S. HRG. 113–768 

Senate Hearings 

Before the Committee on Appropriations 

Department of Labor, 

Health and Human Services, 

and Education, and Related 

Agencies Appropriations 

Fiscal Year 2015 

113th CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

NONDEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES 
Department of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies 

Appropriations, 2015 
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87–251 PDF 2016

S. HRG. 113–768 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, 

AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 

HEARINGS 

BEFORE A

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE 

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION 

Department of Education 

Department of Health and Human Services 

Department of Labor 

Nondepartmental Witnesses 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations 

( 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/ 

committee.action?chamber=senate&committee=appropriations 
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS 

BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland, Chairwoman 

PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont 

TOM HARKIN, Iowa 

PATTY MURRAY, Washington 

DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California 

RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois 

TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

JACK REED, Rhode Island 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

JON TESTER, Montana 

TOM UDALL, New Mexico 

JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire 

JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon 

MARK BEGICH, Alaska 

CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware 

RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama, Vice 

Chairman 

THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi 

MITCH MCCONNELL, Kentucky 

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine 

LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska 

LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina 

MARK KIRK, Illinois 

DANIEL COATS, Indiana 

ROY BLUNT, Missouri 

JERRY MORAN, Kansas 

JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota 

MIKE JOHANNS, Nebraska 

JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas 

CHARLES E. KIEFFER, Staff Director 

WILLIAM D. DUHNKE III, Minority Staff Director 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND

EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES

TOM HARKIN, Iowa, Chairman 

PATTY MURRAY, Washington 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois 

JACK REED, Rhode Island 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland 

JON TESTER, Montana 

JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire 

JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon 

JERRY MORAN, Kansas, Ranking 

THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi 

RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama 

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee 

LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina 

MARK KIRK, Illinois 

MIKE JOHANNS, Nebraska 

JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas 

Professional Staff 

ADRIENNE HALLETT

MARK LAISCH

LISA BERNHARDT

MICHAEL GENTILE

ROBIN JULIANO

KELLY BROWN

LAURA A. FRIEDEL (Minority) 

JENNIFER CASTAGNA (Minority) 

CHOL PAK (Minority) 

M.V. YOUNG (Minority) 

Administrative Support 

TERI CURTIN
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

HEARINGS 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014 Page 

Department of Health and Human Services: National Institutes of Health ...... 1 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014 

Department of Labor: Office of the Secretary ....................................................... 115 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2014 

Department of Education: Office of the Secretary ................................................ 165 

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014 

Department of Health and Human Services: Office of the Secretary ................. 237 

BACK MATTER 

Departmental Witnesses ......................................................................................... 321 

Corporation for Public Broadcasting ............................................................... 321 

Railroad Retirement Board .............................................................................. 326 

Office of Inspector General .............................................................................. 328 

List of Witnesses, Communications, and Prepared Statements ..........................

Nondepartmental Witnesses ................................................................................... 330 

Subject Index ............................................................................................................

Corporation of Public Broadcasting ................................................................

Department of Education: Office of the Secretary .........................................

Department of Health and Human Services ..................................................

National Institutes of Health ...................................................................

Office of the Secretary ..............................................................................

Department of Labor: Office of the Secretary ................................................

Railroad Retirement Board ..............................................................................

Office of Inspector General .......................................................................

(1) 

DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND 

RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2014 

U.S. SENATE, 

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

The subcommittee met at 10 a.m., in room SD–192, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Tom Harkin (chairman) presiding. 

Present: Senators Harkin, Durbin, Mikulski, Moran, Cochran, 

Shelby, and Kirk. 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

STATEMENT OF FRANCIS S. COLLINS, M.D., PH.D., DIRECTOR 

ACCOMPANIED BY: 

ANTHONY S. FAUCI, M.D., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES 

HAROLD E. VARMUS, M.D., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE 

GARY H. GIBBONS, M.D., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL HEART, LUNG AND 

BLOOD INSTITUTE 

STORY C. LANDIS, PH.D., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF 

NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE 

CHRISTOPHER P. AUSTIN, M.D., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CENTER 

FOR ADVANCING TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCES 

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR TOM HARKIN

Senator HARKIN. The Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, 

Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies 

will come to order. Good morning, everyone, and welcome. Sorry we 

are a little late. We had a vote at 10—that is all. 

Well, today will be my final Appropriations budget hearing for 

the NIH (National Institutes of Health) as the chair of this subcommittee. I took over this subcommittee from Senator Lawton 

Chiles in 1989. That is a long time ago it seems, a quarter century. 

I am so proud of all that we have done—all of us here—often on 

a bipartisan basis, to transform the National Institutes of Health 

into truly the jewel and the crown of biomedical research not only 

in the United States, but globally. 
2 

On Tuesday, as many of you know, I was on the NIH campus to 

help dedicate the new John Porter Neurosciences building. I was 

struck as I drove around the campus by the growth and modernization that has taken place there in the last 25 years. But that physical transformation has been more than matched by the transformational science and discovery that has sprung from that campus. 

If you do not mind, a little bit of reminiscences. My first year as 

chair was the first year that we invested NIH dollars in an exciting 

new project to map the human genome, 1989. I will never forget. 

I had taken over this subcommittee and I was visited by Dr. James 

Watson, whom I had never met before, but of course I had read 

about him—the famous Nobel Prize winner—Watson and Crick, 

discoverers of the double helix. And so, I was quite full of myself 

when as a freshman Senator I was visited by this great scientist 

who wanted to talk to me about investing in mapping and sequencing the human gene. I had no idea what he was even talking about 

at that time, but he brought me along a little bit, and so we were 

able to put a little bit of money into that. 

Thanks again to all that initial work. And thanks to the work of 

Dr. Collins and his colleagues at NIH. We can now sequence the 

human genome at a fraction of the cost that it required, and in a 

shorter timeframe. I might just add, there was a study done by the 

Battelle Institute. It came out last year and said that the U.S. Federal Government’s $3.8 billion funding of the Human Genome 

Project between 1988—actually it’s 1989, but that is okay—between 1988 and 2003 drove $796 billion in U.S. economic impact 

due to the growth of the genomics technology industry and the use 

of genomics in healthcare, energy, agriculture, and other sectors— 

quite a rate of return on investment. 

And consider this: In 1989—I remember it well in the 1980s— 

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) was a death sentence. Today, 

thanks in large part to the leadership of Dr. Anthony Fauci, HIV 

is a manageable chronic disease, and we know how to prevent it. 

Since 1989, the proportion of older people with chronic disabilities 

has dropped by nearly one-third. Cancer death rates in the U.S. are 

now falling at a rate of nearly 1 percent each year. And each 1- 

percent decline saves our Nation nearly $500 billion. There has 

been near miraculous progress in the fight against childhood cancers with the 5-year survival rate for the most common type, acute 

lymphocytic leukemia, now rising to a 90-percent cure rate. That 

is fantastic. 

Two of our witnesses here today direct centers that did not exist, 

that were not part of NIH in 1989. The National Institute of Mental Health moved from SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental 

Health Services Administration) to NIH in 1992, and this subcommittee created the National Center for Advancing Translational 

Sciences (NCATS) in 2011. And although the directors are not here 

today, I am particularly proud to have authored the bill that created the National Institute on Deafness and Communication Disorders in 1988. Again, as I said, we worked to elevate the Genome 

Research Office at that time to a center in 1989, and we created 

the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine 

in fiscal year 1992. Looking back to 1989, my notes tell me that 
3 

in 1989 a Yale scientist named Francis Collins led a research team 

to discover the gene for cystic fibrosis. 

How far the NIH has come in 25 years. So many Nobel Prizes. 

So many life-saving discoveries. This subcommittee has had no 

higher priority than to support NIH and the scientists all across 

America dedicated to reducing suffering and improving public 

health. So this is a bittersweet moment for me and for all of us who 

revere the work of NIH because these great achievements are in 

the past. The future leadership of NIH is threatened by penny 

wise, pound foolish thinking by too many here in the Congress. 

Most in Congress are obsessed by budget deficits. I am more concerned by our deficits of vision and ambition and leadership. 

I am proud to say that since 1989, I have either chaired or been 

the ranking member of this subcommittee. Most of that time with 

Senator Arlen Specter. We kept changing back and forth as the 

leadership of the Senate would change, more recently with both 

Senator Shelby and now Senator Moran on this committee. So it 

has been, for me, an enlightening experience, through all these 

years. I do not have a science background, a bit of an engineering 

background, but not much of science. So for me it has just been eye 

opening to see what has happened with NIH through all these 

years. 

As our Government charts a course of stagnation and disinvestment in biomedical research, other countries are surging ahead. 

China’s government pledged to increase its basic research investment by a staggering 26 percent just in the last year and will invest more than $300 billion in biotechnology over the next 5 years, 

twice what we are planning on doing. 

So this is the context in which we consider the proposed funding 

levels for fiscal year 2015. The Murray-Ryan budget deal partially 

replaced the sequester for the coming year, and while I am pleased 

that the subcommittee has a solid top line figure to work with, 

these austere budget caps are wreaking havoc on NIH and other 

national priorities. 

With a non-defense cap that increases by $583 million this year, 

it is mathematically impossible to fully replace the remaining NIH 

sequester and provide just an inflationary increase to NIH without 

forcing additional cuts to education, and job training, and other priorities. 

By not replacing the sequester this year, we are foregoing $56 

billion that could be invested in programs to grow our economy, 

programs like NIH. The President proposed a fully offset opportunity growth and security initiative that represents the $56 billion 

in lost—that was lost to sequester. That initiative would allow for 

investing an additional $900 million in NIH, enough to bring NIH 

back to the pre-sequester level and then provide a small increase. 

That is what we are losing by clinging to this devastating policy 

of sequester. Make no mistake: Keeping the sequester in place will 

mean a steady, destructive erosion in our NIH investment. It is no 

longer a question of politics; it is just a question of math. 

So I look forward to the discussion today about the exciting work 

that NIH is doing in the face of these budget problems, and in the 

hopes that we can all work together to support this vital institution, and to maintain America’s leadership in our biomedical 
4 

sciences. With that, I will yield to Senator Moran for his opening 

statement. 

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JERRY MORAN

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you. I look forward to continuing to work with you during the remainder of your term as 

chairman of this subcommittee along with Senator Shelby, the 

ranking member, and Chairwoman Mikulski to see that we accomplish some of the goals that you outlined in your statement. 

And I do appreciate Dr. Collins and his colleagues being with us 

today to discuss the National Institutes of Health. In my view, NIH 

represents hope for millions of patients suffering from conditions 

from Alzheimer’s disease to cancer. NIH-funded research has 

raised life expectancy, improved the quality of life, and is an economic engine helping to sustain America’s competitiveness. 

Over the past year, cutting-edge NIH-supported research discovered a blood test to predict if a healthy person will develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, uncovered a set of rare mutations to a 

gene that provides protection against type 2 diabetes, and used targeted immunotherapy to induce remission in leukemia. What wonderful developments. A continued commitment to NIH is essential 

to address our Nation’s growing health concerns, spur medical innovation, sustain American competitiveness, and reduce healthcare 

costs. 

I think NIH is at a critical juncture. We have spent years focusing on doubling the NIH budget, and now a decade later the NIH 

budget is falling victim to an Administration’s budget that does not 

prioritize biomedical research. The fiscal year 2015 budget touts an 

increase of $200 million, or 0.7 percent, seven-tenths of a percent. 

However, with the use of, really, a budget gimmick, the increase 

is all but eliminated with the President’s proposal to increase the 

evaluation set-aside. Under the President’s proposal, $142 million 

of the $200 million increase would be transferred to other programs 

within the Department of Health and Human Services, leaving 

NIH with only a $58 million increase. 

Without a consistent commitment to funding our premiere medical research agency, the future of biomedical research in the 

United States is in jeopardy. Grant success rates are at an all-time 

low. The average age of a first-time R01 grantee is 42 years old, 

up from 38 years old in 1980. I looked out across the list of the 

panel of witnesses and discovered that you all remain very young, 

so perhaps that is defeating the point I am trying to make. But our 

researchers are becoming older as we continue this process. In fact, 

our principal investigators who are 65 or older receive more than 

twice as many R01 grants than those 36 and under. Young scientists, which we desperately need, will be discouraged by these 

statistics, and many have fled research fields or left for opportunities in other countries, putting our Nation at a serious risk for losing our global competitiveness in the biomedical research field and 

reducing the chances that we find cures and treatments. 

Dr. Collins has consistently raised this concern about what he 

calls ‘‘deep long-term damage’’ to biomedical research, and we 

should all pay attention to his warnings. We cannot let these research opportunities slip away. We cannot lose the brilliant sci-
5 

entists, the scientific minds that will make future ground-breaking 

discoveries in biomedical research to alternative careers or other 

countries. And we must not squander the scientific capacity that 

we have developed. 

I believe funding decisions represent more than just dollars. 

They reflect our Nation’s priorities. And this Congress faces unprecedented challenges to reduce Government spending. Now is the 

time to reevaluate our funding priorities and invest after evaluating those priorities in biomedical research. This is the time of 

promise in research, and the United States should be at the forefront in this area. To do so, we must commit to pay for the research. We must accomplish this. And I thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Moran. Well, again, Dr. 

Collins and colleagues, welcome again to our subcommittee. I got 

your statement. I read it. It will be a part of the record in its entirety. And, Dr. Collins, we will recognize you. Just proceed as you 

so desire for 10 minutes or so, or whatever it takes you to get it 

done. Welcome back, Dr. Collins. 

SUMMARY STATEMENT OF DR. FRANCIS S. COLLINS

Dr. COLLINS. Well, thank you, and good morning, Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the subcommittee. 

Let me introduce the folks at the table who are here with me: Over 

to your right, my left, Dr. Harold Varmus, the Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), formerly the director of the NIH; 

next to him, Dr. Gary Gibbons, Director of the National Heart, 

Lung, and Blood Institute; and immediately to my left, Dr. Christopher Austin, Director of the new National Center for Advancing 

Translational Sciences, NCATS; to my right, Dr. Story Landis, the 

Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and 

Stroke; and finally as already mentioned, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. 

And they are here to answer your questions, as am I. 

Well, it is a great honor for us to be here to appear before you 

and present the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 budget request, 

and to provide an overview of our Agency’s critical role in enhancing the Nation’s health through scientific discovery. But before I 

begin today, I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to thank 

you, Mr. Chairman, for your extraordinary leadership on this subcommittee over these 25 years. You have been a remarkable—I 

would say even historic—advocate for biomedical research and for 

the NIH. We are all very grateful for your service, and will truly 

miss you on this subcommittee in the years to come. 

[The graphic follows:] 
6 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH MISSION

Dr. COLLINS. NIH has been advancing our understanding of 

health and disease for more than a century. Scientific and technological breakthroughs generated by NIH-supported research are behind many of the gains that you can see in this image of how our 

country has enjoyed gains in longevity and in health. For example, 

over the last 60 years, deaths from heart disease have fallen by 

more than 70 percent. Meanwhile, cancer death rates, as you have 

already cited, have been dropping about 1 percent annually for the 

last 15 years, life expectancy gains that have saved our Nation trillions of dollars. Likewise, HIV/AIDS treatments have greatly extended lives, and prevention strategies are enabling us to envision 

the first AIDS-free generation since this virus emerged more than 

30 years ago. 

[The graphic follows:] 
7 

Dr. COLLINS. But none of these advances could have happened 

without the strong support of the Administration and the U.S. Congress, and specifically of this subcommittee. This subcommittee 

came together in a bipartisan way, and I want to thank you for 

that, to make it possible in the fiscal year 2014 omnibus appropriation to turn a corner. 

BUDGET CHALLENGES

To be honest, the previous year was quite challenging for us. Sequestration applied damaging cuts to ground-breaking medical research and affected the morale of the scientific community. That 

impact was further exacerbated by the Government shutdown, 

which forced me to send 12,000 scientists home for 16 long days, 

and required us to turn patients away from the NIH Clinical Center. 

With the fiscal year 2014 omnibus, we are optimistic that a corner has been turned after a difficult decade during which NIH has 

lost more than 20 percent of its purchasing power for medical research, 20 percent down from where we were in 2003. The Administration now proposes a fiscal year 2015 budget request that is 

$211 million, or .7 percent, above the fiscal year 2014 level. This 

budget request reflects the President’s and the Secretary’s commitment to improving the health of the Nation and to maintaining our 

leadership in the life sciences while remaining within the constraints of the Murray-Ryan budget envelope. It allocates resources 

to areas with the most extraordinary promise for medical research, 

while maintaining the flexibility to pursue unexpected scientific opportunities, and to address unforeseen public health needs. 
8 

Within the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 budget, NIH will increase our primary funding mechanism for investigator-initiated 

research, the research project grants, or RPGs. And this is a critical priority. In fiscal year 2013, our grant success rate, as you can 

see in this graph, reached an all-time low of 16.8 percent, a number that desperately needs to rise again. 

[The graphic follows:] 

Dr. COLLINS. By careful stewardship of resources, we expect to 

support 9,326 new and competing RPGs next fiscal year, which will 

be an increase of 329 over fiscal year 2014 levels, although the 

total number of grants we support will remain approximately the 

same. 

But now, let me turn to some of the exciting scientific opportunities that NIH is pursuing today. 

[The graphic follows:] 
9 

FUTURE OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

Dr. COLLINS. I can assure you the future of biomedical research 

has never been brighter. Basic science, for which the Federal Government serves as the main source of support in the U.S., had led 

the way. Advances in genomics, proteomics, stem cells, imagine, 

the microbiome, and other technologies have led to phenomenal advances in our understanding of how life works, and also the discovery of more than a thousand new risk factors for disease. 

NIH will continue to spend a little more than half of our budget 

on these basic science advances. But as you know, we are also 

deeply committed to catalyzing the translation of these discoveries 

into clinical advances. And this can be quite challenging to the dismay of researchers, drug companies, and especially patients. We 

face a situation today where the vast majority of drugs entering the 

development pipeline fall by the wayside. 

The most distressing failures, as you see here, occur when a drug 

is found to be ineffective in the later stages of development, in 

phase two or phase three clinical trials, after years of work and 

millions of dollars have already been spent. 

[The graphic follows:] 
10 

ACCELERATING MEDICINES PARTNERSHIP

Dr. COLLINS. A major reason for such failures is that scientists 

often have not had enough information to choose the right biological targets, and if a drug is aimed at the wrong target, it will not 

be effective against the disease it was intended to treat, and a failure will occur. 

So to this end, we were particularly thrilled to announce the 

launch of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership, AMP, just 6 

weeks ago. 

[The graphic follows:] 
11 

Dr. COLLINS. This pre-competitive partnership, which will share 

all data openly, will initially focus on three disease areas that are 

ripe for drug discovery: Alzheimer’s disease, type 2 diabetes, and 

the autoimmune disorders lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. 

Besides NIH, the partners in AMP include the FDA and 10 biopharmaceutical firms, listed here, and a number of non-profits, including patient advocacy groups. 

[The graphic follows:] 
12 

UNIVERSAL FLU VACCINE

Dr. COLLINS. This unprecedented public/private collaboration will 

use cutting-edge scientific approaches to sift through a long list of 

potential therapeutic targets and choose those most likely to lead 

to success, with the cost being shared evenly by NIH and industry. 

But we are not stopping there. Influenza is another area where 

we are poised for rapid progress. In fact, NIH-funded scientists are 

well on their way to developing a universal vaccine. The outside of 

the flu virus, shown here, is coated with tiny mushroom-shaped 

proteins, and each of these proteins has a head and a stem. 

[The graphic follows:] 
13 

Dr. COLLINS. Current vaccines target the head of that mushroom, 

but this mutates over time. Here you can see in yellow the changes 

that occurred in three different flu viruses. 

[The graphic follows:] 
14 

Dr. COLLINS. These changes, primarily in the head, are happening all the time. To keep up, a new vaccine must be produced 

every year. 

On the other hand, you can see here the stem of the viral protein 

remains almost entirely unaltered over time. A universal flu vaccine that targets the relatively stable stem would not only eliminate the need for an annual flu shot, but would also provide protection against outbreaks like the H5N1 and H7N9 events in Southeast Asia that are causing considerable worldwide concern right 

now. 

BRAIN INITIATIVE

Another major challenge is exploring what has been called the 

most complex structure in the known universe, the human brain. 

As you know, NIH is leading the new Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies, B–R–A–I–N, BRAIN Initiative, and we are grateful for your support. 

[The graphic follows:] 

Dr. COLLINS. This initiative will provide a foundational platform 

for major advances in Alzheimer’s disease, autism, schizophrenia, 

traumatic brain injury, epilepsy, and many other brain disorders. 

But a final area of scientific opportunity that I want to highlight 

today involves one of our Nation’s biggest and most feared killers, 

cancer. Until recently, our weapons for attacking cancer have been 

surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, all of which can be effective, 

but carry risks. Recent advances have given us insights into the intricate workings of the cancer cell, and a whole new generation of 
15 

targeted therapeutics is emerging, ushering in an era of individualized precision medicine. 

[The graphic follows:] 

OPPORTUNITIES IN CANCER RESEARCH

Dr. COLLINS. This image on the left shows a dramatic example 

of just how effective such targeted therapies can be because on the 

left is a scan of a melanoma patient who carries a mutation and 

a gene that codes a protein called B-Raf. Now, B-Raf is implicated 

when mutated in the development of cancer. The hot spots that you 

see all over this individual’s body indicate dividing cancer cells that 

have spread throughout. After treatment with a new drug targeted 

to block the effects of mutant RAF, those hot spots almost vanish. 

The promise of targeted therapy is apparent. 

But now, there is a new powerful weapon in the arsenal, cancer 

immunotherapy, a revolutionary new approach that Science magazine named its 2013 breakthrough of the year. 

[The graphic follows:] 
16 

Dr. COLLINS. This involves harnessing the body’s own immune 

system to fight this dreaded disease. In one of those new approaches, certain types of immune cells called T-cells—you can see 

them here—are collected from cancer patients and engineered to 

produce special proteins on their surface. When these engineered 

T-cells are infused back into patients, they have the power to seek 

and destroy cancer cells. 

And in this video, you can see one of those modified T-cells doing 

just that, actually obliterating the cancer cell. 

[The graphic follows:] 
17 

Dr. COLLINS. Knowing how to turn T-cells into little Ninja warriors required big investments in basic biomedical research over 

more than a decade, but the consequences are starting to be amazing. 

I would like to share this story, in closing, of Emily Whitehead. 

[The graphic follows:] 
18 

Dr. COLLINS. Nearly 2 years ago, this brave little girl became the 

first pediatric patient to be treated with a new kind of cancer 

immunotherapy. Emily was suffering from acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a disease that, as was pointed out by Senator Moran, now 

we cure 90 percent of the time with chemotherapy. But distressingly, Emily was in the 10 percent where that fails. 

Her parents decided to enroll her in a pioneering cancer 

immunotherapy trial at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. 

Emily’s T-cells were collected from her blood and re-engineered in 

the lab to recognize a protein found only on the surface of her leukemia cells. Those T-cells were then infused back into Emily’s 

blood where they circulated throughout her body on a mission to 

seek and destroy leukemia. Just 28 days after treatment, she was 

cancer free, and she remains so to this day. 

[The graphic follows:] 
19 

Dr. COLLINS. Here is Emily today, a happy, healthy third grader 

who is looking forward to celebrating her ninth birthday next 

month. As her mom, Kerry, puts it, ‘‘If you didn’t know what happened to her and you saw her now, you would have no idea what 

she has been through.’’ A wonderful story of success. 

PREPARED STATEMENTS

And, Senators, I believe there are a great many more Emilys on 

the horizon. Our Nation has never witnessed a time of greater 

promise for advances in medicine. With your support, we can realize our vision of accelerating discovery across the vast landscape of 

biomedical research. From basic scientific inquiry to human clinical 

trials, the National Institutes of Hope is ready to move forward. 

[The graphic follows:] 
20 

Dr. COLLINS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your support of NIH. 

My colleagues and I welcome your questions. 

[The statements follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF FRANCIS S. COLLINS, M.D., PH.D. 

Good morning, Mr. Chairman and distinguished members of the subcommittee. I 

am Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the National Institutes of Health 

(NIH). It is an honor to appear before you today to present the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for the NIH and provide an overview of our critical 

role in enhancing our Nation’s health through scientific discovery. 

As the Nation’s biomedical research agency, NIH’s mission is to seek fundamental 

knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and to apply that knowledge to enhance human health, lengthen life, and reduce illness and disability. I can 

report to you that NIH leadership, employees, and grantees continue to believe passionately in this mission. 

Before I discuss the tremendous strides we have made and the exciting scientific 

opportunities on the horizon, I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and Ranking 

Member Moran, as well as your colleagues, for the recent fiscal year 2014 Omnibus 

Appropriation bill. The subcommittee came together in a bipartisan way to increase 

funding for NIH and we are truly grateful for your action. The past year has been 

challenging for us: The sequester reduced funding for groundbreaking medical research and affected the morale of the scientific community. This impact was further 

exacerbated by the shutdown. 

There is much good news to report about the science that we support. NIH has 

been advancing our understanding of health and disease for more than a century; 

scientific and technological breakthroughs generated by NIH-supported research are 

behind much of the gains our country has enjoyed in health and longevity. For example, deaths from heart disease have been reduced by more than 70 percent from 

1950 to 2008. Cancer death rates have been dropping about 1 percent annually for 

the past 15 years—life expectancy gains that save the Nation billions of dollars. 

HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention now enable us to envision the first AIDS-free 

generation since this virus emerged more than 30 years ago. NIH research also has 

given us vaccines to protect against an array of life-threatening diseases, including 

cervical cancer, influenza, and meningitis. We can look forward to a future in which 
21 

advanced prevention and treatment strategies such as these allow everyone to have 

a significantly better chance of living a long and healthy life. 

These statistics tell you how far we have come—but our aim is to go even further, 

faster. To this end, the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for the NIH 

is $30.362 billion, $211 million, or 0.7 percent, above the fiscal year 2014 level. This 

budget request reflects the President’s and the Secretary’s commitment to improving 

the health of the Nation and to maintaining our Nation’s leadership in the life 

sciences. The request highlights investments in innovative research that will advance fundamental knowledge and speed the development of new therapies, 

diagnostics, and preventive measures to improve public health. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget request will enhance NIH’s ability to support cuttingedge research and training of the scientific workforce. Within the Administration’s 

fiscal year 2015 budget, we will continue to increase Research Project Grants 

(RPGs), NIH’s funding mechanism for investigator-initiated research. NIH expects 

to support 9,326 new and competing RPGs in fiscal year 2015, an increase of 329 

over fiscal year 2014 levels. For fiscal year 2015, NIH anticipates funding a total 

of 34,197 RPGs. The budget request allocates resources to areas of the most extraordinary promise for biomedical research, while maintaining the flexibility to pursue 

unplanned scientific opportunities and address unforeseen health needs. While we are very grateful for any budget increase, the fully paid $56 billion Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative (OGSI), a program included in the President’s budget, would provide an additional $970 million investment in NIH programs that would allow NIH to fund or expand a host of other cutting-edge initiatives, speeding the development of vaccines and cures, and restoring sequestration 

cuts to the number of research project grants. 

Let me describe a few of the many areas in which NIH-supported research is 

opening up extraordinary opportunities to improve the health of the American public. 

A major program that began this year is the Brain Research through Advancing 

Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, for which thanks are due to this 

subcommittee for its fiscal year 2014 support. NIH is a major player in this pioneering multiagency venture that will enable the creation of new tools capable of 

examining the activity of billions of nerve cells, networks, and pathways in real 

time. By measuring activity at the scale of circuits and networks in living organisms, we can begin to decode sensory experience and, potentially, even memory, 

emotion, and thought. Successful pursuit of the BRAIN Initiative will revolutionize 

neuroscience, providing a foundational platform for major advances in Alzheimer’s 

disease, autism, schizophrenia, epilepsy, traumatic brain injury, and many other 

brain disorders. 

As technology allows us to tackle mind-boggling tasks like recording the activity 

of billions of nerve cells in the brain or determining the DNA sequence of tens of 

thousands of human genomes, researchers are generating enormous quantities of 

data at an unprecedented pace. The challenge posed by this revolution is how to 

store, retrieve, integrate, and analyze this mountain of complex data—and transform it into knowledge that can improve human health. To address this challenge 

that affects virtually all areas of biomedical research, we have just launched the Big 

Data to Knowledge (BD2K) initiative. The goals of BD2K are to develop and disseminate new analytical methods and software, enhance training of data scientists, 

and facilitate broad use and sharing of complex biomedical datasets. With sustained 

investment and effort, we will overcome the challenges associated with Big Data to 

accelerate real-world applications of basic science discoveries. 

We are also excited about another area of intense interest: the development of 

therapeutics. Recent advances in genomics, proteomics, imaging, and other technologies have led to the recent discovery of more than a thousand risk factors for 

disease—biological insights that ought to hold promise as targets for drugs. But 

drug development is a terribly difficult and failure-prone business. To the dismay 

of researchers, drug companies, and patients, the vast majority of drugs entering 

the development pipeline fall by the wayside. The most distressing failures occur 

when a drug is found to be ineffective in the later stages of development—in Phase 

II or Phase III clinical studies—after years of work and millions of dollars have already been spent. A major reason for such failures is that scientists often have not 

had enough information to choose the right biological targets. If a drug is aimed at 

the wrong target, it won’t work against the disease it was intended to treat. 

With that challenge in mind, we were thrilled last month to launch the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP). This unprecedented public-private effort will 

use cutting-edge scientific approaches to sift through a very long list of potential 

therapeutic targets, and choose those most likely to lead to success. Besides NIH, 

the AMP partners include the FDA, 10 biopharmaceutical firms and a number of 
22 

nonprofits, including patient advocacy groups. This precompetitive partnership, 

which will share all data openly, will initially focus on three disease areas that are 

ripe for discovery: Alzheimer’s disease, type 2 diabetes, and the autoimmune disorders, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Through this team effort, we believe we can 

reach our shared goals of treating and curing disease faster. 

Preventing disease is another top priority, and influenza is one area of prevention 

in which we are poised for rapid progress. Currently, to provide protection against 

the rapidly evolving influenza virus, a new vaccine must be produced each year and 

we all need to get an annual flu shot. Also, despite best efforts, the vaccine isn’t 

always ideal. In an average year, the flu claims up to 49,000 American lives and 

costs the U.S. economy about $87 billion. But it does not have to be that way. NIHfunded researchers are now working on a universal flu vaccine—designed to protect 

people against virtually all strains of the flu for extended periods of time and, thus, 

potentially reduce the need for annual flu shots. Of critical importance, such a vaccine could also protect against a future global flu pandemic. 

While we are several years away from having a universal flu vaccine available 

to the public, our researchers have already demonstrated proof of concept and are 

testing a number of approaches, including two-stage ‘‘prime boost’’ vaccines and ferritin nanoparticles. Clearly, the prospect of a universal flu vaccine is not science fiction. Early clinical studies are already underway. With sustained investment, the 

United States may be a few years away from realizing its potential to benefit our 

health and our economy. 

As impressive as a universal flu vaccine would be, it is not the only trick we are 

teaching our immune systems. We are also aiming to harness the body’s own immune system to fight cancer. Until recently, our weapons for attacking cancer have 

been largely limited to surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy—treatments that carry 

risks and cause adverse side effects. Now, after years of intense basic and 

translational research, we have an exciting new possibility: Cancer immunotherapy. 

Researchers have long been puzzled by the uncanny ability of cancer cells to 

evade the immune response. What stops the body from waging its own ‘‘war on cancer?’’ As it turns out, our bodies have built-in checkpoints to prevent our immune 

systems from going into overdrive and killing healthy cells. Now, NIH-funded researchers have discovered a way to genetically modify certain white blood cells 

called T-cells—the soldiers of the immune system—to attack tumor cells. In this 

new approach, T-cells are collected from cancer patients and engineered in the lab 

to produce special proteins on their surface, called chimeric antigen receptors 

(CARs). When the modified cells are infused back into patients, they multiply and, 

with guidance from their newly engineered receptors, seek and destroy tumor cells. 

Promising results in patients with leukemia prompted Science magazine to name 

this its 2013 Breakthrough of the Year. 

