The report of the American Heart Association task force on strategies to increase federal research funding.

The charge of the task force is summarized below: 1. To examine present and projected patterns of federal biomedical research funding The task force limited its review to cardiovascular research and training and the relationship of the research community to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The task force recognizes that the NHLBI is not the sole federal agency funding cardiovascular research, but it is the major one. Data from other agencies were considered only when comparisons were sought. Similarly, although the primary concern of the task force is research funding in the United States, data from other countries were also considered when appropriate. To discern present patterns, the task force reviewed data from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the American Heart Association's Office of Public Affairs. While these data clearly depict the targeting of funds for research and training for more than 10 years, they do not necessarily depict the expenditure. Projecting future patterns was more difficult. The task force could not find a clear statement of federal research management policy for the next decade but only an outline of possible reactions to anticipated budgetary constraints. Hence, the task force used NHLBI models that incorporate a yearly 3.7% increment in the budget. 2. To evaluate options available to the American Heart Association (AHA) to maintain adequate federal support for cardiovascular research Before considering the options available to the AHA, the task force examined whether support of research by the federal government is an expenditure of tax dollars that benefits society. The task force considered four types of benefit: