The 51Ƶ Director / en Wed, 07 May 25 14:23:54 -0400 51Ƶ Director Statements /nih-director-statements <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">51Ƶ Director Statements</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardsonm</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-05-07T14:23:54-04:00" title="Wednesday, May 7, 2025 - 14:23" class="datetime">Wed, 05/07/2025 - 14:23</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><ul> <li><a href="/about-nih/who-we-are/nih-director/statements">All</a></li> <li><a href="/about-nih/who-we-are/nih-director/statements?2025">2025</a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--view paragraph--view-mode--default"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="field field--name-field-view field--type-viewfield field--label-hidden"> <div class="field__item field__item-label-hidden"> <div class="views-element-container"><div class="js-view-dom-id-f8d09c890b4b4ec9c79c34c20c42874af2e1c577ddeea376521a795612c64f0e"> <div> <ul class="teaser-list"> <li class="teaser teaser--borderless teaser--3col teaser--sans-serif-heading"><a class="teaser__container teaser__container--clickable link--no-tag" typeof="schema:WebPage" href="/nih-researchers-conclude-taurine-unlikely-be-good-aging-biomarker"> <div class="teaser__header"> <h3 class="teaser__heading">51Ƶ researchers conclude that taurine is unlikely to be a good aging biomarker</h3> </div> <div class="teaser__media"> <div class="teaser__img"> <div class="field field--name-field-thumbnail field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"><article class="media media--type-image media--view-mode-teaser"> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/happy-seniors-yoga-crop_0.jpg?itok=G6CMSzP9 1x" width="900" height="auto" src="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/happy-seniors-yoga-crop_0.jpg?itok=G6CMSzP9" alt="Group of happy seniors holding yoga mats"/> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> <div class="teaser__body">June 5, 2025 — Findings show this amino acid did not longitudinally decline with age</div> </a> </li> <li class="teaser teaser--borderless teaser--3col teaser--sans-serif-heading"><a class="teaser__container teaser__container--clickable link--no-tag" typeof="schema:WebPage" href="/nih-researchers-identify-brain-circuits-responsible-visual-acuity"> <div class="teaser__header"> <h3 class="teaser__heading">51Ƶ researchers identify brain circuits responsible for visual acuity </h3> </div> <div class="teaser__media"> <div class="teaser__img"> <div class="field field--name-field-thumbnail field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"><article class="media media--type-image media--view-mode-teaser"> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/20250604-eye.jpg?itok=B8ODTrq4 1x" width="900" height="auto" src="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/20250604-eye.jpg?itok=B8ODTrq4" alt="Illustration shows how visual processing moves from outside stimuli through the eye and to the brain."/> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> <div class="teaser__body">June 4, 2025 — Studies demonstrate the effect of retinal injury on visual processing pathways, providing insights for the development of vision restoration therapies.</div> </a> </li> <li class="teaser teaser--borderless teaser--3col teaser--sans-serif-heading"><a class="teaser__container teaser__container--clickable link--no-tag" typeof="schema:WebPage" href="/news-events/news-releases/scientists-identify-diagnostic-aid-determine-risk-diabetic-foot-ulcer-recurrence"> <div class="teaser__header"> <h3 class="teaser__heading">Scientists identify diagnostic aid to determine risk of diabetic foot ulcer recurrence</h3> </div> <div class="teaser__media"> <div class="teaser__img"> <div class="field field--name-field-thumbnail field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"><article class="media media--type-image media--view-mode-teaser"> <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/20250530-ulcer.jpg?itok=JH7iAb2D 1x" width="900" height="auto" src="/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_900x527/public/2025-06/20250530-ulcer.jpg?itok=JH7iAb2D" alt="Diabetic Foot Pain and Ulcers. Skin Sores on Foot. Illustration about Diabetes Symptoms. "/> </div> </article> </div> </div> </div> <div class="teaser__body">May 30, 2025 — 51Ƶ-funded project shows that trans-epidermal water loss could indicate if wounds are fully healed.</div> </a> </li> </ul> </div> <footer> <p class="margin-top-0 margin-bottom-6 position-relative top-neg-1"><a class="usa-button usa-button--outline" href="/news-events/news-releases">All news releases »</a></p> </footer> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 07 May 2025 18:23:54 +0000 richardsonm 18796 at Accelerating Access to Research Results: New Implementation Date for the 2024 51Ƶ Public Access Policy /accelerating-access-research-results-new-implementation-date-2024-nih-public-access-policy <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Accelerating Access to Research Results: New Implementation Date for the 2024 51Ƶ Public Access Policy</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>hillerjm</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-05-05T11:34:38-04:00" title="Monday, May 5, 2025 - 11:34" class="datetime">Mon, 05/05/2025 - 11:34</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>I am excited to announce that one of my first actions as 51Ƶ Director is pushing the accelerator on policies to make 51Ƶ research findings freely and quickly available to the public. The 2024 Public Access Policy, originally slated to go into effect on December 31, 2025, <a href="https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-25-101.html">will now be effective as of July 1, 2025</a>.</p> <p>To be clear, maximum transparency regarding the research we support is our default position. Since the release of 51Ƶ’s 2008 Public Access Policy, more than 1.5 million articles reporting on 51Ƶ-supported research have been made freely available to the public through PubMed Central. While the 2008 Policy allowed for an up to 12-month delay before such articles were required to be made publicly available, in 2024, 51Ƶ revised the Public Access Policy to remove the embargo period so that researchers, students, and members of the public have rapid access to these findings.</p> <p>51Ƶ is the crown jewel of the American biomedical research system.  However, a recent <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2024/11/14/public-trust-in-scientists-and-views-on-their-role-in-policymaking/">Pew Research Center study</a> shows that only about 25% of Americans have a “great deal of confidence” that scientists are working for the public good.  