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UMR Reacts to NIH Biomedical Research Funding Levels in Senate FY2014 Appropriations Markup

July 12, 2013

WASHINGTON – “We applaud Senate Committee Chairwoman Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) for her leadership in advocating for lifesaving biomedical research in today’s Senate FY14 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill markup. The legislation, which includes a $307 million increase over the pre-sequestration FY13-enacted funding level for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is a positive step toward restoring NIH funding. We also thank Subcommittee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) for his unwavering support for medical research and interest in seeking a long-term funding solution. And we express our gratitude to Subcommittee Ranking Member Jerry Moran (R-KS) and share his goal of providing the NIH with the funding necessary to deliver on the promise of this historic moment in biomedical science.

“However, given the $1.6 billion in sequestration cuts earlier this year to NIH – which could lead to 2,300 fewer NIH grants, job losses and a decline in U.S. economic growth – Congress must do more to boost funding for the preeminent medical research agency.

“NIH is among the best tools our country has for creating economic growth, creating jobs and improving health. As a major U.S. economic driver, the NIH supported more than 402,000 jobs and $57.8 billion in economic output nationwide, in 2012 alone. Funding roughly one-third of all U.S. medical research, NIH also supports more than 300,000 research positions at more than 2,500 research universities and institutions in all 50 states.

“As a recent United for Medical Research report illustrates, federal research investments have had enormous economic and societal impacts, thanks to federal research investments, including in genetics and genomics. Leveraged from a total federal research and development investment of $14.5 billion over 24 years, the human genome project and related research have had a $965 billion impact and created more than 53,000 direct genomics-related jobs and nearly $300 billion in personal income.

“We urge Congress to restore NIH funding to ensure researchers have the necessary tools to fuel new breakthroughs in medicine that will both improve patients’ lives and catalyze U.S. economic growth.”