CLEVELAND, OH, Midwest health care startups reported $315 million in total investments across 86 companies in the first half of 2011, according to the BioEnterprise Midwest Health Care Venture Investment Report.

"While the number of companies funded remains high and similar to prior years, the total dollars invested is down compared to recent years," said Baiju R. Shah, President & CEO of BioEnterprise. "This is related to the significant increase in company M&A activity across the Midwest as growth-stage health care firms are increasingly being purchased in strategic transactions rather than pursuing additional financing."

Minnesota led the way in company financings attracting $88 million, followed closely by Ohio whose companies attracted $80 million during the period. Among regions, Minneapolis, Cleveland, and Madison led the way.

"A bright spot in the report is a significant increase in health care IT & services investing across the region," said Shah. By sector, the equity funding was as follows:

Biopharmaceutical companies: $153 million
Medical device companies: $85 million
Health care software and service companies: $70 million

The Midwest Health Care Venture Investment Report includes all reported numbers and regionally collected data. For complete state and region results across the Midwest see the attached table.

To view additional data about Midwest health care business activity visit http://www.bioenterprise.com/reports/index.html.