Research on the effectiveness of palliative care services has long been financed by philanthropy. A recent vote by the senate has developed a sustainable funding mechanism for this type of research that will be made available through the National Institute on Aging (NIA). This federal funding appropriated totals $12.5M and is expected to be awarded to researchers to expand the evidence base for palliative care services across care settings, populations, and disease types.
While there has been funding by numerous federal institutes in the past, notably the National Institue of Nursing Research who established the Palliative Care Research Cooperative (PCRC), National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIA, and the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), this is the first dedicated effort by the federal government to fund and coordinate research on palliative care services and the person-centered techniques used in this area of care. This research has the opportunity to further create the business case for the effectiveness of palliative care services and to demonstrate its clinical effectiveness when provided alongside the treatment available to people with serious illness.
Prior to this dedicated funding, palliative care research has had a long history of support from local and national philanthropic organizations. Philanthropically funded programs such as the Open Society Institute’s Project on Death in America, Cambia Sojourns Scholars Program and in particular, the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC) have played critical roles over the past 25 years in building research capacity and creating the next generation of scientists. As the NPCRC closes its work in 2025, this dedicated federal funding will support key NPCRC initiatives that have been funded by private sector philanthropy thus ensuring their sustainability.
CTAC applauds the work of the Patient Quality of Life Coalition whose tireless advocacy and educational efforts brought this federal funding to fruition to build the evidence to improve the care of persons with serious illness. C-TAC also applauds this federal commitment and the possibility to increase access to palliative care services through enhancements made in clinical services and expanding the evidence base through research into its effectiveness. More Information about the bill can be found here.
