National Report Highlights Economic Impact of the Bioscience Industry in Wisconsin and Nationwide

MADISON, Wis.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) announced on Monday the latest findings of their national bioscience industry report, Investment, Innovation and Job Creation in a Growing U.S. Bioscience Industry 2018 , at the BIO International Convention in Boston, MA. The report highlighted the $2 trillion in economic impact the U.S. bioscience industry has on the nation, supported by ongoing job growth and supplementary venture capital investment. The industry saw job increases nearly twice that of overall private industry and only lagged in software and computer services among technology sectors.

Wisconsin has been outperforming national employment growth in the bioscience industry since 2014, seeing a 5.8% growth in employment from 2014-16 and a 13.4% increase in the number of bioscience establishments.

Wisconsin was ranked with specialized employment concentration in the medical device and equipment subsector and above-average concentrations in both bioscience-related distribution and agricultural feedstock and industrial biosciences. Madison, WI was one of only 8 cities with specialized concentration in 4 bioscience subsectors while Milwaukee, WI had the 5^th highest concentration of Medical Devices and Equipment jobs in the nation.

“This national report highlights the concentration and economic impact of the bioscience industry in Wisconsin, demonstrating the importance of the bioscience industry in our state,” said Lisa Johnson, CEO of BioForward. “We look forward to further exploring this in our upcoming statewide economic impact study that will be distributed in October at our annual Wisconsin Biohealth Summit.”

The recent passage of the 21^st Century Cures Act and federal budget increases will continue to bolster research in Wisconsin, with Wisconsin’s NIH funding awards totaling $424.9 million in 2017 alone. Venture investment into the state also grew, with $296.45 million in bioscience venture capital investment from 2014-2017.

Wisconsin led the nation in the top ten states for microbiology, genetics, and agricultural biosciences patents. In total, Wisconsin reported 2,775 bioscience and related patents from 2014-2017 with two-thirds of them being in the medical and surgical devices segment.

The report additionally highlights national bioscience industry impact including:

• The U.S. bioscience industry directly employed 1.74 million in 2016 in more than 85,000 business establishments.
• Since 2001, U.S. bioscience companies have increased employment by 273,000 jobs, or nearly 19%, with net job gains recorded by the industry in all but 2 of the last 15 years.
• Bioscience industry wages are consistently higher and growing faster, on average, than those for the overall economy, reflecting the skilled, high-quality jobs in demand. The average U.S. bioscience worker earned nearly $99,000 in 2016, 85% greater than the average for the overall private sector.

To view the full report on Wisconsin’s bioscience investment, innovation and job creation, click here. BioForward’s Wisconsin Biohealth Industry Economic Impact Study will be available beginning on October 9^th, 2018 at the Annual Wisconsin Biohealth Summit.

About BioForward Wisconsin

BioForward serves as the independent voice of Wisconsin’s biohealth industry, providing services and resources to support the growth of our industry throughout the U.S. and the world. BioForward is the only Wisconsin organization representing over 200 biohealth member companies including biotech, biopharma, medical device, diagnostics, digital health, as well as research institutions, and service providers. Our focus in 2018 is advocating on behalf of Wisconsin’s industry strength in integrated health solutions and research. We have implemented several new initiatives and placed emphasis that BioForward represents this impactful industry for the state of Wisconsin. Visit www.bioforward.org to learn more.

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