WASHINGTON—January 28, 2010—Research!America's board chair, former Illinois Congressman John Edward Porter, and president, Mary Woolley, urge President Obama to make research a priority in his upcoming FY 2011 budget proposal.
Porter said, "The President has a chance to show the American people that investing in health and medical research is one of his strategies for creating jobs now for Americans, as well as for finding life-saving treatments for diseases that currently have none. Investing in research today gives us a stronger economic future for our children and grandchildren-and is the only way we will continue our leadership in science and innovation."
He added, "Local and state economies throughout the U.S. are still feeling a deep impact from the economic recession. Federal research funding creates jobs at universities, small businesses and research institutes that stimulate local economies. Investing in health and medical research must be a priority in 2011, so we don't lose the new capacity and momentum gained from stimulus dollars that went to research."
Research!America President Woolley said, "To ensure our federal research agencies are working at full capacity to fight disease, save lives, and maintain U.S. leadership in innovation and the global economy, Research!America strongly recommends $35.0 billion for the National Institutes of Health and $8.8 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in FY 2011. Likewise, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Science Foundation need strong increases to fulfill their important missions."
She continued, "The NIH supports desirable research jobs in all 50 states, and 17 of the 30 fastest-growing occupations in the U.S. today are related to medical research or health care. These numbers point to the strong employment gained through our investment in health and medical research."
Research!America is the nation's largest not-for-profit public education and advocacy alliance working to make research to improve health a higher national priority. Founded in 1989, Research!America is supported by member organizations representing 125 million Americans. Visit www.researchamerica.org.
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