The 131th Meeting Held at
The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota
Sarasota, Florida
October 18th through October 21st, 2018
The recently renovated Ritz-Carlton, located in Sarasota, FL, was a perfect setting for the 131st meeting of The Climatological. This was the second meeting at this resort, with the first being in 2011. During the meeting, members took advantage of the free afternoons by visiting the Circus Museums, strolling by the shops and cafes at St. Armand's Circle, golfing at the Tom Fazio designed golf course, or relaxing at the pool and spa, The weather was hot and humid, but no one complained because the resort was unaffected by Hurricane Michael that devastated the Florida panhandle the previous week. The service at the Ritz-Carlton was truly first class. The total attendance was 265, which included 144 members and 121 spouses and/or guests.
In his Friday morning President's Address, titled “Wine, Water and Wellness,” Ronald Sacher opined about the origin of earth's water, informed us that all water is recycled, discussed drinking water pollutants and adulterants (yes, lithium in water may protect against dementia), elaborated on the health benefits of bathing in thermal waters, and espoused the benefits (and potential risks) of moderation in wine consumption.
At the annual business meeting held Friday morning, the names of recently deceased members were shared, followed by a moment of silence to honor them. Memorials were requested for publication in the Transactions. Provisional members presenting papers and their guests were introduced to the attendees and welcomed to the organization. The names of active members eligible for emeritus status (i.e., those who have been members at least 7 years and aged 65 years or older) were presented. The Merrill Lynch end of year (December 2017) and current (through Sept 30, 2018) financial statements were presented and discussed. A rebalancing of our portfolio to achieve 60% equity and 40% fixed income investment and transfer of monies within fund classes (to take advantage of well-performing funds) was recommended, based on the advice of our financial advisor, Sanford Roy of the Davis, Miller, Roy Group (Merrill Lynch), and the Climatological Finance Committee. The ACCA membership was informed that the financial advisor (Sanford Roy) charges no fee for managing the ACCA account or providing financial advice. The members were informed that the Council approved payment from the portfolio to the Ritz -Carlton hotel of (a) $200 per person towards the conference fee and (b) the difference in room costs for the 12 members who registered on time but were unable to secure the special conference rates. Based on a recommendation made by the Secretary-Treasurer and agreed to by the Council, the members at large unanimously approved payment of the Wednesday evening hotel room costs of the 11 Council members and officers who arrived to conduct the business of the organization the following morning.
The Nominating Committee's recommendations for new officers and Councilors were presented and unanimously approved by the attendees. The location of future meetings was reviewed without discussion.
The attendees approved the Article V Bylaw revisions that were approved by the Council at the 2015 Climatological meeting and distributed to the membership-at-large with their 2018 February mailing.
The Theodore Woodward awardee, Kathleen Cho, was announced, and the Mary Allen Engle awardee, Gary Firestein was also announced.
Finally, the members were reminded how to access the Transactions online, including those dating back to the organizations inception. There being no new business, the business portion of the meeting was concluded and the scientific sessions commenced.
Harvey Alter, The Chief of Clinical Studies and Associate Director for Research in the Department of Transfusion Medicine at the Warren Grant Magnuson Clinical Center, National Institutes of Health delivered the Gordon Wilson Lecture Saturday morning. His presentation was titled, “Hepatitis C: From Hippocrates to Cure.” Harvey discussed his co-discovery of the Australia antigen — a key to detecting hepatitis B virus — and his studies that identified non-A, non-B hepatitis, now called hepatitis C. His work was instrumental in providing the scientific basis for instituting blood donor screening programs that have decreased the incidence of transfusion-transmitted hepatitis to near zero. This brilliant lecture — a perfect mix of science and humor — left no doubt why he was awarded the prestigious Albert Lasker Clinical Medical Research Award and in 2002.
The ninth Bert and Peggy DuPont Lecture titled, “Science and Culture from the Hubble Space Telescope” was presented Saturday evening by Bruce Margon, PhD, a Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics in the Department of Physical and Biological Sciences at the University of California Santa Cruz. This was a fascinating journey into the life of an astronomer and his work with the Hubble space telescope, replete with beautiful pictures of stars and galaxies in various stage of life — birth, middle age, and retirement (i.e., exploding). The images drew sighs from the audience, and the lecture was both informative and inspiring. His talk ended with a discussion of the importance of scientific exploration.