Today, I have provided a very brief overview of NIH’s past successes and continuing commitment to basic, translational, and clinical research. Our Nation has 

never witnessed a time of greater promise for advances in medicine. With your support, we can anticipate a future of accelerating discovery across NIH’s broad research landscape, from fundamental scientific inquiry to human clinical trials. The 

‘‘National Institutes of Hope’’ is ready to move forward. 

This concludes my testimony, Mr. Chairman. I look forward to your questions. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ANTHONY S. FAUCI, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to discuss current 

and future plans for biomedical research at the National Institute of Allergy and 

Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The President’s fiscal year 2015 NIAID budget request of $4,423,357,000 billion is approximately $31 million more than the fiscal year 2014 funding level ($4,392,670,000). 

NIAID conducts, supports, and translates basic and clinical research into the development of diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines to detect, treat, and prevent infectious and immune-mediated diseases. NIAID has a dual mandate that balances 

research addressing current biomedical challenges with the capacity to rapidly respond to new threats from emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases and bioterrorism. 

INFECTIOUS DISEASES RESEARCH

HIV/AIDS.—NIAID is leading transformational progress in basic and clinical research on HIV/AIDS. The decades-long NIAID investment in HIV/AIDS research 

has made the goal of an AIDS-free generation a possibility with sustained effort. 

NIAID continues to improve and refine HIV prevention and treatment tools, includ-
23 

ing antiretroviral therapies to effectively manage disease and reduce HIV transmission, and pre-exposure prophylaxis to protect against HIV. NIAID also is advancing research toward the development of an effective HIV vaccine to complement existing prevention strategies. HIV vaccine development will be informed by NIAID 

efforts to identify immunological markers in the subset of people protected against 

HIV infection in the RV144 trial, the first HIV vaccine trial to show modest efficacy. 

The NIAID Vaccine Research Center together with several NIAID grantees are 

making rapid progress on ways to generate broadly neutralizing antibodies to protect against multiple strains of HIV, research that may translate to vaccines and 

therapeutics of global public health significance. 

Years of NIAID-supported research on HIV pathogenesis and the role of HIV reservoirs have suggested the feasibility of curing some HIV-infected individuals. 

NIAID will investigate promising reports of a handful of infants who were born 

HIV-positive but now test negative for the virus following aggressive antiretroviral 

treatment initiated shortly after birth by supporting a clinical trial to determine if 

this strategy is safe and effective for other infants. NIAID also will play a major 

role in implementing the President’s $100 million HIV/AIDS cure research initiative. As part of this effort, NIAID will support additional research on HIV latency 

and persistence. Understanding these processes may reveal new strategies toward 

a cure. 

NIAID recently restructured its HIV/AIDS Clinical Trials Networks to capitalize 

on the growing body of promising HIV research findings and to better address current research questions. The Networks will focus on improved ways to prevent and 

treat HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis C co-infections, and on research toward development of a vaccine, microbicides, and a cure. 

Tuberculosis.—Tuberculosis (TB) remains a significant cause of illness and death 

throughout the world, especially among those also infected with HIV. NIAID recently launched a genome sequencing project that will examine the genetic diversity 

of TB bacteria and patterns of drug resistance to understand TB pathogenesis and 

to identify new drug targets and molecular mechanisms of resistance. This research 

will be particularly important to address the emergence of multi- and extensively 

drug-resistant TB. NIAID-supported scientists also are working to modify the existing antibiotic spectinomycin to bypass mechanisms of resistance to this drug. These 

efforts have shown promise in TB animal models. 

Malaria.—NIAID continues to progress toward its goal to control, eliminate, and 

ultimately eradicate malaria worldwide. The development of vaccines is a critical 

part of this endeavor. NIAID researchers and grantees recently completed an earlystage clinical trial that showed a novel vaccine composed of weakened malaria 

sporozoites was safe and protected against malaria. NIAID has developed two new 

tests to rapidly and inexpensively detect resistance to artemisinin, a first-line antimalarial drug. NIAID also is exploring innovative methods to control the spread of 

malaria. For example, NIAID-funded researchers have established a bacterial infection that passes from female mosquitoes to their offspring and kills malaria 

parasites within the mosquitoes before they can infect humans. 

Other Infectious Diseases of Domestic and Global Health Importance.—NIAID is 

committed to research on infectious diseases affecting global health. Influenza is 

among the most important infectious diseases of domestic and global concern. 

NIAID research addresses the challenge of seasonal influenza and prepares for the 

threat of an emerging pandemic. NIAID is developing and evaluating vaccines 

against the avian influenza strains H5N1 and H7N9 to deploy if needed to prevent 

further spread among humans. NIAID also is examining these vaccines paired with 

adjuvants—components that enhance the immune response—to provide the greatest 

protection with the smallest dose possible. NIAID investigators and grantees are 

making significant progress toward the development of a universal influenza vaccine 

that could generate durable protection over a period of years against a wide range 

of seasonal and pandemic influenza strains. Studies conducted by NIAID scientists 

at the NIAID Special Clinical Studies Unit in the NIH Clinical Center are providing 

important clues into the susceptibility and immune response of patients to influenza 

infection. Future studies will examine the effectiveness of new vaccines and therapeutics. 

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a serious respiratory infection primarily of 

young children that causes significant illness and hospitalizations in the U.S. and 

thousands of deaths worldwide. There is no vaccine to protect infants and children 

against RSV. Researchers at the NIAID Vaccine Research Center recently determined the structure of a key RSV protein bound to a broadly neutralizing human 

RSV antibody and used it to design an experimental RSV vaccine that is effective 

in animal models. NIAID has advanced this groundbreaking RSV vaccine into early- 
24 

stage clinical trials in humans. Science magazine highlighted this discovery among 

the top 10 scientific breakthroughs in 2013. 

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a significant cause of chronic liver disease and cancer, 

and often co-infects people with HIV. Traditional HCV therapies frequently have severe side effects and may not be successful in many patients. NIAID and NIH Clinical Center investigators recently led a Phase II trial of a new HCV drug, sofosbuvir. 

The trial demonstrated that sofosbuvir, combined with the antiviral drug ribavirin, 

was highly effective and well tolerated even in patients predicted to have poor outcomes with traditional HCV treatments. Sofosbuvir and similar therapies for the 

treatment of HCV have recently been approved, potentially revolutionizing treatment outcomes. 

Antimicrobial resistance is a significant public health challenge and an NIAID 

priority. NIAID recently reassessed research needs for this important issue and established a Leadership Group to design, implement, and manage the clinical research agenda for a new antibacterial resistance research network. NIAID provides 

resources to lower the investment risk for industry, academia, and non-profit organizations to facilitate a robust pipeline of diagnostics, vaccines, and therapeutics for 

resistant microbes. 

RESEARCH ON IMMUNOLOGY AND IMMUNE-MEDIATED DISORDERS

NIAID’s commitment to research on basic and clinical immunology continues to 

foster important insights that ultimately will help to better treat and prevent immune-mediated disorders, including food allergy. NIAID-funded investigators recently demonstrated that female sex hormones affect the gut microbiome and promote development of autoimmunity in an animal model, providing clues into why 

women are more likely to be affected by autoimmune diseases. NIAID-supported researchers have made progress in understanding how exposure to certain microbes 

in early life, especially those found in homes with dogs, may protect against the development of asthma and other allergies. NIAID grantees also developed two urine 

tests to diagnose and predict rejection of a transplanted kidney. These simple tests 

could one day replace the invasive procedure currently used to detect organ rejection 

and particularly would benefit African Americans, who are disproportionately affected by organ transplant rejection. 

CONCLUSION

For more than 60 years, basic and clinical research conducted and supported by 

NIAID on infectious and immune-mediated diseases has spurred the development 

of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics to improve the health of millions around 

the world. NIAID will continue to perform the basic, clinical, and translational research critical to advancing the health of our Nation and the world. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HAROLD E. VARMUS, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 NCI budget of $4,930,715,000 includes 

an increase of $7,944,000, or 0.2 percent, compared to the fiscal year 2014 level of 

$4,922,771,000. 

OVERVIEW OF NCI RESEARCH PRIORITIES

This is an era of remarkable opportunity in cancer research. Armed with broad 

knowledge about how various cancers arise and with powerful new research tools, 

the NCI is well equipped to accelerate progress towards preventing, diagnosing, and 

treating cancer more effectively. This era of opportunity is due in significant part 

to the subcommittee’s consistent support for biomedical research at NCI and NIH. 

The resources that you provide allow NCI to address an ambitious challenge: reducing the incidence, morbidity, and mortality for all of the many types of cancer, 

with tangible benefits for all Americans. The fiscal year 2015 budget will allow the 

NCI to build on the tremendous progress in many areas of cancer research, with 

the aim of improving outcomes for patients with all types of cancer. 

I will summarize some recent accomplishments and highlight new opportunities 

in five areas of NCI-supported research—genomics, cancer immunology, targeted 

therapeutics, bioinformatics, and prevention—to illustrate the breadth and pace of 

NCI’s progress. 

The Cancer Genomics research that NCI supports has dramatically altered our 

understanding of how cancer develops, identified the molecular signatures that can 
25 

be used to diagnose and categorize cancer more precisely, and provided new targets 

for therapeutic intervention. For example, two major initiatives—TCGA (The Cancer 

Genome Atlas) and TARGET (Therapeutically Applicable Research to Generate Effective Treatments)—have addressed nearly twenty common adult cancers and several less common cancers that occur in adults and children, revealing both tissuespecific patterns of genetic changes and changes that are common to several types 

of cancers. TCGA is a joint initiative of the NCI and the Human Genome Research 

Institute. During the past year, TCGA published comprehensive characterizations of 

acute myeloid leukemia, endometrial cancer, and clear cell renal carcinoma, among 

others. While every cancer is distinct genetically, many changes in the genome are 

shared among a wide array of cancer types, and each type of cancer has distinct 

patterns that often reflect exposure to carcinogenic agents, such as tobacco smoke 

and ultraviolet radiation. As these massive surveys come to conclusion, the NCI’s 

Center for Cancer Genomics is leading efforts to make full use of the TCGA results, 

including the best ways to incorporate genomic findings into the design of clinical 

trials. 

Some of the surprising findings from the TCGA and TARGET projects—such as 

the involvement of genes that govern the chemistry of chromosomal proteins, that 

influence cell metabolism, and that guide the processing of RNAs and proteins—are 

influencing the study of cancer biology throughout the NCI’s programs. TCGA and 

TARGET will certainly enlarge our understanding of carcinogenesis and will likely 

open new frontiers for preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancers. 

Cancer immunology is a rapidly advancing field that, in just the past few years, 

has dramatically altered our understanding of host defenses in response to cancers. 

It has also produced new and well-validated methods for treating cancer using antibodies that attach to proteins on cancer cell surfaces and using methods that modulate the complex behavior of the immune system to attack cancer cells. 

For several years, monoclonal antibodies against cancer cell proteins have been 

used to treat blood cancers, such as certain lymphomas and leukemias, and subsets 

of several types of solid tumors, such as breast and colorectal cancer. More recently, 

immunotoxins have been created by genetic engineering to fuse antibodies with 

parts of bacterial toxins to selectively kill cancer cells. For example, such 

immunotoxins developed in the NCI intramural program have induced remissions 

in late stage cases of mesothelioma, ovarian cancer, triple-negative breast cancer, 

drug-resistant hairy cell leukemia, and childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. 

There is also great optimism within the science community about modulating the 

immune system by introducing novel antigen receptors into cancer-killing T cells 

and especially by infusing antibodies that interfere with a system that impedes the 

immune response to cancer cells. These ‘‘immune-modulating’’ antibodies have recently received FDA approval, and other antibodies that bond other immune cell 

regulators may soon follow. In 2011, FDA approved a monoclonal antibody, called 

ipilimumab, to treat advanced melanoma. Some patients with metastatic melanoma 

being treated with ipilimumab are still alive several years after completing treatment. In 2013, another promising antibody to treat melanoma—lambrolizumab—received ‘‘breakthrough’’ designation by the FDA, helping expedite its development 

and further use in clinical trials, with the possibility of an expedited FDA review. 

In recognition of these and other recent achievements in the field of immunology, 

and the promise of further developments, ‘‘cancer immunotherapy’’ was named this 

year’s Breakthrough of the Year by Science magazine. 

Targeted therapies, based on the use of drugs that inhibit specific proteins implicated in the behavior of cancer cells, are now being developed and tested for their 

effects in patients with many types of cancer. Over the past decade, FDA has approved several drugs that rely on this therapeutic approach to treat cancers of blood 

cells, lung cancer, melanoma, and other cancers, and many more are in development. This activity has accelerated because of discoveries in genomics, cell signaling 

pathways, chemistry, and structural biology, and with the identification of new ways 

to inhibit proteins that are required for the integrity of cancer cells. 

Mutant RAS proteins are perhaps the most prominent potential targets for new 

therapies that the academic and commercial research sectors have thus far failed 

to target with inhibitory drugs. The importance of the RAS gene family in cancer 

has been clear for over 30 years; one family member, K–RAS, is mutated in more 

than 90 percent of pancreatic adenocarcinomas, about 40 percent of colorectal cancers, and about 25 percent of lung adenocarcinomas. For this reason, the NCI recently launched the RAS Project, a large-scale collaboration between investigators 

at the NCI’s Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research and those in NCI’s 

intramural and extramural communities. The RAS Project is motivated in part by 

new developments in the study of RAS proteins, including new information about 

their structural properties, binding of mutant RAS proteins to mutant-specific in-
26 

hibitors, interactions with other cellular proteins required for function, and new 

tests for genes required to allow RAS mutants to exert their effects. 

Still, while pursuing a path that leads to ‘‘precision medicine,’’ the NCI must also 

maintain its capacity to test new ways to deploy the currently dominant means of 

therapy. For instance, a recent study of patients with metastatic prostate cancer 

showed markedly increased survival in men who received chemotherapy when starting anti-androgenic hormone therapy, a result that is likely to change clinical practice for a cancer that continues to kill about 30,000 American men annually. 

Drug resistance commonly emerges in cancers being treated with either traditional chemotherapies or novel targeted therapies, allowing disease to progress. 

Over the past decade, NCI-supported studies have revealed several mechanisms by 

which resistance occurs, including additional mutations affecting the target molecules, mutations in related genes, and changes in gene expression. In some cases, 

especially chronic myeloid leukemias, drugs that overcome resistance have been 

identified, developed and FDA-approved. But in other situations, resistance to targeted drugs remains a major impediment to success, and the NCI is making major 

investments to study this problem. 

Bioinformatics, the management of enormous sets of molecular and clinical data 

is a critical component of NCI’s toolkit to study cancer in all of its manifestations. 

In work that ranges from cancer genomics, to cell signaling, and to clinical trials, 

the proper collection, analysis, storage, retrieval, and distribution of ‘‘big data’’ are 

critical elements of the Institute’s charge. The NCI’s Center for Bioinformatics and 

Information Technology (CBIIT) is addressing these responsibilities, in conjunction 

with NCI divisions. Part of the current effort requires the costly development of 

‘‘cloud computing’’ to work with the vast (petabyte) amounts of genomic data generated by TCGA, TARGET, and other projects, and to assemble and ultimately integrate clinical data with genomic data in manageable forms to promote further discovery and improve cancer care. 

Prevention of cancer remains NCI’s most desired goal. While complete avoidance 

of cancer may be impossible, since cancers often arise through spontaneous 

mutations, the control of tobacco use, vaccination against cancer-causing viruses 

(human hepatitis B virus and human papillomaviruses), sunlight avoidance, and 

regulation of dietary and carcinogenic substances (such as asbestos) have already 

reduced the incidence and the mortality rates of many cancers. For instance, between 2001 and 2010, largely due to the earlier reductions in tobacco use, there was 

a 25 percent decrease in male death rates and an 8 percent decrease in female 

death rates due to lung cancer, the major cause of death from cancer in the United 

States. Likewise, vaccination with current HPV vaccines can drastically reduce the 

incidence and mortality of several types of cancer, including cervical, anal, and 

oropharyngeal cancers that are caused by infection with certain strains of HPV. 

Still, NCI recognizes that these successes are incomplete, and therefore invests 

heavily in efforts to address several pertinent behavioral and biological questions. 

For instance, despite dramatic declines in the use of tobacco, about 18 percent of 

Americans continue to smoke. New approaches are needed to convince young people 

not to use tobacco and to convince current smokers to quit. Use of HPV vaccines 

remains far from the desired levels among adolescent girls and boys in the United 

States, as the February 2014 report from the President’s Cancer Panel emphasized. 

Better methods to promote the use of these potentially lifesaving vaccines are needed, at the same time as the dosing schedules and the protective breadth of the vaccines are improved. 

CONCLUSION

An important measure of the overall success of NCI’s work is the annual ‘‘Report 

to the Nation,’’ which describes trends in the incidence and death rates in the 

United States for many types of cancer. As has now been true for over a decade, 

the most reliable indicator—death rates from all cancers combined for men, women, 

and children—continues to decline by about one and a half percent per year. This 

reduction represents the savings of an enormous number of years of life and can 

be ascribed in large measure to the work of the NCI to prevent and treat cancers 

more effectively. 

Still, although mortality rates have been decreasing for most cancers, progress 

has not occurred as rapidly as desired, and for some cancers the numbers have not 

improved—or have worsened. Thus, much work remains. But the overall success apparent from both the public health data and recent achievements in the laboratory 

and clinical sciences inspires the NCI’s conviction that expanded efforts on all frontiers of cancer research will produce better health in the United States and around 

the globe. 
27 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GARY H. GIBBONS, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and distinguished members of the subcommittee: I am pleased to 

present the President’s budget request for the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 

budget of $2,987,685,000 includes an increase of $4,948,000 over the fiscal year 2014 

enacted level of $2,982,737,000. 

NHLBI’s highest priorities for research investment are conditions that contribute 

substantially to the global burden of disease. Heart and lung diseases are the leading causes of death, disability, and rising healthcare costs from non-communicable 

diseases in the United States and worldwide. Research supported by the NHLBI has 

contributed to dramatic improvements in longevity, quality of life, and the wealth 

of the Nation. Deaths from cardiovascular disease, for example, have dropped by 70 

percent in the past 40 years. This success reflects a balanced approach to supporting 

discovery science that spans basic, clinical, and population research. As accountable 

stewards seeking to maximize the public’s return-on-investment, we are committed 

to continually improving our approach to strategic priority-setting and systematic 

evaluation of our portfolio to ensure the highest possible impact on science and 

health. 

Reflecting upon the NHLBI’s legacy of success, many of the previous advances involved interventions at the latter stages of chronic disease. The fiscal year 2015 

budget envisions a research agenda that elucidates the underlying mechanisms of 

disease such that clinicians can more accurately predict at-risk individuals and tailor preventive interventions for disease long before symptoms and irreversible damage occur. Our strategic vision is guided by the breathtaking scientific opportunities 

at hand and public health needs, in consultation with domain-experts at the leading 

edge of discovery science. The fiscal year 2015 budget continues a journey toward 

predictive, preventive precision medicine that holds promise for turning research-toresults, continuing the dramatic decline in the burden of chronic disease in our Nation. 

UNPRECEDENTED SCIENTIFIC OPPORTUNITIES

Sustained investments in fundamental discovery science have led to new tools and 

technologies that stand to revolutionize medical research and clinical practice. Biomedical advances in congenital heart disease (CHD), the most common structural 

birth defect, have led to dramatic improvements in infant survival over the past 50 

years, now with more adults living with CHD than children. However, current palliative approaches that repair birth defects have limitations that compromise the 

length and quality of life. Recent NHLBI-supported research, applying the latest 

genomic technologies, has identified spontaneous genetic mutations that increase 

the risk of CHD. This breakthrough finding is beginning to unlock the mysteries of 

CHD, helping to define what goes awry during the formation of the heart and lay 

the foundation for preventing or fixing defects in the womb. To that end, NHLBI 

is investing in regenerative medicine research to enhance the capacity of the heart 

to repair itself. The 2012 Nobel Laureate, Shinya Yamanaka, is part of a large interinstitutional team of NHLBI-funded investigators studying how to use a child’s own 

cells to repair a congenital defect or create a tissue graft that could grow as a child 

ages. 

NHLBI investments in reparative biology and tissue bioengineering may also hold 

promise for accelerating new drug development platforms in partnership with the 

private sector. For example, NHLBI-funded investigators at Stanford University are 

using stem cells derived from adult tissue in a laboratory to create heart cells and 

model diseases such as those that perturb the electrical system of the heart in atrial 

fibrillation. These models are being used to more efficiently screen many novel 

drugs to determine efficacy as well as potential toxicities, augmenting the discovery 

pipeline. 

PREEMPTING AND PREVENTING CHRONIC DISEASE

New scientific discoveries hold promise for making public health inroads to halt 

chronic diseases before they become debilitating. In sickle cell disease (SCD), for example, we have made great strides in reducing complications from the disease, such 

as penicillin to prevent fatal infections in infants, transfusions to reduce stroke risk, 

and hydroxyurea to reduce pain and hospital admissions. While these advances have 

extended lifespans from childhood into the sixth decade of life, they target complications not the disease itself—a disease that disproportionately affects African Americans (about 1 in 500 births). We recently funded a new program that we hope will 

lead to the next generation of SCD treatments. Particularly exciting are studies that 
28 

are attempting to raise fetal hemoglobin levels (the most powerful known modifier 

of SCD severity) through modulation of a gene called Bcl11A that is involved in the 

switch from fetal to adult hemoglobin during development. These studies open the 

door to potential treatments that can reactivate the fetal hemoglobin gene to inhibit 

the sickle cell shape change of red blood cells, which could preempt disease progression. 

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the third leading cause of death, 

is a prime example of a chronic disease in which biomedical research advances have 

ameliorated symptoms; yet most interventions fail to dramatically alter the natural 

course of the disease. There is a critical need to identify at-risk individuals earlier 

in the disease process to prevent disease progression. NHLBI’s COPDgene study is 

integrating genetics and imaging studies to characterize pre-clinical subtypes of 

COPD. Such characterization can enable clinicians to detect subtle changes in lung 

function and structure long before symptoms develop, conventional clinical tests 

show abnormalities, or progressive lung damage occurs. This leading-edge research 

points to a horizon of individualized, precision medicine to preempt chronic lung disease. 

TRANSLATING DISCOVERIES INTO PUBLIC HEALTH IMPACT

While basic science is the cornerstone of scientific discovery, it is the beginning 

of a long path to public health impact. NHLBI has been a leader in traversing this 

road. Noted research initiatives like the Framingham Heart Study first identified 

the cardiovascular disease risk factors now addressed in routine physicals, which led 

to basic research that won Brown and Goldstein the Nobel Prize for their research 

on cholesterol metabolism—setting the stage for the development of statin drugs. 

We are currently amidst the unfolding of a similar story. The recent discovery of 

a mutation in the gene PCSK9 among a family with very low LDL cholesterol levels 

and reduced risk of heart attack has led to basic science discoveries and the rapid 

development of PCSK9 inhibitors. This public-private partnership is moving toward 

potential widespread clinical use as the next generation of cholesterol lowering 

drugs. 

We now know, however, that we must look beyond one-size-fits-all treatments. 

Population science and genetics research have clearly demonstrated individual differences not only in predisposition to disease but also in treatment response. For 

example, 26 million Americans currently suffer from asthma—the leading cause of 

missed school days for children and a driver of preventable hospitalizations and 

emergency room visits. Asthma disproportionately affects African Americans; African American children are twice as likely to have asthma as white children and, 

as adults, are two to three times more likely to die of asthma than any other racial 

or ethnic group. While effective treatments exist, they do not reach all of those in 

need. NHLBI will be seeking applications focused on identifying barriers and testing 

strategies to enhance the implementation of evidence-based practices in diverse 

communities across the Nation. Beyond the current treatments, next generation 

therapies should target these differences to achieve maximal benefit. NHLBI’s 

multi-center clinical trial network, AsthmaNet, is beginning the Best African American Response to Asthma Drugs (BARD) study to compare the effectiveness of different treatments on the management of asthma in African Americans. BARD will 

also assess how genetics may influence an individual’s response to the treatments, 

which could be a paradigm shift in addressing challenges like disparities in asthma 

care. 

CONCLUSION

We are in the midst of a very exciting period in science in which the capacity to 

enhance human health has never been greater. New tools and technologies are daring us to envision a future that is unburdened by chronic heart, lung, and blood diseases—not only ensuring wellness but also increasing economic productivity and reducing healthcare costs. For example, research shows that treating patients at moderate risk for cardiovascular disease with statin drugs to lower cholesterol can reduce annual medical spending by up to $430 million. Imagine how much can be 

saved by preventive interventions earlier in the disease course before symptoms 

begin and the costs of treatment rise dramatically. By achieving that goal, the return-on-investment of biomedical research will strengthen both the health and the 

wealth of the Nation. 
29 

1Statistics for stroke, TBI, and epilepsy from U.S. Centers from Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov 2 Circulation 2014; 129:e28–e292 

3 2013 Report: Medicines in Development for Neurological Disorders, Pharmaceutical Researchers and Manufacturers of America http://www.phrma.org/innovation/meds-in-development 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF STORY C. LANDIS, PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and 

Stroke (NINDS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 

NINDS budget of $1,608,461,000 includes an increase of $22,664,000 over the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of $1,585,797,000. NINDS supports research to reduce 

the burden of neurological disorders, from basic studies of the normal brain through 

clinical trials of prevention and treatment interventions. Today, I will make four 

points: (1) the burden of neurological disorders is enormous; (2) past NINDS research has paid off; (3) opportunities for future progress are extraordinary; and (4) 

we have well informed plans to exploit these opportunities. 

BURDEN OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS

Nearly 800,000 Americans experience a stroke each year, and 15 to 30 percent 

of the 6.8 million stroke survivors alive today suffer permanent disability.1 Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the leading cause of death and disability in children and 

young adults, common among the elderly, and a major concern for the military and 

veterans. In the United States, 2.5 million people receive emergency care for a TBI 

each year, and millions more suffer mild TBI (concussions). Epilepsy affects 2.3 million Americans, including 1 in 26 people at some time in their lives. Alzheimer’s disease is receiving increasing attention, but most people are less aware that 

frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is the most common dementia in people under age 

60, and vascular dementia, which affects blood vessels in the brain, is the second 

most common dementia overall and is so closely intertwined with Alzheimer’s disease that most dementia patients have a combination of the two. Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and hundreds of rare diseases that affect children and adults add to the immeasurable human and economic 

burden. 

PROGRESS FOR PATIENTS AND FAMILIES

NINDS research drives progress directly, and indirectly catalyzes private sector 

advances. NINDS studies on risk factors and prevention contributed to a decline in 

the age-adjusted stroke death rate by 35.8 percent from 2000 to 2010; the actual 

number of stroke deaths fell 22.8 percent.2 NINDS research developed the only approved emergency drug therapy that restores blood flow to the brain following 

stroke, increasing likelihood of recovery with little or no disability by 30 percent. 

Research has also demonstrated, defying conventional wisdom, a wider window of 

opportunity for stroke rehabilitation—even patients who start rehabilitation as late 

as 6 months after a stroke can improve, and patients can continue to improve 1 year 

after a stroke. For people with epilepsy, an implantable device approved this year 

senses impending seizures and delivers electrical pulses to stop them. Long-term 

NINDS research provided the essential foundation for private sector development of 

this device. Similarly, NINDS research directly and indirectly contributed to deep 

brain stimulation (DBS) therapies now in use for Parkinson’s, essential tremor, and 

dystonia and under clinical testing for many other disorders, as well as to development of drugs for multiple sclerosis—10 are now on the market, including the first 

oral drugs. Overall, the private sector has nearly 450 medicines in development for 

neurological disorders, which would not be possible without the foundation of NIH 

research.3

EXTRAORDINARY OPPORTUNITIES

Science and technology are opening unprecedented opportunities for progress 

against neurological disorders. Studies on the normal brain build the foundation. 

Notable recent advances, for example, revealed how the brain clears out debris during sleep, how molecular structures called ion channels control electrical activity, 

and the first human ‘‘connectome’’ maps, providing astonishing views of the basic 

wiring diagram of living, thinking human brains. Advances in stem cell biology now 

enable researchers to reproduce in cell culture key steps in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other disorders using brain cells derived from patients’ own skin 

cells. Basic science has led to new insights that explain how chronic pain is wired 
30 

in the brain, what happens in the brain following a concussion, and how cell-to-cell 

propagation of abnormally folded proteins could drive progression of Parkinson’s, 

Alzheimer’s, and other neurodegenerative disorders. New gene sequencing methods 

and high throughput gene silencing technologies have accelerated the discovery of 

genes that cause epilepsy and revealed potential new drug targets for Parkinson’s 

disease. In a few dramatic cases, gene discoveries have led directly to treatments 

that help patients with rare disorders, including subtypes of dystonia and childhood 

neurodegenerative disease, but more often painstaking translational research is required to advance genetic and other discoveries toward therapies. Among the many 

examples, promising reports in laboratory animals this year demonstrated a drug 

therapy that prevented the development of epilepsy, cell transplants that controlled 

seizures, natural growth factor rescue of neonatal brain injury, therapies that improved cognition in Down syndrome, and a hand neuroprosthesis that restored touch 

sensation as well as movement. 

PROGRAMS AND PRIORITIES

NINDS relies heavily upon the wisdom and ingenuity of researchers throughout 

the United States to propose and evaluate the best scientific opportunities. Complementing investigator-initiated programs, NINDS initiatives target unmet opportunities or public health needs. Institute priorities reflect strategic and disease-specific 

planning that engages the scientific community and the public, and rigorous evaluation of programs, closing those that have met their goals or are no longer appropriate for today’s science. Recent plans focused on stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementias. Among recent initiatives: 

—the Stroke Trials Network will determine more quickly and at less cost what 

treatment, prevention, and rehabilitation strategies work best. 

—new Epilepsy Centers without Walls will target Sudden Unexplained Death in 

Epilepsy (SUDEP) and disease modification or prevention. 

—the Parkinson’s Disease Biomarkers Program is developing assessment tools 

that will overcome roadblocks to more effective clinical trials. 

—the International TBI Research Initiative, coordinated with the European Union 

and the Canadian Institute of Health Research, will answer questions on care 

and classification of TBI that have confounded development of interventions. 

—two major cooperative studies are investigating the long-term changes in the 

brain years after a single TBI or multiple concussions, coordinated via the 

Foundation for NIH’s Sports and Health Research Program, which was established with a donation from the National Football League. 

—the NeuroBioBank, NINDS Human Genetics Repository, Federal Interagency 

TBI Research database, Common Data Elements Program, and an epilepsy clinical genetics data repository are examples of new and continuing resource initiatives that empower individual investigators and promote data sharing. 

Finally, and most ambitiously, the President’s Brain Research through Advancing 

Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative will dramatically improve tools to 

understand heretofore unapproachable questions about how networks, or circuits, of 

brain cells enable us to perceive, think, and act. There are many reasons for confidence that this basic research initiative will ultimately advance progress against 

disease. Autism, dystonia, and epilepsy, for example, are fundamentally disorders 

of brain circuitry, and stroke, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s disease disrupt brain circuits as nerve cells die. Even with our limited understanding of brain circuits and 

imprecise technologies for altering them, interventions that compensate for malfunctioning brain circuits already produce remarkable results. For example, DBS reverses symptoms for many people with Parkinson’s disease and dystonia, and paralyzed people have controlled a robotic arm by signals directly monitored from their 

brains’ movement control circuits. It is perhaps obvious that better understanding 

of brain circuits and tools to influence their activity would greatly improve these 

interventions, but history teaches that the most important payoffs of the BRAIN Initiative, as for basic research generally, may be entirely unforeseen. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHRISTOPHER P. AUSTIN, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, and Members of the Committee: Thank you for 

the opportunity to present to you the President’s budget request for the National 

Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) for fiscal year 2015. The fiscal year 2015 budget for NCATS is $657,471,000, which represents an increase of 

$25,075,000 over the fiscal year 2014 level of $632,396,000. The request includes 

$471,719,000 for the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program 

and $29,810,000 for the Cures Acceleration Network (CAN). 
31 

TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH

In recent years, biomedical research has led to significant advances in our understanding of human biology. We have sequenced the human genome, explored the potential of stem cells, and discovered RNA interference. All of these advances have 

been celebrated as holding enormous promise for improving human health, but the 

road from promise to tangible improvements in public health has been long, complex 

and full of obstacles. NCATS aims to turn these game-changing discoveries into 

treatments for patients by addressing the ‘‘translational sciences’’ needed to close 

the gap. Translational sciences comprise the process of turning observations in the 

laboratory and clinic into effective interventions that improve the health of individuals and the public—from diagnostics and therapeutics to medical procedures and 

behavioral changes. 

