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I think it’s very fitting that this afternoon we are gathered here at our clinical
and translational research building on campus at the University of Louisville.
And that with us is Dr. Francis Collins, and with us is Senator Mitch McConnell.
This building would not have been possible
if it were not for these two individuals.
It really is a privilege to be here in Louisville and
Senator I wanted to say how grateful I am to you for your leadership
in the United States Congress and all the ways which medical research
has benefitted from your thoughtful leadership over the years.
And as we see now maybe the greatest scientific opportunities ever,
it’s wonderful that you have this as one of the
areas of your own personal interest,
as demonstrated by all the things you have done
for this remarkable institution.
And by being here today and I am just grateful
for the chance to be part of this.
For those of you who aren’t as familiar with NIH,
it is the largest supporter of biomedical research in the world.
And 84 percent of the dollars that the tax payers supply to NIH,
go out to support medical research in our nation’s great institutions,
including this one.
This past year, NIH funds to the state of Kentucky
added up to 143 million dollars.
Forty eight of that came to Louisville, 48 million dollars this past year.
I calculate that that supported about 2000 jobs in the state of Kentucky.
Jobs that are high quality, high paying.
The kinds of jobs that every community is looking to have more of,
and certainly now in our economy, that is something to pay attention to.
And plus we have recently had a careful economic analysis
done that every dollar that NIH invests in research,
returns more than 2 dollars in economic goods and services
to the local community within one year.
It’s hard to think of a better investment in terms of economic
stimulation than this.
But I’m a physician, and while those economic numbers
are important to all of us now, especially in this difficult time.
It is also the case that NIH is the best hope we have,
for turning around some of the concerns that we have about ourselves,
our loved ones, our friends, our family in terms of health
risks and what we can do to prevent and treat disease.