Economic Impact of Health Research

Investment: Funding sources for overall research and development (2004)

Source of R&D Funding Investment State Rank
Federal Government$222,800,000 39
Industry $564,400,000 31
Universities $126,000,000 22
Non-profit $40,000,000 20
Other * $52,500,000 21
Total $1,005,800,000 36

* Other represents funding from state and local governments and funding for Federally Funded Research and Development Centers from non-federal sources.

Source: National Science Foundation, National Patterns of R&D Resources , 2006


Economic Impact: Statistics for research-driven health industries (2004)

Industry Employment Annual Salary
Pharmaceutical 1,205 $60,456
Medical Device 1,977 $38,403
Research, Testing, and Laboratories 2,910 $45,491
Overall Private Sector  $32,902

Source: Battelle Memorial Institute and Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), Growing the Nation's Biotech Sector: State Bioscience Inititives 2006


Highlights from local economic impact studies

The Association of American Medical Colleges reports that the member medical schools and teaching hospitals in the state had a combined economic impact of $4 billion and a total employment impact of 27,300 in 2005.

At the University of Kentucky in FY 2007, research funding from outside the state had a total economic impact of $347.4 million on Kansas. This research funding also supported 8,800 jobs at UK and in the state.

According to the Health Enterprise Network, Louisville has 85,000 workers in the health care industry with an annual payroll of $3.5 billion. In the past 5 years, Louisville has invested $400 million in research space and established 14 start-up companies along with two venture and seed capital funds.

Innovation America reports that the state of Kentucky invested $350 million in its "Bucks for Brains" program to recruit talented academics to the state's universities.