WASHINGTON, D.C. -- July 30, 2009 -- “Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee showed their commitment to the war on cancer today by voting unanimously to pass the FY 2010 Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations bill out of committee. The legislation provides $30.75 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including $5 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and $380 million for cancer prevention and control programs at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
“Continuing the recent trend of properly funding important medical research, these numbers represent a 1.5 percent increase over current levels for the NIH, a 1.8 percent increase over current levels for the NCI, and an 11.7 percent increase over current levels for the CDC. The increase for the CDC includes a new cancer prevention initiative that holds promise to dramatically elevate the emphasis on preventing cancer and detecting it early.
“The Senate Appropriations Committee’s action less than a week after the full House approved its version of the bill is a positive indication that legislators understand the critical need to make cancer a top national priority. We applaud all of the members of the committee, including longtime public health champion Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), for their longstanding fight against cancer and unwavering support for medical research.
“We know that research is just one critical component of a broader comprehensive approach to fighting a disease that will kill more than 560,000 Americans this year alone. Millions of Americans touched by cancer are counting on legislators to continue this commitment throughout the budget process and make these proposed increases for critical medical research a reality.”
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy partner of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit https://www.fightcancer.org/.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Christina Saull
Phone: (202) 585-3250
Email: [email protected]
Steve Weiss
Phone: (202) 661-5711
Email: [email protected]
