Dear Research Community,
This month’s ReSearch ReSource integrates the weekly Federal Research Digest we have been delivering; there will not be a separate Digest this week.
The ongoing changes in federal research awards and the uncertainty these changes are creating for UCSF research are having a profound impact on our research community. My office is working hard to connect directly with as many of you as possible to understand your needs and provide updates on institutional activities and resources. Please do not hesitate to reach out to my office if you are having trouble finding the help you need.
The Chancellor’s executive team continues to proactively engage with the UC Office of the President, our professional associations, and our elected representatives in Congress to influence the policy discussion and support biomedical and health science. At home, the campus has implemented a process for supporting UCSF’s affected faculty, staff, and trainees that leverages the full resources of the campus and aims to sustain our community. We are doing everything we can to preserve UCSF’s mission, support our people, and sustain our values.
Here are a few key updates:
Foreign subawards: The NIH has paused issuance of any NOA (new or continuing) that contains a subaward to a foreign entity until September. This pause has the potential to impact hundreds of our researchers and halt critical research around the globe. In partnership with the Institute for Global Health Sciences (IGHS), my office is taking several actions over the next two weeks to address this.
- We are gathering data on the scale and scope of the potential impact. Please fill out this survey if you have an NIH award with a foreign subaward or think you may be impacted in some other way.
- We will be convening affected researchers in the next week to ensure we understand their priorities and can share policy strategies.
- I will be in Washington, DC, in early June for visits with key congressional leaders and committees of jurisdiction over NIH and global health.
Legal challenges to grant terminations: Two cases (here and here) remain pending regarding the widespread grant terminations at NIH and other federal agencies. Both allege that the federal terminations violate the Administrative Procedures Act and request a preliminary injunction. The courts have not issued temporary restraining orders (TROs) in these cases, so the Federal government’s policy of grant terminations can continue for the time being. Hearings are set for May 22 and June 16.
Virtual Research Town Hall: The Office of Research will hold its quarterly town hall on June 18. We will provide the latest updates on federal research awards and available services and resources from the Office of Research and the broader campus, and we will also answer questions from the community. Please register here to join us.
Below you will find more updates and resources. As always, you can reach me at [email protected].
Yours,
Hal
Harold R. Collard, MD, MS
Vice Chancellor for Research
Professor of Medicine and Health Policy