Research!America Statement in Response to House Funding for Research
Arlington, VA – Research!America, a nonprofit alliance that advocates for science, discovery, and innovation to achieve better health for all, released the following statement on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Labor-HHS funding bill for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the nation’s other research and public health agencies:
“We appreciate the Appropriations Committee’s decision to reject the deep cut to the NIH – included in the president’s budget request – in recognition of the Institutes’ fundamentally important contributions to the health and security of the American people,” said Research!America President and CEO Mary Woolley. “In particular, we thank House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.), Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), and Labor-HHS Subcommittee Chair Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.) for prioritizing this vital federal agency and the core national objectives it serves.”
“However, we are alarmed by sharp cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, our premier public health agency. These proposed cuts, coupled with recent turmoil at the agency’s leadership, endanger our nation’s health. We also urge the Committee to sustain the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, which is responsible for a fundamentally important American objective: maximizing the quality, availability, and affordability of health care. We also request that the Committee revisit and reverse the proposed 37% cut to the ARPA-H budget. Steep cuts would hamstring initiatives that hold tremendous promise for patients.”
Research!America encourages the House and the Senate to work together in the coming weeks to provide robust funding for the NIH and our other research and public health agencies to ensure faster medical progress for all. The House will be marking up, or revising its bill, this week. The fiscal year deadline is Sept. 30.
Contact Glenn O’Neal, Senior Director of Communications, at 571-482-2737 or [email protected] with press inquiries.