Akin Gump announced that Virgil A. Miller, longtime Chief of Staff to the Assistant to House Majority Whip Rep. Cedric L. Richmond (D-LA) and former House Energy and Commerce Committee health care staffer, has joined the firm as a senior policy advisor in its Washington, D.C. office. Mr. Miller’s broad experience on Capitol Hill spans the House Democratic Caucus, including the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), New Democrat Coalition and leadership.
As Chief of Staff to Rep. Richmond, Mr. Miller played key roles in the Congressman’s re-election campaigns; appointments to the House committees with jurisdiction over intellectual property, the judicial system and homeland security; appointment as Assistant to the House Majority Whip; and election as chairman of the CBC. He was also instrumental in developing the strategy for successful passage of multiple bills in the House pertaining to job creation, cybersecurity, energy, flood protection, disaster recovery, critical infrastructure protection and nuclear global detection.
While serving as Chief of Staff for Rep. Richmond, Virgil Miller served as liaison between the Congressman and two presidential administrations, including all federal agencies. In addition, he coordinated Rep. Richmond’s activities with congressional leadership and House committee offices, as well as the Congressman’s overall fundraising and strategic giving to other members, candidates and committees.
Before joining Rep. Richmond’s office, Mr. Miller spent four years as Professional Staff Member for the Committee on Energy and Commerce and Health Policy Advisor to Chairman John Dingell (D-MI). He played a key role in drafting and negotiating the passage of some of the most consequential health and safety policy of the last 15 years, including the Affordable Care Act, the Food Safety Enhancement Act, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 and the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act of 2008.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Miller was a health policy fellow in the office of Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-NY). In that role, he assisted in developing and advancing the Congressman’s health policy agenda, including reauthorization of the National Institutes of Health, reduction of childhood obesity, expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program and medical device safety.