Pharma, Inc., a large pharmaceutical company, has come under increased pressure because it decided to discontinue work on a vaccine that could potentially prevent infection with the Zika virus. In the press conference announcing this move, the CEO of Pharma said that the company's research funds are limited and that promising results from Phase II trials with an Alzheimer's drug drove the company to pivot away from its efforts on the Zika vaccine. In the face of withering criticism, the CEO asserted her fiduciary responsibility to her shareholders. Activists are lobbying the government to buy the vaccine from Pharma, Inc. and fund the rest of its development with taxpayer money. Senator Schanzenbach's office has contacted Kurana to ask if Alex can provide a brief that would help them determine the senator's position on the issue.

Based on provided information help Alex to answer the following questions:

• How much does the U.S. government spend on biomedical research annually? Is this more or less than what the private pharma sector spends? What is the main vehicle through which the government funds biomedical research?
• Is there a rational way of spending these funds? What should determine what we spend our tax dollars on? Does this pan out in the data, if we do the analysis?
• In light of (1) and (2), what data do the senator's office need in order to determine support for the activists' petition regarding Pharma, Inc.'s vaccine development?