Members of Congress unveiled a massive bipartisan omnibus budget bill Jan. 13 that would partially repeal sharp spending cuts known as sequestration, restoring some funding to the National Institutes of Health.
The bill fleshes out a bipartisan deal struck by lawmakers in December and includes a $1 billion increase to the NIH compared to fiscal year 2013 postsequester. Sequestration slashed the NIH budget by 5%--or $1.55 billion--from about $30.86 billion in 2012 to $29.15 billion in 2013.
"This amount should allow the NIH to continue all current research programs and begin approximately 385 additional research studies and trials," according to a bill summary released by the office of Sen. Barbara Mikulski, chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
The agreement also includes new funding for President Obama's Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, a collaborative project that involves the National Science Foundation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
In addition, the bill includes funding for a new initiative to study ways to prevent and cure Alzheimer's disease.
Research advocacy groups were generally supportive of the announced deal, but some say stagnant funding for NIH over the past several years is stifling research.
The House passed the spending bill Jan. 15 and the Senate followed suit, approving the appropriations bill on Jan. 16.
- read the bill summary