Coalition Applauds Reintroduction of Bipartisan Bill to Enhance Support for Early-Career Pediatric Medical Researchers
Washington (July 21, 2023) – The Coalition for Pediatric Medical Research, which consists of about two dozen of the nation’s most research-intensive children’s hospitals, applauded the recent reintroduction of the bipartisan and bicameral Pediatricians Accelerate Childhood Therapies Act (S. 2345 and H.R. 4714) which will strengthen National Institutes of Health (NIH) programs to support early-stage pediatric-focused researchers.
The legislation is sponsored by Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) and Representatives John Joyce, M.D. (R-PA) and Kim Schrier, M.D. (D-WA).
“I applaud Senator Coons, Senator Ernst, Representative Joyce and Representative Schrier for their bipartisan leadership in reintroducing a bill that includes critical provisions to support the development of promising researchers focused on children’s health,” said R. Lawrence Moss, MD, President and CEO of Nemours Children’s Health. “Recruiting and retaining early career pediatric investigators must be a key priority for the research community. This bill is an important step toward creating the healthiest generations of children.”
“This legislation builds upon previous work by Congress to recognize the challenges we are facing with attracting and retaining younger researchers to medical research and focuses particularly on these challenges in the field of pediatrics. It also recognizes the needs to recruit and develop pediatric researchers from under-represented populations and prioritizes qualified applicants who would address those needs,” said Dr. Kristy Murray, DVM, PhD, Vice Chair for Research at Texas Children’s Hospital and a member of the Coalition steering committee.
The legislation would create an NIH award for early-stage researchers working in the field of pediatrics. Applicants could be focused on basic research through translational and clinical investigation. NIH could prioritize qualified applicants from under-represented populations as well as training programs that include minority-serving institutions that are focused on developing pediatric researchers. NIH could also align the award with existing Institute pediatric research priorities such as childhood cancer, child and adolescent mental and behavioral health, rare diseases and precision medicine and other opportunities.
In addition to creating this award, the legislation will also codify the NIH Pediatric Research Consortium (N-PeRC), which NIH launched in 2018 to better coordinate pediatric research activities across NIH Institutes and Centers. The legislation would also allow for N-PeRC to consult with external experts in pediatric research and requires biennial reporting on metrics related to the consortium’s work.
“We thank Representatives Joyce and Schrier and Senators Ernst and Coons for their leadership on this legislation and for recognizing the need for stronger NIH programs focused on training early-career pediatric researchers and the clear linkage between such trainings and future research breakthroughs. We are encouraged by progress we made last Congress and urge Congress to enact this legislation this year,” said Dr. Leslie Harding-Walker, Chair of Pediatrics at Seattle Children’s and a Steering Committee member.