Dr. Kaplan Completes HHS Appointment

After 4 years of service, Dr. Gary Kaplan has finished his term as a member of the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee (CFSAC).
In 2013, Dr. Gary Kaplan was appointed by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Kathleen Sebelius. The 11 member Committee, which holds biannual meetings, was established to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary of HHS through the Assistant Secretary for Health on issues related to Myalgic Encephalomyelitis /Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS).
Selected for this Committee for his experience and excellence in treating patients with complex and longstanding medical problems, Dr. Kaplan brought with him his expertise in healthcare delivery, insurance, and problems experienced by individuals with ME/CFS.
During his appointment Dr. Kaplan served as chair for two subcommittees. In June 2014, Dr. Kaplan chaired a subcommittee charged to make recommendations for the creation of Centers of Excellence for ME/CFS to advance clinical research for biomarkers, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease as well as outreach to clinicians, researchers and patients, social services, patient education, and medical professional education. In January 2017, Dr. Kaplan was elected to chair another subcommittee charged with formulating a series of recommendations to the Secretary of Health on how to improve education for healthcare providers on ME/CFS.
While Dr. Kaplan’s appointment to the Committee has come to an end, he remains steadfast in his commitment to educate both patients and physicians about neuroinflammatory diseases such as ME/CFS and finding a legitimate path to recovery for long suffering patients.
The most recent meeting of CFSAC was held on December 13 & 14 and was Dr. Kaplan’s final meeting as a member. To view the entire webinar series, click here. To view Dr. Kaplan’s testimony, he first appears approximately midway through Day 1, Part 3, which can be viewed below.
For more information on CFSAC, please visit: https://www.hhs.gov/ash/advisory-committees/cfsac/index.html

CFSAC meeting December, 2017