NIH REAUTHORIZATION
During the past two weeks, the issue of NIH
Reauthorization has taken center stage within
the House Energy and Commerce Committee. On
Tuesday, September 12, 2006, the Committee
released its NIH Reauthorization Reform Act of
2006. A week later, FASEB’s President, Leo T.
Furcht, M.D., testified before the House Energy
and Commerce Committee in support of Chairman
Joe Barton’s (R-TX) proposal. The following day
(September 20, 2006), the Committee voted 42-1
to report the bill. And, on September 26, 2006,
the House of Representatives debated H.R. 6164,
and passed the legislation, 414-2.
Special Note: FASEB's
President Testifies and FASEB Statement
Referenced During House Debate on NIH
Reauthorization
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INSIDE (The Beltway) SCOOP
- Jon Retzlaff, Legislative Director
FASEB applauds the efforts undertaken by
Senators Specter and Harkin, and Representative
Castle to actively seek commitments from
Senators and moderate House Republican members
to restore funding for labor, health and
education programs to the fiscal year 2005
funding level. This effort has taken on an even
greater level of importance with the news this
week that Defense appropriations conferees
conceded to White House demands to restore $4
billion of the money that had been transferred
from defense accounts to non-defense,
non-homeland security accounts, including the
programs funded by the Labor-HHS-Education
appropriations subcommittee. This action could
squeeze billions from the domestic spending
bills if the President resists efforts to lift
the cap he imposed on discretionary spending for
FY2007.
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BILLS, BILLS, BILLS
H.R. 5533 – the Biodefense and Pandemic
Vaccine and Drug Development Act
On September 20, the House Committee on Energy
and Commerce marked up and reported out H.R.
5533, the Biodefense and Pandemic Vaccine and
Drug Development Act of 2006, with an amendment
in the nature of a substitute. Among its many
provisions, the measure would require the
establishment of a Biomedical Advanced Research
and Development Authority (BARDA) within HHS to
coordinate and oversee activities that support
and accelerate advanced research and development
of qualified countermeasures or pandemic or
epidemic products; and a National Biodefense
Science Board to advise the Secretary on current
and future trends, challenges, and opportunities
presented by biotechnology and genetic
engineering with respect to diseases and
chemical, biological, nuclear, and radiological
agents (similar to the existing HHS National
Science Advisory Biosecurity Board).
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