Memo to life scientists who want to take advantage of new research funding for bioterrorism and biodefense: Submit your federal grant applications now, even though the US government's fiscal year 2003 budget is still up in the air. "Investigators should not hesitate to put in applications for grants or respond to RFPs [Request for Proposals] and contracts," says Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). "You'd be making a big mistake because you may miss a grant or contract cycle if you [hesitate]. The president and the Congress both want a budget--and it will happen."
The question, of course, is how much and when. No one knows what the National Institutes of Health's final budget will be or when it will be approved. Assuming action on the budget happens soon after Congress convenes this month, NIAID intends to fund more than $1.7 billion ...