The Jeremiah Metzger Lecture titled “A Brief History of Eugenics in America: Implications for Medicine in the 21st Century” was delivered Sunday morning by Allen Spiegel, The Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean Emeritus, Professor in the Department of Medicine and Department of Molecular Pharmacology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Executive Vice President & Chief Academic Officer of Montefiore Medicine. Tracing eugenics since the 19th century, Allen discussed the practice of eugenics in the U.S., including “positive” and “negative” eugenics” policies, mandatory sterilization laws, anti-miscegenation laws, and immigration restrictions (based on racial theories and assumptions of inferiority). Allen pointed several ethical and scientific issues that need to be addressed in light of the rapid advancements of genetic manipulation with CRISPR technology.
MINUTES FROM COUNCIL MEETING
President Ron Sacher convened the meeting of the Council at 8:00AM on Thursday, October 18, 2018, at the The Ritz-Carlton Sarasota. Those in attendance were Frederic Billings III, David Dale, Ronald Falk, Anne Gershon (Vice-President), Stephen Greenberg (President Elect), Richard Lange (Secretary-Treasurer), Philip Mackowiak (substituting for Fred Schiffman), Anne Moore, Richard Page, James Pennington, Andrew Schafer (Immediate Past President), and Ron Sacher (President). Not in attendance were Council member Tom DuBose and Fred Schiffman (Recorder).
Dr. Dale moved, and Dr. Mackowiak seconded, the motion that the minutes of the 130th meeting of the Association be approved as published in volume 129 of The Transactions, with the correction on page lxi of stating “President Andrew Schafer convened the meeting of the Council at 8:00AM…” rather than President David Dale. The motion carried unanimously.
Rick Lange reported that the Nominating Committee, consisting of Andrew Schafer (chair), John Carethers, Richard Page, Paul Rothman, Doug Vaughan, Phyllis August, Ron Sacher (ex-officio), Fred Schiffman (ex-officio), and Richard Lange (ex officio) nominated J. Glenn Morris for President-Elect (1-year term to begin 2019), Charles “Bo” Sanders for Vice President (1-year term to begin 2019), and Roy Ziegelstein for Council member (4-year term to begin 2019). The Nominating Committee also recommended Richard Lange to continue as Secretary-Treasurer; Fred Schiffman to continue as Recorder; Stephen Greenberg to move from President-Elect to President (1-year term to begin October 21, 2018); Ronald Sacher to move from President to Immediate Past President (effective October 21, 2018); and Andrew Schafer to move from Immediate Past President to Council member. A motion to accept the recommendations of the committee was made by Frederic Billings, seconded by Richard Page, and unanimously approved.
The names of the members whose death was made known to the Association during the previous year were presented: Roland Blantz, Stuart Bondurant, William Dismukes, Daniel Federman, Jacques Genest, Sr, John Harvey, Eugen Hildreth, J. Vernon Knight, Sherman Mellinkoff. The names of the members' spouses whose death was made known to the Association during the previous year were also presented: Ruth DeSanctis (Roman DeSanctis), Laura Harrison (Donald Harrison), Kevin McDonagh (Leslie Crofford). Their names will be read to the membership at the Friday business meeting and members asked to compose memorials for The Transactions.
Dr. Dale moved and Dr. Mackowiak seconded the motion that the resignations of Richard Johnson and Thomas Lee be accepted. Drs. Elizabeth and Gary Nabel, who last attended a Climatological meeting in 2015, also submitted their resignations. However, since they both qualify for emeritus status if their attendance and dues are current, the Council recommended to Rick Lange that he offer them the opportunity to pay their dues and attend the 2019 Climatological meeting in order to be move to emeritus status.
Terminations for failure to comply with the attendance requirements as stated in the Constitution and By-laws (Article III, Section 5) were addressed by the Council.
For the following individual who last attended a meeting in 2012 and was not registered for this meeting, the Council unanimously approved the motion, made by Dr. Billings and seconded by Dr. Page, that authorized the Secretary-Treasurer notify to John Sedor — who provided a satisfactory explanation for why he was unable to attend the 2018 Climatological meeting — that he must remain current with his dues and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama, to avoid having his membership terminated. Allen Spiegel who last attended a meeting in 2012 is scheduled to attend the meeting (and deliver the Metzger Lecture).
For the following individuals who last attended a meeting in 2013 and were not registered for this meeting, the Council unanimously approved the motion, made by Dr. Billings and seconded by Dr. Page, that authorized the Secretary-Treasurer to do the following: inform Joseph Fins and Ronald Hoffman — both of whom provided satisfactory explanation for why they are unable to attend the 2018 Climatological meeting — that they must remain current with their dues and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear to avoid termination of their membership in the organization. The following members last attended in 2013 and are registered to attend this meeting, thus preserving their active member status: Jamie Conti, Charles Czeisler, Michael Fallon, Laura Petersen.
