Monique Ryan urges Australia to fast track medical innovation funding as Trump guts research | Health

Australian scientists and independent MP Monique Ryan are calling on Labor to step up funding for Australia’s cutting-edge medical innovation, taking advantage of the growing gap caused by Donald Trump’s evisceration of government-funded research in the US.

Kooyong Member of Parliament and pediatric neurologist Ryan is calling on the Albanian government to release any portion of proceeds from the $20 billion Medical Research Future Fund above the $650 million annual payment.

Research by the Parliamentary Budget Office shows that even if $1 billion was set aside for research funding each year, the total value of the MRFF would grow by at least $30.1 billion within a decade.

_{Sign up: AÜ Breaking News email}

The fund’s average annual rate of return has easily outpaced its benchmark since it was set up by the Turnbull government in 2015, and Ryan has told Labor that a larger annual return than the fund’s earnings could boost life-saving innovation.

Latest Treasury figures show the current value of the MRFF is $24.1 billion.

Ryan’s calls for more funding each year are supported by leading research and academic organizations including Group of Eight universities, the Association of Australian Medical Research Institutes, the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences and the Australian Academy of Science.

The delegation visiting Parliament House on Thursday will also include research institutions such as the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Burnett Institute, Australian Research and the George Institute.

“This lock-up of critical funding threatens the future of life-saving innovation,” Ryan said.

“Hundreds of high-quality research proposals have had their funding cut in recent years. Releasing MRFF funds not only secures the future of Australia’s research sector, but also delivers better health outcomes for all Australians.”

Ryan attributed this pressure to Trump’s move to reduce funding and staffing appointments at the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC). US president, controversial health and human services secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. He replaced experienced scientists with loyalists and individuals without medical or scientific training.

Australian researchers have long-standing links to trusted US health agencies, including the CDC, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and National Institutes of Health. FDA approvals for new drugs help guide approvals for use in Australia.

Ryan said Trump cut medical research funding and “gutted” the US CDC.

“The survival of Australia’s world-class research institutes is also threatened,” he said.

“Earlier this year the Association of Australian Medical Research Institutes reported that without more support most of its member organizations would not be financially viable within five years.”

Trump’s budget proposal would cut funding for the U.S. CDC by 53 percent, eliminate more than 60 programs and lead to layoffs of another 16 percent of staff, according to research published in September.

On Thursday, Ryan will highlight research proposals that missed out on MRFF funding, including a clinical trial on pregnancy for women with sleep apnea by specialist Amanda Poprzecny at Adelaide Women’s and Children’s hospital.

Associate Professor Adam McKay, from Monash University’s Epworth Rehabilitation Research Centre, has proposed research to help patients recovering from traumatic brain injuries who have missed out on MRFF funding. The proposal aimed to implement and evaluate the best management of post-traumatic amnesia.

“This research would help people with traumatic brain injuries receive the best possible care during a critical time in their recovery,” McKay said. “Instead we watched opportunities slip away.”

Legislation to establish a new Australian Center for Disease Control is about to pass parliament.