WASHINGTON, D.C. July 11, 2013 The Senate Appropriations Committee today is expected to consider an FY 2014ææLabor, Health and Human Services spending bill that would increase funding for medical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) by $300 million over pre-sequester levels, boost the tobacco control program budget by six percent above pre-sequester spending and restore funding to pre-sequester levels for critical breast and cervical cancer screening services for low-income women offered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The bill also would fund critical provisions of the Affordable Care Act to help provide access to care for families affected by cancer and other chronic diseases. Following is a statement from ACS CAN, the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society: People with cancer and their families applaud Senate appropriators for prioritizing the fight to defeat this disease in the FY 2014 Labor, Health and Human Services spending bill. By increasing funding for cancer research, supporting proven cancer prevention programs and devoting resources to the health care law 's critical patient protections, lawmakers have emphasized that fighting cancer should be a top national priority. Sequestration cuts to medical research on top of years of flat or cut funding threaten our nation 's ability to capitalize on past progress and spur future discovery. The commitment to reverse funding cuts for cancer research and programs is paramount to defeating a disease that is expected to kill more than 580,000 people in America each year. Investment in research not only yields public health benefits, but it also serves as an economic engine. Every dollar invested in medical research yields two dollars in economic activity, supporting more than 300,000 research positions at more than 2,500 research universities and institutions in all 50 states. Senators also acknowledged the importance of proven prevention, specifically crucial tobacco control efforts in the fight to defeat cancer operated through the Office of Smoking and Health at the CDC, by including an increase in funding above pre-sequestration levels. The use of tobacco products remains the nation 's number one cause of preventable death, killing an estimated 443,000 Americans annually and costing $193 billion in health care and productivity losses each year. ACS CAN urges committee members on both sides of the aisle to support this bill that includes funding for important public health priorities that will work to eliminate death and suffering from cancer. ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Alissa Crispino or Steven Weiss American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network 202-661-5772 or 202-661-5711 [email protected] or [email protected]æ #acscan #cancer #research #prevention #NIH #CDC #accesstocare #aca