When it comes to handling epidemics, governments typically throw massive budgets at research institutions with limited transparency. Take long COVID as an example: the NIH has received $1.5 billion in funding specifically aimed at solving it, yet we've seen virtually zero meaningful breakthroughs from that investment. The gap between money spent and actual results raises serious questions about how public health research funds are really being allocated and whether the traditional "ivory tower" approach to science is delivering what taxpayers actually need.