NHC UPDATE
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Appropriations -June 2010
The federal budget and appropriations process for 2011 continues at a very slow pace as other issues have consumed much of the available congressional floor time.
As of mid-May, Congress has not been able to pass a budget resolution, which usually sets the overall spending level for the next fiscal year, which begins October 1.
Much of the health research community has united around a request to increase funding for the NIH by seven percent, which would result in an NIH budget of $35 billion. The NHC signed onto a letter supporting this increase and also urged our member patient advocacy organizations to support this level with their members of Congress.
As a member of United for Medical Research (UMR), NHC also helped prepare a letter signed by more than 20 governors in support of an increase for NIH at least equal to the President’s budget request, which was a 3.1 percent increase. This letter was bi-partisan and was one of the first efforts to involve the governors in requesting continued support for NIH. UMR is also coordinating a strategy of building new champions for NIH in both the House and Senate. The necessity of this strategy has been borne out by the recent announcement that Rep. Dave Obey, Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, will not stand for re-election, as well as the potential loss of other members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees who have been long-time supporters of health research funding.
The NHC has signed onto several letters of support for increased health appropriations for Fiscal Year 2011, including additional funds for NIH, Centers for Disease Control, Food and Drug Administration, and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The NHC also continues to work with UMR and all of the stakeholders to present a united community for long-term, sustained increases in health research budgets.
