The infamously high-priced JP Morgan Healthcare Conference is underway at the Hyatt Regency, and expect motorcades and heavy security on Tuesday, as First Lady Jill Biden will be popping in to give a speech.
Today was the first day of the first big conference of 2025 in San Francisco, the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference, now known as Fierce JPM Week. The word “Fierce” has not been added because of some drag queen affiliation, “Fierce” refers to the industry trade publication Fierce Biotech that now co-sponsors the event. And while this conference is not a household name, it’s considered SF’s second largest revenue-generating conference of the year, behind only Dreamforce, with Mayor Lurie’s office saying the event brought in $90 million last year.
That’s because the conference is attended by heavy hitters in biotech and big pharma, and everyone attending is putting the whole thing on a company credit card or expense account. So attendees will pay anything, without even knowing what they’re paying. You might remember that this conference caught some heck for charging $21.25 for a cup of coffee in 2019.
Regardless, what stands out about this year's Fierce JPM Week is that lo and behold, First Lady Jill Biden is coming to SF to speak at it. According to NBC Bay Area, “The first lady is expected to land at the San Francisco International Airport on Monday around 4:30 pm.” She will then be speaking at a Tuesday, January 14 session at 2:40 pm called “Championing Change: First Lady Jill Biden on Advancing Women’s Health Research and Innovation.”
According to a conference writeup, “This session will feature Dr. Jill Biden sharing her work and insights on the White House Initiative on Women's Health Research. The discussion will focus on the initiative's goal of transforming how we approach and fund women's health research, and how to continue building momentum to advance women’s health.”
KTVU adds that Dr. Jill Biden will stay in San Francisco “through Wednesday.”
Related: First Lady Jill Biden Coming to SF Thursday and Friday [SFist]
Image: WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 11: First lady Jill Biden speaks during the first White House conference on women's health research in the East Room of the White House on December 11, 2024 in Washington, DC. Business and philanthropic leaders, academic researchers, women's health advocates, investors, and federal agency representatives come together to continue making progress on improving women's health. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
