Rep. Yoder Leads Member Letter Calling for Boost to NIH Funding

Washington, DC – Yesterday evening, Representative Kevin Yoder (R-KS) began circulating a letter to his Republican colleagues in the House of Representatives calling for a minimum of $3 billion in new spending at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The allocation would bring the total funding at NIH to $33.084 billion, marking the largest percent increase for NIH since 2003. Representative Yoder said in the letter:

“Funding for federal research is critical to save American lives and to bend the cost curve of our federal health care expenditures. While our conference was and is torn over the breaking of the sequester budget caps, if we are going to increase domestic spending, we believe funding research to cure and prevent the diseases Americans face is a critical priority that should be at or near the top of our list.”

Full text of the letter is reproduced below.

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November 17, 2015

Paul Ryan

Speaker of the House

H-232 The Capitol

Washington D.C. 20515

Hal Rogers

Chairman

House Appropriations Committee

H-305 The Capitol

Washington, D.C. 20515

Kevin McCarthy

Majority Leader

H-107, The Captiol

Washington, D.C. 20515

Tom Cole

Chairman

Labor, Health and Human Services Subcommittee

2358-B Rayburn House Office Building

Washington, D.C. 201515

Speaker Ryan, Leader McCarthy, Chairman Rogers and Chairman Cole:

As we work towards an Omnibus Appropriations Act ("Omnibus") to fund the government for Fiscal Year 2016, we write to stress the critical importance of funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH).  Earlier this year the House passed the 21st Century Cures Act ("Cures Act") by a margin of 344 to 77. This vote was truly bipartisan, with 170 Republicans and 174 Democrats supporting it, one of the strongest votes for any spending measure in Congress. The Cures Act, through a combination of mandatory and authorized discretionary funding, increased spending for NIH by $3.25 Billion in FY 2016.

House Republicans supported such an increase because we see the funding of federal research an important facet of our positive agenda of addressing the needs of the American people. Cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Heart Disease and many other diseases affect our constituents, our neighbors, even some of our close friends and family.  Cancer alone will kill 600,000 Americans next year. In spite of our budget debates, these diseases march on, costing us millions of lives and trillions of dollars. Estimates peg the annual American cost of Alzheimer's in 2050 at over $1 trillion.

Funding for federal research is critical to save American lives and to bend the cost curve of our federal health care expenditures. While our conference was and is torn over the breaking of the sequester budget caps, if we are going to increase domestic spending, we believe funding research to cure and prevent the diseases Americans face is a critical priority that should be at or near the top of our list.

With passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act, Congress has been authorized to increase non-defense discretionary spending by $40 billion. Of those increases, we respectfully urge you to support the House's position and fund a minimum of $3 billion in new NIH spending in FY 2016, bringing total NIH spending to $33.084 billion. This is consistent with the vote of a large majority of our Conference on the Cures Act earlier this year, and consistent with our Republican values.

This is a wonderful opportunity for House Republicans to provide bold leadership by giving hope to Americans struggling with diseases. All of us have met with constituents who are waiting for NIH breakthroughs to save lives or cure the suffering of their loved ones. Let's take this opportunity to do something we can all be proud of, to make a bold stroke, and to make a true difference in the lives of our constituents for generations to come.

Sincerely,

Kevin Yoder,

Member of Congress