massachusetts Archives - Medical Design Sourcing

NIH to locate ARPA-H’s Catalyst Hub in Massachusetts

An agency within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tabbed Massachusetts as the host of its Investor Catalyst Hub.

The federal Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) selected Massachusetts as the hub. It supports ARPA-H’s mission to foster collaboration among researchers, entrepreneurs and investors. The agency aims to accelerate innovative ideas that transform healthcare.

In a press briefing, ARPA-H Director Dr. Renee Wegrzyn announced the selection of Massachusetts. This formally launched ARPANET-H, a nationwide health innovation network comprised of three hubs across the U.S. ARPA-H chose Hadley, Massachusetts-based VentureWell to run and manage the Massachusetts-based hub. It will focus on helping the agency navigate the business and regulatory landscape and provide resources to bring ideas to market.

“This is a huge win for Massachusetts and an opportunity to bring economic development while strengthening our role as a nati…

Sanofi unveils new campus in Massachusetts

Sanofi announced today that it is officially opening its new 900,000-square-foot campus at Cambridge Crossing in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The new campus brings together 2,500 Sanofi Massachusetts-based employees in a shared space. The goal is to improve collaboration between R&D, Medical, and the Specialty Care business unit — and grow a science-centered, patient-focused culture. The Paris-based pharmaceutical company has a Play to Win strategy that focuses on growth, innovation, efficiency and reinvention.

Get the full story on our sister site Pharmaceutical Processing World.

Massachusetts is competing for ARPA-H biomedical research center

[Image courtesy of Pixabay]

The U.S. government is planning to establish the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to accelerate biomedical research.

The new federal research agency will not be based alongside its NIH parent in Bethesda, Maryland.

After winning authorization to create the agency, Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and several colleagues in Massachusetts are asking the Biden administration to locate the agency there.

The ARPA-H headquarters would also likely serve as a magnet for the broader life sciences industry.

In a letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, Markey argues that Massachusetts is a premier biomedical research hub, given its talented workforce and network of elite universities, hospitals and research institutions.

“As ARPA-H seeks to accelerate medical breakthroughs and invest in high-risk, high-reward proj…

Markey wants COVID-19 test-makers to lower prices

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, has sent letters to CEOs of at-home COVID-19 test-makers, asking why tests are selling for as much as $12 apiece.

In a letter sent today to Abbott CEO Robert Ford, for example, Markey cited a Reuters story from October 2021 in which British test-maker Mologic said that rapid antigen tests can cost as little as $2 apiece to manufacture. “Yet, U.S. consumers face costs of $12 or more for each at-home rapid COVID-19 antigen test. As we face an unprecedented wave of COVID cases, manufacturers and retailers must do more to ensure consumers see reasonable prices for at-home tests.”

Markey made similar points to top leadership at BD, Access Bio, Quidel, Acon Laboratories, Celltrion USA, Ellume Health, iHealth Labs, InBios International and OraSure Technologies.

Get the full story on our sister site Medical Design & Outsourcing.

Democratic senator wants COVID-19 test-makers to lower prices

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts)

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, has sent letters to CEOs of at-home COVID-19 test-makers, asking why tests are selling for as much as $12 apiece.

In a letter sent today to Abbott CEO Robert Ford, for example, Markey cited a Reuters story from October 2021 in which British test-maker Mologic said that rapid antigen tests can cost as little as $2 apiece to manufacture. “Yet, U.S. consumers face costs of $12 or more for each at-home rapid COVID-19 antigen test. As we face an unprecedented wave of COVID cases, manufacturers and retailers must do more to ensure consumers see reasonable prices for at-home tests.”

Markey made similar points to top leadership at BD, Access Bio, Quidel, Acon Laboratories, Celltrion USA, Ellume Health, iHealth Labs, InBios International and OraSure Technologies.

The letters could carry some weight because Markey is not only …

The MedTech Conference is coming to Boston in 2022

[Boston image from Unsplash]Trade group AdvaMed plans to return to an entirely in-person event for The MedTech Conference, with the annual event slated for Boston on October 24–26, 2022.

AdvaMed in September 2021 held a hybrid event that included virtual sessions as well as live sessions in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. (The year before — in pre-COVID vaccine times — the event was entirely virtual.)

