The American Society for Clinical Psychopharmacology (ASCP) has learned with significant concern about the National Institutes of Health (NIH) plan, shared on February 7 and scheduled to become effective on February 10, to limit the indirect cost rate for biomedical research at a fixed rate of 15%. This is alarming, as in its current form it will have a major negative impact on US biomedical research.The indirect costs allow the maintenance of very expensive research facilities (such as animal laboratories, imaging facilities, administrative functions, and others) which are critical for the pursuit of biomedical research and must pre-exist any new research study. The rates of indirect costs have been negotiated over the years between NIH and academic institutions, considering the expected costs of such research facilities, with variations based on geographical location. The current proposed policy assumes that over several decades all such decisions, made by generations of NIH science administrators, have been inexplicably and consistently wrong.The comparison with indirect rates paid by foundations is misleading, as foundations represent a small percentage of the total research funds and typically fund small initial studies. Academic institutions use much larger federal indirect costs to subsidize the small foundation sponsored studies via the established research infrastructure. The current proposal to reduce NIH indirect rates to 15% represents a dramatic (larger than 50%, in some cases larger than 75%) reduction of NIH support for cutting edge research facilities. It has the potential to significantly alter the ecosystem of research institutions which underpin the excellence of US biomedical research.ASCP is the premier organization in the field of clinical psychopharmacology, striving since its inception to bring together representatives from academia, the NIH, other US and European regulatory agencies, and industry to advance research and clinical treatment in neuropsychiatric disorders. We recognize the enormous impact that NIH-sponsored research has on the advancement of medical research, including in the field of psychopharmacology. We will work in partnership with other sister organizations to advocate for the optimal resolution of this and future challenges for our research community.
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-25-068.html