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U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06) introduced a resolution recognizing the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in federally funded health research to advance scientific excellence, and ensure equitable outcomes for patients in the United States.

“Medical research should be guided by science, not politics. If we want to develop the next generation of treatments and cures, our research must reflect the people those discoveries are meant to serve,” said Congresswoman Dingell. “Americans deserve confidence that taxpayer-funded research is evidence-based and focused on improving health outcomes for everyone.”

The resolution comes as the Trump administration considers a sweeping proposal that researchers warn would inject politics into the federal scientific grant process and weaken the longstanding peer review system used to evaluate federally funded biomedical research. The proposal has drawn opposition from physicians, scientists, patient advocates, and leading scientific organizations, who argue it would undermine scientific integrity and America’s leadership in medical innovation.

The resolution is endorsed by the HIV Medicine Association, Alliance for Aging Research, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Brem Foundation to Defeat Breast Cancer, GO2 For Lung Cancer, The Infectious Diseases Society of America, Gerontological Society of America, American Society for Microbiology, the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, and the Union of Concerned Scientists.

“The Alliance for Aging Research applauds Congresswoman Dingell’s lifelong commitment and continued leadership to ensure the findings of taxpayer funded biomedical research are relevant to all patients. Broad, vague, and politically opinionated prohibitions on essential research considerations such as diversity and inclusion only serve to undermine scientific integrity and ultimately, our global leadership in health innovation,” said Scott Frey, Senior Vice President for Public Policy and Government Relations.

“Maintaining scientific integrity in medical research and ensuring that research study participants reflect the diversity of our population and the disproportionate impacts of diseases is critical for the health of all Americans. Because infectious diseases spread from person to person, it is in everyone’s interest to support research that helps keep everyone in our communities healthy. Placing politics above scientific merit and enabling drastic swings in research priorities every four years will undermine scientists’ ability to deliver lifesaving new cures and weaken our capacity to develop medical countermeasures for future outbreaks and biothreats,” said Ronald G. Nahass, MD, MHCM, FIDSA; President, Infectious Diseases Society of America.

"Giving federal political appointees (under any administration) the power to decide what science gets funded would quickly destroy the innovation that has enabled the United States to be the world leader in science for the past 70 years," said James C. Appleby, CEO of the Gerontological Society of America.

"By introducing significant uncertainty and politics into federal health research, the Federal Financial Assistance rule proposed by the Office of Management and Budget would set back efforts to end the HIV epidemic in America and around the globe. Researchers must address the needs of the populations most heavily impacted by HIV, including people of color and LGBTQ+ and transgender individuals in their studies. They must also be able to maintain international collaborations that continue groundbreaking developments in treatment, vaccine, and cure research in order to dramatically alter the trajectory of the HIV epidemic for all," said Anna K. Person, MD, FIDSA — Chair, HIVMA.

“ASM is deeply concerned that the proposed ban on DEI will harm programs to increase participation in science - harming, not helping, scientific progress and the effectiveness of government funding and of private sector needs. In fact, diversity in thoughts, perspectives and experiences is not only desirable, but essential to solve complex problems, which is what science is about,” said Stefano Bertuzzi, American Society for Microbiology, CEO.

A copy of the resolution can be found HERE.