Executive Branch News
NIH Highlights FY 2016 Legislative Mandates in Effect for the Agency
Included in the fiscal year (FY) 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (P.L. 114-113) signed into law by President Obama on December 18, 2015 are a number of legislative mandates prohibiting the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from using appropriated FY 2016 funding to support certain research areas (see Update, December 18, 2015). A number of the mandates are a continuation of previous statutory limitations on the agency’s funding and include the areas of gun control, anti-lobbying, restrictions and exceptions to restrictions on abortion, pornography on computer networks, needle distribution, dissemination of false or misleading information, and human embryo research. For…
NSF Director Thanks Community for Support in FY 2016
In her most recent newsletter, National Science Foundation (NSF) Director France Cόrdova reviewed the final funding outlook for NSF for fiscal year (FY) 2016 and thanked NSF advocates for their support in combating attempts to place restrictions on the agency’s funding: “Your strong support of NSF during this last year reinforced the importance of NSF’s mission to the nation and ensured that science, and scientists, will continue to drive where we fund research. With your help, language regarding directorate-specific allocations was not included in the final Consolidated Appropriations Act.” Back to this issue’s table of contents.
NIH Office of Disease Prevention to Create an Electronic Directory of Prevention Experts
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Disease Prevention (ODP), the lead NIH office “responsible for assessing, facilitating, and stimulating research in disease prevention and health promotion and disseminating the results of this research to improve public health,” is launching an initiative to enhance the scientific rigor of NIH-funded research projects. ODP is seeking the assistance of the extramural research community in “developing a database of experts in research methods relevant to prevention research that can help Scientific Review Officers (SROs) identify reviewers for NIH grant applications.” Prospective experts are asked to complete ODP’s Prevention Research Expertise Survey which…
America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015
The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, a working group of 23 Federal agencies, recently released its annual compendium of indicators, America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-being, 2015. The 17th report in an ongoing series includes 41 key indicators “on important aspect of children’s lives” culled from the “most reliable Federal statistics.” The easily understood statistics in the report are “objectively based on substantial research.” The report also reveals trends over time that are “representative of large segments of the population” and include indicators seven domains: “family and social environment, economic circumstances, health care, physical environment and…
National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council Approves Concept Clearances
The National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council (NADCRC), the advisory body to the National Institute on Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), held an abbreviated session of its first quarter congressionally-mandated advisory council meeting to accommodate the East coast blizzard. The shortened session included a discussion of proposed research concept clearances to allow the Institute’s program staff to move forward to develop funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) around creation of a mentored translation program and an implementation science and oral health program.
OBSSR Responds to Concerns about NIH Guidance on the Funding of Health Economics Research
In November 2015, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued guidance Clarifying NIH’s Priorities in Health Economics. The notice was accompanied by blog post from Carrie Wolinetz, NIH Associate Director for Science Policy (see Update, December 1, 2015). In a recent blog post, NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) director William Riley responded to questions the office has received from the social and behavioral science community regarding the impetus for the NIH notice. Riley highlighted his participation in the guidance’s development and his desire to convey and assure the research community that “health economics research is alive…
White House SBS Team Seeks Fellows
The White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST), which uses insights from the social and behavioral sciences to improve federal programs, is accepting applications for new members to serve on the team as Fellows or Associate Fellows. The one-year fellowship begins in October 2016 and is open to PhD or Masters level scientists with expertise in one or more field in the social and behavioral sciences. The deadline for applications is January 24, 2016. More information on the fellowship is available here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
NIA Director Expresses Appreciation for NIH and NIA FY 2016 Budgets
National Institute on Aging (NIA) director Richard Hodes acknowledged “exciting news” reflected in the FY 2016 budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and specifically for NIA in a January 6 blog post. Noting the $2 billion (6.6 percent) increase for the NIH for FY 2016, Hodes underscored that the increase provided a boost of approximately 33 percent for NIA, including the $350 million in funding allocated for research on Alzheimer’s disease (see COSSA’s omnibus analysis). Notwithstanding the resources dedicated to Alzheimer’s research, NIA’s FY 2016 budget provides a 4.2 percent increase to the institute, “the largest increase to…
NIH Discusses the Science of Self-Management
In 2015, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and the NIH Basic Behavioral and Social Sciences Opportunity Network (OppNet) jointly convened a panel of ten experts to “discuss basic psychosocial mechanism and processes involved with self-management” of disease and other related conditions. The science of self-management has grown exponentially over the last several decades. During this time, the NIH has provided support for clinical- and community-based interventions and programs related to the management of acute and chronic illnesses, including asthma, arthritis, diabetes, heart failure, and HIV/AIDS. In particular, the National Institute of…
Documenting Endangered Languages Webinar – January 19
