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Michael G. Kurilla M.D., Ph.D.

NCATS Director of Clinical Innovation

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That Was the Year That Was

By: Michael Kurilla, M.D., Ph.D., NCATS Director of the Division of Clinical Innovation

December 1, 2022

As 2022 comes to a close, from the federal perspective, we have already begun FY23 (as of Oct 1). As is typical, NIH (along with the rest of the US government) is operating under a continuing resolution (CR) through December 16, now only about two weeks away. There is already talk of another CR extending through December 23 which might be somewhat encouraging as these short term CRs tend to come about when there is confidence in completing all the details on a multi-trillion-dollar budget. On the other hand, with changes in House leadership (on both sides of the aisle) and several significant impending retirements in the Senate, there are quite a bit of committee chairmanships up for grabs that need to be sorted out. Also, a big issue for the next Congress is dealing with the debt ceiling some time in early 2023 which may impact budget negotiations if they are still being discussed. All this is to say that while draft 2023 bills have been encouraging, nothing has been decided yet. As such, NCATS will be operating during the CR per NIH standard policy and may need to delay some funding decisions.

 

On a more positive note, although it arrived too late for an announcement at the Annual Program meeting (more on that below), it is now official that NCATS has a new, permanent Director. Larry Tabak (who is now ‘performing the duties of the NIH Director’) named Joni Rutter to succeed Chris Austin. Joni had been ‘acting’ since Chris’ departure back in April of 2021. Joni has already hit the ground running. During her ‘acting’ period she engineered converting the Office of Grant Management and Scientific Review (OGMSR) into the Division of Extramural Activities (DEA) which is in line with most other institutes and centers (ICs) across NIH as well as elevating the Office of Rare Disease Research (ORDR) to the now Division of Rare Disease Research Innovation (DRDRI). While these actions don’t directly impact the CTSA program, they serve to bring NCATS more in line with other ICs and bode well for the future as we continue to build out an ‘R’ program for the translational science community. Joni has also hosted three roundtables with CTSA PIs and institutional leadership. While we’re still digesting those discussions, it’s clear that this type of interaction was well received and will likely continue.

 

Finally, one month ago, we held the first in-person CTSA Program meeting in 3 years. The venue was familiar, at the Omni Shoreham in DC. The theme was ‘Achieving Health Equity through the Science of Translation.’ The Administrators and Steering Committee met on day 1 followed by a traditional evening poster session and networking reception. The following day, the general meeting was held. Rob Califf led off with a rousing keynote that emphasized the work before us to realize the potential of all our wonderful science being translated into better health for all. After Rob’s talk, there was a panel discussion on improving diversity in clinical trials followed by a second panel on training to improve diversity in research. After lunch, social determinants of health were discussed followed by community engagement and the preliminary results from the DEIA Taskforce Survey. Joni wrapped things up with a look towards the future with NCATS. The slides and recordings for the meeting are now available, if you would like to revisit highlights from the convening.

 

Stay safe and enjoy the upcoming holiday seasons!

 

Looking forward to 2023.

 

Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on,

with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.

- Hal Borland

 

This Mike's Blog was featured in December 2022's Ansible. Subscribe to receive upcoming Ansible newsletters.

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