ASPET’s Washington Fellows Take to Capitol Hill to Advocate for NIH Funding
By Marah Wahbeh, PhD, and Carter L. Alleman, JD, CAE
2025 was an undeniably tumultuous year for the science community.
We navigated continued attacks on science, disruptions from grant cuts and major policy changes within science agencies, uncertainty around the appropriations processes, and the Trump administration’s efforts to cut federal funding to science and restructure agencies through executive actions. Large-scale advocacy efforts helped us evade a 40% cut to NIH that was originally proposed in the President’s budget with the passing of the FY 2026 Labor–Health and Human Services–Education appropriations bill in early February. And the science community’s persistence paved the way for Congress to include clear restrictions on NIH’s ability to alter F&A cost structures and limit NIH’s abilities to continue to expand multi-year funding.
Our work does not end here. As we look forward to FY2027, there has never been a greater need for continued advocacy for science funding. On February 12, all 14 of ASPET’s Washington Fellows gathered with members of the Science Policy Committee, ASPET Council, and program alumni for this year’s Capitol Hill Day to advocate for FY2027 NIH funding. The group met with their state’s Congressional staff to discuss the importance of sustained and predictable federal funding for scientists, to advocate for the need to fund the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to at least $51.3 billion for the 2027 fiscal year, and to educate Congress on the drug development process and field of pharmacology.
The ASPET contingent participated in 36 meetings, 21 in the Senate and 15 in the House, with both Democratic and Republican offices representing 11 states and DC. All offices were receptive to hearing stories from their constituents and scientists. Most were supportive of science funding and the research enterprise. Staffers asked questions and some expressed interest in learning even more about drug development. Other offices expressed reservations over the federal budget and concerns regarding the high expenses of the drug development process, and were interested in having more discussions on the role of AI in the process going forward. Our members emphasized the local impact of NIH funding on the institutions in the elected officials’ home states and shared documents to show the direct impact of returns on investment in biomedical research and drug development. (You can find more information on how NIH funding impacts your state here.)
ASPET Washington Fellows took over ASPET’s social media to share their Hill Day experiences on ASPET’s LinkedIn and Instagram accounts. The fellows shared that they enjoyed talking to staffers about their research and felt empowered to continue educating policymakers and fighting for science.
Sherouk Tawfik posted: “As scientists, we’re trained to think in data, mechanisms, and pathways. This week reminded me that impact also depends on dialogue.”
Rodnie Ortiz wrote: “By sharing our experience as scientists, we reinforced the need to support basic science research in order to develop efficient drugs and innovative therapeutics that can save lives, as well as expand research training and workforce capacity for future generations.”
Engagement in science advocacy is crucial, especially for early career scientists as decisions made today are the ones that lay out the groundwork for their future. If you are interested in participating in future advocacy work with ASPET, contact the government affairs department at publicaffairs@aspet.org. The Washington Fellows Program applications will open in late April / early May.
ASPET Capitol Hill Day 2026
