In This Issue of The Research Advocate
From Washington
Research a Priority in Tight Presidential Budget
CPH Update
From Research!America
Whitehead and Rosenfeld Award Recipients Named
Spotlight on Rogers Society Ambassador
Research as an Economic Driver Fact Sheet Updated
Regular Features
Member Spotlight: Salk Institute for Biological Studies
President's Message
Special Thanks to New and Renewing Research!America Alliance Members
Research!America Adds Value for Our Members
In the News
Download the entire March 2010 Research Advocate as a PDF.
Research a Priority in Tight Presidential Budget
With the release of his FY 2011 budget proposal, President Barack Obama reaffirmed his commitment to science and research by making them a priority amid efforts to limit spending. Although Obama recommended a freeze on the part of the budget that includes research, he opted to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Science Foundation.
Under the president's proposal, the overall NIH budget would increase 3.2% percent to $32.1 billion in FY 2011. This recommended boost to the budget is an excellent beginning to the priority-setting conversation that now moves to Congress. Prior to the budget release, Research!America recommended $35 billion for NIH, which would sustain the research capacity made possible through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. NIH has been functioning with a $35 billion budget for two years, and our nation cannot afford to lose ground as it struggles to emerge from the recession.
Maintaining an emphasis on evidence- based medicine, Obama proposed $611 million for AHRQ, a 53.9% increase. Of this, $286 million is allocated for comparative effectiveness research. Obama is keeping the NSF on a budget doubling track by recommending $7.4 billion, an 8.0% increase. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not fare as well, with the president recommending a 1.9% cut in core funding to $6.6 billion.
Research!America's Mary Woolley was quoted on the proposed budget by MSNBC.com's health section, Bloomberg News and The Scientist NewsBlog. Woolley said she looks forward to working with Congress to ensure sustained investment in research so the U.S. maintains its leadership in R&D and innovation. She said it is particularly important to invest in research now as countries such as China increase their research spending.
Research!America's FY 2011 recommendation for NIH was cited in Science Magazine's blog ScienceInsider, Nature Medicine's blog Spoonful of Medicine, Chemistry World magazine and the Houston Chronicle-hosted Baker Institute blog.
Because the budget and appropriations process is now in the hands of Congress, it is time for advocates to start contacting their representatives and senators in support of robust increases for research to improve health in FY 2011. Visit www.researchamerica.org/advocacy.
CPH Update
The CPH Foundation and the Congressional Study Group on Public Health are planning their next congressional briefing for March 12. As of press time, speakers were still being invited to the briefing, which will focus on public health research.
The Campaign for Public Health and The CPH Foundation have nearly completed their 2009 annual audits. Both organizations are on strong footing, and annual reports will be released soon. Visit www.FundCDC.org and www.CPHFoundation.org for the latest information on events and their work on behalf of the CDC and public health.
Whitehead and Rosenfeld Award Recipients Named
Rep. David Obey (D-WI) has been named the recipient of Research!America's 2010 Edwin C. Whitehead Award for Medical Research Advocacy, and G. Thompson Hutton, Esq., Trustee and CEO of the Geoffrey Beene Foundation and President and CEO of Geoffrey Beene, LLC, will be honored with the Isadore Rosenfeld Award for Impact on Public Opinion. They will accept the awards on March 16 at Research!America's 14th Annual Advocacy Awards dinner.
Obey will be recognized for his leadership during the passage of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the NIH budget doubling (1998-2003) and for his work for health and medical research during his 21 terms in Congress. Obey was a sponsor of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 and the 2007 expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Obey is chair of the House Appropriations Committee and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. The Whitehead Charitable Foundation is the award benefactor.
Hutton will be recognized for the national public service campaign Rock Stars of Science that spotlights top researchers to support increased research funding and engage the next generation of scientists. Hutton created the Geoffrey Beene Gives Back® Alzheimer's Initiative, which was the principal sponsor of HBO's 2009 pioneering series "The Alzheimer's Project." He also founded the Geoffrey Beene Cancer Research Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, a unique business-philanthropic model for research. The Rosenfeld Heart Foundation is the award benefactor.
