Zach Schultz for "Here& Now". >> Anticipated fallout from any
lapse in federal health research funding prompted full on
response this week from UW leaders and scientists.
UW-Madison alone stands to lose $65 million in funding due to a
Trump administration reduction for indirect costs, while a
federal judge has temporarily blocked the NIH cuts.
Wisconsin's bio health industry and its health systems are
sounding the alarm about any permanent loss of research
funding. >> Universities across Wisconsin
receive research funding from the federal government to work
to the betterment of our people and our communities. Taking a
meat cleaver to this funding is simply wrong, shortsighted, and
will cause harm to people across the state of Wisconsin and the
country. Our university research lab should be a hub of activity,
humming to provide life saving research that families can count
upon. This impacts all of us. >> My own NIH funded research
has led to the development of new therapies for reducing
memory loss, alleviating hot flashes, and reducing the risk
of Alzheimer's disease, which we hope will reach the clinic in
the next 5 to 10 years. If you remember one thing from my
remarks today, it's that federal funding for basic and clinical
research is critical for training the next generation of
scientists and health professionals while developing
new treatments for Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease,
schizophrenia, addiction, as well as conditions such as
cancer, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, which are among
the leading causes of death in the United States. Simply put,
these desperately needed treatments would not be possible
without NIH funding. >> Bayer Health Industry in
Wisconsin is a national leader driving innovation and economic
growth, but also contributing, of course, to health outcomes.
We had plenty of examples. Today, it's a very wide
ecosystem with notably biomedical research and testing,
digital health, drug and pharmaceuticals, medical
devices, and a lot of manufacturing that goes with it
distribution. So it's a whole big ecosystem. And BioForward,
when we talk about growing Wisconsin's bioscience industry,
we are talking about a collaborative effort between
industry leaders, research institutions, of course, and
policymakers. Our state's institutions, like the
UW-Madison, UW Milwaukee, Medical College of Wisconsin,
and all the others play a critical role in advancing
groundbreaking medical research. NIH investment brought $654
million to Wisconsin in 2023, and thousands of direct jobs and
generate billions in economic activity for the state. These
funds from NIH don't just drive research. They attract biotech
companies, venture capital. They attract top scientists and
talents to the state. They drive manufacturing. They drive
services, and even more. So if there's no research, they are no
discoveries, no treatments, no new fast growing companies, and
no ecosystem to support them. So there's no doubt that reducing
NIH funding would be a direct NIH funding would be a direct