23 November 2016Americas

California life sciences industry booming, says report

California’s biopharmaceutical and medical device employment rate grew by 7% between 2011 and 2015, a  recent report by the California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) and PwC US has revealed.

According to the “2017 California Life Sciences Industry Report”, California’s life sciences community continues to grow in many other aspects as well.

The state has 3,040 life sciences companies, which is 192 more than the previous year, producing new technologies and boosting the state’s economy.

Sara Radcliffe, president and CEO of the CLSA, said: “California’s life sciences sector is delivering incredible value for the people of the Golden State and patients around the world.”

She added: “Whether it’s pharmaceutical drugs, biologics, medical devices, digital health technologies, genomic diagnostics or other sub-sectors too numerous to count, our life sciences community is providing a steady stream of innovation and having a tremendous positive impact on healthcare.”

By September 2016, 1,269 drugs from California-based companies were in the Food and Drug Administration pipeline, while in 2015, 264 medical devices were approved.

The report also revealed that the industry paid workers $33.5 billion in California for the federal fiscal year 2016, which is $1 billion more than in Massachusetts.

Peter Claude, partner, pharmaceutical and life sciences advisory at PwC, said: “This report indicates sustained and strong growth for the California life sciences industry over the course of the past year.

“Our research confirms that the state continues to lead the nation in attracting both venture capital investment and National Institutes of Health grants, life sciences employment, commercialising new products, boosting the overall economy, and most importantly, improving patient care.”