Our leaders need to stand up and defend scientific research

ITHACA, NEW YORK — A lab manager in the molecular diagnostic lab prepares milk samples for testing at the Animal Health Diagnostic Center at Cornell University on December 10, 2024 in Ithaca, New York. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images.

The legacy of science and science education in Minnesota is apparent when we consider companies such as 3M and Medtronic and institutions such as the Mayo Clinic and the University of Minnesota, all of which have been drivers of our economy and provided Minnesotans some of the best education, jobs and health care in the United States.

Now, we need our state’s leaders to fiercely advocate for the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation and other agencies that help deliver progress in science and engineering in the United States and here in Minnesota. 

This past week, President Trump put a hard pause on the work of the NIH. Grant reviews were paused or cancelled, some in the middle of meetings. Even if this is reversed soon, the actions already taken will have a negative impact on biomedical research in the U.S. 

Communications from the NIH, NSF, CDC and other agencies were halted, and government websites shut down. I am not even addressing the potential threat to public health this poses in the midst of winter flu season and when bird flu is also a serious concern. 

Gov. Tim Walz, our Minnesota congressional delegation and state lawmakers should act in concert to support funding for science and medicine. If we don’t act, we will lose more than just grant funding in Minnesota — jobs will be lost and businesses affected. 

Even if you are a lifelong Republican who voted for Trump, this should be very concerning. Let’s say you are a numbers person and a fiscal conservative in favor of a more efficient federal government — you should be concerned about what happened this past week because it will have a ripple effect on our state and local economies. If the U.S. defunds scientific research, our country will take a backseat in biomedical research to Asia and Europe. We could very well enter a “Dark Age” of science in the United States, which venture capital will not effectively counter. 

In funding year 2023, Minnesota universities, hospitals and for-profit businesses received about $718,000,000 from these agencies. This funded primary and translational research as well as new technologies and therapies. Furthermore, the budgets of top-tier research universities like the U are heavily subsidized by the federal government through “indirects,” which are paid to the universities by the federal agencies to support the physical plant and administrative services provided to the labs. For the University of Minnesota, that indirect cost rate for organized research on campus in 2024 was 55%. In other words, if a research group lands a grant of $1 million to fund research and faculty/staff salaries for several years, the U would receive an additional indirect cost in the amount of about $550,000. 

Analyses have shown that for every $1 of NIH money sent to states, it generates $2.46 in economic activity. Funding basic research is what leads to development of new therapies and technologies like cellphone touchscreens, MRIs and weather radar. And, the grant money funds researchers, tech entrepreneurs, doctors  and staff at institutions — these are actual Minnesotans who live , work, raise families and spend money here. They buy groceries, get their tires changed, and go out to dinner. Cut off that $718 million a year — which translates into about $1.7 billion  in economic activity — and it will directly affect local economies. Businesses will feel it. 

Who cares? I firmly believe we all should care, because if the indirect costs paid to the university are cut off, that budgetary hole will need to be filled by the state of Minnesota, which could mean tuition increases for students. 

Also: the Mayo Clinic received $278 million in 2024 in NIH funds. For over a century, Mayo has provided many Minnesotans with life-changing therapies and is among the world’s most advanced and prestigious health care systems. It is also the state’s largest private employer, with 51,000 workers. 

The bottom line is that the federal research dollars that are awarded to Minnesota organizations and businesses are a driver of economic development, create jobs and support our public institutions. Now is the time for our state and national leaders to stand up and demand full functioning and full funding of the NIH, NSF and other public health agencies.

If they do not, we will all be harmed by their inaction.