NCATS takes a system-wide approach to diseases and the translational science 

process. It serves as an ‘‘adaptor’’ to connect basic, clinical and public health research and as a ‘‘convener’’ for disparate organizations that play roles in the process 

of turning discoveries into health improvements. Every NCATS initiative is a collaboration with partners in the public, private, government or nonprofit sector. The 

Center is committed to developing technologies and paradigms that improve the efficiency and effectiveness of one or more steps in the translational process, demonstrating that these innovations work in specific use cases, and disseminating the 

translational advances widely to catalyze improvements in all translational efforts 

with the ultimate and critically important goal of improving health. 

MISSION INTO ACTION

One NCATS initiative that exemplifies these goals is the Discovering New Therapeutic Uses for Existing Molecules program. This program matches academic research groups with pharmaceutical companies to explore new disease indications for 

investigational compounds that are no longer being pursued by the pharmaceutical 

companies. The aim is to address several challenges in the translation process: the 

need for treatments for the several thousand diseases that have no effective therapy, the complicated process of negotiating agreements between parties who want 

to work together, and the largely ad hoc process by which academic and pharmaceutical researchers develop collaborative projects. In fiscal year 2013, NCATS funded nine projects covering eight disease areas, including Alzheimer’s disease, 

Duchenne muscular dystrophy and schizophrenia. The program already has resulted 

in positive outcomes. Within 3 months of the grantees receiving funds, three compounds were being tested in humans for new uses—two to treat schizophrenia and 

one to treat Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, the time to establish collaborations between industry and academics has been shortened to only 13 weeks from the more 

typical 9 months to a year. NCATS will solicit a second group of projects in fiscal 

year 2014. 

The NCATS emphasis on innovation is central to its collaboration with the National Eye Institute and Organovo (which makes 3–D tissue printers) to develop 3– 

D, architecturally accurate eye tissue. Such tissues have the potential to accelerate 

the drug discovery process—enabling treatments to be developed faster and at a 

lower cost—by giving researchers a more accurate view of how drugs will behave 

in human cells before those drugs ever enter clinical trials. 

NCATS serves as a catalyst to increase the efficiency of the translational ecosystem, as illustrated by the formation of a research team that included scientists 

from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the NCATS Assay Development and 

Screening Technology Laboratory. This team developed new methods to overcome 

several translational roadblocks and was able to demonstrate their effectiveness by 

identifying a promising new compound that prevents the death of cells in the eye 

from glaucoma, a disease that can lead to blindness. Working together, the collaborators were able to solve a problem that none of them could address alone. 

TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH SPECTRUM

Strengthening and supporting the entire spectrum of translational research with 

the ultimate aim of improved public health is a top priority for NCATS, and the 

CTSA program is crucial for these efforts. The CTSA program develops new technologies, methods, resources and operational paradigms that catalyze clinical research progress, and supports the training and career development of translational 

researchers. In June 2013, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report following 

a review of the CTSA program. The report recommended that NCATS take a more 

active role in the program’s governance and direction, formalize the evaluation processes of the program, advance innovation in education and training programs, and 
32 

ensure that the patient community participates in all phases of research. Since the 

publication of the report, the Center has increased programmatic and fiscal management of the grants that support the CTSA program and has streamlined the governance of the consortium, consulting closely with the CTSA Principal Investigators. A 

Working Group of the NCATS Advisory Council was established in December 2013 

to provide input on measurable objectives for the program. The Working Group will 

submit its report to the NCATS Advisory Council in May 2014. 

FOCUS ON RARE DISEASES

NCATS is deeply committed to developing treatments for rare diseases, which are 

defined in the U.S. as affecting fewer than 200,000 individuals. There are approximately 6,500 rare diseases, but only 250 have treatments. The NCATS Therapeutics 

for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program advances potential treatments for 

rare and neglected diseases to first-in-human trials, an approach known as ‘‘de-risking.’’ This strategy makes new drugs more commercially attractive to biopharmaceutical companies, despite the small patient population that is characteristic of 

these diseases. For example, in 2013, a clinical trial was started to evaluate a drug 

candidate called cyclodextrin as a possible treatment for Niemann-Pick disease type 

C1 (NPC1), a rare and fatal genetic brain disease affecting children. A TRND-led 

team of more than 20 investigators from NIH, academia, a pharmaceutical company, 

and patient groups developed cyclodextrin as a treatment as well as an NPC biomarker to guide its clinical development. An Investigational New Drug application 

for cyclodextrin was approved by the FDA, and a Phase I clinical trial currently is 

ongoing. 

CURES ACCELERATION NETWORK

CAN was authorized to advance the development of high-need cures and reduce 

significant barriers between research discovery and clinical trials. At NCATS, CAN 

is intended to advance initiatives designed to address scientific and technical challenges that impede translational research. 

Currently, CAN supports the Tissue Chip for Drug Screening Program, which is 

a partnership with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and 

the FDA to develop 3-D human tissue chips that accurately model the structure and 

function of human organs, such as the lung, liver and heart. These devices will enable researchers to predict harmful health effects of new drugs more accurately, 

thus addressing one of the main reasons that drug studies often fail. 

NCATS has had success moving projects forward with its rare disease therapeutics program, but there are significantly fewer groups working on developing 

medical devices, for which there is a great need. NCATS could launch a comprehensive collaborative effort to accelerate device development as part of the next phase 

in the CAN program. 

CONCLUSION

These projects are just a few examples of the exciting and innovative activities 

underway at NCATS. Though the Center is still relatively new, early successes demonstrate how its distinctive approaches can help solve some of the most challenging 

problems in translational science. We will build on our accomplishments over the 

past 2 years to accelerate our programs further in fiscal year 2015. I look forward 

to sharing more of our achievements with you as NCATS continues to evolve. 

[CLERK’S NOTE.—The following Institutes of the National Institutes of Health did not appear before the subcommittee this year. 

Chairman Harkin requested these Institutes to submit testimony 

in support of their fiscal year 2015 budget request. Those statements follow:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF LINDA S. BIRNBAUM, PH.D., D.A.B.T., A.T.S. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: I am pleased to present the 

President’s budget request for the National Institute of Environmental Health 

Sciences (NIEHS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 

NIEHS budget of $665,080,000 includes an increase of $556,000 from the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of $664,524,000. The NIEHS Strategic Plan, Advancing Science, Improving Health continues to guide efforts toward fulfilling our mission to discover how the environment affects people in order to prevent both acute 

and chronic illness. 
33 

1 Ryan PH et al. Childhood exposure to Libby amphibole during outdoor activities. May 22, 

2013. J. Expo. Sci. Environ. Epidemiol. Published online at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ 

pubmed/?term=PMID%3A+23695492 

BREAST CANCER

NIEHS continues its robust investment into environmental factors affecting 

breast cancer, with the goal of learning how we can prevent this widespread disease. 

NIEHS and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) collaborated to support the Interagency Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Coordinating Committee, whose 

report, Prioritizing Prevention, recommends strategies to mitigate the environmental causes of breast cancer. NIEHS supports several major epidemiological and 

translational breast cancer initiatives. The Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program is a transdisciplinary initiative cosponsored by NCI and NIEHS, in 

which basic scientists, epidemiologists, clinicians, and community partners work together to examine the effects of environmental exposures that may predispose a 

woman to breast cancer throughout her life, including exposures during puberty, 

menopause, pregnancy, and other ‘‘windows of susceptibility.’’ The NIEHS Sister 

Study has recruited a cohort of 50,884 U.S. and Puerto Rican women with a sister 

diagnosed with breast cancer, to prospectively study environmental and genetic factors that influence breast cancer risk and survival. More than 1,500 incident breast 

cancers have been diagnosed to date. A May 2013 publication from these researchers showed that DNA methylation profiling in blood samples may hold promise for 

breast cancer detection and disease risk prediction. The Agricultural Health Study, 

a collaborative effort by NCI, NIEHS, the National Institute for Occupational Safety 

and Health (NIOSH), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), includes a 

comprehensive evaluation of many commonly used herbicides and pesticides and 

their potential impact on risk of breast cancer among 32,000 women who are married to pesticide applicators (primarily farmers). 

ENVIRONMENT AND AUTOIMMUNITY

NIEHS supports scientists who are exploring how environmental exposures can 

cause immune system dysfunction. There is evidence that autoimmune diseases 

likely involve an environmental component. Therefore, the Environmental 

Autoimmunity Group in the Clinical Research Program at NIEHS is looking at the 

relationship between environmental factors and autoimmune disease. Autoimmune 

diseases result from an immune response directed against the body’s own tissues 

and they collectively afflict approximately 24.5 million Americans, with women disproportionately affected. The cause(s) of autoimmune disorders remain largely unknown and are likely multifactorial involving both genetic and environmental influences. In 2013, NIEHS released a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to enable a better understanding of the links between exposures and autoimmune disease. 

NIEHS continues to support autoimmune disease research in the underserved 

community of Libby, Montana where the population has been exposed to asbestos 

minerals as a byproduct of vermiculite ore mining. Of particular concern is early 

childhood exposure, since susceptibility may be increased during this life stage. Recent efforts to characterize children’s exposure in Libby estimated up to 15 times 

higher levels of airborne asbestos concentrations during outdoor activities and 73 

percent of the study participants indicated these activities occurred in the presence 

of children.1 NIEHS grantees are investigating whether childhood asbestos exposures in Libby are associated with pulmonary disease later in life. 

ENVIRONMENT AND NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS

Evidence indicates there is both an environmental and genetic component in neurological disorders. NIEHS funds research to advance the understanding of environmental factors and gene-environment interactions related to neurodegenerative diseases and to help create new prevention and treatment approaches. At the NIEHS 

Centers for Neurodegeneration Science (CNS) and in partnerships with the National 

Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and National Institute on 

Aging (NIA), teams of top scientists from different disciplines collaborate to examine 

the root causes of neurodegenerative diseases. CNS researchers study how exposure 

to pesticides, metals (e.g. arsenic, lead), and other chemicals affect the development 

of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. NIEHS 

recently published two Funding Opportunity Announcements to expand neurological 

research: one on environmental exposures and Alzheimer’s disease, and the other 

on environmental exposures and neurodegenerative disease. 
34 

2 Int J Epidemiol. 2014 Feb 11. [Epub ahead of print] Maternal lifestyle and environmental 

risk factors for autism spectrum disorders. Lyall K1, Schmidt RJ, Hertz-Picciotto I. 3 Epidemiology. 2014 Jan;25(1):44-7. Autism spectrum disorder: interaction of air pollution 

with the MET receptor tyrosine kinase gene. Volk HE1, Kerin T, Lurmann F, Hertz-Picciotto 

I, McConnell R, Campbell DB. 4 JAMA Psychiatry. 2013 Jan;70(1):71-7. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2013.266. Traffic-related 

air pollution, particulate matter, and autism. Volk HE1, Lurmann F, Penfold B, Hertz-Picciotto 

I, McConnell R. 5 Autism Res. 2013 Aug;6(4):248-57. doi: 10.1002/aur.1287. Epub 2013 Mar 11. Prenatal and 

early-life exposure to high-level diesel exhaust particles leads to increased locomotor activity and 

repetitive behaviors in mice. Thirtamara Rajamani K1, Doherty-Lyons S, Bolden C, Willis D, 

Hoffman C, Zelikoff J, Chen LC, Gu H. 6Zota AR, Calafat AM, Woodruff TJ. 2014. Temporal trends in phthalate exposures: findings 

from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001–2010. Environ Health 

Perspect; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24425099. 7Saffarini CM, Heger NE, Yamasaki H; Liu T, Hall SJ, Boekelheide K. 2012. Induction and 

persistence of abnormal testicular germ cells following gestational exposure to di-(n-butyl) 

phthalate in p53-null mice. J Andrology; 33(3):505–513. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3607946 

Autism is a highly variable neurodevelopmental disorder, which is likely influenced by environmental exposures. NIEHS-funded researchers have published work 

indicating prenatal vitamins might reduce the risk of having children with autism.2

Exposure to air pollution during pregnancy and during the first year of life was also 

associated with autism.345 NIEHS funds two key autism studies: the Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment (CHARGE) study, and the Markers 

of Autism Risk in Babies-Learning Early Signs (MARBLES) study. In April 2014, 

NIEHS hosted a community virtual forum on autism and the environment that was 

webcast live and featured a panel of autism research experts. 

RESEARCH UPDATE ON ENDOCRINE DISRUPTORS

NIEHS is the leading government agency funding research on the human health 

effects of exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). EDCs have the potential to interfere with a host of physiological functions, contributing to the development of costly and devastating illnesses such as obesity, diabetes, attention deficit 

hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and behavioral disorders, asthma, endometriosis and 

uterine fibroids, reproductive disorders and infertility, and breast, uterine, and prostate cancers. Exposures to EDCs have been documented across the population, with 

fetuses and young children at greater risk due to their stages of rapid development. 

NIEHS is currently funding over 100 grants examining effects of EDCs including 

bisphenol A (BPA), arsenic, pesticides, flame retardants, and others. 

NIEHS has focused particular efforts on BPA, in part due to its ubiquity, that results in daily exposures for most people, mainly through diet. The Consortium Linking Academic and Regulatory Insights on BPA Toxicity (CLARITY—BPA) research 

program is a collaborative effort of the NIEHS, the National Toxicology Program 

(NTP), the Food and Drug Administration’s National Center for Toxicological Research, and academic researchers studying a range of health endpoints, while also 

establishing new testing standards and methodologies. A recent study of another 

EDC, phthalates, shows that levels of some plasticizers have fallen since a Federal 

ban on their use in children’s products and voluntary removal from many consumer 

goods.6 However, research at Brown University suggests that replacement chemicals 

may be just as damaging to the reproductive development of boys.7

RESEARCH UPDATE ON GULF OIL SPILL

The release of millions of gallons of crude oil following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) disaster posed unpredictable risk to over 130,000 workers trained and 

potentially involved in various remediation activities and to the people living along 

the Gulf Coast. To date, there have been limited studies on the human health effects of oil spills, especially long-term effects. The NIEHS Gulf Long-term Followup Study (GuLF STUDY), funded in part by the NIH Common Fund, is investigating potential short- and long-term health effects associated with oil spill cleanup activities. The GuLF STUDY has enrolled 32,786 individuals and has completed 

home visits for 11,200 participants, during which clinical measurements were taken 

and biospecimens were collected for future research. 

NIEHS leads the DWH Research Consortia that funds a network of academic and 

community partners to study health effects in people residing in regions affected by 

the disaster. These studies are examining resilience at the individual and community levels, perceptions of risk among women and children, and the potential contamination of seafood in the Gulf (Strategic Plan Goals 4–6). While NTP is con-
35 

ducting research to increase our understanding of the toxicology of crude oil, NIEHS 

grantees have preliminary results that suggest increased depression and anxiety 

among Gulf Coast residents, but also suggest strong community networks promote 

resilience. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF JOSEPHINE P. BRIGGS, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: As the Director of the National 

Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), I am pleased to present the President’s fiscal year 2015 

budget request for NCCAM. The fiscal year 2015 budget includes $124,509,000, 

which is $384,000 more than the comparable fiscal year 2014 appropriation of 

$124,125,000. 

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is 

the Federal Government’s lead agency for supporting scientific research on complementary practices and integrative health interventions. NCCAM’s mission is to 

define, through rigorous scientific investigation, the usefulness and safety of such 

practices and their roles in improving health and healthcare. 

COMPLEMENTARY AND INTEGRATIVE HEALTH CARE

Complementary and integrative health practices are defined as having origins 

outside of mainstream conventional medicine and include both self-care practices 

like meditation, yoga, and dietary supplements, as well as healthcare provider administered care such as acupuncture, chiropractic, osteopathic and naturopathic 

medicine. As these modalities are increasingly integrated into mainstream 

healthcare, NCCAM is committed to developing the scientific evidence needed by the 

public, healthcare professionals and health policymakers to make informed decisions 

about the use and integration of these various practices. 

USE OF COMPLEMENTARY AND INTEGRATIVE HEALTH CARE

For the past decade, some 30 to 40 percent of Americans have used complementary and integrative health practices, according to data from the National Health 

Interview Survey (NHIS) conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The NHIS data shows that Americans are willing to pay for these services, spending some $34 billion in 2007, which represented 1.5 percent of total 

health expenditures and 11 percent of out-of-pocket costs. NCCAM has worked with 

the CDC since 2002, to develop the questions on complementary healthcare that are 

included in the NHIS every 5 years (2002, 2007, and 2012). Results from the latest 

survey are currently being analyzed for publication later this spring. Analysis will 

include, for the first time, a comparison of regional variations in use of complementary health practices by adults in the United States. We also look forward to the 

first detailed look at integration of complementary interventions into private medical practice when the results of the 2012 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, which involved interviews of 30,000 physicians, are analyzed. NCCAM worked 

closely with the CDC to develop the questions used in this survey, as well. 

IMPACT ON PUBLIC HEALTH

NCCAM’s approach to setting priorities and investment in research is guided by 

the need for rigorous evidence that ultimately may have a significant impact on 

public health. One example of this approach involves a major clinical trial supported 

jointly by NCCAM and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute examining the 

efficacy of using EDTA-based chelation therapy to reduce cardiovascular disease and 

prevent heart attacks. The trial, which involved 1,700 patients, showed a modest 

reduction in cardiovascular events for adults aged 50 and older who had suffered 

a prior heart attack. However, the results from a secondary analysis of the trial 

data suggest that the chelation treatments produced a marked reduction in cardiovascular events and death in patients with diabetes but not in those without diabetes. Addressing cardiovascular disease in diabetics is an important public health 

challenge, and better treatment options are required. As this study was not designed to discover how or why chelation might benefit patients with diabetes, further investigation is needed. Thus, NCCAM is exploring the possibility of a followup study in collaboration with several other NIH Institutes. 

REDUCING PAIN AND IMPROVING SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT

According to the Institute of Medicine, pain is a major public health problem affecting more than 100 million Americans and costing the Nation over $600 billion 
36 

in medical costs and lost productivity. Pain is also the most common reason Americans turn to complementary and integrative health practices, as conventional medicine often provides incomplete relief. Therefore, pain research is a top priority for 

NCCAM. As such, we continue to invest in research on several promising approaches for treating pain, such as spinal manipulation, massage, yoga, meditation, 

and acupuncture. We are particularly interested in understanding how these interventions work, for what type of pain condition, and for determining the optimal 

method of practice and delivery. Toward this end, NCCAM partners with others in 

supporting research initiatives, participates in the NIH Pain Consortium, and leads 

an NIH Task Force to improve standards for research on chronic low back pain 

(cLBP). The cLBP Task Force has developed common standards, measures, and 

other tools for clinical research on cLBP, and a report is expected to be published 

in The Journal of Pain later this year. 

Another important collaborative effort is our partnership with the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Department of Veterans Affairs to foster research on 

complementary and integrative approaches to managing pain and other symptoms 

experienced by military personnel and veterans. A number of grant applications 

were submitted in response to our joint solicitation, and we anticipate funding multiple studies later this fall. 

One area of particular interest is the means by which complementary health practices affect the perception of pain by the brain. Specifically, we seek to understand 

the mechanisms by which emotions, attention, and context modulate pain. Using 

neuroimaging and cutting-edge technologies, our intramural research program (IRP) 

is exploring the central mechanisms of pain and its modulation, with the long-term 

goal of improving clinical management of chronic pain through the integration of 

pharmacological and non-pharmacological complementary health approaches. 

NCCAM’s IRP engages and leverages the exceptional basic and clinical neuroscience 

efforts across NIH. 

ADVANCING RESEARCH ON NATURAL PRODUCTS

Another important area of emphasis for NCCAM is research on natural products. 

In addition to exploring the underlying biological effects and mechanisms of natural 

products, such as dietary supplements, herbs, botanicals, and probiotics, we are concerned about their safety. While there is widespread use of these products by the 

public, there is limited scientific evidence about their effectiveness and safety. In addition to gaining greater understanding of whether natural products are effective or 

safe when used alone, there is a need to study how they interact with prescription 

medications. This is very important because many patients taking prescription 

medications also use natural products, such as dietary supplements, herbs and 

probiotics. To investigate these issues, NCCAM will launch an initiative to develop 

rigorous methods to evaluate potential interactions between natural products and 

medications. The ultimate goal is to ensure that consumers, healthcare providers, 

and health policymakers are better informed of the potential risks and/or benefits 

associated with the use of natural products in combination with medications. 

To propel needed innovations in technology and methodology for research on natural products, NCCAM and the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements are supporting 

the establishment of a Center for Advancing Natural Products Technology and Innovation. The Center is expected to better support the needs of the natural products 

community while reducing resource redundancies. 

PROVIDING USEFUL INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC

NCCAM provides objective, evidence-based information to scientists, healthcare 

providers, and the general public through a variety of approaches, including emerging technology and platforms (i.e., video, social media, and mobile applications) and 

an information-rich Web site (www.nccam.nih.gov). Through these approaches, 

science-based information on the safety and efficacy of complementary and integrative health practices—already in wide public use—is made available to a broad audience. 

CONCLUSION

NCCAM continues to support research, collaborate with others, and leverage partnerships to build the scientific evidence needed by consumers, healthcare professionals, and health policymakers regarding the safety and value of complementary 

and integrative health practices. 
37 

1LMIC is a World Bank designation for the classification of economies, based on Gross National Income (GNI) per capita. Low income countries have a GNI per capita of $1,035 or less, 

and middle income countries have a GNI per capita of $1,036–$12,615. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ROGER I. GLASS, M.D., PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the Fogarty International Center (FIC) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 FIC budget of $67.776 million includes an increase of $0.292 million more than the fiscal year 2014 enacted level 

of $67.484 million. 

The United States and the NIH have historically been at the forefront of major 

scientific discoveries that have improved health here at home and around the world. 

Building on these successes, ambitious health targets for the future now seem possible—such as a decrease in the overall mortality rate of children under the age of 

5, to 20 deaths per 1,000 over the next two decades and an AIDS-free generation. 

Reductions in morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases have also 

begun to affect populations worldwide. At this critical juncture, the Fogarty International Center mission and investments will continue to accelerate the pace and 

progress of research, engage the best and brightest minds by building capacity at 

research institutions across the globe, and develop the evidence needed to confront 

health challenges wherever they occur. By continuing to invest in training outstanding early-career investigators and developing future global health research 

leaders, Fogarty will advance the goals and sustain the leadership of the NIH and 

the U.S. Government in biomedical research, while improving the health of Americans and populations worldwide. 

TODAY’S BASIC SCIENCE FOR TOMORROW’S BREAKTHROUGHS

Non-communicable diseases and disorders (NCDs) are rapidly becoming the dominant causes of poor health in all low and middle-income country (LMIC) regions 1

except sub-Saharan Africa, where they are second only to HIV/AIDS. For example, 

World Health Organization data suggest that one billion people worldwide suffer 

from some type of mental, neurological or substance abuse disorder. 

In collaboration with eight NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs), Fogarty’s Brain Disorders in the Developing World: Research Across the Lifespan program supports 

cutting-edge basic science research in LMICs on the nervous system. This research 

could lead to important new diagnostics, prevention and treatment strategies, and 

interventions of direct relevance to both LMIC and U.S. populations. For example, 

Argentinian scientists, in collaboration with Northwestern University, are studying 

neuroprotective gene therapy in a preclinical trial. This team demonstrated that a 

unique vector gene delivery system using two powerful neuroprotective molecules 

could be effectively injected over time restoring neuronal function. Future studies 

will use magnetic nanoparticles to perform targeted gene therapy with the goal of 

treating neurodegenerative disease such as Parkinson’s, the second-most common 

neurological disease in the United States, affecting approximately 1 million Americans (National Parkinson Foundation). 

NURTURING TALENT AND INNOVATION

Fogarty programs have supported long-term research training for more than 4,500 

scientists worldwide, in collaboration with more than 230 U.S. and LMIC research 

institutions. These investments provide unique training opportunities for early-career global health researchers, enabling them to effectively collaborate with foreign 

partners in diverse, low-resource international settings to confront global health 

challenges. Fogarty supports these hands-on, clinical research training experiences 

in LMICs in close partnership with a number of NIH ICs, providing experiences 

that encourage U.S. investigators to creatively approach problems under constraints 

that may not exist in high-income settings. Scientists trained with Fogarty support 

have conducted research on cardiovascular disease in Kenya, surgical capacity in 

Rwanda, mental health impacts of slum-dwelling in India, and the link between 

breast cancer and osteoporosis in China. 

Solving many of today’s complex public health problems requires the engagement 

of investigators from a wide variety of fields. Fogarty’s Framework Programs for 

Global Health Innovation awards support efforts to bring biomedical scientists together with students from various disciplines— such as engineering, nutrition, business, law, environmental science, social sciences, agriculture and public health—to 

develop research training initiatives that encourage innovative, health-related products, processes and policies. This program supports: scientists at Michigan State 
38 

University studying interactions between agriculture, water resource utilization and 

malaria in Malawi; grantees at Northwestern University, Chicago, and the University of Cape Town, South Africa training researchers in developing healthcare technologies in Nigeria; and scientists at Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, 

and Christian Medical College, Vellore, India developing a training program in 

translational research related to non-communicable and infectious diseases. These 

international teams are identifying critical health needs and conducting the research needed to develop and test novel solutions. 

THE PATH FORWARD: ADDRESSING DUAL BURDENS OF DISEASE AND HARNESSING THE

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY REVOLUTION FOR GLOBAL HEALTH

RESEARCH

For over 25 years, Fogarty has contributed to the U.S. Government fight against 

HIV, training and supporting some of the world’s foremost vaccine and biomedical 

researchers. As the global burden of disease shifts to a greater level of NCDs, 

Fogarty programs will continue critical work in HIV research training while also responding to both the NCD epidemic through research and training programs and 

the nexus between the HIV and NCD epidemics, represented by NCD co-morbidities 

of HIV infection and treatment. As scientific priorities evolve to match the changing 

burden of disease, Fogarty research and research training programs will train the 

best and brightest researchers around the world and facilitate scientific collaboration that meets new priorities while building on existing capacity and infrastructure. 

The information and communication technology (ICT) revolution presents exceptional opportunities and new tools for global health research and research education. ICT is a broad term that encompasses communication devices, applications, 

and services, such as cell phones, computers, radios, videoconferencing and distance 

learning. Fogarty will expand its support of innovation in the use of ICT to generate 

knowledge, scientific exchange, and research education in the hope of stimulating 

the capacity to develop and evaluate different models of distance learning and other 

ICT strategies, as well as adapt various ICT platforms for the needs of research and 

research educational communities. This will enable professionals in LMIC institutions to determine what works best for their particular settings as they develop 

novel education tools. Students and faculty will access, teach, and share information 

in creative and transformative ways, enabling new approaches to collaborative 

learning and problem solving in partnership with colleagues next door and across 

continents. 

The enormous potential for mobile technology to impact healthcare and research 

has led to the rapid development of new health-related phone applications. Rigorous 

evaluation of health outcomes after implementation of these interventions are often 

lacking. New emphases are being pursued to develop mobile technologies tailored 

to LMIC settings, assess their impact on health and determine how they can be effectively scaled up in diverse, low-resource settings. Significantly, this evidence base 

is not only critical for LMIC populations, but can also be applied to healthcare in 

the U.S. 

These are indeed exciting times for global health with new opportunities for partnership within and outside the NIH, the introduction of transformative technologies 

and mutual scientific priorities based on a shared burden of disease across high-income and LMIC. Capitalizing on these developments demands a multidisciplinary 

research workforce that can function across cultures and borders to solve common 

health problems. Fogarty will continue to invest in training the next generation of 

leaders in global health research at home and abroad to ensure that the U.S. will 

continue to play a key role in confronting the global health challenges of today. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF PATRICIA A. GRADY, PH.D., RN, FAAN 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 

NINR budget is $140,452,000 which is $128,000 more than the comparable fiscal 

year 2014 appropriation of $140,324,000. 

I appreciate the opportunity to share with you a brief summary of some of the 

exciting areas of research and future scientific directions of NINR. The mission of 

NINR is to promote and improve the health of individuals, families, and communities. We fulfill this mission by supporting clinical and basic research to build the 

scientific foundation for clinical practice, prevent disease and disability, manage and 

eliminate symptoms caused by illness, enhance end-of-life and palliative care, and 
39 

train the next generation of nurse scientists. Today, I offer an overview of NINR’s 

efforts and accomplishments in five key scientific areas and provide examples of how 

the research we support improves quality of life, health, and wellness across the 

lifespan. 

SYMPTOM SCIENCE: PROMOTING PERSONALIZED HEALTH STRATEGIES

NINR is committed to finding new and better ways to treat the symptoms of 

chronic and acute illnesses which can cause significant suffering for individuals and 

families. While we still have much to learn about the unique ways people experience 

symptoms and respond to treatments, recent advances in genomics are providing 

new opportunities to develop improved, personalized strategies to address adverse 

symptoms of illness, such as pain, fatigue, and disordered sleep. By providing a better understanding of the basic underlying biological and genetic mechanisms of 

symptoms, NINR-supported researchers are making important contributions to improving health and quality of life. For example, one NINR-supported project found 

that, for pregnant women with depression, poor sleep was associated with higher 

levels of inflammatory chemicals in the body known as cytokines, as well as adverse 

pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth. Other NINR-supported scientists identified pro- and anti-inflammatory biomarkers that predict how patients experience 

pain at different stages of breast cancer treatment, drawing a new link between 

pain and inflammation. Discoveries such as these pave the way for the development 

of personalized and effective treatments for adverse symptoms of illness. 

SELF-MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC ILLNESS

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), chronic illness accounts for 

more than 75 percent of healthcare costs in the U.S., and often requires long-term 

management of illness among individuals, families, and healthcare providers. Learning how to manage chronic illness presents challenges to individuals of any age as 

well as their family members, from children remembering to bring their asthma 

medication with them to school to older adults maintaining daily activities as they 

face multiple chronic conditions, such as arthritis and heart disease. To address 

such challenges, NINR supports research that enables individuals with chronic illness and their caregivers to take an active role in understanding and managing 

their condition, and improving their quality of life. One current NINR-led initiative 

aims to equip families with effective strategies for improving self-management of 

chronic illness in children and adolescents, enabling them to follow treatment regimens and make healthy lifestyle choices while still allowing ‘‘kids to be kids.’’ Another initiative emphasizes family-centered self-management that integrates family 

members as partners in care while promoting self-management for individuals of 

any age; this initiative has the potential to strengthen the ability of family members 

to work together to make treatment decisions, manage symptoms, and navigate the 

healthcare system. Through efforts like these, NINR’s investment in self-management research contributes to helping people live active and healthy lives in the face 

of chronic illness. 

WELLNESS: PROMOTING HEALTH AND PREVENTING ILLNESS

Another area of emphasis at NINR is on wellness research, which seeks to understand the physical, social, behavioral, and environmental causes of illness, identify 

healthy lifestyle behaviors, and develop interventions to promote health and prevent 

illness across the lifespan and in diverse communities. One study supported by 

NINR is refining and examining the effectiveness of a home-based sensor system for 

older adults, which monitors pulse, breathing, and restlessness while sleeping, and 

alerts healthcare providers to potential illness so that they can intervene early. 

Such warning systems may allow older adults to stay active and remain in their 

homes longer. In another project, researchers developed a teacher-delivered healthy 

lifestyles intervention that improved health behaviors and academic outcomes in 

high school adolescents. NINR also maintains its commitment to promoting wellness 

in vulnerable groups who are disproportionately affected by chronic illness. We currently lead an initiative to reduce health disparities in minority and underserved 

children through the development of culturally-appropriate, multifaceted interventions. 

