Virginia Economic Review

As the world continues to struggle with drug supply chains and critical shortages, clusters of activity have emerged to move the needle of medication affordability and accessibility.

John Newby is the CEO of Virginia Bio, the nonprofit statewide trade association that serves and promotes the life sciences industry in Virginia.

A pharmaceutical manufacturing innovation that came out of a Virginia university is changing the way medicines are made. The Commonwealth’s universities and the rest of its biopharma research community are making sure Virginia is ready to make the medicines of the future.

In October 2025, shovels went into the ground in Elkton, marking the start of a $3 billion pharmaceutical expansion project that will add 400,000 square feet to Merck’s existing campus.

Dave Maraldo is the senior vice president of Human Health Manufacturing Operations at Merck, one of the five largest biopharmaceutical companies in the world.

Merck’s expansion at its Rockingham County site, announced in late 2025, represents the continuation of a long, mutually beneficial tenure in the Commonwealth.

A lot changed in Virginia’s life sciences industry in the space of about a month last fall. Between Sept. 16 and Oct. 20, biopharmaceutical manufacturing giants Eli Lilly and Company, AstraZeneca, and Merck & Co.

Food and beverage and pharmaceutical companies rely on Virginia’s cold chain infrastructure to succeed.

Like his fellow Type 1 diabetics, Alec Smith took insulin every day to regulate his blood sugar.