NIH
Save the Date: 2023 NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Festival
The annual National Institutes of Health (NIH) Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Festival will take place virtually on December 5, 2023 and will be hosted by the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and the NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Coordinating Committee. The festival will highlight recently funded behavioral and social sciences research supported by the NIH; bring together behavioral and social scientists within NIH communities to network and share ideas; and explore ways to advance behavioral and social sciences research. Agenda and registration information is coming soon and will be available on the NIH website.
NIH Releases RFI For Biomedical and Behavioral Science Research
The Common Fund of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued a request for information for challenges, opportunities, workshops, pilot initiatives, and other potential programs anticipated to advance areas of science within biomedical and behavioral research. The Common Fund is intended to support short-term, high-risk initiatives with the potential for high impact. To this end, NIH requests that submissions consider the potential impact on human health as well as the expected results within 5-10 years. The deadline for submissions is August 11.
AAAS Hosts Federal Agencies to Discuss Public Access Policies
On July 17, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) hosted federal agencies alongside the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a discussion, How can public access advance equity and learning? During the first half of the webinar, officials from NSF, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) discussed their implementation strategies for public access. During the panel and audience Q&A session, AAAS invited professors and PhD candidates to discuss the effect of public access on universities and students. In accordance with…
Jane M. Simoni named NIH Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research and OBSSR Director
On July 6, Dr. Jane M. Simoni was officially named as the next National Institutes of Health (NIH) Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, and Director of the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR). Simoni will assume the role at the end of July. Simoni is a clinical psychologist with over 25 years of experience in research focused on health disparities and resilience among populations that have been socially marginalized. Simoni joins NIH from the University of Washington (UW) where she is Professor and Director of Clinical Training in the Department of Psychology. Simoni is the…
NIH Launches New UNITE E Initiatives
The National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) UNITE “E” Committee has been working to develop a strategy to advance racial equity and create a more inclusive biomedical research environment (see previous coverage on NIH’s UNITE activity). On May 17, the Committee announced the launch of new initiatives, including innovative funding programs and policy changes. New funding opportunities are as follows: The UNITE E Committee has also launched a prize competition to recognize effective strategies for enhancing DEIA in research environments: the NIH Institutional Excellence in DEIA in Biomedical and Behavioral Research Prize Competition. The prize competition aims to recognize transformative cultures,…
Dr. Monica Bertagnolli Nominated to Lead NIH
On May 15, the White House announced the nomination of Dr. Monica Bertagnolli as the next Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If confirmed, Bertagnolli would replace the current Acting Director, Dr. Lawrence Tabak, who has been serving since the departure of Francis Collins in 2021. President Biden stated, “Dr. Bertagnolli has spent her career pioneering scientific discovery and pushing the boundaries of what is possible to improve cancer prevention and treatment for patients, and ensuring that patients in every community have access to quality care… Dr. Bertagnolli is a world-class physician-scientist whose vision and leadership will ensure…
Senate Subcommittee Discusses NIH’s FY 2024 Budget
On May 4, The Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee held a hearing on the fiscal year (FY) 2024 budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH Acting Director Dr. Lawrence Tabak, Principal Deputy Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Dr. Douglas Lowy, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Dr. Joshua Gordon, Director of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) Dr. Richard Hodes, and Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Dr. Nora Volkow testified before the committee. In her opening statement, Chairwoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) voiced her support…
House LHHS Subcommittee Holds Budget and Oversight Hearing on NIH, CDC, and ASPR
On April 19, the House Labor, Health and Human Services, Education (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee held a budget and oversight hearing on the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) fiscal year (FY). Testifying about the Administration’s fiscal year (FY) 2024 budget requests for their respective agencies were Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director of CDC; the Honorable Dawn O’Connell, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response of ASPR; and Dr. Lawrence Tabak, Acting Director of NIH. Chairman Robert B. Aderholt (R-AL) expressed concerns over the President’s budget request (see COSSA’s…
NIH Releases New Strategic Plan for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released its most recent Strategic Plan for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). The plan is intended to improve diversity and inclusion within the agency and the biomedical research community and builds off of stakeholder feedback collected last year (see previous COSSA coverage). NIH identifies key stages of implementation in the strategic plans’ framework, including the need to encourage the agency and community to become more people-centered and improve diversity and inclusion within their operations, workforce, and research. To this end, the NIH says it plans to implement sustainable practices to improve representation…
NIH Seeking Feedback on Plan to Enhance Public Access to Research
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released a Plan to Enhance Public Access to the Results of NIH-Supported Research, a direct response to the August 2022 memorandum from the White House directing federal research agencies to make publications and data from federally funded research publicly accessible (see previous COSSA coverage). The plan outlines the agency’s proposed actions to make NIH research more publicly accessible, especially in regard to research data and scholarly publications. In addition, NIH will be accepting feedback on the public access plan, with particular interest on the following topics: Comments will be accepted through April 24,…
NIH to Host 2022 Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Festival
The Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will be holding the 2022 NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Festival next month on December 8 and 9. The festival, held annually by OBSSR and the NIH Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Coordinating Committee (BSSR-CC), features panel discussions on recent social science research results, growing areas, and innovations in the field of health-related BSSR. This year, the festival will focus on social connection, mental and emotional health, social determinants of health, and measurement in BSSR. The keynote address will be delivered by Richard…
NIH Releases UNITE Progress Report for 2021-2022
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released the inaugural progress report covering fiscal years (FY) 2021-2022 for the UNITE Initiative, the agency-wide program comprised of five committees charged with identifying and addressing structural racism within the NIH research community and the greater biomedical research enterprise (see previous COSSA coverage). This progress report is the first such report on the UNITE Initiative and aims to describe NIH’s actions since the Initiative’s establishment in 2021 in identifying and addressing structural racism as well as areas that still need to be addressed. The report cites actions that have been taken to address…
NIH Creates New Scientific Diversity Advisor Position
The Division Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI) within the Office of the Director (OD) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking to fill a new role, Scientific Diversity Advisor. This position will be tasked with leading the development and implementation of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives. The ideal candidate should have a Ph.D., experience identifying and addressing DEIA gaps, and prior scientific and/or policy knowledge of biomedical, behavioral, or social science research relevant to DEIA. Details about the position are available at USA JOBS.
