FAQ
Prop 38 will provide $8.4 billion to advance breakthrough immunology research to develop life-saving cures for the most persistent and debilitating diseases impacting all California families, such as cancer, Alzheimer’s and heart disease. This initiative represents real hope and promising cures to help save your life and the life of someone you love.
Immunotherapies use the body's own immune system to detect and stop diseases. They are already saving and extending lives for patients dealing with cancers like melanoma, lung cancer and leukemia. Leading doctors and research scientists are developing immunotherapies that have the potential to prevent and cure a whole range of diseases in our lifetime, including cancer, heart disease, neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and other diseases such as diabetes, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), HIV/AIDS, muscular dystrophy, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and multiple sclerosis. For the millions of Californians and their loved ones living with these diseases, the life-saving research funded by Prop 38 represents not just hope, but the very real possibility of a cure in our lifetime.
Because the immune system plays a role in nearly every aspect of human health, immunology research has the power to prevent, treat and cure a wide range of diseases and conditions – from cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s to Parkinson’s, diabetes, ALS, HIV/AIDS, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, and more. Half of all funds are dedicated specifically to research into cures for Alzheimer’s, cancer and heart disease.
To learn more about the power of immunotherapy and how it’s already saving lives, click here.
Prop 38 is supported by a broad and diverse coalition of doctors, nurses and patient advocates, including The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, Alzheimer's Association, ALS Association, American Nurses Association\California, Prostate Cancer Foundation, International Myeloma Foundation, Latino Diabetes Association, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Blood Cancer United, Kidney Cancer Association, and GO2 for Lung Cancer, among many others. Together, these organizations advocate for the millions of Californians living with diseases that Prop 38 aims to prevent and cure.
Federal funding cuts and uncertainty for California universities and research institutes are delaying medical research, threatening progress towards finding cures. We are in a race against time, and patients and their loved ones can’t afford to wait. Every funding cut costs patients time, and every research breakthrough gives families more of it.
Medical research funded by this measure will be conducted here in California at leading universities and medical research institutions that are well-qualified to conduct breakthrough immunology and immunotherapy research.
That may include University of California campuses, such as UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, UC San Francisco, UC Irvine, UC Davis, and UC Riverside; private non-profit universities, such as Stanford, USC and Caltech; and non-profit research institutions such as City of Hope, Cedars-Sinai, and Sanford Burnham Prebys, among others.
No bond funds can be awarded to pharmaceutical companies or other for-profit corporations.
Prop 38’s innovative funding model combines a major center of excellence with broad investment in California’s extraordinary research institutions and scientific community.
Prop 38 mandates that half the funding go toward a nonprofit immunology research institute affiliated with the University of California. This world-class research center will bring together leading scientists, advanced technology, specialized laboratory facilities, patients and clinical trials to accelerate discoveries into treatments and cures. This institute will be selected by the California Department of Public Health based on strict accountability requirements.
The other half of funds will be awarded competitively through a grant program to leading universities and nonprofit research institutions across California. This will be overseen by an Advisory Council of leading scientists, doctors and researchers in the field of immunology.
Ultimately, Prop 38 is designed to create something California has never had before: a permanent, collaborative research ecosystem that combines broad competitive funding with a world-class institution capable of accelerating discoveries into life-saving treatments for patients.
Any cure or immunotherapy developed through research funded by Prop 38 must be made available to California patients at a 20% discount below the national average. That affordability protection is written directly into the measure — it’s not optional.
Preventing and curing the most pressing diseases will also reduce long-term healthcare expenses and save the families and the state tens of billions of dollars in avoided medical expenses.
Yes. Prop 38 funding may only be awarded to California-based nonprofit universities and research institutions with demonstrated expertise in immunology and immunotherapy research. By funding breakthrough research here at home, Prop 38 will support California scientists and universities, create tens of thousands of good-paying jobs, and strengthen California’s position as a leader in innovative medical research.
Prop 38 is designed to fully pay for itself with no cost to the state or taxpayers. Ten percent (10%) of all proceeds from the licensing of immunotherapies must be returned to the State of California to offset the total cost of the bond measure, including interest. Furthermore, preventing and curing the most pressing diseases will reduce long-term healthcare expenses and save families and the state tens of billions of dollars in avoided medical expenses. Beyond the dollars saved, every cure developed means one less family facing a devastating diagnosis and the financial and emotional burden that comes with it.
Prop 38 includes strong accountability and transparency requirements, including limiting state administrative costs to run the program to no more than 2%, requiring all grant funds to nonprofit universities and research centers be spent directly on medical research, rigorous conflict of interest rules, public disclosure of all spending and independent financial audits. Every dollar is traceable, accountable and focused on saving lives.