Access and Innovation: Georgia Bio Recommits to Industry as a new c6 & New GRA CEO Opens the 2023 Georgia Life Sciences Summit

Mainstage at the GA Life Sciences Summit

Having recently renewed our commitment to advocating for, educating and connecting our member enterprises and stakeholders, the 2023 Georgia Life Sciences Summit by Georgia Bio brought more than 300 members of the ecosystem together in Sandy Springs on November 1st.

We reconnected with friends and colleagues, made new connections, learned from academic, industry and elected leaders, shared news and awarded both the [early stage] Company Showcase Winners and the Anthony Shucker Scientific Poster Winners. 

Our CEO Maria Thacker Goethe reinforced a statement made during the October virtual town hall, as a 501c6, Georgia Bio can be more politically active and allows for future creation of a political action committee. The organization is the sole Georgia representative to the life science sector and an official partner to the national Bioscience Industry Organization and AdvaMed, which means practical discounts for purchasing programs, but also provision of a connection to federal government affairs representation to those sectors. 

Session by session, we offer the following highlights from our colleague Paul Snyder.

Introducing the new CEO at the Georgia Research Alliance

Mainstage at the GA Life Sciences Summit

In literally his first day on the job, Timothy Denning, President and CEO of the Georgia Research Alliance introduced himself and highlighted its impact in the life science innovation ecosystem with the following statistics: 87% of GRA funded startups are still in business four years hence – the national average is just 44%. Further every $1 invested by GRA through its commercialization funding programs has returned $19 in follow on investment in or by those portfolio companies.

Mr. Denning specifically pointed to GRA life science portfolio companies Micron Biomedical(microneedle drug delivery) and EarliTec(early diagnosis of autism) as standouts for what’s possible when marshaling the right resources in promising technologies brought forth by the state’s universities, its faculty, investigators and researchers. 

Scientific Poster Award Winners

We also congratulate the Anthony Shuker Scientific Poster Award Winners and thank our judges Stacy Shuker Reece, Rick Hillstead and Jamie Graham. Thank you to all the applicants. View a list of the finalists and all the submission here:

  • Grace Nguyen , University of Georgia: Multifunctional Nitric Oxide-Releasing and Slippery Surface for Enhanced Antibacterial and Anti-fouling Therapeutic Efficacy
  • ​ Dedeepya Pasupuleti , College of Pharmacy, Mercer University; Marissa D’Souza, University of Michigan: Advancing Drug Delivery to the Brain: Developing a Novel Nanoparticulate System Using Microfluidics to Enhance Central Drug Availability
  • Jannatul Ruhan Raha , Georgia State University: mIntranasal Vaccination with Multi-subtype Neuraminidase and M2 Ectodomain Virus-like Particle Improves Protection Against Influenza Viruses
  • Rick Hillstead Medical Device Award : Dominique Monroe , Medical College of Georgia – Augusta University: Modulated dNTP Pools and Their Influence on DNA Repair Mechanisms and Apoptosis in Therapy Resistant Cancers

Company Showcase Winners

We congratulate the Company Showcase Winners. And thank you to all presenters and judges in the Company Showcase and Rapid Fire Research Showcase.

  • 2023 Company Showcase Winner: Nutrivert, Horace Nalle
  • 2023 Company Showcase Runner-Up: EnOPrep, Austin Tull

Summit 2023: Click a Post Below for a Comprehensive Dive to What We Heard and Learned at the 2023 Georgia Life Sciences Summit

In closing, we thank everyone who helped bring the event and the ecosystem together. This includes our production team, volunteers, showcase and poster judges and sponsors without which this is simply not possible. We encourage you to consider ways to support their interests, goals and businesses.

We hope everyone involved derived high value from our latest response to the life science industry’s need: bringing the ecosystem together to advance our advocacy, education and inspiration through an industry that means more to more lives at home and abroad than we can measure.

Stay in the loop by following Georgia Bio on LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter/X. You can also subscribe to our weekly bioBEAT by emailing us at admin@gabio.org.

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Manufacturing Investment Is Accelerating. Can the Workforce Keep Pace?