Earlier implementation of the Public Access Policy will help increase public confidence in the research we fund while also ensuring that the investments made by taxpayers produce replicable, reproducible, and generalizable results that benefit all Americans.   </p> <p>Providing speedy public access to 51Ƶ-funded results is just one of the ways we are working to earn back the trust of the American people. Trust in science is an essential element in Making America Healthy Again.  As such, 51Ƶ and its research partners will continue to promote maximum transparency in all that we do.    </p> <p>Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D.<br> Director, National Institutes of Health</p> <p> </p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-publish-date"> <div class="field field--name-field-publish-date field--type-datetime field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Publish date</div> <div class="field__item"><time datetime="2025-04-30T12:00:00Z" class="datetime">Wed, 04/30/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Mon, 05 May 2025 15:34:38 +0000 hillerjm 18751 at 51Ƶ Reviews Policies to Promote Academic Freedom /nih-reviews-policies-promote-academic-freedom <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">51Ƶ Reviews Policies to Promote Academic Freedom</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>hillerjm</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-05-05T11:29:15-04:00" title="Monday, May 5, 2025 - 11:29" class="datetime">Mon, 05/05/2025 - 11:29</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>One of my key priorities as 51Ƶ Director is to foster a culture in which scientists are incentivized to engage in open, academic discourse in pursuit of 51Ƶ’s mission to seek fundamental knowledge and improve the health of all Americans. Open debate is the cornerstone of scientific progress as interrogating evidence and challenging the status quo are essential for ensuring scientific rigor and meaningful results.</p> <p>Starting today, 51Ƶ will undertake a comprehensive review of all policies and practices within its Intramural Research Program (IRP) to establish academic freedom as the rule and not the exception. With principles of academic freedom in place, 51Ƶ scientists can be certain they are afforded the ability to engage in open, academic discourse as part of their official duties and in their personal capacities without risk of official interference, professional disadvantage or workplace retaliation.</p> <p>51Ƶ policies have always supported the public dissemination of research. However, academic freedom matters most in the edge cases where scientists are pursuing evidence that others find inconvenient or objectionable. By prioritizing academic freedom across the agency, we can work to restore public trust in 51Ƶ’s ability to carry out its mission.</p> <p><strong>Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D.</strong><br> Director, National Institutes of Health</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-meta-tags"> </div> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-publish-date"> <div class="field field--name-field-publish-date field--type-datetime field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Publish date</div> <div class="field__item"><time datetime="2025-04-24T12:00:00Z" class="datetime">Thu, 04/24/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Mon, 05 May 2025 15:29:15 +0000 hillerjm 18746 at Previous 51Ƶ Directors /about-nih/nih-director/previous-nih-directors <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Previous 51Ƶ Directors</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardsonm</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-04-07T09:34:09-04:00" title="Monday, April 7, 2025 - 09:34" class="datetime">Mon, 04/07/2025 - 09:34</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/leadership/nih-directors/matthew-j-memoli-md-ms">Matthew J. Memoli</a><br> Acting Director, January 21, 2025 — March 31, 2025</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/monica-m-bertagnolli-md">Monica M. Bertagnolli, M.D.</a><br> Director, November 9, 2023 – January 17, 2025</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/lawrence-tabak-dds-phd">Lawrence A. Tabak</a><br> Acting Director, December 20, 2021 – November 8, 2023</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/francis-s-collins-md-phd">Francis S. Collins</a><br> Director, August 17, 2009 – December 19, 2021</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/raynard-s-kington-md">Raynard S. Kington</a><br> Acting Director, October 31, 2008 – August 16, 2009</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/elias-zerhouni-md">Elias A. Zerhouni</a><br> Director, May 2, 2002 – October 31, 2008</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/ruth-kirschstein-md">Ruth L. Kirschstein</a><br> Acting Director, January 1, 2000 – May 2, 2002</p> <p><a href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/harold-e-varmus-md">Harold E. Varmus</a><br> Director, November 23, 1993 – December 31, 1999</p> <p><a class="usa-button" href="/about-nih/nih-almanac/nih-directors">More Previous 51Ƶ Directors</a></p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Mon, 07 Apr 2025 13:34:09 +0000 richardsonm 18146 at Reports /about-nih/nih-director/advisory-groups/scientific-management-review-board/reports <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Reports</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardb</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T15:26:58-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 15:26" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 15:26</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The below documents are currently being made 508 compliant and will be available shortly. If you need an accessible version, please email <a href="mailto:michaela.mueller@luminacorps.com">michaela.mueller@luminacorps.com</a>. </p> <ul> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201011-report-deliberating-organizational-change-effectiveness-colorcorex.pdf">Report on Deliberating Organizational Change and Effectiveness </a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201011-report-substance-use-abuse-addiction-colorcorex.pdf">Report on Substance Use, Abuse, and Addiction Research at 51Ƶ </a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201012-report-clinical-center-smrb-508.pdf">Report on the 51Ƶ Clinical Center</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201012-report-translational-medicine-therapeutics-508.pdf">Report on Translational Medicine and Therapeutics</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201308-report-optimizing-small-business-innovation-research-small-business-technology-transfer-programs-508.pdf">Report