In this Issue
From Washington
Research!America Leads NIH Advocacy for FY2010
President Signs Embryonic Stem Cell Research Executive Order
New CPH Ad Effort Launches in April
CPH Foundation Launched
Priorities for Health Services Research
Spotlight on Member of Congress: Sen. Mark Udall (CO)
From Research!America
Welcome New Research!America Board Members
Research!America's 20th Anniversary Advocacy Awards and 2009 National Forum (PDF)
In the News
Regular Features
President's Message
Member Spotlight: Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Research!America Leads NIH Advocacy for FY2010
Research!America was the first organization to announce a funding recommendation for the National Institutes of Health in FY2010, calling for at least a 10% increase with the goal of reaching an annual appropriation of $40 billion as soon as possible. We are also supporting strong increases in FY2010 for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ($2 billion for core programs, a 20% increase), Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality ($32 million to reach $405 million, an 8.6% increase) and National Science Foundation ($510 million to reach $7 billion, a 7.9% increase).
Research!America hopes to build on the momentum generated by the success of our advocacy campaign to include $10 billion for NIH in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA, H.R. 1). Continued growth in regular appropriations for NIH, CDC, AHRQ and NSF is essential now to ensure the U.S. sees the maximum return on the strategic investment made through ARRA.
The call for an increase of at least 10% for NIH in 2010 followed the finalization of FY09 funding with the passage of the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (H.R. 1105), on March 10. Increases for research to improve health in FY09 are as follows:
- NIH - $30.3 billion, a 3.2% increase
- CDC - $6.6 billion, a 3.7% increase
- AHRQ - $372 million, an 11.3% increase
- NSF - $6.5 billion, a 5.9% increase
House Appropriations Chair David Obey (WI) lauded the recent investments in research: "To ensure that America stays on the cutting edge, we need to be putting scientists to work looking for the next great discovery, producing new and innovative technologies, and making smart investments that will help businesses in every community succeed in a global economy." Together ARRA and FY09 appropriations will fund more than 16,000 new research grants for life-saving research at NIH.
For updates on FY2010 funding for research to improve health, visit www.researchamerica.org/advocacy.
President Signs Embryonic Stem Cell Research Executive Order
President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order removing barriers to scientific research involving human embryonic stem cells on March 9, 2009. The Executive Order expands federal funding for embryonic stem cell research and returns the decision-making power to scientists about what research to fund through the National Institutes of Health.
Previously, federal funding had been limited by President George W. Bush. The Secretary of Health and Human Services and the NIH director have 120 days from March 9 to review existing guidelines and to issue new guidance and provisions for such research. The same day, Obama signed a Presidential Memorandum directing the head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to develop a strategy for restoring scientific integrity to government decision making.
Reps. Diana DeGette (CO) and Mike Castle (DE) and Sens. Tom Harkin (IA) and Arlen Specter (PA) have reintroduced the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (H.R. 873/S. 487). Sens. Ted Kennedy (MA), Orrin Hatch (UT) and Dianne Feinstein (CA) co-sponsored the legislation. Congress twice passed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act with strong bipartisan support, and both times President Bush vetoed the bill.
Visit www.researchamerica.org/stemcell_issue for more information and details about the bill.
New CPH Ad Effort Launches in April
With support from Ogilvy Public Relations and in partnership with 23 organizations, the Campaign for Public Health has developed an issue-specific series of advertisements highlighting the diverse and important work of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The ads will be sent to all congressional offices and will be used as handouts during lobbying visits.
Several hundred ads will appear in Washington Metro trains for a month, beginning in mid-April. This timing coincides with the release of the president's detailed budget request to Congress. See all four ads at www.FundCDC.org.
CPH Foundation Launched
The Campaign for Public Health has launched a new sister organization- The Campaign for Public Health Foundation. The CPH Foundation will assume much of the educational work formerly undertaken by CPH, such as leading tours of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, holding educational briefings on Capitol Hill and producing non-partisan analyses of budget trends for public health funding. Learn more at www.CPHFoundation.org.
