Richard A. Bendis: Innovation ecosystem vital to state – CapitalGazette.com

Robust private-sector investment and prudent regulation from policymakers have helped establish Maryland as a cradle of innovation and a leader in the U.S. innovation economy. Few states can match Maryland's highly skilled workforce, market access and technology-centered policy incentives, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce ranked Maryland No. 1 in the country for entrepreneurship and innovation.

But continued leadership of the region and the ability of the region to continue to reap the economic and jobs benefits of innovation is not a given. It requires constant cultivation and smart action from our elected officials.

Maryland is home to more than 800 life sciences companies, 70 federal labs and 16 colleges and universities, including National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, Johns Hopkins University, the University System of Maryland and companies like MedImmune and GlaxoSmithKline. About 6 percent of Maryland's gross domestic product $17.6 billion is generated by the life sciences, and the biotechnology industry in Maryland alone employs about 34,000.

During the most recent legislative session in Maryland, the General Assembly considered a piece of onerous drug pricing legislation that threatened the biopharmaceutical ecosystem in the state while also potentially impeding access to care for Maryland patients.

In the name of "transparency," the legislation which would have been the most hostile to industry in the country imposed complex bureaucratic reporting requirements that disregarded the extraordinary development requirements and complex distribution channels for innovative drugs and therapies.

Had the legislation passed, the impact would have been threefold: obstructing patient access to care by undermining competition, delaying and minimizing drug product availability as a result of onerous and fruitless reporting requirements and halting investment in the Maryland innovation economy.

On top of that, the legislation would have done nothing to address the price consumers actually pay for medicine.

Twenty-first century challenges such as the rising costs of health care need serious, 21st century solutions, and all Marylanders have a stake in the outcome. The life sciences industries in Maryland support policy solutions that put patients first, that promote patient access to treatments, and that look at all drivers of health care costs. These are priorities that impact all Marylanders.

Maryland has taken some steps to accelerate and protect the growth of biotechnology and health industry sectors. The Life Sciences Advisory Board of which I, alongside other leaders in the biohealth community, am a part was created in 2007 by the Maryland legislature to assist in maintaining the state's preeminence in the life sciences industry. The LSAB's BioHealth Acceleration Initiative has a goal of growing the Maryland biohealth industry into a globally recognized top three U.S. innovation hub by 2023.

Maryland's ability to achieve this status, as well as the ability of the life-sciences and other industries to thrive, innovate and contribute to the local economy partly depends on a policy framework and business environment that encourage investment.

As Maryland lawmakers consider their future priorities, they will be making a choice about Maryland's future health, innovation and business environment. The continued good health of Maryland physical and fiscal will require policymakers to make choices that protect the innovation economy and to reject policies that could stymie Maryland's continued growth.

Onerous regulation such as the recent drug price transparency regulation will not only hamper patient access to treatment, but also runs the risk of losing biopharmaceutical investment that could move to states with less hostile business environments.

We urge policymakers to do the right thing for Maryland patients and business and reject such onerous regulation.

Richard A. Bendis is president and CEO of Rockville-based BioHealth Innovation, a public-private partnership focused on accelerating the growth of the innovation economy in America. Contact him at rbendis@biohealthinnovation.org.