Connie Mack: “Mr. President one of my top priorities since coming to Congress has been support of programs to eradicate the effects of…”

“Mr. President one of my top priorities since coming to Congress has been support of programs to eradicate the effects of cancer and other diseases that affect the people of the United States. I know many here in the Senate share my concerns who have joined me in seeking to increase funding substantially for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Indeed, the goal of this group as stated last year is to double funding for NIH over 5 years. I am pleased that the Budget Resolution takes a substantial step toward meeting this goal and thank the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Domenici, for recommending a funding increase of $1.5 billion in FY1999 and $15.5 billion through 2003. However, I would mention to the Chair that there has been much concern expressed by many public health advocacy groups that the Budget Resolution levels for the Appropriations' Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education will not support this increase. Accordingly, I would ask the floor manager to alleviate these concerns by answering a few simple questions for me. Has the Budget Committee assumed sufficient funds in their budget recommendation to allow the Labor-HHS subcommittee to match its 302(b) allocation from last year?”