Demand for products and services by life science industry is expected to grow rapidly

Nov 7 2009

We Work for Health, an alliance of Washington state business, academic, government and community leaders, today released the results of a first-of-its-kind economic impact study showing that employment in Washington's life sciences sector has passed many of the traditional resource-based industries on which the state's economy was founded, and is in the same range of importance as some of the new, technology-based industries of the state.

Special Report: Washington Life Sciences Economic Impact Study, issued by the Washington Research Council and commissioned by We Work for Health Washington, details the local impact of a rapidly growing part of the world economy. In Washington state, life sciences is directly responsible for 22,349 jobs, indirectly resulting in roughly 55,000 additional jobs for a total of more than 77,000 jobs, according to the study.

Former Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel presented the report to business, health care and elected leaders at the Washington Biotechnology and Biomedical Association's annual meeting.

"Very few people know just how important the life sciences are to the state's economy," said Drewel, a co-chair for We Work for Health Washington. "The reality is, and it is highlighted by this study, that the life sciences industry represents the future."

The report indicates demand for products and services generated by the life science industry can be expected to continue to grow rapidly in three principal areas: domestic healthcare, global health and sustainable biofuels.

The report also includes insightful breakdowns of investment and employment data by area and details the tendency of the life sciences industry to respond to clustering effects. While organizations representing nearly every aspect of the innovation pipeline are conducting important work in many parts of the state, the largest concentration of firms and institutions is located in Seattle, near the University of Washington.