned an MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology, a masters in Ethics and Public Policy from Suffolk University, and a bachelor’s in Neuroscience from Vassar College.
Vanessa Egbe
Advisor to the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
Vanessa Egbe is an Associate at Leavitt Partners, based in Washington, D.C. In this role, Vanessa supports client and alliance work by providing research and strategy on health policy issue areas related to rare diseases, access to clinical trials, biopharma, and federal health agencies.
Before joining Leavitt Partners, Vanessa was a research analyst at Mathematica, where she supported the evaluation of federal policies and programs on a wide range of issues including behavioral health integration in primary care, disability services, and HIV/AIDS. Prior to that, she interned at PhRMA, where she worked on health equity-focused initiatives, hosting a discussion with industry leaders on improving clinical trial diversity. Prior to graduate school, she worked at the American Public Health Association, coordinating national programming such as National Public Health Week and the APHA Annual Meeting and Expo.
Vanessa received her MPH in Health Policy from Morehouse School of Medicine and her bachelor’s degree in Health Education and Promotion from Towson University.
Jerome Murray
Advisor to the Sickle Cell Disease Partnership
Jerome Murray has 20 years of government experience serving in senior-level positions for four Members of Congress. Working on Capitol Hill and in the private sector, Jerome has gained hands-on experience in the legislative process coupled with a deep knowledge of policy issues crossing many industry sectors.
On the Hill, Jerome served as chief of staff to Rep. Stacey Plaskett (D USVI). He was legislative director for Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-NC) who serves as Chief Deputy Whip. During his time with Rep. Butterfield and Rep. Plaskett, Jerome worked closely with Members and staff of the Congressional Black Caucus and the New Democrat Coalition. In the private sector, Jerome was director for policy and government relations at one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and served as a member of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Corporate Advisory Council. Jerome received a bachelor’s degree from Boston University’s College of Communication, and a Master of Government Administration from the University of Pennsylvania.