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Contacts:
Dave Moore (202) 828-0525, dmoore@aamc.org
Tony Mazzaschi (202) 828-0059, tmazzaschi@aamc.orgAd Hoc Group Issues FY 2000 NIH Budget Proposal
Coalition Endorses 15% Boost; Clinton Proposal Called "A Major Disappointment"
Washington, D.C., February 1, 1999 -- For fiscal year 2000, the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research Funding supports an appropriation of $18 billion for the National Institutes of Health. This $2.3 billion [15%] increase represents the second step toward the bipartisan goal of doubling the NIH budget by FY 2003. The Ad Hoc Group annually develops a budget proposal for the NIH that reflects growth for all segments of the agency consistent with both the health needs and research capacity of the nation. For fiscal year 1999, NIH received an appropriation of $15.652 billion.
President Clinton's FY 2000 proposal for a 2 percent increase for NIH is a major disappointment for the millions of Americans suffering from disease and disability. Richard Knapp, Ph.D., chair of the Ad Hoc Group, said, "President Clinton's FY 2000 budget proposal fails to provide the sustained, stable growth in funding for the NIH that is needed to build upon past scientific achievements, address present medical needs, and anticipate future health challenges." The Ad Hoc Group has emphasized the importance of sustained, multi-year growth to the medical research effort. Accordingly, volatility and dramatic fluctuations in year-to-year funding can be as harmful to the research enterprise as inadequate growth and put at risk the investment made in previous years.
As a consequence of the traditionally strong federal commitment to medical research, an ever-expanding base of scientific knowledge about health and disease is being developed that has already begun to revolutionize both our approach to scientific inquiry and the practice of medicine. The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research Funding believes that if this nation is to sustain this momentum and reap the full benefit of this investment, then the President, the Congress, and the American people must maintain their commitment to significant, sustained growth in funding for the NIH. The 15 percent growth called for by the Ad Hoc Group will help translate the promise of scientific discovery into better health and an improved quality of life for all Americans.
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