CLEVELAND -- Cleveland Clinic Innovations, the group charged with commercializing medical inventions by the Clinic’s doctors, has received its largest-ever gift, $11 million.
The vast majority of the donation, $10 million, comes from West Virginia billionaire James Justice II, a coal and farming company executive who ranked No. 375 on Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, The Plain Dealer reported.
The remaining $1 million was from Dr. Thomas Graham, chairman of the Innovations group and a premier hand surgeon who often operates on professional athletes. Graham and Justice struck a friendship at the historic Greenbrier resort in West Virginia, which Justice bought in 2009.
The donation will fund a new chair in medical innovation, as well as patent applications and product development related to discoveries by Clinic doctors.
“They’re going to do things to change the world, and I’d like to be a part of it,” Justice told The Plain Dealer.
The Innovations group in January enjoyed its biggest success to date, the $78 million sale of neurotechnology spinoff Intelect Medical to Boston Scientific. Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove later said the deal returned $28 million to the hospital.
Cleveland Clinic ranked No. 4 last year in licensing income ($36 million) among U.S. hospitals and research institutions, according to an annual survey by the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM).