[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 48 (Thursday, April 27, 2006)]
[House]
[Page H1893]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                MAXIMIZING OUR MEDICAL RESEARCH DOLLARS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, for over a century the Federal Government 
has had a strong commitment to biomedical, behavioral, and population-
based research conducted at National Institutes of Health centers 
around the Nation.
  The research conducted at these facilities, which include several in 
my congressional district in New Jersey, is responsible for the 
continued development of an ever-expanding research base and has 
contributed to medical advances that have profoundly improved the 
length and quality of life for millions of Americans.
  Over the years, I have vigorously supported efforts to increase 
funding for NIH, including efforts to double NIH funding in recent 
years. However, I am now concerned the President and House Republicans 
are abandoning their commitment to NIH. Last year, they cut overall 
funding for medical research, and this year the House Republican budget 
proposal would only provide the same funding for NIH as last year. This 
would result in an even larger cut than last year in which all but 
three NIH institutes and centers would see their budgets fall for the 
second year in a row.
  Mr. Speaker, at a time when Republicans are retreating on their 
commitment to health research, we must remain vigilant in demanding the 
necessary funding to continue groundbreaking research. We must also 
work to ensure that those entities receiving NIH funding grants are 
utilizing them to the best of their ability. And I think we must 
explore ways to consolidate research efforts around the Nation so that 
we can eliminate any duplication and maximize every research dollar.
  In my congressional district, we are fortunate to host some of the 
finest research and health care institutions in the country that 
receive NIH grant funding. The city of New Brunswick, nicknamed the 
Health Care City, is home to Rutgers, the State University of New 
Jersey, Johnson & Johnson, the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, 
and the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, among many other world-class 
facilities. Our State government also has committed to moving forward 
with the Stem Cell Institute of New Jersey New Brunswick.
  Crucial to this continued success, however, is ensuring that we have 
a coherent structure in place to fully maximize our ability to secure 
Federal research dollars, corporate investment, and human talent.
  I strongly believe that merging the Robert Wood Johnson Medical 
School and the School of Public Health with Rutgers University in New 
Brunswick is critical to achieving this goal. Although the medical 
school is now part of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New 
Jersey, it shares many facilities, faculty, and research 
responsibilities with Rutgers. In fact, it was once called the Rutgers 
University Medical School.
  In addition, the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, a national leader in 
cancer care and research, is comprised of faculty from the medical 
school and Rutgers in nearly equal numbers.
  Strengthening these relationships and eliminating the duplication and 
disorganization that results from administrative separation of health 
sciences at Rutgers and UMDNJ will go a long way toward increasing the 
scarce flow of Federal research dollars to New Jersey.
  By unifying our medical education institutions under one umbrella, we 
will not only have a better chance of competing for large medical 
grants and contracts, but also attract the best faculty and students 
from around the Nation.
  Furthermore, we will create a stronger platform from which new 
intellectual property can be generated in close proximity to the 
largest concentration of health care companies in the Nation. We can 
reinvigorate the cooperation between the medical experts at these 
companies and the academic leaders at our new unified medical school. 
With these companies already in place right in our backyard, just 
imagine the economic growth that we could foster by simply bridging all 
of our health care academic minds into one institution.
  Mr. Speaker, I also believe that we should explore similar 
consolidation plans at other research institutions in New Jersey and 
around the Nation to maintain our momentum in the field of medical 
discovery and invention. Our State government in New Jersey has to 
explore the possibility of integrating the other medical schools and 
research facilities in New Jersey with nearby institutions.
  Mr. Speaker, by combining the best of Rutgers and the Robert Wood 
Johnson Medical School, I am confident New Jersey will remain a 
national leader in medical care, education and research so that we can 
build a stronger State economy, and even more importantly, improve the 
health care of all New Jerseyans.

                          ____________________