Introduction to the Healthcare and Bioscience Sector in San Antonio

Healthcare and Bioscience in San Antonio

Largest economic sector in San Antonio
Over $42B economic impact (2019)
Nearly 1 out of 5 workers employed in biomed (over 185,000 workers in biomed)
Over $42B economic impact (2019)
28 colleges and universities, including 3 medical schools
Home to ground-breaking research
New medical devices and pharmaceuticals
7th and 8th largest hospital systems in USA
Strong industry connections and resources (BioMedSA)

TARGETED DISEASE AREAS IN SAN ANTONIO PRIVATE AND PUBLIC FOCUS

Trauma, wound care, regenerative medicine
Infectious diseases
Cancer
Diabetes
Neurological disorders
Collaboration results in stronger proposals and more successful outcomes
Disease specific meetings in San Antonio

TRAUMA/REGENERATIVE MEDICINE/WOUND CARE

Military medicine research (59th Medical Wing, US Army Institute for Surgical Research, Navy Medical Research Unit)
Dedicated support for military collaborations from City, UT Health SA, and direct contracting organizations)
Non-profit research (Coalition for National Trauma Research, UT Health San Antonio)
Medical device companies (3M KCI, numerous small to mid-size)
Clinical studies using public and military populations (Trauma Insight – focused CRO)
Several tissue/biologic manufacturers (GenCure, Cellright Technologies and others)
Collaboration: home to SURF conference (industry, academia, military)

INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Non-profit research (Texas Biomedical Research Institute; UT Health SA, South Texas Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases; US Military)
Texas Biomed is the only independent primate lab with BSL4 labs in USA; developed the first animal models for COVID-19 testing
Incubator focused on therapeutics – Crown Scientific
Corporations (small-midsize)
Longhorn Vaccines & Diagnostics – only FDA cleared inactivation media for COVID-19 testing
San Antonio Partnership for Precision Therapeutics – funds collaborative research through UTSA, UT Health, TX Biomed, SwRI

CANCER

Non-profit research (Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute, Mays Cancer Center/UT Health SA MD Anderson Cancer Center)
Seno Medical (photo-acoustic imaging)
Many pharmaceutical companies
Clinical studies using public and military populations (Cancer Insight – focused CRO)
Collaboration: home to largest breast cancer conference (SABCS)
Dedicated state funding available: CPRIT

DIABETES

Research (Center for Community Based and Applied Health Research, Center for Renal Precision Medicine, Inst. for Health Promotion Research)
Numerous clinical trials due to prevalence in population in public and veterans
Foundation for Advancing Veterans Health Research facilitates all veteran clinical research

NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS

Non-profit research (Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies, US Military, Brain Health Consortium, Center for Biomedical Neurosciences, Glen Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s, Neurodegenerative Diseases, Perry & Ruby Stevens Parkinson’s Disease Center of Excellence, Brain Science Institute)
Several small-midsize companies
Dedicated funding: Brainstorm (Mind Science Foundation), military medicine (City)

ENVIRONMENT TO SUPPORT BIOSCIENCE COMPANIES

Collaborative, friendly culture
Low cost to do business
Business friendly government
Land available for build-to-suit
Lab/office space available for lease
Safe; low natural disaster risk; stable power
Strong network/cybersecurity presence
High quality of life with outdoor activities year round
Reasonable traffic

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

Community and government support for healthcare and bioscience workforce
$70M on-the-job subsidized training program in 2020-21
$154 million in sales tax revenue to retrain up to 40,000 workers, starting in Q3 2021

CAPABILITIES TO SUPPORT BIOSCIENCE COMPANIES

BASIC RESEARCH

Over $530 million of federal funds awarded for biomed research (2019)
World renowned research organizations available to assist

Texas Biomedical Institute
Southwest National Primate Research Center
UT Health San Antonio
Southwest Research Institute
UTSA
US Military Medicine Facilities

INNOVATION

Innovators are here: 175 life science US patent applications published in 2019
Innovation/accelerator support available through 8 organizations
Funding available in the region (San Antonio, Austin, Houston), at the state level, at local level

DEVELOPMENT

Drug discovery support (modeling, screening, small volume manufacturing)
Supporting organizations for contracted research and customer discovery
Companies and consultants available to support engineering, design, development, and regulatory

TESTING

Custom and standard lab testing is available
Multiple vivarium for pre-clinical testing, including the world’s largest colony of baboons available for internal and contracted biomedical research
Over 1400 active clinical trials in 2019
Diverse population of ethnicities and diseases (diabetes, fatty liver, obesity, heart disease)
Population supports participation in clinical trials
Local Contract Research Organizations (CROs)

MANUFACTURING

Diverse manufacturing capabilities: small to high volumes
Medical device components
Medical devices, packaging, and accessories
Biologics and tissue manufacturing
Pharmaceutical manufacturing

COMMERCIALIZATION

Local access to military medicine insights
Marketing and sales expertise available
Distribution and logistics support, typically by manufacturers
Export assistance
Business incentives

support from biomedsa: hub of the life science industry in san antonio

Convener of targeted working groups and collaboration events
Communicates funding opportunities, events, and news
Facilitates collaborations and connections
Advocates for life science sector
Job board
Targets city workforce initiatives for life science sector