on Optimizing the 51Ƶ Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Programs</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201303-report-approaches-assess-value-biomedical-research-footer-wg-508.pdf">The Scientific Management Review Board has issued a new report on the Approaches to Assess the Value of Biomedical Research</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201501-report-on-pre-college-engagement-in-biomedical-science.pdf">Report on Pre-College Engagement in Biomedical Science</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/201507-report-on-streamlining-the-nih-grant-review-award-and-management-process.pdf">Report on Streamlining the 51Ƶ Grant Review, Award, and Management Process</a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 20:26:58 +0000 richardb 15286 at Contact Information /about-nih/nih-director/advisory-groups/scientific-management-review-board/contact-information <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Contact Information</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardb</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T15:24:50-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 15:24" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 15:24</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Immediate Office of the Director<br> National Institutes of Health<br> One Center Drive<br> Bethesda, Maryland 20892-0147<br> Phone: 301-496-2433<br> E-mail: <a href="mailto:odsmrb@od.nih.gov">odsmrb@od.nih.gov</a></p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 20:24:50 +0000 richardb 15281 at Meetings /about-nih/nih-director/advisory-groups/scientific-management-review-board/meetings <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Meetings</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardb</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T14:51:07-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 14:51" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 14:51</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><h2>Upcoming Meetings</h2> <p>There are currently no meetings.</p> <h2>Past Meetings</h2> <h3>January 10, 2025</h3> <ul> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20250110-agenda.pdf">Agenda</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/12/17/2024-29701/office-of-the-director-notice-of-meeting">Federal Register Notice</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20250110-Next-Steps-SMRB-Presentation-rev.pdf">SMRB Next Steps</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20250110-prior-report-presentation.pdf">Review of Prior SMRB Report on Deliberating Organizational Change and Effectiveness</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20250110-recommendations-accomplishments-presentation.pdf">Review of Major Prior SMRB Recommendations and Accomplishments</a></li> </ul> <h3>November 12, 2024</h3> <ul> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/2021112-smrb-public-agenda.pdf">Agenda</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/10/18/2024-24125/office-of-the-director-notice-of-meeting" target="_blank">Federal Register Notice</a></li> <li><a href="https://videocast.nih.gov/watch=55357">Meeting Recording</a></li> </ul> <p>Presentations</p> <ul> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-overview-charge.pdf">Overview of 51Ƶ and SMRB Charge</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-smrb-overview.pdf">SMRB Overview</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-smrb-budget-overview.pdf">Budget Overview</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-history.pdf">SMRB History</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-organizational-change-report.pdf">Review Previous SMRB Report on Deliberating Organizational Change and Effectiveness</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-current-legislative-proposals-SMRB.pdf">Current Legislative Proposals for 51Ƶ Optimization</a></li> <li><a href="/sites/default/files/2025-03/20241112-chair-closing-remarks.pdf">Closing Remarks</a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 19:51:07 +0000 richardb 15276 at Members /about-nih/nih-director/advisory-groups/scientific-management-review-board/members <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Members</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardb</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T14:41:55-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 14:41" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 14:41</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><h3>Chair</h3> <p>Andrea Hayes Dixon, M.D. <em>(06/30/2026)</em><br> Dean of the College of Medicine<br> Howard University, Washington, D.C.</p> <h3>Members</h3> <ul class="list--multicol list--multicol-2 usa-list--unstyled"> <li>Gilda A. Barabino, Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> President and Professor<br> Olin College of Engineering, Needham, Massachusetts</li> <li> <p>Allison Brashear, M.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Vice President for Health Sciences and Dean of the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences<br> University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York</p> </li> <li> <p>Lisa A. Cassis, Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2027)</em><br> Vice President for Research<br> University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky</p> </li> <li> <p>Michael F. Chiang, M.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Eye Institute<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Lindsey A. Criswell, M.D., D.Sc. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Eric D. Green, M.D., Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Human Genome Research Institute<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Mark Herzberg, D.D.S., Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2028)</em><br> Professor, Department of Diagnostic and Biological Sciences, School of Dentistry<br> University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota</p> </li> <li> <p>James E. Hildreth, Ph.D., M.D. <em>(06/30/2026)</em><br> President and CEO<br> Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tennessee</p> </li> <li> <p>Jon R. Lorsch, Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute of General Medical Sciences<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Jeanne M. Marrazzo, M.D., M.P.H. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Griffin P. Rodgers, M.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Joni L. Rutter, Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em> <br> Director, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Elba E. Serrano, Ph.D. <em>(06/30/2028)</em><br> Regent’s Professor of Biology<br> New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico</p> </li> <li> <p>Debara L. Tucci, M.D., M.S., M.B.A. