LIFE SCIENCES

Bolster Utah’s Diverse Economy

Image: Getty Images

by FRANK REDDY

While no state is fully recessionproof, because of the diversity of Utah’s economy, the state fared better than most in 2008, when the fi nancial crisis struck, according to Clark Cahoon, life science cluster director with the Governor’s Offi ce of Economic Development.

“During that timeframe, Utah did a good job because it has the most diverse economy in the country,” Cahoon said. “When you look at the six major industry clusters the state focuses on, the life science industry in general weathered it better than other industries.”

Added Cahoon: “Life science is a very resilient industry, because it’s diverse like Utah’s economy … it’s able to weather those cyclical or larger economic downturns better than others.”

Home to companies like BD Medical, BioFire, Edwards Lifesciences, Merit Medical Systems and Varian Medical Systems, Utah’s life science employee base is about 42,000 — one of the best in the country for the industry.

This includes a medical device manufacturing industry that produces 70 percent of all arterial and vascular access medical devices used worldwide. There are also many life science education resources in the state, with 11 institutions who offer programs in the fi eld. In addition, Utah has a medical, dental, pharmacy and nursing school at The University of Utah.

Cahoon said that, in total, there are more than 1,000 life science companies in Utah — meaning, companies that deliver technologies and services to improve personal health — accounting for over 130,000 direct and indirect jobs. Those companies generate $9.6 billion in total sales, while the industry as a whole accounts for $13 billion in state GDP, according to Cahoon.

A 2018 study by The University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analyzing the role of the life science industry in Utah’s economy found that the industry sold more than 40 percent of its 2017 output of $9.6 billion to in-state customers, “such that medical providers, pharmacies and other buyers in Utah did not require out-of-state alternatives for $4 billion in goods and services.”

About 60 percent of life science industry sales went to buyers in other states and countries, bringing about $5.6 billion to Utah, the report stated.

The industry in 2017 generated $475.8 million in net tax revenue — over one third of which went to counties and school districts, with the remaining 63 percent (nearly $300 million) accruing to the state, according to the report.

Cahoon cited another recent report that examined the life science industry’s growth from 2012-17. It found Utah’s industry growth to be 5% — topping the nation, with other states in the running like Georgia (4.4%) and Colorado (3%).

“Even out of those highperforming states, we topped that,” Cahoon said.