August 23, 2018 – The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research issued the following statement in response to Senate passage of the fiscal year (FY) 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) spending bill, as Division B of H.R.6157, which includes funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research applauds the Senate for continuing in FY 2019 its steadfast commitment to medical research supported by the NIH. In addition to providing the hope of better health to millions of patients, NIH funding advances science, innovation, and economic growth. The $2 billion increase included in this bill keenly reflects the sustainable, predictable growth above inflation necessary to realize the invaluable promise of new cures, diagnostics, and treatments offered through NIH.
We are grateful to Senate and Appropriations Committee leadership, including Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Subcommittee Chair Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-Wash.), for bringing this important legislation to full Senate consideration for the first time in over a decade. Their commitment to a bipartisan approach, coupled with the agreement to invest in key national priorities through the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, paved the way to this accomplishment today.
The Ad Hoc Group encourages the House of Representatives to join the Senate in passing a bipartisan spending bill with at least a $2 billion increase for the NIH. We look forward to working with lawmakers to ensure the U.S. remains the unquestionable global leader in medical research.
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The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research is a coalition of over 300 patient and voluntary health groups, medical and scientific societies, academic and research organizations, and industry. The Ad Hoc Group has one mission: to enhance the federal investment in biomedical, behavioral, social, and population-based research by increasing the funding for the National Institutes of Health.