On August 3, Endocrine Society President Carol Wysham, MD, shared the Society’s recommendations and concerns about the proposal for a new federal agency, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) as part of a listening session with National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins.
Wysham highlighted diabetes as a prime example of a disease where treatment could be revolutionized through APRA-H-funded projects, and how ARPA-H could drive improvements in wearable devices for the measurement of a variety of parameters. She also encouraged the NIH and the White House Office on Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) leadership to ensure that equity is built into ARPA-H.
Collins appreciated our comments, in particular our remarks on the importance of health equity and shared some insight on how ARPA-H would select projects. Importantly, he noted that the project selection process is unlikely to involve external peer review, but instead would be guided by a series of questions describing the nature of the project and anticipated impact.
The Endocrine Society has been the only organization invited to present at more than one listening session, which reflects how endocrine science crosses multiple institutes at the NIH.
Previously, Endocrine Society President-Elect Ursula Kaiser, MD, presented our recommendations at a separate listening session focused on research related to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). The Endocrine Society has been the only organization invited to present at more than one listening session, which reflects how endocrine science crosses multiple institutes at the NIH. It is unclear at this time how ARPA-H will advance, particularly because the federal appropriations process is at a standstill. We will continue to keep members apprised of new developments.
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