ENHANCING END-OF-LIFE AND PALLIATIVE CARE

Addressing the needs of patients with life-limiting illness through high-quality, effective end-of-life and palliative care continues to be a critical focus of NINR. As the 

lead NIH Institute for end-of-life research, NINR supports research to ease symp-
40 

toms and support patients and their caregivers in coping with advanced illness, 

while also addressing the challenges of planning for end-of-life decisions. As an example, NINR-supported scientists recently found that pain continues to be underdiagnosed and undertreated for hospitalized patients at the end of life, suggesting 

that more work is needed to better understand the needs of individuals facing lifethreatening illnesses. Recognizing that palliative care is a critical component of 

maintaining quality of life at any age and at any stage of illness, not just at the 

end of life, NINR supports initiatives to enhance palliative care. Given that a diagnosis of serious illness in a child is particularly difficult for families, NINR launched 

the Palliative Care: Conversations MatterTM campaign to raise awareness of pediatric palliative care and to provide evidence-based materials to help healthcare providers initiate often difficult conversations with pediatric patients and their families. NINR also continues to support a palliative care research cooperative to enhance the evidence base for palliative care interventions. A new NINR initiative to 

promote use of and long-term sustainability of the cooperative will encourage researchers across the country to capitalize on the existing resources and expertise 

and streamline the research process. 

LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE: NURSE SCIENTISTS

A primary goal of NINR is to prepare the next generation of nurse scientists to 

address health challenges and to contribute to an innovative, multidisciplinary, and 

diverse scientific workforce. NINR funds training and career development grants 

and programs to prepare nurse scientists to conduct research to build the scientific 

foundation for clinical practice. NINR’s Summer Genetics Institute is an intensive 

training program on molecular genetics designed to improve research and clinical 

practice among graduate students and faculty. This year, our week-long Methodologies Boot Camp focuses on using Big Data in symptom research, and provides a research intensive program for participants to learn new state-of-the-art methodologies from nationally and internationally known scientists. By training nurse scientists to use new, innovative scientific methodologies, NINR advances nursing 

science to improve health. 

In closing, thank you for the opportunity to share with the Committee some of 

the ways the science we support impacts the health of the Nation. In fiscal year 

2015, NINR will continue our mission to improve quality of life by advancing nursing science and by supporting research to inform high-quality and effective clinical 

care. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ERIC GREEN, M.D., PH.D 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the fiscal 

year 2015 President’s budget request for the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). The fiscal year 2015 budget of $498,451,000 reflects an increase 

of $1,323,000 above the enacted fiscal year 2014 level of $497,128,000. 

The research funded and conducted by NHGRI in fiscal year 2015 will continue 

to unlock the secrets of life’s DNA code. We still have much to discover with regard 

to how the three billion DNA bases of the human genome influence our physical and 

biochemical characteristics—and, in turn, our health. While we continue to reveal 

all the information encoded by DNA, we have started pursuing clinical applications 

of genomic knowledge and implementing genomic medicine. 

Understanding how the structure and function of the human genome relates to 

health and disease will be essential for the implementation of genomic medicine. 

Among the knowledge to be gained is how the ~20,000 genes in the human genome 

are turned on and off at the appropriate times and in the appropriate places; this 

is largely the role of regulatory elements within the genome that act like ‘‘dimmer 

switches’’ controlling lights. Through the Institute’s Encyclopedia of DNA Elements 

(ENCODE) Project, a more detailed inventory of these regulatory elements is emerging. In fiscal year 2015, the Genomics of Gene Regulation (GGR) initiative will begin 

to investigate the choreography of these different elements in different cells and tissues. Many of the elements that ENCODE has identified and GGR will characterize 

play a role in human diseases and traits, underscoring the foundational value of 

these projects. 

More than 25 million Americans suffer from rare diseases, cumulatively more 

than those afflicted with cancer. While the genomic bases for just over 5,000 rare 

diseases have been established—the majority of those established since the end of 

the Human Genome Project—the causal genes for an estimated 2,000–4,000 additional rare diseases remain to be identified. To investigate the latter, NHGRI’s Centers for Mendelian Genomics Program is harnessing powerful DNA-sequencing tech-
41 

1 Nature 507, 294–295 (20 March 2014) http://www.nature.com/news/technology-the-1-000-genome-1.14901 

nologies to analyze patients’ genomes on an unprecedented scale en route to establishing the genomic underpinnings of these remaining rare disorders. The resulting 

discoveries offer the promise of ending the diagnostic odyssey of afflicted patients 

as well as insights about the diseases that may lead to new therapeutic approaches. 

In fiscal year 2015, NHGRI will also focus on more common, but more genomically 

complex, diseases—those diseases that reflect great public health burdens. One such 

disease, cancer, is fundamentally a disease of the genome. Hence, NHGRI has been 

collaborating with the National Cancer Institute in developing The Cancer Genome 

Atlas (TCGA) since 2006, studying the genomes of different types of tumors and cataloging the discovered genomic aberrations. In fiscal year 2015, TCGA will reach the 

milestone of analyzing 10,000 tumor samples, revealing many new insights about 

cancer. Similarly, NHGRI has partnered with the National Institute on Aging to pursue 

the largest genomics study of Alzheimer’s disease to date. The Alzheimer’s Disease 

Sequencing Project (ADSP) is sequencing and analyzing the genomes of several hundred Alzheimer’s patients to help identify the genomic factors contributing to this 

complex disease, which affects as many as 5 million Americans aged 65 and older. 

Investigators throughout the biomedical research enterprise—well beyond the 

study of genetic diseases—are now incorporating genomic analyses into their research. A major catalyst for this dissemination has been NHGRI’s unparalleled Advanced DNA Sequencing Technology Program, the successes of which have led to a 

phenomenal drop in the cost of DNA sequencing,1 enabling many more investigators 

to incorporate genomic analyses into their research. However, these researchers 

have a widespread and urgent need for improved analytical tools for analyzing DNA 

sequence data. To address this, NHGRI has created the Genome Sequencing 

Informatics Tools (GS-IT) program. Like the Institute’s development of cutting-edge 

innovations in DNA sequencing, GS-IT is creating pioneering robust data-analysis 

tools for studying genomes. 

To become a reality, genomic medicine needs refined approaches for using 

genomic information to improve health outcomes. For instance, in fiscal year 2015, 

the Implementing Genomics Into Clinical Practice (IGNITE) Network will test 

methods for disseminating genomic medicine strategies more widely. IGNITE investigators will be initially studying the use of genomic risk information for treating 

kidney disease, the utility of family health history, and the use of genomic information for selecting appropriate medications. In another effort, NHGRI is partnering 

with the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human 

Development to support the Newborn Sequencing in Genomic Medicine and Public 

Health (NSIGHT) Program, which is examining the potential for genome sequencing 

to improve the care of newborns. 

Pilot programs such as IGNITE and NSIGHT, in addition to other large genomics 

projects, are only valuable if the generated knowledge diffuses through the medical 

establishment. To help healthcare professionals become competent with genomic information in delivering patient care, NHGRI is working with the National Center 

for Biotechnology Information to develop the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen), 

which will provide a curated knowledgebase of clinically relevant genomic variants. 

ClinGen will be freely available to clinicians, researchers, and professional organizations developing clinical practice guidelines, helping to usher in larger-scale implementation of genomic medicine. 

To capitalize on the genomics research funded by NHGRI and other NIH institutes for medicine, the next generation of scientists and clinicians must be equipped 

with the skills to lead their fields during the 21st century. In fiscal year 2015, new 

institutional training programs and individual career awards in genomics research 

and in genomic medicine will develop leaders in those respective fields, including 

the provision of cross-training in associated disciplines such as bioethics and data 

science. 

Another of NHGRI’s educational efforts targets the general public. The Institute 

collaborated with the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History to create the exhibition Genome: Unlocking Life’s Code. Privately funded, this 

widely acclaimed exhibition is expected to be visited by more than 3.5 million people 

before the end of fiscal year 2015. In addition, a series of nine public engagement 

programs are being produced; these events will remain accessible via the web to 

complement the exhibition as it travels North America over the next 5 years. 

As described above, NHGRI’s genome sciences portfolio will continue to explain 

the role of the genome in human traits and disease, while its genomic medicine 

portfolio will apply that knowledge to improve human health. The Institute will en-
42 

2http://www.unitedformedicalresearch.com/advocacylreports/the-impact-of-genomics-on-the-us-economy/ 

sure that information about genomic advances is disseminated to scientists and 

healthcare professionals as well as the general public, and that the technologies and 

generated knowledgebase will continue to be a growth engine for our economy.2

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ALAN E. GUTTMACHER, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, I am pleased to present the fiscal 

year 2015 President’s budget request for the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) of $1,283,487,000. This 

reflects an increase of $2,657,000 over the fiscal year 2014 level of $1,280,830,000. 

Understanding human development, both normative and atypical, comprises the 

core of NICHD’s mission. The Institute supports a broad range of research, conducted largely at academic institutions across the country, ranging from efforts to 

increase understanding of basic biological mechanisms to testing health interventions aimed at improving the lives of children, women, families, and those with disabilities. NICHD-supported research contributes to knowledge about our health, 

from the earliest stages through maturity. 

PREGNANCY AND BIRTH OUTCOMES

Based on NICHD-supported research showing less than optimal health outcomes 

for infants born at 37 and 38 weeks of pregnancy (previously considered full-term), 

leading professional societies announced in the past year a new policy that pregnancy would now be considered full-term only after 39 weeks. This change should 

lead to improved standards of care and better health outcomes for mothers and infants. 

While previous studies had found that alcohol and illegal drug use during pregnancy frequently produce poorer infant health outcomes, a NICHD-funded network 

study has now provided evidence that smoking (including secondhand smoke), prescription painkillers, and illegal drugs used during pregnancy can double or triple 

the risk of stillbirth. These findings provide women and their clinicians important 

information about healthy behaviors in pregnancy. 

Through our Hunter Kelly Newborn Screening Research Program, NICHD has 

long provided the evidence base for determining whether a health condition can be 

detected in newborns, and whether it can be cured or treated. Currently, most 

states screen newborns for a panel of 29 conditions, thus preventing extensive disease and disability. Now NICHD is partnering with the National Human Genome 

Research Institute on a major study to explore the possibilities for early diagnosis 

of a much larger number of disorders by sequencing newborns’ genomes, while also 

exploring technical, clinical, and ethical questions raised by this new technology. Researchers also plan to develop a tool to help parents understand sequencing results, 

placing special emphasis on the needs of families from diverse cultures and their 

clinicians. 

PEDIATRIC AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT

For many conditions, the earlier they are identified and treatment begun, the better the outcome. One of the goals of the NICHD-led National Children’s Study is 

to amass an unprecedented amount of information about children’s health, development, and environment to understand and improve health. Recently, researchers 

supported by NICHD have developed an updated screening tool, administered to 

parents, to help determine if a child between 18 months and 2 years old has autism, 

much earlier than the current average age of diagnosis of 4 years. Previous research 

has shown that earlier interventions can help improve developmental outcomes for 

children with autism. This tool is now widely available online, in 45 different languages. 

Since variations in nutrition and environment so heavily influence children’s 

growth and development, NICHD engages in international studies to increase 

knowledge about optimal health in childhood. In some nutrient-deficient areas, children receive iron supplements to enhance development and prevent anemia; yet, recently, public health officials have become concerned that these supplements may 

increase children’s risk for malaria. To test this theory, NICHD-supported researchers conducted a randomized clinical trial combining iron supplementation with prevention efforts (such as sleeping nets) in a malaria-prone area of Ghana, finding 

that the incidence of malaria was no higher for children who received the supple-
43 

ments than for those who did not, and assuring that beneficial iron supplementation 

could continue. 

Understanding human development in adolescence, with that period’s substantial 

physical, mental, and behavioral changes, poses a particular challenge for researchers. While there is increased emphasis on encouraging young people to be physically 

active to reduce overweight and increase health, engaging in some physical activities may pose risks. Concerns have been raised about the potential long-term effects 

of repeated concussions in children, especially young athletes. Recently, NICHD 

partnered with other NIH ICs and the National Football League on eight research 

projects to help understand the effects of head injuries and improve the diagnosis 

of concussions. Although awareness is increasing that young people who may have 

had a concussion should not immediately return to play, these studies will help us 

understand the brain’s healing process and what is required to prevent permanent 

damage to this vital organ, leading to such advances as more precise return to play 

policies. 

Parents of teenagers will not be surprised that adolescents often engage in risktaking behaviors. They may, however, be surprised that informed parental supervision can have an impact on adolescent behaviors and even on potential injury or 

death. An intramural NICHD study on teen driving behaviors collected data from 

a nationally representative sample of 10th graders, finding that adolescents who reported being exposed to riding with an intoxicated driver in the 10th grade were 

considerably more likely to report driving while intoxicated in the 12th grade. The 

study indicates the importance of parents’ not only monitoring their own children’s 

driving behaviors, but also that of other young drivers with whom their children 

may be riding. 

WOMEN’S HEALTH

One result of NICHD’s 2012 ‘‘Scientific Visioning’’ process, which took a fresh look 

at what the Institute might accomplish across its broad mission over the next decade, was the establishment of the new extramural Gynecologic Health and Disease 

Branch. Researchers supported by the branch recently shed light on the relative 

success and safety of two surgical treatments for pelvic organ prolapse (a form of 

pelvic hernia). Previous research supported by NICHD suggested about 3 percent 

of U.S. women experience prolapse in a given year, most commonly older women 

and those who have given birth several times. The study found no statistically significant difference between the two types of surgery, providing critical information 

for surgeons and the 300,000 U.S. women who have this surgery each year. 

INDIVIDUALS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

NICHD has long supported research on the causes and effects of intellectual and 

developmental disabilities, and on identifying effective therapies for these conditions. By working closely with leading researchers, clinicians, self-advocates, and 

families, Institute scientists identify the scientific resources most critical to ongoing 

progress on these conditions. In September 2013, NICHD, with the support of the 

NIH Down Syndrome Working Group and the Down Syndrome Consortium, 

launched DS-ConnectTM: The Down Syndrome Registry. DS-ConnectTM, which already includes over 1,500 registrants, is a web-based, voluntary, secure health registry serving the Down syndrome community, providing anonymized information to 

families and clinicians, and facilitating connections between researchers and potential clinical research participants. In addition, the Down syndrome community recently provided extensive input on a revised NIH Research Plan on Down Syndrome, which will be available mid-2014. 

Another pressing need for scientists conducting research on cognition and brain 

disorders is the availability of sufficient brain tissue specimens. While NIH historically has funded investigator-initiated, disease-specific brain banks, it is now taking 

a new approach to providing these scarce research resources by supporting a tissuesharing collaboration among five brain banks. This new ‘‘NeuroBioBank’’ will increase availability of biospecimens and establish a standardized resource for the research community. 

EMBRACING RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

Increasingly, biomedical and biobehavioral researchers need to work in 

transdisciplinary teams, manage massive amounts of data, and acquire new and diverse skill sets. For example, the medical rehabilitation needs of those with physical 

disabilities require a wide range of research, from improving our understanding of 

neurological repair to developing new generations of prostheses and assistive devices. In 2012, a Blue Ribbon Panel made a series of recommendations to NICHD 
44 

to bolster rehabilitation research at NICHD’s National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR) and across NIH. NICHD is implementing an innovative 

new operating model for NCMRR that is intended to greatly increase coordination 

of rehabilitation research among the many ICs that support it. 

NICHD is excited to launch the Human Placenta Project, a coordinated international initiative to understand in real time the structure and function of the 

human placenta, arguably the least understood human organ. The placenta is not 

only critical for both maternal and fetal health, but also has substantial implications 

for conditions that arise later in life in both the mother and child, such as cardiovascular disease. The Project’s goals include understanding placental development 

in normal and abnormal pregnancies, developing biomarkers to help predict adverse 

pregnancy outcomes, and developing interventions to prevent abnormal placental 

and fetal development. The currently projected span of the project is a decade, beginning with a workshop in May 2014 to develop a research plan. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit some of NICHD’s accomplishments over 

the last year and a few of its many exciting plans for the immediate future. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF RICHARD J. HODES, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for the National Institute on Aging (NIA) of 

the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 budget includes 

$1,170,880,000, which is $1,453,000 more than the comparable fiscal year 2014 level 

of $1,169,427,000. 

More than 40 million people age 65 and older live in the United States, and data 

from the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics indicate that their 

numbers will double by 2040. In less than 50 years, the number of ‘‘oldest old’’— 

people ages 85 and older—may quadruple. As record numbers of Americans reach 

retirement age and beyond, profound changes will occur in our economic, healthcare, 

and social systems. 

The NIA leads the national effort to understand aging and to develop interventions that will help older adults enjoy robust health and independence, and continue 

to make positive contributions to their families and communities. We support genetic, biological, clinical, behavioral, and social research related to the aging process, 

healthy aging, and diseases and conditions that often increase with age. We also 

support training of the next generation of researchers. 

UNDERSTANDING AGING AT ITS MOST BASIC LEVEL

NIA-supported studies in the emerging field of geroscience, which explores the 

basic mechanisms underlying age-related changes, including those which could lead 

to increased disease susceptibility, will provide needed insight into ways to address 

aging-related diseases and disorders. The NIA-led NIH GeroScience Interest Group 

(GSIG) involves active participation by 20 NIH Institutes and is leading the effort 

to accelerate and coordinate efforts to promote further discoveries on the common 

risks and mechanisms behind age-related diseases and conditions. In October 2013, 

the GSIG and private-sector partners convened a national Summit, ‘‘Advances in 

Geroscience: Impact on Healthspan and Chronic Disease,’’ which drew more than 

500 expert participants from around the world. We expect its outcomes to further 

energize this field. 

An increasingly important research area is the identification of genes and gene 

variants related to aging and age-related disease. Such research will be accelerated 

by the addition of data on more than 78,000 older individuals from one of the Nation’s largest and most diverse genomics projects, Genetic Epidemiology Research on 

Aging, to the NIH database of Genotypes and Phenotypes (dbGAP). These data will 

be widely available to qualified investigators. 

IMPROVING THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF OLDER AMERICANS

NIH-supported investigators are testing a variety of interventions for health conditions common to old age. Ongoing studies include: the ASPirin in Reducing Events 

in the Elderly (ASPREE) trial, designed to determine whether the benefits of aspirin 

outweigh the risks in people over 70; testosterone supplementation to delay or prevent frailty in older men; exercise for mood, health, and cognition; and an array of 

interventions for menopausal symptoms. 

NIA also supports research aimed at development of interventions that will enable older adults to remain independent for as long as possible. For example, researchers used data from nine large NIA-funded studies to develop diagnostic cri-
45 

teria for low muscle mass and weakness. These conditions lead to disability in older 

people, but are rarely recognized as clinical problems by healthcare providers. This 

work is a milestone toward the development of new diagnostic and treatment strategies for this common and disabling condition. In addition, the recent NIA-supported 

finding that training to improve cognitive abilities in healthy older people lasts to 

some degree for 10 years after the training program was completed provides an important piece of evidence that cognitive health can be improved and maintained into 

older age. 

Serious injuries from falls, such as broken bones or traumatic brain injury, are 

a major reason for the loss of independence among older people. In 2013, NIA and 

the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Initiative (PCORI) solicited applications 

for funding to conduct a randomized clinical trial of a multifactorial strategy for preventing serious fall-related injuries among non-institutionalized older people. The 

trial will begin in 2014. 

NIA is also a leader in the trans-NIH Science of Behavior Change initiative. We 

are hoping that the long-term outcome of this initiative will be to enhance the efficacy of interventions to help individuals make and maintain positive changes in 

their health behaviors. As an example, one NIA-managed study in this initiative has 

shed light on how stress can reduce or eliminate the ability of individuals to benefit 

from training designed to help them regulate their emotions and better control their 

behavior, suggesting possible changes to our behavioral intervention strategies. 

Because investigators often, for a variety of reasons, have difficulty recruiting 

older people into clinical research studies, NIA is collaborating with the Administration for Community Living, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, state 

and community-based health and social service providers, researchers, and private 

organizations on the Recruiting Older Adults into Research (ROAR) project. 

BUILDING MOMENTUM AGAINST ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

NIA is the lead Federal agency supporting research on Alzheimer’s disease (AD), 

which despite our best efforts continues to be a serious public health issue that directly affects as many as 5 million Americans. In fiscal year 2014, NIA received approximately $100 million in additional appropriated funds. We plan to use these additional funds to support Alzheimer’s research in areas of strategic priority, funding 

additional awards to applications received from Funding Opportunity Announcements issued in fiscal year 2013–fiscal year 2014. We will continue to be guided by 

the strategic goals outlined in the National Action Plan on Alzheimer’s Disease and 

the results from the 2012 Alzheimer’s Disease Summit. A second Summit is planned 

for February 2015 to update milestones and stimulate further research. 

Recent findings have expanded our understanding of AD and provided insights 

into prevention and treatment of the disease. For example, NIA-funded researchers 

recently identified a molecule called REST, which is lost in the brains of patients 

with Alzheimer’s disease, and whose deletion in mice leads to neurodegeneration. 

REST represents a novel potential target for intervention into the disease. Investigators have also found that conjugated equine estrogens, the most common type 

of postmenopausal hormone therapy in the United States, has no long-term risk or 

benefit to cognitive function in younger postmenopausal women, aged 50–55. The 

earlier Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study linked the same type of hormone 

therapy to cognitive decline and dementia in older postmenopausal women, but this 

finding suggests that women taking certain estrogen-based hormone therapies in 

their early postmenopausal years may not be at increased risk for eventual cognitive 

decline. 

EMPOWERING THE NEXT GENERATION OF RESEARCHERS IN AGING

As the number of older Americans continues to grow, we must not only increase 

the number of practicing physicians trained in geriatrics and relevant subspecialties 

but also foster the development of the next generation of physician-scientists whose 

clinical research will lead to improved care and more effective treatment options for 

older patients with complex medical conditions. Two ongoing programs—Grants for 

Early Medical/Surgical Subspecialists’ Transition to Aging Research (GEMSSTAR), 

supporting physicians who seek to become clinician-scientists in geriatric aspects of 

their subspecialty, and Medical Students Training in Aging Research (MSTAR), targeting first-year medical students in order to stimulate early interest in an aging 

research career—remain highly successful. Building on new technologies that enable 

us to reach a wide audience efficiently and inexpensively, we have initiated a series 

of Technical Assistance webinars to provide participants, particularly those with an 

interest in health disparities research, with guidance on navigating the NIA grants 

application process. Finally, the Butler-Williams Scholars Program (formerly the 
46 

NIA Summer Institute) remains a vibrant and vital institution at NIA, drawing a 

record number of applications for the 2014 session. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF STEPHEN I. KATZ, M.D., PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal 

and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal 

year 2015 NIAMS budget of $520.189 million includes an increase of $0.851 million 

over the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of $519.338 million. 

The NIAMS supports a broad range of research, training, and information dissemination activities. Many of the conditions within the NIAMS mission are very 

common while some are rare, affecting only a few thousand people world-wide. All 

have a major impact on the quality of people’s lives. Diseases addressed by NIAMS 

affect individuals of all ages and of all racial and ethnic backgrounds; many disproportionately affect women and minorities. Over the years, NIAMS-funded research teams have made significant progress in uncovering the causes of and improving the treatments for many disorders of the bones, muscles, joints, and skin. 

While many treatments for arthritis and musculoskeletal and skin conditions 

have their origins in NIH-supported basic research, the timeframes for translating 

fundamental knowledge into therapies remain unacceptably long, and too many potential therapies fail late in development. To improve the drug development process, 

NIAMS has partnered with industry, non-profit groups, and other government agencies for the NIH Accelerating Medicines Partnership program in lupus and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Through the program, a network of investigators will use advanced tools and techniques to analyze blood and tissue samples from patients. The 

overall goals are to gain insights into lupus and RA biology, improve the selection 

of biological targets for drug development, and ultimately produce new therapies. 

The advent of technologies for collecting and analyzing large amounts of data corresponds with an increasing appreciation of the interactions that occur among different tissues and organ systems, and with the microorganisms inside our body or 

on our skin. When researchers compared the gut microbes of people who had newly 

diagnosed, untreated RA with those found in the digestive tracts of healthy people, 

patients with RA who were receiving treatment, and psoriatic arthritis patients, 

they found that the bacterium Prevotella copri (P. copri) was more abundant in patients with new-onset RA than in the other groups. If additional studies determine 

that altered levels of P. copri contribute to RA, therapies that target the bacterium 

could help to prevent the disease or delay its onset. Similarly, another group of researchers recently demonstrated that Staphylococcus aureus colonies on the skin of 

people who have atopic dermatitis, or eczema, release a toxin that causes skin inflammation. This finding provides an impetus for further studies into whether blocking the toxin could help people who are susceptible to atopic dermatitis. 

Other research is uncovering complex connections between the immune system 

and skeletal health, and the role of hormones produced by bone on the development 

and function of the nervous system. Recent findings have linked the misfolding of 

a protein that helps immune cells recognize and destroy invading bacteria or viruses 

to the bone erosion that characterizes spondyloarthritis of the spine. Other research 

has revealed that the bone-derived hormone osteocalcin is capable of interacting 

with neurons in the brain and influencing brain structure and behavior, at least in 

mice. 

Many people think of broken bones as a normal part of an active, healthy childhood. Although any bone will break if enough force is applied to it, researchers are 

learning that the bones of some children and teens have structural deficits that can 

be readily identified based on what the patient was doing when the bone was broken. Children who broke an arm because of moderate impact, as would occur when 

falling off a bicycle, had bones that resembled their uninjured peers; but, those 

whose forearm bones broke upon mild impact (e.g., a fall during a minor playground 

scuffle) showed signs of compromised bone strength and bone quality. While we do 

not know the extent to which bone weakness during childhood predisposes people 

to osteoporosis and fragility fractures later in life, this study is the first to suggest 

that a simple screening question could identify the young people who might benefit 

most from dietary changes and activities to improve bone health. 

NIAMS also is involved in efforts to identify laboratory-based or imaging biomarkers that will guide treatment development or will improve patient care. Activities 

include the Foundation for the NIH (FNIH) Biomarkers Consortium project to 

evaluate biochemical and imaging biomarkers for more precise ways of measuring 

osteoarthritis progression during clinical trials; this project builds on resources cre-
47 

ated by the Osteoarthritis Initiative (OAI), a public-private partnership spearheaded 

by NIAMS and the National Institute on Aging with support from other NIH components, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the FNIH, and private sponsors. A 

separate research team, focused on molecular changes associated with scleroderma, 

recently reported that blood levels of a protein appeared to distinguish between patients who were likely to develop life-threatening lung complications that require aggressive treatments and those whose disease would not warrant risky therapies. Investigators are confirming their observations as a next step before the findings are 

applied clinically. 

Additional research into disease-associated genetic defects and molecular pathways is pointing to new uses for drugs that have been approved for other conditions. 

Work by investigators studying a group of muscle diseases called the 

disferlinopathies—which includes limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2B—suggests 

that calcium channel blocking drugs might reduce some of the tissue damage that 

accumulates as the diseases progress. Another example comes from a team that 

identified 42 areas in the human genome that are associated with RA; many of the 

gene products are already targeted by existing drugs. These potential drug 

repurposing opportunities will be explored more thoroughly before clinical trials can 

begin in patients. 

Once results from clinical studies are available, many healthcare providers insist 

that findings be validated before changing how they practice medicine. The ability 

to verify conclusions is equally important at the basic and preclinical levels of research, particularly when results become the basis for clinical trials. In fiscal year 

2015, NIAMS plans to refocus the Pilot and Feasibility Clinical Research Grants in 

Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases program—a grant mechanism to 

foster early-stage clinical trials on which larger, more robust studies will be based— 

to emphasize the need for a strong scientific premise on which a proposed project 

is based. 

NIAMS is committed to ensuring that well-trained basic scientists and clinical researchers are prepared to conduct cutting-edge studies related to rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and skin diseases. The Institute awards a combination of institutional 

training grants and individual fellowships for this purpose. NIAMS has expanded 

its participation in NIH training programs for fiscal year 2015 to include the Ruth 

L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards for Individual Predoctoral MD/ 

PhD and Other Dual Doctoral Degree Fellows (F30) program. The Institute also has 

begun meeting with clinical or patient-oriented research career development awardees—both early in their award and as they are about to transition to independent 

careers—to identify challenges that they face and ways to better support them and 

future awardees. 

As part of a commitment to communicating about NIAMS programs and research 

results, NIAMS has enhanced its outreach to patients, healthcare and research professionals, and the general public via social media and other activities. Building on 

a successful 2013 effort to ensure that the results of NIH research investments and 

health messages reach all Americans, NIAMS again partnered with other components of the Department of Health and Human Services and with patient advocacy 

groups to create a new set of health planners, titled A Year of Health, A Guide to 

a Healthy 2014 for You and Your Family. In the past 2 years, NIAMS received requests for these health planners from all 50 states and five U.S. territories, demonstrating a robust need for credible, research-based health information in African 

American, American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian, Asian American/Pacific 

Islander, and Hispanic/Latino communities. 

Looking to the future, we are updating the Institute’s Long-Range Plan. As with 

the fiscal year 2010–2014 plan, the new document will inform the Institute’s priority 

setting process while enabling the NIAMS to adapt to the rapidly changing biomedical and behavioral science landscapes. When complete, the plan will outline the 

Institute’s perspective on research needs and opportunities within the NIAMS mission, and will serve as a resource for all who are interested in our activities. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GEORGE KOOB, PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: As the new Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) of the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH), I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the Institute. The fiscal year 2015 NIAAA budget request of $446,017,000 reflects an increase of $606,000 over the comparable fiscal year 2014 enacted level of 

$445,411,000. 
48 

SCOPE OF THE PROBLEM

Excessive alcohol use has profound effects on individuals, families and communities; and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that excessive alcohol consumption cost the U.S. $224 billion in 2006. In 2012, nearly one 

quarter of the U.S. population aged 21 and older and over 15 percent of young people ages 12–20 reported binge drinking (i.e. consuming five or more drinks on a single occasion) at least once in the past month, according to the Substance Abuse and 

Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Binge drinking has serious 

acute and long term consequences—both for youth and adults. NIAAA estimates 

that 18 million Americans have an alcohol use disorder (AUD) and NIAAA research 

has established an important connection between early alcohol use and the development and severity of AUD. Of those who meet the criteria for an AUD, only about 

15 percent ever seek treatment. 

NIAAA RESEARCH

To reduce the considerable burden of illness and the societal costs associated with 

alcohol misuse, NIAAA is working to advance evidence-based prevention and treatment for alcohol problems for individuals at all stages of life, including those with 

co-occurring disorders. NIAAA’s research portfolio is broad, ranging from studies on 

the underlying biological mechanisms that drive excessive drinking and the development of medications for AUD targeting these mechanisms, to studies on policies and 

interventions designed to reduce harm both to drinkers and those around them. 

NIAAA’s portfolio also includes both research on the health benefits associated with 

moderate drinking and on the consequences of alcohol misuse, including fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), alcohol effects on the developing adolescent brain, 

and alcohol effects on tissue and organ damage. 

NIAAA’s cutting edge work in the neuroscience of alcohol effects on the brain provides not only a firm foundation for development of novel treatments for AUD but 

also a framework for prevention. The NIAAA portfolio focuses on the neurocircuitry 

changes that promote the development of AUD as well as those that convey resilience. Particularly critical are the studies of the adolescent brain and how excessive 

alcohol intake can delay, or permanently compromise normal development of the 

brain’s executive and self-regulatory functions. 

A key goal of NIAAA is to work with other NIH Institutes and Centers and Federal agencies to enhance integration of research on the abuse of alcohol and other 

substances. Notably, NIAAA co-leads the Collaborative Research on Addictions at 

NIH (CRAN) with the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National 

Cancer Institute (NCI); co-chairs the Alcohol Policy and Underage Drinking Subcommittee of the HHS Behavioral Health Coordinating Council with the CDC; and 

collaborates with the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), NIDA, Department of Defense (DOD) and the Veterans Administration (VA) on the implementation of the National Research Action Plan for Improving Access to Mental Health 

Services for Veterans, Service Members, and Military Families. 

