Perspectives | The 2007 NIH Budget for Epilepsy Research: Is it Time To Get Involved?

Joyce A. Cramer is President of the Epilepsy Therapy Development Project (ETDP), a non-profit organization advancing new therapies for people living with epilepsy, and Associate Research Scientist at Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT. Her academic career includes several decades of work in epilepsy and clinical trials to evaluate treatment outcomes. She developed methods for the evaluation of antiepileptic drug efficacy and adverse effects, study design and management, and enhancement of medication compliance, as well as instruments to assess quality of life, treatment satisfaction, and other patient-reported outcomes.

Her publications include 5 books, more than 180 peer-reviewed manuscripts, 35 book chapters, and numerous abstracts, covering topics in medicine, neurology, psychiatry, research design, medication compliance & persistence, quality of life, and other patient-reported outcomes. The books are titled: Quantitative Assessment in Epilepsy Care, Quality of Life and Pharmacoeconomics: An Introduction, Alcohol and Seizures, Patient Compliance in Medical Practice and Clinical Trials, and Patient Recruitment in Clinical Trials. Click here for a complete bio: http://www.epilepsytdp.org/sec/exec_cramer

The 2007 NIH Budget for Epilepsy Research

Medical scientists, including epilepsy researchers, were stunned to learn recently that the overall NIH budget for fiscal year 2007-08 would be less than the previous year. Focusing on the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), which oversees epilepsy research, this cut will result in even fewer new grant awards than in 2006. This is bad news for people with epilepsy who need new therapies.

Part of the growth of NIH and NINDS research funding occurred during the years 1998-2003 when very large increases more than doubled the budget. This will be the fourth year that the NIH budget has not kept pace with inflation. Each NIH agency sets aside part of the total budget for annual renewals of previously awarded grants (individual R01 and Program-Project or Center P50, P60 grants). That means that the larger number of grants awarded in the past now absorb 75% of the NINDS budget.

That leaves only 25% of a reduced “pot” to fund new grants. The competition for a new grant has become discouraging. This year, NINDS is expecting that only 12-15% can be funded; that is, the new “payline” below which grant applications will not receive funding.

What else is lost when only 12-15% of grants are funded by NIH?

With such a small percentage of grants being funded, junior scientists stay in post-doctoral positions because they cannot get a faculty appointment. Sad to say, these junior investigators who have the most difficulty getting grant awards are those that offer the most promise for the future. Assistant Professors must leave after a few years because they do not meet minimal requirements. Associate Professors are stuck in place with no hope of ever achieving the rank of Professor.

Is it time to get involved? YES

The time has come for you and everyone affected by or involved in the world of epilepsy to donate to the ETDP so we can support the Epilepsy Research Fund. If you have read this article from top to bottom, you care enough to make a pledge. Please give more than a token; make your donation large enough to feel as if you are making a difference! We can move this research ship forward a lot faster with you manning one of the oars. http://www.epilepsytdp.org/sec/contribute

Joyce A. Cramer is President of the Epilepsy Therapy Development Project. If you need more reasons to donate, just ask Joyce. You may contact her at Joyce@EpilepsyTDP.org.

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