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The military wants to stop pandemics. Many of the innovations and breakthroughs deployed to combat COVID-19 began years ago as Pentagon-funded research programs to protect soldiers, some spearheaded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Bill Whitaker and 60 Minutes cameras were allowed in to report on some of the technologies the Department of Defense is developing to defend against future pandemics — including a single vaccine to ward off all coronaviruses. Whitaker’s report will be broadcast on 60 Minutes, Sunday, April 11 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.   

The coronavirus pandemic has devastated our region’s economy overall, but it has also triggered explosive growth in a pair of critical technology industries on either side of the Potomac.

The medical battle against the coronavirus opened a gusher of nearly $8 billion in fresh investment last year in Montgomery County’s biotech companies. The money has accelerated the sector’s evolution from innovative but small-scale research to the sale and manufacturing of vaccines and drugs.

Image: Doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine at George Washington University Hospital in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/Reuters)

 C-suite Executive and Serial Entrepreneur Who Specializes in Longevity Economy Innovation Joins Diverse Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR) Team

ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, April 12, 2021 – BioHealth Innovation Inc. (BHI) announces the addition of John P. Reinhart, CPA, MBA, to the growing Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR) team. The Entrepreneur-in-Residence Program at BHI aims to ensure that disruptive technologies receive all the resources required to transform the technology from a discovery into a commercially relevant product and eventually have a measurable impact on human health. The program was created to support scientists, early-stage startups, and licensed technologies to provide them with access to these resources. John will be working with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), specifically the National Institute of Aging (NIA)

 “BHI is proud to welcome John Reinhart to our strong group of EIRs work with the National Institutes of Health,” said Richard Bendis, BHI President, and CEO. “His background as an executive and serial entrepreneur adds to the mission of this program.”

 Former Vice President with Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation Joins BHI Tem

ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, April 12, 2021 – BioHealth Innovation Inc. (BHI) announces Sarah Miller’s addition as VP of Economic Development. This move coincides with the departure of BHI’s Managing Director of Economic Development, Judy Costello, who will be joining Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich’s staff.

“It is with mixed emotions that we said goodbye to an important part of the BHI family while adding a talented leader from right here in Montgomery County,” said Richard Bendis, BHI President and CEO. “We thank Judy for all her contributions to BHI and the BioHealth Capital Region, and welcome Sarah, who brings a background of success to our organization.”

Sarah Miller has served in various positions that have given her the tools necessary to help communities recognize and build upon their unique assets. In her work across Pennsylvania and Maryland, she has created high-quality civic spaces, helped industrial communities reinvent themselves, supported new farmers, built technology business incubators, and managed local public art programs. 

Advancements in biotechnology are recognized as one of the most important scientific achievements of the 20th Century.  The emergence of biotechnology profoundly impacted the health of the world, and the economic vitality of regions where bio clusters and bioresearch parks grew.  This article explores some of the historical and policy implications undergirding this development in the United States and the importance of alignment of life science research activity, public policies, and leadership to build place-based communities of biotechnology innovation.

AUSTIN, Texas, March 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference today announced the winners of the 13th annual SXSW Pitch event, which took place virtually on March 17-18 as part of the SXSW Online digital experience. In addition to a winner chosen from each of the 8 categories, the most promising project of the finalists also took home the overall “Best In Show” award.

Image: SXSW Pitch Presented by Cyndx – SXSW 2019. Photo by Camille Mayor

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic greatly exposed a dearth of essential medications and significant vulnerabilities in the United States medical supply chain. Phlow Corporation aims to mitigate those weaknesses and manufacture essential generic medications at its Virginia manufacturing facility.

In early 2020, little-known Phlow made a splash with an $812 million contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to manufacture essential medications in the United States. Phlow, along with strategic partners Civica Rx, Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medicines for All Institute, and AMPAC Fine Chemicals teamed up to meet the challenge of ensuring a steady supply of these essential drugs, as outlined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, will be available for patients.

Image: https://biobuzz.io/

Under the agreement, GSK will provide ‘fill and finish’ manufacturing capacity at its Barnard Castle facility in the North East UK. Fill and finish comprises the completion stage of vaccine manufacturing, in which vials are prepared for the final vaccine, before it is packaged and distributed for us.

Novavax’s NVX-CoV2373 vaccine candidate has shown strong efficacy in Phase 3 clinical trials, with data showing that it is 96.4% effective against the original Covid-19 strain and 86.3% effective against the UK variant.