Wednesday, March 16, 2011

BIO seeks nominations for 2011 Biotech Humanitarian Award

The 2011 Biotech Humanitarian Award will recognize an individual who has made a difference in the effort to heal, fuel or feed the planet through his or her work in biotechnology. Previous nominees include scientists, researchers, academics, entrepreneurs, financiers and philanthropists. The 2011 honoree will be announced at the 2011 BIO International Convention. Nominations are open to all individuals and must be submitted by April 15. Take advantage of this opportunity to shine a light on the good work being done by the men and women in biotechnology.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Will Therapeutic Interchange Be Put Off Limits by State Legislatures?

Will Therapeutic Interchange Be Put Off Limits by State Legislatures?

Patient Advocacy Groups and Some Physicians Are Lobbying Legislatures to Hobble This Common Technique to Control Drug Costs

Managed Care Magazine, January 2011

Prescription switching is an issue that resonates with physicians and patients. States like Georgia are addressing this important issue in different ways, but with new technologies like e-prescribing, platforms need to be designed to keep the medical decision making in the doctors’ hands, to protect patients and physicians.

Read More

Monday, January 10, 2011

Deals of Year Spotlight Financings, Collaborations, Product Launches

ATLANTA, GA (January 7, 2011) -- Georgia Bio (GaBio) announced its 2011 Deals of the Year for pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and medical device companies in four categories – public and private financings, strategic partnerships and product launches – reflecting a broad range of activity in the midst of a challenging economic environment.


The annual Deal of the Year awards recognize transactions by life sciences companies in Georgia that are significant to the industry's development. The recipients will receive their awards at the GaBio Annual Awards Dinner January 20, 6 pm to 9 pm, at Atlanta’s Fox Theater. Here is a link to register.


All deals occurred in 2010. The recipients are:
  • Alimera Sciences of Alpharetta, a biopharmaceutical company that specializes in the research, development and commercialization of prescription ophthalmic pharmaceuticals, and is dedicated to developing innovative, vision-improving treatments for diseases of the retina.
  • Arbor Pharmaceuticals of Atlanta, which intends to become a leading specialty pharmaceutical company by actively licensing, developing and commercializing late-stage products for specialty focused conditions.
  • CardioMEMS of Atlanta, a medical device company that has developed and is commercializing a proprietary wireless sensing and communication technology for the human body. The technology platform is designed to improve the management of severe chronic cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure and aneurysms.
  • Carticept Medical of Alpharetta, a medical device company established in 2005 to develop and market innovative solutions for patients with osteoarthritis or cartilage damage.
  • Dendreon of Seattle, a biotechnology company focused on targeting cancer by applying its expertise in antigen identification, engineering and cell processing to produce active cellular immunotherapy (ACI) product candidates designed to stimulate an immune response in battling the disease.
  • Invasc Therapeutics of Tucker, a biopharmaceutical company formed to develop several platforms of drugs to combat chronic kidney and cardiometabolic diseases.
  • NeurOp of Atlanta, a biopharmaceutical company developing new medicines to treat central nervous system disorders, including major depression, neuropathic pain, ischemia, schizophrenia and Parkinson’s disease.

NCI SBIR Launches New Pilot Regulatory Assistance Program

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs announced the launch of a new pilot Regulatory Assistance Program. This first-ever NCI SBIR Regulatory Assistance Program is designed to aid NCI SBIR & STTR Phase II awardees in navigating the regulatory path. The program is part of the NCI’s latest efforts to go beyond funding support and help small businesses bring innovative cancer products to market to ultimately help in the fight against cancer. This competitive program is open to NCI Phase II grantees and contractors with projects that are current, or have ended within the last two years.


Applications will be accepted and reviewed on an on-going basis until 5:00 pm EST, February 4, 2011. Final selection of participants will be made by March 4, 2011.


Once selected, the awardees will be matched with experienced regulatory consultants in the areas of therapeutic and device development who will assist them in creating a comprehensive regulatory plan aimed at optimizing each company’s movement through the FDA approval process.


For more information about new Regulatory Assistance Program and how to apply, please visit:

http://sbir.cancer.gov/resource/assistance/.

Monday, December 20, 2010

GaBio Members Can Now Receive FedEx Discounts

Georgia Bio is pleased to announce that members of Georgia Bio can now receive significant discounts on FedEx® shipping services as a benefit of GaBio membership. This savings program is the result of the partnership that GaBio has with the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), the international trade association for the biotechnology industry. BIO negotiated special pricing with FedEx on behalf of members of BIO, GaBio, and other state and regional biotech associations nationwide to offer you special discounts on your shipping.

As a member of GaBio, the program offers your company:
  • Up to 33% off select FedEx Express® U.S shipping
  • Up to 35% off select FedEx Express international shipping
  • Up to 23% off select FedEx Express® Freight shipments of more than 150 pounds
  • Up to 15% off select FedEx Ground® shipping
(The discounts above on FedEx Express and FedEx Express international shipments include an additional 5% discount when you create shipping labels for eligible shipments on fedex.com or with another approved FedEx® electronic shipping solution.)
As a member of GaBio, your company is eligible to take advantage of this FedEx program with no enrollment fees or shipping quotas, as the program is offered as a benefit of GaBio membership.

For more information or to enroll in the program, go to www.bio.org/bbs/fedex. Information about other cost-savings programs offered by GaBio can be found at http://bio.org/bbs/Georgia/.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Awards Dinner Nomination Period Ends Dec. 10

Georgia Bio’s 2011 Awards Dinner will take place Thursday, January 20th from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. at The Fox Theater in downtown Atlanta.

The Awards Committee is seeking your nominations for the 2011 honorees. Please download the nomination form to submit your selections in the various categories.

Your nominations are an essential part of the decision making process. We also hope you and your colleagues will attend the dinner. Event details will soon be available online at www.gabio.org.

Please submit your nominations no later than tomorrow, Friday, December 10, via email to: maria.thacker@gabio.org.