Biotech & Pharma in the Capital Region

The Washington, DC metro area is the perfect destination for biotech and pharma-related meetings and conventions. Overall, the concentration of resources and funding breed and attract top talent, ensuring biotech will thrive in the DC metro area. Read on to learn why DC has become a top destination for biotech and pharma.

A Day in Your Stay BioTech - Pharma

Connect with Destination DC staff, submit a meetings RFP or learn more about biotech and pharma meetings and conventions in our biotech and pharma white paper.

• A high percentage of venture capital funding in the region is invested in biotech.
• The area is home to grant-funding government agencies like the National Institutes of Health and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
• The region ranked #4 nationwide in biotech investment in 2014.
• Late-stage biotech funding is trending higher in the region than the national average, signifying that many companies are generating significant revenue growth.

Intellectual Capital

• The life science cluster known as “DNA Alley” is home to 170 biotech companies.
• DNA Alley consists of nearly 60,000 private sector and government employees.
• The DC metro area is the top paying region for biological scientists.
• R&D makes up the majority of life science employment in the metropolitan area.
• Pharma, medicine and vaccine manufacturing are rapidly growing industries in the metro area.
• Scientists in the region generate numerous medical equipment and instrument patents.
• The DC metro area is home to prestigious research-heavy universities and major labs, like the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Local Support

• As part of its commitment to developing tech subsectors, the District of Columbia government offers incentives to local biotech startups.
• A public-private partnership, BioHealth Innovation (BHI) advances local technologies, assets and resources and includes leaders from the biotech space, such as MedImmune.
• Through events like the Maryland Regional BioTech Forum, BHI’s mission is to grow the metro area’s biotech ecosystem into one of the top three biotech hubs in the nation by 2023.

Access

• Lawmakers meet with researchers and entrepreneurs who are keen on shaping policy.
• Proximity to regulatory agencies and officials in the DC metro area makes it possible to connect with decision-makers.
• Labeled by BioSpace.com as the “BioCapital Community Hotbed,” the DC metro area includes the FDA, BIO, NIST, PhRMA, Leidos Biomedical Research, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, among others.
• 11 of Scientific American’s “Top 100 visionaries who continue to reshape biotechnology – and the world” live in the DC metro area.

Interested in learning more about Washington, DC as a leading destination for biotech and pharma meetings? Read the white paper and connect with Destination DC staff for more information.