Who Pays For Research?

Today's questions:

1. Should scientific health research (as distinguished from research on the organization, process or payment for our health care system or military health research) be funded by the federal government? If "yes", should the budget for such research draw on funds collected by the federal government for health insurance or from some other source? If "no", where will adequate funding be found?

2. What percent of the gross domestic product should be used to fund scientific health research? What fraction of that percent should come from government and what fraction should come from non-government sources?

3. What percent of the gross domestic product should be used to fund research on the organization, process or payment for health care? What fraction of that percent should come from government and what fraction should come from non-government sources?

4. Should government play a role in encouraging scientific health research?

5. Should a private funder of scientific health research have patent rights from discoveries which it can then market? Should a government funder of scientific health research have patent rights from discoveries which it can then market?

6. Should a federal regulatory agency, such as the Food and Drug Administration, draw its funds from industry and the manufacturers of products which are submitted for approval?

7. How many cents of the health care dollar which come from your pocket should be used for scientific health research?