In This Issue of The Research Advocate
From Washington
Obama Promotes NIH Recovery Act Funding
Capitol Hill Briefing: Future of Cancer Research Explored
Capitol Hill Briefing: Eliminating TB Through Global Health Research
CBC Conference Includes Research!America
Clancy to Continue as AHRQ Director
CPH: Health Reform Must Include Prevention
From Research!America
Economists Honored for Study on Drug Prices, Medical Innovation
Research!America Board Meets with Federal Research Agency Heads
Public Health Thank You Day: November 23, 2009
In the News
Regular Features
President's Message
Member Spotlight: FasterCures
Research!America Adds Value
Obama Promotes NIH Recovery Act Funding
President Barack Obama visited the National Institutes of Health campus to announce $5 billion in grant awards made possible through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
The president's "Recovery to Discovery" visit included a tour of the NIH Clinical Research Center and a cancer lab with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and NIH Director Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD.
Obama addressed an audience of researchers, elected officials and other invited guests, including Research!America Chair The Honorable John Edward Porter and President Mary Woolley.
"We know that these investments in research will improve and save countless lives for generations to come," Obama said. "But we also know that these investments will save jobs, they'll create new jobs-tens of thousands of jobs-conducting research, and manufacturing and supplying medical equipment, and building and modernizing laboratories and research facilities all across America."
The president highlighted three areas of research that can move forward thanks to ARRA funding: the Cancer Genome Atlas, genetic analysis of Framingham Heart Study participants and studies of the genetic and environmental factors contributing to autism.
NIH succeeded in awarding nearly half of the $10.4 billion of ARRA funding by the end of FY 2009, which was the same day as Obama's visit, September 30.
As of press time, FY 2010 funding for NIH and other federal health research agencies remained undetermined. Advocates are turning their attention to funding levels in FY 2011, a year that will be critical to ensuring that the U.S. can capitalize on the scientific and economic opportunity generated by ARRA funding.
To coincide with National Medical Research Day on October 21, the ResearchMeansHope.org campaign, Research!America and other groups rallied advocates to contact the White House in support of significant annual increases for NIH. For updates visit www.researchamerica.org/advocacy.
Capitol Hill Briefing: Future of Cancer Research Explored
Congressional representatives joined advocates and scientists to tell a Capitol Hill audience why we need to continue investing in research that will lead to cures for cancer. The October 1 briefing, "The Quest for Cures: Horizons for Cancer Research," was hosted by Research!America, Pfizer Inc and the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.
Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX), who was a medical doctor before entering Congress, spoke about a new era of personalized medicine. Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) encouraged the audience, saying, "This is our time. We have the chance to put in place revolutionary policies."
Mace L. Rothenberg, MD, senior vice president of clinical development and medical affairs at Pfizer, a Research!America member, explained that public-private partnerships are key to getting treatments from bench to bedside.
Research!America's Mary Woolley moderated the panel, which included Research!America's Stacie Propst, PhD, who discussed poll data showing the public's support for research and the need for their participation in clinical trials.
Kate Thaxton, a pancreatic cancer survivor, delivered inspiring words about her hope for research. "The statistics are just numbers," she said. "I am an individual and I am committed to fighting this."
Capitol Hill Briefing: Eliminating TB through Global Health Research
Research!America and the TB Alliance, in cooperation with the Office of Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL), presented an October 8 Capitol Hill briefing as part of Research!America's Global Health IS America's Health series.
Ann M. Ginsberg, MD, PhD, TB Alliance, and Nida Shakir of Durbin's office participated in a panel discussion with Reichman and Paul G. Rogers Society for Global Health Research Ambassadors Scott Ratzan, MD, Johnson & Johnson, and Lee Reichman, MD, MPH, New Jersey Medical School Global Tuberculosis Institute, moderated by Michael Coburn, Research!America. Panelists spoke of the U.S. vulnerability to diseases, focusing on the ancient killer tuberculosis.
Research!America unveiled the latest fact sheet in the Investment in Research Saves Lives and Money series: tuberculosis. The fact sheet is this month's insert and a PDF can be downloaded at www.researchamerica.org/tb_factsheet.
CBC Conference Includes Research!America
In cooperation with the office of Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), Research!America promoted its constituent education initiative Your Congress-Your Health at the 2009 Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference on September 24.
Research!America introduced www.yourcongressyourhealth.org to the attendees and stressed the importance of knowing Congress' positions on health and research in the context of the health reform debate.
Research!America President Mary Woolley also spoke at Conyers' health care forum "Health Care Reform: Making the Dream of Health Care for All A Reality" and conveyed the importance of including research in reform. The panel was moderated by MSNBC's Ed Schultz.
Research!America board member The Hon. Louis Stokes and emeritus director Reed V. Tuckson, MD, were instrumental in securing Research!America's participation at the conference.
Clancy to Continue as AHRQ Director
Carolyn M. Clancy, MD, has been reappointed as director of the Agency for Health Research and Quality.
