Warfighter Strong: Medical & Human Performance Needs of the Fighting Force. The face of conflict is changing. Technological advances have introduced levels of battlefield complexity that would have been unimaginable even a few years ago. America's Warfighter faces not only physical challenges, but also increasing cognitive demands driven by data and information overload. Our military readiness paradigm must evolve from emphasizing strength and speed to one focused on preparedness, agility, information management, and endurance. During conflicts, we must also emphasize rest, recovery, and rehabilitation to reduce the strain of prolonged stress and minimize wear and tear on the Warfighter.

• Moderator: Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Stephen M. DeLellis MPAS, PA-C, USA, Senior Director, Military Health, Loyal Source Government Services
• Rear Admiral Anthony L. LaCourse, PA-C, Director, Medical Services Corps, US Navy Reserve
• Brigadier General (Ret) Robert S. Cooley, Jr., Former Chief of Staff, US Army Reserve Command, Fort Bragg, NC, CEO/Co-Founder, Nuream
• Colonel John Ko, Chief, Individual Readiness and Human Performance Branch, US Army Western Hemisphere Command
• Lieutenant Colonel Nicholas R. Koreerat, Commander, 261st Multifunctional Medical Battalion, 44th Medical Brigade

From Requirement to Reality: Industry on the Front Lines. This panel brings together leaders from North Carolina medical companies to examine how emerging requirements become fielded capabilities. Panelists will discuss the realities of responding to operational needs, navigating federal procurement pathways, aligning innovation with mission priorities, and overcoming the common barriers that slow transition from prototype to deployment.

• Moderator: TJ Gilroy, Director of Defense Technologies, North Carolina Military Business Center
• Sean M. Siler, DO, CEO, VIGILINT
• Jason Cook, MD, Co-Founder & CMO, Olfax Medical
• Galen Robertson, CEO, VQ Biomedical
• Byron Carroll, President, Carroll Woods, Inc. DBA Carroll International
• Joy Parr Drach, MBA, President & CEO, Ad Astra Diagnostics, Inc.
• Kevin Gehsmann, Co-Founder/CEO, Protect3D

Senior Executive Leadership Panel: Medical Acquisition Priorities and Opportunities Across DHA, DoW and VA. The evolving national security environment, increasing healthcare demands, and rapid pace of technological innovation are transforming how the Defense Health Agency (DHA), Department of War (DoW) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) acquire, field, and sustain medical capabilities. This executive-level panel brings together senior acquisition leaders from DHA, DoW and VA to discuss the strategic priorities shaping the future of military and veteran healthcare acquisition.

Panelists will provide insights into current and emerging requirements, acquisition strategies, supply chain resilience, medical logistics modernization, sustainment challenges, and the integration of innovative medical, biomedical, and biodefense technologies into federal healthcare systems. Attendees will gain a better understanding of how these organizations are adapting acquisition processes to improve readiness, enhance healthcare delivery, strengthen operational medical support, and accelerate the transition of innovative solutions from concept to deployment.

The discussion will explore opportunities for collaboration among government, industry, academia, and research institutions while highlighting key capability gaps, procurement trends, and future investment priorities across military health, veteran healthcare, and medical logistics enterprise programs. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of how acquisition leadership is driving modernization efforts to support America's warfighters, veterans, and healthcare professionals in an increasingly complex operational environment.

• Moderator: Martin "Jimmy" Hendrix, Director of Regional Programs, North Carolina Military Business Center
• Ronald Miller, D.M., Executive Director, Office of Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Department of Veterans Affairs
• Colonel Deon D. Maxwell, Commander, Army Medical Logistics Command
• TBA, Defense Health Agency

Business Opportunities with the Department of War & Defense Logistics Agency. Panel presenters will identify requirements within the Department of War and Defense Logistics Agency for medical products and services, devices, pharmaceuticals, training, IT and staffing needs.  They will also outline the processes they utilize to acquire these products and services, including prime vendors, GSA schedules, Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs) and commercial contracts.  Business forecasts will also be shared. Prospective primes, subcontractors and suppliers, including small businesses, should attend this session.

• Moderator: Fran Perez-Wilhite, Regional Program Manager (Charlotte Metro), North Carolina Military Business Center
• Commander Kibwe Hampden, N4 Support and Logistics, Deputy Chief of Staff, Naval Medical Forces Atlantic
• Abin Mathai, Director- Supplier Operations, Medical Supply Chain, Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support
• Dan Keefe, Deputy Director, Medical Supplier Chain, Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support

Business Opportunities in Operational & Medical Logistics with Military Service Medical Commands. Military service medical commands and the broader military health enterprise provide business opportunities for companies specializing in operational logistics, medical supply chains, healthcare technology, and readiness support.  This session’s experts will discuss: medical supply chain & distribution, healthcare IT & medical logistics systems, medical equipment lifecycle management, operational & expeditionary medicine support and business forecasts.  This session is for companies that have demonstrative capabilities in: medical readiness, supply chain resilience, healthcare IT modernization and expeditionary medical support.