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Nora D. Volkow, M.D. <em>(06/30/2029)</em><br> Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p> </li> <li> <p>Joshua Wynne, M.D., M.B.A., M.P.H. <em>(06/30/2027)</em><br> Dean and Vice President for Health Affairs, School of Medicine and Health Sciences<br> University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, North Dakota</p> </li> </ul> <p class="small-text"><em>Date in parenthesis indicates term end date. </em></p> <h3>Designated Federal Official</h3> <p>Matthew J. Memoli, M.D., M.S.<br> Acting 51Ƶ Director<br> National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 19:41:55 +0000 richardb 15271 at Charter /about-nih/nih-director/advisory-groups/scientific-management-review-board/charter <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Charter</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardb</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T14:36:15-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 14:36" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 14:36</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><h2>Scientific Management Review Board</h2> <h3>Authority</h3> <p>Required by 42 U.S.C. 281(e), section 401(e) of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act, as amended. The Scientific Management Review Board (Board) is governed by the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1014).</p> <h3>Objectives and Scope of Activities</h3> <p>The purpose of the Board is to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary), the Director, National Institutes of Health (51Ƶ), and other appropriate agency officials on the use of the organizational authorities set forth in 42 U.S.C. 281(d)(2)-(4), section 401(d)(2)-(4) of the PHS Act, as amended, which include: (1) establishing, reorganizing, or abolishing national research institutes; (2) reorganizing the offices within the Office of the Director, 51Ƶ, including adding, removing, or transferring the functions of such offices or establishing or terminating such offices; and (3) reorganizing divisions, centers, or other administrative units within an 51Ƶ national research institute or national center, including adding, removing, or transferring the functions of such units, or establishing or terminating such units.</p> <h3>Description of Duties</h3> <p>The Board’s advice will be conveyed through reports to the Director, 51Ƶ. Specifically, not less than once each seven years, the Board will: (1) determine whether and to what extent the organizational authorities should be used; and (2) issue a report providing the recommendations of the Board regarding the use of the authorities and the reasons underlying the recommendations.</p> <p>The activities of the Board with respect to a report will include the following, but only with respect to a specific contemplated organizational issue to be addressed in the report: (1) Review the research portfolio of the 51Ƶ to determine the progress and effectiveness and value of the portfolio and the allocation among the portfolio activities of the resources of 51Ƶ; (2) Determine the pending scientific opportunities and public health needs, with respect to research within the jurisdiction of 51Ƶ; (3) For any proposal for organizational changes to which the Board gives significant consideration as a possible recommendation in such report, the Board will: (a) analyze the budgetary and operational consequences of the proposed change(s); (b) take into account historical funding and support for research activities at national research institutes and centers that have been established recently relative to national research institutes and centers that have been in existence for more than two decades; (c) estimate the level of resources needed to implement the proposed changes; (d) assume the proposed changes will be made and make a recommendation for the allocation of the resources of 51Ƶ among the national research institutes and national centers; and (e) analyze the consequences for the progress of research in the areas affected by the proposed changes.</p> <p>When issuing a report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues, the Board will consult with: (1) the heads of national research institutes and national centers whose directors are not members of the Board; (2) other scientific leaders who are officers or employees of 51Ƶ and are not members of the Board; (3) advisory councils of the national institutes and national centers; (4) organizations representing the scientific community; and (5) organizations representing patients.</p> <h3>Agency or Official to Whom the Committee Reports</h3> <p>The Board will advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary, the Director, 51Ƶ, and other appropriate agency officials, through reports to the Director, 51Ƶ, regarding the use of organizational authorities set forth in 42 U.S.C. 281(d)(2)-(4), section 401(d)(2)-(4) of the PHS Act.</p> <h3>Support</h3> <p>Management and support services will be provided by the Office of the Director, 51Ƶ.</p> <h3>Estimated Annual Operating Costs and Staff Years</h3> <p>The estimated annual cost for operating the Board, including compensation and travel expenses for members, but excluding staff support, is $336,136. The estimate of annual person-years of staff support required is 1.0, at an estimated annual cost of $349,490.</p> <h3>Designated Federal Officer</h3> <p>The Director, 51Ƶ, will assign a full-time or permanent part-time 51Ƶ employee as the Designated Federal Officer (DFO) of the Board. In the event that the DFO cannot fulfill the assigned duties of the Board, one or more full-time or permanent part-time 51Ƶ employees will be assigned as DFO and carry out these duties on a temporary basis.</p> <p>The DFO will approve all of the Board’s and subcommittees’ meetings, prepare and approve all meeting agendas, attend all Board and subcommittee meetings, adjourn any meeting when it is determined to be in the public interest, and chair meetings when directed to do so by the official to whom the committee reports.</p> <h3>Estimated Number and Frequency of Meetings</h3> <p>The Board will meet at the call of the Chair (with DFO’s approval) or upon request of the Director, 51Ƶ, not fewer than five times with respect to issuing any particular report. The location of the meetings of the Board will be subject to the approval of the Director, 51Ƶ.