In DC, on Wednesday, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce HELP Subcommittee took its turn to examine healthcare market consolidation with a hearing, “Competition and Transparency: The Pathway Forward for a Stronger Health Care Market.” Members of Congress primarily focused their questions on the lack of transparency in the PBM space as well as hospital consolidation. 

In Massachusetts, on Wednesday, Governor Healey filed an interim budget to keep the state running through July as lawmakers continue to hash out a compromise budget for the new fiscal year that begins July 1. The $6.66 billion budget would authorize spending on “necessary services” through July 31 or until a complete fiscal 2024 state budget is signed by the governor. Massachusetts needs some budget in place when fiscal year 2024 starts July 1, and Healey asked lawmakers to act on her interim budget no later than Monday, June 26 “to ensure that the Commonwealth will be able to meet its payment obligations without delays.”  

The Healey administration on Thursday rolled out its five-year capital spending plan, which calls for $14 billion in spending with a focus on investments in roads, housing, climate projects, and economic development.  Healey’s $14 billion plan is slightly higher than the five-year plan former Gov. Charlie Baker presented last year, which laid out a blueprint for close to $13.9 billion in total state bond cap spending. Governors update and release the state’s capital spending plan each year. Healey is dedicating $35 million to the Mass Life Science Center and $18.3 million to the Massachusetts Manufacturing Innovation Institute. 

This week 

In DC, Congress has departed for a two-week recess and will return on Monday, July 10^th. 

In Massachusetts, at the invitation of Ambassador Claire Cronin, Cathaoirleach Jerry Buttimer and the JFK Library Foundation, Governor Maura Healey will travel to Ireland to address Seanad Éireann (the Irish Senate) on the 30-year anniversary of the decriminalization of homosexuality in Ireland. Her visit also coincides with the 60th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s state visit to Ireland, which launched a new era of economic and cultural partnership between the United States and Ireland, particularly around trade and investment.  In keeping with this close relationship, Governor Healey will also host a series of business development meetings with Irish leaders of key industries, such as technology and clean energy.  

The conference committee tasked with negotiating a consensus version of the differing House and Senate tax relief will hold its first meeting on Monday. Senator Rodrigues and Representative Michlewitz, who is also in the midst of conference talks over the fiscal 2024 general budget, chair the six-member committee. The other conference committee members are Senator Moran, Representative Cusack, Senator Tarr, and Representative Soter. 

A busy week of hearings at the State House. On Monday, the Joint Committee on Financial Services holds a hearing on bills related to mental health and consumer protection health insurance issues. Of interest to our industry is H943, An Act to reduce co-pays for people with chronic conditions. On Tuesday, the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight holds a hybrid public hearing on bills related to general construction and state agencies. Of interest to our industry is H3009, An Act creating a workforce skills cabinet supporting pathways to success. 

The post Legislative Update – Week of June 26, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In Massachusetts, the Senate on Thursday unanimously approved a roughly $590 million tax relief bill (S 2397) after rejecting most proposed changes to the version that top Democrats rolled out a week earlier. Senate Democrats shot down a Republican bid to amend the bill with a short-term capital gains tax cut, an idea that features in relief plans from both the House and Gov. Maura Healey, and another proposal to further expand increases to the estate tax threshold. They also added language that would require Bay State couples who file income tax returns jointly at the federal level to do the same at the state level. This change supporters say will close a “loophole” some households could use to minimize or avoid their obligations under a new surtax on high earners. The tax relief bills will now head to a House/Senate Conference committee that will be responsible for ironing out the differences.

Primaries in the special election to fill a central Massachusetts Senate seat will be held on Oct. 10. Secretary of State William F. Galvin announced the primary date in the 22-community district on Friday morning, a day after the Senate adopted an order scheduling a Nov. 7 special election to fill the seat vacated this month by Anne Gobi. The Worcester and Hampshire Senate seat will be served on the same day as the city election in Worcester and Gardner. The Senate district includes six precincts in Worcester and all of Gardner. Candidates will have until Aug. 29 to submit nomination papers to local registrars. Nominations for the race require a minimum of 300 certified signatures, and nomination papers are now available. Gardner is the home of Democrat Rep. Jonathan Zlotnik, who entered the Senate race last month. Two Republicans have announced runs — Spencer Rep. Peter Durant and Rebekah Etique. Gobi stepped down to take a newly created rural affairs post in Gov. Maura Healey’s administration.

