RESEARCH
Group Urges More Medical Research Funds Report to Senate subcommittee sets NIH needs at $664 million for fiscal 1961 Federal support of medical research must increase drastically if the nation is to carry out a determined attack on major health problems, concludes the Committee of Consultants on Medical Research. In their report to a Senate appropriations subcommittee, the con sultants recommend expanding pro grams all along the line, paying par ticular attention to the National Insti tutes of Health-the chief instrument for disbursing federal funds for medi cal research. Some major points: • A total NIH budget for fiscal 1961
of S664 million—up $264 million over fiscal 1960-plus S4.9 million for in tramural planning and construction, S50 million for health research facili ties grants, and $60 million for build ing health educational facilities. • Doubling of appropriations for medical research in institutes and hos pitals of the armed forces. • Payment of indirect costs of pro grams supported by XIH grants. The committee prefers paying the full costs, determined by a cost analysis formula, but suggests alternatively 25', c of total direct costs.
Most of the committee's report deals with the National Institutes of Health and their many research programs. The organization and operating meth ods of NIH are "remarkably sound," the report says, and support through this channel "has played a major role in the revolutionary changes in medi cine of the past 15 years." Growth of NIH. The total annual NIH budget has risen from $52.1 to $400 million in the past decade, the committee points out. It is of "para mount importance," the report adds, that NIH programs get added support that will keep up with the rate of growth that is needed. Main difficulty of NIH today, the consultants feel, is personnel. Many top administrative and scientific posts are unfilled. Principal reasons: The salary structure is no longer competi tive with medical schools and industry; the manpower base of the Public Health Service is too small to provide enough people for NIH and other gov ernment health agencies. The committee recommends that salary ceilings be raised for top posi tions and that the number of such po sitions allotted to NIH be increased "substantially." Also, the committee feels, recruiting more top-level person nel from outside the Public Health Service would ease the problem.
Also Needed:
Assumptions Ι 1970 Medical 1 GNP I % Ι % I » I » B w e i ^ . Level Alternative Growth! Medical 1 1 3 I I Projections! Rate | R&D| Research | Fed. | NIH | Total | NIH |
^ Β C D Ε F
I 4.2 4.2 4.5 5.0 5.0 | 5.0
I 5 5 6 I 6 I 6 I 6
I I ! I
4 4 5 6 7 8
j I I I I
50 70 70 70 70 70
I I I I I
80 80 80 80 80 80
j I I I I
$1500 $ 612 1500 857 2300 1310 2800 1593 3300 1868 3800 2123
SEVERAL ALTERNATIVES. This chart, from NIH's Office of Program Planning, shows spending for medical research through NIH for 1947-59 and several alternate projec tions for 1960-70. The different projections are based on different assumptions: growth rate of the economy, percentage of the gross national product devoted to research and development, the percentage of that amount allocated for medical research, and the share supported by the Federal Government and by NIH 48
C&EN
JUNE
13,
1960
More Space.
The
second greatest need of NIH, the re port says, is more office and laboratory space so that all units can return to the campus in Bethesda, Md. Many are now widely scattered around Greater Washington. Other recommended construction includes buildings for the National Institute of Neurological Dis eases and Blindness and the National Institute of Mental Health. The report points out that much equipment needed for physical biology is too costly to buy for a single investi gator or project. The committee pro poses that a physical biology building be constructed to house all such equip ment. It would then be available for all NIH personnel that need it. The committee also recommends that an international medical research facility be set up at the Bethesda campus to house working groups, con ference rooms, and equipment for simultaneous translations. Funds for planning and construction of additional units of NIH's projected animal farm are also needed. This 10-year project was approved by the last session of Congress.
Biggest Area:
Research Grants.
NIH's largest area of spending is the support program for outside researchtraining grants, research grants, and fellowships. In fiscal 1960 alone, the various institutes are spending more than $293 million for this (over $203 million for research grants alone). In addition, NIH estimates it has ap proved, but not yet paid, grants total ing $23 million for this period. While praising the reviewing system for NIH grants and the many scientists who serve in it, the committee believes that the rising number of projects to be considered requires more advisory groups and administrative staff. The report recommends these appropria tions for fiscal 1961 for support of out side projects; research grants, at least $300 million; training grants, S132 million (up $57 million from fiscal (1960); fellowship, $22.5 million (an increase of $7.9 million). As for research inside NIH, the com mittee feels that the program is now close to the largest size possible for effective operation. Further growth, it says, should be qualitative, rather than quantitative. Funds are needed to get and retain outstanding person nel, keep up with the rising costs of re search, and improve instrumentation and communication of research knowl edge. Projected needs for fiscal 1961 : $107 million, up $11.4 million from the current budget.
Praise for Clinical Center.
The
report pays special tribute to NIH's clinical center, "which has so beauti fully fulfilled original expectations." The concept of a center for a multidisciplined attack on major disease problems, it adds, has quickened prog ress toward understanding and treat ing many diseases. Success of the NIH center is re sponsible for another recommendation by the committee: setting up general and specialized clinical research cen ters in other parts of the country. The report urges that $55 million be ap propriated in fiscal 1961 to get the program rolling, sees the concept as a "truly great advance." The committee believes that by 1970 total support of medical research in this country will require $3 billion a year-more than $2 billion of this from the Federal Government. If the econ omy grows at the rate of 4 to 5% per year, it says, the U.S. may have a gross national product of $775 billion by 1970 and should be able to support a medical research program of this size.
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