Federal funding and supportive policies for research.

TODAY, THE UNITED STATES IS ONLY ONE DECADE REmoved from what was then a forecast of difficult meager times for the national investment in medical and scientific research. In 1995, the US House of Representatives budget resolution called for a cut in funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of 5% for fiscal year (FY) 1996 and a freeze on NIH funding through FY 2000. However, the NIH received an increase of almost 6% for FY 1996, followed by 7% increases in the following 2 years when the economy was not yet strong. Those years of increases were followed by the remarkable feat of doubling the NIH budget over 5 years—FYs 1999-2003. Bad news can be turned into good news, bad numbers into better, even pacesetting ones. Influencing the impact of current political and economic realities on the United States investment in research requires recognition of some somber realities. Now, the nation is engaged in a costly war; is attempting to protect itself from probable terrorist attacks; has an exploding population of senior citizens who, remarkably, given not-so-distant history, now live for decades with chronic diseases; and now has recordbreaking federal budget deficits. Although the priorities in competition for financial resources may be different today than in decades past, the United States has been and will always be a nation with competing priorities. Members of the US Congress and appropriators specifically are charged with establishing priorities for expenditure of the nation’s fiscal resources. The administration and Congress must be continually informed of the very high priority the public consistently assigns to investment in research. Success is achieved by those who fight for what they believe in and who are willing to work to translate beliefs into reality. The enormous promise of medical and scientific research—in both lifesaving and economic terms—will not be realized without the hard work and smart work of a unified constituency committed to advancing science and saving lives.