2012-05-17
ASH Agenda for Hematology Research Identifies Most Promising Areas for Scientific Discovery
ASH released a report urging federal agencies to coordinate hematology research funding into seven specific high-needs areas that will produce the greatest impact and translate into improvements in patient care in the United States. The new ASH Agenda for Hematology Research: 2012-2014 illustrates how several modern hematology research breakthroughs have resulted in significant improvements in care for patients with blood disorders and cancers, such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, chronic myeloid leukemia, and multiple myeloma. Perhaps more importantly, the ASH Research Agenda demonstrates how hematology research has led to extraordinary gains in patient care across all of medicine, and emphasizes how support for biomedical and hematology research must be protected from budget cuts because such work provides an enormous return on investment. Read more.
ASH Urges Congress to Restore Salary Limit Imposed on Extramural NIH Researchers
ASH joined with 161 organizations to urge Congress to restore the salary limit imposed on extramural NIH researchers to Level I of the Executive pay scale. Last year, Congress included a provision in the Consolidated Appropriations Act to reduce the salary limit to Executive Level II and extended it to all HHS funding agencies. This change represents a cut of $20,000 (10 percent), and comes at a time when research institutions' discretionary funds from clinical revenues and other sources are increasingly constrained and less available to invest in research. Read more.
Senate Likely to Take Up FDA Bill on User Fee Programs & Drug Shortages May 21
Legislation concerning Food and Drug Administration user fee programs and drug shortages is picking up speed with the Senate planning to start consideration the week of May 21 and the House of Representatives considering its version after Memorial Day. ASH continues to advocate for strengthening the drug shortage provisions. Specifically, the Society has recommended that the legislation include biological products, including products derived from human plasma proteins and human tissue replaced by recombinant products; civil monetary penalties; and economic incentives. More information about drug shortages and ASH advocacy is available on the ASH website.
ASH Advocacy to Combat Drug Shortages Making a Difference; Language Included in Senate Appropriations Report
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY 2013 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill on April 26. ASH successfully persuaded the Committee to include language to improve communication by the FDA with physicians on drug shortages in the report. Read more.
NCATS Launches Collaborative Program with Industry and Researchers to Spur Therapeutic Development, Seeks Feedback
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) unveiled a collaborative program that will match researchers with a selection of pharmaceutical industry compounds to help scientists explore new treatments for patients. The initiative, Discovering New Therapeutic Uses for Existing Molecules, will direct researchers' attention to a part of the therapeutic pipeline that traditionally has been difficult for them to access: compounds that already have cleared several key steps in the development process, including safety testing in humans. Read more.
Obama Administration Unveils Bioeconomy Blueprint, Calls for Acceleration of Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research for Treatment of Blood Diseases
The White House released a "Bioeconomy Blueprint" last week outlining an approach to harness innovations and address national challenges in health, food, energy and the environment. The Blueprint is designed to guide work among federal agencies and with the private-sector to enhance economic growth, job creation, and innovation. In concert with the Blueprint release, a number of federal agency commitments supportive of the Blueprint's goals were made public, including initiatives to encourage and accelerate research on non-embryonic stem cells as possible treatments for blood-related diseases. Read more.
ASH Launches Blood Journal App
ASH has released the Blood journal app for iPhone and iPad. This free application allows users to access First Edition articles, conduct full-text searches, and view listings of articles by author and date with the in-app browser. The app also allows users to share articles via email and Twitter and download multiple issues on their devices and access them regardless of Internet connectivity, a feature not readily available on many other journal apps. Read more.
