Drugs

Administration Considers Capping NIH Indirect Costs

Seeking to reduce federal government expenditures on the National Institutes of Health (NIH), President Donald Trump reportedly is considering imposing a 10% cap on the NIH’s indirect costs, money it gives grantees to support administration, equipment, IT, lighting, heating, electricity, and other overhead. An NIH source who was briefed on the budget request and spoke to The Atlantic on condition of anonymity said the change “is going to make every single university president across the country call their representative.”

White House officials told the magazine that a final decision had not been made on any cap and “it would be premature for us to comment, or anyone to report, on any aspect of this ever-changing, internal discussion before the publication of the [budget] document,” expected next week.

HHS secretary Tom Price has already been quoted as arguing that indirect costs represent “inefficiencies” and money that is going towards something other than research. Science reported that NIH spent $6.4 billion in indirect costs in Fiscal Year 2016, 38% of the $16.9 billion it spent directly on research. Had a 10% cap been in place, it would have been held to $1.7 billion, for a savings of $4.7 billion.

Critics say indirect costs incentivize institutions to spend unchecked amounts on administration and lavish purchases instead of research, The Atlantic says, while defenders say the costs are not optional and even the generous amounts received from the NIH aren’t enough to cover the cost of running a research lab.

An anonymous NIH source told the magazine that “instead of having an informed process where they get people together and talk about how to build efficiencies, they’re just backing into the numbers that the president put forward. They’re trying to pretend they’ll cut something without actually cutting science.”

Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton’s responses on vaccines, contraception and abortion medication during her 9/24 Senate confirmation hearing raise concerns that ideology could influence her decision-making if she takes over the agency, MSNBC senior medical analyst Dr. Vin Gupta said Friday. Gupta was particularly critical of Overton’

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA commissioner nominee Heidi Overton emerged from her Senate confirmation hearing Thursday (see earlier story) without resolving questions about whether she has enough Republican support to advance — and with a rapidly narrowing window for confirmation before the midterm elections. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing provided few

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA has classified Boston Scientific's recall of its Imager II Angiographic Catheters as Class I because a manufacturing problem could cause catheter tips to degrade and detach, potentially resulting in life-threatening complications. The agency announced the Class I classification 9/25, updating an Early Alert it issued

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome

FDA has approved Roche’s Gazyva (obinutuzumab) for reducing the risk of relapse in adults and children aged 2 and older with frequently relapsing or steroid-dependent, childhood-onset idiopathic nephrotic syndrome who are in remission. The expanded approval covers the use of the CD20-directed antibody beyond its existing

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Gupta Raises Concerns About Overton’s Independence, Ideology

Overton Confirmation Remains Uncertain After Senate Hearing

FDA Classifies Boston Scientific Imager II Catheter Recall as Class I

FDA Approves Gazyva for Childhood-Onset Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome