During this interval, NIH awards in Pennsylvania grew by over 10 percent, the second highest growth rate among comparable states. Pennsylvania and its local governments, industry, the institutions themselves and private foundations supplemented federal funding for research and development expenditures at all stages. For every dollar of external funding received for research, the institutions must add about 18 cents of their own money. And biomedical research is very important in Pennsylvania's economy Direct spending by academic institutions on biomedical research has a multiplier effect of 2.3 on induced spending by other sectors of Pennsylvania's economy. Private sector companies are also an important part of the picture.
Biomedical research stands behind a very large health care industry in Pennsylvania.
In 1998, the health services industry accounted for about 7.4 percent of Pennsylvania's gross state product. Government research investments have been estimated to provide a total rate of return on investment of 28 percent. Biomedical research in Pennsylvania has great strengths By almost all measures, biomedical research in Pennsylvania is strong and vibrant. The Commonwealth's institutions are among the best in the world. These institutions are able to attract substantial funding for basic research projects from the NIH and other federal agencies, as well as some of the best researchers at all stages of biomedical research.