NABTC » Spending Bills

Obama Administration Boosts NIH Funding in FY 2011 Budget Proposal

egoss — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:24:11 +0000

On February 1, 2010, the Obama Administration released its proposed budget for fiscal year 2011, including a boost of $1 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This budget implements the President’s pledge to impose an overall freeze in domestic discretionary, eliminating or cutting certain programs to permit increases for others.

In its press release announcing its budget proposal, the Department of Health and Human Services HHS) said that the $1 billion increase in NIH funding, to a total of $32.2 billion, will support innovative basic and clinical research projects. According to HHS, “This effort will be guided by NIH’s five areas of exceptional research opportunities: supporting genomics and other high throughput technologies; translating basic science into new and better treatments; reinvogorating the biomedical research community; using science to enable health care reform; and focusing on global health.”

Research advocates praised the Obama Administration proposal while at the same time urging a larger NIH funding increase. The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research said it “… thanks President Obama for his continued commitment to science and innovation at a time when the nation’s fiscal situation compels difficult decisions. For medical research, his agenda sets off on the right course, as it recognizes that sustaining progress in medical research is essential to the twin national priorities of smarter health care and economic revitalization.” The Ad Hoc Group urges that Congress build on the Obama recommendation, boosting NIH funding to a total of $35 billion for FY 2011.

The HHS budget documents, including the HHS budget in brief and budget justifications for the HHS agencies, are available at http://www.hhs.gov/asrt/ob/docbudget/.

Congress Returns to Work After Long Summer Recess

egoss — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 21:49:58 +0000

The United States Congress returned to session on September 8, 2008, after a lengthy summer recess that included both the Democratic and Republican conventions. At the top of the agenda for Congress is passage of spending bills for fiscal year 2009, which begins on October 1, 2008.

Congress is almost certain to pass a stop-gap spending bill that would fund most functions of the federal government, including health and education programs and activities. This must be done before September 26, when Congress is currently slated to adjourn. However, the term of the stop-gap bill is uncertain. The bill may last until early in 2009, when the 111th Congress would have to complete the work on appropriations bill. There is also some indication that the 110th Congress will return after the election, in a lameduck session, to address a few high priority issues. Spending bills could be on the agenda.

In this unclear procedural and political situation, biomedical research advocates are pressing Congress to provide a boost to funding for the National Institutes of Health and to reverse the research funding stagnation of the last five years.

As work on appropriations bills progresses, updates will be provided on this page.

Senate Approves Budget Adjustment for NIH; First Step in Long Battle to Boost NIH Funding

egoss — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 17:28:29 +0000

On March 13, the United States Senate, by an overwhelming vote of 95 to 4, approved an amendment to the budget resolution offered by Senators Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Tom Harkin (D-IA). The Specter-Harkin amendment added $2.1 billion in funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to the Senate version of the budget resolution. This amount is in addition to the $900 million already recommended for NIH by the Senate Budget Committee. As a result of this positive Senate action, the NIH budget could be boosted by as much as $3 billion, or more than 10 percent, over FY 2008 levels.

This action is only the first step in a long budget and appropriations process that is predicted to last into 2009. It is not a certainty that the increase for NIH recommended by the Senate will be included in the final funding bill, but advocates for biomedical research were buoyed by the strong vote and will sustain efforts to see an aggressive increase in NIH funding.

The NABTC joined colleagues in the cancer community in a letter to the Senate that urged a yes vote on the Specter-Harkin amendment. Click here to see the Cancer Leadership Council Endorsement of the Specter-Harkin Amendment

NABTC Urges Boost in FY 2009 Health Budget

egoss — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 18:37:43 +0000

NABTC joined more than 400 health organizations in a February 19, 2008, letter that urges Congress to provide an additional $5.3 billion in the fiscal year 2009 budget in order to meet pressing health care needs. The recommended increase in the budget would permit additional resources to be directed to the National Institutes of Health for biomedical research and would address other vital health care needs. The letter, developed with the leadership of the Coalition for Health Funding, strongly recommends that Congress address shortfalls in health care funding by making important health care programs a priority in the budget. Even if Congress follows the recommendation of the health community, this would be only the first step in the budget and appropriations process. If additional resources were directed to health care programs in the FY 2009 budget, Congress would then make decisions about the funding levels from dozens of specific health care programs. For more information about NABTC collaboration on budget efforts, see the Coalition for Health Funding letter. Coalition for Health Funding FY 2009 Budget Letter.

Scientists Release NIH Recommendation for FY 2009

admin — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 21:21:43 +0000

On January 29, 2008, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) released its annual report to Congress that includes recommendations for funding for six agencies, including the National Institutes of Health. This recommendation has significant influence on the recommendations and advocacy positions of other research foundations and advocacy organizations. For fiscal year 2009, FASEB recommends that NIH be funded at $31.2 billion, an increase of 6.7 percent over FY 2008. The entire FASEB report can be found at http://opa.faseb.org/pdf/2008/FedFund09.pdf.