Today’s header image depicts a Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). If you were to believe U.S. Senator Rand Paul, the National Science Foundation has spent a cool $8 billion pointlessly studying these little guys.
This would be very surprising, considering that’s about 90% of NSF’s annual budget, the number is off by about 4 orders of magnitude, the research was actually funded by NIH, and wasn’t quite as silly as it sounds. But hey, this image is kinda fun right?
The big and ongoing story from this week in science and higher education is the appropriations process. The bills that fund NSF, DOE, and some other agencies have passed through congress and await the President’s signature. Progress is being made on the bill to fund HHS/NIH, but “forward funding” is proving to be a sticking point.
Federal Research Policy
The appropriations “minibus” that contains funding for NSF, DOE, and other agencies (Justice, Commerce, etc) has passed the senate and is now waiting on the President’s signature. Politico has some reporting on what lies ahead.
The package includes small decreases in funding for NSF (3.4%) and NASA (1.1%) and small increase at DOE’s Office of Science (2%).
Included in this bill is language preventing these agencies from imposing the types of indirect cost caps seen early last year. They must instead use their 2024 rates.
I believe this allows the covered agencies to restart their contributions to the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, both of which have been on hold since their funding lapsed.
There is also language requesting a briefing on the degree to which the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is repealing the public access mandates that went into effect late last year.
Work is underway on the bill that would fund HHS (including CDC and NIH). According to reporting in Politico and Stat, Democrats and Republicans have agreed on overall spending levels for NIH. The point of disagreement is a proposed expansion of “forward funding”, which would substantially reduce the number of awarded grants (at least in the short term).
NIH leadership published a comment in Nature Medicine today describing their vision for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID).
Gary Gibbons is retiring as the director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at the end of the month. By my count, this means that 15 of NIH’s 27 institutes, centers, and offices will soon be under interim leadership.
Nicole Kleinstreuer has officially been named as NIH’s Deputy Director for Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives. She has been in that role in an acting capacity since April of last year.
OSTP Director Michael Kratsios appeared before Congress this week to discuss the Administration’s proposed AI policy. Science has an editorial providing another perspective.
Public Health
On Tuesday, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) cancelled approximately $2 billion in grants to nonprofit groups providing services related to addiction, homelessness, and mental illness. On Wednesday, the grants were restored.
There’s more vaccine-related news out of the HHS this week.
Two new members have been added to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Stat has coverage.
There also appears to be changes in the works for the Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccination (ACCV), possibly related to coming changes to the National Vaccine Injury Compensation program. Stat, again, has coverage.
A controversial (Read: Tuskegee-esque) CDC-funded trial of hepatitis B vaccines in newborns in Guinea-Bissau has been put on hold as it is redesigned to address ethical issues. Inside Medicine has a copy of the trial protocol and summary of its issues.
Higher Education
The Department of Education announced on Wednesday that it has opened Title IX 18 investigations into 18 entities, including the University of Nevada, the Departments of Education for NYC and Hawaii, and a variety of school districts - including several in California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Washington. All of these are due to complaints over the inclusion of trans athletes in sports.
There are quite a few developments out of UVa this week, the Times has a summary.
In other news…
The President has announced that, starting February 1st, the Administration will not be issuing payments to sanctuary jurisdictions. Last week, HHS announced that it was freezing child care and family assistance grants to these areas. Legal action is extremely likely.
The State Department has announced that it will pause immigrant visa processing for 75 countries. Politico has additional coverage.
Fun Fact: Once a Nobel Prize is announced, it cannot be revoked, shared, or transferred. As stated with typical solemnity by the Nobel Committee: “The decision is final and stands for all time.” This particular ticket is non-transferable.