PRA Health Sciences

PRA Health Sciences is an American contract research organization (CRO) headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1976 by Colin Miller and Robert Landgraf, it provides full-service clinical development solutions for pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries. The company's segments lude Phase I-IV clinical trials, laboratory services, data management, and consulting for regulatory and market access. PRA operates in over 80 countries with more than 100 offices, supporting global trials through partnerships with investigators and suppliers for lab equipment and software, adhering to ICH-GCP, FDA, EMA, and ISO 13485 standards for data integrity and patient safety. Its decentralized trial models leverage third-party telehealth and logistics providers, necessitating rigorous vendor qualification and compliance monitoring to mitigate risks in supply chain and data security under HIPAA and GDPR. Acquired by ICON plc in 2021 for $12.3 billion, PRA emphasizes real-world evidence and AI-driven analytics for faster drug development. In 2025, as part of ICON, it contributed to group revenues exceeding $8 billion, focusing on oncology and rare disease trials with enhanced third-party oversight for operational resilience.