Making a fuss over medical research

The $20 billion Medical Research Future Fund is now one step closer to implementation, with legislation passing Senate after amendments from the LNP.
In a joint statement on Wednesday, the treasurer and health and finance ministers said the fund will receive an initial contribution of $1 billion from the uncommitted balance of the previous Labor government's Health and Hospitals Fund.
The legislation must now go back through the House of Representatives for approval however there are still concerns about the political nature of the fund, which has been criticised as being influenced by ‘those with the loudest voices’.
The Government has overseen multiple amendments to the ‘messy’ legislation including amendments from Labor and The Greens. Critics of the Fund have pointed to its lack of independent bugetary oversight.
Phoebe Phillips, president of the Australian Society for Medical Research, said there needs to be a compulsory peer review process before money is allocated to projects, so money is not just handed to the "loudest speaker".
The fund will be administered by an eight-member independent expert advisory board - including a seat for the chief executive of the NHMRC which is yet to be announced.
The health minister will also be legally required to report to the parliament every two years on how the distributed money has met the strategies and priorities independently set by the board.
However the public has been asked for its support through the MRFF Action Group which this week launched its “What’s the Fuss?” campaign in Parliament House in support of medical research and the Medical Research Future Fund.
The public education campaign aims ‘to give the community a better understanding of the important role health and medical research plays in all our lives,’ with the aim of ensuring the MRFF legislation is passed and the $20 billion target is reached.
The 30 second TVC features Carrie Bickmore, Ita Buttrose, Sir Gus Nossal, Natasha Stott Despoja, and other community leaders, researchers and patients all posing the question “What’s the fuss?” in regard to medical research and the Medical Research Future Fund.
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Visit the website at www.whatsthefuss.org.au