Indiana ranked among top 10 for life sciences
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A biennial survey conducted by Biotechnology Industry Organization in Washington D.C. and Ohio-based TEConomy Partners shows Indiana’s life sciences industry continues to rank among the top in the nation. According to the report, the state continued its top 10 ranking for life sciences employment and is ranked third for academic biosciences research & development investment growth.
The report, The U.S. Bioscience Industry: Fostering Innovation and Driving America’s Economy Forward, “measures growth in the biosciences sector from 2018 to 2021 for the entire country and each of the 50 states.”
The authors define biosciences with a focus on five subsectors: agricultural feedstock and chemicals, drugs and pharmaceuticals, medical devices and research, testing and medical laboratories, and bioscience-related distribution.
Indiana is one of only eight states with employment specializations in three of the five subsectors. More specifically, Bloomington and Lafayette are two of only 19 cities to have specializations in three of the five subsectors.
“Indiana’s life sciences industry continues to drive innovation and rank in the top quintile nationwide,” Patty Martin, president and CEO of BioCrossroads, said in written remarks. “Our employment numbers have increased by 8% over the last three years; our venture capital investments have grown; and we have maintained our status as a leader in the pharmaceutical, medical device and agriculture sectors.”
The rankings for individual cities are broken down by the size of metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). For Indiana, those rankings include:
Large MSAs (employment greater than 250,000):
- Indianapolis is 5th nationally for the number of drugs and pharmaceuticals jobs; 9th for agricultural feedstock and chemicals jobs, and 25th for bioscience-related distribution jobs.
For Medium MSAs (employment between 75,000 and 250,000):
- Evansville ranks 11th for agricultural feedstock and chemicals.
- Lafayette has four subsectors with specialized employment concentration and has improved its standing significantly in two areas since the last report in 2020. It is now No. 1 in agricultural feedstock and chemicals and 6th nationally, moving up from 18th in 2020. In the drugs and pharmaceuticals category, Lafayette boosted its position to 3rd from 13th.
- South Bend-Mishawaka improved six positions from 2020 and is now 8th in medical devices.
Small MSAs (employment less than 75,000):
- Bloomington has been No. 1 in the medical devices and equipment category for specialized employment concentration for the last eight years. It is also the second highest region for Pharmaceuticals and is ranked 17th nationally for medical devices and equipment. The region is also 13th in bioscience-related distribution.
- Columbus made its debut on the list of cities with high activity this year ranking 15th for drugs and pharmaceuticals.
- Terre Haute moved up two places and is now 12th in the drugs and pharmaceuticals category.
“It’s impressive that seven Hoosier cities from North to South and East to West are being recognized for strong life sciences activity, spreading out the economic impact across the state,” said Kristen Jones, president of the Indiana Health Industry Forum. “It’s critical that we keep investing in this sector that provides jobs, tax revenue, and most importantly, life-saving products, to Hoosiers.”
You can connect to the full report by clicking here.
Biotechnology Industry Organization bills itself as the world’s largest trade advocacy association. It represents member companies, state biotechnology groups, academic and research institutions, and others in more than 30 countries, according to its website.
TEConomy Partners is a global research firm that specializes in a variety of sectors, including life sciences, renewable energy, and advanced manufacturing.
Last month, a separate report from TEConomy Partners commissioned by BioCrossroads showed Indiana’s life sciences sector has outperformed the state’s economy over the last 20 years.