“We recognized the strong desire to gather in-person at our 2021 hybrid conference, and will continue to plan for a live event while closely monitoring the status of COVID-19 in the coming months. Rest assured, the safety of our staff and attendees remains our top priority,” AdvaMed EVP Ray Briscuso and SVP Wendy Siminski said in an announcement yesterday.

MassDevice and Medical Design & Outsourcing‘s DeviceTalks is also returning in 2022 with live events: Boston May 10–11, Minneapolis June 6–7, and Santa Clara, California October 19–20.

The MedTech Conference is coming to Boston in 2022

[Boston image from Unsplash]

Trade group AdvaMed plans to return to an entirely in-person event for The MedTech Conference, with the annual event slated for Boston on October 24–26, 2022.

AdvaMed in September 2021 held a hybrid event that included virtual sessions as well as live sessions in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. (The year before — in pre-COVID vaccine times — the event was entirely virtual.)

“We recognized the strong desire to gather in-person at our 2021 hybrid conference, and will continue to plan for a live event while closely monitoring the status of COVID-19 in the coming months. Rest assured, the safety of our staff and attendees remains our top priority,” AdvaMed EVP Ray Briscuso and SVP Wendy Siminski said in an announcement yesterday.

MassDevice and Medical Design & Outsourcing‘s DeviceTalks is also returning in 2022 with live events: Boston May 10–11, M…

Moderna to build a new 462,000-square-foot facility in Massachusetts

A rendering of the Moderna Science Center planned at 325 Binney St. in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [Image of courtesy of Alexandria Real Estate Equities]Moderna (Nasdaq: MRNA) announced today that it will create a 462,000-square-foot Moderna Science Center just a half-mile drive from its present headquarters location in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Construction has started at 325 Binney St. Moderna plans to begin a phased move-in process in 2023. Alexandria Real Estate Equities — an urban office REIT — is handling the facility’s development, operation, and construction.

Get the full story on our sister site Drug Discovery & Development.

Moderna to build a new 462,000-square-foot facility in Massachusetts

A rendering of the Moderna Science Center planned at 325 Binney St. in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [Image of courtesy of Alexandria Real Estate Equities]

Moderna (Nasdaq: MRNA) announced today that it will create a 462,000-square-foot Moderna Science Center just a half-mile drive from its present headquarters location in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The creator of messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines saw its fortunes skyrocket during the COVID-19 pandemic. It successfully created a vaccine against the novel coronavirus that millions have used in the United States and around the world. The new space, according to Moderna, will support its next chapter of discovery as it advances its pipeline of mRNA medicines. Features will include custom spaces for R&D and an integration of scientific and non-scientific areas to maximize collaboration and promote innovation.

Construction has started at 325 Bin…

Vicarious Surgical opens new corporate HQ in Massachusetts

[Image courtesy of Vicarious Surgical]Vicarious Surgical announced today that it established a new corporate headquarters in Waltham, Mass.

The company, which seeks to bring robotics and virtual reality to minimally invasive surgery, said in a news release that the new headquarters will expand its core business functions and house approximately 250 employees.

With what the company describes as a “rapidly growing team,” Vicarious leased a 42,000 square-foot facility at 78 Fourth Avenue in Waltham. The facility will house a full-scale operating room for robotics testing, along with research and development capabilities and company operations.

Vicarious Surgical said it is also expanding its manufacturing capabilities with the development of a comprehensive manufacturing facility, including a clean room, within the new headquarters.

In April, the surgical robotics company announced that it would go public through a $1.1 billion merger with D…

The hottest life science hubs in the U.S.

Boston at night [Photo by Lance Anderson on Unsplash]

Boston, San Francisco and San Diego remain the leading U.S. life science hubs — hauling in 70% of all the venture capital in the space last year, according to a new report from commercial real estate services company JLL.

Venture capital funding matters, according to JLL, because it fuels innovative companies that then require more real estate space. It’s little wonder that Boston and San Francisco led other clusters with respect to development, with 2.7 million square feet and 4.0 million square feet respectively under construction.

The U.S. is struggling through the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting recession. But JLL in its “2020 Life Sciences Real Estate Outlook” report expressed optimism when it comes to the life sciences sector. Key points in the report included:

The pandemic has sparked a race to create coronavirus tests, t…