When people outside the state think of Wisconsin, they usually envision cheese, beer, dairy farms and manufacturing. But a new collaboration aims to add the state’s growing biohealth industry to that list.

A consortium of 15 health technology companies, nonprofits and higher education institutions have applied for a “Regional Tech Hub” designation from the federal government. The designation would cover Madison and Milwaukee Metropolitan Statistical Areas, and would allow the state to access $50 million to $75 million in federal funds from the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.

Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. Secretary Missy Hughes said the application focused on the state’s growing biohealth sector with a focus on so-called “personalized medicine.” Hughes said personalized medicine uses a wide range of data from a patient, including their genomic sequence and environmental conditions, to diagnose and treat them more efficiently.

“There’s a really exciting opportunity for Wisconsin, with work that’s already happening here, to be the next generation of health care for the United States,” Hughes said. “This work is happening whether or not we get the regional tech hub designation.”

[Adapted from: 15 private and public sector partners hope to make Wisconsin a ‘Regional Tech Hub’. Sept. 12, 2023, Wisconsin Public Radio]