A New Year, a New Congress—What This Means for the Biomedical Research Community

A session of Congress always brings changes and new experiences. In Washington, we are gearing up to face a new, more fiscally conservative Congress. Many of the newly elected Republicans were elected by campaigning for smaller government small and lower federal spending.

The new Republican majority in the House is reinvigorated and ready to make a real impact on the way Washington operates. One proposal being discussed is to cut the budgets of federal agencies to 2008 levels. If this were enacted, the appropriation for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would be 6.4% lower than FY2010 final levels and the National Science Foundation (NSF) budget would be 13% lower.

These cuts could devastate the research community. Since the end of the doubling of the NIH budget in 2003, funding for biomedical research has been erratic—resulting in a real decline in the amount of funding that is available to support medical breakthroughs and a new generation of scientists.

The research community has a strong supporter in the White House. In a press conference on November 3, the day after the election, President Barack Obama said he was opposed to cuts in research and development. This is a sign that the White House is likely to oppose such draconian actions by Republicans. "I don't think we should be cutting back on research and development, because if we can develop new technologies in areas like clean energy, that could make all the difference in terms of job creation here at home," President Obama said.

We will be monitoring the new political climate and will let you know when action is required to protect the funding of the Federal agencies that fund research in biology and medicine. It would be helpful at any time to let your elected officials know that you and your colleagues depend on Federal funds to support life science research and jobs in your region.