Newswise — August 28, 2018 (Salt Lake City) – The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute today released a landmark study of the economic impact of Utah’s life sciences industry, which totaled 130,439 jobs, $7.6 billion in personal income, and $13.0 billion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the state in 2017. The research defines what companies are part of the industry and support scientific advancement, mostly related to health care, such as medical devices, drugs, lab testing, and diagnostics.
“The Gardner Policy Institute is pleased to share our findings about Utah's nationally recognized life sciences industry,” said Levi Pace, senior research economist at the Gardner Policy Institute and lead author of the study. “Years of strong growth have made life sciences a vital strategic sector as we anticipate tomorrow's economic opportunities.”
Highlights from the report are as follows:
- The Economic Impacts of Utah’s Life Sciences Industry report is the first comprehensive economic impact study performed in the state. The study will be used as a baseline for future studies and updates in order to track the progress of the life sciences industry.
- The report recognizes the life sciences industry as a significant contributor to Utah’s economy in 2017. Companies within the industry directly and indirectly contribute 5.9 percent of the states’ personal income and 7.9 percent of its GDP.
- The life sciences industry provides employment with 40-50 percent higher average pay than Utah’s average salary. It also directly and indirectly supports 6.7 percent of the state’s employment.
- From 2012 to 2017, Utah’s life science industry had the largest job growth among the top 20 states with the largest life science industries.
The report also shows that the industry’s job growth rate has been consistently high over the past 15 years, growing by 14 percent from 2002 to 2007. The rate held steady during the Great Recession and then skyrocketed to 26 percent over the last five years.
“Utah already has the fastest pace of job growth in the nation, and life sciences is growing at a rate even faster than that,” said Juliette Tennert, director of economic and public policy research at the Gardner Policy Institute. “The industry represents quality economic growth through its innovation, exports, and high paying employment.”
The full report is now available online.
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The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute serves Utah by preparing economic, demographic and public policy research that helps the state prosper. We are Utah’s demographic experts, leaders on the Utah economy, and specialists on public policy and survey research. We are an honest broker of INFORMED RESEARCH, which guides INFORMED DISCUSSIONS, and leads to INFORMED DECISIONS™. For more information, please visit gardner.utah.edu or call 801-587-3717.
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