For the following individuals who last attended a meeting in 2014 and were not registered for this meeting, the Council unanimously approved the motion, made by Dr. Billings and seconded by Dr. Page, that authorized the Secretary-Treasurer to do the following: inform Lanny Rosenwasser and George Weiner that they must pay their 2018 dues within the month and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama, to avoid termination of their membership in the organization; inform Leslie Crofford and Valerie Opipari — both of whom provided satisfactory explanation for why they are unable to attend the 2018 Climatological meeting — that they must remain current with their dues and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama to avoid termination of their membership in the organization; terminate David Ellison, Arun Sanyal (who is also in arrears for 2017 and 2018 dues), and Charles Sawyer from the Climatological since they had not provided an explanation of why they were not attending the 2018 meeting. Eric Sibley, who is registered for this meeting, requested emeritus status due to a debilitating medical condition that preclude him from regularly attending meetings. Since he is only 57 years old, he has volunteered to continue paying dues until he reaches age 65 years, which is the age at which he would otherwise qualify for emeritus status. The Council unanimously supports Eric's request.
For the following individuals who last attended a meeting in 2015 and were not registered for this meeting, the Council unanimously approved the motion, made by Dr. Billings and seconded by Dr. Page, that authorized the Secretary-Treasurer to do the following: inform Brian Annex, Victoria Fraser, Charles Landefeld and James Shayman that they must pay their 2018 dues within the month and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama, to avoid termination of their membership in the organization; inform Michael Edmond, Daniel Garry, Dan Longo, Christopher Plowe, George Stouffer, and Peter Weller — all of whom provided satisfactory explanation for why they are unable to attend the 2018 Climatological meeting — that they must remain current with their dues and attend the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama to avoid termination of their membership in the organization.; terminate Richard LeBlond since he had not provided an explanation of why he was not attending the 2018 meeting and was in arrears for his 2018 dues. For Drs. Elizabeth and Gary Nabel, who last attended a Climatological meeting in 2015 and submitted their resignations, the Council recommended to Rick Lange that he offer them the opportunity to pay their dues and attend the 2019 Climatological meeting in order to move emeritus status.
The names of the 29 members who were not current in payment of their dues were presented to the Council; termination of membership was recommended for 2 of these; Arun Sanyal and Richard LeBlond. For the 6 who are in attendance at the meeting, payment will be obtained at the time of registration. The 21 members who are delinquent in payment of the dues and not attending the meeting will be contacted and asked to remit payment before year's end or risk having their membership rescinded.
Dr. Mackowiak moved and Dr. Dale seconded the motion that the following 19 members be eligible for transfer from active to emeritus membership: Robert Barish, Nanette Bishopric (with meeting attendance), Henry Bodenheimer, Robert Coffey (with meeting attendance), Charles Czeisler (with meeting attendance), Arthur Feldman, Anne Gershon, Michael Gershon, Richard Goldberg, Jeffrey Hasday, David Martin, Stephen Paget (with meeting attendance), D. Michael Shasby, Eric Sibley (with meeting attendance), David Stephens, Robert Todd, John Vierling, Matthew Weir. It was noted that Michael Gimbrone qualified for emeritus status last year (2017). The following members are eligible for emeritus status if dues are paid this year: Peter Densen, Stephen Emerson, and John Nestler. The following individuals are 65 years of age (or older) and have been an active member of the Climatological for at least 7 years, but have not attended a meeting in the last 3 years: Lawrence Friedman, Ronald Hoffman, Elizabeth Nabel, Gary Nabel, Steve Nelson, Lanny Rosenwasser, John Sedor and Roy Silverstein. With the next meeting attendance, they can be advanced to emeritus membership.
Dr. Lange reported that the Climatological has 508 total members, of whom 179 are active, 23 are provisional and 306 are emeritus. Of the 23 provisional members, 18 are scheduled to present papers at this meeting,; 1 (Judy Garber, 2015 Gordon Wilson lecturer) will be moved to active membership upon attending the 2018 meeting, and the remaining 4 (Conrad Liles, Thomas Benzing, Helen Boucher, and Nancy Lane) must present a paper at the 2019 meeting in Point Clear, Alabama to retain their membership. The resignation of 2 active members (Richard Johnson and Thomas Lee) was accepted, and 4 members (David Ellison, Arun Sanyal, Charles Sawyer and Richard LeBlond) were recommended to be terminated from the Climatological.