• Moderator: Fran Perez-Wilhite, Regional Program Manager (Charlotte Metro), North Carolina Military Business Center
• Commander Kibwe Hampden, N4 Support and Logistics, Deputy Chief of Staff, Naval Medical Forces Atlantic
• Jorge Magana, Medical Maintenance Management Director, Army Medical Logistics Command
• Abin Mathai, Director- Supplier Operations, Medical Supply Chain, Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support
• TBA, Womack Army Medical Center
• TBA, Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune

Business Opportunities with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Panel presenters will identify requirements of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers and clinics in the region for medical products and services, including research and development, supplies, equipment, devices, pharmaceuticals, training, IT and staff augmentation.  They will also outline the processes they utilize to acquire these products and services, including use of prime vendors, GSA schedules, Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs) and commercial contracts.  Businesses and researchers with the capacity to support VA medical centers and clinics, vendors or other business with medical products or services should participate in this session.

• Moderator: Fran Perez-Wilhite, Regional Program Manager (Charlotte Metro), North Carolina Military Business Center
• Dave Rosenmarkle, Expendables/Commodities Program Manager, Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN6
• Marlon Arnold, Deputy Chief Logistics Officer, Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN6
• Dwight D. Fields, Associate Director of Operations, VA Fayetteville Coastal Health Care System
• Craig Holbert, Associate Director, Western North Carolina VA Health Care System
• TBA, Durham VA Health Care System

AI Enabled Healthcare: "Doc in a Box." This panel will highlight how AI-powered “Doc in a Box” technologies can improve medical support for the warfighter across a range of operational environments. Featuring experts from government, academia, and industry, the discussion will explore emerging innovations that accelerate triage, strengthen clinical decision-making, and support medical care in austere environments where traditional medical infrastructure may not be available. Topics of discussion will include remote diagnostics, AI-enabled triage and decision support, wearable and sensor-enabled monitoring, point-of-care data collection, and tools that support care delivery where physicians, specialists, connectivity, or traditional medical infrastructure may not be available.

• Moderator: Jen Greenstein, P.S.M., PhD., Senior Director, Evaluation, Focused Initiatives Team, North Carolina Biotechnology Center
• Colonel (Ret) Jeremy Pamplin, MD, US Army, Program Manager, Biological Technologies Office, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
• Oakkar Oakkar, MSIS, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Keona Health
• Amay Bandodkar, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering and ASSIST Center Principal Investigator, North Carolina State University
• Joy Parr Drach, MBA, President & CEO, Ad Astra Diagnostics, Inc.

Innovation Opportunities in Chemical, Biological, Radiological & Nuclear Defense.A panel of Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense experts will share their current approaches to innovating, accelerating, and collaborating in the CBRND space. Discussions will center on layered and integrated CBRN defense, the need for critical broad-spectrum and host-specific medical countermeasures and enablers, the role of experimentation, and the criticality of military-defense-industry collaboration to fast-tracking operationally critical capabilities.

• Moderator: Sara Holditch, Director, Industry & Innovation Outreach (I&IO), Capability Program Executive, Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CPE CBRND)
• Nicole Kilgore, MS, PMP, Capability Program Executive (CPE), Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CPE CBRND)
• Colonel Justin Hurt, Deputy Director, Joint Science Technology Office, Defense Threat Research Projects Agency
• Christopher Houchens, Ph.D., Director, Division of Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Countermeasures, Center for Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, Administration for Preparedness and Response, US Department of Health and Human Services

Medical Innovation Opportunities with Consortia and Federal Agencies.  The session will discuss the opportunities available for research and development, prototyping, and production through Other Transaction Authorities (OTAs) of the Federal Government. OTAs represent a growing sector of government acquisition with many potential advantages for non-traditional entities over FAR-based contracts. OTAs are used by Capability Program Executive for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CPE CBRND), the Defense Health Agency (DHA), and other federal agencies.

• Moderator: TJ Gilroy, Director of Defense Technologies, North Carolina Military Business Center
• Dr. Ron Hann, Executive Committee, Medical CBRN Defense Consortium (MCDC)
• Dennis McGurk, Director, North Carolina Center for Optimizing Military Performance (NC-COMP)
• Gloria Elliott, Program Manager, Scalable Solutions, Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H)
• Adam Sorkin, Small Business Policy Manager for the National Institutes of Health, Small Business Education and Entrepreneurial Development (SEED) Office
• Saafan Malik, M.D., MBA., CTO, Chief Research Support & Innovation, DAD Science & Technology, AD- RDA, Defense Health Agency
• Christine Castillo, Research and Academia Coordinator, US Army Special Operations Command

Department of Veterans Affairs One-On-One Meetings. The Department of Veterans Affairs will host one-on-one meetings with industry. This forum provides a unique opportunity for dialogue with key decision makers from multiple Veterans Affairs offices.  Participants should bring capabilities statements and prepare a concise “elevator pitch” to communicate a compelling business case for the Veterans Affairs to procure their goods and/or services.

• Moderator: Erin Ananian-Gentile, Regional Program Manager (New Bern), North Carolina Military Business Center
• Chanel Bankston-Carter, Executive Director, Department of Veterans Affairs, OSDBU
• Wendy Bray, Program Specialist, Department of Veterans Affairs, OSDBU
• Dave Rosenmarkle, EX Program Manager, Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN6
• Marlon Arnold, Deputy Chief Logistics Officer, Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN6
• Dwight D. Fields, Associate Director of Operations, VA Fayetteville Coastal Health Care System
• Craig Holbert, Associate Director, Western North Carolina VA Health Care System
• TBA, Durham VA Health Care System