Recognizing that medications currently available to treat AUD can be highly effective but do not work for everyone, NIAAA continues to make significant progress 

towards developing additional evidence based pharmacotherapies. NIAAA’s Clinical 

Investigations Group (NCIG), established to rapidly test candidate compounds 

(within 12–18 months), is streamlining the medications development process for 

AUD. NCIG recently completed a multisite clinical trial that showed the anti-smoking medication varenicline (Chantix®) significantly reduced alcohol consumption 

and craving in both smokers and non-smokers with AUD. Going forward, NCIG will 

test both repurposed and novel compounds often working in collaboration with extramural scientists and the pharmaceutical industry. NIAAA also supports promising pharmacotherapy research outside of NCIG. In an independent study, the 

widely prescribed anti-seizure medication gabapentin, used to treat pain and used 

off-label for migraines, reduced heavy drinking and other related symptoms in alcohol dependent patients. A study to replicate the gabapentin finding within NCIG is 

anticipated. It is important to note that currently available medications are very effective for many, and that NIAAA is working to make clinicians and the public 

aware of the range of available treatment options for AUD, as well as promoting 

research into more effective implementation of treatment. 

Given that AUD often co-occurs with other substance use and/or mental health 

disorders, major priorities of the Institute are to understand the complex relationships between and develop effective treatments for alcohol misuse and co-occurring 

disorders. For example, AUD frequently co-occurs with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), thereby complicating treatment for both conditions. PTSD is prevalent among military personnel and veterans, and also among individuals who have 
49 

experienced sexual assault—a far too common occurrence on college campuses, and 

one often associated with excessive drinking by both perpetrators and victims. PTSD 

increases risk for AUD; conversely, chronic alcohol use may increase the risk for 

PTSD by altering the brain’s ability to recover from a traumatic experience. Using 

an animal model of PTSD, NIAAA intramural researchers discovered that chronic 

alcohol exposure altered neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex region of the brain, 

making the animals slower to suppress a conditioned fear response. Differences in 

the ability to handle fear responses could help explain differences in vulnerability 

to PTSD among humans, and lead to new therapeutic approaches and diagnostic 

risk biomarkers. NIAAA also supports other promising studies on co-occurring 

PTSD and AUD. 

The consequences of binge drinking for all ages range from acute, e.g. injuries and 

blackouts, to long term, e.g. severe AUD and organ damage. Recent results of 

NIAAA-supported research have revealed that binge drinking may be harmful in 

more ways than previously thought. For example, in results published this year, a 

single episode of binge drinking (which in the study raised the blood alcohol concentration to 0.08 g/dL, the legal limit for driving while intoxicated, within 60 minutes) increased leakage of bacterial endotoxins from the gut into the bloodstream 

and elicited an immune response, demonstrating that binge drinking produces acute 

damage in the body, even in healthy people. Notably, women had higher blood alcohol levels and circulating endotoxin levels than men. Often viewed as a rite of passage, binge drinking is pervasive among our Nations’ youth with 1.7 million young 

people ages 12–20 engaging in this behavior five or more times per month according 

to SAMHSA. NIAAA’s current studies on the effects of alcohol on the developing 

brain will inform a more extensive study under CRAN to assess the effects of drugs 

and alcohol, alone and in combination, on the adolescent brain. College and University Presidents are especially concerned about the rampant heavy use of alcohol 

among their students resulting in an estimated 1,825 deaths, 696,000 assaults, and 

97,000 sexual assaults annually. NIAAA will soon release a decision tool to help college administrators select effective evidence-based interventions appropriate for 

their campuses. NIAAA also promotes screening and brief intervention (SBI) for 

youth, and launched an online course with Medscape to provide continuing medical 

education for healthcare professionals to help them conduct fast, evidence-based alcohol SBI with youth. To date, over 14,000 healthcare providers have been 

Medscape certified. 

Preventing, diagnosing, and treating alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is also a major 

priority. NIAAA funds four research consortia to pursue new clinical approaches to 

treat alcoholic hepatitis, a severe form of ALD. NIAAA will also continue to pursue 

biomarkers of liver injury to facilitate earlier diagnosis. 

NIAAA has significantly advanced our understanding of the health and social impacts of alcohol use and misuse. NIAAA will continue to pursue opportunities leading to better outcomes for alcohol-related problems, and support a diverse biomedical research workforce that is equipped to tackle these public health challenges. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF DONALD A.B. LINDBERG, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Library of Medicine (NLM) of the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 budget of $372,851,000 includes an 

increase of $5,628,000 over the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of $367,223,000. 

The National Library of Medicine, the world’s largest biomedical library, builds 

and provides electronic information resources used billions of times each year by 

millions of scientists, health professionals and members of the public. Many health 

information searches that are initiated on the Internet actually retrieve information 

from an NLM Web site. NLM is crucial in the dissemination of biomedical research 

results—DNA sequences, clinical trials data, toxicology and environmental health 

data, research publications, and consumer health information to scientists, health 

professionals, and the public. A leader in biomedical informatics and information 

technology, NLM also supports and conducts research, development, and training in 

biomedical informatics, data science, and health information technology; and coordinates the 6,100-member National Network of Libraries of Medicine that promotes 

and provides access to health information in communities across the United States. 

NLM’s programs and services directly support NIH’s key initiatives in basic research, precision medicine, research training, as well as in data science and Big 

Data. NLM’s National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is a focal point 

for ‘‘Big Data’’ in biomedicine and a leader in organizing and providing rapid access 

to massive amounts of genetic sequence data generated from evolving high-through-
50 

put sequencing technologies. NCBI serves more than 30 terabytes of biomedical data 

to more than 3.3 million users daily. Some of the largest datasets, such as those 

from NIH’s 1000 Genomes Project, are also available in the Amazon cloud. This allows faster access and analysis by researchers who may be otherwise hampered by 

insufficient bandwidth or computing power. Additionally, the Library organizes and 

provides access to the published medical literature; assembles data about small molecules to support research and therapeutic discovery; provides the world’s largest 

clinical trials registry and results database; and is the definitive source of published 

evidence for healthcare decisions. NLM’s PubMed Central (PMC) provides essential 

infrastructure for the NIH Public Access Policy, making published NIH-funded research freely and permanently available to the public. NLM/NCBI databases are 

cited in laws and Congressional legislation (e.g., Public Law 110–161,Consolidated 

Appropriations Act and HR 4186, the Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, 

and Technology) as a model for facilitating public access to federally funded data 

and publications. 

Research supported or conducted by NLM underpins today’s electronic health 

record systems. The Library has been the principal funder of university-based 

informatics research training for 40 years, supporting the development of today’s 

leaders in informatics research and health information technology. NLM’s databases 

and its partnership with the Nation’s health sciences libraries deliver research results wherever they can fuel discovery and support health decisionmaking. 

BIOMEDICAL AND HEALTH INFORMATION SERVICES

NLM’s PubMed/MEDLINE database is the world’s gateway to research results 

published in the biomedical literature. It links to full-text articles in PubMed Central, including those deposited under the NIH Public Access Policy, and on publishers’ Web sites, as well as connecting to vast collections of scientific data. PubMed 

contains more than 23 million references to articles in the biomedical and life 

sciences journals providing high quality information to about 2.3 million users per 

day. NLM is a primary source for results of patient-centered outcomes research, providing access to evidence on best practices to improve patient safety and healthcare 

quality. NLM is also a hub for the international exchange and use of data utilized 

in molecular biology, genomics, and clinical and translational research. Many NCBI 

databases, including dbGaP, the Genetic Testing Registry (GTR), and ClinVar are 

fundamental to the identification of important associations between genes and disease, and to the translation of new knowledge into better diagnoses and treatments. 

NLM’s Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communications operates 

ClinicalTrials.gov, the world’s most comprehensive clinical trials database. It contains registration data for more than 160,000 clinical studies with sites in 185 countries and summary results for more than 11,000 trials, including many results that 

are not available elsewhere. 

STANDARDS FOR ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS

For 40 years, NLM has supported seminal research on electronic patient records, 

clinical decision support, and health information exchange, including concepts and 

methods now reflected in electronic health record (EHR) products and personal 

health record tools. EHRs with advanced decision-support capabilities and connections to relevant health information are essential to improving healthcare and helping Americans manage their own health. As the Department of Health and Human 

Services (HHS) coordinating body for clinical terminology standards, NLM works 

closely with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to facilitate adoption 

and ‘‘meaningful use’’ of EHRs. NLM supports, develops, and distributes key terminology standards now required for U.S. health information exchange. To help EHR 

developers implement standard terminologies, NLM produces related software tools, 

frequently used subsets, and mappings to administrative code sets, and provides the 

authoritative versions of terminology value sets for required clinical quality measures. NLM’s MedlinePlus Connect also supports meaningful use by providing a way 

for EHR products to link patients to high quality health information relevant to a 

specific health conditions, medications, and tests, directly from their EHRs. 

HEALTH INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC

The NLM has a wide range of outreach programs to enhance awareness of NLM’s 

diverse information services among biomedical researchers, health professionals, librarians, patients, and the public. To improve access to high quality health information, NLM works with the 6,100 institutions of the National Network of Libraries 

of Medicine, a network of academic health sciences libraries, hospital libraries, pub-
51 

lic libraries, and community-based organizations and has formal partnerships with 

tribal colleges and other minority serving institutions. In fiscal year 2013, dozens 

of community-based projects were funded across the country to enhance awareness 

and access to health information, including in disaster and emergency situations, 

and to address health literacy issues. 

The Library’s MedlinePlus Web site provides integrated access to high quality 

consumer health information produced by all NIH components and HHS agencies, 

other Federal departments, and authoritative private organizations. It serves as a 

gateway to specialized NLM information sources for consumers, such as the Genetic 

Home Reference and the Household Products Database. Available in English and 

Spanish, with selected information in 40 other languages, MedlinePlus averages 

well over 750,000 visits per day. Mobile MedlinePlus, also in both English and 

Spanish, reaches the large and rapidly growing mobile Internet audience. 

The NIH MedlinePlus print and online magazine, in English and Spanish, is an 

outreach effort made possible with support from many parts of NIH and the Friends 

of the NLM. Distributed free to the public via physician offices, community health 

centers, libraries and other locations, the print magazine reaches a readership of up 

to 5 million nationwide and the online version reaches millions more. Each issue 

focuses on the latest research results, clinical trials and guidelines from the 27 NIH 

Institutes and Centers. 

The Library diversifies access to all its information resources, through mobile devices and ‘‘apps.’’ NLM continues to be a leading player in social media amongst 

HHS agencies with active Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube accounts, including the 

very popular @medlineplus Twitter feed and a Spanish-language counterpart, several online newsletters, and its National Network of Libraries of Medicine, which 

covers the United States and hosts eight Facebook pages, 10 Twitter feeds and 12 

blogs. NLM is consistently ranked among the most liked, most followed, and most 

mentioned organizations amongst small government agencies with social media accounts. 

In conclusion, the Library is a trustworthy source of health information for the 

public and vital to the practice of 21st century medicine and the progress of science. 

NLM’s information services and research programs serve the Nation and the world 

by supporting scientific discovery, clinical research, education, healthcare delivery, 

public health response, and the empowerment of people to improve personal health. 

The Library is committed to the innovative use of computing and communications 

to enhance public access to the results of biomedical research. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF JON R. LORSCH, PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget for the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) of the 

National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 budget of $2,368,877,000 

includes an increase of $6,983,000 above the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of 

$2,361,894,000. NIGMS considers its public funds a precious resource and focuses 

on efficiency and effectiveness in making investments in research and training. The 

Institute spends 97 percent of its budget outside of the NIH, funding biomedical research and training at universities and other institutions across the country—where 

creative minds are at work every day producing new knowledge about health and 

disease. 

Scientific discovery is the engine for advances in medicine, as research results 

lead to new treatments and refine current standards of care. Biomedical research 

relies on attracting and retaining a creative and well-trained workforce. NIGMS remains committed to enabling researchers throughout the United States to answer 

important scientific questions in fields such as cell biology, biophysics, genetics, developmental biology, pharmacology, physiology, biological chemistry, biomedical 

technology, bioinformatics, computational biology, selected aspects of the behavioral 

sciences and specific cross-cutting clinical areas that affect multiple organ systems. 

To assure the vitality and continued productivity of the research enterprise, NIGMS 

also provides leadership in training the next generation of scientists as well as in 

developing and increasing the diversity of the scientific workforce. 

BACK TO BASICS

The high value of investigator-initiated research has stood the test of time. This 

approach, in which scientists decide what questions are important to study, ultimately leads to major advances in medicine and technology. Examples include: 

—Studies of virus-resistant bacteria led to the discovery of restriction enzymes, 

which act like highly specific scissors for cutting DNA. This discovery launched 
52 

the multi-billion-dollar biotechnology industry, starting with the laboratorybased production of life-saving medicines like insulin and now extending even 

beyond biomedicine into agriculture and biofuels. 

—Seemingly esoteric studies of how electric fields affect DNA replication in bacteria lead directly to the discovery of the anti-cancer drug cisplatin, which has 

saved thousands of human lives. 

—Studies of enzymes that copy DNA and RNA and that cut proteins enabled the 

development of drugs to treat HIV infection. 

To ensure a continued pipeline of fundamental scientific advances that will lead 

to future medical and technological breakthroughs, NIGMS is rebalancing its portfolio to renew and reinvigorate its support for question-driven, investigator-initiated 

research. This rebalancing has received strong support from stakeholder organizations, including the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, an 

umbrella group representing 26 scientific societies and over 115, 000 researchers. 

PLANNING CAREFULLY FOR THE FUTURE

NIGMS has begun a new strategic planning process that is focusing on enhancing 

the efficacy, efficiency, and adaptability of the Institute’s internal processes and the 

mechanisms through which we support biomedical research. In particular, we are 

exploring the development of new grant mechanisms that would increase stability 

and flexibility for researchers and maximize the scientific return on taxpayers’ investment. These mechanisms will focus on the efficient use of funds, encouraging 

scientists to undertake ambitious and creative projects that may be the breakthroughs of tomorrow. 

NIGMS is also developing new strategies to strengthen and maintain the pipeline 

of talented, creative, diverse and highly skilled young investigators. This segment 

of the biomedical workforce is essential for the future of scientific research in the 

United States, which is in turn essential for the future health and economic competitiveness of our Nation. Specific strategies we are considering to address the 

challenges facing young investigators include outcomes-based enhancements of our 

training programs and efforts to improve the competitiveness of young investigators 

in obtaining and keeping research grants. 

SUPPORTING A DIVERSITY OF IDEAS

NIGMS is proud to be the home of the IDeA program, which ensures that cuttingedge research is conducted in every region of the country. This strategy is critical 

to the strength of our biomedical research enterprise, as it meets the need to involve 

the most diverse set of minds, experiences and approaches for solving difficult 

health-related problems. Last year, NIGMS funded or co-funded 58 competing 

grants to IDeA researchers, this included 25 competing Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence awards. Particularly exciting research developments funded by 

the IDeA program include the demonstration by Kentucky researchers that electrical stimulation of the spinal cord can restore some motor function in individuals 

with paraplegia; a study by scientists in South Carolina showing that nanoparticles 

coated with antioxidant proteins can protect against stroke-related damage; and a 

neonatal telemedicine center in Arkansas that has contributed to a significant decrease in statewide infant mortality. 

As requested by both the House and Senate and required by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014, NIH has submitted a response to the National Academies’ 

Report on EPSCoR and related programs. As part of the NIGMS strategic planning 

process, we are developing plans for enhancing access to resources for moving discoveries and innovative ideas from laboratories in IDeA states into commercial products. In particular, we are exploring support for regional biotechnology incubators 

that would give faculty in IDeA states access to laboratory space, equipment, expertise, and advice required to make their work competitive for SBIR/STTR and venture capital funding. 

ADVANCING HEALTH THROUGH DISCOVERY

This past year, NIGMS-funded scientists broke new ground in a range of areas 

relevant to health, including chemistry, microbe-host interactions, computer modeling, and metabolism. Selected examples include: 

—A Tennessee researcher developed a chemical method to shave the cost of manufacturing expensive drugs, including those used to treat HIV/AIDS. The method 

is also environmentally friendly in that it employs natural molecules called enzymes instead of synthetic chemicals that are often hazardous. 

—A scientist from Vermont created the first-ever interaction map of human proteins that attach to proteins from arenavirus and hantavirus, providing poten-
53 

tial new targets for therapies to treat the often deadly illnesses caused by these 

classes of viruses. 

—A Pennsylvania researcher found compounds that block a recently discovered 

pathway for preventing production of damaged proteins. These chemicals have 

antibiotic activity, suggesting they might eventually be developed into a new 

class of antibacterial drugs. 

—A scientist from California learned from mouse studies that a high-fat diet influences the internal body clock controlling liver metabolism. The team also discovered that the effect was reversible by returning to a balanced, low-fat diet. 

These discoveries are a small subset of the productivity of the nearly 4,000 scientists NIGMS supports throughout the United States. Our public investment to 

fuel their curiosity-driven exploration of biomedicine is growing knowledge, and 

local economies, as well as improving the health of all Americans. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would be pleased to answer any questions that the 

Committee may have. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF YVONNE T. MADDOX, PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget for the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities 

(NIMHD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 budget 

of $267,953,000 is the same as the fiscal year 2014 enacted level of $267,953,000. 

INTRODUCTION

As the primary Federal agency for leading, coordinating and facilitating research 

to improve minority health and eliminate health disparities, NIMHD impacts the 

lives of millions of Americans burdened by disparities in health status and 

healthcare delivery, including racial and ethnic minority groups as well as rural and 

low-income populations. A population is a health disparity population if it is determined that there is a significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, 

prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rates in the population as compared to 

the health status of the general population. The elimination of health disparities requires a multidisciplinary approach, with collaboration, coordination, and integration across NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs), other Federal agencies and privatesector organizations to fully understand and solve the underlying biological and nonbiological causes of health disparities. 

FUNDAMENTALS OF HEALTH DISPARITIES

In order to understand the social, behavioral, biological, and environmental factors influencing health disparities, NIMHD is studying the fundamental causes of 

diseases and conditions that disproportionately affect individuals from health disparity backgrounds. For example, one project studies the higher incidence and mortality of breast cancer in African American women through research that examines 

the role genetic differences in the tumor suppressor protein, p53, plays in the disparity. Researchers hypothesize that some racial/ethnic groups have disproportionate p53 variants that may contribute to breast cancer health disparities in the 

age of onset, incidence, and lack of pregnancy protection in African American 

women. Another study takes knowledge about causal pathways learned at the bench 

and extends the findings to social, behavioral, health services and/or policy approaches to test ways to improve minority health and eliminate health disparities. 

This project examined unconscious stereotyping of Hispanic patients among medical 

and nursing students. The study found that students endorsed stereotypes that Hispanic patients would be non-compliant or likely to engage in high-risk health behaviors, even if the students reported trying consciously to avoid biased thinking. This 

unconscious bias of medical providers can be one factor in the disparity in 

healthcare delivery faced by minority patients. 

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH FRAMEWORK

Comprehensively addressing health disparities requires a transdisciplinary framework that fosters an integrated approach involving biology, behavioral and social 

sciences, environmental science, public health, healthcare delivery, economics, public 

policy, and many other disciplines. It also requires strong collaborations between researchers and community organizations, service providers and systems, government 

agencies, and other stakeholders to ensure that contextually appropriate and relevant research is conducted, and that findings can translate into sustainable individual, community, and systems level changes that improve the health of the U.S. 
54 

population. The NIMHD supports two programs that focus on transdisciplinary and 

translational research: the Centers of Excellence (COE) and the Transdisciplinary 

Collaborative Centers for Health Disparities Research (TCC). The COEs, which were 

established as partnerships between academic institutions and community organizations, have been in place for over a decade and have reached more than 102 sites, 

across 31 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

The COEs are addressing health disparities research along the translational spectrum from basic science to clinical research, with information dissemination a required component. 

The TCC Program, established in fiscal year 2012, supports research, implementation, and dissemination of activities that transcend customary discipline-specific 

approaches conducted at the local level. Transdisciplinary research collaboration at 

the regional level provides opportunities for academic institutions, community-based 

organizations, and other partners to conduct targeted research to respond to specific 

population-based, environmental, sociocultural, and political factors that influence 

health within a particular region. 

The Collaborative Research Center for American Indian Health is bringing together tribal communities and health researchers from a variety of disciplines to 

work together to address the significant health disparities experienced by American 

Indians in South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota, particularly the social determinants of health and its application to programming public health interventions. The National Transdisciplinary Collaborative Center for African American 

Men’s Health is addressing unintentional and violence-related injuries as well as 

chronic diseases that affect African American men across the life course, as part of 

a national initiative. 

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Active community involvement in biomedical and behavioral research is essential 

to improving the health of the public. The NIMHD Community-Based Participatory 

Research (CBPR) Initiative supports the development, implementation, and evaluation of intervention research that utilizes the principles of community engagement 

as partners in the full spectrum of research. A number of CBPR planning phase and 

dissemination phase projects are under way. The Partnerships to Improve Lifestyle 

Interventions and Partners in Care programs tested the effectiveness of a culturally 

adapted diabetes self-management intervention among Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. The study found improvements in weight loss, physical capacity, and 

diabetes self-management. 

Another CBPR project focused on a culturally appropriate, church-based Hepatitis 

B screening and vaccination intervention program for Korean Americans which 

found increased screening and immunization rates in the intervention group compared with the control group. Academic-community partnerships were essential in 

balancing science and community needs in the design and conduct of the needs assessment, pilot and full-scale clinical trial. 

RESEARCH TRAINING AND INFRASTRUCTURE

In order to advance the science and speed translation of discoveries into better 

health outcomes for all Americans, it is critical to expand and diversify the Nation’s 

workforce of well-trained scientists who are dedicated to improving minority health 

and eliminating health disparities. A diverse biomedical workforce will improve the 

quality of the educational and training environment, balance and broaden the perspective in setting research priorities, improve the ability to recruit subjects from 

diverse backgrounds into clinical research protocols, and improve the Nation’s capacity to address and eliminate health disparities. NIMHD-supported programs to 

train researchers to conduct minority health and health disparities research are focusing on providing educational, mentoring, and/or career development programs for 

individuals from health disparity populations that are underrepresented in the biomedical, clinical, behavioral, and social sciences. NIMHD continues to support research training and infrastructure through its Research Endowment Program, 

Building Research Infrastructure and Capacity Program, and Research Centers in 

Minority Institutions Program. 

CONCLUSION

NIMHD has a unique and critical role at the NIH as the focal point for conducting 

and coordinating research on minority health and health disparities, raising national awareness about the prevalence and impact of health disparities, and the dissemination of effective individual, community, and population-level interventions to 

reduce and ultimately eliminate health disparities. NIMHD is looking forward to 
55 

identifying new opportunities to accelerate the pace of research and to advance its 

mission through strengthening partnerships and enhancing its role in the community. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF RODERIC I. PETTIGREW, PH.D., M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 

NIBIB budget request of $328,532,000 is $2,173,000 more than the fiscal year 2014 

enacted level of $326,359,000. 

NIBIB is dedicated to improving human health through the integration of the 

physical and biological sciences. NIBIB’s mission spans the entire health spectrum 

and is not limited to a single disease, group of illnesses, or population. Working with 

doctors from every field of medicine and bringing together teams of scientists and 

engineers from many different backgrounds, NIBIB aims to develop innovative approaches to healthcare. Our research focus is to improve the understanding, detection, treatment and ultimately, the prevention of disease. 

INNOVATION IN TREATING SPINAL CORD INJURY: NEW HOPE FOR THOSE WITH PARALYSIS

Building on a long history of research on restoring function in spinal cord injury, 

researchers have discovered a fundamentally new intervention that led to voluntary 

movement in individuals with complete paralysis. This outcome, initially seen in a 

single individual, has now been reported in three successive patients, all of whom 

had been paralyzed for more than 2 years. This achievement is a significant milestone in spinal cord injury research. In the approach, electrical stimulation is applied to the surface of the spinal cord through a surgically implanted device that 

is normally used for the suppression of back pain. After just a week of stimulation, 

on average, the patients were able to voluntarily move their legs and flex their feet 

and toes when the stimulator was turned on. With continued daily stimulation and 

extensive physical training, the patients saw improvements in their movements and 

could initiate them with decreased stimulation. With their stimulators turned on, 

the patients are now able to stand for about an hour. Restored function was accompanied by increased muscle mass. In addition, these individuals have regained bladder and bowel function and experienced improvements in autonomic responses such 

as sweating and return of sexual function in some cases. 

IMMUNOENGINEERING TO MODIFISCAL YEAR IMMUNE SYSTEM RESPONSES

The immune system is the body’s defense against an array of infectious agents. 

However, the immune system can also trigger many diseases such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus or multiple sclerosis; this occurs when immune cells are directed against an individual’s own cells and is referred to as autoimmunity. As our 

understanding of the immune system increases, we are approaching a point where 

the immune response can be engineered to enhance or reduce specific responses. 

Two recent examples highlight this ‘‘immunoengineering’’ approach. In the first 

case, the problem being addressed is improving targeted delivery of 

chemotherapeutic drugs to tumors. Nanoparticles can be used to ferry chemotherapy 

directly to tumors, minimizing exposure of these toxic medications to healthy tissues 

in the body. Researchers have found a way to ferry nanoparticles carrying chemotherapy drugs past cells of the immune system, which would normally engulf the 

particles, preventing them from reaching their target. The technique takes advantage of the fact that all cells in the human body display a protein on their membranes that functions as a specific ‘‘passport’’ in instructing immune cells not to attack them. By attaching a small piece of this protein to nanoparticles, scientists 

were able to get immune cells in mice to recognize the particles as ‘‘self’’ rather than 

foreign particles, and thereby not attack them. The nanoparticles also have other 

labels that can concentrate the drugs in the tumors, so higher doses of chemotherapy are delivered to the tumor. 

In a second example, researchers have developed a strategy to modulate the immune system to halt the progress of a disease model of multiple sclerosis in mice. 

In multiple sclerosis, the immune system attacks the myelin sheaths that surround 

nerve cells. To stop this attack, engineered nanoparticles are coated with myelin 

antigens, and these nanoparticles are presented to another set of cells in the immune system that re-identifies myelin as ‘self’ rather than ‘foreign’. The result is 

that the immune system stops attacking myelin as a foreign body, and the disease 

progression is halted. This approach begins to take advantage of the complex control 
56 

of immune response which contains multiple positive and negative feedback loops 

in order to selectively turn off one specific inflammatory response. It holds promise 

for treating multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases that previously have 

escaped effective therapies. 

CANCER DETECTION FROM A ROUTINE BLOOD SAMPLE

Most cancers spread by way of the circulatory system. As a result, there are cancer cells present in blood samples. The number of cells, however, is so low that they 

have been difficult or impossible to find. The problem is to find and isolate the few 

cancer cells from the billions of other cells that are present in the blood. Researchers 

over the past several years have developed new techniques to find these cells, but 

those techniques have generally been destructive to the cancer cells. Now, with a 

new sorting technology, researchers have demonstrated the ability to sort the cancer 

cells and, of equal importance, to collect them for further analysis. After collection, 

the circulating tumor cells can be subjected to the full array of analysis techniques 

available to normal tissue biopsies of a tumor. This technology also permits sorting, 

using a variety of markers that allow, for example, the identification of triple negative breast cancer cells. Successful isolation has been demonstrated in several other 

cancers including lung, prostate, pancreas, breast, and melanoma. This new tool has 

the potential to improve both the early diagnosis and effective treatment of cancer. 

AN IMPLANTABLE ARTIFICIAL KIDNEY HOLDS PROMISE FOR PATIENTS ON DIALYSIS

Expenditures in the United States for end stage renal disease exceed $40 billion 

annually. Treatment of end stage renal disease includes renal transplant and thriceweekly, in-center hemodialysis. Renal transplant is limited to a small fraction of potential recipients by a shortage of donor organs. As a result, more than 400,000 

Americans are on dialysis, which is expensive, inconvenient, and over time associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Researchers are developing an 

implantable bioartificial kidney called the Implantable Renal Assist Device (iRAD), 

in which a patient’s blood will be filtered through an artificial kidney consisting of 

silicon nanopore membranes and a bioreactor of cells to mimic the functions of a 

healthy kidney. Such a device could offer numerous advantages for patients including: freedom of mobility, decreased infection risk due to a permanent vascular connection, and continuous treatment, which avoids the build-up of toxins that occurs 

between in-center hemodialysis visits. In addition, incorporation of the patient’s own 

cells could provide normal renal metabolic function that would be more physiologic 

than dialysis and not require anti-rejection drugs used for transplant. This combined filtration and metabolic treatment has been shown to work using a room-sized 

external model. Multi-day animal model testing to demonstrate hemofilter 

biocompatiblity has been conducted. Although human studies have not been initiated with the iRAD, these researchers are working with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on an initiative that facilitates new ways for FDA staff and 

innovators to jointly bring breakthrough medical device technologies to patients 

faster and more efficiently. 

SMART HOMES FOR HEALTHY INDEPENDENT LIVING AT ALL AGES

The population is aging and, increasingly, medical treatment involves the management of chronic and/or degenerative diseases. Management of such conditions requires monitoring and early intervention to prevent more severe complications. The 

rapid development and ever expanding capabilities of smart phones, advanced sensors, point-of-care diagnostics, and integrated Internet connectivity provides a 

framework on which new healthcare models can be developed to provide this monitoring and intervention. Investigators are testing real-time home observation of 

high-risk patients for early signs of illness, using a built-in camera, computer tablet 

and a smart phone for simultaneous monitoring of daily activities by family members and health professionals. This includes analysis of daily habits, mobility patterns, and gait rate and rhythm as indicators of change in health status. Developing 

automated technologies to help identify early indicators of changes in health status 

will extend the amount of time individuals can live independently in their own 

homes. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GRIFFIN P. RODGERS, M.D., M.A.C.P. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 
57 

The fiscal year 2015 budget includes $1,743,336,000, which is $1,462,000 above the 

comparable fiscal year 2014 appropriation of $1,741,874,000. Complementing these 

funds is an additional $150,000,000 authorized in fiscal year 2015 from the Special 

Statutory Funding Program for Type 1 Diabetes Research. NIDDK supports research on a wide range of common, chronic, costly, and consequential diseases and 

health problems that affect millions of Americans. These include diabetes and other 

endocrine and metabolic diseases; digestive and liver diseases; kidney and urologic 

diseases; blood diseases; obesity; and nutrition disorders. 

TODAY’S BASIC SCIENCE FOR TOMORROW’S BREAKTHROUGHS

NIDDK-supported basic research is achieving remarkable progress and building 

the foundation for previously unimaginable strategies to improve health and quality 

of life. For example, recent research has better defined human brown adipose (fat) 

tissue in the neck, and has further elucidated the role of a family of proteins as molecular signals regulating brown fat physiology—findings that could help inform new 

approaches for altering metabolism to clinical advantage. The microorganisms that 

inhabit the gastrointestinal tract are important factors in maintaining or tipping the 

balance between health and disease. A recent study of young twin pairs in Malawi 

revealed that gut microbes may play an important role in causing severe malnutrition in children that persists in spite of nutritional interventions. Gaining new insight into gastric bypass surgery, scientists studying a mouse model found that restructuring of the digestive tract leads to weight loss and metabolic benefits in part 

by altering the communities of bacteria that normally live in the intestines. Another 

study has shown that deletion of the protein olfactomedin-4 in white blood cells improves their ability to eradicate infections with the harmful bacteria Staphylococcus 

aureus in an animal model of the immune disorder chronic granulomatous disease. 

Scientists supported by our Institute have used a series of genetically engineered 

mice to identify the contribution of different kidney cell subtypes to the process of 

fibrosis that follows kidney injury, confirming myofibroblasts’ contribution to fibrosis 

and tracking their developmental origins—results that could inform future treatment strategies. Scientists have discovered a link between two proteins known to 

contribute to the most common form of polycystic kidney disease and a cell-surface 

structure in a subset of kidney cells in mice. NIDDK-supported researchers conducted a study in mice showing that chemotherapy damages nerves that regulate 

bone marrow niches responsible for making new blood cells; future research in humans could explore ways to reduce nerve damage and improve blood cell regeneration after chemotherapy. A new study has shown that it may one day be possible 

to treat people with cystic fibrosis (CF) using a combination of medicines that work 

cooperatively to stabilize an aberrant form of CFTR, the protein that is defective in 

CF. 

NIDDK will continue support for basic research across the Institute’s mission, to 

gain further insights into health and disease and propel new ideas for interventions. 

Areas of emerging opportunity include research on generating or repairing nephrons 

that can function within the kidney; diet-host microbiome interactions in autoimmune and metabolic diseases; and a collaborative research network on disease 

modeling and tissue repair and regeneration. 

