U.S. Risking its Scientific Research Edge?

In this episode of Stanford Legal, host Professor Pamela Karlan interviews her Stanford Law School colleague Professor Lisa Larrimore Ouellette about actions by the Trump administration that Ouellette says are undermining scientific research and jeopardizing America’s longstanding global leadership in medicine and innovation. Drawing on an essay she penned for Just Security, Ouellette explains how decades of bipartisan support for federally funded science—an engine of American innovation since World War II—is now at risk. From canceling grants already approved through peer review, to capping essential “indirect cost” reimbursements, she details how these moves threaten not just labs and universities but also patients, whose clinical trials are being abruptly halted.  

Ouellette also highlights a second front in her current scholarship: how drug development policy can be better aligned with public health needs. As a member of a National Academies committee, she recently co-authored a report showing that both private investment and federal funding often fail to prioritize diseases causing the greatest suffering. 

Links:

• Lisa Larrimore Ouellette >>> Stanford Law page
• The Trump Administration’s Multi-Front Assault on Federal Research Funding  >>> Just Security page
• Stanford Law’s Lisa Ouellette Helps Shape New Report on Drug Development Reform  >>> Stanford Lawyer online feature

Connect:

• Episode Transcripts >>> Stanford Legal Podcast Website
• Stanford Legal Podcast >>> LinkedIn Page
• Rich Ford >>>  Twitter/X
• Pam Karlan >>> Stanford Law School Page
• Stanford Law School >>> Twitter/X
• Stanford Lawyer Magazine >>> Twitter/X

(00:00) Research Funding 

(05:01) The Competitive Grant Process 

(15:01) Addressing Disease Burden 

(20:00) Impacts of Stopped Clinical Trials 

(25:01) The Role of Federal Investment in Innovation 

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