The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently proposed sweeping changes that could prevent federal research grant funds from going to state and local governments, non-profits organizations and other grantees. ACP has submitted comments on the proposal and is urging our members to submit their own comments. ACP is urging you to submit your personalized comments electronically through our grassroots platform. As proposed, the rule would: 

• Allow political appointees to review discretionary grants before they are awarded, overriding recommendations and expertise of scientific subject matter experts.  
• Permit political appointees to withdraw support for ongoing grants without review or input from federal agency scientific committees.  
• Create barriers to publishing and accessing federally funded research by restricting the use of federal grant funds for publication charges, journal subscriptions, and publishing costs. 
• Slow the translation of research into better patient care and public health by restricting access to scientific literature and delaying the adoption of evidence-based practices. 

ACP’s concerns are shared by leaders across the scientific and medical communities. Read the recently published New England Journal of Medicine editorial, “The OMB and the Politicization of Science,” warning that the proposed rule could politicize biomedical research by allowing political appointees to override independent scientific peer review. 

ACTION REQUESTED: Share your personal stories with OMB by July 13 about why federal research grant programs are important and urge the agency to withdraw its proposed revisions to the Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance LINK. It is important that you personalize your comments, so they are individually considered by the agency. Comments that are too similar to others may carry less weight. When crafting your message, consider:  

• How losing or restricting federal grants could impact you personally. 
• How proposed funding restrictions could affect community health centers, health departments, hospitals, or research institutions. 
• Why research funding decisions should be based on scientific merit, not politics. 

Please contact Aleah Jensen at ajensen@acponline.org with any questions about this campaign. Thank you for your continued advocacy.