With a broad and deep industry base, Ohio is home to more than 1,100 bioscience-related organizations.
It is a growing and robust community for sure, but also diverse. From innovative start-ups supported by biotech incubators TechColumbus, BIOSTART, BioEnterprise, and The Innovation Center to emerging stars — like Meridian Bioscience, Atricure, Diagnostic Hybrids, and Ganeden Biotech — to some of the largest corporations in the world — like Cardinal Health, P&G, Boehringer-Ingelheim, and Abbott.
- Four Ohio bioscience companies have gone public since 2005 — most recently, Athersys and Eurand.
- Meridian Bioscience’s growth continues to garner attention: 2005-2009 Fortune Small Business Fastest-Growing Companies and Business Week’s 2007 100 Hot Growth Companies.
- In late 2007, Cardinal Health launched a $50 million, 250,000 square foot, 700 job expansion at the company's headquarters
Overall, more than $2.5 billion were invested across Ohio to accelerate Ohio’s bioscience growth in 2007, a jump of more than $1.4 billion since 2004. The sources of funding include venture capital, angel funds, IPOs, acquisitions, SBIR/STTR, state biomedical R&D grants, and NSF and NIH grants.
Ohio was awarded Site Selection magazine’s Governor’s Cup in 2007 and 2008, symbolizing top ranking in the U.S. for new or expanded business facilities. Prominent examples of major bioscience-related manufacturing companies coming to and expanding in Ohio are Amylin, Alkermes, Charles River Labs, Ben Venue and Eurand.
Ohio is the 7th largest state (11.3 million), and 3 of the top 35 largest U.S. metro areas are in Ohio—Cleveland, Cincinnati-Hamilton, and Columbus. Those three metro areas are listed in the top 30 U.S. Biotech Locations by Business Facilities magazine. Business Facilities also placed Ohio 4th in its most recent ranking of states showing the greatest overall strength and growth in biotechnology.
The overall bioscience industry—including commercial entities, medical colleges, and the health care delivery system—directly and indirectly generates more than 1.4 million jobs in Ohio. Commercial bioscience contributes more than 50,000 direct jobs to Ohio’s economy. This includes a diverse range of jobs such as manufacturing engineers and managers, lab and imaging technicians, toxicologists, clinical trial coordinators, food technologists, bioinformatics software developers, bioscience entrepreneurs and much more.
Details in the Ohio Bioscience Growth Report.
Distinguished and diverse, the breadth of Ohio’s bioscience research capabilities matches that of any other region in the world.
Overall in FY2007, Ohio research organizations earned $628 million in NIH funding, placing it in the top 10 states. Five institutions—Case Western Reserve University, The Ohio State University, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Research Foundation, and The Cleveland Clinic —ranked in the top 100 NIH funding recipients. In FY2007, the NSF awarded $12.4 million in biological sciences grants to Ohio institutions. Ohio ranks first in the Midwest and seventh in the nation in total STTR/SBIR awards with $97 million.
Innovative collaborations among Ohio’s research institutions include:
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The Global Cardiovascular Innovation Center (GCIC) is a $250 million cardiovascular research and product development consortium led by the Cleveland Clinic and comprised of the following five leading Ohio institutions: Case Western Reserve University, The Ohio State University, The University of Cincinnati, The University of Toledo and University Hospitals of Cleveland.
- The Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, a consortium of Case Western Reserve University, The Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals of Cleveland (UHC), The Ohio State University, and Athersys.
- The Biomedical Structural, Functional and Molecular Imaging Enterprise—Ohio’s first Wright Center of Innovation, led by Ohio State with support from Case Western Reserve University and Philips Medical Systems.
Click here for videos of featured research collaborations.
In addition to these unique private-public sector collaborations, Ohio has initiated a $150 million Research Scholarship Program to accelerate the state’s world-class research capacity.
Many nationally-recognized contract research organizations are based in Ohio, such as the Battelle Memorial Institute, the largest in the world. And Cincinnati's Kendle International has been named “Best CRO” at the Scrip Awards for two straight years.
Ohio possesses an unparalleled network of clinical excellence.
U.S. News & World Report’s 2009 "America’s Best Hospitals" report ranks The Cleveland Clinic 4th among all hospitals, and their Heart Center has been ranked first in the nation for 15 straight years. Overall, 16 Ohio hospitals are named in U.S. News & World Report’s "America’s Best Hospitals," ranking among the top 3 states. Ohio is home to 4 of the country’s top pediatric hospitals (Cincinnati Children's ranks #6), 3 of the top 50 adult cancer facilities, 3 of the top 50 heart and heart surgery centers, 7 of the top 50 endocrinology clinics, 5 of the top 50 sites for orthopedics, and 7 of the top 50 respiratory disorders centers. The Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University and the University of Cincinnati’s medical school research programs rank in the top 50 in the nation.
And Ohio is the ideal bioscience and technology proving ground. At any given time, more than 1,600 registered clinical trials are actively recruiting patients in Ohio.
Bioscience is leading Ohio’s economic resurgence.
Ohio’s Governor Ted Strickland has continued the state’s commitment to establishing bioscience as a pillar in Ohio’s economic future.
Current Department of Development initiatives include the Wright Centers of Innovation, the Biomedical Research and Technology Transfer Trust Fund, and the Thomas Edison Program Centers—such as bioscience-focused BioOhio.
And Ohio’s $1.6 billion Third Frontier Project has proven to be a dynamic catalyst in Ohio’s emergence as a global leader in the “knowledge economy.” Launched in 2002, the project committed $500 million to fund new technology, biomedical research and technology transfer; $500 million to enhance research facilities; and a $100 million program to support entrepreneurs and bring products to market. An unprecedented partnership with the University System of Ohio will generate an additional $150 million for world-class research attraction and commercialization activities. Matching federal and private sector support is expected to boost the total investment to more than $6 billion. Thus far, nearly 50% of allotted 3FP funds are accelerating bioscience-related initiatives.
Ohio boasts an extensive network of venture and investment firms and professional service providers to support the continued growth of Ohio’s Fortune 500 bioscience companies, emerging firms, and fledgling startups.
- VC firms: like Charter Life Sciences, Primus Venture Partners, Reservoir Venture Partners, River Cities Capital, Draper Triangle, Ohio Innovation Fund, CID Equity Partners, Triathlon Medical Ventures, and Oakwood Medical Investors
- Biotech incubators: like BioEnterprise, BIOSTART, TechColumbus, and Ohio University’s Innovation Center
- Legal/Intellectual Property Firms with bioscience medtech expertise
- Biotech-savvy marketing and communications firms