Governor Deval Patrick
Announces Life Sciences Initiative
On May 8, 2007, during a speech at the BIO 2007 convention, Governor Deval Patrick announced his plan to make Massachusetts the global leader in life sciences, unveiling for the first time ever a comprehensive, collaborative Massachusetts Life Sciences Strategy.
The work of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center is a core part of the Governor’s Initiative, and will be the primary state agency tasked with realizing the vision of the Initiative. The goals of the initiative are embodied in a bill submitted to the Massachusetts legislature on July 19, 2007.
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| Link to Bill Summary |
| Link to Bill |
| Link to Strategic Outline |
The initiative includes a 10 year, $1 billion investment package that will both enhance the state’s already nationally recognized assets in the fields of medicine and science and fill gaps in federal funding to ensure the state’s ability to support life science progress from the idea stage through the production stage. The Patrick Administration’s strategy brings together industry, academic research hospitals, and public and private colleges and universities to coordinate these efforts, spur new research, strengthen investments, create new jobs and produce new therapies for a better quality of life.
During his speech at BIO, Governor Patrick articulated the importance of the Initiative:
“This is an important time for the life sciences all over the world, its ideas and innovations can change lives, and can generate billions of dollars in new products, good jobs at good wages, and robust sustainable economic growth.
This industry capitalizes on the best that Massachusetts has to offer, and serves the best of what Massachusetts is all about. Within this small state we have a extraordinary confluence of research universities, teaching hospitals, brain power, venture capital, and a long tradition of entrepreneurialism that has helped defined this economy as being fueled by innovation. We are quite simply the largest life sciences super-cluster on the planet, and that is a thing to be very proud of.
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| Genzyme Group Senior Vice President Dave Fleming speaking with Secretary O'Connell at Bio 2007 |
Right now our competitor states and foreign nations are investing billions of dollars to attract researchers, institutions and industries. At the same time, federal funding through the National Institutes of Health, of which Massachusetts has received a disproportionate share, is flat and likely to diminish in the short term. Politics, especially around stem cell research, impairs the innovation and calculated risk-taking that make breakthroughs possible. It is essential now that the Commonwealth step up to maintain and extend our global leadership in the life sciences. That is why I am proud to announce today the Massachusetts Life Science Initiative, a 10 year - $1billion dollar investment that will create new partnerships between state government, industry, academic medical centers and public and private higher education, and accelerate our statewide life sciences growth into high gear.”
Click here to read the full text of Governor Patrick’s speech made at BIO >>
THE LIFE SCIENCES INITIATIVE STRATEGIC OUTLINE:
EXISTING STRENGTHS:
- Vibrant research and learning environment with our universities, public and private, academic medical centers, and research facilities.
- National Leader in Grant awards, per capita, from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
- Robust Entrepreneurial tradition and a vibrant Life Sciences cluster with nearly 1 out of 7 jobs being the life sciences.
- National Leader in Grant awards, per capita, from the Small Business Administration for the Small Business Innovation Program (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR).
THE CHALLENGES:
- Flat NIH funding makes other states that have invested in funding, research and development more competitive.
- The federal stem cell prohibition has resulted in significant activity at the state level that has resulted in efforts to attract Massachusetts researchers and companies.
- California, New York, New Jersey and other states have committed to major investments in the life sciences.
- The United Kingdom, Ireland, China and Singapore have developed coordinated strategies to attract researchers and companies. The H-1B visa shortage means many of the world’s best and brightest will go elsewhere.
THE GOAL:
- Public/Private partnerships around Funding and Investment Strategies to Create New Jobs, Spur Innovative Research, Strengthen Investments in Higher Education and Workforce Training.
- Targeted investments at each stage of the development and commercialization cycle that result in robust job creation.
- Regional Innovation Centers that attract researchers and companies and grow cures and jobs.
- Life Saving Medical Therapies & Enhanced Standard of Living throughout the Commonwealth.
Link to Video
Link to Podcast
Link to Press Release
Link to full text of transcript