6 replies to this topic

[Decimus]

I’ve been surprised that there is no effort, that I am aware of, to form a coalition that lobbies for an increase to aging research in the national budget. This would be an obvious way to exponentially increase the rate of research and discovery within the aging field.

I would imagine a lobbying firm could petition for a 1.5 billion dollar increase to the annual budget of the NIA with the explicit understanding that these new funds would be used for hallmark of aging research and not for research into Alzheimer’s disease, which unfortunately consumes so much of the NIA’s current budget.

Other items could be tagged on as well such as annual scholarships for aging research and possibly funding for early stage aging companies (although this would be more difficult as the US government has laws against government ownership in companies and financing them in direct and indirect ways, but it still might be able to be structured).

All something like this would need to get through the House and Senate is one sponsor in each body and then to have it attached to a bigger bill that is forecast not to have a problem passing. Legislation is passed like this all the time. It goes without saying this would not be easy, but it’s certainly far from impossible.

I would imagine that the best way to fund a project like this would be to find a lobbying firm that specializes in health care lobbying, preferably one with a well-connected ex-politician. The key to the project’s success would be finding 1) the right lobbying firm 2) the right congressman and senator who are not just effective but passionate about the idea.

I would be willing to donate $10,000+ per year for such an effort if it were well-structured. Crowdfunding would be an obvious route to raise funds, but also by contacting high profile people in the anti-aging field like Jim Mellon, the head of LEF, who is very active in longevity advocacy, etc.

First of all, does anyone know of anybody that already has an effort like this ongoing? If not, does anyone have any productive ideas on how to get a project like this going? I don’t have the time to lead this, but I would be happy to throw funding into an intelligently structured effort and if it’s well done I would be surprised, given the publicity aging research has had in recent years, if it did not succeed.

[Droplet]

Looks like you have got a complex idea there that may be of use to someone. I have invited someone to this conversation who may be able to advise.

[caliban]

There have been various such efforts over the years. I'm sure they won't turn down your donation - but whether they are 'well structured' will be for you to investigate. 

 

AFAR, A4M or Phrma certainly promote their interests politically but whether they advocate for the kind of research you are interested in?        

 

 

One (semi?) active lobby org is the Global Healthspan Policy Institute  lead by Edwina Rogers 

 

One just in formation is Dylan Livingstone's Alliance for Longevity Initiatives

 

 

of course, by helping non-political org's like LongeCity (recently joined ILA) you still contribute to the capacity of citizens (who may turn out to be future voters, policy makers, or even lobbyists) to exchange politically relevant information and views. Thanks for that.       

 

[Decimus]

Thank you for the resources Caliban. The first set is probably not a match, however, the GHPI is interesting. They may have done some political lobbying in the past with the 21st Century Cures Act, which did end up passing. Hard to say what part they played in its creation and passage, but they do have “Lobbying Campaigns” listed as an activity on their webpage. They don’t appear to have any current political advocacy ongoing. I will reach out to their organization and see what their thoughts are.

[didierc]

Hello,

 

Thanks for the comments. Lobbyism should be done at the level of the European Union as well, I think. Heales.org and longevityalliance.org (and other organizations) would like to work on this, but it is not easy.

 

If somebody else is working on this at the European level, please let me know.

Didier
 

[Decimus]

Thanks for weighing in Didier.  I agree, an effort in the EU could pay off.  As I’m beginning to research this I’m amazed, so far, that no group exists for lobbying for aging research funds as this seems like such an obvious piece of low hanging fruit.

 

As an update, I did reach out to GHPI and I haven’t heard anything back, despite offering money.  That’s not a good sign.  It would be much easier to piggyback on a group that has been down this road before rather than reinventing the wheel.  
 

I am still open to suggestions.  Maybe starting a 501C3 for this purpose from scratch is the only solution, but I’ll reiterate, I can’t do this alone.

[Decimus]

There have been various such efforts over the years. I'm sure they won't turn down your donation - but whether they are 'well structured' will be for you to investigate.

AFAR, A4M or Phrma certainly promote their interests politically but whether they advocate for the kind of research you are interested in?


One (semi?) active lobby org is the Global Healthspan Policy Institute lead by Edwina Rogers

One just in formation is Dylan Livingstone's Alliance for Longevity Initiatives


of course, by helping non-political org's like LongeCity (recently joined ILA) you still contribute to the capacity of citizens (who may turn out to be future voters, policy makers, or even lobbyists) to exchange politically relevant information and views. Thanks for that.

The link put in for Livingston’s project was dead. However, I was just reading an article about their organization today:

https://www.longevit...fighting-aging/

Sounds quite promising actually. Here is their webpage:

https://a4li.org/

I will likely give them a very nice donation and I would encourage other people to consider it as there is likely nothing that will bring more of an exponential change to the aging industry than billions spent by the federal government specifically aimed at age reversal research.