This week, I’m visiting Colorado to see its thriving biotechnology industry and meet with local leaders. Some 4,000 biotech industry businesses employ about 40,000 workers at well-above-average wages, with ripple effects across the state.
But the impact of this homegrown biotech sector goes far beyond U.S. 36, and even beyond U.S. borders. Innovation happening here is saving and improving lives everywhere, while also contributing to America’s global economic standing and national security.
These are issues that touch me personally. Serving as a commissioned intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy in Afghanistan honed my views on national defense and security. And in 1998, when two of my children were diagnosed with Pompe disease – a rare and often fatal muscle disorder – I turned to science and entrepreneurship. I founded a biotech startup to research a new experimental treatment, which ultimately saved their lives.
This journey has taught me that American innovation can change the course of history, whether by advancing our security or conquering a devastating disease. The Colorado biotech industry embodies this dual promise.
For starters, the breadth of medical innovation here is remarkable. In research labs around Colorado, scientists are revolutionizing drug research and development – work that generated more than 600 patents in drugs and pharmaceuticals from 2019 to 2023.
Researchers at the University of Colorado are pioneering the use of quantum computing in drug discovery, which could massively increase the speed at which we develop new vaccines and cures. Other institutions and companies are advancing breakthrough treatments for epilepsy, muscular dystrophy, various cancers and many other conditions.
Colorado also is a leader in agricultural biotechnology. Researchers in the state are developing tools to help farmers produce more food while using fewer pesticides and less water, innovations essential for food security and environmental sustainability.
As Americans, we know that our ingenuity and work ethic are what enable us to lead the world in biotechnology. But success cannot be taken for granted. State and national policies will also have a profound impact.
For example, last year Colorado started offering tax incentives to research and invest in sustainable aviation fuels. This farsighted plan will spur innovation while simultaneously addressing climate change and diversifying the energy supply.
Additionally, Colorado’s own Representative Diana DeGette helped craft and pass the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act to speed up drug development and fund new treatments; she is looking to build on this successful effort in the new Congress. And Senator Michael Bennet has taken the lead on spurring much-needed advances in antimicrobial development. Passing legislation like his PASTEUR Act is our best bet at combatting the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance.
On the other hand, some recent policy developments risk undermining the incentives that drive biotech breakthroughs. In 2021, for instance, the Colorado General Assembly established a Prescription Drug Affordability Review Board with the authority to impose “upper payment limits” — or price controls — on innovative medicines. And at the federal level, we have seen concerted efforts to weaken vital intellectual property protections and to impose burdensome regulations that slow the pace of innovation.
These policies discourage investment in the kind of resource-intensive R&D needed to develop ground-breaking medicines.
In short, we need state and federal policies that nurture rather than stymie the sector as a whole.
The nation that leads in biotechnology will lead the future. The economic benefits will be significant, to be sure. But just as important, biotech leadership will mean that Americans have access to the newest medicines, treatments and vaccines, and it will assure U.S. ascendance in sectors ranging from agriculture to energy production to defense.
In Colorado and across the country, we need to nurture the industry at both the state and federal levels. As a father, a veteran and an entrepreneur, I’ve seen how biotechnology underpins both our global leadership and our most personal hopes. The world cannot wait.
John F. Crowley is the president and CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization.
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