</p> <p>Meetings will be open to the public except as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary) at the request of the DFO in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552b(c) and 41 C.F.R. 102-3.155 including specifying the specific exception(s) that justifies closure. Notice of all meetings will be given to the public. In the event a portion of a meeting is closed to the public, as determined by the Secretary in accordance with the Government in the Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. 552b(c)) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act, an annual report of closed or partially-closed meetings will be prepared which will contain, at a minimum, a list of members and their business addresses, the Committee’s functions, dates and places of meetings, and a summary of the Committee’s activities and recommendations made during the fiscal year.</p> <p>Of the meetings held with respect to issuing a report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues, (1) one or more meetings will be directed toward the scientific community to address scientific needs and opportunities related to proposals for organizational changes under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401(d) of the PHS Act, as amended, or as the case may be, related to a proposal that no such changes be made; and (2) one or more meetings will be directed toward consumer organizations to address the needs and opportunities of patients and their families with respect to proposals referred to in clause (1).</p> <h3>Duration</h3> <p>Continuing.</p> <h3>Termination</h3> <p>Unless renewed by appropriate action, prior to its expiration, the charter for the Scientific Management Review Board will expire two years from the date the charter is filed.</p> <h3>Membership and Designation</h3> <p>The Board shall consist of the Director, 51Ƶ, who will be a permanent nonvoting ex officio member, and an odd number of voting members, not to exceed 21, who are selected by the Secretary. The voting members of the Board will include not fewer than 9 officials who are directors of 51Ƶ national research institutes or national centers, who will serve as voting ex officio members. The Secretary will ensure that the group of institute and center officials includes directors of:</p> <ul> <li>national research institutes whose budgets are substantial relative to a majority of the other institutes;</li> <li>national research institutes whose budgets are small relative to a majority of the other institutes;</li> <li>national research institutes that have been in existence for a substantial period of time without significant organizational change under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401</li> <li>(d) of the PHS Act, as amended;</li> <li>as applicable, national research institutes that have undergone significant organizational changes under 42 U.S.C. 281(d), section 401(d) of the PHS Act, as amended, or that have been established under such subsection, other than national research institutes for which such changes have been in place for a substantial period of time; and</li> <li>national centers.</li> </ul> <p>The Secretary will appoint members from among individuals who are not officers or employees of the United States (appointed members). Such members will include: (1) individuals representing the interests of public or private institutions of higher education that have historically received funds from 51Ƶ to conduct research; and (2) individuals representing the interests of private entities that have received funds from 51Ƶ to conduct research or that have broad expertise regarding how the 51Ƶ functions, exclusive of private entities under (1). Appointed members must be eligible to serve as Special Government Employees (SGEs) and will serve as SGEs, as defined by 18 U.S.C. § 202.</p> <p>Appointed members will be invited to serve for five-year terms, except that any member appointed to fill a vacancy for an unexpired term will be appointed for the remainder of that term, and the Secretary shall make appointments in such a manner as to ensure that the terms of the appointed members do not all expire in the same year. An appointed member may serve 180 days after the expiration of that member’s term if a successor has not taken office. A member who has been appointed for a term of five years may not be reappointed to this Board before two years from the date of expiration of that member’s term of office. The Chair of the Board will be selected by the Secretary from among the appointed members and invited to serve as Chair for two years.</p> <p>A quorum for the conduct of business by the full Board will consist of a majority of the current voting members.</p> <h3>Subcommittees</h3> <p>As necessary, subcommittees and ad hoc working groups may be established by the DFO within the Board’s jurisdiction. The advice/recommendations of a subcommittee/working group must be deliberated by the parent advisory committee. A subcommittee/working group may not report directly to a Federal official unless there is statutory authority to do so.</p> <p>Subcommittee membership may be drawn in whole or in part from the parent advisory committee. All subcommittee members may vote on subcommittee actions and all subcommittee members count towards the quorum for a subcommittee meeting. Ad hoc consultants are not members, do not count towards the quorum, and may not vote. A quorum for a subcommittee will be three members. The Department Committee Management Officer will be notified upon establishment of each standing subcommittee and will be provided information on its name, membership, function, and estimated frequency of meetings.</p> <h3>Recordkeeping</h3> <p>Meetings of the Board and its subcommittees will be conducted according to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, and other applicable laws and Departmental policies. Committee and subcommittee records will be handled in accordance with General Records Schedule 6.2, Federal Advisory Committee Records, or other approved agency records disposition schedule. These records will be available for public inspection and copying, subject to any applicable exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552(b) and 41 C.F.R. 102-3.170.</p> <p>Each report on one or more specific contemplated organizational issues issued by the Board will be submitted by the Director, 51Ƶ to: (1) the House Committee on Energy and Commerce; (2) the House Committee on Appropriations; (3) the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; (4) the Senate Committee on Appropriations; (5) the Secretary; and (6) officials with organizational authorities, other than any such official who served as a member of the Board with respect to the report involved. For each meeting with respect to a report, the Director of 51Ƶ shall post a summary of the proceedings on 51Ƶ’s website.