Amid significant cuts made to research funding by the federal government, Johns Hopkins Medicine leaders reached out in March to assure faculty, staff and students that teams across the university and health system were “working around the clock … to protect our ability to fulfill our missions.”

In a March 17 letter to the community, Dean/CEO Theodore DeWeese and Kevin Sowers, president of the Johns Hopkins Health System and executive vice president of Johns Hopkins Medicine, noted that the dismantling of USAID and the cancellation of its associated grants had led to the loss of 1,975 Johns Hopkins positions in 44 countries and 247 in the United States. “This included the difficult decision to let go of 13 valued colleagues from the school of medicine — dedicated professionals whose work has been critical to saving lives both here and around the world,” they wrote.

In an effort to build public pressure against funding cuts, Johns Hopkins rolled out a university-wide “Research Saves Lives Campaign,” led by the office of University Communications, in early spring. Campaign architects have published dozens of articles and produced numerous videos explaining — in human terms — how Johns Hopkins researchers have made dramatic advances in patient care, thanks to government funding.

In one article, otolaryngologist Frank Lin shares how $20 million in National Institutes of Health funding over the past 15 years has fueled his research showing how hearing loss is the largest risk factor for dementia. Lin’s subsequent advocacy helped move passage of the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act, which has since brought the average cost of hearing aids down from $4,700 per pair to $200. In another story, computer scientist Suchi Saria explains how an AI-powered platform she developed through National Science Foundation funding is reducing sepsis mortality rates by 18% in dozens of hospitals across the United States.

The campaign’s stated message for voters, patients and caregivers: Without such research, “scientific breakthroughs suffer, and the lifesaving treatments of tomorrow are at risk.”

For more stories about lifesaving Johns Hopkins research, visit: hub.jhu.edu/research-saves-lives/