National Institutes of Health | Community Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States federal government responsible for biomedical and public health research. Founded in 1887, it is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and comprises 27 institutes and centers, with many facilities located in Bethesda, Maryland, and other nearby suburbs of the Washington metropolitan area. The NIH conducts its scientific research through the NIH Intramural Research Program (IRP) and provides significant biomedical research funding to non-NIH research facilities through its Extramural Research Program. As of 2013, the IRP had 1,200 principal investigators and more than 4,000 postdoctoral fellows in basic, translational, and clinical research, making it the largest biomedical research institution in the world. With a budget of over $41 billion in 2020, the NIH plays a critical role in advancing medical knowledge and improving human health, with its research focusing on a wide range of diseases and conditions, including cancer, HIV/AIDS, and mental health disorders.