Ross calls for bipartisan action on research, patents, drug pricing at NCLifeSci Annual Dinner 

U.S. Rep. Deborah Ross urged North Carolina life sciences leaders Oct. 5 to tell their stories to elected officials as federal research cuts, grant delays and regulatory uncertainty weigh on the industry. 

Ross, who represents North Carolina's 2nd Congressional District, spoke during a fireside chat at the NC Life Sciences Organization's 2026 Annual Dinner. NCLifeSci President Laura Gunter and Joe Lanier, principal at Milestone Strategies, led the conversation. Ross discussed intellectual property, drug pricing, research funding and national security before taking questions from the audience. 

This year's dinner was made possible by sponsorship from AbbVie, Alphanumeric, EisnerAmper, JLL and VWR, part of Avantor.  

Stein highlights industry growth 

Gov. Josh Stein planned to attend the dinner but was called out of state, so he addressed attendees by video. He congratulated NCLifeSci on more than 30 years of work to keep North Carolina a leader in biotechnology. 

Stein said more than 860 life sciences companies operate in the state, and 2,500 more companies serve the industry. Together they support about 225,000 jobs and generate more than $80 billion in annual economic activity. He noted recent investments by AbbVie, Fujifilm Biotechnologies, Genentech, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis and Thermo Fisher Scientific. 

Stein said nearly 6,000 students have enrolled in apprenticeship or pre-apprenticeship programs since he took office, including the BioWork certificate program. He also said the One North Carolina Small Business Program awarded 50 grants this year to 46 companies developing new technologies. 

Patents and intellectual property 

Ross, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, called strong patent protection essential to the life sciences. "Innovation depends on strong intellectual property protections," she said. 

She warned against attempts by the federal government to invalidate patents to try to make medicines cheaper or more widely available.  

"If the government, as has been suggested by some people in the administration, were to seize patents from a research institution for the first time ever, it would set a dangerous precedent for our universities, startups, and private partners," she said. 

Ross cited the Unleashing American Innovators Act as an example of bipartisan work on patents. She sponsored the House bill with U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., backed the Senate version. President Joe Biden signed the measure into law Dec. 29, 2022, as part of a spending package. The law raised patent fee discounts for small businesses, expanded outreach to first-time inventors and required the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to open at least four community outreach offices. In August, Ross announced one of those offices will open on NC State University's Centennial Campus. 

Ross said she supports patents for a limited period of time, as prescribed in the Constitution.  

"If you have a patent and you're trying to extend it for 100 years, I'm not going to be your best friend," she said. "But if you want to get your patent originally and protect it and be able to save people's lives, I'm going to fight for you fiercely." 

She said many members of Congress do not understand how private capital funds drug development.  

"They will not finance innovation unless they think they might get a return on investment," she said of venture investors. 

Ross urged companies to explain their business model to lawmakers.  

"You need to tell your story that way because somebody's trying to tell a different story about what you do," she said. 

Drug pricing and PBMs 

Ross called herself one of the strongest advocates in Congress for reform of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. In July 2025, she introduced the bipartisan PBM Reform Act. Portions became law in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, which President Donald Trump signed Feb. 3. The provisions separate PBM compensation from drug prices in Medicare Part D and require PBMs to report spending and rebate data to employer health plans. 

Ross said the original PBM model changed once insurers, drugmakers and pharmacy chains bought the companies.  

"The problem with PBMs is when they became owned by insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies and drugstores, and then all the savings didn't go to the consumer; it went to the PBMs or to the insurance companies," she said. She estimated 68% to 70% of PBMs now operate inside vertically integrated companies and said stronger antitrust enforcement would help. 

"If PBMs were independent and got paid for saving consumers' money, I'd be fine with that." 

Research funding and grant delays 

Ross serves on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, which she called the most bipartisan committee in Congress. She said members of both parties share concern about federal research cuts.  

"This is not a partisan thing, but I'm hearing this from Republicans and Democrats," she said. 

Ross said NIH funding at UNC-Chapel Hill fell nearly 20% and RTI International, the park's original anchor, recently laid off another 200 employees. She also said current immigration policy discourages top foreign scientists from coming to the United States. 

