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American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF) Help the U
Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to stimulate the economy in the short term and to invest in education and other essential public services for the nation’s long-term economic health. The University of Minnesota has articulated its own principles and objectives for using the one-time State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF) under ARRA. Most significantly, has allowed the University of Minnesota to significantly buy-down tuition for its students and retain jobs that may have otherwise been lost in the face of unprecedented state budget cuts.

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The University is using more than half of the $89.3 million in SFSFS to moderate tuition for resident undergraduates for two academic years. This year, SFSF dollars mean that no resident undergraduate will see an increase of more than 3.1 percent or $300 in tuition and fees, and 60 percent of resident undergraduates will actually see a decrease in what they pay toward tuition and fees. The University has allotted SFSF dollars to a general tuition mitigation fund and a middle income scholarship, under which approximately 7,500 Minnesota students from families with an annual income of $40K to $100K will be eligible for additional support. For more information about tuition, click here.

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Still, the University of Minnesota faces significant budget challenges, even after the loss of 1,240 positions in FY 2009. As the following chart indicates, we are anticipating $155 million in state cuts over two years. (The FY 2011 budget number is what we anticipate after further unallotment by the governor, although those cuts may be larger).

ARRA Research and Formula Funds Begin to Flow to the University of Minnesota
As we mentioned in our last ARRA update, University researchers have been competing aggressively for competitively awarded grants under the ARRA. As of August 18, University faculty and staff had applied for 830 such grants and had received notice of 51 awards, totaling more than $66 million dollars. (The NOvA Higher Energy Physics Project, which was recently profiled in the Washington Post, comprises more than $43 million of these awards thus far.) The following examples show how ARRA funds are being used at the University.

Translating Promising Lab Findings Into Possible Medical Interventions
Edward McFalls, MD, Ph.D., is a professor of medicine at the University and is staff cardiologist at the Minneapolis VA Hospital. He was recently awarded $350,000 by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate a problem that is common to many heart patients: the heart cells’ mitochondria, when stressed, produce harmful oxidizing chemicals that damage heart cells. That oxidization damage compounds whatever heart problems are causing the heart cells to be stressed in the first place. In this translational research project, Dr. McFalls and his colleagues and students will look at animal models that will help determine if the introduction of a particular protein can stave off oxidation damage in cardiac cells, and he will test to see if a commonly prescribed diabetes drug can help generate this beneficial protein. His work has the potential to benefit a large population of people, including many of the veterans he sees at the VA hospital, who suffer from myocardial ischemia, a condition where the heart does not receive adequate oxygen from the blood.

Smart Concrete?
Since “dumb as a box of rocks” is a none-too-kind description, the idea of a material like concrete being “smart” may seem counter-intuitive. With a grant of $125,000 from the National Science Foundation, Xun Yu, an engineering professor at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, is exploring a new approach to monitoring the health of structures like bridges, roads, and building. He is using carbon nanotubes imbedded in concrete to detect cracking or mechanical stress—in effect using the concrete itself as a monitor. These carbon nanotubes may also improve the strength and toughness of concrete pavement, especially in cold weather conditions. Professor Yu will also be using this grant to enhance the curriculum for undergraduate engineering students at UMD, and to introduce nanotechnology, sensors, and transportation to high school students to excite their interest in science and engineering.

A Boost to Serve Our Most Underserved Health Care Populations
Community-University Health Care Center (CUHCC) is a University-affiliated facility in the Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis. Founded in 1966 to “advance the well-being of people experiencing health disparities” (socioeconomic or cultural barriers to mainstream health care services), CUHCC serves one of the most diverse patient populations across community health centers throughout the nation.

Through ARRA funding allocated to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), CUHCC received more than $800,000 in increased formula funding to buy new equipment and to cope with a surge in demand for services they are seeing due to a larger population of uninsured people. The Increased Demand for Services (IDS) funds allow for two medical providers, one triage nurse, and one patient services representative to provide primary medical care services, timely triage of patients with health care issues, and efficient scheduling of new patients and same-day appointments. The Capital Improvement Program (CIP) funds allow CUHCC to update essential medical and dental equipment (20 years and older) and purchase digital x-ray equipment to complement the clinic’s electronic health record system. The purchase of quality equipment is an investment in the clinic’s future—some equipment will last 10-15 years.

Since receiving IDS ($216,000) and CIP ($623,345) funding beginning in mid-February 2009, CUHCC has served 1,094 new medical patients—38 percent of whom are uninsured. An additional 173 established medical patients have lost their insurance coverage during this time.

HRSA issued one final competitive funding opportunity with ARRA funding: the Facility Investment Program (FIP) for community health centers to construct or renovate buildings. CUHCC has applied for a major capital grant of $12 million under FIP. Currently, CUHCC cannot add services to improve care, given its physical limitations—nor can it maximize patient care revenue to assure financial solvency. CUHCC proposes to construct a new building with 34,080 gross square feet, allowing a doubling of current clinical space, a significant increase in patients seen, as well as many more student and resident placements from the University’s Academic Health Center, thereby contributing to a future health workforce trained in the provision of culturally competent health services.