October 15, 2026
As pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies expand U.S. manufacturing operations, a growing demand for specialized talent underscores the importance of industry-driven workforce development. October 16, 2026 | Georgia Life Sciences The United States is experiencing a resurgence in domestic manufacturing investment, with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies announcing major expansions and new production facilities. But as investment accelerates, a critical challenge is emerging: ensuring that a skilled workforce is available to support this growth. According to a Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute study , approximately 3.8 million manufacturing positions could need to be filled nationwide through 2033 , with as many as 1.9 million potentially remaining unfilled due to workforce and skills gaps. While these projections span the broader manufacturing sector, the implications for life sciences are significant. Biomanufacturing's Growing Talent Challenge A recent PharmaVoice article examines how pharmaceutical companies are responding to growing competition for skilled workers, particularly in specialized roles such as automation engineering, quality assurance, regulatory affairs, process engineering, and manufacturing operations. These positions are essential to bringing new facilities online, maintaining regulatory compliance, and ensuring safe, reliable production. The challenge extends beyond competition among pharmaceutical manufacturers. Life sciences companies are increasingly competing with industries such as semiconductors, aerospace, energy, and advanced manufacturing for workers with similar technical skills. Some companies are responding by investing directly in regional education and training partnerships. Eli Lilly, for example, recently committed $15 million to San Jacinto College in Texas, including $12.5 million dedicated to workforce training, alongside a major manufacturing expansion in the Houston area. The message is increasingly clear: Workforce planning must begin alongside facility planning, not after construction is complete. What This Means for Georgia Georgia has an opportunity to build on its growing biomanufacturing presence, established industry base, research universities, and technical education infrastructure. However, continued success will depend on ensuring that workforce development keeps pace with industry investment. As manufacturing technologies evolve, employers will need workers with expertise in automation, digital systems, quality control, and advanced production processes. Traditional education pathways alone may not be sufficient to meet these changing needs. That makes stronger collaboration among employers, educational institutions, workforce organizations, and policymakers increasingly important. Through its Manufacturing Council, Georgia Life Sciences is working to strengthen industry engagement and better understand employers' evolving workforce needs. These conversations help identify opportunities to align education and training with the skills companies need today and anticipate those they will require tomorrow. The Georgia Life Sciences Institute also supports the long-term talent pipeline through education and workforce initiatives designed to introduce students and educators to life sciences careers and strengthen connections between education and industry. Looking Ahead: Talent as a Competitive Advantage As states compete to attract life sciences investment, workforce readiness will increasingly influence where companies choose to expand and how successfully those investments translate into long-term economic growth. For Georgia, the opportunity is not simply to attract new facilities but to build the talent ecosystem necessary to sustain them. That requires earlier employer engagement, flexible training models, stronger industry-education partnerships, and continued attention to emerging technologies that are changing the nature of manufacturing work. The next chapter of biomanufacturing growth will be defined not only by where companies invest, but by where they can find, develop, and retain the talent needed to succeed. Related Reading Deloitte: Taking Charge — Manufacturers Support Growth With Active Workforce Strategies PharmaVoice: Pharma's Manufacturing Boom Has a Workforce Problem

Georgia Life Sciences Weighs In on PBM and 340B Policy

October 5, 2026
Georgia Life Sciences has submitted written comments to the Georgia House Study Committee on Pharmacy Benefits Managers and Consumers’ Access to Prescription Medications, encouraging greater transparency, accountability, and a focus on measurable patient benefit across the prescription drug system. The comments address both pharmacy benefit manager practices and the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program, emphasizing the importance of understanding where prescription drug savings accrue and whether those savings ultimately benefit patients. The Study Committee continues its work this fall as it develops recommendations for the Georgia General Assembly. Read Georgia Life Sciences’ full comments →

Georgia Life Sciences Joins National Coalition Calling for PAHPA Reauthorization

September 22, 2026
Georgia Life Sciences (GLS) has joined more than 80 organizations from across industry, academia, public health and the biosecurity community in calling on congressional leaders to fully reauthorize the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (PAHPA) before the end of 2026. Led by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, the coalition urged congressional leaders to advance a comprehensive reauthorization of PAHPA, the federal framework that supports the nation’s ability to prepare for and respond to public health emergencies and other health security threats. First enacted in 2006, PAHPA established and strengthened critical components of the nation’s health security infrastructure, including the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). The law also supports public-private partnerships involved in the research, development, manufacturing and procurement of medical countermeasures, including vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics. PAHPA’s authorization expired in 2023 and key provisions have since continued through short-term extensions. The coalition is calling for a comprehensive reauthorization that provides greater stability and ensures the nation’s preparedness infrastructure can continue adapting to emerging biological, infectious disease and other health security threats. For the life sciences industry, these programs are particularly important. Partnerships between government and industry can help move promising technologies from research through development and manufacturing while maintaining capabilities needed to respond quickly during an emergency. The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), also a signatory to the letter, has identified several priorities for reauthorization, including continued authorization of BARDA, the Strategic National Stockpile, Project BioShield and the Pandemic Influenza Program, as well as incentives supporting the development of medical countermeasures. Georgia Life Sciences is proud to join organizations across the country in supporting a strong and sustainable national framework for health security, preparedness and biomedical innovation. Read the coalition letter and view the full list of signatories.
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