The Massachusetts unemployment rate dropped to 2.8 percent in May, nearly a full point below the national rate, as the labor market continues to hold up despite slower economic growth in recent months. The jobless rate released Friday morning was 0.3 percentage points below the revised April rate of 3.1 percent. The April jobless rate was originally reported last month at 3.3 percent. The Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development on Friday also cited Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates indicating that Massachusetts gained 5,700 jobs in May, on the heels of April’s revised gain of 5,900 jobs. Massachusetts has gained 704,100 jobs since employment levels plummeted in April 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the past year, the state has gained 105,100 jobs, according to the bureau’s estimates. The national jobless rate for May was 3.7 percent.

This week

The State House was closed to the public on Monday in recognition of the Juneteenth holiday. President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation took effect Jan. 1, 1863, but it wasn’t until June 19, 1865 — Juneteenth — that news of freedom reached enslaved Black people in Texas with the arrival of Union soldiers at Galveston Bay. Juneteenth became an official state holiday in Massachusetts under a provision attached to a supplemental budget in July 2020, and the holiday was first observed here in 2021.

In Massachusetts, the Health Care Financing Committee holds a public hearing on Tuesday at 10 am in Room A-1 of the State House on bills dealing with oversight and market dynamics. Topics include the closing of hospital essential services; hospital profits, transparency, and closures; timely health care cost reporting; management of the Connector Authority; and determination of the need for new technology.

The Joint Committee on Public Health holds a public hearing on Wednesday at 9 am in Room A-2 of the State House on over two dozen bills tied to food and nutrition, oral health, and PFAS.

On Thursday, the Massachusetts Public Health Council meets remotely at 1 pm. The agenda calls for the presentation of new data about opioid overdose deaths for the first time since December. In the last report, DPH observed a slight decrease in opioid-related overdose deaths during the first nine months of 2022 compared to a record amount in 2021. Commissioners will also receive a presentation about Bureau of Health Professions licensure.

The post Legislative Update – Week of June 19, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In DC

There were two lawsuits filed challenging the constitutionality of the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) drug price negotiation program.  The first was filed by Merck and the second was filed by the US Chamber of Commerce. Merck sued the U.S. government on Tuesday, seeking an injunction of the drug price negotiation program contained in the Inflation Reduction Act, which it argues violates the Fifth and First Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

On Friday, the US Chamber of Commerce stated that government price controls harm patients, limit access to medicine, and stifle American innovation. Moreover, the new provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) violate fundamental protections for free enterprise enshrined in our Constitution, which would have far-reaching implications in the future.

In Massachusetts

The BIO International Convention welcomed over 18,000 attendees to Boston for the first time since 2018.

On Monday, Mayor Michelle Wu announced a workforce initiative that aims to get 1,000 residents trained and hired in life sciences jobs by the end of 2025 at BIO. The $4 million grant will connect companies with residents seeking jobs in the industry. Wu also said that she is focused on programs to help train residents without four-year college degrees, specifically women of color and immigrant residents.  

On Tuesday, Governor Maura Healy reiterated her commitment to reauthorizing the Massachusetts Life Sciences Initiative and pledged to “Lengthen Massachusetts’ Lead” in Life Sciences with New Workforce Initiatives. The initiative was started in 2008 by former governor Deval Patrick and was reauthorized by former governor Charlie Baker in 2018. As there is still time before the current initiative expires, Healey has not yet commented on the size of the new initiative. 

The Joint Committee on Health Care Financing held a hearing on Tuesday. MassBio will submit a written testimony on H1176/S732, an act relative to promoting comprehensive transparency in the pharmaceutical industry. Former governor Jane Smith testified with her daughter, Lauren Hunt, about the role of pharmacy benefit managers in Hunt’s inability to access her necessary medications. Much of the hearing’s testimony scrutinized PBM’s and co-chairs Sen. Cindy Friedman and Rep. John Lawn shared their dissatisfaction with PBMs role in residents’ challenges accessing healthcare.  

