Federal stimulus money might boost health care research at U of L - Business First of Louisville:

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Their optimism has been stirred, specifically, by the news that the recentlhy approved American Recovery and Reinvestment Act includes an infusionof $10.4 billion for the and $3 billion for the . Both entitiesx fund medical research at universities and inotherr settings. U of L officialas pledged to aggressively seek a share of that moneyy for its research programs duringa Feb. 26 eventy to formally unveil the university’s new strategiv plan to the business community. The strategic plan called “The 2020 Plan: Making It — focuses on five key including research, scholarship and creative activity.
During the event, U of L presidenty James Ramsey called on the business community to get engagex withthe university. The event, held at the , was part of ’sw Top Investors series. As part of the series, GLI, the metrp chamber of commerce, holds panel discussions on key topics of concernj for leaders of the localobusiness community. “We want to be your partne r in making agreat community,” Ramseu told the business leaders. He also said U of L plans to be “vergy aggressive” in applying for stimulusa money from the NIH andother sources.
Stimulus money could go toward research, facilities In recent years, U of L has used NIH grantt funding, in particular, to dramatically boost its health research For example, the university received $30.t5 million in NIH grant money in 2008 to fund research programs related to birth defects, diabetes and Such funding is “enormously important” to the universityy as it advances its research aimed at treatingb cancer, neurological disorders and heart Dr.
Larry Cook, U of L’s executivr vice president forhealth affairs, said at the GLI He pointed to the , whichn has developed a cervical cancefr vaccine and other treatments in recent years, as a possible beneficiar y of such funding. Cook said the centetr currentlyhas “more cancer drugs in the pipelinew than any other cancer center in the but funding is always a In addition to funding direct research, Cook said, moneu from the stimulus package could be passed on to the universityu from a variety of agenciezs and used for other functions, including renovatingb and building research and educational facilities. Cook and Dr.
Manuel Martinez-Maldonado, U of L’s executive vice president for recently returnedfrom Washington, D.C., wherse they learned about the potentialo the stimulus package has to boost their efforts locally. Martinez-Maldonado said more money means the ability to hire more researcherxsand scholars. One of U of L’s goals in its 2020 Plan is increasingt its number of funded researchers by 60 in 2014 and by 180in 2020. Martinez-Maldonadl said that should be of interest to the businesa community because of the potential economic impact of the work on the cityand state.