Pharmaceutical companies are outsourcing drug research more frequently, and when they do they are handing off larger portions of the operation than ever before, reports Kalorama Information. Over a third of clinical trials conducted by pharmaceutical companies are now outsourced outside of the organization, according to the healthcare market research publisher’s findings detailed in Outsourcing in Drug Development: The Contract Research (Clinical Trial) Market. The portion of global R&D expenses outsourced to contract drug developers reached $36.6 billion in 2011, up 6.6% from $31.8 billion in 2009.