Sources of Information on Jobs and Other Impacts of Recovery Act Grants

NIH and NIH Recovery Act grantees collect information about the FTEs  supported by NIH Recovery Act funding as well as information on the  other impacts of this funding from a variety of sources. NIH  is also participating in the development of a multiagency collaboration  (called Star Metrics) to track the employment, scientific, and economic  impacts of its funded research projects—including Recovery Act grants. NIH and Its Grantees Reported That Recovery Act Funding Generally Increased FTEs at Grantee Institutions and Primarily Supported Scientists and Other Faculty

Data reported by all NIH Recovery Act grantee institutions to the  nationwide data collection system and available to NIH indicate that the  number of FTEs supported by NIH Recovery Act funds generally  increased from December 2009 through September 2010, then generally  remained steady from December 2010 through June 2011—the most  recent quarters for which data are available. As shown in figure 1, the  number of FTEs supported by NIH Recovery Act funding ranged from  about 12,000 in the reporting quarter ending December 2009 to about  21,000 in the quarter ending in June 2011. 2). Nearly   30 percent of the 50 selected principal investigators reported that the NIH  funding they received supported new positions, and about half of the  principal investigators reported that the funding they received allowed  them to avoid reductions in the number of employees at their institution or  avoid a reduction in the number of hours worked by current employees. In response to our data collection instrument, two-thirds of  our 50 selected principal investigators—who direct research at the  grantee institutions—reported that the Recovery Act funding received in  fiscal years 2009 and 2010 was used to purchase research supplies and  equipment and lab testing services. NIH Is Participating in a Program to Track Other Impacts, and Selected NIH Grantees Reported Other Impacts such as Purchases of Supplies and Equipment

NIH officials we interviewed said that principal investigators—who direct  research at the grantee institutions—including those which received  Recovery Act funding—currently report some information to NIH about  the other impacts of NIH-funded research. NIH officials expect that the Star Metrics program could provide  more information about these other impacts. However, at this time  there is no expected completion date for reporting this information. Some of the  principal investigators also reported that in the course of conducting some  of their Recovery Act-funded research, they were able to provide scientific  training to health care professionals. The selected principal investigators  provided anecdotal information about the other impacts of the selected  grants. According to the majority of our  selected principal investigators these preliminary results could contribute  to future scientific developments in preventive medicine, the early  detection of diseases, and medical therapies. Grantee institutions and principal investigators in our review and NIH  officials we interviewed reported that they track the scientific impact of  NIH research—including preliminary results from research funded through  the Recovery Act—primarily through peer-reviewed publications. According to NIH, when a sufficiently large body of research  results have accumulated the agency plans to prepare reports (similar to  its Investment Reports) that highlight the impact of its Recovery Act- funded research. Improvements in Medical Therapies. Improved Research Capabilities. HHS  provided technical comments that were incorporated as appropriate. At that time, we will send copies of this report to other  interested congressional committees, the Secretary of Health and Human  Services, and the Director of the National Institutes of Health. Appendix I: Scope and Methods

To obtain the information National Institutes of Health (NIH) and selected  NIH Recovery Act grantees have on the jobs supported with NIH  Recovery Act funding, we interviewed NIH officials about the information  they have on the full-time-equivalents (FTE) supported by the Recovery  Act, and reviewed (1) NIH data containing information reported by  grantee institutions to a nationwide data collection system at  www.federalreporting.gov on the FTEs supported by NIH Recovery Act  funding, (2) annual progress reports for fiscal year 2010 that NIH  Recovery Act grantees are required to submit to NIH, and (3) other jobs  information that NIH gathers from other sources. Appendix III: Analysis of Information Reported by Selected Principal Investigators on Other Impacts of Recovery Act Funding

We disseminated a Web-based data collection instrument to a total of 50  selected principal investigators (10 principal investigators at each of five  selected grantee institutions).
Why GAO Did This Study

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) included $8.2 billion in funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to be used to support additional scientific research-including extramural grants at universities and other research institutions. In 2009, the Acting Director of NIH testified that each extramural grant awarded with Recovery Act funding had the potential of supporting employment--full- or part-time scientific jobs--in addition to other impacts, such as contributing to advances in improving public health. GAO was asked to examine the use of Recovery Act funds by NIH grantees. Specifically, GAO addresses the information available from NIH and its grantees about the extent to which NIH Recovery Act funding (1) supported jobs, and (2) had other impacts. To obtain information on job impacts, GAO reviewed a database containing information NIH Recovery Act grantees reported to the national data collection system and interviewed NIH officials. To obtain more specific jobs information about individual grants, GAO administered a Web-based data collection instrument to 50 selected principal investigators who direct research at grantee institutions--10 principal investigators at each of five selected grantee institutions. The selected principal investigators had generally received awards of $500,000 or more. To obtain information on other Recovery Act impacts, GAO used information from the data collection instrument and interviewed NIH officials.

What GAO Found

Data reported by all of NIH's Recovery Act grantee institutions to the national data collection system at www.federalreporting.gov and available to NIH indicate that the number of full-time equivalent (FTEs) jobs supported by NIH Recovery Act funds increased from December 2009 through September 2010, and then remained steady from December 2010 through June 2011--the most recent quarter for which data are available. The number of FTEs supported by NIH Recovery Act funds increased from about 12,000 in the reporting quarter ending December 2009 to about 21,000 in the quarter ending in June 2011. The 50 selected principal investigators who direct research at the grantee institutions in GAO's review provided additional information explaining how the Recovery Act funding supported FTEs. Nearly one-third of the selected principal investigators reported that the NIH Recovery Act funding they received supported new positions, and about half of the principal investigators reported that the funding they received allowed them to avoid reductions in jobs or avoid a reduction in the number of hours worked by current employees. The selected principal investigators also reported that the Recovery Act funding they received primarily supported scientists and other faculty. NIH officials we interviewed reported that they receive some information from principal investigators about the other impacts of NIH-funded research, such as preliminary research results included in annual progress reports. NIH is also participating in the Star Metrics program--a multiagency venture to monitor the scientific, social, and economic impacts of federally funded science--which NIH officials expect could provide more information about these impacts. While Star Metrics is currently developing an approach to capture information about the other impacts of NIH grant funding, there is no expected completion date for reporting this information. In response to GAO's data collection instrument, selected principal investigators who direct research at the grantee institutions in GAO's review reported that the use of Recovery Act funds resulted in purchases of research supplies, equipment, laboratory testing services, and scientific training of health care professionals. The majority of the 50 selected principal investigators in GAO's review also reported preliminary results from their Recovery Act-funded research that could contribute to future scientific developments in prevention and early detection of disease, improvements in medical therapies, and improved research capabilities. The principal investigators in GAO's review and NIH officials GAO interviewed reported that they track the scientific impact of NIH research--including the impact of research funded through the Recovery Act--primarily through peer-reviewed publications, but also through other metrics such as the filing and approval of patent applications. According to NIH officials, when a sufficiently large body of research results has accumulated, NIH plans to prepare reports--similar to its existing publicly available Investment Reports--that will highlight the impact of its Recovery Act-funded research. The Department of Health and Human Services provided technical comments on a draft of this report, which GAO incorporated as appropriate.