Recommendation

Congress should fund NIH’s “All of Us” research program to improve the representativeness of datasets used in biomedical research.

Details

The NIH’s All of Us research program seeks to create the world’s most diverse genetic dataset for biomedical research. Currently, 80 percent of All of Us participants come from groups historically underrepresented in biomedical research, spanning different races, ethnicities, ages, geographies, access to health care, and disability status. All of Us fills a critical gap in genomics research by providing the enhanced diversity that is largely absent from most major biobank resources (e.g., the UK Biobank, the world’s largest whole-genome dataset, has approximately 88 percent coming from white individuals). Diverse data means that new medicines could be more efficacious in diverse populations, and could target diseases more prevalent among populations traditionally underrepresented in biopharmaceutical research. This could make biopharmaceutical innovation more equitable and reflective of diverse populations.

Keep reading:

▪ Sandra Barbosu, “Harnessing AI to Accelerate Innovation in the Biopharmaceutical Industry” (ITIF, November 2024), https://itif.org/publications/2024/11/15/harnessing-ai-to-accelerate-innovation-in-the-biopharmaceutical-industry/.