Priorities for Health Services Research
Friends of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality met February 25 to report on current efforts to advance health services research. In light of the passage of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, Carolyn M. Clancy, MD, AHRQ director, discussed two of AHRQ's priorities: patient safety and effective health care programs.
The $20 billion allocated for health information technology will support efforts to increase patient safety, and of the $1.1 billion designated for comparative effectiveness, $300 million is allocated to AHRQ. This will support efforts to improve the effectiveness of health care programs.
Through comparative effectiveness research, AHRQ's goal is to develop and disseminate better evidence about benefits and risks of alternative treatment choices. Clancy said, "Our deficiency in understanding effectiveness among preventative, diagnostic and treatment options hampers our ability to deliver high value care."
Spotlight on Sen. Mark Udall (CO)
Sen. Mark Udall (CO) is a champion for investment in science, technology, engineering, and math research and education, and he believes such investment is necessary for U.S. economic security. He strongly supported passage of the America COMPETES Act in 2007 when he represented Colorado's second Congressional District (1999-2008).
Udall has shared his thoughts on important health and research issues via Research!America's Your Candidates-Your Health and Your Congress-Your Health initiatives: "By fully exploring and carrying out stem cell research, scientists will have the opportunity to hasten medical discovery, achieve breakthroughs, and turn scientific innovation into relief for patients."
Udall has consistently cosponsored the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act to expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. He became an advocate for stem cell research after witnessing his father's struggle with Parkinson's disease. He is a co-chair of the Bicameral Congressional Caucus on Parkinson's Disease, whose mission is to increase awareness of the disease among members of Congress and their staffs.
Welcome New Research!America Board Members
Three new board members were elected at Research!America's annual meeting on March 24.
For the past six years, Elias A. Zerhouni, MD, served as director of the National Institutes of Health. Among his many accomplishments, Zerhouni oversaw the completion of the NIH budget doubling, developed the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research and established a research initiative at the NIH to address the obesity epidemic. He was recently appointed senior fellow at The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Global Health Program and is an Institute of Medicine member. Previously, Zerhouni served as the executive vice dean of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
Lucinda L. Maine, PhD, is the executive vice president and CEO of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. Previously, she served as senior vice president of the American Pharmaceutical Association. A longtime pharmacy educator and advocate, Maine was the associate and acting dean at Stanford University School of Pharmacy.
Elizabeth Baker Keffer led the development of health partnership programs, including the Health Care Advisory Board and the Medical Leadership Council, at the Advisory Board Company and the Corporate Executive Board. Currently, she is vice president of The Atlantic and oversees The Atlantic's events arm as president of Atlantic LIVE.
See www.researchamerica.org/board_directors to learn more about our board.
Media Matters
The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act and Science
The scientific community is encouraged by the influx of funding for health and medical research in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). Norman Paradis, MD, vice president of medical affairs at Biosite Inc., and Richard Nowak, MD, physician at Henry Ford Hospital and Health System, commended The New York Times economic writer David Leonhardt for his article "The Big Fix," in which Leonhardt writes about the importance of the funding set aside for medical research in the recovery package.
Samuel L. Stanley Jr., MD, vice chancellor for research at Washington University in St. Louis and an Ambassador in Research!America's Paul G. Rogers Society for Global Health Research, told the St. Louis Business Journal that National Institutes of Health funding in the bill "could mean as much as $140 million in new funds for the university over the next two years, which could translate into 350 to 500 new jobs." In an op-ed published in The Washington Times, Alastair J. J. Wood, MD, former associate dean of Vanderbilt Medical School, wrote that the stimulus will make it possible to fund younger scientists' research once again.
