Jack Young
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Healthcare investment conference MidAmerica Healthcare Venture Forum wants to bring active investors and corporate business development executives together to invest in promising Midwest based startups. The event is set for April 22-23 in Chicago.
The speaker lineup includes some of the healthcare industry’s most influential and innovative investors, such as Jack Young. He is the director of the $100 million Qualcomm Life Fund at Qualcomm Ventures. Among the fund’s digital health investments are AirStrip, AliveCor, ClearCare, Fitbit, goBalto and Telcare.
Be sure to register for the event — there’s still time — and join our LinkedIn group.
1. Who influenced you to get involved in healthcare and/or investing?
I would say that my former Qualcomm colleague Don Jones first got me interested in the emerging mobile and digital health space around 2008. Qualcomm Ventures’ move to invest in Sotera Wireless marked its first investment in the sector — that was just before I joined the team. I was exploring a new trend to make early venture investments and, in hindsight, digital health was one of the clear choices.
2. What do you think is the most important change happening in healthcare today?
Healthcare reform in the U.S. is realigning the priorities in the healthcare industry. The combination of mobile and digital technology and advancements in medical research have converged and reached a point where we can do things which were not previously possible.
3. What is your biggest pitch pet peeve/what’s the most bizarre press pitch you’ve ever received?
When entrepreneurs tell us their product or service is the best thing ever and ask us to buy the company outright.
4. What’s one piece of advice you would give to an entrepreneur?
Do your research, go after a big problem with a huge market potential at the right time and build a team. Great institutional investors are looking for transformative players.
