The National Center for Social Work Research Act

S.90

• Senator Inouye (D-HI) introduced the National Center for Social Work Research Act (S.90) in January 2005.
• In previous years, The National Center for Social Work Research Act has had bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate.
• The Senate bill states that the center will be housed in the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). While NIH supports social workers in various research efforts and recognizes the unique contributions that social workers make, it is in the process of consolidating centers and programs. Therefore, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have also both been considered as potential places to house the center.
• Professional social workers are uniquely situated to provide valuable research information on complex social concerns that also consider a wide range of social, medical, economic, and community influences. A national center for social work research would serve as a clearinghouse for this information.
• A national center for social work research would compile best practices evaluated through research and make them available to practitioners, as well as policymakers who are trying to make informed social policy decisions.
• Besides compiling information and sponsoring situational research, a national center would provide grants to colleges, universities, and appropriate non-profit organizations to increase professional social work 's research foundation and capacity.