RTW Institute Launches to Advance Patient-Centered Health Policy and Medical Innovation

RTW Institute launches to advance patient-centered health policy, medical innovation, regulatory predictability, and access to life-changing medicines.

NEW YORK CITY, NY, UNITED STATES, September 14, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — RTW Institute (the “Institute”) today announced its launch as a nonprofit health policy organization dedicated to strengthening the systems that turn scientific discovery into accessible medicines for patients.

The Institute is marking its formal launch with an event at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, bringing together leaders from government, patient advocacy, medicine, research and the life sciences to discuss how health policy can keep pace with scientific innovation.

Through original research, policy analysis, stakeholder engagement and public education, RTW Institute will develop practical, evidence-based recommendations designed to improve regulatory predictability, support a resilient medical innovation ecosystem and expand patient access to important new treatments.

“We are at a consequential moment for medical innovation. Scientific advances are creating possibilities for patients that would have been unimaginable a generation ago, but the policies and systems surrounding those advances have not always kept pace,” said Dr. Rod Wong, Chairman of RTW Institute. “Innovation and affordability are too often framed as competing objectives. They do not have to be. RTW Institute was created to help develop thoughtful, evidence-based policies that sustain innovation while ensuring its benefits reach the patients and families who need them.”

Central to the Institute’s work will be translating complex health, regulatory and economic policy into clear, actionable insights for policymakers, patient communities and the public. Its initial priorities include strengthening regulatory consistency and predictability, advancing sustainable approaches to financing medical innovation and addressing barriers that could delay or limit patient access.

Since its formation in January 2026, RTW Institute has begun engaging with federal policymakers, patient advocacy organizations and life sciences leaders on these issues. The Institute is also a founding member of the Rare Disease Innovation Coalition, formerly the Rare Disease Advocacy, Biotechnology, and Investor Coalition. This cross-sector coalition brings together rare disease advocates, biotechnology executives and investors to promote a more consistent, predictable and patient-centered regulatory environment.

Early work has included meetings with senior officials across the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of the Treasury to discuss regulatory modernization, sustainable innovation and patient access. RTW Institute has also published Innovation Is the Best Medicine: A Policy Roadmap for Biotechnology, which examines how U.S. drug development must evolve to keep pace with global competitors and traces the policy dynamics behind America’s healthcare affordability crisis. RTW Institute is led by founding CEO Kinnari Patel, PharmD, MBA, a life sciences executive, drug developer and rare disease advocate with more than two decades of experience. Dr. Patel’s career has included work across 25 therapeutic programs in multiple disease areas and senior leadership in the gene therapy sector. She also founded the global Light Up for Rare campaign to increase awareness of people living with rare diseases.

“Scientific progress matters only when it reaches the people who need it,” said Dr. Patel. “Throughout my career, I have seen how regulatory uncertainty, fragmented policy and access barriers can slow the journey from promising science to meaningful treatment. RTW Institute will bring together patients, policymakers, researchers, clinicians and industry leaders to develop practical, evidence-based solutions that help medical innovation advance responsibly, predictably and with patient needs at the center.”

RTW Institute will continue to pursue research and engagement grounded in rigorous data, real-world experience and the perspectives of patients and families. By convening stakeholders who often approach health policy from different vantage points, the Institute will work to identify areas of common ground and translate them into actionable policy solutions.

About RTW Institute

RTW Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit policy research organization focused on strengthening the systems that turn scientific discovery into accessible medicines. Working across medical innovation, health policy and patient outcomes, the Institute conducts research, develops policy recommendations and convenes stakeholders to advance solutions that support innovation, affordability and patient access.

RTW Institute is an independent, non-profit organization that operates within the RTW Investments, LP group in a research and policy capacity.

For more information, visit www.rtwinstitute.org.

Contact

Kinnari Patel, PharmD, MBA

kp@rtwinstitute.org

Elizabeth Drelichman
RTW Institute
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