Student and professional #researchers alike were among those who gathered last month at the [#Wisconsin] Capitol, worried that #research careers could be over before they begin, lamenting that potential therapies and cures will be curtailed, and noting nearly every #biomedical and technological breakthrough over the past century included fundamental research supported by the #federalgovernment.
The source of the dismay at the “Stand Up for Science” rally, one of 50 held nationally, was President Donald Trump’s proposed cuts to The National Institutes of Health (NIH)-sponsored #researchgrants.
Rally organizers said the cuts could cost Wisconsin $1.5 million per week in funding. They rank among the #Trump administration’s most controversial actions, especially given the proven #economic and societal value of #academicresearch in #medicine, #biotechnology, and #computerscience.
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Scientific speed bump?
Overall, Wisconsin’s biotechnology and other businesses in the #lifesciences industry appear to be on a roll. The biennial “Industry Landscape and Economic Impact” report from BioForward, Inc., the state’s life sciences trade association, found that Wisconsin’s #biohealth employers have increased their payrolls by nearly 12,000, or 25%, since 2018, and employ more than 58,000.
Wisconsin’s designation as a biohealth #techhub continued the momentum, and a recent report on the Madison life sciences market showed a real estate footprint larger than Broadwing Advisors LLC, the local real estate firm that conducted the study, expected. In fact, it found that #Madison had more square footage devoted to the life sciences than Atlanta, Houston, and New York City.
“There's still a great deal of #innovation and a great deal of enthusiasm in the life science industry here,” Tom Still said. “The #NIH cuts in indirect costs, if carried out, would have an effect, and maybe even a disproportionate effect because of how our institutions in Wisconsin have performed historically in attracting such grants."
