James F. Cummings

James F. Cummings, M.D., is the Chief Medical Officer at VAXART, Inc (VXRT, NASDAQ), a clinical-stage vaccine company focused on global health through the discovery, development, and commercialization of oral recombinant vaccines administered using temperature-stable tablets that can be stored and shipped without refrigeration, eliminating the need for needle injection.

Preceding his role at VAXART, Dr. Cummings served as President of ICON Government and Public Health Solutions, Inc., a global clinical research organization, providing clinical trial and functional services to government and commercial customers, in support of global health. Under his leadership, ICON GPHS grew to 480 employees and increased revenue by over 800 million dollars annually.

Prior to joining ICON Government and Public Health Solutions, Dr. Cummings served as Vice President of Clinical Development and Translational Medicine at Novavax, Inc., in Gaithersburg, MD. There he led the development programs for all Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases, to include human and veterinary vaccine development and polyclonal human antibody development, as part of a “One-Health” response to emerging pathogens, to provide a timely, broad response across the spectrum of emerging infectious diseases.

Colonel (Retired) Cummings enjoyed a 26-year career in the U.S. Army with a proven track record in vaccine, drug and diagnostics development, most recently as Director of the Department of Defense (DoD) Global Emerging Infectious Diseases Surveillance and Response Systems (DoD GEIS) leading Biosurveillance for the US DoD with laboratories and partners in 71 countries, along with serving as the Consultant to the Surgeon General for all medical research and development. While at Walter Reed Army Research Institute of Research (WRAIR), he directed the comprehensive translational medicine research division within the WRAIR and DoD, and served as director of the clinical trials center in DoD, and was Chief of Overseas Vaccine Development for WRAIR’s Department of Immunology, Division of CD&I. A graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Medicine, Dr. Cummings trained in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases Fellowships at Walter Reed and the National Capital Consortium and has been elected to fellow in the American College of Physicians (FACP), the Infectious Diseases Society of America (FIDSA) and the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (FASTMH).

Dr. Cummings has over 35 peer-reviewed publications, several book chapters and has recently been a member of numerous national committees and editorial boards including: the U.S. Interagency Task Force on Anti-Microbial Resistance (ITFAR), the U.S. Secretary of Defense’s Working Group on Ebola Response, multiple World Health Organization (WHO) working groups, the ASTMH’s “Benjamin H. Kean Travel Fellowship in Tropical Medicine” committee, the executive committee of the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick, Lackawanna County, PA, and on the board of directors for “Enspice,” a non-profit organization dedicated to improving nutrition for children in low to middle income countries.

A native of Dunmore, PA, Dr. Cummings received his Bachelor of Science in biology from The University of Scranton, where he also received an honorary doctorate in 2015 and delivered principal remarks at the graduate commencement.