Dr. Mackowiak moved and Dr. Pennington seconded the motion that the following 18 provisional members be advanced to active membership upon presentation of their papers at the annual meeting and timely submission of their manuscript to the Recorder for publication in the Transactions: Abul Abbas, Myles Brown, Selwyn Vickers, Ashok Balasubramanyam, Eric Bass, Ravi Bhatia, Biykem Bozkurt, Arthur Burnett II, Daniel Diekema, Gailen Marshall, Thomas McGinn, James Musser, William Powderly, W. Brian Reeves, Mitchell Rosner, Anil Rustgi, Steven Sherman, and George Tsokos. For Judy Garber who was accepted into provisional membership after presenting the Gordon Wilson lecture in 2015 and provided a manuscript, advancement to active membership was recommended upon attending the meeting. The remaining 4 provisional members who were elected in 2016 — Conrad Liles, Thomas Benzing, Helen Boucher, and Nancy Lane — must present a paper at the 2019 meeting to retain membership in the organization. The motion passed unanimously.
The winner of the 2017 Mary Allen Engle Award (i.e., the new member who was most prompt in submitting their edited lecture manuscript to the Recorder) was announced and is Gary Firestein. The prize — a bottle of wine — will be supplied by Dr. Schiffman to Dr. Firestein's residence. The 2017 Theodore E. Woodward Award (to recognize the presenter at the annual meeting who spoke the most eloquently…. “on the importance of clinical skills in medical practice and teaching”) winner was announced and is Kathleen Cho who presented a talk entitled, “Is “Ovarian” Cancer a Misnomer? Exploring Ovarian Cancer Origins Using the Mouse.” A plaque and check in the amount of $500 will be mailed to Kathleen since she did not attend the meeting.
Phil Mackowiak provided the Recorder's report. Since implementation of a policy in which our guest (i.e., Metzger and DuPont) lecturers are provided only half their honorarium at the time of the lecture and the other half upon submission of an acceptable manuscript, Dr. Schiffman noted an improvement in timely reception of manuscripts. A request was made to remind the speakers to present a written manuscript to Dr. Schiffman within 30 days of the meeting.
The end of year (December 2017) and current (as of September 28, 2018) financial statements were presented and discussed. It was reported that the Association's net assets as of December 31, 2017, were $663,033.19; as of September 28, 2018, the portfolio value was $727,210.45. Frederic Billings informed the Council that the investment income should be no more than one-third of the total income of the non-profit organization in order to maintain its non-profit status with the IRS. The Council was reminded that The Climatological has set a goal of maintaining enough funds to cover the costs of two meetings (∼$500,000) should unforeseen circumstances prevent the organization from holding meetings already under contract. As a result of a rising stock market and recent deposits, the current portfolio was noted to have 62% equity and 28% fixed income holdings and 10% cash, A rebalancing of the current investment strategy was recommended in order to maintain a 60% equity and 40% fixed income investment strategy, which followed the advice of our financial advisor, Sanford Roy of the Davis, Miller, Roy Group (Merrill Lynch) and the recommendation of our Finance Committee, which consisted of David Dale (chair), Virginia Collier, Anne Moore, Richard Page, Cam Patterson, Jan Patterson, Ronald Sacher (ex-officio), Andy Schafer (ex-officio), Stephen Greenberg (ex-officio), Richard Lange (ex-officio). Additionally, within each class, Sanford recommended some monies be redistributed based on fund performance and changes in the global economy. A motion for this portfolio rebalancing and fund redistribution was made by Frederic Billings, seconded by Richard Page and unanimously approved by the Council. The Council was informed that Sanford Roy charges no fee for managing the ACCA account or providing financial advice. Richard Page recommended we seek official legal counsel to advise us regarding the investment and disbursement rules for a non-profit organization to maintain its 503c(1) status, and the Council gave unanimous support for this recommendation.
The Council members were notified that Postlethwaite and Netterville, A Professional Accounting Corporation had not yet finalized the 2017 audit. When completed, the audit will be submitted to the Council Audit Committee for review and comment before submission to the Council for approval and for publication in the 130th volume of the Transactions.
