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I suppose before this is over this year we will have a number of letters from congressman and senators that will be worth sharing. I have scanned this one from Congressman Bentsen in because of the rather strong level of support for NIH spending even above what the President has recommended. (The last time I checked both men were Democrats- joking!) Besides agreeing to cosponsor the Udall Bill there seems to be a move a foot to get NIH more money. Perhaps our message last year about the baby boomers ascent to the golden years and the high cost impact they/we will have on the federal deficit, that is, if we don't find cures for some of these nasty villens like PD. Perhaps that is one of our stongest weapons in our existing arsonal. Spend $100 million now and save billions shortly there after by just assisting a ready, willing and able research community now. Anyone with insights on the other legislation he refers to would be appreciated. This letter was scanned in and spell checked but may not be an exact duplicate. April 11, 1997 Dear Mr. Martone: Thank you for contacting me regarding federal funding for medical research on Parkinson's Disease. I appreciate hearing your views on this important issue. I strongly agree with you that we must invest more in biomedical research and have cosponsored legislation to provide $100 million for medical research dedicated to Parkinson S Disease. This legislation would also create 10 Parkinson's Treatment and Research Centers, a National Parkinson's Disease Data System, and a National Parkinson's Information Clearinghouse for patients and their families to access information about innovative treatments and services available to them. I will certainly keep your informed as this legislation moves forward. In a related matter, I wanted you to know that President Clinton's recently released 1998 budget includes $13.5 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an increase of 2.6 percent over last year's budget. I am a strong supporter of providing adequate resources for biomedical research and am pleased that the President's budget included an inflationary increase for the NIH even as we seek to balance the federal budget. I am working with bipartisan coalition of Members of Congress in the Biomedical Research Caucus to maintain and improve upon this funding level. As a new member of the House Budget Committee, ensuring a strong NIH budget is one of my highest priorities. I have also introduced legislation, the Graduate Medical Education Trust Fund Act of 1997, to provide new funding for teaching hospitals, where much of this critical research is performed. This legislation would ensure that Medicare managed care plans contribute to medical education and research in the same way as traditional Medicare plans. Managed care plans currently are not required to do so, causing a financial squeeze for academic health centers as more and more Medicare patients join managed care plans. Medical research is an investment that we must continue because it is so vital to our quality of life and will yield new treatments for diseases such as Parkinson's, cancer, bean disease, Alzheimers, and AIDS. Thank you again for taking the time to inform me of your views. If I may be of further assistance on this or any other matter, please do not hesitate to contact me. With kindest personal regards, Sincerely, Kenneth E. Bentsen Member of Congress -- [log in to unmask] Kingwood, TX