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What You Do Could Change the World. What BIO Does Helps Change Your World.

What you do could change theworld. What BIO does helps change your world. There are many reasons why more biotech companies belong to BIO than to any other organization. Read on and you’ll see why...

The Biotechnology Industry Organization is the only global biotech advocacy group in the world.

Why join BIO?

Chances are your company is pioneering a solution that could change the world ... and we want to help you  get there.

The Biotechnology Industry Organization is growing every year because BIO membership works for industry leaders and professionals. BIO leads the most innovative and dynamic industry in the world, helping our members find continuing success and opportunities. We draw our strength from the participation of companies and organizations — start-ups, major players and Fortune 500 firms; regional and national associations around the globe; and leading bioscience academic centers. Altogether we representtens of thousands of biotech professionals.

Let BIO tackle federal and state legislative and regulatory hurdles, help you build your financial resources with direct access to venture capital, and provide opportunities to network with other biotech companies.

Our commitment to biotechnology is equaled only by our commitment to the companies of the industry. BIO represents more than 1,000 biotech companies, institutions, state biotech centers and related organizations across the United States and in 33 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of health-care, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotech products.

Government Relations

Almost every day some branch of the U.S. government addresses an issue that affects your work: Medicare reimbursement, FDA user fees, pathways for follow-on biologics, bioethics regulation, biodefense and more. How can you watch out for your company’s interests in the bigger political picture and stay focused on your work? Let BIO do it for you.

BIO provides aggressive advocacy in Congress, the White House, and all 50 U.S. states for priority member issues such as tax reforms for biotech research, Medicare coverage of biotech drugs, and strong patent protection for innovative biotech products.

Over the years, BIO has won many legislative victories for the biotech industry. Most recently, BIO was instrumental in getting new laws passed to limit liability, improve biodefense and promote biotech research. BIO’s lobbying team helped defeat measures that would destroy intellectual property protection and permit reimportation of potentially dangerous counterfeit drugs.

BIO also is involved in efforts to expand Medicare drug coverage and change stock option accounting. With a capital crunch threatening the survival of many biotech companies, BIO has been advocating and lobbying for tax reform tailored to the needs of biotech R&D. BIO has also partnered with the government to ensure the industry contributes to global antiterrorism efforts.

Many issues of the day involve biotechnology, and BIO is there for you.

 

Science and Regulatory

Affairs In a fast-paced world where scientific “miracles” have almost become a matter of course, governments understandably find it challenging to stay on top of the latest and greatest developments.

BIO helps legislators and regulators stay focused on the tremendous value that biotechnology companies offer. BIO represents the needs of our members all over the world by fighting for and backing legislation and regulation that keep your products moving along in development and, most importantly, reaching the marketplace.

We’ve always believed in responsible government oversight of biotechnology. We support a government ban on the cloning of human beings, and we support the use of stem cells in research — and legislators know our positions well because we have lobbied hard on these issues. 

BIO worked with the FDA and PhRMA to develop recommendations for Congress on the 2002 reauthorization  of the Prescription Drug User Fee Act, establishing new PDUFA III performance goals and improved review processes.

BIO’s Regulatory Affairs Committee is addressing such issues as the impact of FDA reorganization, safety and risk management, information technology initiatives, and the development of guidelines for pharmacogenomics and gene and cell therapies.

 

IP Issues

Years of hard work and groundbreaking discoveries can be lost without taking the proper protective measures. BIO advocates a strong and effective global intellectual property system. We oppose any legislation, regulatory change or judicial effort that would shorten the length of a patent or limit the scope of protections a patent affords.

We promote a patent system that encourages development of new medicines, diagnostics, and agricultural and environmental products to meet global needs. These patents, so critical to your fundraising efforts, are also a major focus of our lobbying on behalf of our member

companies.

 

Business Development & Investor Outreach

BIO creates opportunities to show the financial and business communities biotechnology’s potential. Our outreach efforts include investor conferences and partnering programs that bring together professionals in R&D and business development — all of the people looking to invest in your products. As a BIO member, you also have access to BIO group purchasing programs that help you turn the membership’s combined purchasing power into better pricing and terms with industry-leading suppliers, including various  providers of business insurance.

These are some of BIO’s annual investor and partnering programs:

  • BIO CEO & Investor Conference – the industry’s own investor conference
  • BIO-Windhover Partnering Conference – exclusive, highly focused partnering meeting for biotech/pharmaceutical executives
  • BIO Mid-America VentureForum – regional venture conference showcasing promising start-up biotech entrepreneurs
  • Business Forum at BIO’s annual convention – an opportunity to present to an audience of VCs, analysts and potential partners, including pharmaceutical firms and other biotechs 
  • BIO VentureForum – “Who’s Who” of the biotechnology venture community
  • BIO-Europe and BIO-Nordic – two partnering forums that attract international decision makers

Communications

It’s BIO’s job to know what’s going on throughout the industry. Every day, we respond to newspaper reporters’ queries about biotechnology issues. BIO electronic and print publications highlight what’s happening in the industry and are provided exclusively to members. Our Web site is also a resource for vast amounts of up-to-date information; check it out today at www.bio.org.

We believe in providing opportunities for you to promote your business while BIO advances the biotech industry as a whole. Advertising the importance of biotechnology to the media, the public and lawmakers is crucial to maintaining and stimulating growth in our industry. BIO has built strong alliances with patient groups, scientists, medical societies and others — all to strengthen and unify our voice for the biotech industry.

 

Conventions

Our annual convention is the largest of its kind. More than 15,000 attendees from 52 countries attend thousands of partnership meetings, talk with more than 500 reporters, and attend 200 plus briefings, roundtables, workshops and sessions. No other single event does more to further the field of biotechnology — generates more press coverage, develops more partnerships, creates more interest in the future of the field — than the BIO annual convention.

We host other conferences as well — over 15 annually — tailored to specific audiences within the biotechnology field: human resources executives, senior managers, congressional representatives, legal professionals and others.

 

How to Join Bio

Many of your colleagues have already joined BIO and are taking advantage of the representation, networking opportunities, savings arrangements and other exclusive benefits that come with BIO membership.

What are you waiting for?

Use the online membership application at www.bio.org 

or contact BIO at (202) 962-9200.

Click here to read the full document (PDF).