At the BIO International Convention opening day on Monday in Boston’s Seaport neighborhood, some attendees expressed concern about the impact federal policies could have on the field.
José Herrera, who is visiting the conference from Mexico, said some of his research peers from China, Poland and Ukraine were nervous to come given uncertainty around American immigration policy.
“They were a bit afraid of getting their visa canceled for coming, particularly because they are very open on their social networks about their opinions on politics,” he said.
French pharmaceutical employee Don Zinn told GBH News he’s heard a lot of chatter about the long-term impacts stemming from the federal government’s cuts to research funding.
“I think the cuts in the research throughout the U.S. should be rethought and re-implemented,” Zinn said.
“I think it’s a challenging time for biotechnology. I heard someone say yesterday that innovation and policy are sort of on a collision course,” said Sarah Alspach, BIO’s executive vice president and chief communications officer. “I think we’re confronting a number of important discussions around, you know, how do we modernize, how do we move forward.”
Gauri Nair, who works in business development at an AI drug discovery firm in Boston, said she has not seen any immediate affects to her industry from Trump’s funding policy changes.
“I think maybe in a year we’ll start seeing impact,” she said. “It’s still too early to tell.”
Even with some lingering questions, organizers said they did not field many cancellations from international attendees, and are expecting more people at this year’s conference than in previous years. Nearly half of the attendees are visiting from outside the United States, representing 72 countries, representing all aspects of the industry.
Notable speakers scheduled to address the conference this week include former President George W. Bush and current Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin Makary.
Alspach said the conference has a large focus on artificial intelligence and how it’s being applied in the field of biotechnology. Other programs center around investment, partnerships and medical innovations.
“We’re also seeing focus on cell and gene therapy, advances in women’s health, as well as just core policies that are important for the industry,” Alspach said.
