The budget agreement would restore more than $22 billion that was cut through the across-the-board reductions known as the budget sequester. This agreement is an important first step toward seeing Congress return to a constructive process of setting budget priorities.
President Obama released his budget proposal today for the fiscal year beginning in October, and it included something cancer advocates everywhere are excited about a proposed increase in the federal cigarette tax of 94 cents a pack and significant tax increases on other tobacco products.
Undoubtedly you saw the countdowns on your local news stations sequestration took effect on Friday. Sequestration is what Washington is calling the $85 billion in across-the-board budget cuts to domestic and defense discretionary spending agreed upon in the 2011 Budget Control Act. While a lot remains unknown about how the cuts will affect us, we know one thing is for sure: funding for cancer research and prevention programs is taking a dangerous hit.
I was pleased to hear President Obama mention the need to invest in science and innovation in Tuesday's State of the Union address. Cancer patients and survivors nationwide need a renewed commitment from Congress and the administration to fund the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Cancer Institute at levels that keep up with inflation and allow promising research to continue.
To illustrate just how crucial federal funding is for cancer research, ACS CAN released a new report this week, Catalyst for Cures: How Federally Funded Cancer Research Saves Lives. This report underscores the threat posed by sequestration to future progress in the fight to end death and suffering from cancer by highlighting federally-funded scientists who have discovered new ways to treat specific cancers, including breast cancer, melanoma and lung cancer and the patients who benefited from those advances.
Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee responsible for funding programs at the NIH and CDC passed a budget proposal that flat lines cancer research and defunds important programs that would improve access to care for families affected by cancer. Needless to say, this is a huge disappointment for cancer patients across the country.
The President released his Fiscal Year 2013 budget yesterday, and I was deeply disappointed to see that his proposal cut funding for cancer research. This comes just weeks after the President specifically highlighted the importance of cancer research in his State of the Union address.