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HATFIELD NIH FUNDING RESTORATION AMENDMENT PASSES SENATE OVERWHELMINGLY, 85-14, on May 24, as the chamber moved to approve Senate Budget Committee Chair Pete Domenici's (R-NM) FY 1996 budget; a final vote on the resolution is expected May 25. Sen. Mark Hatfield's (R-OR) measure would restore $7.0 bil. in cuts over seven years in the budget for the National Institutes of Health. Co-sponsoring the amendment were Sens. Arlen Specter (R-PA), who chairs the Appropriations/ Labor, HHS, Education subcommittee, Nancy Kassebaum (R-KS), James Jeffords (R-VT) and Alfonse D'Amato (R-NY). Following passage, Hatfield said in a release that "we must reorder our nation's budget priorities from programs which destroy life to those which will preserve and enhance life." Hatfield's restoration is funded by a 0.58% across-the-board spending reduction from non- defense functions, excluding international affairs, education/training, health, Medicare, and income and Social Security spending. Even with the amendment's passage, NIH goes into reconcilliation capped through 2002 at slightly below its 1995 funding level of $11.2 bil. Reaction to passage was positive among the scientific research community. Samuel Silverstein, outgoing president of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, said he was "ecstatic" with the outcome, calling Hatfield, who chairs the Senate Apprpriations Committee, "both courageous and thoughtful." Silverstein added that "investment in NIH pays spectacular dividends," suggesting that medical research saved $70 bil. in medical costs in 1994 alone, including $9 bil. for manic depressive illness, $25 bil. for schizophrenia and $9 bil. for heart attacks. Similarly, Frankie Trull, president of the Foundation for Biomedical Reserach, expressed gratitude that the Senate was "willing to play long ball" in taking into account that long-term medical savings are realized through continuing NIH funding. The American Association of Medical Colleges said it was "very pleased with the confidence that (the vote) expresses with medical research" although it was "unfortunate" to be at the expense of other federal programs. As the budget passed by the House includes a 5% rduction in NIH funding below the 1995 level that is frozen through 2002, Silverstein mainted that there is still a "long way to go" for NIH in reconcillation. He added that pharmaceutical executives recently met with House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) and House Appropriations/Labor HHS, Education Subcommittee Chariman John Porter (R-IL) to press their point, and they will continue to keep up pressure. This information provided by the Parkinson's Action Network