How to Restore France Competitiveness in Biomedical Research

In 2000, France was fifth worldwide in biomedical research production. In 2020, France ranked ninth. Over the past ten years, both resources devoted to biomedical research in France and French scientific production declined compared to other leading countries. The currently planned increase in funding and reforms won't be enough to restore France competitiveness in biomedical research. In the international context, this article documents key developments over the past ten years, describes currently planned reforms, and suggests other evidence-based restorative measures: creating a quantitative and qualitative evaluation program for biomedical research to deepen understanding of the situation; imposing rules about coordination and maximum delays for decisions to the multiple agencies and organizations funding and managing biomedical research; developing training programs in research quality and reproducibility for doctors and scientists; subjecting clinical trial funding to methodological criteria; and fostering interdisciplinarity in higher education.