On the recordJuly 10, 2015
I would just add that the purpose of this amendment, obviously, well received on both sides of the aisle--perhaps there are particulars we can work on--is to catalyze more innovation among the thousands, tens of thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators around this country, really around the world. If we can get more minds collectively thinking about medical breakthroughs, about actually curing diseases, as a preventative measure, we can save significant amounts of money in the long term. We can dramatically improve lives in the shorter term. This is a model that opens up Federal Government funding as a reward for these innovations to our Nation's innovators, our entrepreneurs, our doers. Right now, the NIH grant process is suboptimal for a lot of these individuals. I can speak to one individual. He used to be my neighbor, Fazni Aziz, of Bloomington, Indiana. He is a Thomas Edison-like figure, and he used to have a workshop right next to his house. He developed medical devices on his own and sold them off to larger companies. Fazni Aziz would not receive an NIH grant. He will never apply for one. He doesn't have time to apply for one. Would he target a medical innovation on account of a prize that is offered? Indeed. We have consulted with him. So for the people like Fazni Aziz around the world that can help Americans, we have developed this prize program. Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), the chairman.
