Welcome to the Arthritis Agenda, an advocacy newsletter of the Arthritis Foundation.

February 2004
Volume 5, No. 1

The President’s Budget:  What Does It Mean For Arthritis Research And Public Health? 

With fiscal year 2004 appropriations bills finally wrapped-up, Congress turned its attention to the President’s FY 2005 budget request on February 2nd.  Submission of the President’s budget is the traditional first step in the annual congressional budget process.  The next step is for Congress to debate the “budget resolution” which sets overall budget priorities and spending limits.  Congressional budget procedures require lawmakers to pass the budget resolution by April 15th, in order for work to begin on the annual appropriations bills. 

The President's spending request proposes to freeze funding for many domestic programs and increase funding for defense and homeland security.  However, since the President’s budget projects a nearly $500 billion deficit, some Members of Congress are calling for even deeper cuts in government programs to rein in federal spending.  Lawmakers in both parties have already issued warnings about the tough choices that will have to be made once work on the appropriations bills begins.  It is against this backdrop that appropriations will be debated in Congress this year. 

The president's budget requests $28.8 billion for National Institutes of Health, an increase of $764 million, or 2.7 percent over current funding.  This increase for NIH falls short of inflation and may force NIH to choose between ongoing basic research efforts or new clinical research activities, resulting in an overall slowdown in medical discoveries.  The Arthritis Foundation is requesting a 10 percent increase or $30.6 billion for NIH overall, as well as a 10 percent increase for the primary arthritis research institutes, the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID).  The Foundation requests that Congress provide $551.2 million for NIAMS and $4.73 billion for NIAID as part of the FY 2005 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations legislation.  

The President’s budget requests $6.9 billion in overall funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is a 1 percent decrease from prior funding, with cuts to some programs, and level funding or minimal increases to many programs including the arthritis program.  The Arthritis Foundation’s goal is to secure funding for the CDC to support comprehensive, state-based arthritis prevention programs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.  An FY 2005 appropriation of $25 million for the arthritis program would allow CDC to elevate additional states from planning to program implementation, continue to support the other funded states, add new states to the program, and to initiate critical public and health care provider education, prevention research and evaluation.