THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. and
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Amgen
(NASDAQ:AMGN) and the County of Los
Angeles today announced that Amgen has agreed to become a
founding sponsor of BioLA, a newly
formed organization focused on advancing a life science innovation
hub in Los Angeles County. The
innovation hub is designed to contribute to advancements in global
health by strengthening the County's life sciences ecosystem and
accelerating the pace of startup activity. BioLA will also focus on creating jobs,
driving economic development and promoting the County's public
healthcare system.
"Amgen was founded in 1980 and has grown into one of the largest
independent biotechnology companies in the world. We are now part
of a vibrant life sciences community in and around Los Angeles County that has all of the
ingredients for sustained success, including world-class research
institutions, experienced managerial talent, ambitious startups,
incubator space and venture funding," said David Piacquad, senior vice president of
Business Development at Amgen. "Through our participation in
BioLA, we look forward to further
supporting the growth of this innovation ecosystem as we work in
collaboration with the County of Los
Angeles and other local entities."
"Los Angeles County runs the
nation's second largest municipal health system, spending over
$10 billion annually to serve its 10
million residents," said Los Angeles
County Supervisor Mark
Ridley-Thomas. "We are proud to partner alongside our
leaders in science and business to rightly put Los Angeles on the map as a global leader in
bioscience innovation. We welcome biotech giant Amgen's acumen and
resources, alongside others, in growing our startup ecosystem."
BioLA's mission is to ensure
that Los Angeles County has the
collaborative, highly coalesced ecosystem needed to translate
cutting-edge science and technology from its academic centers into
successful companies. The BioLA
organization will bring together stakeholders that include academic
institutions, research hospitals, investors, startups, mature
companies, trade associations and public and quasi-public agencies
to advance the pace of innovation. BioLA also will engage in activities to
support the innovation community, including strategic investments,
stakeholder outreach and local executive talent development. In
addition to County government and Amgen, BioLA's founding sponsors will include
philanthropists and other life science stakeholders.
About Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the
potential of biology for patients suffering from serious illnesses
by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative
human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like
advanced human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and
understand the fundamentals of human biology.
Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages
its expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes
and dramatically improve people's lives. A biotechnology pioneer
since 1980, Amgen has grown to be one of the world's leading
independent biotechnology companies, has reached millions of
patients around the world and is developing a pipeline of medicines
with breakaway potential.
For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow us on
www.twitter.com/amgen.
CONTACT: Amgen, Thousand
Oaks
Kristen Davis, 805-447-3008
(media)
Trish Hawkins, 805-447-5631
(media)
Arvind Sood, 805-447-1060
(investors)
CONTACT: County of Los
Angeles
Sasha Quintana, Chatter Republic
(media)
(310) 272-4925
sasha@chatterrepublic.com
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SOURCE Amgen