Rally for Medical Research-April 8, 2013

In an unprecedented effort to highlight the importance of medical research, the AACR and more than 200 national organizations and institutions partnered to conduct a Rally for Medical Research on April 8 in Washington, D.C., on the steps of the Carnegie Library. The rally served as a unified call to action to raise awareness about the critical need for an increased investment in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to improve health, spur more progress, inspire more hope and save more lives. Occurring at the time of the AACR Annual Meeting 2013 in Washington, thousands of supporters, researchers, advocates, survivors, clinicians, business leaders and members of the general public attended the rally. And for the first time in its history, the Annual Meeting was suspended until the conclusion of the rally so that all attendees could participate in this event.

The Rally for Medical Research provided a platform for the medical research community to call on Congress and the administration to work together on a budget solution that prioritizes the nation's investment in medical research and the health of the American people. This was the first time that such a broad group of members from the research advocacy community joined together in such a public way to express support for the NIH. The event also united millions of Americans across the country to participate in the “Day of Action” and call on our nation's policymakers to make lifesaving medical research funding a national priority.

President Barack Obama expressed his support for the rally in a brief statement that was read by AACR CEO Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.). The President specifically pointed out that to “meet the challenges of the 21st century, we must commit to a serious, sustained effort to advance medical research.

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