The Power of Immunology: Why California Should Vote Yes on Prop 38

This fall, California voters have a chance to put politics aside and act on an issue that affects us all by supporting medical research to treat and cure the most devastating diseases of our time.

Proposition 38, the California Immunology and Immunotherapy Research Funding Initiative, would provide $8.4 billion for immunology research to find treatments and cures for cancer, Alzheimer’s, heart disease and some of the most aggressive diseases affecting California families.

Immunology is the science that harnesses the body’s own immune system to detect and stop disease. It’s not a theory. Immunotherapies are already working for patients battling melanoma, lung cancer and leukemia. People who were told they had just a few weeks to live are now in long-term remission.

The timing of the measure is not incidental. Since taking office in 2025, the Trump administration has cut or frozen billions of dollars in federal funding for medical research. The proposed fiscal 2027 budget seeks to cut National Institutes of Health funding by roughly $5 billion and fund an estimated 7,500 fewer research project grants than in 2026. Scientists are experiencing abrupt stop-work orders mid-project, forcing labs to shut down, and leaving patients with limited time waiting even longer.

“Medical research shouldn’t be partisan,” said Jillian McCool, former postdoctoral researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Lab. “I was in the middle of conducting potentially life-saving research when federal funds became unreliable, ultimately stopping research. These kinds of delays are devastating to these studies and to the patients waiting for new treatments.”

These fits and starts set research back by decades, not years, at a time when rates continue to increase year over year for cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s.

The case for Prop 38 demonstrates urgency: California can’t afford to wait on Washington, D.C. while millions of patients and families are racing against time. Prop 38 will position California as a leader in biotech medical research and development, insulated from shifting directives from the federal level.

An important consideration in research, experts say, is momentum. Funding gaps can cause this momentum to disappear entirely, as long delays in finding new funds, red tape and other considerations can create irreparable setbacks.

“We are standing at a threshold of exciting breakthroughs in treating intractable diseases,” said Elaine Hsiao, Ph.D., professor, and immunology and brain health researcher. “We need to support cure-finding research in immunology and immunotherapies because we are at the precipice of discovery that could save lives and give hope to millions.”

Prop 38 requires that at least half of the research funding must go toward cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s, specifically. These debilitating diseases affect the lives of many in Southern California and beyond.

“Alzheimer’s steals memories and independence from the people we love, and deprives us of precious time with them,” said Susan Disney Lord, Board Chair, Alzheimer’s Los Angeles. “But effective treatments for Alzheimer’s are within reach, and Proposition 38 can help get us there.”

In addition to Alzheimer’s and cancer, immunotherapies could aid a much broader list of conditions – including Parkinson’s, diabetes, ALS, muscular dystrophy, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and multiple sclerosis.

So, who would oppose life-saving cures?

Skeptics claim voters shouldn’t decide spending. But our state ballot measure system was designed specifically to allow voters to set priorities. And there can be no greater priority than funding cures and saving lives.

Prop 38 is designed to pay for itself: ten percent of all revenue from licensing successful treatments and cures goes back to California to offset the bond’s total cost, including interest. The measure also accounts for affordability: any treatment or cure developed with Prop 38 funding will come to Californians at a 20 percent discount below the national average.

Prop 38’s bond funds would be distributed in two ways:

• Half would go to a single nonprofit research institute affiliated with the University of California, intended to bring scientists, patients and clinical trials together under one roof.
• Half would be distributed through a competitive grant process to public universities and nonprofit research institutions across the state, overseen by a council drawn from University of California campuses and other California research institutions.

The innovative funding model aims to create something California has never had before: a self-sustained, collaborative research ecosystem, where the awarded universities and research centers share best practices, equipment, clinical trials facilities and expertise. Sustained funding and collaboration are a job creator for Californians, ensuring our state stays a leader.

“Hope is powered by science, and the scientific opportunities in front of us have never been greater,” said Adam Zarrin, Director of State Government Affairs for Blood Cancer United. “Breakthroughs in cancer and chronic disease depend on sustained, reliable investment, and funding instability can delay lifesaving clinical trials for patients with few options. This measure will strengthen California’s research and clinical trial infrastructure, helping ensure patients can access cutting-edge therapies sooner while accelerating the search for cures.”

For the families living with these diseases, none of this is abstract.

“As a mother navigating my son’s journey through leukemia treatment and now a complex, unexplained immune condition, I’ve seen both the promise and the gaps in immunology,” said Bhavika Taunk, mother and advocate for childhood cancer survivors in Danville, CA. “Families like ours need more treatments, more breakthroughs and more hope. Investing in immunology research gives families like ours a fighting chance, not just against cancer, but against everything that comes after.”

Be it cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s or other devastating diseases, few California families have escaped being affected. Proposition 38 represents a chance to help change that – not with any false promise, but with sustained, protected and accountable investment in the science that’s already proving it can save lives.

This November, voters can choose to keep this life-saving research going.