Noting Clancy's service as AHRQ director under the previous Administration, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said, "Since 2003, Carolyn has led AHRQ and worked tirelessly to improve health care quality, reduce health disparities and protect patient safety in our country."
As director, Clancy launched the first annual report to the Congress on health care disparities and health care quality.
CPH: Health Reform Must Include Prevention
The Campaign for Public Health sent an open letter to all members of Congress about the need for prevention in health reform legislation. More than a dozen individuals signed on, including former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention directors Bill Foege, MD, MPH; Julie L. Gerberding, MD, MPH; Jeffrey P. Koplan, MD, MPH; William L. Roper, MD, MPH; and David Satcher, MD, PhD; former NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, MD; and The Honorable Louis Stokes.
The Congressional Study Group on Public Health, formed in partnership with CPH, organized an October 21 open house where health field representatives working to protect the public from H1N1 and seasonal influenza answered questions and updated members of Congress and congressional staff. Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX), a co-chair of the study group, spoke to participants.
For more information and to read the letter sent to Congress, visit www.FundCDC.org.
Economists Honored for Study on Drug Prices, Medical Innovation
Darius N. Lakdawalla, PhD, accepted Research!America's 2009 Garfield Economic Impact Award for the collaborative work "U.S. Pharmaceutical Policy in a Global Marketplace," published in Health Affairs earlier this year.
The eighth annual Garfield Award was presented October 13 at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC.
The other coauthors of the study are Dana P. Goldman, PhD, of the University of Southern California and the RAND Corporation; Pierre-Carl Michaud, PhD, RAND; Neeraj Sood, PhD, USC School of Pharmacy and RAND; and Robert J. Lempert, PhD, RAND.
Lakdawalla explained that the study explored ways to lower U.S. prescription drug prices without creating unintended consequences in cost to consumers, quality of life or future drug innovation. The work suggests that lowering drug copayments for consumers, as opposed to U.S. price controls, would be a positive policy that would increase access to pharmaceuticals and maintain incentives for innovation in the U.S. and globally.
After the award presentation, David Leonhardt, "Economic Scene" columnist for The New York Times, moderated a discussion among Lakdawalla, associate professor at the USC School of Policy, Planning and Development; Mark McClellan, MD, PhD, director, Engelberg Center for Healthcare Reform, Brookings Institution, and former CMS administrator and FDA commissioner; and James L. Madara, MD, former CEO, University of Chicago Medical Center.
The discussion focused on the importance of research to the U.S. economy, and panelists touched on comparative effectiveness research, stimulus funding, health care reform, science education and the research funding pipeline.
"Accounting for health and economic benefits ... is very important for setting health care priorities," said McClellan, Research!America board member and Garfield Award Selection Committee chair. By putting in place policies recommended by the co-authors, he said, "When thinking about health care reform, we can lower costs and foster innovations by reducing inefficiencies without reducing incentives."
As a former health system administrator, Madara noted that recipients of NIH stimulus dollars cannot raise their overhead, since the funds end after 2010. He said, "In that regard, the stimulus is fulfilling its innovation but perhaps not its employment goals." He also spoke about the research pipeline and the importance of investment throughout.
The Garfield Award is supported by the Eugene Garfield Foundation and the University of Chicago Medical Center, one of the nation's leading academic medical centers and research enterprises. See www.researchamerica.org/economicimpact_award for a podcast and more information.
Pictured, from top left, Darius N. Lakdawalla, PhD; James Madara, MD; and Eugene Garfield, PhD; David Leonhardt; Mark McClellan, MD, PhD. Photos by Mary Ann Gatty/USEventPhotos.com.
Research!America Board Meets with Federal Research Agency Heads
The Research!America board of directors had the chance to meet with and hear from the leaders of the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality on October 13. Members of the IOM Council and other selected guests also attended.
Carolyn M. Clancy, MD, AHRQ; Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, CDC; and Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, NIH, described collaboration among their agencies to ensure that our medical research, health care delivery and public health systems work together. Visit www.researchamerica.org/09oct13_reception.
Public Health Thank You Day, November 23
In this Thanksgiving season, take the time to thank those who diligently work to protect our health and nation's health. Research!America, the American Public Health Association, the Association of Schools of Public Health, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, the National Alliance for Hispanic Health and the National Association of County & City Health Officials encourage you to celebrate your public health heroes on Public Health Thank You Day November 23, 2009. Learn more at www.publichealththankyouday.org and join our Facebook group.
Media Matters
Martin Chalfie, PhD, chair of biological sciences at Columbia University, discussed his 2008 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with New York Times writer Claudia Dreifus. Chalfie and Osamu Shimomura, PhD, senior scientist emeritus at the Marine Biological Laboratory, and Roger Tsien, PhD, professor of pharmacology at the University of California in San Diego, received the prize. When asked why he thought research was such a significant piece of the recovery act, Chalfie explained how the additional funds would create jobs in laboratories and universities.
