February 13, 2018
The following statement can be attributed to UMR President Alex Currie:
“Medical research is a national priority and the Administration’s FY19 budget request for the NIH falls well short of that mark. Real increases to the NIH budget are needed to meet public health needs, seize the opportunities of biomedical research, and provide patients hope.
“The NIH isn’t just a research powerhouse, it’s an economic engine as well. NIH research funding helps the economy and creates jobs in every state. According to an analysis released last week by UMR, in fiscal year 2017, NIH research funding directly and indirectly supported 402,816 jobs nationwide. Moreover, the income generated by these jobs, as well as through the purchase of research-related equipment, services and materials, when cycled through the economy, produced $68.795 billion in new economic activity. According to the analysis, the median state has 4,014 jobs due to NIH research activity with 13 states having employment of 10,000 or more.
“Medical research and the NIH have a strong, bipartisan group of champions in Congress who know there is no better return on investment than research that improves health and saves lives. UMR stands ready to work with Congress to ensure the NIH budget continues to grow through steady, sustained and predictable funding.”
More on UMR’s recent report here.
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United for Medical Research is a coalition of leading scientific research institutions and industries, and patient and health advocates that have joined together to seek steady increases in funding for the National Institutes of Health. Learn more at www.unitedformedialresearch.com. For examples of the amazing things that NIH research is making possible, visit www.amazingthingspodcast.com.