CLINICAL SCIENCE AND PRECISION MEDICINE

Through innovative design and rigorous testing of interventions—whether in the 

operating room, doctor’s office, or home or community settings—NIDDK-supported 

researchers are improving lives with new approaches to prevent, treat, and reverse 

diseases and disorders. For example, researchers studying type 1 diabetes have used 

smartphone technology to move a step closer toward developing an artificial, bionic, 

pancreas. Scientists reported data on insulin resistance and secretion that suggest 

early and rapid deterioration of pancreatic beta cell function in youth with type 2 

diabetes, underscoring the need to intervene early and aggressively. Researchers 

have found that patients with irritable bowel syndrome show an improvement in 

symptoms following a short course of group therapy involving psychological and educational approaches. Recent research has shown that in dialysis patients with diabetes, measuring another set of modified blood proteins may better predict the risk 

of death and cardiovascular disease than the current standard test to assess blood 

glucose control. 

The NIDDK supports research aimed at tailoring treatments for disease to the individual characteristics of each patient. For example, a detailed genetic study has 

now identified rare mutations of the SLC30A8 gene that sharply reduce risk for 

type 2 diabetes in several different racial/ethnic populations, suggesting that inhibitors of the Slc30A8 protein may one day be therapeutically valuable. New research 
58 

has greatly expanded knowledge of the specific genetic mutations capable of causing 

CF, leading to much more comprehensive CF genetic testing. A recently discovered 

set of mutations in the DGKE gene may be behind some cases of the serious blood 

disorder hemolytic uremic syndrome. Scientists participating in NIDDK’s Childhood 

Liver Disease Research and Education Network have utilized patient samples and 

an animal model to identify a genetic deletion in the GPC1 gene that may play a 

role in the development of biliary atresia. NIDDK researchers have created and confirmed the accuracy of a mathematical model that predicts how weight and body fat 

in children respond to adjustment in diet and physical activity. 

NURTURING TALENT AND INNOVATION

NIDDK will continue programs to train and support researchers at all stages of 

their careers, and to ensure that we benefit from the best scientific minds. One 

major objective of the Network of Minority Health Research Investigators is to encourage and facilitate participation of members of underrepresented population 

groups and others interested in minority health in the conduct of biomedical research. In addition, several NIDDK-sponsored programs provide opportunities for 

minority students to obtain research experience. The NIDDK’s Short-Term Education Program for Underrepresented Persons, or STEP-UP, provides research education grants to seven institutions to coordinate high school and undergraduate 

STEP-UP programs that enable students to gain summer research experience and 

training. 

INTEGRATING SCIENCE-BASED INFORMATION INTO PRACTICE

NIDDK also will continue to support education, outreach, and awareness programs. Research clearly shows that communications alone about the seriousness of 

diabetes will not reverse the diabetes epidemic. The NIDDK is committed to focusing more efforts to promote the theme of moving from awareness to action, by providing behavior change tools and other resources to help people with diabetes and 

those at risk make and sustain lifestyle changes. For example, the NIDDK-CDC National Diabetes Education Program has developed the Diabetes HealthSense Web 

site, an online library of tools and resources developed by partners from around the 

country to address a wide array of psychosocial and lifestyle challenges. The 

NIDDK’s National Kidney Disease Education Program (NKDEP) works to identify 

people with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and promote the implementation of evidence-based interventions, focusing on populations at highest risk for CKD and the 

providers who serve them. In addition, through collaborative community partnerships with organizations such as the Chi Eta Phi Nursing Sorority and the American Diabetes Association, NKDEP brings NIH science-based information to the 

grassroots. 

In closing, NIDDK’s future research investments will be guided by five principles: 

maintain a vigorous investigator-initiated research portfolio; support pivotal clinical 

studies and trials; preserve a stable pool of new investigators; foster research training and mentoring; and disseminate science-based knowledge through education and 

outreach programs. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF PAUL A. SIEVING, M.D., PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 budget proposal is $675,168,000, which is $0.9 

million more than the fiscal year 2014 enacted level of $674,249,000. As the director 

of the NEI, it is my privilege to report on the many research opportunities that exist 

to reduce the burden of eye disease. 

NEI AUDACIOUS GOAL INITIATIVE

Vision research is often on the cutting edge of biomedical research, from the first 

successful gene therapy clinical trials that restored some visual function in patients 

with an inherited form of blindness, to clinical trials for macular degeneration using 

tissue derived from embryonic stem cells, to a retinal electrical prosthesis, approved 

this past year by the FDA, after years of development by Second Site, a small business that received research support from both NEI and the Department of Energy. 

NEI is now starting a new chapter in its ambitious research agenda. I have 

launched a new initiative—The NEI Audacious Goal Initiative in Vision Research 

and Blindness Rehabilitation—to identify a groundbreaking long-term research goal 

that will markedly improve prevention and treatment of common eye diseases. 
59 

We started this effort over a year ago by soliciting audacious ideas from scientists, 

stakeholders, patients, clinicians, and the public through a Challenge Competition. 

After a thorough scientific review of more than 500 submissions, we chose 10 winning entries, which were presented and intensively discussed at the NEI Audacious 

Goals Development Meeting last year. In May, I announced that the NEI Audacious 

Goal will be to Regenerate Neurons and Neural Connections in the Eye and Visual 

System. To kick start this initiative, we will soon release funding opportunities focusing on different components of this goal. Implementation of work toward the goal 

will include oversight, guidance, and direction from non-governmental consultant 

experts. 

This goal will focus on two types of retinal neuronal cells that underpin many of 

the leading causes of visual impairment. One such target is photoreceptor cells, the 

specialized neurons in the retina that detect light and initiate the neural response. 

Blindness in some diseases, such as retinitis pigmentosa, is a direct result of 

photoreceptor cell death, whereas in other diseases such as diabetic retinopathy or 

macular degeneration, damage elsewhere in the retina indirectly causes 

photoreceptor cells to die. 

Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are the second cell type targeted in this program. 

These neurons reside in the retina but send long projections (axons in the optic 

nerve) that connect to the brain. When RGCs degenerate and die in diseases such 

as glaucoma and multiple sclerosis, vision signals from the eye can’t get to the 

brain. Two of the primary scientific challenges of this initiative include protecting 

newly regenerated cells from dying, and inducing them to form appropriate neural 

connections in the brain. Success in achieving this goal will not just revolutionize 

how we approach diseases in vision, but all of neuroscience. 

NEI is also a key contributor and participant in the President’s BRAIN initiative, 

which seeks to decode the brain, just as the Human Genome Initiative decoded 

DNA. While NEI’s Audacious Goal is independent from the BRAIN initiative, the 

eye is the gateway to the brain—it is the most accessible part of the central nervous 

system. There is good opportunity for synergy between these exciting initiatives. 

NEW AREAS OF EMPHASIS

In the process of identifying our Audacious Goal, we also identified two high-priority, complementary areas of emphasis, for which we have released two funding opportunities and are currently reviewing grant applications: Molecular Therapy for 

Eye Disease; and the Intersection of Aging and Biological Mechanisms of Eye Disease. With recent advances in genomics, we now have a good understanding of genes 

and molecules that are altered in many diseases. The National Ophthalmic Disease 

Genotyping and Phenotyping Network (eyeGENE), is a critical resource created by 

NEI for identifying the mutated genes in patients with inherited eye disorders and 

giving researchers access to DNA samples (over 4,000 collected since 2006), clinical 

information, and patients looking to participate in research studies. But the current 

tools at our disposal to treat genetic diseases are limited. Building on our recent 

successes in gene therapy, the exciting potential of designing personalized therapies 

to correct mutant genes lies in the research ahead of us over the next decade. 

Many eye diseases are associated with aging: from cataracts and presbyopia, 

which are common in all adults as they age, to some of the leading vision impairment diseases, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma. Understanding what aspects of the aging process contribute to eye disease has the potential to delay the onset of vision loss or even avert the disease. 

NEI REGENERATIVE MEDICINE PROGRAM

Also contributing to the Audacious Goal Initiative are researchers at NEI, working with the NIH Center for Regenerative Medicine to create retinal tissues from 

induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells for several basic and translational research applications. iPS cells can be generated from any adult cell, and then converted into 

virtually any other type of cells. A major thrust of this program is to derive iPS cells 

from patients with retinal diseases. Then, the iPS cells are differentiated to form 

retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells or photoreceptors and studied to identify disease-causing molecular pathways. Diseases of interest currently include AMD, Best 

disease, late-onset retinal degeneration, Stargardt’s disease, and retinitis 

pigmentosa. This program is exploiting these techniques to develop high-throughput 

drug screens to identify potential therapeutic compounds for treating retinal degenerative diseases. 

Another potentially powerful application of iPS cell technology is to generate iPS 

cells from normal tissue and then differentiate those cells into monolayer sheets of 

RPE for tissue transplants. NEI intramural investigators are engineering a bio-de-
60 

gradable scaffold in order to grow the RPE tissue and transfer it to patients with 

RPE-associated retinal degenerative diseases. In fiscal year 2015, the stem cell program will also use stem cell technologies to evaluate synaptic connections in 3–D 

retinas derived from iPS cells. 

As I reflect on the remarkable progress the vision community has made in these 

past few years, I can hardly anticipate the exciting opportunities that lay ahead. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF MARTHA SOMERMAN D.D.S., PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research 

(NIDCR) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 NIDCR 

budget of $397,131,000 includes an increase of $29,000 over the enacted fiscal year 

2014 level of $397,102,000. 

In keeping with its mission to improve the Nation’s oral health, the breadth of 

NIDCR’s research touches the lives of nearly all Americans. Our research spans 

multiple disciplines, scientific approaches, and research directions, all focused on 

the goal of improving people’s lives. Today, I will highlight selected areas of particular promise in our efforts to understand the development of tissues of the face 

and head, conquer oral infectious diseases through better understanding of the 

body’s own defenses, help people facing chronic orofacial pain conditions, and develop new approaches to improve oral cancer survival. 

DEVELOPMENT AND REGENERATION

The human face is among the body’s most distinctive structures. NIDCR is the 

leading supporter of research on the development of the human face and skull, collectively known as the craniofacial region. By defining the complex web of environmental and genetic instructions that drive craniofacial development, the hope is 

that scientists one day will learn to repair damaged or malformed facial structures 

such as cleft lip and palate by harnessing the body’s ability to heal itself. 

Five years ago, NIDCR began assembling information on the genetic code that instructs facial development with the launch of its FaceBase Consortium. Through 

this endeavor, scientists have assembled nearly 500 publicly available datasets involving the biological instructions for the middle region of the human face, which 

includes the nose, upper lip, and palate, or roof of the mouth. FaceBase begins a 

second phase this year, as it expands its focus to include studies on additional regions of the face. This new phase will add to our knowledge about the genetics that 

underlie craniosynostosis, a birth skull defect that may result in severe and permanent problems if not corrected. 

NIDCR is also translating knowledge about craniofacial development into tools to 

re-grow bone and cartilage damaged by disease or injury. Ongoing studies are using 

the power of stem cells to regenerate tissues, improve wound healing, and help control inflammatory-associated diseases of the mouth. Related research uses specially 

designed stable small molecules modified from naturally occurring molecules called 

resolvins that control inflammation in a wide range of conditions to target oral inflammatory diseases such as periodontitis. We envision a future where natural tool 

kits are used to regenerate and repair damaged teeth, diseased gums, and broken 

or defective bones by utilizing stem cells and adapting natural molecules and processes. 

ORAL INFECTIONS, IMMUNITY AND THE MICROBIOME

The NIH’s human microbiome project has reinforced that no man is an island. Although human beings coexist with a plethora of microorganisms, microbial cells outnumber human cells by 10 to 1, living on surfaces of our body in sticky layers of 

polymicrobial communities called biofilms. Under normal circumstances, these microbial guests coexist with us and even contribute to sustaining human health. But, 

if conditions in some part of the body are altered, the balance is disrupted, and the 

disease-causing organisms that live on our gums and teeth can overwhelm our natural immune defense systems causing oral infectious diseases such as tooth decay 

and periodontal diseases. NIDCR-supported scientists are beginning to assemble the 

precise molecular details of how select oral pathogens destabilize the immune system to cause oral diseases. For example, individuals with leukocyte adhesion deficiency (a rare genetic disorder affecting the body’s immune system) suffer from frequent bacterial infections, including severe periodontitis. New research has demonstrated that blocking certain molecules that are part of the individual’s own immune system can reverse this inflammation and resulting bone loss. 
61 

In combination with these discoveries, we have made great strides in understanding how an individual’s own microbiome affects his or her health and disease. 

NIDCR continues to invest in microbiome research, supporting a database of information on oral microbes that will one day allow dentists to visualize the microbes 

within a patient’s oral biofilm in real time—offering new tools to diagnose and treat 

oral disease. For example, a dentist might observe an overgrowth of a particular 

type of bacteria that uniquely predisposes a patient to tooth decay, and could treat 

that bacterial imbalance to prevent the individual from developing cavities. These 

emerging leads will not only guide future personalized dental treatment for millions 

of Americans; they will help scientists throughout biomedical research to inform better treatment approaches for other microbe-host diseases such as colitis. 

TEMPOROMANDIBULAR JOINT DISORDERS

Thousands of Americans this year will be diagnosed with a painful and debilitating disorder of the jaw called temporomandibular joint and muscle disorder 

(TMD). Some of these individuals will recover after a single bout of TMD, while others will go on to develop chronic disease—and their healthcare providers, currently, 

are unable to predict the likely outcome for any individual patient. NIDCR-supported research is providing key insights that could identify people at risk for developing TMD, and predict the likelihood of progression to chronic disease. In 2006, 

NIDCR launched the Orofacial Pain: Prospective Evaluation and Risk Assessment 

(OPPERA) study. The study’s latest findings present the most in-depth picture to 

date of the factors that may contribute to a person’s developing an initial bout of 

painful TMD. Among the many interesting findings is that there is almost no difference in the rate at which men and women develop TMD for the first time. And 

yet, females are far more likely to progress to chronic TMD than males. Researchers 

will continue to examine potential causes of this difference, such as hormonal regulatory factors, leading to more targeted strategies for detecting and managing TMD 

in the future. 

Although TMD specifically afflicts the jaw, OPPERA researchers found only about 

15 percent of OPPERA participants diagnosed with chronic TMD have orofacial pain 

only. The other 85 percent have additional ailments, many of which are painful in 

nature, including chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia headache, and low back 

pain. This finding demonstrates that first-onset and chronic TMD are complex disorders that must be understood within a biological, psychological, and social model 

of illness. NIDCR will continue to help lead the way for all those battling these 

chronic conditions to find relief through a more accurate diagnosis and more personalized care. 

ORAL CANCER AND HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS (HPV)

When many people hear the acronym HPV, they think of its association with cervical cancer. But over the last decade, various types of this virus also have been 

shown to contribute to head and neck cancers. In fact, the incidence of HPV-related 

head and neck cancer has risen steadily over the last decade and if the pace continues, it will soon surpass the incidence of cervical cancer. This trend is particularly alarming because no effective diagnostic test currently exists to detect early 

HPV-related head and neck cancer. Tools are needed to screen those at increased 

risk of the condition and to test for possible persistence of the condition following 

therapy. 

NIDCR will help to fill this public health need by launching an initiative to develop a viable diagnostic test. The initiative will identify DNA markers associated 

with HPV-related head and neck cancer, develop and validate saliva and plasmabased diagnostic tests, and evaluate and test the biomarkers in humans. Clinical 

studies are also ongoing to establish the safety and feasibility of administration of 

a DNA vaccine in certain HPV-associated head and neck cancer patients. NIDCR 

scientists recognize the urgency of developing innovative approaches to detect oral 

cancer early, when personalized treatment can be more successful, leading to better 

patient outcomes. 

There has never been a better time to take advantage of the remarkable opportunities in science and technology waiting at our doorstep. Seizing this moment brings 

us closer to preventing and treating dental, oral, and craniofacial conditions as well 

as other diseases that share risk factors and therapeutic strategies. 
62 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF LAWRENCE A. TABAK, D.D.S., PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for the Office of the Director (OD) of the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH). The fiscal year 2015 OD budget of $1,451,786,000 includes an increase of $51,033,000 above the comparable fiscal year 2014 level of $1,399,753,000. 

The OD promotes and fosters NIH research and research training efforts in the 

prevention and treatment of disease through the policy oversight of both the extramural grant and contract award functions and the Intramural Research program. 

The OD stimulates specific areas of research to complement the ongoing efforts of 

the Institutes and Centers through the activities of several cross-cutting program 

offices. The OD also develops policies in response to emerging scientific opportunities employing ethical and legal considerations; provides oversight and management 

of peer review policies; coordinates information technology across the Agency; and, 

coordinates the communication of health information to the public and scientific 

communities. Moreover, the OD provides the core management and administrative 

services, such as budget and financial management, personnel, property, and procurement services, ethics oversight, and the administration of equal employment 

policies and practices. 

The fiscal year 2015 request will also support activities managed by the OD’s 

operational offices. OD Operations is comprised of several OD Offices that provide 

advice to the NIH Director, policy direction and oversight to the NIH research community and administer centralized support services essential to the NIH mission. 

The functions and initiatives of the OD’s research offices are described in detail 

as follows: 

DIVISION OF PROGRAM COORDINATION, PLANNING, AND STRATEGIC INITIATIVES (DPCPSI)

DPCPSI provides leadership for identifying, reporting, and funding trans-NIH research that represents important areas of emerging scientific opportunities, rising 

public health challenges, or knowledge gaps that merit further research and would 

benefit from collaboration between two or more Institutes or Centers (ICs), or from 

strategic coordination and planning. 

The Division includes major programmatic offices that coordinate and support research and activities related to HIV/AIDS, women’s health, behavioral and social 

sciences, disease prevention, dietary supplements, research infrastructure, and 

science education. DPCPSI serves as a resource for the ICs and the NIH Office of 

the Director for portfolio analysis by developing, using, and disseminating data-driven approaches and computational tools. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget for DPCPSI, including the immediate Office of the 

DPCPSI Director, the Offices of Portfolio Analysis and Program Evaluation and Performance, and the Office of Strategic Coordination is $11,138,000. 

OFFICE OF RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAMS (ORIP)

ORIP provides support for a variety of research infrastructure needs, including 

animal models and facilities; research models, human biospecimens, and biological 

materials; training and career development for veterinarians engaged in research; 

the acquisition of state-of-the-art and shared and high-end instrumentation; and research resources grants to expand, re-model, renovate, or alter existing research facilities. The ORIP budget for fiscal year 2015 is $275,654,000. 

SCIENCE EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP AWARDS (SEPA)

The goal of the Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA) program is to invest in educational activities that enhance the training of a workforce to meet the 

Nation’s biomedical, behavioral and clinical research needs. The SEPA program encourages the development of innovative educational activities for pre-kindergarten 

to grade 12 (P–12), teachers and students from underserved communities with a 

focus on Courses for Skills Development, Research Experiences, Mentoring Activities, Curriculum or Methods Development or Informal Science Education (ISE) exhibits, and Outreach activities. In fiscal year 2015, the SEPA Program will be coordinated with the Department of Education to ensure that program activities are 

aligned with ongoing P–12 reform efforts included in the President’s budget request. 

In fiscal year 2015, the budget for SEPAs is $18,541,000. 

THE OFFICE OF AIDS RESEARCH (OAR)

OAR plays a unique role at NIH by serving as a model of trans-NIH planning 

and management, vested with primary responsibility for overseeing all NIH AIDSrelated research. OAR coordinates the scientific, budgetary, legislative, and policy 
63 

elements of the NIH AIDS research program. OAR’s response to the AIDS epidemic 

requires a unique and complex multi-institute, multi-disciplinary, global research 

program. This diverse research portfolio demands an unprecedented level of scientific coordination and management of research funds to identify the highest priority areas of scientific opportunity, enhance collaboration, minimize duplication, 

and ensure that precious research dollars are invested effectively and efficiently, allowing NIH to pursue a united research front against the global AIDS epidemic. The 

fiscal year 2015 budget for OAR is $61,923,000. 

THE OFFICE OF BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH (OBSSR)

OBSSR furthers the mission of the NIH by emphasizing the critical role that behavioral and social factors play in health, healthcare and well-being. OBSSR serves 

as a liaison between NIH and the extramural research communities, other Federal 

agencies, academic and scientific societies, national voluntary health agencies, the 

media, and the general public on matters pertaining to behavioral and social 

sciences research. OBSSR’s vision is to bring together the biomedical, behavioral, 

and social science communities to work more collaboratively to solve the pressing 

health challenges facing our Nation. OBSSR also coordinates and helps support the 

NIH Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network, a trans-NIH initiative to expand the agency’s funding of basic behavioral and social sciences research. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget for OBSSR is $26,094,000. 

THE OFFICE OF RESEARCH ON WOMEN’S HEALTH (ORWH)

Since its creation in 1990, ORWH has worked to ensure the inclusion of women 

in NIH clinical research, to advance and expand women’s health research, and to 

promote advancement of women in biomedical careers. ORWH is the focal point for 

NIH women’s health research and works in partnership with the NIH ICs to incorporate a women’s health and sex differences research perspective into the NIH scientific framework. ORWH activities are guided by the 2010 NIH Strategic Plan for 

Women’s Health Research. This strategic plan outlines six goals to maximize impact 

of NIH research effort. The NIH strategic plan for women’s health and sex differences research serves as a framework for interdisciplinary scientific approaches. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget for ORWH is $40,903,000. 

THE OFFICE OF DISEASE PREVENTION (ODP)

The ODP is responsible for assessing, facilitating, and stimulating research in disease prevention and health promotion, and disseminating the results of this research to improve public health. Research on disease prevention is an important 

part of the NIH mission because the knowledge gained from this research leads to 

stronger clinical practice, health policy, and community health programs. In early 

fiscal year 2014, ODP released its first strategic plan. This plan outlines the priorities that the Office will focus on over the next 5 years and highlights the ODP’s 

role in advancing prevention research at the NIH. The fiscal year 2013 budget for 

ODP is $5,861,000. The Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) is within the ODP organizational structure. The mission of the ODS is to strengthen knowledge and understanding of dietary supplements by evaluating scientific information, stimulating 

and supporting research, disseminating research results, and educating the public 

to foster an enhanced quality of life and health for the U.S. population. The fiscal 

year 2015 budget for ODS is $26,786,000. 

THE OFFICE OF STRATEGIC COORDINATION (OSC) AND THE COMMON FUND

OSC oversees the management of the Common Fund (CF), working with transNIH teams for each of the more than 30 Common Fund programs. These teams ensure that each program meets the criteria of Common Fund programs to synergize 

with IC funded research. The NIH CF was created by the 2006 NIH Reform Act 

which codified the approach of the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research to support 

cross-cutting, trans-NIH programs that require participation by at least two NIH 

ICs or would otherwise benefit from strategic planning and coordination. CF programs tackle major challenges in biomedical research that affect many diseases or 

conditions or that broadly relate to human health. The CF provides limited-term 

funding for goal-driven, coordinated research networks to generate data, solve technological problems, and/or pilot resources and tools that will stimulate the broader 

research community. The fiscal year 2015 budget for the Common Fund is 

$583,039,000. 
64 

1 U.S.DHHS. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress: A Report of the 

Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA, CDCP, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and 

Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014; Rehm J, Mathers C, Popova S, 

Thavorncharoensap M, Teerawattananon Y, Patra J. Global burden of disease and injury and 

economic cost attributable to alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders. Lancet. 2009 Jun 

27;373(9682):2223–33; National Drug Intelligence Center (2010). National Threat Assessment: 

The Economic Impact of Illicit Drug Use on American Society. Washington, DC: United States 

Department of Justice. 

LOAN REPAYMENT AND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS

The mission of the NIH Intramural Loan Repayment Programs is to seek to recruit and retain highly qualified physicians, dentists, and other health professionals 

with doctoral-level degrees. These programs offer financial incentives and other benefits to attract highly qualified physicians, nurses, and scientists into careers in biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research as employees of the NIH. The Undergraduate Scholarship Programs (UGSP) offers competitive scholarships to exceptional college students from disadvantaged backgrounds that are committed to biomedical, behavioral, and social science health-related research careers at the NIH. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget for ILRSP is $7,145,000. 

I am happy to answer any questions you may have about the OD’s programs and 

activities as well as our plans for the upcoming year. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF NORA D. VOLKOW, M.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the fiscal 

year 2015 President’s budget request for the National Institute on Drug Abuse 

(NIDA). The fiscal year 2015 budget request for NIDA is $1,023,268,000, which reflects an increase of $7,514,000 over the fiscal year 2014 level of $1,015,754,000. 

The impact of substance abuse in this country is daunting; the economic toll alone 

exceeds $700 billion 1 a year in healthcare, crime-related, and productivity losses. 

NIDA strives to translate the returns of its investments in genetics, neuroscience, 

pharmacotherapy, and behavioral and health services research into new strategies 

for preventing and treating substance abuse and addiction. This scientific investment is crucial if we are to tackle rapidly evolving public health threats such as 

the increase in marijuana use among young people and the growing prevalence of 

opioid addiction and overdose deaths. 

TODAY’S BASIC SCIENCE FOR TOMORROW’S BREAKTHROUGHS

There is a fundamental need to understand the complex steps of how body chemistry influences behavior and how their disruption can lead to addiction. A more detailed and personalized account of these steps will lead to a more effective and precise medicine to prevent and treat this complex brain disorder. 

In this context, and thanks to recent technological developments, we’ve made important advances in linking genes with behavior. As a result, we now have an unprecedented capacity to screen for thousands of genetic variations and catalogue 

how they modulate abuse/addiction risk by influencing brain maturation, its neural 

architecture, and behavioral patterns. NIDA researchers are also pursuing genome 

and whole individual sequence analysis to identify genes that modulate addiction 

risk (e.g., genes that regulate drug metabolism), advancing their understanding of 

how environmental factors (e.g., parental style, drug exposure) can affect the expression of those genes to either strengthen or weaken behavioral patterns through epigenetic changes. The systematic identification of genetic, environmental, and 

neurocircuitry variations that modulate abuse/addiction risk will revolutionize our 

prevention and treatment capacities. 

BIG OPPORTUNITIES IN BIG DATA

Big data sets are essential platforms for the analysis of complex systems in genetics and epigenetics, proteomics, brain imaging and clinical science. Vast amounts of 

data are being produced by the overlaying of structural and functional brain imaging information that links the molecular and cellular data with the expression of 

higher level brain function. A prime example is the new fMRI-based approach to 

generating images of the functional connectivity (FC) among brain regions in the absence of any specific task, so called resting state (rs) FC. This technique offers a 

powerful window into circuit-level functions that may generate behavioral responses 

underlying vulnerability or a diseased state. Open access to such massive databases 

could lead to the identification of biomarkers of psychiatric illness risk including ad-
65 

2Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Results from the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Summary of National Findings, NSDUH Series H–46, 

HHS Publication No. (SMA) 13–4795. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2013. 

diction, their trajectories, and treatment responses that could be translated for clinical use and the optimal management of patients. 

Similarly, NIDA is funding the development of an open source, open framework, 

free National Pain Registry that collects patient demographic and treatment information from around the Nation. This information can be used to identify which pain 

management interventions are most effective for specific chronic pain patients and 

predict which patients might be at higher risk for opioid addiction. Combined with 

concerted efforts in the pharmacogenomics of prescription opioids, pain registries 

are poised to help us maximize the effectiveness of pain treatments while minimizing the likelihood of prescription opioid abuse and addiction. 

NURTURING TALENT AND INNOVATION

NIDA currently supports a great deal of innovative research on drug addiction 

and related health problems such as pain and HIV/AIDS and will continue to be 

at the forefront of training the next generation of innovative researchers. The 6-year 

old Avant-Garde award is a good example of a program that stimulates high—impact research that could lead to groundbreaking opportunities for the prevention 

and treatment of HIV/AIDS in substance users. NIDA is now crafting a new kind 

of award, which blends NIH’s Pioneer and New Innovator award mechanisms. This 

new opportunity, called the ‘‘AVENIR’’ award, is designed to attract creative young 

investigators to genetic research on substance use disorders and HIV/drug abuse research. Another example is NIDA’s Cutting-Edge Basic Research Awards (CEBRA), 

designed to foster highly innovative or conceptually creative research that advances 

our understanding of drug abuse and addiction. The latest results of this effort include three independent studies exploring the potential benefits of neurofeedback 

training, transcranial magnetic stimulation, and meditation on facilitating smoking 

cessation. 

BETTER PAIN MANAGEMENT: A MAJOR GOAL OF ADDICTION RESEARCH

Pain management is an important component of high-quality, compassionate medical care. Opioid analgesics are among the most effective medications for the management of severe pain and frequently used for pain treatment. Unfortunately, the 

benefits of long term opioid analgesic treatment are accompanied by significant risk 

of developing drug tolerance (and the need for escalating doses) and hyperalgesia 

(increased pain sensitivity). Exposure to potentially rewarding substances, like 

opioid analgesics, may reinforce drug taking behavior for persons with risk factors 

for addiction and trigger relapse in those that are in recovery. These are intrinsic 

liabilities of opioid analgesics that clearly increase the risk for diversion, abuse, addiction and overdose. 

NIDA recognizes it has a critical role in ensuring the availability of safe and efficacious chronic pain management options while minimizing risk of abuse. This is 

why we are committed to supporting research to better predict who is at risk of addiction and to develop new classes of effective, non-addicting pain medications. Parallel to these efforts, NIDA is proactively pursuing methods to minimize the risk of 

overdose with existing medications. For example, NIDA and Lightlake Therapeutics 

Inc. have partnered to develop an intranasal delivery system of naloxone (an opioid 

receptor blocker that can rapidly reverse the overdose of prescription and illicit 

opioids), which could greatly expand its availability and use in preventing opioidrelated deaths, a public health problem of epidemic proportion in the U.S. 

HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF MARIJUANA USE

There is a dangerous and growing misperception that marijuana use is harmless, 

resulting in its status as the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States 

with about 12 percent of people aged 12 and over reporting use in the past year.2

Marijuana use has been associated with significant adverse effects, including addiction, cognitive impairment and car accidents. The key to minimizing negative outcomes lies with the intensification of our efforts to educate the public about the dangers of marijuana use and, with the deployment of multipronged, evidence-based 

strategies to prevent and treat the abuse of and addiction to marijuana and other 

drugs. To meet this challenge, NIDA has released several funding announcements 

to encourage research on the impact of changing marijuana policies; and, in partnership with other NIH institutes, is planning a large-scale, prospective study that fol-
66 

lows children prior to drug use into early adulthood to determine whether and how 

marijuana and other commonly used substances (e.g., alcohol, tobacco) affect the developing brain. 

MEDICATIONS DEVELOPMENT

Our current approaches to develop next-generation pharmaceuticals take advantage of new technologies using immunotherapeutic or biologic (e.g., bioengineered 

enzymes) approaches for treating addiction. The goal is to develop safe and effective 

vaccines or antibodies that target specific drugs, like nicotine, cocaine, and heroin, 

or drug combinations. If successful, immunotherapies—alone or in combination with 

other medications, behavioral treatments, or enzymatic approaches—stand to revolutionize how we treat, and maybe even someday prevent addiction. 

CONCLUSION

The field of addiction research continues to benefit from the explosion in genetic 

knowledge, the advent of precise technologies to probe neuronal circuits, and the 

emergence of openly accessible big data platforms. NIDA’s research is strategically 

poised to take full advantage of these and other emerging opportunities to develop 

the knowledge base that can be used to reduce drug use in this country. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF JACK WHITESCARVER, PH.D. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the President’s budget request for fiscal year 2015 for the trans-NIH AIDS research program, 

which is $3,004,973,000. This amount is $19,882,000 above the fiscal year 2014 enacted level of $2,985,091,000. 

The authorizing law requires that the Office of AIDS Research (OAR) function as 

‘‘an institute without walls’’ and allocate all dollars associated with this area of research across the NIH. Therefore, the total for AIDS research includes both extramural and intramural research (including research management support, management fund, and service and supply fund), buildings and facilities, training, and evaluation, as well as research on the many HIV-associated co-infections and comorbidities, including TB, hepatitis C, and HIV-associated cancers. It also includes 

all of the basic science underlying this research. Other disease areas are not reported this way. Therefore the total for AIDS-related research is not comparable to 

spending reported for other individual diseases. 

