The 304 undersigned members of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, which represents
patient groups, scientific societies, research institutions, health professionals, educators, and
industry, are extremely grateful to Congress for making meaningful, reliable funding support for
the National Institutes of Health (NIH) a key national priority. These investments in the NIH yield
compound dividends in the form of improved health and quality of life for Americans, young and
old.
For FY 2020, the Ad Hoc Group recommends an appropriation of at least $41.6 billion for the
NIH, a $2.5 billion increase over the NIH’s program level funding in FY 2019. This funding level
would allow for meaningful growth above inflation in the base budget that would expand NIH’s
capacity to support promising science in all disciplines. It also would ensure that funding from
the Innovation Account established in the 21st Century Cures Act would supplement the
agency’s base budget, as intended, through dedicated funding for specific programs.
As a result of the strong, bipartisan vision of Senate and House Labor-HHS-Education
Appropriations Subcommittee leaders Roy Blunt, Patty Murray, Rosa DeLauro, and Tom Cole,
over the last four years, Congress has helped the agency regain some of the ground lost after
years of effectively flat budgets. This most welcome renewed investment in NIH has advanced
discovery toward promising therapies and diagnostics, reenergized existing and aspiring
scientists nationwide, and restored hope for patients and their families. To further realize the
potential of medical research, we must continue this forward momentum.
We recognize that the impractical budget caps imposed by the Budget Control Act of 2011
restrict the ability of appropriators to invest adequately in critical federal priorities. To enable the
FY 2020 appropriations process to advance in a timely manner, we urge Congress to swiftly
reach a bipartisan budget agreement that sufficiently raises the nondefense discretionary
spending caps to ensure continued scientific innovation and progress in medical research. We
believe that any discretionary caps deal must treat nondefense increases similar to defense
increases. We further urge a funding allocation for the Labor-HHS Subcommittee that allows for
the necessary investment in NIH and other agencies that promote the health of our nation.
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