National Postdoctoral Association

Message to Send | House Subcommittee

August 3, 2010

UPDATE

The Senate Appropriations Committee reported out the FY 2011 Labor-HHS appropriations bill (S3686) on July 29, 2010. It appears that they approved the President's FY 2011 Budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in full. The House Subcommittee is still working on its report, but the summary of the bill indicates the subcommittee's approval of the President's budget in full.

The Senate report did not contain specific language regarding the 6-percent increase. Without specific language, the NIH will not be mandated to make this increase.

To view the status of the bill (S3686), follow this link.

April 11, 2010

Dear NPA Members and Supporters,

The U.S. Congress is currently working on the appropriations bill that will provide the 2011 funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). President Obama's FY 2011 NIH budget includes a 6% increase in the amount allocated to training stipends. Read more...

In 2001, the NIH pledged to raise the base stipend for the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSA) to $45,000.Currently, the base stipend for postdoctoral scholars is $37,740. Due to a lack of funding, the NIH has been delayed in keeping its pledge.The stipends were not increased in 2007 and 2008 and only increased by 1% each year in 2009 and 2010. Because the NRSA stipend sets the national standard for postdoctoral compensation, it is extremely important that Congress appropriate funding for the 6% increase in the President's FY 2011 Budget.

As soon as possible, please send a message in support of the 6% increase to to the Senators and Representatives on the Senate and House Appropriation Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Other Related Agencies. We have provided a message for you, and you may copy and paste this letter into a form on each of their Web sites.

Contact the Senate subcommittee members by clicking here.
Contact the House subcommittee members by clicking here.

This effort is an important step in advocating for increases in the NRSA stipends, which support more than 17,000 training positions.

Thank you for your support of postdocs!

--The NPA Advocacy Committee

--The NPA Executive Committee

 Suggested Message:

[Date]

Dear [Senator or Representative] [Insert Name],

I am writing to urge you to appropriate funds for an increase of 6 percent for National Institutes of Health (NIH) training stipends, as included in the President's FY2011 Budget. These NIH training stipends fund postdoctoral scholars, new doctorate holders engaged in a temporary period of advanced, mentored research, usually under the guidance of senior researchers. The NIH training stipends are used as a benchmark by research institutions across the country for compensation of postdoctoral scholars.

The United States must take care of its early career scientists today if we are to remain a global leader in scientific research tomorrow. Postdoctoral scholars conduct a critically significant part of the work in the U.S. scientific research enterprise and enable the research advances made every day in the United States. The majority of postdoctoral scholars are underpaid and overworked, and a very large proportion of them are funded through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) training programs.

The NIH leadership has been aware that training stipends are too low since 2001, after the publication of the results of the study Enhancing the Postdoctoral Experience for Scientists and Engineers conducted by The National Academies' Committee on Science, Engineering and Public Policy (COSEPUP). In response, the NIH pledged (1) to increase entry-level stipends to $45,000 by raising the stipends at least 10 percent each year and (2) to provide automatic cost-of-living increases each year thereafter to keep pace with inflation.

Without sufficient appropriations from Congress, the NIH has not been able to fulfill its pledge. In 2007, the stipends were frozen at 2006 levels and since then have only been raised by one percent in 2009 and by one percent in 2010, far short of the 2001 pledge. Today the NIH pays postdocs fresh out of graduate school $37,740 per year, the equivalent of a GS-8 position in the federal government (NIH Statement NOT-OD-10-047) - despite their advanced degrees and specialized technical skills.

Science and technology is an essential driver of the U.S. economy. I urge you to support America's future and help maintain our scientific and technological superiority by ensuring that the next generation of scientific leaders is compensated fairly. Please support the proposed 6-percent increase in NIH training stipends.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

[Insert your name and full mailing address]