The Senate Appropriations Committee has approved $163 billion for fiscal year 2010 for labor, health and education.
The bill, approved last Thursday, will help to provide "cutting-edge" medical research and pandemic preparedness, according to Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), chairman of the Senate Labor-Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee. The bill also includes funding to detect fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
The bill --which has yet to be approved by the full Senate-- includes $354 million for the influenza pandemic, including H1N1, or the swine flu. Harkin said this will complete the needed funding for the comprehensive pandemic influenza preparedness plan at HHS.
Under the bill, the National Institutes of Health is slated for $30.8 billion for biomedical research, an increase of $442 million over fiscal year 2009.
The bill includes $217 million for nursing education, $46 million more than last year. More than $5 million will be applied to a new nurse education program focused on nursing home aides and home health aides. Another $71 million is slated for prevention of autism and support for families affected by the disorder, an increase of $7.7 million approved for FY2009.
President Obama has promised an emphasis on cancer prevention and research and the bill includes $380 million for cancer prevention under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is an increase of $40 million over FY2009 funding. The bill also includes $333 million for global health activities at CDC, bumped up by $24 million from last year.
The bill also includes $104 million for a new program to fund evidence-based efforts to reduce teen pregnancy.