Tom Harkin: “I rise today with Senator Specter to introduce the National Fund for Health Research Act. This legislation is similar to…”

“I rise today with Senator Specter to introduce the National Fund for Health Research Act. This legislation is similar to legislation I introduced with Senator Hatfield during the last Congress which gained broad bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. Our proposal would establish a national fund for health research to provide additional resources for health research over and above those provided to the National Institutes of Health [NIH] in the annual appropriations process. The fund would greatly enhance the quality of health care by investing more in finding preventive measures, cures, and cost-effective treatments for the major illnesses and conditions that strike Americans. To finance the fund, health plans would set aside approximately 1 percent of all health premiums and transfer the funds to the Department of the Treasury. The Department of the Treasury would then transfer the money to the national fund for health research. Each year under our proposal amounts within the national fund for health research would automatically be allocated to each of the NIH Institutes and Centers. Each Institute and Center would receive the same percentage as they received of the total NIH appropriation for that fiscal year. The set aside should generate sufficient funds to provide for a nearly 50-percent increase in funding for the NIH. In 1994, I argued that any health care reform plan should include additional funding for health research.”