Colorado Bioscience Association (CBSA) member’s were welcomed to the Capitol for a day that concluded with a press conference from Governor Ritter about the state of Bioscience in Colorado. The earlier programs offered remarks from several state legislators as well as presentations on relevant legislative issues and the plans for bioscience in the state. Representative Jim Riesberg spoke first, noting the successes of HB 1001 which makes state matching funds available to bioscience companies. Matt Cheroutes of the Colorado Office of Economic Development then offered thoughts on the importance of the bioscience industry to the state, noting it as a “knowledge based industry” that will be key to state growth. State Senator Josh Penry spoke of “avoiding making a bad situation worse” with the current budget crisis which stands at a $600M deficit this year and at least $400M next fiscal year. Specifically, Penry described his opposition to simply “whacking higher ed” budgets because of the need for a highly trained workforce to support industries like bioscience. Also offering their welcomes were Representatives Rollie Heath, Su Ryden, and Spencer Swalm and House Speaker Terrence Carroll.
Pactrick Kelly of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) then gave perspectives on the key legislative actions that could impact the bioscience industry. On a national level, Kelly noted that the economic bailout could include both $2B in funding for the NIH and $1B for pandemic readiness research. Another area of interest is the potential implementation of comparative efficacy (CER) evaluations for drugs to gain or maintain coverage by Medicare or other programs, and especially as to how this implementation could lead to cost-effectiveness analysis. Kelly offered expectations that the government “non-interference” provision in the Medicare Modernization Act would be overturned enabling government negotiations for discounts with manufacturers.
A key issue to be determined is the regulatory path for follow-on biologics. While there is general agreement on the need to protect patient safety in the new legislation, the most contentious issue is expected to be the length of data exclusivity for the innovator company with proposals ranging from 0 to 14 years. Another goal of BIO is ensure that SBIR eligibility is expanded to include firms with more than 50% venture capital ownership.
On a state level concerns include state health care reforms, specifically for Medicaid, that attempt to control costs and anti-marketing legislation. The most discussed state issue was the enactment of laws that prohibit access to physician level prescribing data. New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine have such laws in place and Colorado currently has a bill in the works that would prohibit access to prescriber data along with implementing a gift ban and additional market and advertising disclosures introduced by Senator Morgan Carroll. It was noted that the AMA has a system in place already where physicians can opt out of making such data available (only 341 of Colorado’s 10,000+ physicians have done so). Concerns exist that such regulation could affect small companies more as limited sales forces necessitate identifying doctors to target, which is often accomplished through analysis of this type of data.
Kelly also highlighted state actions and attributes that can support the growth of a strong bioscience industry within the state. These activities are:
- Engaged and active university participation
- Available capital
- Discretionary R&D funding (e.g. NIH grants)
- Strong business and scientific talent pool
- Specialized facilities and equipment
- Patience and a long-term perspective as investments take several years to pay off
BIO’s 2009 International Convention will be held from May 18 to 21 in Atlanta.
CBSA Executive Director John Collar then stepped up to offer a slightly more detailed look into the Colorado Bioscience Roadmap 2008 report than was offered at the press conference later in the day (download the full report here). Key statistics include the over 18,000 employed at 920 bioscience establishments in the state (as of 2006 ) with an average salary of $67K. Colorado experienced 5.5% job growth in the industry from 2002 to 2007 concentrating in the 2004 to 2007 period when growth was 7.4%.
Collar went on to provide the five strategies to promote bioscience industry growth through 2013, which were strongly aligned with those noted previously by Kelly.
- Ensure the availability of capital through efforts such as HB 1001 and tax credits. Additional efforts will include enhancing awareness to out of state investment firms and potentially working to create a state fund of funds
- Create a robust commercial infrastructure through continued expansion of entrepreneurial networks and establishment of a Bioscience Executive Corp (mentorship) and a Colorado Drug, Diagnostic, and Device Development Institute.
- Attract, retain, and produce a skilled workforce with efforts centering around ensuring science education is aligned with the needs of businesses. Specific programs include a high school teacher externship program and expanding business and entrepreneurial education for bioscience students.
- Promote Colorado’s position as a bioscience center through a branding and marketing campaign and working with state government.
- Make a long-term commitment to bioscience industry development through continued support of existing programs and identification of new potential revenue sources.
CBSA would like to thank Amgen for sponsoring the event breakfast.
