NIH News Release
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
 National Center for Complementary
and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)
NOTE TO REPORTERS AND EDITORS:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, April 17, 2001

Press Contact:
Anita Greene
(301) 496-1712
greenea@mail.nih.gov

NCCAM Explores New Opportunities for Future Collaboration with Industry

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a component of the NIH, will hold a colloquium on May 14, 2001, to explore opportunities to collaborate with two key groups: Industrial stakeholders that produce, label, and market complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapeutics (e.g., dietary supplements and other biologically based treatments), and organizations that develop and apply standards to determine quality and safety of these products. The purpose of the meeting is to begin a dialogue on how NCCAM and industry can work together to definitively evaluate CAM therapeutic products for composition, safety, and efficacy, and to obtain input from the broad stakeholder community.

WHAT:
Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), who spearheaded legislation to create NCCAM (formerly the Office of Alternative Medicine), will open the colloquium: Exploring Opportunities for Collaboration with Industry with an overview of NCCAM's legislative mandate. Stephen E. Straus, M.D., Director of NCCAM will discuss NCCAM's perspective with respect to opportunities to establish collaboration with industry. Myron S. Weinberg, Chairman of the Weinberg Group will serve as chair for this colloquium.

Leaders from key federal government regulatory agencies, major industrial, non-profit, consumers, and researcher groups will address important topics to include: (1) The role of NCCAM and the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements in studying CAM therapeutics within the context of the NIH mission, (2) The scope of interests and needs of the CAM therapeutics industry in developing and marketing CAM therapeutics, (3) Areas of interest common to NCCAM and the CAM therapeutics industry, (4) Areas of complementary expertise contributed by NCCAM and the CAM therapeutics industry, and (5) Regulatory authorities and responsibilities of other federal agencies. Ample opportunity will be provided for audience discussion of these issues.

Additional information, including an agenda and featured speakers at this meeting is available at: http://nccam.nih.gov/nccam/colloquium

Individuals, or representatives from the following organizations should attend this meeting:

WHEN:
Monday, May 14, 2001
8:00 a.m. - 5:45 p.m. EDT

WHERE:
The meeting will take place at the Washington Monarch Hotel located at 2401 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.

REGISTER NOW:
Registration is FREE for credentialed press only; however, SPACE IS LIMITED. Please contact Anita Greene, NCCAM Press Officer at (301) 496-1712 ASAP to make a reservation.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is dedicated to exploring complementary and alternative medical (CAM) practices in the context of rigorous science, training CAM researchers and disseminating authoritative information. For additional information, including fact sheets, press releases, and other information about NCCAM, please visit our website at http://nccam.nih.gov.