The need for unity in the biomedical research community

Abstract

The author provides a perspective on how basic scientists view contemporary issues of biomedical research funding by discussing five topics of concern to the biomedical research community and the need for that community to form a new consensus as the basis for new approaches to legislative efforts in Congress and communication with the public. The topics are (1) the reasons scientific societies became active in legislative efforts in Congress, (2) the reasons there was initial friction between these societies and other institutions in the biomedical research community, (3) the history of the founding of a biomedical research community, (3) the history of the founding of a biomedical research caucus in the House of Representatives, (4) the effects of the Institute of Medicine's recent report on funding health sciences research, and (5) the weakness of the present institutional coalition. The author proposes specific steps to develop a more unified approach to achieve a common biomedical research agenda.