ABOUT US

ACT for NIH is a 501(c)(4) non-profit advocacy organization that works with Congress to make increasing biomedical research funding a national priority.

The ACT for NIH Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to advancing life-saving biomedical research by educating policymakers and the public about the importance of biomedical research undertaken by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

ACT for NIH plays a leading role in the biomedical research advocacy community, working closely with patient and disease-specific organizations,
associations of research institutions, and scientific societies. Examples of our partners include the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), United for Medical Research, and United for Cures.

FACT SHEET: MEDICAL RESEARCH SAVES LIVES (DOWNLOADABLE PDF)

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jed Manocherian

Founder & Chairman*

Margaret Anderson

Director

Ronald DePinho, M.D.

Director

Greg Manocherian

Director*

Sudip Parikh, Ph.D.

Secretary/Treasurer*

Richard Turman

Director & President*

* Also ACT for NIH Foundation Board Member

Advisory Committee

James Allison, Ph.D.

Nobel Prize Winner; Professor, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas

Ronald DePinho, M.D.

Past President and Professor, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas

The Hon. Eric Cantor

Former House Majority Leader; Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Moelis & Company

Jennifer Doudna, Ph.D.

Nobel Prize Winner; Professor, University of California at Berkeley

Bernadette Gray-Little, Ph.D.

Former Chancellor, University of Kansas

The Hon. Tom Harkin

Former U.S. Senator; Founder, The Harkin Institute for Public Policy and Citizen Engagement

Michael Milken, M.B.A.

Chairman, The Milken Institute; Public Health Advocate

Siddhartha Mukherjee, M.D., Ph.D.

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author; Assistant Professor, Columbia University

Phillip O. Ozuah, M.D., Ph.D.

President and CEO, Montefiore Medicine

Sean Parker

Founder and Chairman, The Parker Foundation

Ronald Petersen, M.D., Ph.D.

Director, Mayo Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center; Professor, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine

Padmanee Sharma, M.D., Ph.D.

Professor, MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas

Michael Stephens, M.P.H.

Former Staff Director, House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies

STAFF

Richard Turman

President, ACT for NIH

Katy Turner

Advocacy and Operations Manager

Garrett Devenney

Advocacy Director

ANGEL IN MINK

In February 2023, the ACT for NIH Foundation announced the publication of Angel in Mink: The Story of Mary Lasker’s Crusade for Medical Research and the National Institutes of Health written by Shirley Haley.

Angel in Mink details the life of the remarkable philanthropist Mary Lasker and her life-long commitment to supporting biomedical research and NIH. In this book, the reader follows Lasker’s journeys through the halls of power and science, which was key to positioning NIH as the largest public funder of medical research in the world. Her call to action – “If you think research is expensive, try disease” – remains as true today as ever.

If you are interested in obtaining a copy of Angel in Mink, the hardcover book and the e-book are both available for purchase on Amazon, or you can click here for a free downloadable copy of the e-book. The audiobook version is also available for purchase on most major streaming platforms.