That evening, House Speaker Ron Mariano was recognized with BIO’s Emerging Leaders Award.

Governor Maura Healey and MassBio CEO and President Kendalle Burlin O’Connell co-authored an op-ed that ran in the Wednesday edition of the Boston Globe about the success of the life sciences in Massachusetts and the need for innovation and investment to extend the Commonwealth’s lead in the industry.  

At the BIO Convention, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll participated in a Fireside chat about public private partnerships at the Massachusetts Pavilion.

Also on Wednesday, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission released a preview of its annual cost trends report. The HPC noted that the per-capita commercial health care spending rose at a rate higher than the national growth rate between 2019 and 2021. The HPC flagged prescription drugs as a source of a majority of the excessive spending.  John Moran and Bill MacGregor were sworn in as state representatives for the 9th and 10th Suffolk districts, respectively, bringing the Massachusetts House back to full strength.

This week:

In Massachusetts

On Thursday the Senate is set to debate their $590 million tax plan. The Senate plan, like the House, would increase child and dependent tax credits, rent deductions, the Earned Income Tax Credit and the senior circuit breaker tax credit cap. It will also address the annual cap for the Housing Development Incentive Program and the annual authorization of the low-income housing tax credit. The plan makes no mention of the short-term capital gains tax cuts that both the House and Governor Healey proposed in their own tax plans.

The post Legislative Update – Week of June 12, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In DC 

A bipartisan debt deal was reached.  The House passed legislation on Wednesday and the Senate followed suit on Thursday to raise the nation’s borrowing limit. In addition to raising the debt ceiling until Jan. 1, 2025, the debt bill sets top-line spending levels for two years. It also automatically cuts government funding by one percent absent spending bills passed by Jan. 1. With less than 6 days before the June 5 default deadline, the bill now moves to the Senate for approval.    

In Massachusetts 

South End Democrat John Moran and West Roxbury Democrat Bill MacGregor are officially state representatives-elect after cruising through their uncontested general elections Tuesday. A date has not yet been announced on when they will be sworn-in to the 9th and 10th Suffolk seats, respectively. 

Governor Maura Healey and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center announced $24.4 million in tax incentive awards Tuesday that they expect will help 43 life sciences companies create nearly 1,600 new jobs. More than 1,000 of the job commitments are outside of Boston and Cambridge. 

MassBioEd released their 2023 Life Sciences Workforce Trends Report. While jobs are booming in the state’s life sciences industry, there may not be enough workers to fill these positions. The sector is projected to have an average of more than 6,600 openings in key roles over the next decade, according to the report. And the state’s colleges and universities are only producing about half that amount of graduates in life sciences, the report noted. 

FY2024 Budget Conferees were appointed on Thursday. Senators Michael Rodrigues, Cynthia Friedman, and Patrick O’Connor will join Representatives Aaron Michlewitz, Ann-Margaret Ferrante, and Todd Smola to deliberate the differences in their proposed budgets, in hopes of passing and sending to the Governor a final budget by the start of the fiscal year, July 1. 

This week 

In Massachusetts 

The Commonwealth welcomes the BIO International Convention to Boston, a four-day biotech conference featuring more than 14,000 global attendees, 150 sessions and 800 speakers – returning to the city for the first time since 2018. 

The Joint Committee on Health Care Financing will hold a hearing on Tuesday, June 6, 10am at the State House in Room A-1. Bills relating to pharmaceutical access, cost and transparency are on the agenda.  MassBio will be submitting written testimony on H1176/S732, an act relative to promoting comprehensive transparency in the pharmaceutical industry.

The post Legislative Update – Week of June 5, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In Massachusetts, the Senate debate on the FY 2024 Budget concluded on Thursday, May 25, passing a $56 billion budget. The House passed its version in April. Conference Committee members will likely be appointed in the coming week to deliberate the differences, in hopes of passing and sending to the Governor a budget by the start of the fiscal year, July 1. 