NIH To Hold Two-Part Webinar Series on New Data Management and Sharing Policy
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) will be hosting two interactive webinars on August 11 and September 22. The first event will cover the basics of NIH’s new Data Management and Sharing (DMS) Policy, including data sharing expectations and how to prepare a future DMS plan, which is expected to go into effect on January 25, 2023. The second event will go into more depth on those topics and expand upon privacy protection and data sharing limits. The events will feature the NIH Director of Scientific Data Sharing Policy Division Taunton Paine, the Director of Genomic Data Sharing Policy Implementation…
NIMH Releases 2022 Update to Strategic Plan for Research
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently made updates to its Strategic Plan for Research, the planning document released every five years to outline the agency’s research priorities and strategize future agency activities. In addition to the development of a new strategic plan every five years, NIMH treats it as a “living document” by making routine updates as needed. The strategic plan incorporates updates into four high-level goals to guide the Institute: Define the Brain Mechanisms Underlying Complex Behaviors Examine Mental Illness Trajectories Across the Lifespan Strive for Prevention and Cures Strengthen…
House Committee Marks Up ARPA-H Authorization Legislation, Advances to House Floor
On May 18, the House Energy and Commerce (E&C) Committee marked up several pieces of legislation including the Advanced Research Project Agency for Health (ARPA-H) Act (H.R. 5585), authorization legislation for the newly established health research agency. During the markup, the bill championed by the E&C Health Subcommittee Chair Anna Eshoo (D-CA) was amended to explicitly state that ARPA-H would be established as an “independent operating division within the Department of Health and Human Services” and directs the Biden Administration to transfer ARPA-H away from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), pushing back on the Administration’s recent move to house…
Congress Holds FY 2023 Budget Hearings for NIH
Over the past few weeks, the House and the Senate held their respective budget hearings for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for fiscal year (FY) 2023, hearings that typically feature the NIH director and several of the directors of NIH’s institutes and centers (ICs). On May 11, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) held its hearing led by Full Committee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Tom Cole (R-OK). Witnesses included Acting Director of NIH Larry Tabak, Director of the National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development…
NIH Council Approves Report on Behavioral and Social Sciences Research Integration
During the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Council of Councils Meeting on May 19-20, a report on the Working Group on Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (BSSR) Integration was presented and approved by the Council. The report, which was presented by Acting Director of the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and Acting Associate Director for BSSR at NIH Dr. Christine Hunter, is the work of the working group chartered by the Council of Councils and charged with examining the proportion of NIH research with a significant social or behavioral component and the representation of BSSR in the…
Newly Created Advanced Research Agency Transferred to NIH
On April 20, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra announced that the newly created Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) would be formally transferred to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). ARPA-H, which has been a frequently touted priority for the Biden Administration, was newly established in March with the passage of the final appropriations bills for fiscal year (FY) 2022. Although initially established as an independent agency, the appropriations bill gave the HHS secretary authority to transfer ARPA-H elsewhere within the Department, including NIH (see COSSA’s analysis of the final FY 2022 Appropriations…
NIH Seeks Next Leader of Behavioral and Social Science
The National Institutes of Health has initiated a search for the next Director of the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) and NIH Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. OBSSR and its team serve as the “NIH focal point for establishing agency-wide policies and goals in behavioral and social sciences research, and coordinates the activities undertaken in the performance of this research.” The position was most recently held by William T. Riley until his retirement at the end of 2021 (see previous coverage). Dr. Christine Hunter, OBSSR Deputy Director, is currently leading the office on an…