A letter signed by more than 200 patient and research organizations recently urged U.S. Senate and House leaders to move the 21st Century Cures forward before the end of the year.
The effort was spearheaded by the National Health Council.
The 21st Century Cures Act was introduced by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) on May 21, 2015, and passed the House on July 10, 2015. It has garnered wide bipartisan support among lawmakers.
It was received and read twice in the U.S. Senate before being referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on July 13, 2015.
If passed and signed into law, this act will speed up the process of discovering, developing and approving new medications without sacrificing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) safety standards. It will also increase funding for the National Institutes of Health and the FDA.
"Millions of Americans are desperately waiting for effective treatments and cures for their chronic disease or disability," the letter stated. "The organizations that represent these people with chronic conditions urge Congress to pass the 21st Century Cures Act in 2016 in order to speed the development of treatments and cures. Patients simply can't afford to wait -- time is running out."
