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Press Release on FY 2003 Appropriations

For Immediate Release

January 6, 2003

Contact:
Marcia Mabee, MPH, PhD
Executive Director
Voice - 703-709-3001
Email - mmabee@ix.netcom.com

David B. Moore
President
Voice - 202-828-0525
Email - dbmoore@aamc.org

HUNDREDS OF HEALTH ORGANIZATIONS ASK CONGRESS TO ACT QUICKLY ON STALLED HEALTH APPROPRIATIONS

More than 300 health groups in Washington, D.C. have signed a letter (attached) to Congress urgently asking for action on fiscal year 2003 health appropriations to prevent harmful cuts to public health programs that provide essential health services, disease prevention, and billions of dollars in cutting edge research. The letter was coordinated by the Coalition for Health Funding (CHF), an organization with a 30 year history of supporting all the agencies of the U.S. Public Health Service.

"Congress should act and act now," said David B. Moore, CHF President. "Failure to act freezes funding at last year's levels and potentially harms millions of Americans dependent on vital health services and research. The nation is facing multiple challenges in health care, and we can not afford to delay or deny support for the agencies of the U.S. Public Health Service."

In the letter to Congress, health organizations point out the multiple challenges confronted this year, including the possibility of war with Iraq, an uncertain economy, the continuing war on terrorism and strengthening homeland security. Failure of Congress to act "will disrupt programs across the U.S. Public Health Service impeding the planning and efficient delivery of a host of critical health and preventive health services, interrupting the training of health professionals in short supply and disrupting grants that fund biomedical, behavioral and health services research that harbors the hopes of millions."

The Coalition for Health Funding is a non-profit alliance of over 40 national voluntary and professional associations that work in a non-partisan fashion to ensure that discretionary health spending remains highly visible as Congress and the Administration set federal budget priorities. Founded in 1970, the Coalition's members now represent more than 40 million health care professionals, researchers, lay volunteers and consumers and is the oldest and most broadly based health coalition focused on discretionary spending. The Coalition works to secure adequate funding for all the agencies within the U.S. Public Health Service, including the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Health Resources and Services Administration, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Food and Drug Administration, Indian Health Service and the Office of Public Health and Science.

©2008 Coalition for Health Funding