ASH Government Affairs Committee Hosts Annual Capitol Hill Day
By Roy Silverstein, MD
Dr. Silverstein is Chair of ASH's Government Affairs Committee.
The Society's Government Affairs Committee recently completed another successful Capitol Hill Day where members brought issues important to hematologists to the attention of more than 30 Representatives and Senators and their staff. Committee members came to Washington from around the nation to focus congressional attention on increasing funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and halting the scheduled 2008 cut in Medicare reimbursement rates to physicians.
This year's Capitol Hill Day coincided with one of the busiest times of the year for Congress — consideration of the annual budget resolution that establishes the annual spending blueprint for every federal department, agency, and program, including NIH. Given the tight budget situation and the President's drastic proposal to provide no funding increase to the NIH, Committee members met mainly with Representatives and Senators who serve on the Appropriations Committees and advocated for increased funding for biomedical research. Committee members also shared ASH recommendations for language that accompanies the funding bill to include support for hematology research at the NHLBI, the NCI, the NIDDK, the NIA, and the CDC.
Committee members described advances made possible through federally funded hematology research and shared concerns that another year of flat funding for the NIH will have a serious negative impact on research and training in hematology. Through the course of several years' worth of Capitol Hill Days, many Committee members have established relationships with their Senators and Representatives, and their staffs. Many congressional offices look forward to these meetings each year and recognize ASH and its members as an authoritative voice on the need for increased support for biomedical research.
The highlight of this year's Capitol Hill Day was meeting with Representatives Edward Markey (D-MA) and Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL), to present them with the 2007 ASH Award for Public Service. Representatives Markey and Jackson were the only two members of the House to vote against legislation to reauthorize and restructure the NIH when the bill was overwhelmingly approved in September 2006 by a vote of 414 to 2. This legislation as originally drafted contained a number of flaws that could have been detrimental to future research at the NIH, most notably a proposed 5 percent ceiling in future annual increases for the NIH. Like Representatives Markey and Jackson, ASH was one of only a small number of research organizations that opposed this legislation. Ultimately, as a result of ASH's significant advocacy efforts and the leadership of Representatives Markey and Jackson, the final legislation that was signed into law contained significant improvements to the original version.
Representatives Markey and Jackson met with the entire Government Affairs Committee. They voiced their strong support for the Society's advocacy efforts and their sincere appreciation for being selected as the 2007 award co-recipients, and they vowed to continue their efforts in support of the NIH. Representative Markey, in particular, thanked the Committee for their efforts during Capitol Hill Day to gain congressional support for the effort he was leading in the House to increase fiscal year 2009 funding for the NIH.
Every ASH member can play an important role in the Society's advocacy efforts. By participating in the ASH Grassroots Network and visiting the ASH Advocacy Center, you can also have your voice heard in the halls of Congress. For more information about ASH advocacy efforts and the ASH Grassroots Network, contact the ASH Policy & Practice Department at 202-776-0544.
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Headlines From Washington
Legislation Introduced to Prevent Medicare Physician Payment Cuts
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) introduced S.2785, the Save Medicare Access Act of 2008. The bill would avert the 10.6 percent cut scheduled to take effect July 1 and the additional cut of 5 percent or more scheduled in January. Payments would continue at their current rate through the remainder of 2008 and then would rise by 1.8 percent in 2009. ASH has endorsed the legislation and is working to have the legislation passed before July 1.
NHLBI Announces Realignment of Sickle Cell Disease Research Program
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) announced a comprehensive and innovative restructuring of its research program in sickle cell disease (SCD). NHLBI is working on expanding funding and reconfiguring current programs for basic and translational research, increasing opportunities for drug development via the NCI's Rapid Access to Interventional Development (RAID), and developing evidence-based guidelines for all SCD patients. NHLBI is also developing a new Clinical Trials Research Network (CTRN), similar to NCI's Children's Oncology Group (COG), designed to open clinical trials to more patients and expand support of genomic research in SCD. NHLBI intends to take advantage of existing scientific opportunities and make SCD resources more widely available.
ASH submitted recommendations in response to NHLBI's request for public information regarding the top scientific and clinical priorities in SCD. The Society is pleased to see many of its recommendations incorporated into the realignment, including recommendations to develop improved and new treatments, expand funding for all types of research, and create a new model for clinical trials.
New Medicare Demonstration Program Aims to Show Advantages of Electronic Health
Medicare is looking for 12 communities across the country that can bring together a broad cross-section of community leadership, leverage resources, and recruit small and medium-sized primary care physician practices willing to provide the evidence that electronic health records (EHR) can improve the quality of patient care.
As many as 1,200 physician practices nationwide could be eligible for incentive payments of up to $58,000 per physician —up to $290,000 per practice —over the five-year life of the demonstration. E-mail EHR_Demo_communityselections@cms.hhs.gov for more information.
ASH Advocates for NIH Funding Increase in FY 2009
ASH and other organizations within the biomedical research community have joined forces to advocate for an increase of 6.6 percent for NIH in FY 2009.
In March, the House and Senate passed differing versions of the FY 2009 Budget Resolution, which sets forth a budgetary blueprint that each Appropriations subcommittee will use as a guideline in drafting their respective funding bills this year. The Senate-passed Budget Resolution includes funding to provide for a potential total increase for NIH of $3 billion (or approximately 10.3 percent) over President Bush's proposed funding level.
As this issue of The Hematologist went to press, the outlook for the entire appropriations process remained unclear. The President has said that he will veto any appropriations bill that exceeds his request for discretionary spending. Meanwhile, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-WI) has publicly stated that unless the President is willing to negotiate on funding levels for programs such as NIH, Congress will simply wait to enact a final FY 2009 budget after a new president takes office in January 2009, more than a quarter of the way through the fiscal year.
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Take Action
All ASH members are encouraged to take action to support increased federal funding of NIH. ASH makes advocacy easy by providing an online Advocacy Center where visitors type their ZIP code to get connected to their congressional delegation. A sample letter with ASH's message is provided, and with three clicks of a computer mouse you can send a letter to Congress weighing in on this issue. As this issue of The Hematologist went to press, the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees were set to begin the process of drafting the bills that will fund federal programs for FY 2009. ASH is advocating for an increase of 6.6 percent for NIH in FY 2009 over its FY 2008 level. Federal funding for domestic discretionary programs, including NIH, is exceptionally tight. Consequently, it is critical that all Members of Congress hear from constituents about the importance of providing adequate funding for NIH. Please take action today.
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