Jen Madsen, MPH, is an executive and health policy strategist with more than two decades of experience in the nation’s capital. She is a principal in Health Innovation at MITRE, a not-for-profit company that works in the public interest.
Jen’s clients span NIH, FDA and the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS). She currently advises the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics for COVID-19 (RADx) “Shark Tank” program, whose impact includes authorization of the first COVID-19 test for use at home without a prescription.
Prior to MITRE, Jen was chief of staff to the CEO at Food Allergy Research and Education, and advocated for people with life-threatening food allergies. Jen led development of the Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education and Research (FASTER) Act, enacted in 2021; and raised awareness of a national shortage of epinephrine, which convinced the FDA to recognize the shortage and approve new generics, making headlines in The Washington Post and New York Times.
Previously, Jen led advocacy efforts on access to genetic testing, as policy advisor at international law firm Arnold & Porter LLP; as senior director, leading a 10-person team at the College of American Pathologists; and as vice president at the American Clinical Laboratory Association, where she led critical negotiations with FDA. She also advised healthcare clients on the ACA as a principal at the Podesta Group, a bipartisan lobbying firm.
From 2003 to 2009, Jen held several roles in a fast-growing startup, including director and member of the leadership team, at consulting firm Avalere Health and advised biopharmaceutical companies and patient advocates to prepare for the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
Jen’s first job in Washington was with the Congressional Budget Office of the U.S. Congress. She earned an MPH from Yale University and a bachelor’s in biochemistry from Rice University. An Atlanta native, she lives in Arlington, Virginia, with her husband and two dogs.