Research!America will honor four others on March 16. Robert Klein, JD, chair of the governing board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, will receive the Gordon and Llura Gund Leadership Award. Robert W. Mahley, MD, PhD, founding director of The J. David Gladstone Institutes, will be recognized with the Builders of Science Award. Advocate-philanthropist Ann Lurie will be honored with the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Award for Sustained National Leadership, and March of Dimes will receive the Paul G. Rogers Distinguished Organization Advocacy Award. Learn more at www.researchamerica.org/advocacy_awards.
Spotlight on Rogers Society Ambassador
"We are a global world, and there are no U.S. ‘customs and border checkpoints' for infectious diseases," says James W. Kazura, MD, editor of The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Kazura knows well the difficulties in conveying the importance of his malaria research to everyday Americans. As director of the Center for Global Health and Disease and professor of international health and medicine at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Kazura studies the factors responsible for contracting and developing malaria, one of the most common infectious diseases and the cause of at least one million deaths a year, the majority of whom are children.
In Kazura's role as a Rogers Society Ambassador, he tackles the lack of awareness around malaria with outreach to his policy makers and the Cleveland media. "Americans should have a better understanding of the severity of this disease," he said. "It's occasionally reintroduced in U.S. border- states, and for anyone traveling to areas where malaria thrives, they too, are at risk."
Research: An Economic Driver Fact Sheet Updated
Research and innovation are essential for U.S. global competitiveness. From providing high-skill, high-wage jobs to improving the health of Americans, investment in research is essential to maintain our position as an economic leader.
Research!America has updated our Research: An Economic Driver fact sheet (see insert) in our Investment in Research Saves Lives and Money series, with the latest information on how U.S. investment in health research has benefited our economy and our need for increased investment in science and discovery. The series is online at www.researchamerica.org/issue_briefs.
Member Spotlight: Salk Institute for Biological Studies
The Salk Institute for Biological Studies was established in 1960 by Jonas Salk, MD, the developer of the polio vaccine. His goal was to establish an institute that would explore questions about the basic principles of life. He wanted to make it possible for biologists and others to work together in a collaborative environment that would encourage them to consider the wider implications of their discoveries for the future of humanity.
From its beginning the Salk Institute has focused on three broad areas of basic biological research: neuroscience, genetics and cell biology, and plant science. In addition, stem cell research, aging and metabolism, cancer, and vision research are increasingly important areas of discovery at the San Diego-based institute.
"The main thing that makes Salk a very special place is its collaborative atmosphere," said Marsha A. Chandler, PhD, executive vice president and chief operating officer. "There are no departments, and the lack of silos is something people really treasure."
Both public and private investments in research are critically important to Salk's work. The institute receives more than half of its funding from the government, and another 35% comes from philanthropists including foundations and individual donors.
"Private philanthropy is so important in the sense that it allows us to take on very high-risk work," Chandler said. "Our donors understand and value that about the Salk culture."
To advocate for more investment in research, Salk relies on Washington-based organizations including Research!America and the Association of Independent Research Institutes. But Salk researchers are involved in ongoing advocacy, including educating the public about science and Salk's work.
"An informed public is the one that will be much more appreciative of the work that Salk does," Chandler said.
Later this month the March of Dimes, a key Salk supporter, will be honored at Research!America's 14th Annual Advocacy Awards. The March of Dimes provided initial funds for Salk's first buildings. The close relationship continues, and March of Dimes President Jennifer L. Howse, PhD, is on Salk's Board of Trustees.
For more information, visit www.salk.edu.
President's Message
This month, as we have for 14 years, the Research!America alliance will gather to honor extraordinary individuals and organizations who have gone the extra mile-often overcoming significant odds to chart daring new territory- giving their time, resources, leadership and wisdom to help make health and well-being achievable for more people world-wide. Their accomplishments demonstrate a commitment to research as a game-changer in overcoming disease and disability that is worthy of replication by all of us.
As the U.S. re-charts the course to better health, we call for a similar dedication to changing the game: going beyond what's easily done, even when achieving real change seems beyond our reach. Because research is a game-changer, because it saves lives and drives our economy, we must insist that a strong investment in research be part of a new health plan. Just as our awardees were able to overcome inertia, timidity and fear of upsetting the status quo, stakeholders in research for health must do likewise.