Medical Malpractice System Reform through Research
David Leonhardt, New York Times "Economic Scene" columnist, recently wrote about the need for reform in the medical malpractice system. He cited studies by Harvard University's Amitabh Chandra, PhD, a Garfield Economic Impact Award winner, and the Brookings Institute's Mark McClellan, MD, PhD, Research!America board member, about wasteful spending generated by defensive medicine and medical malpractice. Leonhardt pointed to evidence-based medicine and specialized "health courts" as possible solutions for the current malpractice system.
Tribute to Paul G. Rogers
Fort Lauderdale Magazine published a tribute article about The Honorable Paul G. Rogers, 1921-2008, former Research!America chair emeritus. Representing Florida's 9th congressional district, Rogers was re-elected 11 times to the U.S. House. He was an extraordinary champion for health research, and the Federal Building and Courthouse in West Palm Beach and the main plaza at the National Institutes of Health are named after him.
Francis Collins on NIH Objectives and Being a Rock Star
Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, new director of the National Institutes of Health, was interviewed by The New York Times on his objectives for NIH. He cited opportunities in translating genomic data, commercializing academic research, comparative effectiveness research, and global health research-and challenges for NIH funding in 2011. He also discussed his performance with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry at the Rock Stars of Science briefing on Capitol Hill, an event co-organized by Research!America and the Geoffrey Beene Foundation.
A Research Success Story
Tadataka Yamada, MD, executive director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Global Health Program and Research!America board member, authored a column on CNN.com about his recent trip to the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar to see firsthand the region's fight against malaria. Evidence-based tools and treatments have contributed to what Yamada hopes will be the eradication of the disease. He wrote, "These successes show what a combination of political will, technical resources and financial commitment can do when applied to a strategy that works."
President's Message
The Research!America Board and guests had the opportunity of a conversation with Drs. Carolyn Clancy, Tom Frieden and Francis Collins, directors of AHRQ, CDC and NIH, last month (see above). It was terrific to hear how these outstanding leaders are working strategically to put research to work to serve the public. We can assure you, our members, of our alliance's continued strong partnership with these agencies.
Earlier that day, we awarded the Garfield Economic Impact Award to Dr. Darius Lakdawalla and his colleagues (see above). This award is timely as health reform conversations return to the importance of reining-in costs. Incentives for further research must be part of that conversation. History shows us that the true game-changing, healthenhancing, cost-saving breakthroughs- and economic growth-come from investment in research.
A previous Garfield Award winner, Professor Kevin Murphy (a MacArthur "Genius" Fellow), spoke on a panel at the Society for Neuroscience's annual meeting. I had the privilege of moderating the discussion in which Murphy underscored the importance of linking medical research to its potential to lower the cost of health care and its well-established connection to "making people better off" as they live longer, healthier lives. He stressed the need to resist measuring "value" in terms of cost instead of how people benefit by the outcome/output of research. He said, "Research costs don't scale; the benefits do!"
The stakeholder community must work together to make the economic value case for strong investment in research for health.
Member Spotlight: FasterCures
FasterCures is dedicated to saving lives by saving time. Its mission is to identify and implement global solutions to accelerate the process of discovery and clinical development of new therapies for the treatment of deadly and debilitating diseases.
FasterCures, the Washington, DC-based center of the Milken Institute, is committed to breaking down the barriers that exist across the research continuum-from basic research to drug development- to clear the path to faster medical progress.
"For all the human and financial capital flowing through our medical research system, there remains a formidable list of diseases for which there are no cures or meaningful treatment options," said Margaret Anderson, chief operating officer. "No one can do this work alone. Expediting cures requires collaboration. FasterCures catalyzes systemic change through programs that bring together key forces in the fight against disease."
One such program is the Partnering for Cures conference, December 1-3 in New York.
"This first-of-its-kind event will unite the power of giving, the passion of medical research foundations and the expertise of the biopharmaceutical industry," Anderson said. "This meeting will feature some of the most forward-thinking leaders in medical research, a robust program agenda and broad networking opportunities."
Partnering for Cures is designed to forge strategic cross-sector relationships that will lead to collaborative efforts necessary for the commercialization of new therapies. Visit www.partneringforcures.org to view the latest program and register to participate.
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:
- To facilitate the national conversation on the intertwined topics of health, research and the economy, Research!America and our partners have invited all members of the 111th Congress to participate in Your Congress-Your Health.
- We led the effort, mobilized our leadership and grassroots, and boldly supported Sen. Arlen Specter's (D-PA) successful call for $10 billion for NIH in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. After five years of flat funding, ARRA funds being disbursed across the nation are a vital reinvestment in U.S. health-related research.
- We are committed to increasing funding for research that improves health, specifically raising the budget of the NIH to $40 billion as quickly as possible to ensure critical research capacity built up through ARRA-funded grants will continue.
- We lead the way in ensuring research is positioned as part of the solution to our nation's economic and health challenges.
- We work to keep research high on the agenda during the health care reform debate.
Download the entire November Research Advocate as a PDF.