UC Comment Letters

This comment letter responds the National Institute of Health (NIH)'s proposed Framework for Discussion for reforming NIH through structural and policy reform. UC urges Congress to approach NIH reform cautiously, with meaningful scientific-community input and independent review before major structural changes, warning that consolidating institutes, capping F&A costs, limiting PI grant holdings, or broadly pausing gain-of-function research could create serious unintended consequences. UC recommends reducing administrative burden, preserving peer review and basic science, supporting early-career and diverse researchers, adjusting grant-size thresholds for inflation, avoiding duplicative research-security requirements, and using risk-based expert oversight for sensitive research areas.