NIH AIDS RESEARCH ACCOMPLISHMENTS

In the three decades since AIDS was first reported, NIH continues to be the global 

leader in research on HIV and its many related conditions. New avenues for discovery have been identified, providing possibilities for the development of new strategies to prevent, treat, and potentially cure HIV. Recent accomplishments include: 

—Development of new treatments for many HIV-associated co-infections, comorbidities, malignancies, and clinical manifestations; 

—Development of new strategies for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission; 

—Demonstration of the first proof of concept that a vaccine can prevent HIV infection and identification of potential immune markers for protection; 

—Discovery of more than 20 potent human antibodies that can stop up to 95 percent of known global HIV strains from infecting human cells in the laboratory; 

—Demonstration that the use of antiretroviral therapy by infected individuals can 

dramatically reduce HIV transmission to an uninfected partner; and that the 

use of antiretroviral drugs by uninfected individuals can reduce their risk of 

HIV acquisition; 

—Discovery that genetic variants may play a role in enabling some individuals, 

known as ‘‘elite controllers,’’ to control HIV infection without therapy; and 

—Advances in basic and treatment research aimed at eliminating viral reservoirs 

in the body that for the first time are leading scientists to design and conduct 

research aimed at a cure for HIV/AIDS. 

In just the past several months, NIH intramural and extramural researchers have 

produced a number of exciting new advances. NIH researchers published the results 

of studies utilizing potent human neutralizing antibodies that successfully suppressed a form of HIV in primates. This important research could potentially result 

in a new form of treatment for HIV that could be used as an adjunct to 

antiretroviral therapy and could lead to opportunities for novel research to treat and 

potentially cure HIV. NIH-sponsored researchers also have made tremendous 
67 

strides in producing and analyzing proteins that may provide an important new 

pathway in AIDS vaccine design. 

A team of NIH-funded investigators recently reported the first case of a newborn 

in Mississippi who was ‘‘functionally cured’’ of HIV infection. The infant received 

antiretroviral therapy immediately after being diagnosed at birth but was then lost 

to follow-up and treatment. The now nearly three year-old child has re-entered care 

with no indication of HIV disease and no detectable virus in the absence of therapy. 

Additional studies are under way to better understand this case and may lead to 

clinical trials to see whether a similar approach could be used to achieve a ‘‘functional cure’’ for other HIV-infected newborns. NIH is leading global research efforts 

to capitalize on all of these advances, move science forward, and begin to turn the 

tide against this pandemic. 

THE AIDS PANDEMIC

Despite this progress, the HIV/AIDS pandemic will remain the most serious global 

public health crisis of our time until better, more effective, and affordable prevention and treatment regimens—and eventually a cure—are developed and available 

around the world. UNAIDS reports that in 2012, more than 35 million people were 

estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS; 2.3 million were newly infected (half of them 

women); and 1.6 million people died of AIDS-related illnesses. 

In the United States, HIV/AIDS continues to be an unrelenting public health crisis, disproportionately affecting racial and ethnic populations, women of color, young 

adults, and men who have sex with men. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that approximately 1.1 million people are HIV-infected; approximately 50,300 new infections occur each year; and one in four people living with 

HIV infection in the U.S. is female. 

COORDINATED TRANS-NIH AIDS RESEARCH PROGRAM

The NIH AIDS research program is coordinated and managed by the OAR, and 

carried out by nearly every NIH Institute and Center (IC). Through its unique 

trans-NIH planning, budget, and portfolio review processes, OAR identifies the 

highest priority areas of scientific opportunity and ensures that precious research 

dollars are invested effectively. Scientific priorities for AIDS research are constantly 

reassessed and reflected in the budget. The annual trans-NIH AIDS strategic plan, 

developed by OAR in collaboration with both government and non-government experts, guides the development of the trans-NIH AIDS research budget. Each year, 

the state of the science is reviewed, newly emerged and critical public health needs 

are assessed, and scientific opportunities are identified. This annual process culminates with the identification of the highest strategic priorities and critical research needs. OAR develops each IC’s AIDS research allocation based on the Plan, 

scientific opportunities, and the IC’s capacity to absorb and expend resources for the 

most meritorious science——not on a formula. This process reduces redundancy and 

ensures cross-Institute collaboration. The fiscal year 2015 budget request reflects 

the priorities of the fiscal year 2015 strategic planning process. 

AIDS RESEARCH PRIORITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES

The advances made by NIH investigators have opened doors for new and exciting 

research opportunities to answer key scientific questions that remain in the search 

for strategies to prevent and treat HIV infection both in the United States and 

around the world. The fiscal year 2015 budget priorities are: 

—Basic research that will underpin further development of critically needed prevention methodologies, including vaccines; 

—Innovative multi-disciplinary research and international collaborations to develop novel approaches and strategies to eliminate viral reservoirs that could 

lead toward a cure for HIV; 

—Research to develop better, less toxic treatments and to investigate how genetic 

determinants, sex, gender, race, age, nutritional status, treatment during pregnancy, and other factors interact to affect treatment success or failure and/or 

disease progression; and 

—Studies to address the increased incidence of co-morbidities, including AIDS-associated malignancies; cardiovascular, neurological and metabolic complications; 

and premature aging associated with long-term HIV disease and antiretroviral 

treatment. 
68 

SUMMARY

The NIH investment in AIDS research has produced groundbreaking scientific advances that have benefited not only patients with HIV, but those with other diseases as well. For example, the development of protease inhibitors to treat HIV has 

led to development of a new drug combination that can cure hepatitis C, which affects about 150 million people globally. That advance in hepatitis C research may, 

in turn, provide important knowledge toward an HIV cure. Drugs developed to treat 

HIV-associated opportunistic infections are benefiting the more than 28,000 Americans who receive an organ transplant each year. Research on HIV-associated 

neurologic and cognitive manifestations ultimately will benefit millions of patients 

with Alzheimer’s disease and other aging and dementia issues. 

Despite these advances, however, AIDS is not over, and it is far too soon to declare victory. Serious challenges lie ahead. The HIV/AIDS pandemic will remain the 

most critical public health crisis of our time until improved and affordable prevention and treatment regimens are developed and universally available. NIH will continue to search for critical solutions to prevent, treat, and eventually cure AIDS. 

Thank you for your continued support for these efforts. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Dr. Collins. We will start 

a round now of 5-minute questions. As I said at the NIH, I have 

never come away from a conversation or listening to you, Dr. Collins, without being more enlightened and more hopeful about the 

future. I like that ‘‘National Institutes of Hope.’’ 

Let me just ask you a question about the BRAIN Initiative, if I 

can start with that. I have got two or three questions on the 

BRAIN Initiative. Paint for me a picture of how you see the research going ahead in the BRAIN Initiative. And we have some 

partners, four outside partners, right now that are also putting 

money into this, and you have an advisory group from DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) and NSF (National 

Science Foundation). Paint for me the picture of how you see this 

developing in the next 2, 3, 4, 5 years. And sort of what do we hope 

to get from this? 

BRAIN INITIATIVE

Dr. COLLINS. Well, we are enormously excited about this, and I 

am going to ask my colleague, Story Landis, who is a major leader 

at NIH in the BRAIN Initiative, to say a word. But just very briefly 

from my perspective, this is one of those moments that comes along 

once in a long time where the technology to be able to tackle a 

truly important problem, understanding how the circuits in the 

human brain work, has arrived at the point where we have this 

kind of push, bringing disciplines together that have not necessarily found each other, and making this a priority. We believe 

we can transform our understanding of this incredible organ with 

its 86 billion neurons, each of which has maybe a thousand connections. But, Story, say where we are and where we are going. 

Dr. LANDIS. So we are very excited about the opportunity to really understand how neural circuits in the human brain work—86 

billion neurons, each of which are connected in complicated circuits 

and pathways that process information, that allow us to see an 

image and interpret it, to hear words and understand what they 

mean, to remember, to reason. 

We have some understanding now of how those 86 billion neurons are organized into circuits, but we do not nearly have enough 

detail, and we do not know enough about how information is processed. And the goal of the BRAIN Initiative in the first five or so 
69 

years is to really develop the tools that will allow us to probe those 

questions. There will be early on potential opportunities to translate to disease, and I could give you some examples if you would 

like. 

Senator HARKIN. Let me ask you this, Dr. Landis. Are you working with the National Institute on Aging? Is there any connectivity 

between the BRAIN Initiative and Alzheimer’s research? 

Dr. LANDIS. Absolutely, although the understanding that we will 

gain from the BRAIN Initiative will then be applied to understanding how circuits are perturbed in Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s 

disease nerve cells die. We would like to prevent that death, but 

in the absence of tools yet to do that, the circuits reorganize when 

cells are lost. And the BRAIN Initiative will give us a better understanding of why that reorganization occurs and how we can potentially use the neurons that remain to have much more function. 

Senator HARKIN. Well, I asked that because, you know, we have 

a lot of things confronting us in the future. I will get to Dr. Varmus 

and cancer. But if we do not do something about Alzheimer’s, that 

is a tsunami that is going to hit us big time. And so I just really 

wanted to get that on the record that the money that we are putting into the BRAIN program, BRAIN research program, also has 

a connectivity to Alzheimer’s research. 

Dr. LANDIS. Absolutely. 

Senator HARKIN. Okay. 

Dr. COLLINS. Think of the BRAIN Project as a foundation for all 

neurological diseases, just like the Genome Project was a foundation for all genetic diseases. It lifts all of those boats of research 

to go higher and faster. 

Senator HARKIN. Sure. 

Dr. LANDIS. And psychiatric diseases and drug abuse, all the 

brain disorders. 

FUTURE OF CANCER RESEARCH

Senator HARKIN. Exactly. Dr. Varmus, again, I would be remiss 

if I did not thank you for a lifetime of devotion and dedication to 

biomedical research, stewardship of the NIH for a lot of the time 

I was either chairman or ranking member. And it is good to have 

you back as the head of the National Cancer Institute. 

Here is my question: What excites you the most right now? In 

all of cancer research and stuff, what is it that gets you up in the 

morning right now that you are looking ahead to do? 

Dr. VARMUS. Thank you. And before I give you a brief answer to 

that question, let me first of all compliment you on your service. 

You and I have been facing each other across the dais like this for 

20 years off and on, and I have always admired your passion, your 

commitment to the NIH, your honesty. And even on those rare occasions when we disagreed on a few issues, we have had a collegial 

and constructive relationship. And your departure from this Congress is a heavy blow to the NIH and to its supporters. 

Senator HARKIN. I appreciate that. 

Dr. VARMUS. What most excites me at the moment is the deep 

intellectual understanding we have about how cancer arises and 

how the body tries to respond to it. And the connection between 
70 

basic science and its very near apposition to what we can do practically is thrilling. 

Over 40 years ago, I have to confess when I began doing cancer 

research, the application of what we were trying to learn with 

chicken viruses and mouse viruses was very far away. Today we 

use tools of genomics and immunology and biochemistry in a way 

that is very closely connected to what we are doing in the clinic. 

So when we discover a new gene that is involved in cancer, it is 

not long before we find some drug, perhaps an existing drug, that 

can be applied to patients whose tumors are being analyzed with 

the instruments of genomics to identify exactly what is wrong with 

that cancer, and to carry out in a precise fashion a clinical trial 

that is designed in entirely new ways. 

Similarly, we have learned from basic immunology the kind of 

thing that Dr. Collins just illustrated is also being applied in immediate ways to try to interfere with the breaks on the immune system that have kept the immune system from attacking cancer cells. 

Senator HARKIN. My time has run out, but I will have a followup on that on immunotherapy and Dr. Rosenberg and what he is 

doing out there. Okay. 

Senator Moran. 

ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Dr. Collins, Dr. Landis, and others, thank you very much for attending the 

recent hearing we had in regard to Alzheimer’s in particular. Several members asked that day if we would reach the goal of a cure 

for Alzheimer’s by 2025 and how much money it would take to do 

so. 

I understand how difficult it must be to quantify such an answer, 

but I think it is important for us to know if our Alzheimer’s research funding is on track. Therefore, I am looking for your professional opinion or opinions as to how much money does NIH need 

in fiscal year 2015 to keep pace with the goal of a cure for Alzheimer’s by 2025. 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, thanks for the question, Senator, and that 

was an excellent hearing that was held by this subcommittee. And 

we had a great opportunity there to look at the challenge and also 

the scientific opportunities, which are really coming forward in 

very exciting ways, recognizing that the challenge here in terms of 

both the economic and human cost of this disease can hardly be 

overstated. 

As you have pointed out, we have an action plan for Alzheimer’s 

disease, part of the legislation that put in place this project—plan. 

And the National Institute on Aging, directed by Dr. Hodes, has 

been deeply engaged in that, running a research summit at NIH, 

and polling the entire community about where the research opportunities would be. It is wonderful that in fiscal year 2014, largely 

due to this subcommittee’s efforts, $100 million has been appropriated for the National Institute on Aging, the bulk of which will 

be put into promising Alzheimer’s research. 

I have looked carefully at the way in which the Alzheimer’s plan 

maps across the various years. As you know, science tends not to 

operate in 1 year intervals. Many of the components of the plan are 
71 

more in a 3-year kind of timetable. I could show you a Gantt chart 

that goes on for many pages about how each of these components 

might start and hopefully reach a milestone. 

It is very difficult, though, with all the multiyear aspect of this 

to say, well, what do we need exactly in fiscal year 2015? And I 

have sort of tried with Dr. Hodes to come up with that kind of estimate, and I am afraid it would not be a reliable one. Part of that 

is, of course, we do not have the ability in science to know exactly 

what is going to happen next month or the month after that. And 

a lot of the research in Alzheimer’s is being developed by investigators out there in our wonderful brain trust, the universities that 

are doing this research. And we might wake up tomorrow and find 

that something has happened that completely changes the direction 

we want to go. So while this plan is a good one to work with, it 

will undoubtedly evolve over time. 

So I know I am sounding like I am not giving you an answer, 

and I guess I am trying to say I think to put a dollar figure right 

now on fiscal year 2015 would be to overstate what I really can 

predict to be necessary for this purpose. Again, we are thrilled with 

$100 million in 2014. We were delighted to see in the President’s 

Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative another $100 million 

would come to Alzheimer’s disease should that become possible. 

Senator MORAN. You have the capability, Dr. Collins, I assume, 

of telling us or telling me that the $100 million in fiscal year 2014 

was not too much. 

Dr. COLLINS. It was not too much. You are quite right about that. 

And, you know, you are asking about Alzheimer’s. You could be 

asking about many other areas of NIH research as well, and I 

would tell you we do not have too much money to work on anything 

that we are working on. We are not limited by ideas. We are limited by resources, whether it is cancer, infectious disease, heart disease, whatever. That is our current state. 

Senator MORAN. Doctor, let me take this question in a broader 

step. But first let me say that my expectation would be as those 

scientific developments occur, a reason that we should have the 

kind of hearings that we have on an ongoing basis is so that you 

can then come to us and say this development has happened in 

some university in the country or here at NIH. And, therefore, if 

you would invest additional dollars in this area, we believe we can 

advance the outcomes more quickly. 

And so, my continued effort, I think, will be to try to get you to 

help us prioritize spending based upon science, based upon success 

in research where we ought to put the dollars that we have to allocate within the 27 Institutes and Centers that you and NIH engage 

in. 

Dr. COLLINS. Senator, I would welcome those kinds of conversations at any time, and appreciate your leadership in that kind of 

planning process. 

DISEASE SPECIFIC FUNDING

Senator MORAN. I have 28 seconds left for a follow-up question, 

which is this: You have—you, NIH—has historically opposed disease-specific funding. You want the allocations to occur based upon 

science, not on politics, and I certainly share that goal. If we are 
72 

underfunding in an area of research—if we start with low funding 

in a particular area of research, it is harder to have the developments that then allow you to come to us and say we have had a 

breakthrough, we need more. We need to accelerate the funding of 

that research. 

How are you—I mean, can you give me examples—I do not have 

the history that Senator Harkin has, but does it happen from time 

to time in which you come to Congress and say we need to 

prioritize the research in this area, and are you willing then to tell 

us that we reduced the priority someplace else? How do we ever get 

into the circumstance in which any of us are willing to say our 

money should go into this basket, knowing that it is not infinite? 

The money has to come out of some other basket. 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, again, I appreciate the question. And this is 

the kind of conversation we have around the table at NIH all the 

time with the 27 Institute and Center directors, each of whom has 

a strategic plan that they are constantly refreshing and revising. 

The good news is that the boundaries between those institutes 

are very porous. And if we collectively identify an opportunity that 

demands additional investments in a particular direction, we often 

can figure out how to do that without having to go through a long 

lead time to try to adjust a future year’s budget. And we are quite 

capable of doing so. 

And increasingly, that is a good thing because the next breakthrough in cancer might come from the Diabetes Institute, and the 

next breakthrough in infectious disease might come from the Center that is looking at translational sciences. So we are really, more 

than we ever have been, a unit, a whole here that thinks about biomedical research collectively, not in a series of buckets. 

Senator MORAN. Thank you very much. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Moran. And our distinguished Chair of the entire Appropriations Committee, who happens to have a real interest in NIH, I can tell you that. 

Senator Mikulski. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Thank you very much, Senator Harkin, and 

we are so glad that you are holding this hearing. And I think it 

shows the significance of the way we think about the National Institutes of Health, which we all affectionately and with great admiration do call the National Institutes of Hope. The fact that Senator Shelby is here, the vice chairman of the Appropriations, and 

myself shows our commitment to really trying to make sure that 

NIH has the resources it needs to continue to be the premiere global agency for biomedical research, and to do it on a bipartisan 

basis. 

I know you spoke earlier, if I could. You were kind of emotional 

about this hearing, and I am emotional about this hearing for you. 

I recall coming to the United States Senate. I was sworn in 1987, 

working with then the beloved Nancy Kassebaum, you, and Ted 

Kennedy, when women were not even included in the protocols, 

many of the research things, at NIH. There were many reasons. 

Many were just flawed sociology rather than good biology. 

Imagine in those years when we were not even included, and 

then we advocated for the Office of Women’s Health. The funding 

then for breast cancer was quite spartan and skimpy. Again, we 
73 

turned to you. And then as we made steady advances, George Herbert Walker Bush appointed Bernadine Healy to be the head of 

NIH. Dr. Healy also reached out again to us to ask us to look for 

a famous longitudinal study on hormone therapy. That hormone 

therapy study resulted in the change in the way hormones are 

treated in terms of hormone therapy for women, and it resulted in 

breast cancer coming down by 15 percent. 

I recall with great emotion my last call with Bernadine Healy, 

and this is what she said. I called her, and there was an article 

in the New York Times, Dr. Varmus, that said breast cancer rates 

have come down 15 percent. And I said, ‘‘My god, Bernadine, can 

you believe that?’’ She said, ‘‘Yes, Barbara. Can you believe because 

we worked together we are saving lives a million at a time?’’ 

That is what we are trying to do here with this hearing. We are 

trying to look at these issues. And I am going to say to you, Senator Harkin, the Catholic nuns had a phrase when they taught people like me. They had a phrase in Latin called ‘‘exegi monumentum 

aere perennius aedificabo.’’ It means we will build a monument 

more lasting than bronze. I feel our monument to you, to both you, 

to Senator Specter, to Bill Frist, Ted Kennedy, is the way we 

walked across the aisle is to build a monument more lasting than 

bronze, and that is to make a significant public investment this 

year in the National Institutes of Health to get it right back on 

track to where it was, and to have a steady growth plan of action 

so that at the end of the day, at the end of the year, at the end 

of our terms, we know that we have been working together to save 

lives a million at a time. So I want to just shake your hand and 

thank you. And, Moran, you are from Kansas. 

Senator MORAN. Yes. 

Senator MIKULSKI. You know what Nancy did shoulder to shoulder here. Senator Shelby has been a great advocate. 

I have many questions that I am going to ask. We could hold a 

hearing on each and every one of those people—distinguished people here. We are lucky to have them. Their combined years of service are stunning. Many of them at this table could be in such lucrative careers in the private sector. 

I remember working with Dr. Fauci when there was this unknown disease in which men were dying all over the country. It 

was called AIDS. A little boy named Ryan White came here with 

his mother when he had been targeted by his classmates for taunts 

and isolation. Now look at where we are. We could take item after 

item, issue after issue, and it really shows what we need to do. 

So we need to not only fund the research, we need to support the 

people who do the research. And to those young people out there 

right now thinking about careers that there is hope in trying to 

find cures to give people hope. And so, this is where we really need 

to work on a bipartisan basis, hands across the aisle, hands across 

the dome. And I think we can make a significant difference. So we 

want to help build a monument more lasting than bronze. 

I yield back my time. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much. That was a very poignant statement, and I thank you for that. The only thing I would 

add is we have to come to grips with the funding, and I am open 

for any and all suggestions. 
74 

Senator MIKULSKI. I know we are all going to get into this. 

Senator HARKIN. I just met yesterday with a couple of people 

who had an interesting idea on funding for translational science. 

Gordon Gund and Karen Petrou from the Foundation for Fighting 

Blindness have come up with—I do not need to go into that now, 

but there are ideas being spawned out there on how we might raise 

more money for NIH. So anybody that has got suggestions, we need 

to keep looking. 

PREFERRED METHOD OF FUNDING

Senator MIKULSKI. And, Mr. Chairman, if I could, if Dr. Collins 

could comment. We had a great hearing on Alzheimer’s, and also 

that is an epidemic in our country, as is autism, quite frankly. And 

again, many here could comment on it. And then there are those 

things that seem benign and not too scary, but then along comes 

flu. But when we look at the ‘‘A’’ words—autism—there was talk 

of, like, do we need, like, a Manhattan Project. 

And I wonder to Dr. Collins and the esteemed panel, what is it 

that is the best thing for NIH, sustained, steady growth with kind 

of an agreement across the aisle and across the dome of steady increases to the way we had the concept of—I understand if we 

added—kept pace with inflation at 3 percent, and then another 5 

percent, we could get to almost doubling NIH—we do not want to 

use that phrase anymore—to $40 billion. Is that better rather than 

a concentrated big buck expenditure on one particular area for—— 

Dr. COLLINS. I really appreciate the question. And I wanted to 

show you a graph—— 

[The graph follows:] 
75 

Senator MIKULSKI. In other words, does the idea of a Manhattan 

like project really have efficacy, or does it sound good, but—— 

Dr. COLLINS. What you see on the screen here is the projection 

over the past years since 1990 of the NIH support corrected for inflation because we have to deal with that. That is the yellow line. 

You see the blue bar is there for the Recovery Act, those 2 years 

of an increment which helped with sort of pent-up need. 

But notice the doubling, which happened there between 1998 and 

2003, then encountered essentially flat budgets, which inflation has 

eroded ever since. And you can see interestingly, the dotted line is 

the trajectory we were on before the doubling, which if you go back 

to 1970, we were on a period of about 3.7-percent annual growth. 

If we had stayed on that steady trajectory, we would now be $10 

billion almost higher than we are. Very interesting to sort of contemplate this. 

Now, the doubling was wonderful. The doubling did huge things 

for biomedical research. But what came after has been really quite 

painful. And to answer Senator Mikulski’s question, the worst 

thing you can do, I think, to biomedical research is to create an 

area of uncertainty, of ups and down, of a roller coaster. Science 

operates not as a spring, but a marathon. You need confidence that 

there is going to be support there so that young scientists can tackle really innovative risky projects. And this up and down circumstance now hitting historic lows in terms of opportunities to get 

support is really quite damaging. 

And what would be vastly better, Senator, would be for us to be 

able to count on a more or less stable trajectory of inflation plus 

some percentage that you could be fairly confident was going to be 

maintained. I understand how hard that is in the current fiscal situation, but if you are asking my judgment about what NIH needs 

in order to flourish and in order to contribute to this Nation what 

we think we can contribute and to the world, that would be it, that 

kind of steady trajectory that you could be confident in. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Dr. Collins. Senator Shelby, our 

ranking member of the entire committee. Used to be the ranking 

member of this subcommittee. 

Senator SHELBY. Thank you. Thank you, Chairman Harkin, and 

thank you for all your service here and advocacy for NIH. I believe 

as a veteran member of the Appropriations Committee looking at 

all the aspects of the various requests for money that the NIH, I 

think, by far is the best investment we have made. And we should 

make sure that it is properly funded and not let it be eaten up with 

inflation. 

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

Dr. Collins, tell us the economic impact of biomedical research, 

including pharmaceutical research—NIH is the leader, but going 

on elsewhere, too, in the private sector—in this country, and how 

important is it not to just our health, but to our economy and our 

leadership in the world. You have some numbers there? 

Dr. COLLINS. I have some numbers. I could go on all day with 

numbers because—— 

Senator SHELBY. How about taking a few minutes? 

Because the chairman will gavel—— 
76 

Dr. COLLINS. I will try to rein it in here. 

Senator SHELBY. Thank you. 

Dr. COLLINS. I will tell you when I came to this job to be Director 

of NIH, I did not realize how important it was going to be to have 

this kind of case in front of the public and in front of the Congress 

in order to justify what we are doing because the main reason I am 

excited about being at NIH is the advances in research that are 

going to help people. But there is another great story here, which 

is that every $1 that we give out in grants to all 50 States, by most 

estimates, returns more than two-fold in terms of economic—— 

Senator SHELBY. It is a huge multiplier, is it not? 

Dr. COLLINS. It is about $2.21 per $1 according to one—— 

Senator SHELBY. In GDP (gross domestic product) and jobs, 

right? 

Dr. COLLINS. And in jobs. We directly support about 432,000 jobs 

through our grants. But if you figure out how NIH is sort of part 

of the ecosystem that creates jobs in biotech and in pharma, the 

estimate is something like 7 million jobs are dependent upon the 

progress that NIH makes, and are somewhat jeopardized by our 

current circumstance. 

And when you look at the competition issue, which is another 

one that people raise, certainly America has led the world in biomedical research for the last 20 or 30 years, but that is gradually 

eroding, and, in fact, eroding more quickly these days, especially 

after sequester. And if we are interested in seeing those kinds of 

returns like were talked about with the Genome Project, a 141 to 

1 return on those dollars, do we really want those returns to go 

somewhere else, or do we want them to happen right here? 

AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES

Senator SHELBY. Absolutely not. We want to keep it here. Let me 

ask you a question. I am limited in time. We have a chairman with 

a good gavel here. In the autoimmune area that I have worked 

with you before, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, are you cutting 

back on the money there? It seems like you are. And if so, why? 

Dr. COLLINS. We are only cutting back because we have to cut 

back everywhere. 

Senator SHELBY. Because of lack of money. 

Dr. COLLINS. Even with the wonderful things you all did with the 

fiscal year 2014 omnibus, we did not recover everything we lost in 

the sequester. I will say one bit of good news about lupus is the 

development of this partnership with industry called the Accelerating Medicines Partnership, AMP, because lupus is one of the 

targets that we are going after. 

Senator SHELBY. They are kind of matching you on money, right? 

Dr. COLLINS. They are, $230 million over 5 years, half of it from 

us, half from them, and bringing scientists around the same table 

who would not normally be talking to each other, and having this 

all done in an open access fashion. This is an interesting experiment, but it may very well get us that next generation of drug targets for lupus. 

Senator SHELBY. Doctor, how important is not just for lupus, but 

all the autoimmune diseases—the whole spectrum affects so many 

of the areas of research that you are working on, does it not? 
77 

Dr. COLLINS. Absolutely, and maybe Dr. Fauci would want to say 

a word about this since he is the most distinguished immunologist 

in the room. 

Senator SHELBY. We know. 

Dr. FAUCI. Thank you for the question, Senator. Indeed, I think 

the issue with autoimmunity is really an example of how fundamental basic research and understanding how the immune system 

is regulated over the last several years have provided extraordinary insight into how we can better manage, diagnose, and ultimately treat, and in some cases even prevent, autoimmune diseases. 

Whenever you think about autoimmunity, the terminology itself 

is descriptive, namely an immune response against oneself that is 

inappropriate, and that is what is studied at the very basic level. 

At the NIH, we now are developing consortia where, as you hinted, 

multiple institutes are involved in immunology—the Cancer Institute, the Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, our institute, the Arthritis Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Institute, et cetera. They 

all are, and we have a consortium now—— 

Senator SHELBY. Immunology kind of transcends it all, does it 

not? 

Dr. FAUCI. It is one of those disciplines that essentially touches 

to a greater or lesser degree virtually everything we do. 

CYSTIC FIBROSIS

Senator SHELBY. Dr. Collins, in another area—my time is limited, just a few seconds—but cystic fibrosis. We have come a long 

way there. We are a long way from a cure, but we have extended 

a lot of the children’s lives, you know, beyond, gosh, what we 

thought. Where are we today, and what are some of the hopes 

there? 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, cystic fibrosis is a wonderful example of how 

knowing the molecular basis of a disease can get you to a point 

with a great deal of hard work to a targeted therapeutic that is not 

just hoping something will work, but designing it to work. 

So cystic fibrosis, where my lab had the privilege of being involved in that and found the gene in 1989. Just a year ago, the 

first really effective therapeutic for about 5 percent of cystic fibrosis patients that have a particular mutation in that gene was approved by the FDA, infact. And it is truly dramatic the stories you 

hear from those individuals. I have heard stories of kids who were 

on the lung transplant list who are now not on it anymore. 

The main challenge now is to find an equivalent therapy for the 

majority of cystic fibrosis patients that have a different mutation, 

the so-called Delta F508, and there is a clinical trial very actively 

underway by Vertex. The drug is called VX–809. We are all holding 

our breath to see what the results of that will look like. The initial 

glimpse with a smaller phase two study looked pretty promising. 

So you have gone—it took a long time. And one of the things that 

NCATS, and my colleague here, Dr. Austin, is charged to do is to 

try to shorten what would be a 20-year timetable into something 

much faster. But the pathway here that was charted by cystic fibrosis in a collaboration with the CF Foundation that was a major 
78 

partner here is truly exciting. It is a paradigm. We could do this 

again. 

Senator SHELBY. Thank you very much for the work you do. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Shelby. 

Senator Kirk. 

REHABILITATION STANDARDS

Senator KIRK. I want to ask Story a question as a stroke survivor. We have two members—senators on this committee who are 

stroke survivors. I would like to take you into the world of our 

rehab standards, which Senator Johnson and I have both introduced legislation, S. 1027, to speak on behalf of the 900,000 Americans who will survive stroke we expect this year. We know that 

roughly one-third of them will never return to work. And Tim 

Johnson and I have a belief that we could set a national standard 

of returning those stroke survivors to work. That would unlock a 

hell of a lot of Americans to pay taxes and be productive. 

Let me just burrow in for rehabilitation standards. My under- standing is out of the $3 billion NIH, about $66 million is spent. 

I think the country would do well to have NIH establish a rehabilitation standard. 

Dr. LANDIS. So, NINDS (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) recently established a stroke network of clinical 

centers that will undertake stroke trials. And one of the major reasons we did this was to have a balance in our investment in prevention, acute treatment, and stroke rehabilitation. We have recently finished one trial, which has shown that it is not—never too 

late to start rehabilitation for stroke, that significant gains can be 

made even after 6 months. We have another trial underway. But 

this has clearly been an area where there has not been sufficient 

investment, and this clinical trials network will enable us to do 

more trials better and faster, which will create the kind of standards that you are asking for. 

Dr. COLLINS. Could I add one thing, that the number you mentioned is the funding for the National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research, NCMRR, which is actually within the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. But that is not 

the sum total of all that we spend on rehabilitation research. Much 

of what Dr. Landis was just talking about is in a different part of 

the budget. So the total expenditures on rehabilitation research are 

several times that number, just to clarify. 

JOHN PORTER MEMORIAL

Senator KIRK. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just wanted to—could 

I follow up and thank you for honoring my political mentor, Congressman John Porter, the other day, the man who on a bipartisan 

level led to the doubling of funding for this institution. You guys 

honored a great man who really put together an awesome team 

with Speaker Gingrich on that. 

Dr. COLLINS. And, Senator, let me thank you for sending a wonderful video that the 400-some people who were there for that dedication watched and were touched by. And I appreciate very much 

your contributing to our event. This was a grand moment for NIH. 
79 

Let me say one other thing about rehabilitation research. We are 

very much in the process now of seeking a new director for this National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research, someone who 

will be particularly forward looking in identifying opportunities, 

how to work with the institutes, how to build the case here for rehabilitation research to be even more vigorous than it has been. 

