Jessica L. O'Hara
The Alliance for Academic Medicine (AAIM) urges the medical and research community to contact their members of Congress to urge increased funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in fiscal year (FY) 2010. AAIM recommends at least a 7% increase for NIH in FY 2010 to help avoid the financial challenges NIH will face in FY 2011, with the end of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds. President Barack H. Obama’s FY 2010 budget requested $31 billion for NIH, a $443 million (1.5%) increase over the FY 2009 funding level.
Please contact your members of Congress and urge them to support a 7% increase NIH funding in FY 2010. Contact information for your representative and senators is available on the House and Senate websites. For your convenience, below is a form letter you may use when making your contacts. In addition, there are additional talking points you may chose to include in a personalized letter.
Dear Senator/Representative [last name]:
As [name, title, institution], I urge you to support the future of US scientific discovery by calling for a $2.1 billion increase over President Barack H. Obama’s FY 2010 budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
NIH serves as the driving force in this nation’s search for ever-greater understanding of the mechanisms of human health and disease. As the primary federal agency responsible for conducting and supporting medical research, NIH is the foundation of medical knowledge that fosters innovation and improves health and quality of life through new and better diagnostics, prevention strategies, and more effective treatments. NIH-funded research also contributes to the nation’s economic strength by creating skilled, high-paying jobs; new products and industries; and improved technologies.
While funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (AARA) will benefit research and discovery greatly, it is not enough to achieve sustained growth of the NIH budget and, in turn, scientific discovery. History has shown us that “boom and bust” cycles of support for research funding have resulted in lost opportunities for science and delayed hope for patients and their families. While President Obama has pledged to increase funding for science research, this recent increase in support for NIH should not be an isolated event. Rather, this increase is only the first step toward a renewed national commitment to sustained, predictable growth in NIH funding over the long term.
Thank you for your consideration of this request. Please contact me at [phone] or [email] with questions.
Sincerely,
[Name]
[Title]
[Institution]