Letter: Bill supports biomarker testing
This letter originally ran in the Lincoln Journal Star.
News
Cancer Research Funding Passes Congress
March 11, 2009
The U.S. House of Representatives approved the 2009 (FY09) Omnibus Appropriations ActξFebruary 25 and the U.S. Senate approved it late yesterday by voice vote. The Omnibus contains several critical cancer funding provisions thatξACS CANξfought hard to see included.
Cancer related provisions of the Omnibus include:
- $30.3 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an increase of $938 million, or 3.2 percent
- $4.96 billion of the NIH funding will go toward the National Cancer Institute, a $133 million or 2.8 percent increase
- $340.3 million for cancer programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) a $31 million or 10 percent increase
- $38.9 million of the CDC funds will go toward colorectal cancer screening, education and outreach, an increase of $25 million that will act as a down payment of sorts for the eventual creation of a national community-based program for colorectal cancer screening and treatment
- $4 million for the federal Patient Navigator Program run by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, an initiative ACS CAN has long championed to place trained "navigators" in health facilities to assess patient and community needs, and guide patients through the health care system