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APS Science Policy Update
May 18, 2006
In this issue:
- The House of Representatives finally passes a budget
- NIH provides examples of benefits derived from budget doubling
- New York Times writes about diabetes funding
- Latest FASEB Washington Update
House passes budget with extra money for Labor-HHS programs
Advocates for biomedical research scored an important victory early this morning when the House of Representatives passed a budget measure that includes a $7.158 billion increase for Labor-HHS programs, which include the National Institutes of Health. Moderate Republicans led by Rep. Castle of Delaware were instrumental in securing the additional funds by refusing to vote for a budget that did not include them, effectively blocking their own party's budget.
The $7.158 billion increase corresponds to the amount that was successfully added in the Senate several weeks ago. The next goal is to make sure that the money gets added to the programs during the appropriations process. While the fight is not over, securing the extra dollars in the budget process was a necessary first step to getting an increase for biomedical research this year. The support of the research community and other advocates was critical to the success with the budget negotiations, and will continue to be important as the appropriations process moves forward.
NIH doubling examples page
NIH has posted a series of fact sheets on the website,
highlighting the benefits gained from the doubled NIH budget. These fact
sheets should be a useful resource when making the case for more funding in
Congress.
http://www.nih.gov/about/researchresultsforthepublic/index.htm
NY Times article on diabetes funding
As funding for biomedical research continues to be
eroded by flat budgets and inflationary increases, the debate over how to
spend the dollars grows louder. See this article in the New York Times
health section on funding for diabetes research.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/16/health/policy/16diabetes.html
To see the latest FASEB Washington Update, go to:
http://opa.faseb.org/pdf/washingtonupdate/WashingtonUpdate5.12.06.pdf