Pharmaceutical giant Express Scripts announced today that it will invest $73 million to expand its St. Louis headquarters. The construction of the company's fourth building in the area is expected to create 150 new jobs.
The company also released results of a study on its economic impact on Missouri. The study found that in 2010 the company had an economic impact of $986 million on St. Louis and Missouri. The company's long term contribution to the economy is projected to be more than $10.5 billion.
The expansion comes on the heels of an announcement Express Scripts made earlier this month that it will shut down two Pennsylvania facilities. A total of a thousand people will lose their jobs. But, Governor Jay Nixon says his priority is jobs for the state of Missouri.
"I don't mean to be dismissive of other states in any way shape or form," Nixon said, "But my responsibility is to the people of the State of Missouri. We're going to continue to compete for jobs. And I think that when you have the headquarters of a fortune 500 company here you try to go the extra mile in many ways."
Nixon says the state awarded the company $3 million in Missouri Quality Jobs Program funds and $1 million in Missouri Build program incentives. The state's incentive package also includes exemptions for state sales and personal property taxes.