Memo dated February 28, 1997, from Dr. Harold Varmus, NIH Director, to the Directors of the NIH Institutes, Centers, and Divisions:

Bioengineering advances the nation's health by increasing biological knowledge through the use of engineering principles and techniques and contributes methods that have facilitated the development of novel devices and drugs. The boundaries are disappearing between biological and biomedical engineering resulting in increases in collaborative research and transdisciplinary training. To address current needs and prepare for the future of this emerging area, I am establishing an NIH bioengineering consortium (BECON). This group will serve as a focus for bioengineering issues. Dr. Wendy Baldwin, Deputy Director for Extramural Research, has agreed to serve as organizing chair for BECON, and Dr. Gregory Milman will staff the important activity.

BECON meetings will identify major issues and establish small working groups each led by a BECON representative and including individuals with appropriate expertise. Interagency collaboration in bioengineering may be encouraged by inviting representatives of other federal agencies to serve as ex-officio members. I expect that bioengineering will become increasingly important to all NIH Institutes and Centers.