Medical Alley is the global epicenter of health innovation and care, where healthcare leaders call home.
In Medical Alley, you will find the world’s leading health technology innovation cluster, the highest ranked hospital, and the globally recognized Destination Medical Center. Medical Alley is also home to more than 1,000 healthcare companies, employing more than 500,000 Minnesotans and millions more worldwide. This region is at the forefront of regenerative medicine, personalized medicine and digital health. Legislators like you, play a crucial role in advancing this region on the global stage.
Medical Alley is the future, where healthcare is transformed. Solving healthcare’s greatest challenges requires bringing every stakeholder to the table and with a diverse cross-sector membership. Medical Alley Association is uniquely positioned to facilitate conversations regarding healthcare solutions.
Look back: 2019
In 2019, policymakers made several changes that help realize Medical Alley as a global leader in patient-centered innovation.
The Legislature helped strengthen Minnesota’s early-stage ecosystem through the reinstatement of the Angel Tax Credit Program and establishment of Launch Minnesota (aka The Minnesota Innovation Collaborative). We are already seeing the impact of some of these policy changes. Take a look at our first AITC alumni feature below to learn more about the investments you made in Minnesota’s early-stage ecosystem!
We applaud the Legislature’s support for increasing Minnesota’s talent supply by appropriating funds for the SciTechsperience Internship Program at the Minnesota High Tech Association. With nearly 14,000 job openings currently available in STEM fields, programs such as the SciTechsperience provide an important talent pipeline for employers throughout Minnesota.
We are also grateful for the Legislature’s broad support of a new rare diseases advisory council at the University of Minnesota. The council is a great step for patients and their families and will advance Minnesota’s position as a global leader in health research.
All of your support helps us realize the vision of Minnesota as a leader in health. Thank you.
Interim
Over the interim, several Medical Alley companies hosted state and federal legislators for tours:
- Representative Elkins and Senator Marty visited Tactile Medical, a medical device company dedicated to improving the lives of people with lymphedema and chronic venous insufficiency.
- Representative Wolgamott and Senator Relph visited Microbiologics, a St. Cloud based biotechnology company.
- Representative Brand, Representative Munson and Congressman Hagedorn visited Coloplast, a medical device company whose products and services make life easier for people with intimate healthcare needs.
- Congressman Phillips toured two Medical Alley Association members in his district: StemoniX and TE Connectivity.
- Congressman Stauber toured Smith’s Medical.
- Senator Klobuchar’s staff toured ANI Pharmaceuticals in Baudette, MN.
- Senator Smith held a roundtable discussion at on digital health at Zipnosis.
- Speaker Hortman toured Abbott’s manufacturing site in Plymouth, MN
We appreciate these legislators taking the time to discuss issues affecting the health technology and care industries.
There will be more opportunities to engage with our members on February 24th during Medical Alley Day at the Capitol . Our members, representing all aspects of healthcare, will visit the Capitol to share how they improve the lives of patients throughout Minnesota and the world. Stop by the Capitol Vault room between 10am-2pm to see our Medical Alley Showcase!
Look forward: 2020
In 2019, you helped us elevate Minnesota as a global leader in health innovation and care. We will continue to advance our leadership position by focusing on talent, the early-stage ecosystem, and healthcare transformation.
In order to maintain our leadership position in the redefining of healthcare, we need to attract talent and capital from outside and deliver more talent and capital from within.
Furthermore, solving healthcare’s greatest challenges requires bringing every stakeholder to the table. With a diverse cross-sector membership, Medical Alley is uniquely positioned to facilitate conversations regarding healthcare solutions.
We invite you to read through Medical Alley’s 2020 State Legislative Priorities here:
Angel Investor Tax Credit (AITC) Alumni Feature: Geneticure
The AITC is vital to keeping Minnesota a destination for entrepreneurs across technology sectors.
Last session, the Legislature reinstated the Angel Tax Credit Program at $10 million in each of Tax Year 2019 and 2021 (with no funding for 2020). We appreciate your efforts to grow Minnesota’s startup ecosystem and generate growth for decades to come.
Since the program’s inception, over 80 of our members benefited from the credit. Each month we will highlight one of these members and explain how they are elevating this region as the global epicenter of health innovation and care. Our first AITC alum is Geneticure.
Geneticure participated in the AITC program through three rounds of funding, most recently in 2019.
Geneticure is a personalized medicine company which uses an individual’s genetics to help guide their specific treatment, instead of using a trial-and-error approach. The company is focused on solutions for chronic diseases, beginning with Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) and their patented approach leverages a unique understanding of the integrative physiology in complex and chronic diseases.
The process begins with a simple cheek swab. Geneticure then produces a personalized report for your physician with insights about your DNA to optimize therapy.
Last spring, the Journal of Clinical Medicine published data demonstrating Geneticure’s potential to lower blood pressure in hypertension patients. The data showed that blood pressure in patients who used a hypertension (HTN) medication recommended by Geneticure was approximately 36 percent lower than in patients who were prescribed HTN medication that did not align with the Geneticure recommendation. Geneticure has also published health economic research demonstrating their novel approach to managing hypertension is 47% less expensive than the current standard of care.
This patented genetic testing saves Minnesotan’s money on wasted drugs and office visits and holds the potential to save millions of lives lost to uncontrolled chronic disease. Programs like AITC helped Geneticure advance their life saving, personalized approach to healthcare.
