Although we initially associate groundbreaking clinical research with places like Silicon Valley and Cambridge, Massachusetts, we need look no further than Idaho. The Gem State has established itself as a major location for medical and scientific research – work that not only helps save and improve lives, but also serves as a job-creating economic engine for our state.
There are nearly 11,000 jobs in Idaho supported by the biopharmaceutical industry, including jobs at companies like Velocity Clinical Research in Meridian. At Velocity, we do significant work across multiple therapeutic areas, helping our country be better prepared for future infectious disease outbreaks. We are just one of several facilities that have conducted more than 550 clinical trials in Idaho in the last five years alone, enrolling more than a million participants to advance treatments for diseases like diabetes, heart disease, cancer and more.
That’s why it’s very concerning for our state when politicians target pharmaceutical manufacturers in particular to drive down prescription drug prices. It’s a misconception that the list prices set by manufacturers are what we as consumers actually pay at the pharmacy counter. Insurers and corporate intermediaries known as pharmacy benefit managers actually play a larger role in pricing. If clinical research is discouraged in our country – and especially in Idaho – it could destroy jobs, stunt economic growth and delay the future of medicine.
Every biopharmaceutical company and clinical research facility in our state not only creates jobs directly, but also supports an indirect network of suppliers who supply laboratory equipment, build inpatient facilities, provide cleaning and maintenance services, provide food, transportation, and a number of other necessities. Every clinical research site in our state is an economic ecosystem that provides good jobs and economic opportunities.
We Work For Health recently conducted a study to quantify this financial impact. They looked at 2022 data from providers and suppliers working with 15 major biopharmaceutical companies and found that these companies – 58 across the state – generated $8 million in spending for provider companies in Idaho. Whichever way you look at it, this is a significant part of Idaho’s economy and an asset worth nurturing.
Still, prescription drug affordability for working families in Idaho and across the country remains a significant issue that must be addressed. Those of us who devote our careers to life sciences and medical research do so because we believe that all people should have access to new, life-enhancing therapies. And surely there are policy solutions that can improve access and affordability without placing a large burden on job creation and the economy.
We all benefit in many ways from the clinical research work that takes place here in Idaho. When the United States leads the world in biopharmaceutical research and development, it not only improves our collective health and better protects us from unforeseen public health threats, it also helps build our economy and creates new opportunities for working families. We must find a way to balance drug affordability with a robust innovation economy.
Finally, I want to thank people like you who continue to participate in research studies. Without clinical trial participants, the research and development of new drugs, vaccines, medical devices and cures would not be possible.
Jennifer Raley is the clinical site manager for Velocity Clinical Research, whose Boise site was the first stand-alone clinical research facility in the state of Idaho. Velocity conducts clinical trials for a wide range of indications. Learn more about clinical research and find current trials in Boise at VelocityClinicalTrials.com.
