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President Obama Releases FY 2010 Budget:NIH, NCI, FDA all See Increases
On Thursday President Obama put forward his budget request to Congress for FY 2010. In a section outlining investment in scientific research and development President Obama proposes nearly $31 billion for NIH for fiscal year 2010, an increase of $443 million (1.4%) over 2009 appropriations levels.
The National Cancer Institute proposed budget for 2010 is $5.15 billion, an increase of $181 million (3.6%).
Note: The $10 billion for NIH from the stimulus is not built into the budget baseline for FY 2010.
The President’s also requested $295 million in additional budget authority appropriations (excludes user fees) for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a total of $2.350 billion.
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AACI, AACR, ASCO, and Friends host Hill Day 2009, and Honor Senator Arlen Specter
“Investing in the Future of Cancer Research”
More than 50 cancer center representatives from 20 states descended upon Washington, DC, on Wednesday, May 6th, to educate the nation’s policymakers about the importance of a strong federal commitment to cancer research. Friends of Cancer Research, along with the Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI), the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and the American Society of Clinical Oncology hosted the day-long event.
Edward J. Benz Jr., MD, President of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and AACI President, welcomed everyone during breakfast and urged all participants to help their elected representatives to better understand the impact of the federal budget on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) capacity to fund biomedical research across the country.
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Senate Holds Confirmation Hearing of FDA Commissioner Nominee Dr. Hamburg
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Thursday held a confirmation hearing for Dr. Margaret Hamburg, President Obama’s nominee for FDA commissioner.
The hearing was moved forward one week because of the increase in cases of H1N1 influenza in the U.S. Dr. Hamburg fielded questions about government response to the disease, saying that she would restore public trust in the FDA by beefing up efforts to protect the nation’s food supply, a focus of many of the Senators, and ensuring that vaccines for flu and other diseases are readily available.
She committed to working to ensure that the agency makes its decisions based on science — not politics — if confirmed as its commissioner.
“As FDA commissioner, I would strive to lead an agency that appropriately balances innovation with regulation, the American people place a huge amount of trust in the FDA.”
“As leader of the FDA, I would very much want to create a culture where all voices were heard. . . . In the final analysis, I think that is the best way for decisions to be made.”
In addition, she was questioned from Republicans about legislation that would give FDA authority to regulate tobacco products. Republicans have voiced that the agency is not the right organization to regulate tobacco products.
If the HELP Committee votes to confirm Hamburg, her nomination will be sent to the full Senate.
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