The NIH starts 2016 off strong with a $2 billion funding bump from Congress.
+ Technology/Innovation
Jamie Barrand | Jan 16, 2016

NIH starts 2016 with $2 billion funding bump

Congress' faith in the programs and research done by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) was evident as it gave the organization a 6.6 percent budget increase for 2016 -- and NIH officials couldn't be happier.

“I welcome this development with a deep sense of gratitude," NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins said. "I applaud the bipartisan support for NIH and biomedical research that made this possible and want particularly to thank the leadership of the House and Senate."

Collins said the increased funding could mean game-changing breakthroughs.

"This increase comes at just the right time to take advantage of remarkable opportunities to improve human health, powered by dramatic advances in scientific knowledge and technological innovation," he said. "It has taken a lot of effort on the part of many voices — patients, advocates, scientists, our many colleagues in the public and private sectors — to make the case for biomedical research. We are unified by the knowledge that there is no better investment to help accelerate the course of medical progress." 

Last year, NIH received just over $30 billion in federal funding. With President Obama's approval of an omnibus appropriations bill, NIH coffers received an additional $2 billion.

One beneficiary of the increased funding will be Autism Speaks and the Simons Foundation, which has partnered with NIH on two initiatives: Autism BrainNet and the NIH NeuroBioBank.

NIH will provide $28 million in funding for these research programs, which could mean new therapies for U.S. adults and children living with autism spectrum disorders.

"Every year, the NIH receives many research proposals that are judged to be worthy of funding, but which it cannot support because of budget constraints," Dr. Paul Wang, Autism Speaks senior vice president and head of research, said. "This year’s budget increase will allow at least some of these research projects to move forward. We can look forward to these projects advancing our understanding of autism and how best to treat it."

Organizations in this story

More News