The federal budget was passed in December 2001 and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) received an increase of $2.9 billion, or 14 percent. This will result in a total of $23.3 billion for the year.

This is the final year in the plan to get the U.S. Congress to double the NIH budget by fiscal year 2003, a five-year bipartisan endeavor. The CF Foundation has joined forces, once again in 2002, with the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research Funding, requesting $27.3 billion for the NIH.

In addition, the CF Foundation is working closely with he NIH to encourage support for its Therapeutics Development Network. There are now tremendous opportunities to undertake 10 additional trials in the next 18 months. However, to do this, the CF Foundation must identify ways to expand -- and finance the expansion of -- The Therapeutics Development Network from eight to possibly 20 centers.

The CF Foundation is meeting with key officials at the NIH to advocate for the development of a "Request for Applications" to support the expansion of the Therapeutics Development Network. In light of the NIH's development of other clinical trial networks for diabetes and asthma, the CF Foundation hopes to identify ways in which the NIH also might be interested in collaborating on this clinical effort for CF.

(6/21/02)