In Boston, on Friday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu signed the redistricting ordinance passed by the City Council, but the court may also need to get involved before the new voting lines go into effect. Given the pending lawsuit, the city plans to inform the U.S. District Court that a new map has been passed on Tuesday. 

This week:

In DC, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached a deal to raise the debt ceiling. The centerpiece of the agreement remains a two-year suspension of the debt ceiling, which caps the total amount of money the government is allowed to borrow. Suspending that cap, which is now set at $31.4 trillion, would allow the government to keep borrowing money and pay its bills on time — as long as Congress passes the agreement before June 5, when Treasury has said the United States will run out of cash. Lawmakers are expected to vote on it this week. 

In Massachusetts, on Tuesday, special elections to fill the 9th Suffolk House seat and the 10th Suffolk House seat will take place. Democrats John Moran and Bill MacGregor are expected to fill the vacant seats to represent parts of Boston following primary wins in races that featured no Republican or independent candidates. Moran, a South End resident who ran uncontested won the 9th Suffolk District seat primary with 1,751 votes — or nearly 86 percent of all ballots cast. In the 10th Suffolk District primary, MacGregor, of West Roxbury, secured 3,098 votes, or about 46 percent of all ballots. MacGregor edged out two other candidates.  

On Wednesday, MassBioEd releases its “2023 Massachusetts Life Sciences Employment Outlook” report during its 8th annual Life Sciences Workforce Conference. The report will look at data on the status of the life sciences workforce. The conference will focus on discussing the challenges of the Massachusetts labor market, establishing best practices for diverse talent acquisition, and building partnerships between the industry and the education and public sectors. 

And on Thursday, former Sen. Edward Augustus starts work as Governor Healey’s Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities, heading up a new standalone housing secretariat that Healey created. Augustus, who previously served as Worcester city manager, will be responsible for making progress on generating new housing development to close a statewide shortage fueling sky-high prices and outmigration. 

The post Legislative Update – Week of May 29, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

Last week President Biden announced additional critical actions to advance his mental health strategy. This announcement is part of the Administration’s recognition of National Mental Health Awareness Month. The Administration listed three objectives: Strengthen the Mental Health Workforce and System Capacity; Connect More Americans to Care; and Create Healthy and Supportive Environments. More information is in the attached press release.

Governor Maura Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll named former Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus to serve as the state’s first housing secretary in more than 30 years. Augustus, who helped to create thousands of new housing units at all income levels during his tenure in Worcester, will lead the administration’s new Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities beginning on June 1.

This week:

Governor Maura Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll announced Massachusetts Senator Anne Gobi will join their administration as the new Director of Rural Affairs in the Executive Office of Economic Development. In this new role created by the Healey-Driscoll Administration, Gobi will serve as a dedicated advocate and ombudsman for cultivating economic development within rural communities. She will ensure that the needs of rural & regional economies are incorporated into the economic development plan being developed by the Executive Office of Economic Development & will be responsible for coordinating with secretariats and state agencies to ensure that state government is attuned to the unique needs of these towns. Gobi will remain in the Senate until June 4.

The Boston City Council reached a tentative consensus on a new redistricting map. It redraws lines in a way that achieves population balance for each of the city’s nine districts, based on data that shows the ideal population is 75,071 but allows for a range of roughly 71,500 to 78,500 people in each district. A new map has to be approved by the City Council by May 30 to avoid a delay to the Sept. 12 preliminary election.

The Massachusetts Senate holds formal sessions to debate its Fiscal Year 2024 budget bill. 1049 amendments to the bill were filed in advance of the floor debate.

The post Legislative Update – Week of May 22, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In DC, the Senate HELP Committee held a hearing on insulin featuring a single panel of manufacturer CEOs, including David Ricks of Eli Lilly, Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen of Novo Nordisk, Paul Hudson of Sanofi, alongside pharmacy benefit manager CEOs David Joyner of Aetna/CVS Health, Adam Kautzner of Cigna/Express Scripts, and Heather Cianfrocco of UnitedHealth/OptumRx. The hearing focused on list vs. net prices, formulary placements, Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs), consolidation, and spread pricing.

