Chrissy Buteas, President & CEO, HealthCare Institute of New Jersey

Invest: spoke with Chrissy Buteas, president and CEO of the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey, about the institute’s recent achievements, including significant progress in various diseases. She shared insights on the importance of patient access to treatments, legislative advocacy, and the challenges of drug pricing. Ensuring that life-saving medication is available to patients is our key priority, and we’re working closely with federal and state policymakers to pass legislation that expands affordable access to medications,” she said.

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Reflecting on the past year, what have been the most significant milestones or achievements for the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey?

It’s been a tremendous year for medical innovation. While our companies are always working toward new cures and improving patient access to treatments, this year, companies made significant progress in therapies for diabetes and obesity, as well as a cure for sickle cell disease and advances in treatments for cancer and mental health illnesses, among others.

I would also point out how medical innovation is taking place from an economic standpoint. New Jersey is known as “the Medicine Chest of the World.” Institutions like the HELIX in New Brunswick, the Rutgers Cancer Institute, Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine, and the NEST are driving innovation and growth within their specific ecosystems. These organizations, along with life sciences companies, hospital systems, and educational institutions integrated into one central hub, are fueling continuous medical progress across New Jersey.

At HINJ, we have a unique chance to be the voice of the life sciences sector. The work our companies do is truly life-or-death for many patients, so we strive to ensure that their groundbreaking efforts are communicated to policymakers every day.

What are some of the institute’s efforts to support the community in New Jersey? 

We partner with a lot of different government agencies, as well as our patient advocacy community, to amplify the impact of the life sciences’ contributions to patient health and New Jersey’s economy. As legislation moves through the legislature or through Congress, we want to ensure that patient access and innovation are front and center. Our goal is to guarantee patient access to medications while making sure they remain affordable. We see our government and patient advocacy organizations as partners we can work with to ensure we’re elevating the life-saving treatments our companies provide

What are some of the key challenges the health industry is facing?

We want to highlight how important patient access is, which is why we advocate for PBM (Pharmacy Benefit Manager) reform. We want the rebates offered by manufacturers to PBMs to actually reach the patient at the pharmacy counter. Access to medication is a big concern for the community, and passing PBM reform would ensure more affordable access to medications.

How do you view the recently created Prescription Drug Affordability Council?

Although they’ve just started in New Jersey, we have concerns with the formation of the Drug Affordability Council. We’re weighing in on that and would like to be at the table, offering our advice and expertise. We believe drug pricing should be evaluated in the totality of the supply chain system. We have filed comments with the Division of Consumer Affairs, stressing the need for an unbiased and confidential review by the Council, that the entire supply chain is considered, that artificial caps aren’t put in place, and that we’re not hindering innovation in our home state.

How have market changes, such as higher interest rates, impacted your organization?

Operating in a competitive economic environment is crucial for us, which is why we work to ensure that New Jersey remains a competitive place to do business. We aim to make New Jersey an attractive place for companies to have their headquarters and research and manufacturing facilities. We are proud of our standing as one of the states with the most headquarters for both domestic and international businesses. But being the most taxed state is a significant challenge. We want to remain competitive in terms of taxes while advocating for innovation, a highly qualified workforce, a strong education system, and research investment.

How is the Healthcare Institute of New Jersey addressing staffing challenges?

Raising awareness is essential. The lack of an adequate nursing workforce has been a long-standing issue. The New Jersey Collaborating Center for Nursing recently released a report highlighting the nursing shortage, primarily due to the lack of nursing faculty. Many schools, including community colleges, are at capacity. Our companies have taken it upon themselves to offer incentives, loans, and initiatives to attract applicants into the workforce. My team and I continue to educate state and federal policymakers about the need to address this through legislation, loan forgiveness programs, or by incentivizing faculty to enter the nursing field.

What has been the Healthcare Institute of New Jersey’s approach to integrating newer technologies and digital health services, such as AI?

Artificial intelligence has been regulated by the federal government for our medical device companies for decades. The industry continues to explore its use, whether for clinical trials, drug development, or data analysis. The AI Princeton Hub is working to train New Jersey’s workforce to meet industry demands, not just in life sciences but across all sectors. This includes bringing together four-year institutions, community colleges, and companies to determine the skill sets needed to meet industry demands. There’s concern that higher education will move in different directions, so a more concerted effort to streamline curricula and share resources across institutions is necessary.

What is the most recurrent health issue that you are seeing in the larger New Jersey community, or what are the biggest healthcare challenges?

Developing new drugs is challenging because the process is lengthy and costly. On average, it takes 10 to 15 years and about $2.6 billion to bring a new drug to market. One in every 1,000 compounds investigated makes it to market, and only 1 in 10 that make it to the clinical trial phase succeed – the rest fail for various reasons. This means that for patients hoping for a new drug, it’s a long, uncertain wait. The challenge lies in balancing innovation and investment in a state’s healthcare ecosystem to ensure that groundbreaking work continues. Without a supportive innovation ecosystem, investments will go elsewhere.

What’s next for the healthcare sector and the Healthcare Institute of New Jersey?

We will continue to focus on finding new treatments and cures. New Jersey is home to some of the best research universities, medical schools, and teaching hospitals. We work collaboratively with organized labor, policymakers, and higher education institutions to advance these efforts. Our goal is to ensure that New Jersey remains “the Medicine Chest of the World”, and we will continue championing the state’s leadership role in global medical innovation.