Coalition of Scientists and AIDS Advocates Calls on Congress to Support Clinton AIDS Research Reform Proposals

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2- 2-93: 6:40POi -NAT'L COM 1 ON AIDS
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NATIONAL COMMISSION ON ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY SYNDROME
1730 K Street, N.W.. Suite 815
Washington. D.C. 20006
[phone] FAX [phone] TDD 254-3816
STATEMENT OF NATIONAL COMMISSION ON AIDS

(:HAIRMAN

June t.I. (h-ra. MI)
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Congress should strengthen the NIH Office of AIDS Research in the
upcoming reauthorization of the National Insttutes of Health legislation.
The role ofthe NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR) should be to promote,
develop, coordinate, prioritize, and integrate research on HIV/AIDS
throughout all relevant Institutes at the NIH. It should have responsibility for
articulating an NIH-wide cross-Institute AIDS research plan, and the budget
authority to set priorities. Additionally, the Director should have the
authority to make awards rapidly throughout the Institutes from a
discretionary fund (initially at a minimum of $100 million) for projects
responding to emerging opportunities of high priority. The OAR and its
director should be independent of the individual Institutes, yet have
coordinating responsibility over their AIDS-related activities. The workload
of such an office, particularly in light of the additional responsibility to
monitor and guide NIAAA, NIDA, and NIMH HIV/AIDS related research
is now such that a full-time director is needed. The director should
coordinate closely with the Institute Directors, the Director of NIH, the
Secretary of HHS, and the Presidentially-appointed AIDS coordinator. The
director of this office should serve as the government's leading authority on
matters pertaining to HIV/AIDS biomedical, basic, clinical and behavioral
research. Staffing of the Office should be increased so that coordination
across all Institutes in the various subject areas of concern can be adequately
undertaken.
The Office should immediately develop a coordinated NIH-wide plan
for research on behavioral HIV/STD risk reduction and the behavioral
aspects of drug and vaccine use, as a component of the overall NIH
HIV/AIDS research plan. The NIH AIDS Program Advisory Committee
should also be strengthened through the addition of at least two members
with experience in behavioral research.

I

January 28, 1993