Chapter Leaders Attend Life Sciences Bill Signing

On Friday, June 15, Governor Charlie Baker Signed Bill H 4501 providing up to $623 million dollars to support Massachusetts’ life sciences ecosystem over the next five years – and the Boston Area Chapter was thrilled to be invited to attend.

By approving the bill, the Commonwealth stepped up big time and showed its continued support for the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. The MLSC is responsible for administering the funding which will go toward capital investments and tax incentives bolstering the already strong partnership between government, academia and industry unmatched anywhere else in the country.  Charlie Baker said the bill “will continue to give [Massachusetts] the ability to make targeted investments in organizations that are interested in expanding their footprint in Massachusetts either to do research, manufacturing or discovery.”

Thanks to the Chapter’s strong and continued relationship with the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, representatives from the Chapter were invited to attend the landmark bill signing which took place at Bunker Hill Community College. The bill effectively recognizes and reinforces the critical role played by the MLSC in building and supporting the life science ecosystem for the past decade by extending their role for an additional five years and funding their efforts to the tune of up to $623 million.

This was a great day for our industry, with all the appropriate pomp and circumstance surrounding the bill signing and many life sciences dignitaries present to mark the occasion.  Bob Coughlin, President of MassBio, spoke of the unparalleled cooperation between academia, government, and industry as separating the Massachusetts life sciences cluster from any other in the world.  Travis McCready, President and CEO of MLSC, boasted about his center’s “net new investment of over $1.3 billion …in biomanufacturing” in the past two and a half years.

On the heels of the energy and enthusiasm created by hosting the well attended and highly successful BIO convention in Boston last week, Charlie Baker summed things up by stating “to be here in Massachusetts with the brightest minds, the sharpest talents, and the greatest collaborations all working together…to defeat…illnesses and diseases” is what makes Massachusetts a very special place.

Bill Sibold, Sanofi Executive Vice President, spoke not only of collaboration but also about the things that attract both people and companies to Massachusetts, including partnerships between innovators and researchers and an ecosystem that supports discovery and risk taking.  Laurie Glimcher, MD, President and CEO of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, spoke about the positive developments in cancer research and treatment as a direct result of funding received from MLSC.  Pam Eddinger, President of Bunker Hill Community College and host for the event, described how funding from this initiative allowed Bunker Hill Community College to open a Biotechnology Center that provides workforce training, education and certificate programs to prepare the workforce of tomorrow.

Everyone involved applauded the bill signing and the continued collaboration between government, industry, and research which will continue to reinforce Massachusetts as the leading biotechnology supercluster and destination for people and companies in the world.