The main weapons against COVID-19 are the vaccines developed by Moderna and BioNTech after a decade of their research into mRNA technologies. That research was supported by more than $3 billion of private angel investment and venture capital.

Democrats and Republicans both support medical research funding, and Republicans tout the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed. But governments were not the key to mRNA development. Instead, we can thank the leaders and scientists at Moderna and BioNTech and the suppliers of private capital to them, as I discuss here and here.

The Wall Street Journal’s Allysia Finley discusses mRNA, Moderna, and BioNtech in a new piece. She focuses on the “vast promise of mRNA technology” beyond COVID-19. Numerous companies are developing mRNA vaccines for influenza, which are expected to be more effective than current vaccines. And Finley reports, “Moderna is also advancing vaccines for other infectious diseases, including Zika, HIV, Epstein-Barr, CMV, human metapneumovirus, parainfluenza virus and respiratory synclinal virus.”

There are many applications of mRNA technologies beyond infectious diseases. Finley says these may include regenerating heart tissue for patients with heart failure, addressing aging-related diseases, and stimulating the production of cartilage to ease arthritis. And she notes, “Autoimmune diseases … are another promising area of research. BioNTech this year published a study that showed an mRNA vaccine has potential to treat multiple sclerosis without suppressing the immune system like existing therapies do.” And there is cancer, which is BioNTech’s main focus. The company “has 21 mRNA products in its clinical pipeline that use 11 different approaches to killing cancer cells.”

These revolutionary developments are not being led by governments, but by biotech and pharmaceutical companies. The government can help by minimizing taxes and regulatory burdens. Capital gains taxes are crucial, as I discuss here. If investors in biotech are not allowed to keep a substantial return on their rare big wins, they will move their money to safer and lower-tax investments.

The largest factor producing rising living standards over the long run is technological progress and innovation. Startups and young growth companies funded by private capital make a huge contribution to innovation, which policymakers should keep in mind when considering all changes to tax and regulatory policies.

We can see with mRNA that a small number of determined investors, scientists, and entrepreneurs can make a major advance that may generate massive benefits to society years down the road. That is why it would be very short-sighted to raise taxes on capital gains. The same is true of raising taxes on business capital investment, which embodies much of our innovation and technological progress.

As policymakers consider the various tax increases in the Democratic reconciliation bill, they should know that the large and long-term benefits of mRNA-type advances are generally not captured in economic models used to judge tax-policy effects. Let’s not undermine medical advances that will benefit all of us—let’s keep taxes low and the breakthroughs coming.