In Massachusetts, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means released its FY2024 Budget Recommendations. 1049 amendments were filed by the 2 pm deadline on Friday. Senate Floor debate is scheduled to begin on Tuesday, May 23.

In Boston, Mayor Michelle Wu filed a proposal late Friday to replace Boston’s now-banned City Council redistricting map, along with a rare request for the City Council to take up the matter at its next Wednesday meeting.  The map and the request to expedite its approval come less than a week after a judge tossed out a different political boundary map approved by the mayor and the City council last year.

The Mayor has deemed May 30 as the latest possible date for the city to ensure a timely and secure Sept. 12 preliminary election in the city. The mayor’s proposal contains several differences from the map that the court rejected, including restoring the four, predominately white, high-turnout precincts in southeastern most parts of Dorchester to District 3, represented by outgoing Councilor Frank Baker. Wu’s map also restores a pair of public housing developments to District 2, the South Boston district represented by Council President Ed Flynn.

This week:

In DC, on Tuesday, the House Ways & Means Committee will hold a hearing on “Health Care Price Transparency: A Patient’s Right to Know,” and Wednesday, its Health Subcommittee plans a hearing on “Why Health Care is Unaffordable: Anticompetitive and Consolidated Markets.”

In Massachusetts, on Tuesday, the Joint Committee on Financial Services will hold a hybrid public hearing on bills related to pharmacy matters. Of interest to our industry, the agenda includes H978/S612 – An act relative to promoting healthcare access and affordability for patients.

The post Legislative Update – Week of May 15, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

The Senate HELP committee began its markup of four bills: three bills related to accelerating access to generic drugs – holdover policies from last year’s PDUFA debate – as well as the “Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Reform Act.” With confusion between members around the process, the committee agreed to postpone consideration of those bills and other amendments until after the scheduled hearing with CEOs of insulin manufacturers and CEOs of the three largest PBM is complete next week. The markup is now scheduled to resume on Thursday, May 11.

Rochelle Walensky announced that she is leaving her post as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on June 30. The former Massachusetts General Hospital infectious diseases chief’s resignation coincides with the WHO lifting its Covid-19 global health emergency and federal and state public health emergencies ending this week.

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) introduced legislation to cut the price of prescription drugs under Medicare in half. The legislation requires that pharmaceutical manufacturers must make their medicines available to Medicare at prices that do not exceed the prices paid for the same medicines by either the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Federal Supply Schedule – whichever price is lower.

Last week in Massachusetts

Democrats John Moran and Bill MacGregor are slated to represent parts of Boston on Beacon Hill following their special election primary wins Tuesday — in races that featured no Republican or independent candidates to fill two vacant House seats. Moran, who ran uncontested won the 9th Suffolk District seat with 1,751 votes — or nearly 86 percent of all ballots cast — according to unofficial election results on the city’s website. A South End resident and housing advocate, Moran ran to replace Jon Santiago, who resigned in February to become secretary of the Executive Office of Veterans’ Services.

MacGregor, of West Roxbury, secured 3,098 votes in Boston — or about 46 percent of all ballots. Robert Orthman, of Roslindale, netted 2,303 votes, with Celia Segel, of Jamaica Plain, trailing behind at 1,392 votes. MacGregor, former chief of staff to former Boston City Councilor Matt O’Malley, is poised to succeed Rep. Ed Coppinger, who resigned in February to join the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council.

Governor Maura Healey, Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, and Economic Development Secretary Yvonne Hao kicked off the state’s economic development planning process with the first meeting of the Economic Development Planning Council at the Massachusetts State House.

Comprised of leaders from a diversity of backgrounds and regions, the council will hold a series of engagement sessions across the state this spring and summer to gather public input about the state’s economic development needs and opportunities. The council will then craft a strategic plan to guide Massachusetts’s economic development policy over the next four years.

This week in Washington D.C.

Based on current COVID-19 trends, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is planning for the federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) for COVID-19, declared under Section 319 of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act, to expire at the end of the day on May 11, 2023.