The established dates and sites for upcoming meetings are as follows:
October 17–20, 2019 Grand Hotel Marriott, Point Clear, GA
October 15–18, 2020 Belmond, Charleston, SC
October 21–24, 2021 Ponte Vedra Beach Resorts, Ponte Vedra, FL
Old Business:
As noted in the previously, Frederic Billings reported that a special Constitution and Bylaws Committee consisting of Jeremiah Barondess, John Oates, and Robert Carey considered ways to change our constitution and bylaws so that the term of Past Presidents on the Council be reduced from 4 years to 2 years. This would allow both for more of the membership to serve on the Council and also for a reduction in the number of years of service required of the Past Presidents. A recommendation was made that: 1) the two Immediate Past Presidents be kept on the Council for 2 years each, 2) the newly nominated councilors be nominated from the membership at large and one of those councilors would not necessarily be a Past President as is our current practice, and 3) the Nominating Committee each year would be charged with nominating a President-Elect, a Vice-President and two councilors. To accomplish it, a motion was made by Dr. Dale and seconded by Dr. Howley that Article V of the Bylaws be changed accordingly (changes shown in bold):
ARTICLE V—OFFICERS
Section 1. The officers of this Association shall consist of a President, a President-Elect, the 2 most recent Past Presidents, a Vice-President, a Secretary-Treasurer, and a Recorder, who with eight other members, shall constitute the Council of the Association.
Section 2. Nominations. The officers and Council members shall be nominated by a Nominating Committee of at least five members, which committee shall be appointed by the President and notified to the members of the Association in the February letter. The report of the Nominating Committee will be given at the first business meeting with the advice and consent of Council.
Section 3. Elections. The election of officers and Council members shall take place at the business meeting. A majority of votes cast shall constitute an election.
Section 4. The President, President-Elect, Vice-President, Secretary-Treasurer, and Recorder shall enter upon their duties at the close of the annual meeting at which they are elected, and shall hold office until the close of the next annual meeting or until their successors are elected. The President, President-Elect, and Vice-President will serve for 1 year, whereas the Secretary-Treasurer and Recorder may be reelected for several consecutive 1-year terms. The President-Elect shall become President at the close of the next annual meeting. The Immediate Past President will serve a 2-year term on the Council. Each of the two most recent Past Presidents (Dr. Schafer and Dr. Sacher) may be elected to serve two additional one-year terms.
Section 5. Members of the Council, other than the officers, shall hold office for 4 years, two members being elected at each annual meeting.
Section 6. Vacancies. Any vacancy occurring among the officers of the Association during the year may be filled by the Council.
This change to the Bylaws was provided to the members at large in the February mailing and will be voted on at this meeting.
New Business:
After careful consideration of the qualifications of all nominees, Council elected the following 21 individuals to provisional membership in the Association: David Aronoff, Jon Aster, Christie Ballantyne, Robert Carithers, Ethan Dmitrovsky, Sergio Fazi, Glenn Fishman, John Hardin, Chou-Long Huang, Justin McArthur, James Oates, C. Kent Osborne, Antony Rosen, Theodora Ross, Richard Schwartzstein, Nick Shaheen, Robert Simari, Victor Thannickal, James Udelson, Thomas Wheeler, Wolfgang Winkelmayer.
The Association's 2018 Committee memberships were provided to the Council for informational purposes:
Nominating Committee: Andy Schafer (chair), John Carethers, Richard Page, Paul Rothman, Doug Vaughan, Phyllis August, Ronald Sacher (ex-officio), Richard Lange (ex-officio).
Finance Committee: David Dale (chair), Virginia Collier, Anne Moore, Richard Page, Cam Patterson, Jan Patterson, Ronald Sacher (ex-officio), Andy Schafer (ex-officio), Stephen Greenberg (ex-officio), Richard Lange (ex-officio).
Woodward Committee (confidential): Phil Mackowiak, Anne Moore and Richard Lange
Audit Committee: Cam Patterson (Chair), Jeanette Guarner, William Henrich
With (a) the transfer of 19 provisional members to the addition of these 21 new provisional members, the membership count at the end of the Council meeting is: 523 total members, 173 active members, 25 provisional members, and 325 emeritus members.
It was reported that the Association will number 523 total members, with 25 provisional, 325 emeritus, and 173 active members after (a) 19 members transfer from provisional to active status upon presentation of a paper at the October 2018 meeting; (b) 18 qualified active members transition to emeritus membership; (c) 2 active members (Richard Johnson and Thomas Lee) resign from membership and 4 active members (David Ellison, Arun Sanyal, Charles Sawyer and Richard LeBlond) are notified of their termination from the Climatological; and (d) 21 new provisional members are elected.
The meeting adjourned at 3:30PM.
After the meeting concluded, the Secretary-Treasurer was made aware of the of the members who had passed away unbeknownst to the membership: H. Corwin Hinshaw (12/28/2000), Robert Wilkins (2003), Daniel Ellis (12/13/17), Robert Mason (1/24/12), Robert Furman (5/31/13), Reginald H. Fitz (5/28/13), John Balint (12/16/16), Richard Reitemeir (12/18/06), Dorothy Phinney (Arthur Phinney), and Nancy Tooker (John Tooker). Members will be asked to compose memorials for The Transactions.
