Economic Impact of Health Research

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

Source of R&D Funding Investment State Rank
Federal Government $60,000,000 50
Industry $69,700,000 43
Universities $5,700,000 51
Non-profit $2,400,000 48
Other * $10,900,000 39
Total $148,700,000 50

* 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 84 $49,258
Medical Device 1,344 $47,033
Research, Testing, and Laboratories 320 $75,054
Overall Private Sector  $27,793

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

According to EPSCoR South Dakota, the total economic impact of university research on the state is $81 million.

The South Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station reports that every dollar in state general funds for agricultural research generates $5.75 in the South Dakota economy. This amounts to a total of $52.4 million of economic activity in the state.

According to a report from BIO and Battelle, the South Dakota Legislature recently appropriated nearly $20 million to support the Homestake Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory, which is promising for bioscience research in nuclear imaging and geomicrobiology.