Ross said cuts to research at historically Black colleges and universities fall hardest on Southern states with Republican senators.  

"When you take research money away from HBCUs, in a large part, you're taking research money away from red states, red Southern states," she said. 

Gunter asked what information would help the state’s delegation assist companies whose grants have stalled after review, in some cases over foreign-risk concerns. Ross said she recently spoke with a company flagged for a foreign association despite having no foreign business.  

"They have no idea why this has happened, and this has become more and more and more common," she said. 

Ross said some companies have turned to litigation, which carries its own risks. Others report concerns through a confidential whistleblower portal run by House Democrats on the Science Committee. She also urged companies to contact their members of Congress, including Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., and noted she and Tillis previously secured the release of funds for a Research Triangle Park company.  

"Senator Budd and I are going to have to do this work together for it to be effective," she said. 

Working across the aisle 

Ross said her years in the North Carolina General Assembly taught her how to pass bills and gave her working relationships with Republicans, including Tillis. Quoting former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, she said, "We are legislators. We are not social media stars." 

Ross predicted a divided government after the November elections and said Congress will need bipartisan deals. "We have to do oversight," she said. "We have to take our responsibilities back as a co-equal branch of government, but we also have to get things done for the American people." 

She cited the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as a model. The House passed the bill 358-32 in June, and the measure became law July 11 without the president's signature. The law aims to increase housing supply and lower costs. 

Lanier said NCLifeSci's main message in Washington is simple: North Carolina is a life sciences state. He thanked Ross for helping the delegation speak with one voice on industry issues. 

National security and telling the industry's story 

Gunter asked how the industry should advance national security goals set out by the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, which Congress created and which released recommendations in April 2025. 

Ross noted North Carolina's 14 House members serve on every committee relevant to the industry, and four, two from each party, sit on the Science Committee. She urged companies to educate every member, including newly elected ones. 

Ross also urged the industry to counter misinformation and defended secure scientific collaboration with other countries.  

"We cannot just do this as the United States of America all by ourselves," she said. "Whenever you're tired and you're frustrated that somebody doesn't understand, get up and tell your story." 

Lanier asked whether personal stories outweigh statistics. Ross said patient stories, such as a child who walks again, stay with members of Congress.  

"That's going to be the story that they're going to tell," she said. 

Asked where a startup should begin, Ross said to start with the member of Congress who represents the company's employees or patients.  

"But if you invite me to come to see your company, then I see your story, and I hear about your story," she said. 

Questions from the audience 

One attendee said China offers startups government capital, lower costs and faster regulatory pathways. Ross agreed the United States is losing ground.  

"These are self-inflicted wounds," she said. She said a more assertive Congress after the November elections would have options to act, including year-end budget negotiations. 

Asked about funding beyond federal grants, Ross said regulatory uncertainty pushes venture investors toward other sectors.  

"If the government is creating a situation where capitalism doesn't work, to invest in innovation, that is a failure," she said.  

When another attendee called for a state tax credit for angel investors, Ross urged the group to press state legislators. Lanier said NCLifeSci continues to push for the credit with help from state Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, a co-chair of the NC Life Sciences Caucus. 

On water and transportation infrastructure, Ross noted North Carolina received funding through the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law but said most projects require state and local matching funds. She said she secured federal money toward a water pipeline from Lee County to Holly Springs and Fuquay-Varina, where drug manufacturers continue to build. 

Another attendee said outdated manufacturing rules keep biosimilar and cell and gene therapy costs high. Ross called for an effort to bring innovative scientists into federal agencies.  

"We really do kind of need a moonshot for your industry in the same way that Artemis has been a moonshot for NASA," she said. 

Asked about delays at the FDA, Ross said the House Energy and Commerce Committee needs to provide stronger oversight of the agency. She said she might join the committee next Congress.  

"And if I am, I will do everything I can to be helpful to you," she said. 

A call to stay engaged 

Gunter said NCLifeSci will help members connect with lawmakers, plan facility tours and meet with state legislators. 

Ross closed with a request to stay involved. "One of the worst things that can happen is for people to get frustrated and angry and just say, 'I'm not going to deal with this anymore,'" she said. "When you engage, you will see results. And the more you engage, and the more you do it in a bipartisan way, the better the results will be."