Decisions about N.I.H. spending priorities are very often controversial. Dr. Varmus has generally tried to keep money focused on basic research, while many groups seek to secure financing for studies focused on specific diseases or populations. But the controversy over minority-health research has the added weight of the history of racial discrimination in the United States. The gap in disease rates has been documented for years, and has persisted. Black infants die at a rate more than twice that of white infants.
Black people live about six fewer years, on average, than white people do.
American Indians are 10 times more likely than whites to develop diabetes. To eradicate such disparities, the N.I.H. created the Office of Research on Minority Health in 1990, before Dr. Varmus arrived. President Clinton continued that focus in 1998 when he announced the goal of eliminating the disparities by 2010. The minority-research office and N.I.H. institutes have financed research on several diseases that reflect disparities, and have supported training for minority scientists who study issues in racial disparities. Although Mr. Jackson praised Dr. Varmus's leadership and expertise, the Congressman called the results of those efforts insufficient.