Value of Research Funding Toolkit

May 2025

Toolkit: Value of Medical Research Funding 

About this Toolkit

On May 2, 2025, the White House released a preview of the president’s budget request for fiscal year 2026. Within the “skinny budget,” the proposed budget cut $18 billion dollars from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Investing in medical research and education is essential to advancing health, saving lives, and preparing for future health challenges. 

The AAMC is leading national efforts to protect and expand NIH funding, ensuring sustained support for research that drives medical progress and saves lives. Your local action is critical to amplify this work and show policymakers the real-world impact in their own communities. 

This toolkit includes user-friendly materials and resources AAMC constituents can use to advocate for and help others understand the value of medical research. 

If you have any questions about these resources, please contact Cate Shockey, AAMC senior director of enterprise communications. 

doctors-research-lab

AAMC Action

The AAMC has launched an AAMC Action advocacy initiative that mobilizes support for federal investment in medical research. By advocating for strong, sustained NIH funding, AAMC Action helps ensure continued progress in medical breakthroughs, supports healthier communities, and boosts local and regional economies.

Join the AAMC Action and urge Congress to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health. Your voice helps protect the future of medical research and ensures life-saving discoveries continue. Then, amplify your impact by sharing this message with your network to help build broad support for stronger NIH funding and a healthier future for all Americans.

Telling a Story 

NIH funding fuels the breakthroughs, cures, and careers that define your institution. As threats to that funding grow, we need your help to show what’s at stake. Share compelling stories from your faculty and labs to show policymakers and the public why sustained investment in research matters now more than ever.

Use these key messages and infographic to help ground your story. 

Media Storytelling

Local media coverage makes the impact of NIH funding personal and tangible. By telling stories about how potential cuts affect local researchers, patients, and jobs, you can help build public support and influence policymakers who are paying close attention to what's happening in their districts.

You can help build public support and influence policymakers by: 

  • Pitching a story to your local newspaper, TV, or radio outlet about how NIH-funded research at your institution is improving lives or driving economic growth in your community. 

  • Highlighting real people—researchers, patients, or staff—whose work or care depends on NIH support. 

  • Writing an op-ed or letter to the editor that explains what’s at stake for your community if funding is cut. 

  • Inviting journalists to tour your lab or meet with faculty and students working on NIH-backed projects. 

Local stories matter, especially to elected officials watching their districts closely.

An op-ed template is available to help you share your story.  Customize it to highlight the impact of NIH funding at your institution and in your community.

The AAMC released a statement on May 2, 2025, about the preview of the president’s budget: AAMC Statement on the President’s Budget Request Preview 

Toolkit Materials

Click to download and use the PDF materials below, including key messages about funding for the NIH, a template Op-ed for AAMC Member Institutions to submit to local or regional news outlets, and an infographic showing the value of NIH-funded research at medical schools and teaching hospitals. 

Social Media Advocacy and Storytelling

The sample social media posts below are designed to be easy-to-use and customizable for storytelling by your institutions. Customize them to show how your work is advancing medicine and serving your community. Be sure to tag your elected officials—and the AAMC—so we can help amplify your messages through our advocacy and communications channels. 

Suggested hashtag: #NoCutsToCures 

Twitter/X 

  • Lifesaving medical research drives advancements in cancer treatment, Alzheimer's care, gene therapies, and more. Congress must support medical research so Americans can live longer, healthier lives. #NoCutsToCures  

  • #DYK the long-term research funded by the NIH has been behind almost every test, treatment, and cure for patients? At [Institution Name], we [link/explain how your institution is advancing medical research]. #NoCutsToCures  

  • Medical research saves lives and promotes better health outcomes for all Americans. For example, [Insert link or story related to medical research at your institution]. #NoCutsToCures  

  • In FY2024, NIH-funded research supported 407,782 jobs and $94B in economic activity. Medical research doesn’t just improve our health — it grows the economy, too. #NoCutsToCures   

  • The U.S. has long been the global leader in medical research, but other countries are catching up. To retain our global competitiveness, it’s vital for Congress to support robust, steady funding for medical research. #NoCutsToCures  

  • The administration has proposed a nearly $18B cut to the NIH in the President’s fiscal year 2026 budget request. If enacted, patients across the country will be deprived of new treatments & interventions. We urge Congress to reject these budget cuts. #NoCutsToCures  

  • In a new poll on 8 potential federal budget cuts, reducing federal funding for medical research had the greatest percentage of opposition. It’s clear: to keep America healthy, lawmakers must invest in medical research. #NoCutsToCures 

LinkedIn/Facebook 

Medical research today pays a lifetime of dividends in saving lives and promoting better health outcomes for all Americans. For example, [Insert link or story related to medical research at your institution].

But these lifesaving breakthroughs are at risk.  

The administration recently proposed a nearly $18 billion cut to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the President’s fiscal year 2026 budget request. Not only would these budget cuts deprive patients of new treatments, diagnostics, and preventative interventions, it would reduce economic development and cede American leadership to global competitors. 

We urge Congress to reject these cuts and instead invest in the lifesaving medical research that serves patients, families, and communities across the country.  

#FundNIH #NoCutsToCures #StartsInAcademicMedicine   

Graphics for Social Media

Download ready-to-use graphics for Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter/X to share across your institution’s channels.

How to download: Right-click on any image and select "Save image as..." to save it to your device.

NIH quote (AAMC logo):

NIH

NIH quote (no AAMC logo):

NIH

AAMC Medical Schools

Instagram:

Instagram

LinkedIn:

LinkedIn

Twitter/X:

Twitter/X

Alzheimer's

Instagram:

Instagram

LinkedIn:

LinkedIn

Twitter/X:

Twitter

Cancer

Instagram:

Instagram

LinkedIn:

LinkedIn

Twitter/X:

Twitter

Innovation

Instagram:

Instagram

LinkedIn:

LinkedIn

Twitter/X:

Twitter/X

AAMC Resources and Information

NIH Funding Specific Resources 

Press Statements: 

 

Digital Media Resources: 

 

Advocacy Resources: 

  • Clinical reconciliation key messages (April 2025) 

  • Medicaid financing position statements (April 2025) 

  • The AAMC joined a letter in coalition with the Federation of Associations of Schools of the Health Professions (March 2025) 

  • The AAMC joined a letter with the Public Service Loan Forgiveness coalition (April 2025) 

 

The AAMC’s updated non-profit academic health systems and teaching hospitals resource page includes the following: 

  • A data snapshot on clinical benefits of nonprofit academic health systems 

  • An opportunity to share stories that showcase the vital role of nonprofit academic health systems and teaching hospitals in communities nationwide 

Additional Resources and Information

The AAMC remains steadfast in its commitment to confront critical challenges to academic medicine. Explore the resources below to learn more and take action. 

Student Aid 

Indirect Costs 

 

Access to Care