This timeline shows the Pulmonary Hypertension Association's history, starting with our founding in 1991.
From simple beginnings – four women who met around a kitchen table in Florida – the Pulmonary Hypertension Association has evolved into an international community of more than 16,000 pulmonary hypertension patients, caregivers, family members and health care professionals.
Scroll our timeline, a celebration of the shared history of PHA and the PH community.
Patricia “Pat” Paton was 83 when she died July 19, 2020, in Bonita Springs, Florida. Paton, along with her sister Judy Simpson and Teresa Knazik and Dorothy Olson, formed what became the Pulmonary Hypertension Association in 1991.
Jerry Paton, husband of Pat Paton, and one of the founders of PHA, died Jan. 6, 2020, after a long illness.
Judy and Ed Simpson are among the recipients of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association philanthropy awards. Judy Simpson founded the organization that became PHA in 1991, along with her sister Pat Paton, Teresa Knazik, Dorothy Olson, and the women’s husbands. PHA announced the award recipients at PHA 2024 International PH Conference and Scientific Sessions.
Rino Aldrighetti, who led the Pulmonary Hypertension Association for nearly two decades, died May 30, 2022. He was the first PHA employee and retired in 2016 as president and CEO.
In 1995, Flolan (epoprostenol) became the first drug approved for pulmonary arterial hypertension treatment. Although Flolan is no longer manufactured, epoprostenol is available as a generic and under the brand name Veletri.
As PHA celebrates its 35th anniversary this year, founders Judy and Ed Simpson reflect on the organization’s history in the latest issue of Pathlight. In another nod to PHA history, the new issue explores the evolution of patient education from a mimeographed newsletter called Pathlight in 1990 to multimedia formats, international conferences and regional events.