We should work with Congress and the Administration to make research the high priority it must be, especially at NSF, NIH, FDA, CDC and AHRQ, where new research centered on patient outcomes will help deliver on the promise of smarter health care. The almost-enacted health reform legislation might have done much for wellness and prevention programs, many centered at or funded by CDC; in a "start over" situation, the power of that critical investment to improve health and quality of life for generations of Americans simply can't be ignored. Without prioritizing research, health reform will not deliver better health.
Special Thanks To New and Renewing Research!America Alliance Members
Alzheimer's Association
American Society for Nutrition
Eli Lilly and Company
Emory University Health Affairs
Emory University School of Medicine
George Mason University
Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California
La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology
Masonic Medical Research Laboratory
Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University
North Carolina Association for Biomedical Research
The Ohio State University College of Dentistry
Oregon Health and Science University
Pennsylvania State College of Medicine
Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University
Salk Institute for Biological Studies
The Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute
University of Louisville School of Dentistry
Yerkes National Primate Research Center
Not yet a Research!America member? Join today!
Research!America Adds Value for Our Members
Research!America stands on a reputation of innovative advocacy that generates results serving our mission and the interests of our members:
- Research!America remains committed to our mission to make research to improve health a higher national priority.
- As the largest not-for-profit organization focused solely on this cause, we continue to explore new ways to advocate for research, engage scientists and the public in research advocacy, and reach out to policy makers, news media and other influencers.
- Our programs are consistent with and supportive of the vision and priorities of two decades of leadership at NIH, CDC, AHRQ and NSF. We work regularly with these leaders and others in the private sector and in academia to advocate for the full spectrum of research to improve health.
- We are committed to increasing funding for research that improves health, specifically raising the budget of the NIH to ensure critical research capacity built up through ARRA-funded grants will be permanent.
- We lead the way in ensuring research is positioned as part of the solution to our nation's economic and health challenges.
Media Matters
U.S. Research Funding Trends
The Journal of the American Medical Association reported that U.S. biomedical research funding from all sectors had an average annual growth rate of 3.4% between 2003 and 2007, compared to 7.8% between 1994 and 2003. These findings reinforce Research!America's annual U.S. Investment in Health Research report, which shows that the U.S. is headed in the wrong direction. The latest report estimates $131 billion was spent on research to improve health in 2008, just 5.5% of total U.S. health spending.
FasterCures: Top 10 Medical Research Trends
FasterCures Executive Director Margaret Anderson predicted in a post on The Huffington Post blog that health information technology, clinical trials, innovative research and partnerships between industry, government and academia would be top priorities for research in 2010. FasterCures is a Research!America member.
Research Findings in PARADE Magazine
PARADE magazine published an article on C-Reactive Protein (CRP) screening, which can predict a patient's risk for heart disease. The article noted that the American Heart Association, a Research!America member, recommends CRP screening for patients who are at intermediate risk for heart disease. PARADE also reported about a study released at Research!America member the Society for Neuroscience's annual meeting, showing that surfing the Internet increases brain activity and helps the brain function better.
Specter's CAN Amendment for Health Care Reform
Nature Medicine quoted Research!America's Mary Woolley on Sen. Arlen Specter's (D-PA) amendment in the health care reform bill. The amendment would establish the Cures Acceleration Network program at the National Institutes of Health. Woolley said, "Once again, Sen. Specter has his finger on the pulse of public sentiment. The public wants more solutions, and they want them faster."
A Little Research Can Go a Long Way
Stanford University School of Medicine's SCOPE blog cited the Research!America "Research Takes Cents" comparison that the cost to air one 30-second ad during the 2010 Super Bowl ($2.5 million) could fund about six NIH R01 grants, which averaged $371,000 in FY08. The school is a Research!America member.
Florida has received more than $110 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding, enabling schools such as Florida Atlantic University to hire new employees, according to Research!America's state-by-state ARRA map. The findings were cited in the Orlando Business Journal.
Global Breast Cancer Research
Global Health magazine's blog published an op-ed by Paul G. Rogers Society for Global Health Research Ambassador Richard Love, MD, professor of internal medicine and public health at The Ohio State University. Love wrote that more global breast cancer research is needed to understand this disease, which affects some ethnic groups more than others.
Download the entire March 2010 Research Advocate as a PDF.