PAN is pleased that there are two Parkinson’s-related funding provisions in the Senate emergency supplemental appropriations bill, which aims to provide funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for the remainder of FY 2008. PAN expresses its appreciation to the Senators who are currently working to include much needed funding for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the FY 2008 emergency supplemental bill.
In addition to war funding, the Senate version of the emergency supplemental legislation contains more than $8 billion for investments in domestic priorities, including $275 million in funding for the FDA and $400 million for the NIH. The $275 million for the FDA – includes $125 million for food safety activities, and $100 million for medical product and drug safety activities. The $400 million for the NIH would be sufficient to fund approximately 700 additional research grants in FY 2008. PAN has been working diligently to ensure both the FDA and the NIH receive the resources needed to hasten better treatments and a cure for Parkinson’s disease.
The Senate Appropriations Committee has scheduled a mark-up of the supplemental bill for May 15. The House of Representatives is expected to vote on their version of the supplemental funding bill, which does not include the FDA or NIH funding, sometime in the near future. After House and Senate action on the separate versions of the bill, the fate of both the FDA and NIH funding will be decided, in part, by House and Senate leadership when they negotiate the final version of the emergency supplemental legislation. The White House has indicated that the President may veto the emergency supplemental funding bill if health or other non-war spending is attached.
To learn more about PAN’s legislative agenda, including our work on strengthening funding for the FDA and NIH, please click here.
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