…And we’re back.
Sorry about skipping last week, but it was surprisingly light on science and education news. Alas, things keep happening in the world.
This week’s update includes an office to reduce animal research at NIH, budget reductions at NSF, and news out of Yale and Johns Hopkins. The cover image is an artist's rendition of the Kepler-35 planetary system, courtesy of NASA.
Federal Research Policy
The NIH has formally announced the creation of the Office of Research Innovation, Validation, and Application (ORIVA) to coordinate NIH-wide efforts “to develop, validate, and scale the use of human-based approaches across NIH biomedical research.” The intention to create an office focused on reducing the use of animal models in NIH-funded work was was announced last April.
There are a couple of notes related to the OMB proposal to related federal grant making (Science has a nice summary).
The Council for Government Relations (COGR) has released their executive brief on OMB’s recent proposal “Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance”. COGR has also requested that the deadline for comments on the proposal be extended [PDF]. As of this morning, the proposal had over 65,000 comments.
Earlier this week, the National Science Foundation (NSF) proposed changes to its Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) which would align it with the OMB proposal - including restrictions on publication costs and limits to indirect costs.
Science is reporting that the National Science Foundation has cut funding for basic science programs by 20-30% this year after an overall budget cut of 3%. According to the reporting, sources in and outside the agency suspect that this is to provide funds for the NSF’s X-Lab’s initiative
HHS has announced “Operation Trailblazer”, an initiative intended to strengthen the clinical trial enterprise in the United States. As part of this effort, the FDA has announced a pilot program Monday to speed up early-stage clinical trials
Public Health
Bernie Sanders released a tranche of Health and Human Services (HHS) emails this week that appear to show HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pressuring the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) over its vaccine messaging. The Hill has additional reporting.
Higher Education
The Department of Education announced new interagency agreements last week, essentially moving several of its functions to other government agencies.
The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights will use DOJ’s Civil Rights Division to evaluate, investigate and resolve civil rights complaints. The NYT has more.
The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services will move some its activities to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NPR has more.
Johns Hopkins University announced layoffs for 100 employees this week, citing the cuts to federal research funding.
The New York Times is reporting that Yale University is seeking to settle with the Administration. Last month, the DOJ announced that it has found the university’s medical school to have discriminated in its admissions practices.