Mary Woolley, Research!America president, told Science News senior editor Janet Raloff that the health information technology provisions included in ARRA would allow significant progress to be made in comparative effectiveness research. Stacie Propst, PhD, vice president of science policy and outreach at Research!America, told ScienceCareers contributing reporter Beryl Benderly and BioTechniques journal editor Andrew Wiecek that ARRA benefits research and sends a clear message that NIH has been reprioritized.
Federal Funding for Stem Cell Research
Reuters News Service reporter Will Dunham quoted Propst on President Obama's reversal of the 2001 executive order that restricted federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. She told the Burrill Report that Research!America is pleased with the result. Wired Science reporter Alexis Madrigal quoted Propst citing the Memorandum on Scientific Integrity that Obama released the same day he repealed the stem cell ban as a signal the administration is going to "focus on a science-based economy."
Feature: Undiagnosed Diseases Program
The NIH's Undiagnosed Diseases Program was featured in The New York Times Magazine. The program was launched a year ago by William A. Gahl, MD, PhD, clinical director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, to find answers to the most puzzling medical cases. Ultimately, the program aims to describe and understand the mechanisms of newly discovered diseases.
Rogers Ambassador's Op-Ed Published
William M. Tierney, MD, professor of medicine at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis and an Ambassador in the Rogers Society, wrote an op-ed in The New York Times in which he warned other scientists against denigrating their political opponents' views to influence policy in a specific direction.
President's Message
"Science in the Service of the Nation" was the theme of our National Forum on March 24. It was also the bottom line of the messages delivered by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Arlen Specter and their former colleague and our chair, The Hon. John Edward Porter, at our advocacy awards dinner. All emphasized the importance of science to our society and the need for scientists to be advocates.
Now more than ever, our society must contribute to putting the nation back on its feet. Every Research!America alliance member must communicate clearly that science serves short-term and long-term societal goals. We must demonstrate how research protects and creates jobs and how it helps assure evidence-based prevention and wellness strategies that can be put to work sooner rather than later. Longer-term "service to society" imperatives are also relevant in order to achieve the "reinvestment" component of the stimulus funding, enabling the nation to remain globally competitive. Achieving that goal requires revisiting the policy framework for innovation and translation, reinforcing the science infrastructure and assuring that basic research continues to thrive.
Doing a better job of communicating the commitment of science to serving society is also essential. Yes, it takes effort to communicate beyond our own professional and personal networks, but the reward is public awareness and understanding. The president's science adviser John Holdren suggests scientists dedicate 10% of their time to public outreach. Our newest initiative, New Voices for Research, is empowering those new to public outreach to become engaged in service to society. We urge you to visit http://newvoicesforresearch.blogspot.com.
Member Spotlight: Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is the leading organization in the United States devoted to curing and controlling cystic fibrosis (CF), a life-threatening genetic disease.
In the past five years, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and its subsidiaries have invested more than $660 million in medical programs dedicated to advancing life-sustaining treatments and a cure for cystic fibrosis, said Mary B. Dwight, vice president for government affairs. This extraordinary investment has been possible because of the unparalleled support of volunteers and donors nationwide - particularly during GREAT STRIDES, the Foundation's premier national fundraising event.
"Each year, tens of thousands of people demonstrate their commitment to finding a cure or control for CF by raising vital funds for research," Dwight said. In 2008, the GREAT STRIDES walk raised $36.5 million to support critical research and care programs.
When the Foundation was founded 50 years ago, children with CF were not expected to live long enough to attend elementary school. Now, due in large part to the Foundation's focus on innovative research and comprehensive care, the predicted median survival age for people with this disease is more than 37 years.
"We still lose lives to this disease every day," Dwight said. "But we imagine the day when the disease is wiped out entirely. Because of the Foundation's emphasis on developing promising new therapies for CF, we are moving closer to having the ability to treat the basic genetic defect that causes CF and the tremendous impact that will have on life expectancy."
The Foundation is a founding Research!America member. See www.cff.org for more information.