</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 19:36:15 +0000 richardb 15266 at Testimony on the Fiscal Year 2005 Budget Request before the Senate Committee /about-nih/nih-director/fiscal-year-2005-directors-senate-budget-request-statement <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Testimony on the Fiscal Year 2005 Budget Request before the Senate Committee</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>richardsonm</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2025-03-05T14:34:43-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 5, 2025 - 14:34" class="datetime">Wed, 03/05/2025 - 14:34</time> </span> <div class="layout layout--onecol"> <div class="layout__region layout__region--content"> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-component"> <div class="field field--name-field-component field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="paragraph paragraph--type--uswds-text paragraph--view-mode--default usa-section usa-content"> <div class="grid-col-fill"> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-uswds-body field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p><strong>Witness appearing before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, HHS, Education, and Related Agencies</strong></p> <p><strong>Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D.<br> Director, National Institutes of Health</strong></p> <p>Good morning, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee. Let me begin by expressing my deepest appreciation to the Congress, Secretary Thompson, President Bush, and the American people for their generous and bipartisan support of the 51Ƶ's efforts to help improve the health of all our citizens. I respect the extraordinary effort of this committee and, Mr. Chairman, your leadership as well. I thank you for it.</p> <p>The year 2004 marks a sea change for the 51Ƶ and its Roadmap for Medical Research. We are refining our basic and clinical research programs to ensure that new discoveries rapidly lead to new and improved diagnostics, treatments and prevention strategies that extend the length and improve the quality of human life.</p> <p>In my testimony today, I want to cover four areas: first, highlight several key research advances that took place in the last year which represent the critical contributions of 51Ƶ intramural researchers and grantees; second, give examples of how the 51Ƶ Roadmap effort will help shape our approach to patient-oriented research; third, offer examples of our stewardship; and fourth, present an overview of our budget. In the course of my testimony, I will mention emerging priorities and our plans for responding to the health challenges ahead.</p> <h2>Breakthroughs & Advances</h2> <p>Each year, the public investment in research yields critical scientific advances. The four I highlight here are just a sample of the many that represent the development of new and improved treatments, diagnostics, or prevention strategies that will affect the health of the entire nation.</p> <p>Few viruses are feared more than the Ebola, a deadly microbe that causes outbreaks in Africa and Asia and kills up to 90 percent of those it infects. Scientists at the 51Ƶ National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Vaccine Research Center developed a single dose, fast-acting, experimental Ebola vaccine that successfully protects monkeys after just one month, and human trials are now under way.</p> <p>This year 51Ƶ research further elucidated the role of widely used hormone replacement therapies. The 51Ƶ halted the estrogen alone study of the Women's Health Initiative on March 1, 2004 after 5.6 years of follow-up, due to increased risk of stroke. You will recall that 51Ƶ, in 2002, stopped the combination hormone trial arm of the Women's Health Initiative early due to an increased risk of invasive breast cancer, coronary heart disease, stroke, and pulmonary embolism in study participants on estrogen plus progestin compared to women taking placebo. It indicated that healthy postmenopausal women taking combination hormone therapy also suffered twice the rate of dementia as those taking a placebo. Together, the results of these clinical studies changed conventional dogma, and provided important new evidenced-based information to women who are deciding whether to begin or how long to continue menopausal hormone therapy. These trials clearly are having a major impact on the health of people we know and love — our wives, our sisters, our daughters and our mothers.</p> <p>The third advance was the discovery of genes associated with schizophrenia, which is a profoundly disabling disorder that affects one percent of the adult population. It is marked by hallucinations, delusions, social withdrawal, flattened emotions, and loss of social and personal care skills.</p> <p>Research like this on the genetics of mental illness was named the Number 2 scientific "breakthrough of the year" for 2003 by the prestigious peer-reviewed journal, Science. Most of this work was funded by 51Ƶ and included discoveries of candidate genes for schizophrenia, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorders. These discoveries bring us closer to developing new diagnostic tests, strategies for prevention, and targets for the treatment of schizophrenia and other mental disorders.</p> <p>The fourth advance came only three weeks ago, when 51Ƶ announced a major new discovery, the identification of a common variation of a pancreatic "master switch" gene that increases the risk of type 2 diabetes by 30%. Type 2 diabetes now affects 17 million people in the U.S., and is responsible for enormous health care costs. This gene discovery opens the door to the development of new and more effective methods of prevention and treatment.</p> <h2>51Ƶ Roadmap</h2> <p>Let me now turn your attention to the 51Ƶ Roadmap for Medical Research. I want to tell you why the Roadmap is so important to the future of medical research and to innovations in improving people's health. I also want to give you some examples of how we at 51Ƶ expect the Roadmap to change the way we do research and the practice of medicine.</p> <p>One of the questions we face is how do we successfully do our part in the battle to contain health costs? We need to address the following issues: What are the roadblocks? What are the major challenges? How can we most effectively invest the funds that the American taxpayers entrust to us to fashion the fastest track to discovery as well as translate those discoveries to the patient's bedside or the doctor's office?</p> <p>In seeking answers to these questions, one thing becomes clear. The traditional paradigm of medical care — when practitioners waited for the disease to cause the patient the loss of some function — must be replaced by a paradigm where health professionals act before the individual loses any function. This has become even more critical since chronic diseases now consume about 75% of our fast-growing health care expenditures.