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National Institutes of Health

Biomedical research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and performed at research universities helps assure U.S. leadership in the life sciences revolution of the 21st Century. Putting NIH on a sustained pathway to restore its purchasing power after a decade worth of loss to inflation and budget cuts is critical to sustaining the extraordinary progress in the improvement of human health of the past decades. Investment in NIH will continue to create jobs and strengthen the workforce, improve the lives—and quality of life—of millions of current and future patients, and help assure continuing U.S. economic and national security.

Sustained investment in biotechnology and genomics is crucial to the development of novel therapies for diseases, including: cancer, Alzheimer's, autism, and diabetes. The NIH also responds rapidly to public health emergencies and in support of biodefense, such as in the case of Ebola, Zika, and COVID-19.

 

AAU submitted a response to NIH urging the agency to maintain its 60/40 balance between foundational and clinical research, preserve scientific merit as the primary criterion for funding decisions, invest in interdisciplinary workforce development and research infrastructure, reduce administrative burdens, and ensure timely communication and transparent funding processes in its 2027-2031 strategic plan.
As with COVID-19 and other recent infectious disease outbreaks, research universities are once again on the front lines of helping the nation respond quickly and effectively. However, recent funding and personnel cuts implemented by the Trump administration have affected some ongoing studies of infectious diseases, including the hantavirus, as well as the nation’s overall ability to respond to outbreaks.
Reporting from The New York Times and The Washington Post confirms AAU’s recent analysis showing that the rate of competitive awards made by NIH has slowed down significantly this fiscal year.
AAU urges Congress to reject the proposed cuts to scientific agencies in the FY27 Presidential Budget Request.
A new AAU analysis of publicly available data from the National Institutes of Health shows a significant slowdown in the rate of competitive awards made by the agency so far this fiscal year.
AAU sent a comment letter to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in response to their Request for Information (RFI) on Draft Controlled-Access Data (CAD) policy and Proposed Revisions to NIH Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) policy.
As lawmakers consider measures related to securing federally funded research data and intellectual property, it is important to understand the current state of play for research security in the country to avoid new requirements that are duplicative, unnecessary, or counterproductive
The Association of American Universities (AAU) urges Congress to maintain strong bicameral, bipartisan support for the NIH. AAU recommends at least $51.3 billion in NIH funding for FY27.
AAU responds to a White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Request for Information (RFI) on “Accelerating the American Scientific Enterprise.” AAU urges the administration to expand university–industry partnerships, reject an “innovation tax” on university licensing royalties, reduce regulatory burdens, sustain high-risk/high-reward and AI-enabled science investments, and harmonize research security and merit-based grantmaking policies.​