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Stalled or Rising Momentum? New York Wrestles With Its Biotech Future

[Updated, 6:25 a.m. ET, see below] New York City and state governments have finally put big dollars behind local development of the life sciences industry. But lots of cash is no guarantee of success, as panelists kicking off the annual NewYorkBio conference made clear Tuesday.

“The question is, where are we as an industry, and are we about to move in some greater direction, [or] are we at a plateau?” questioned Acorda Therapeutics general counsel and corporate secretary Jane Wasman, who moderated the discussion.

New York City has all the ingredients for biotech success, with a dense, mixed population; a network of academic and research centers; plenty of cash; and the nearby presence of large pharmaceutical companies. The city, however, has been unable to capitalize for years, instead watching its research funneled into companies in other cities—most notably the big biotech hubs of Boston and San Francisco, CA.

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