This week in Massachusetts

The Senate Ways and Means Committee is expected to release its version of the fiscal year 2024 budget Tuesday, and the Senate set a 2 p.m. Friday deadline for members to file amendments, giving committee staff and branch leadership the customary week to pore over the hundreds of add-on proposals before debate begins on May 23.

The post Legislative Update – Week of May 8, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

The Massachusetts House of Representatives passed their fiscal year 2024 budget recommendations in Massachusetts. House debate began on Monday and was completed in 3 days on Wednesday, April 26 — track action on amendments. The Senate will now have the opportunity to propose its version of the budget. The Senate Committee on Ways and Means is expected to release their version on May 10th with floor debate likely the week of May 22.

In Cambridge, the City Council’s Ordinance Committee held their second public meeting on the Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) and voted in favor of the 2035 net zero deadlines for non-residential buildings of 100,000 square feet or more, and in acceptance of additional BEUDO amendments proposed by Councilors Zondervan and Nolan, and Mayor Siddiqui.

This week:

In DC, the Senate HELP Committee will hold a bipartisan markup on legislation including transparency for pharmacy benefit managers. Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-ID) have released a set of policy principles for reining in PBMs. The House Oversight Committee also announced it will hold a hearing on PBM business practices.

In Massachusetts, the Joint Committee on Financial Services will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, May 2, at 10 am at the State House in Gardner Auditorium. Bills of interest are H953/S609 – Relative to Consumer Deductibles and H1074/S689 – Relative to patient access to biomarker testing to provide appropriate therapy.

In Boston, some voters will head to the polls in a pair of Boston-area special primary elections to fill two House seats. The primary contest will presumably confirm the victor in both races, neither featuring any Republicans on the ballot. In the 10th Suffolk District that stretches from Jamaica Plain to West Roxbury across parts of Brookline, three Democrats are on Tuesday’s ballot: Bill MacGregor of West Roxbury, Robert Patrick Orthman of Roslindale, and Celia Segel of Jamaica Plain. In the 9th Suffolk District, the result appears already been decided. Amparo “Chary” Ortiz dropped out earlier this month, leaving Biogen employee John Moran as the lone candidate actively campaigning and the contest’s presumptive winner. He would succeed former Rep. Jon Santiago, who left the House to become veterans’ services secretary in Governor Healey’s Cabinet. The special general election will take place on May 30.

The post Legislative Update – Week of May 1, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.

In DC, the Chairs of the Senate Finance Committee released a framework showcasing how they want to change how pharmacy benefit managers operate. This is the result of a long history of bipartisan work on this front, including during our recent hearing entitled “Pharmacy Benefit Managers and the Prescription Drug Supply Chain: Impact on Patients and Taxpayers.” The Committee identified four key challenges that call for policy solutions.

In Massachusetts, Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED) Secretary Yvonne Hao announced the appointment of new undersecretaries and the realigning of the office under new pillars to better focus on key sectors of the economy and ensure continued economic support for all Massachusetts communities and residents. EOHED will now be structured under three pillars of economic development: Economic Foundations, focused on regional, rural, and small business growth, as well as infrastructure, seaport, and military installation support; Economic Strategies, focused on tourism and international trade, new federal opportunities in areas such as life sciences, advanced manufacturing, and clean energy, and the cross-secretariat Workforce Skills Cabinet; and Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation, which will be more fully integrated into the office’s overall economic development strategy.

This Week:

In Massachusetts, the House convened in a full formal session on Monday to begin its days-long work deliberating its FY 2024 Budget Recommendations. The House has 1,566 amendments to consider, three-quarters of which are earmarks for local projects.

MassBio holds its annual State of Possible Conference on Tuesday, focused on Massachusetts’ life sciences ecosystem. Governor Healey will provide morning remarks on her administration’s agenda to make Massachusetts more affordable, grow the state’s competitiveness, create more opportunities for students to pursue STEM careers, and build a pipeline of skilled workers in high-demand industries like the life sciences. The Governor will also sit for a conversation with MassBio CEO and President Kendalle Burlin O’Connell.

The post Legislative Update – Week of April 24, 2023 appeared first on MassBio.