Emergency FY08 NIH Appropriation
Legislative Action Alert

(July 22, 2008)

To All CIBR Members and Supporters:

As you may know, Senators Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) introduced legislation last week (S. 3272) for an emergency, stand-alone $5.2 billion appropriation for NIH in FY 2008, with $1.2 billion designated for cancer research. 

Majority staff from the Senate Labor-HHS Subcommittee is asking for the community's support for a second FY 2008 supplemental spending package, which is estimated will total $50 billion.  Staff have confirmed that the Senate Appropriations Committee mark-up of the supplemental, originally scheduled for Tuesday, will now occur on Thursday, July 24.  It is Chairman Harkin's intention to put $500 million for NIH into the spending package under similar terms as the $150 million in the first supplemental; i.e., distributed across the ICs on a pro-rata basis.

Majority staff have emphasized that the second supplemental is the top priority for now and urge the community to contact all members of the Appropriations Committee (list below) to support the second supplemental.

Time for action is extremely short.

It is urgent that you contact your Senator right away and urge him or her to support this legislation.  We will personally hand deliver your letter to your Senantor if you fax it to us on your letterhead at (202) 347.5876 by 10am on Wednesday, July 23.

Click here to download a sample letter (Word 2003 document)

If you need contact information please call Sarah Oliphant at (202) 347-5872, or email soliphant@acadrad.org.

NIH FY2009 Senate Budget Testimony - Dr. Elias Zerhouni

(July 17, 2008)

NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni's testimony before the Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Committee on July 16, 2008. Click here to read or download from the Senate Appropriations Committee website. (Adobe Acrobat Reader required.)

Senate Introduces Emergency FY08 Supplement for NIH

(July 17, 2008)

Yesterday, Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-PA) introduced Senate Bill 3272 to make emergency supplemental appropriations in Fiscal Year 2008 for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of $5.2 billion, $4 billion of which would be prorated among the Institutes/Centers, and $1.2 billion to go to the National Cancer Institute.

The $5.2 billion would restore the 13 percent of the NIH’s purchasing power lost in the past five funding cycles. This would be in addition to the $150 million in FY2008 NIH funding signed into law by the President on June 30 in the Supplemental Appropriations primarily for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – NIH has yet to announce the specific additional amounts for each Institute/Center.

Senate Passes Medicare Physician Payment Legislation 69-30

(July 10, 2008)

On July 9 the Senate overcame partisan gridlock and passed the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (H.R. 6331) by a tally of 69-30.  This vote total represents the necessary support to override a potential veto by President Bush.  Several Senators switched their stance from the last time the Senate voted on identical legislation July 26.  Intense lobbying and grassroots by the physician community and other stakeholders over the July Forth Congressional recess led to the reversal of the impasse.

The bill repeals the 10.6 percent physician payment cut called for by Medicare’s Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula that went into effect on July 1.           The measure replaces the 10.6 percent cut as well as a 5 percent cut set for Jan. 1, with a 0.5 percent positive update for the rest of 2008 and a 1.1 percent update through 2009. 

The legislation also calls for providers of advanced diagnostic imaging services (MR, CT, PET, and nuclear medicine) to be accredited in order to receive payment for the technical component of those services and establishes a two-year voluntary demonstration program to test the use of physician developed Appropriateness Criteria.

As of this writing, the White House is still threatening to veto the legislation despite the veto proof majorities in both Houses of Congress. Several Republican senators who switched their vote to yes have stated publicly that they will continue to support the legislation and vote to override a potential veto.