</p> <p>Let me present four examples of how the 51Ƶ Roadmap will transform our approach to biomedical research in specific disease areas.</p> <p>The first example is schizophrenia, a disorder that-as I mentioned earlier-affects one percent of the U.S. population. The peak onset occurs between the ages of 18 and 25. Schizophrenia has the hallmarks of both a neurodevelopmental and a neurodegenerative disease. But after 100 years of neuropathological study, we still lack knowledge of the precise cause of the disorder.</p> <p>Today, schizophrenia is the fifth leading cause of years lost due to disability among Americans from ages 15-44. Although we can treat the so-called "positive" symptoms, such as hallucinations and delusions, we do not yet have treatments for the "negative" symptoms, like withdrawal and cognitive deficits. And these are the largest source of disability.</p> <p>Less than 30 percent of people with this illness are currently employed. And people with schizophrenia represent one of the largest groups on atypical antipsychotics as the treatment of choice. In 2001, Medicaid paid for more than 50% of the total spending on atypical antipsychotics, amounting to $2.7 billion, a figure which has been growing at roughly 25% a year for the past 3 years.</p> <p>Today, we lack a diagnostic test or a strategy for preventing schizophrenia. This situation is similar to cardiovascular disease 30 years ago in that we see schizophrenic patients only after their first "heart attack," that is, episode, and we do not have the equivalent of cholesterol as an identifiable risk factor.</p> <p>However, what we have done recently — and what holds great promise for those who are suffering — is identify 12 genes associated with risk. Our challenge now is to move from the discovery of those genes — most of which have no known function — to understand the role these genes play in the onset and progression of this brain disease — and do something about it.</p> <p>Our hope is to use these genes to identify what is abnormal in the brains of schizophrenics, identify it early and thus provide the psychiatric equivalent of serum cholesterol. To accomplish this, we must study the protein products of these genes by using molecular tools that can make their function transparent.</p> <p>It is precisely here that the 51Ƶ Roadmap will help accelerate the effort to study protein products through so-called molecular libraries — databases of information on small molecule compounds like aspirin and antihistamines. These libraries will let researchers screen hundreds of thousands of small molecules to yield these tools.</p> <p>For example, we know that a variation in the neuregulin gene is associated with an increased risk for schizophrenia. To understand how this gene confers risk, we need to find chemicals that mimic or inhibit the gene's function. This would give us a precise description of how alterations in the gene change the activity of brain cells. Molecular libraries will not only yield the tools to study the neuregulin gene but also provide a test for vulnerability to schizophrenia. With such tools and tests, doctors could approach risk for schizophrenia the way we currently approach risk for heart disease.</p> <p>A second example where the 51Ƶ Roadmap offers promise is in pediatric diseases, through the creation of clinical research networks.</p> <p>Uncommon disorders like the juvenile forms of rheumatic diseases, such as arthritis, lupus and dermatomyositis, affect 300,000 children in the United States. Not one of these diseases is common enough to be studied intensively at any one academic health center. Thus, many such centers as well as community-based pediatricians are needed to collect a sufficient group of patients who can participate in these studies to gather meaningful results.</p> <p>The development of clinical research networks that focus on chronic childhood diseases — like those already established for childhood cancers — and the potential to include community physicians trained in clinical research methodology in the research process will enable clinical trials to be more efficient and effective.</p> <p>Using the 51Ƶ Roadmap clinical research networks concept, this could occur without building a new, and often very expensive, infrastructure for every new trial. Including community-based pediatricians as full partners in the research will allow us to overcome some of the limitations of patient recruitment that we currently experience and enable more children to participate in these trials, and accelerate the development of new treatments.</p> <p>The third example is Alzheimer's Disease (AD). We have made considerable progress in understanding Alzheimer's Disease. Fifteen years ago, we knew none of the genes that cause AD and we had only a limited understanding of the biological pathways involved in the development of brain pathology. Ten years ago, we could not model the disease in animals. Five years ago, we were not funding any prevention trials and had no way of identifying persons at high risk for the disease. And, as recently as one year ago, we had no way of imaging AD's characteristic amyloid plaques in a living person.</p> <p>Today, we can do all of these things. And we are poised to make the discoveries that will transform our understanding of the basic and clinical aspects of AD and enable us to effectively prevent, diagnose, and treat it using several 51Ƶ Roadmap initiatives.</p> <p>Through basic research in Alzheimer's disease, we identified a number of brain pathways that are potential targets for preventive interventions. These range from dysfunction and death of specific neurons to loss of the connections between neurons. Roadmap efforts to improve imaging of small molecules will let us visualize the effects of treatments more rapidly and accurately, which could make effective AD clinical trials smaller, faster and more affordable.</p> <p>My fourth and final example is cardiovascular disease. One of the greatest public health success stories of the last half century is the dramatic reductions in mortality from cardiovascular diseases. Studies initiated by the 51Ƶ-the Framingham Heart Study and the Lipid Research Clinics Coronary Primary Prevention Trial — have been key to that success. They helped not only to identify risk factors that contribute to the development of cardiovascular diseases, but also to demonstrate the efficacy of therapeutic interventions to control them.