The National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will hold a free webinar in January 19 to provide details on the joint NSF/NEH Documenting Endangered Languages (DEL) program. The webinar is intended for researchers who are considering submitting a proposal to the program; the next deadline for DEL proposals is September 15, 2016. Registration is required for participation. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
BTS Releases 2016 Pocket Guide to Transportation
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) has published its 19th annual Pocket Guide to Transportation. The 2016 Pocket Guide provides quick reference information on the transportation system and covers topics such as infrastructure, moving people and goods, performance, economy, safety, and environment. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
President Obama Proclaims January 2016 National Mentoring Month
On December 31, President Obama issued a proclamation declaring January 2016 “National Mentoring Month” to honor “all those who continuously strive to provide young people with the resources and support they need and deserve.” The proclamation announced the Administration’s recommitment to “building a society in which all mentors and mentees can thrive in mutual learning relationships.” To read the entire proclamation, go here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Albert Bandura to be Awarded National Medal of Science
In December, President Obama announced the recipients of the 2013 and 2014 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the nation’s highest honors for discoveries and advancements in science and technology. Among the 2014 recipients is Albert Bandura of Stanford University, who will receive the National Medal of Science in Behavioral and Social Science. Bandura is a social cognitive psychologist, known best for the “Bobo doll experiments,” and whose work pioneered “social learning theory,” which stresses observation, imitation and modeling as central components of learning. Bandura and the other honorees will be receive their medals at…
NSF Defends Research Targeted in GOP Waste Reports
Two reports released in recent weeks by Republican policy makers point to hundreds of federally-funded activities they deem to be wasteful and unworthy of taxpayer support. Included in the reports are peer-reviewed research projects supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH). Sen. James Lankford’s (R-OK) Federal Fumbles claims to identify “100 ways the government dropped the ball,” poking fun at six NSF grants and two NIH grants, among dozens of other projects. A second report was released just last week by Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ), Wastebook: The Farce Awakens. Flake’s report is said to…
NIH Launches Next Phase of ECHO/Children’s Study Follow-On
On December 7, National Institutes of Health (NIH) director Francis Collins announced the next funding phase of the agency’s Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program, which includes seven new funding opportunity announcements (FOAs). ECHO is designed to comport with the goals of the National Children’s Study (NCS) (see Update, November 3, 2015) and is being implemented via a series of funding opportunity announcements (FOAs). It is expected that the ECHO program will be supported by and build on recent awards NIH made in September (see Update, September 4, 2015). A nationwide search is underway for an ECHO program manager. In the…
BEA Releases State-Level Consumer Spending Data
For the first time, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) will begin regularly releasing official statistics detailing consumer spending by state. The data will include total consumer spending in each state, breakouts of consumer spending in specific categories and sectors, and per-capita consumer spending from 1997 through 2014. BEA began releasing prototype estimates in 2014; previously, only national consumer-spending data was available. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
Deadline for Comments on Common Rule NPRM Extended
The Department of Health and Human Services has announced that it will extend the period for public comment on the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) for the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (otherwise known as the Common Rule) by 30 days. The new deadline is January 6, 2016. A summary of the major changes to the regulations proposed in the NPRM is available here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.
NIH Issues Notice Clarifying its Health Economics Research Priorities
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued a Guide Notice on November 25, to “clarify NIH policy related to funding health economics research,” in an effort to delineate NIH’s “priority areas of health economics research as well as reach aims that generally fall outside of the NIH mission.” The notice is part of an ongoing issue that dates back to 2012 Congressional language in the Fiscal Year 2013 Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations bill that bans the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from supporting economics research. Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) responded to the language, along with 82…
NIH Issues Funding Opportunity to Support the PMI Cohort Program Direct Volunteer Pilot Studies
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking proposals for pilot studies and “the needed information technology support for the development of the Direct Volunteer component of the Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI) Cohort Program.” The agency plans to build a “national research cohort of one million or more volunteers who are engaged as partners in a longitudinal, long-term effort to identify the molecular, environmental and behavioral factors that contribute to diverse diseases, to facilitate the development and testing of novel therapies and prevention approaches, and to pioneer mHealth [mobile health] strategies for improving the efficacy of health care.” To that…
NIH Seeks Input for Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementia 2016 Plan
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institute on Aging (NIA), and the Office of Disease Prevention (ODP) within the National Institutes of Health recently released a time-sensitive request–for-information (RFI) (NOT-NS-15-045) seeking the input of the scientific and broader community regarding the “most important needs and promising opportunities for research” on Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementia (ADRD). The information received will be used to update the National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease, which is congressionally mandated to be updated annually (see Update, August 10, 2015). Additionally, the RFI announces a March 29-30, 2016 ADRD 2016 Summit sponsored by NINDS…