Life Science Industry in California Generates $346 Billion Annually
(As published on the BUSINESS WIRE)--California’s life science industry provides nearly 1.3 million jobs in the region, with economic activity generating a total of $346 billion in 2018 alone. Biocom’s 2019 Economic Impact Report Databook outlines and highlights these key findings of the state’s life science industry, including information on economic, demographic and industry performance data.
“As the Economic Impact Report showcases, the life sciences in California are growing strongly and steadily, with each region making its own unique and equally impactful mark on the industry,” said Joe Panetta, president and CEO of Biocom, the association representing the California life science industry. “California is the fifth-largest economy globally, and life science is a key component of contributing to the growth, employment and success of the entire state.”
Over the past five years, California’s life science industry has seen an 8 percent increase in the number of jobs statewide. California also received the most research funding from National Institutes of Health out of any state in the country, a total of $4.2 billion in the 2018 fiscal year.
Bay Area Life Science Industry Among the nine counties that surround the San Francisco Bay, the region employed over 134,000 individuals and supported more than 367,000 jobs, generating a total of $135.6 billion. The areas that received the most growth were biopharmaceutical manufacturing, medical devices and diagnostic equipment, as well as research and lab services.
San Diego County Life Science Industry San Diego County’s life science industry employed over 65,000 people in 2018, generating nearly 168,000 total job opportunities, including direct, indirect and induced jobs, and contributing over $39 billion to the local economy. The region saw the largest growth in the areas of biopharmaceuticals manufacturing, medical devices and diagnostic equipment and research and lab services from 2013 to 2018, boasting three times the national average concentration of biochemists and biophysicists.
Los Angeles County Life Science Industry
Los Angeles County received nearly $1.1 billion in NIH funding in fiscal year 2018, the largest amount of any other county in California, allowing for robust 11 percent growth in the number of jobs in the research and laboratory services subsector. In employing over 90,000 individuals in 2018, all sectors of the life science industry in the region generated $42.5 billion in economic activity.
“California’s life science industry has had not only an enormous impact on human health, but it has also had a widely-felt influence on the economy throughout the entire state,” said Christophe Schilling, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Genomatica and chair of Biocom’s board of directors. “The Economic Impact Report displays the ways that each of California’s distinct clusters is at the center of scientific innovation and progress, driving both the industry and the overall prosperity of the state forward.”
Additional fact sheets
Southern California Fact Sheet
City of Los Angeles Fact Sheet
The Economic Impact Report was sponsored in part by the County of Los Angeles.