</p> <p>Even so, cardiovascular disease remains an enormous health burden, accounting for 38 percent of all deaths in the United States in 2001. Progress in reducing that burden will require continued efforts to refine our understanding of risk factors, such as obesity and high cholesterol, and to identify and evaluate new prevention approaches. This means that large scale population-based studies will remain a critical component of our research effort.</p> <p>The 51Ƶ Roadmap will help fashion the interactive network and involvement of many community-based practitioners. For example, we can make better use of large-scale organizations set up for single studies, such as the recently completed Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT). Instead of disbanding it, we can involve many or all of the investigators in other trials addressing not only cardiovascular disease but also other diseases. The National Electronic Clinical Trials and Research (NECTAR) initiative-a critical part of the Roadmap effort to re-engineer clinical research-will enable data sharing and enhance comparison and aggregation of results from multiple trials by using standard definitions of outcomes and adverse events. In the future, patients will know directly from their own community doctors, who will be equipped with the new web-based NECTAR, what medical research can do for them in terms of participation in studies, the best available therapies, and nearby advanced research centers.</p> <h2>Stewardship</h2> <p>We realize that to advance the 51Ƶ scientific agenda, our management and administration must be effective, efficient and productive. By introducing new information technology and business systems and streamlining governance structures, we are placing continuous improvement of management and administrative functions at the forefront of our agency priorities. Let me highlight a few of our efforts.</p> <p>51Ƶ is making rapid progress to modernize its business and financial systems. An agency-wide information technology system, known as the New Business System (NBS), is integrating such processes as acquisitions, travel, property, and financial management. This effort will reduce the cost and complexity of doing business, enhance the level of service, and improve management controls.</p> <p>51Ƶ is also improving its peer review system, which is recognized as the cornerstone of 51Ƶ's success. The 51Ƶ Center for Scientific Review (CSR), the focal point of the 51Ƶ peer review system, reviews about 70 percent of the grant applications submitted to 51Ƶ. In fiscal year 2003, CSR received a record-breaking 66,000 grant applications.</p> <p>CSR is in the final stages of crafting new and more flexible review panels organized into 24 scientifically-related clusters. 51Ƶ is also incorporating new technologies into the review process through the electronic Research Administration (eRA). The goal is to implement an end-to-end electronic grants administration for 51Ƶ research award mechanisms that could reduce the waiting period from submission of an application to a grant award by more than two months — from 9 to 10 months down to 7 months.</p> <p>Remarkably, because of improvements in productivity over the past ten years, 51Ƶ funding has grown 141%, while our FTEs have increased by only 16%.</p> <p>The 51Ƶ also realizes the need for a more efficient means of trans-51Ƶ coordination. To streamline decision making, we reduced the plethora of 51Ƶ administrative committees down to a trans-51Ƶ Steering Committee and 5 working groups. Additionally, as we discussed when I met with the subcommittee in January, all our conflict of interest policies and procedures are under review both to ensure that they meet the highest standards and, most importantly, to preserve the public's trust in the 51Ƶ. I will soon receive the report of a Blue Ribbon Panel I created to advise 51Ƶ on what changes they think we should make. I will inform you about their conclusions, and mine, once they complete their work next month.</p> <h2>Budget</h2> <p>The discretionary FY 2005 budget request for the 51Ƶ is $28,607 million ($28,527 million from this subcommittee and $80 million from the VA/HUD subcommittee), an increase of $729 million or 2.6 percent over the FY 2004 Enacted Level. In addition, $47.4 million is included in the budget authority request of the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund (PHSSEF), for 51Ƶ research in radiological/nuclear countermeasures, and $150 million in mandatory funds was previously appropriated for the Special Type 1 Diabetes Initiative, bringing 51Ƶ's program level total to $28,805 million, or a 2.7% increase. The budget increases funding for the 51Ƶ Roadmap (+$109 million), obesity research (+$40 million), which will thus grow by 10 percent from $400 million in 2004, and biodefense research (+$74 million), an increase of 4.5 percent over FY 2004.</p> <h2>Conclusion</h2> <p>In conclusion, I want to reemphasize the 51Ƶ commitment to help improve the health of the American people. Although we have had great success in changing acute lethal diseases like AIDS and many cancers and childhood diseases into chronic manageable diseases, there are many challenges ahead. Life expectancy has increased and the diseases of aging and the aging population have become major priorities.</p> <p>With a shift from acute to chronic diseases, health disparities and pediatric diseases also present challenges, as do emerging and re-emerging diseases, such as SARS. We are confident, as the committee has shown it is, that medical research will make a critical difference in the lives of all Americans.</p> <p>As the 51Ƶ director, I fully understand and embrace my role as the steward of our Nation's investment in medical discovery. And I remain vigilant to ensure that these precious resources-including over 212,000 scientists working at 2,800 institutions in the United States and overseas and the 5,000 scientists at the 51Ƶ itself-are used wisely and efficiently and produce not only new knowledge but also tangible benefits that touch the lives of every individual who reaches out for our help.</p> <p><em>William R. Beldon, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Budget, HHS</em></p> <p>Related Documents: 51Ƶ Statements for House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees, FY 2005 (<a href="/about-nih/who-we-are/nih-director/fiscal-year-2005-institutes-centers-senate-statements">Institute and Center Requests</a>)</p></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blocknodepagefield-publish-date"> <div class="field field--name-field-publish-date field--type-datetime field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Publish date</div> <div class="field__item"><time datetime="2004-03-31T12:00:00Z" class="datetime">Wed, 03/31/2004 - 12:00</time> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Wed, 05 Mar 2025 19:34:43 +0000 richardsonm 15261 at