And we are looking for the very best person on the planet to do 

that. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much. We will start another 

round. 

FUNDING HISTORY AND SUCCESS RATES

Dr. Collins, do you still have that chart that showed where that 

doubling was? You showed that line for the constant inflationary 

increase of, I think it was $3.7 or something. That one right there. 

[The graphic follows:] 

Senator HARKIN. Again, just for the record—there may be people 

who were not here at that time. Here is how we came about that 

doubling. In the 1990s, we saw the rate of approval of grants percentage going down and down and down from what it had been in 

the 1980s. 

And so, meeting with people at the Institute then—it was Dr. 

Varmus at that time, if I remember right, others. We were talking 

about what would it take to sort of get back up to that level where 

we were in the 1980s for the percentage of—what is the phrase I 

am looking for—grant approvals, right? 

Dr. COLLINS. Success rate. Success rate. 
80 

Senator HARKIN. Yes, success rate. And so, we got that. And 

what that would take would be—what it meant was to double the 

funding over a period of 5 years. Our thought was that once we did 

that and got up there, that blue would then start up there where 

the top was, and we would go on—— 

Dr. COLLINS. That is what we were hoping for, too, believe me. 

VOICE. The soft landing. 

Senator HARKIN. This was never meant as some transitory type 

of a funding bump. Now, maybe the Recovery Act was. That was 

sort of a transitory bump, but the doubling was to get us back up 

to that level and then continue on. 

Dr. COLLINS. Yes. 

Senator HARKIN. And so, we sat here through the 2000s and saw 

what happened. Again, I do not mean to speak politically, but just 

factually. We had two wars going on. 9/11 had happened. More and 

more money was being siphoned off for that. I am not making a 

judgment call on that. That is just what happened. And we were 

in a situation where we were not raising revenues, but more and 

more money was going for the War on Terrorism, and that is what 

happened. We just did not have the resources, and we came back 

down, and that is where we are today. 

It pains me, and it pains a lot of people to think that that happened. We deliberately did that to get that line back up there and 

to keep it going. And, well, other things happened, and so we are 

back in this situation now, and we are scrambling to find the resources that we need to do this. We need more revenues. That is 

just my own thing. We need revenue. I think the taxpayers of this 

country would not mind paying a little bit more in their taxes or 

the wealthy or the corporations, everybody, to know that this was 

going to help NIH and that is where the money was going. 

And so, somehow we have just got to get the revenues in for this, 

and like I said, I am open for any other thoughts and suggestions 

on how to do it. Senator Hatfield at one time had an ingenious idea 

of doing that. I joined him in that. That did not get very far, but 

it was a proposal that we would take, I think it was 1 cent out of 

every $1 that went for healthcare premiums. See, a lot of people 

do not know that when you go to a drugstore and you buy a prescription, and when you get a prescription drug or something like 

that, some of that money goes for research. But we do not do that 

in our healthcare policies. When you buy a healthcare policy, none 

of that goes for research. 

So the idea that Hatfield came up with was that 1 cent out of 

every $1 that would be—go into a fund that would come to this 

committee. That would go to NIH as long as we funded NIH at last 

year—at the previous—— 

Senator MIKULSKI. Maintenance of effort. 

Senator HARKIN. Maintenance of effort, thank you. That phrase, 

‘‘maintenance of effort,’’ then that money would be available to 

NIH. That would have been a great deal to have, but we did not 

get it. And I am still thinking that there is something out there in 

that realm of healthcare policies where people who are buying 

healthcare policies would say, ‘‘Yes, I would like to have a half a 

penny or something go to biomedical research and come into a 

fund.’’ I think people would support that if they knew that is where 
81 

it was going. It was going to NIH. They would support that. So I 

have not quite totally given up on that idea, but there may be others. 

RETIREMENT OF CHIMPANZEES

Dr. Collins, I have one other question I want to ask sort of off 

of what we have been talking about here, but it is one that I hear 

a lot of about, people keep asking me about. There is a great interest in this country about what is happening to our chimpanzees. 

As you know, we have had a great partnership with you, with the 

Humane Society, on retiring these chimpanzees from research. 

I know Senator Landrieu has been kind of in the forefront of 

this, and I know she wants me to also ask this question. I was one 

of three Senators who requested the IOM (Institute of Medicine) report that revealed that chimpanzee research could not be justified 

except for a very few conditions. Again, Dr. Collins, you are to be 

commended for adopting the IOM recommendations so promptly, 

the very day the report was released. Your decision to retire approximately 310 of the 360 Government-owned chimpanzees currently in laboratories was a bold maneuver, and I thank you for 

that. 

As a long-time appropriator, however, I know that the work 

takes far longer than the issuing of a policy or the signing of a bill. 

I am keenly aware of the complexity of creating sanctuary space, 

grouping, transporting chimpanzees, arranging for their care. Many 

of these chimpanzees suffer from illnesses and conditions we gave 

them for the sake of research. So could you please update the subcommittee on the plan for retiring these chimpanzees? Can you 

highlight the challenges and considerations involved, including any 

funding challenges that we need to be cognizant of? 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for 

your leadership on this issue in many steps along the way, including asking the IOM to conduct that study, which concluded that 

the need for chimpanzees in research had now been greatly reduced and that we could, in fact, get by just fine by keeping a small 

group of 50 available for emergency needs or special things where 

only chimpanzees could be used for research. 

And you also helped us with a fix on what had been a legislative 

problem about a cap on the amount of funds that NIH was allowed 

to spend on chimps in sanctuaries, and that made it possible for 

the retirements that we very much wanted to go forward. But you 

are quite right, we have a long way to go here in terms of the number of chimps that need to be moved into sanctuaries. And at the 

present time, that space does not exist. 

We have moved many already into Chimp Haven, which is already now pretty close to capacity. We are looking vigorously at 

other—— 

Senator HARKIN. Is that the one in Louisiana? 

Dr. COLLINS. Yes, and we are vigorously looking at other alternatives because there are other chimp sanctuaries to make sure 

that they meet the standards that you would want to see so these 

chimps are well cared for. And there is much interest in philanthropy in helping out with this, and the Humane Society has been 

a wonderful partner as well. My dear friend, Jane Goodall, who 
82 

will turn 80 years tomorrow, has been very helpful in raising the 

consciousness of everyone about what an important issue this is. 

I would not tell you that we have this solved. I think it is going 

to be several years before the space can be identified, the funds can 

be found, and the completion of the retirements can be achieved so 

that we are left with just those 50 chimps for research. And we will 

be re-evaluating that regularly as well to see whether those are 

even needed at that level. But I appreciate your interest and this 

committee’s interest in this, and we are going to keep you regularly 

briefed on what the needs might be. 

Senator HARKIN. This started back in the late 1990s, and that is 

when Jane Goodall came to see us. And Senator Bingaman I know 

was involved. The Senator on the Senate side that introduced the 

bill on saving the chimps was Senator Bob Smith from New Hampshire. I remember that. I forget who the other one was, but there 

was a strong bipartisan effort. And so, it has taken a long time. I 

know we got that cap removed. It was a $30 million cap if I am 

not mistaken. We got that removed. 

Dr. COLLINS. Yes. Yes. 

Senator HARKIN. But there is a great deal of interest in moving 

ahead on this. And maybe if you cannot today, could you get to the 

committee sort of the timelines you see and what more do we need 

to do to kind of expedite this? 

Dr. COLLINS. I am glad to do that. 

[Clerk’s Note: The information requested can be found in the ‘‘Additional Committee Questions’’ for Senator Harkin.] 

Dr. COLLINS. And, Mr. Chairman, again, when I came to this job 

as NIH Director, I did not imagine that this issue would become 

so prominent. And yet it has turned out to be, I think, one of the 

more gratifying opportunities to work across many different constituencies and do the right thing for these special animals, who 

are our closest relatives. 

Senator HARKIN. Our closest cousins. 

Dr. COLLINS. Absolutely. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much. 

Senator Moran. 

DISEASE FUNDING PRIORITIZATION

Senator MORAN. Chairman, again, thank you. Dr. Collins, I am 

going to ask one more question about prioritization, and then a 

couple of questions for a couple of your directors. 

What are the criteria—when you say this is an ongoing conversation about how to prioritize funding within NIH among the various 

diseases—that you look at? Is it the likelihood of success, the next 

opportunity for a breakthrough? What role does it play about the 

cost of the disease? How many people are afflicted, what the cost 

of care and treatment are? Is it a more scientific exercise in trying 

to prioritize how to spend money correctly, or is it a broader concept that you pursue? 

Dr. COLLINS. That is a great question, and it is something that 

we work on every day. It is a mix of all those things. Certainly the 

public health impact has to be a concern for us, the number of people affected, and the severity of the illness, and what it does in 
83 

terms of quality of life or premature death. Those are all factored 

in. But if we only thought about those things, then rare diseases 

would get neglected, and we have learned so much from studying 

rare diseases. And if it is your family, it does not matter so much 

to you that it is a rare disease than if it is your child who is suffering from it. 

We also think about scientific opportunity because that has got 

to be a major reason to decide to make a push in a particular direction, that something is emerging that is possible and maybe it was 

not a year or two previously, and you do not want to lose the opportunity to push forward on that. 

On top of that, of course, a lot of our portfolio is not top down 

managed, and it should not be. It comes from the insights, the ingenuity, the creativity, the bold vision of those investigators out 

there and the universities across this country who are remarkable 

in their abilities to think of things that we could not have thought 

of. And, we, therefore, have a very substantial fraction of our portfolio that is not targeted or directed based on anybody’s idea about 

public health need or about scientific opportunities other than the 

fact that they are proposing something scientific. Those then go 

through a peer review process. If the idea does not measure up, it 

does not make it into the next tier. 

I would tell you, though, that peer review, while it is critical, it 

is not the only part of what we do. And all of the Institute directors 

you see here, once we have had the peer review, look across that, 

and the things that are somewhere near the pay line, decide what 

is the highest program priority based upon the issues that I just 

talked about—public health need, scientific opportunity—and also 

is our portfolio well balanced, or do we have a big pile up of things 

in one area and neglect in other areas. All of that calculus folds 

into this every day that these institute directors and I are struggling with. And I think we do a reasonable job of it, but we are 

always trying to do better. 

NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Senator MORAN. Thank you for your answer. Dr. Varmus, NCI’s 

budget request includes information on expanding access to clinical 

trials for patients treated in community settings and expanding access to trials by minority and underserved populations. One of 

those underserved populations is rural Americans, and I was interested in knowing if you could talk about the goals of that program 

and how many new NCI community oncology research programs, 

projects you might expect to find. 

Dr. VARMUS. Well, Senator, I cannot give you an exact number 

for that, but as you were rattling off the names suggested, you are 

aware that we have just amalgamated two of our community-based 

programs into one called NCORP for Community Oncology Research Program, in which we are paying special attention to minority populations and rural populations and trying to bring hospitals 

that are not in our NCI designated cancer centers into the network 

of organizations that organize our clinical trials and provide more 

patients. And indeed, many of these centers that compete particularly effectively for money to support clinical trials have been in 

these areas—have been producing large numbers of patients to ac-
84 

crue them into our trials over the last several years. That is an important factor in making a decision about who will get support. 

As you know, we have constraints across the board because our 

fiscal levels are not what they used to be, so I cannot promise you 

any specific number until we have fully competed and awarded 

those grants. But our intention is to recruit as many patients as 

we need to carry out a new style of clinical trial that we are encouraging; that is, trials that are based as much on the genetic 

damage that has driven the cancer as in the organ on which the 

cancer has arisen. So, there is a new style of doing trials that is 

more costly because it requires more preliminary testing. 

And we are also under the direction from a report from the Institute of Medicine to pay our investigators a higher fee for each patient accrued to those trials, so our trials have become more costly. 

So our interest in expanding our trials, especially with all the new 

therapeutics, not just drugs, but also antibodies and immune strategies, and radiotherapy that have come our way, is difficult to meet 

under current conditions because we cannot simply do trials. We 

also have to be investing, and this is part of the prioritization question in the basic research that fuels new therapeutic approaches. 

And indeed, I would just make a footnote to your question about 

making priority judgments about what we spend our money on by 

pointing to a new initiative at the NCI, despite our declining budget, that targets one particular mutant gene called RAS that is mutated in over a quarter of all cancers. So here is a major target 

against which, despite knowing about this target for 30 years, we 

have made very little progress. 

So we have started what is called a hub and spoke project centered in Senator Mikulski’s favorite location, Frederick, Maryland, 

where we have a contract program called the Frederick National 

Laboratory for Cancer Research. We have recruited somebody from 

the University of California at San Francisco to come and lead this 

effort, which involves grantees around the country working shoulder to shoulder with a hub of people at Frederick who are leading 

the charge on six specific new opportunities for advancing our understanding of cancers that are driven by RAS mutations. And this 

is a way to lead to new kinds of compounds that can then be tested 

nationwide in trials that are specifically directed to cancers that 

have mutations in that specific gene. 

CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE AWARDS

Senator MORAN. Doctor, thank you. My time has expired. Dr. 

Austin, I will submit a question in writing to you. I am interested 

in the recommendations by the Institute of Medicine in June of 

2013 on the Clinical and Translational Science Awards, and I am 

interested in hearing how things are going to develop. So I look forward to having a conversation with you. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you. 

Senator Mikulski. 

IMPACT OF FUNDING ON U.S. INNOVATION

Senator MIKULSKI. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And I 

just want to say to you and to all the Institute directors and everyone who works at NIH, we are fortunate to have you. But again, 
85 

I want to come back to your longevity, which shows really your 

dedication, and we view it as a blessing. 

I also want to just comment that we—many of us here are worried about the innovation deficit both at NIH and in others. There 

is an effort that is being led by Senator Durbin in this area, and 

to that end, we on the Appropriations Committee are going to hold 

a full committee hearing on innovation to make sure that budget 

cuts and possibilities of future sequester does not dampen our 

standing as a world innovation leader. Yes, we worry about the deficit, but we also worry about the innovation deficit. So, we are 

going to be holding that hearing on April 29. Dr. Collins will be testifying, the science advisor. We are going to be listening to NSF, 

DARPA, and also the Energy Secretary. So we will be doing that. 

WOMEN’S HEALTH

In the short time I have because others are now here, I want to 

raise the issue of the Office of Women’s Health, that which I referenced earlier. It has been flat funded for 3 years at $40 million. 

Now, what I would like to get a picture of is: What do you need 

to have the Office of Women’s Health, number two, kind of the way 

we are thinking about running it because each and every one of 

those institutes does important work with women. So when we embarked upon our initial endeavor that I referenced with Dr. Healy, 

breast cancer was our preoccupation. Those rates are coming down, 

but lung cancer in women is high. 

Dr. Gibbons could tell me that women with heart disease are 

now escalating, and our symptoms are different, but are early diagnoses there? We could go to Dr. Landis and we think about something like atrial fib that is there, but if you do not take your blood 

thinner, you could end up with a stroke and wondering where are 

you, et cetera. And then, of course, autoimmune is several things, 

one of which is lupus for which only recently the first drug—therapeutic drug in 50 years, of course, came out of Human Genome in 

a Maryland company. So it is across all the institutes, which was 

the idea why we never wanted an institute on women; we wanted 

an office that would work. So could you tell us really with the $40 

million, how is it going, do you need more, and then how do you 

see this working across the institutes? 

Dr. COLLINS. Thanks for the question. I very much resonate with 

what you are saying, and we have made a lot of progress, Senator, 

thanks to you and others for raising this issue to the attention of 

NIH 20 years ago. We have been fortunate in the Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH) to have remarkable leaders in 

Vivian Pinn, who recently retired, and now Janine Clayton, who is 

a terrific leader for that effort who I just met with day before yesterday to go over the status of her portfolio. And she has been, as 

Vivian was, very effective in building partnerships across NIH to 

support special efforts that focus on women’s health. 

There are particular programs in ORWH, particularly the Specialized Centers of Research on Sex Differences, the SCORE Programs, as well as training programs that have done a good job, I 

think, in increasing both research on women’s health and also increasing the proportion of researchers who are women. And I would 
86 

say if you look at the statistics, it looks reasonably good, but there 

are obviously things that we need to do better. 

In fiscal year 2013, 57 percent of those enrolled in NIH clinical 

research trials were women—57 percent. And you know what that 

was 20 years ago, in phase III trials, 73 percent. So, we have really 

come a long way. Many of those trials are, of course, disease specific and may, therefore, be sex specific, for instance in breast cancer. But many of them as in heart disease are balanced. 

What we are currently particularly concerned about is actually 

that this same idea has not trickled down in animal models, and 

there is clearly a problem in that many of the investigators who 

are studying models of disease are studying only males—male rats, 

male mice—for reasons that are not defensible. And Dr. Clayton 

and I are about to publish an exhortation to the community about 

this, and we are going to start looking very closely at grants to see 

whether this can be corrected because if you did not learn about 

those sex differences in your complete clinical, you are going to 

miss out on an inference that might be really important. 

How much money do we need? Well, we need more money as you 

have heard from all of us in every area of what we are doing. I 

would say Dr. Clayton has been quite effective in brokering the dollars that her office has to build relationships and get a lot done, 

but there is a lot more we could be doing. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Well, as you know, the health data on women 

are changing, and the recent IOM report over the last 2 years 

shows that mortality and morbidity among women is on the rise. 

Anyway, a longer topic. 

Dr. COLLINS. I would love to converse further with you about this 

at any time. It is a passion of mine as well. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. I just want to publicly again thank Senator Mikulski. When she first came to the Senate opened our eyes and got 

the NIH to do internal studies to show that women were not being 

included in clinical trials. So it was Senator Mikulski who really 

moved the ball forward on that. That has been over 20 years ago. 

Senator MIKULSKI. It has been a long time. 

Senator HARKIN. A long time ago. And so, we thank you for moving in the right direction. 

Senator Shelby. 

ANIMAL RESEARCH

Senator SHELBY. Just for the record, I want to touch on something Senator Harkin brought up, and that is the research on 

chimpanzees, animals, and so forth. As a kid growing up in the Birmingham area in Alabama, I tried to rescue every dog in the neighborhood. I still love dogs. I still rescue them. But my parents could 

only feed so many. 

And I was brought to reality, but that did not change my caring 

about animals as all of us do. On the other hand, we are all used 

in research, you know. I have been used by permission in research 

because you gather information that helps everything. But is there 

a real substitute—none of us want to be cruel and inhumane to 

animals. You have used animals in biomedical research as you 
87 

have used us, you know, in different aspects. But is there a real 

substitute for that? Dr. Collins, do you want to pick up on that? 

Dr. COLLINS. I will, and I appreciate your making the point that 

research—— 

Senator SHELBY. Because we all love—I love dogs still. 

Dr. COLLINS. So do I. 

Senator SHELBY. But I do not collect them anymore, you know. 

Dr. COLLINS. And we have learned enormous amounts from the 

study of animals in research, and we will continue to depend heavily on those insights for advances in human medicine, no doubt 

about it. With the chimpanzees, the IOM basically felt that there 

was nothing unique that would justify the continued maintenance 

of hundreds of chimpanzees. 

Senator SHELBY. Oh, I totally agree. 

Dr. COLLINS. We could shrink this back to a small group. But 

your question about a substitution, I am going to ask Dr. Austin 

to say something about an approach to studying toxicity of drugs, 

which traditionally has used animals, and maybe now we have got 

a better way to do this. 

Dr. AUSTIN. Yes, thank you for the question. So this is common 

saw in the translational world that the best animal model is the 

human. And so, what we are trying to do is move more of this work 

to human models, and one of them I actually have sitting right in 

front of me. This is a kidney, but it is a kidney on a chip, and it 

is populated by human kidney cells, which is a wonderful model 

and a much better model of testing drugs than in a rat or a chimpanzee and predicting which drugs—— 

Senator SHELBY. Because it is a human being which you are 

working on ultimately to help save, right? 

Dr. AUSTIN. Right. And so, this is part of a tissue chip program, 

that you have probably heard about, that is developing so-called 

organoids. They are three-dimensional micro organs on a little 

micro fluidic platform, a human on a chip. To be able to represent 

human organs in this sort of format that will dramatically change, 

but we believe, both the accuracy and the speed with which this 

testing is done and will make animal models irrelevant, obsolete. 

We are not there yet. We have got a lot of work to do. And actually—— 

Senator SHELBY. But you are going down the right road, are you 

not, Dr. Austin? 

Dr. AUSTIN. Yes. 

Senator SHELBY. You are going down the road. 

Dr. AUSTIN. Yes, absolutely. 

Senator SHELBY. Well, a lot of my lawyer friends are probably 

glad to hear this because, you know, people have said tongue-incheek, ‘‘Gosh, if we run out of basic research, we could use lawyers 

as a surplus.’’ I said, ‘‘Do not do that.’’ 

Thank you. 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, fortunately induced pluripotent stem cells 

came along to save the lawyers because we have this amazing new 

technology, which this committee has heard about, but I just got 

to say it gets better every day. A skin biopsy or a blood sample 

from any one of you could be used to make those kidney cells on 

that chip by doing all of this clever manipulation that has only 
88 

come to light in the last 5 years of turning genes on or off. And 

that means that we could generate not just any old kidney chip, 

but your kidney chip, and find out whether that drug that you are 

going to get is going to be good for you or it is going to make your 

kidneys not so good. 

BIG DATA TO KNOWLEDGE

Senator SHELBY. Dr. Austin referred to something that I just 

want to pick up on with you, Dr. Collins. The data that is collected 

from all of us in biomedical research willfully and knowingly will 

help to cure diseases and so forth. How important is that in the 

research field, whatever it might be, immunization, or neurological, 

cancer, you name it. 

Dr. COLLINS. It is critical, and of course we have this challenge 

to both keep track of increasingly enormous databases, but also to 

be sure we are protecting the privacy of the individuals’ data so 

that it is not exposed in a way that they would not have given consent for. 

I am glad you raised this because NIH has just this year initiated a new program we are calling BD2K, Big Data to Knowledge. 

We have enormous opportunities from genomics, from imaging, 

from electronic health records, from everything you can think of to 

make insights about health and disease. Unless we focus on the 

problem of data itself, the sort of new science called data science, 

we are going to get all drowning in the data that we have produced 

instead of making inferences from it. 

So we are putting an unprecedented amount of effort into it, and 

this omnibus for fiscal year 2014 has given us a nice push in that 

regard. We aim to ramp that up to $100 million on the big data 

initiatives over the next couple of years, and I hired a remarkable 

scientist from San Diego to lead that effort, Dr. Philip Bourne. 

Senator SHELBY. Mr. Chairman, one last observation and question to Dr. Collins. You mentioned earlier about how important it 

was for scientific investigators to go down the right road. Sometimes you do not know you are on the right road, and sometimes 

you are on the wrong road and discover something else, though, do 

you not—that is worthwhile to mankind. 

Is that a question of supervision of more investigators, or is it a 

question of better education correlation with what people are 

doing? There may be no answer to it because a lot of scientific 

breakthroughs have come from finding something or they did something backwards. Hey, you all know it better than I do. Do you 

want to comment on that? 

Dr. COLLINS. Absolutely. I think you are quite right that many 

of the most dramatic observations that have led us to insights 

about life and life sciences have come in directions that nobody 

would have predicted were going to be the case, you know, from 

Pasteur on. And serendipity does sort of favor the prepared mind. 

But I worry that at the present time with our young scientists feeling so constrained by anxieties about support that they may be less 

inclined when faced with an unexpected result to think of that as 

an opportunity to go down a new path because of the necessary 

kind of need to keep pursuing something that they think is in the 

mainstream and more likely to get supported. 
89 

This is one of those secondary effects of a difficult budget situation that worries all of us, that creativity, that innovation, that risk 

taking, that sort of seeking a different pathway than you had 

planned to is more difficult. We are funding a certain set of grants 

that aim to try to make that possible. The Pioneer Awards are perhaps the best known where investigators basically get 5 years of 

support. And if they encounter something they did not expect, they 

can go after it. But many of the other grant systems are not quite 

so favorable for that. 

Senator SHELBY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Durbin. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH FUNDING

Senator DURBIN. Thank you very much. Thank you for dedicating 

a major part of your professional life to medical research at the 

premiere biomedical research agency in the world. And we are 

proud of it, and thank you for that. I also want to acknowledge— 

he will have plenty of tributes paid, but when the history is written 

of the NIH, there will be a chapter that is entitled ‘‘The PorterHarkin-Specter’’ chapter when they made a decision to move forward in a dramatic way and double the appropriation for the National Institutes of Health over a 10-year period. Tom, of all of your 

accomplishments, you probably created more good for the world 

with that undertaking, although there are lot more that would 

compete. So I thank you for your leadership. 

Dr. Collins, when I met with many of you just a few months ago, 

I sat down and said where do we go next. I am not sure I can come 

with a straight face to Congress and say double it again. I am not 

sure they will do it. And we had a conversation about what it takes 

each year to increase an investment in research in NIH and CDC, 

Department of Defense, healthcare, VA health research. 

And you first noted that when we fall behind the cost of living, 

it really ties your hands in the long term to award grants. The failure to provide a regular cost of living adjustment (COLA) to NIH, 

as I understand it, has cost you 22 percent in terms of your ability 

to award grants for research over the last 10 years. 

The President’s budget proposed for your agency for the next fiscal year gives you, I believe, 0.7 percent COLA. We know that the 

actual cost of living increase will be 1.7 percent. So built into the 

President’s budget is a further decline, falling behind more when 

it comes to the actual cost of living. 

And at that time, I said, ‘‘Give me an idea of what it would take 

in real growth to build this agency forward.’’ And you said—for the 

record I am going to ask you to comment on this—‘‘Give us 5 percent real growth per year for 10 years over the cost of living and 

we will show you the kind of growth in research that America and 

the world needs.’’ 

So here you are on the record, and I am going to remind you of 

that conversation since I took it to heart and introduced a bill. So 

please tell me if you still believe that. 

Dr. COLLINS. Senator, thank you for the question and for introducing that bill, and it was a wonderful opportunity to talk with 

you when you came to NIH. And your taking on this leadership is 

deeply appreciated. 
90 

I am showing you here this graph that I think we talked about 

when you came to visit, and, yes, it is exactly as you have said. 

[The graphic follows:] 

Dr. COLLINS. The blue bars there are the appropriations for NIH, 

but the yellow reflects the effect of the biomedical research and development price index (BRDPI). It is sort of like a cost of living, 

but it is our cost of living for doing research, the ‘‘BRDPI’’ as we 

call it. And you can see what has happened since 2003. At the end 

of the doubling, those yellow bars have been dipping down steadily 

ever since. 

Earlier when you were at another hearing, I showed another 

version of this graph that basically says if we had stayed on the 

same pathway we were back in sort of 1970 to 1995, which was 

sort of steady growth of inflation plus about 4 percent, we would 

now be at about $40 billion as far as the total NIH budget, $10 billion more than what we currently have. 

To get back on that pathway, which would be a wonderful way 

to encourage research to really move forward at the pace that it 

could because we are not limited by talent or by ideas. Putting this 

NIH trajectory on a steady path where you could count from year 

to year on inflation plus a percentage—and five would be wonderful—would get us back to where perhaps we really need to be in 

a few years, and would give such a jolt of confidence and excitement to frankly a fairly demoralized biomedical research community. 

Senator DURBIN. And you have told me about it, and we know 

the young investigators are disappearing. Three percent are under 

the age of 36 today. Back 30 years ago it was 19 percent. And the 

other thing that struck me when we talked about AMP was you 
91 

were asking for—asked for and received a commitment of $150 million, if I remember correctly, from the top 10 pharmaceutical companies to be matched by NIH to pursue cures and whatever in the 

areas of Alzheimer’s, type 1 diabetes, if I am not mistaken, and 

rheumatoid arthritis. 

To put that in perspective, what I have called for in the Amer- ican Cures Act is $140 billion over a 10-year period of time for the 

four agencies to get real 5-percent growth—$140 billion. Last year 

alone we spent over $200 billion in Medicare and Medicaid on Alzheimer’s—$200 billion. If we could delay the onset of that disease, 

it would more than pay for all of the increased investment in research. 

We have got to step back and take stock of what we are doing 

here. As we short change you, we add to the cost of our healthcare 

programs instead of reducing that cost. And just to put it in a global perspective, other countries are not waiting. Europe is moving 

forward. The United Kingdom is moving forward. In 8 years China 

will pass us in real dollars spent on research. And that ought to 

be sobering, and I hope it will awaken us. 

I know the chairman has a meeting to go in a few minutes as 

I do, too, so I will not dwell on this other than to say I am going 

to keep pursuing this. I really believe that what you are doing is 

really a great credit to this country and will alleviate suffering and 

pain around the world. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Dr. COLLINS. Thank you, Senator. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Durbin. Thanks for your 

kind words. I appreciate that. 

Senator Cochran. 

Senator COCHRAN. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to join you and 

other members of the committee at this hearing. We appreciate 

your attention to the appropriations request for NIH, and we congratulate Dr. Collins and his team for the excellent work they continue to do in biomedical research, and the benefits that flow from 

that to our great country. 

POTENTIAL CARE FOR AIDS

Last year it came to my attention that at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, a pediatrician, Dr. Hannah Gay, reported 

that a patient of hers who is now more than 3 years old remained 

HIV-free after receiving anti-retroviral therapy within hours of her 

birth. We have recently heard about a similar case in California. 

I am impressed with the research being done in my State and am 

hopeful that this could be good news for continued research efforts, 

not only in Jackson, Mississippi, but throughout the country. 

What do we know or what do you know about these cases that 

you can share with us in terms of their impact? And what does this 

mean for research and treatment as far as a potential cure is concerned? 

Dr. COLLINS. Well, we have the world’s expert in the room, Dr. 

Fauci. 

Dr. FAUCI. Thank you, Francis. Thank you for the question, Senator Cochran. This is truly a very important case because, as you 

described accurately, this was a mother who came into a clinic in 

Mississippi who was HIV-infected, who had no prenatal treatment 
92 

for her HIV, which put the child at very high risk. The astute physicians, pediatricians in Mississippi, instead of treating the baby in 

a prophylactic way to prevent infection, they immediately aggressively treated the baby as if the baby were infected. After that very 

rapid application of full-blown aggressive therapy as opposed to 

waiting for a few weeks for the diagnosis, the baby turned out actually to be infected. 

By a series of circumstances after several months on therapy, 

there was a discontinuance in care. The mother dropped out of the 

healthcare system, came back several months later, and the baby 

had not been on therapy for several months. The physicians 

watched because they could not find any virus in the baby, and 

now 3 years out the baby is well, growing well, and has no evidence 

of infection, which is likely the first real cure of HIV infection. 

That has now triggered an NIH-funded study in which a large 

number of babies who are born of high-risk mothers, namely mothers who have not been treated, will be put on aggressive therapy 

to see if, in fact, you can cure babies. Now, the reason that is important is that the risk to benefit ratio of treating babies aggressively very early on has weighed on the side of waiting because you 

are not sure if you are ever going to have the opportunity of curing 

someone, so you say let us not expose the baby to aggressive therapy because you might actually hurt the baby if the baby is not infected. And all you are doing is going to be saving a few weeks of 

treatment. 

Now that you know you can actually cure a baby if you are aggressive, then the risk benefit ratio switches all the way over to the 

possible benefits. So it was a very important case, and it has triggered a study which will begin in the middle or end of May, a 

multicenter study to see if we can verify that and apply it to a larger number of babies. 

Senator COCHRAN. Thank you. That is very exciting, Mr. Chairman. And I hope we learn from that that we need to listen to these 

witnesses when they come before our committee. We are all going 

to learn something, and it may be reflected in direct appropriations 

that really do improve not only the lives of American citizens, but 

actually saves their lives. Thank you very much. 

CONCLUSION

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Cochran. Well, listen, 

thank you all very much again. It is always enlightening. Always 

a pleasure to hear about the National Institutes of Hope and what 

you are doing. I hope that our subcommittee can meet the obligations of funding that you have talked about here that is in the 

President’s budget, maybe even go beyond that in some cases I 

hope in terms of funding for NIH. We just have to recommit ourselves to breaking this logjam of the funding for NIH. We have got 

to get back to the success rate that is less than 20 percent across 

the board. We have got to get down to that 15 percent level some 

time. I think that is what we did after we doubled it. It was down 

around that area, if I am not mistaken. 

And so, as I said before, I think the American people support 

that. I do support it. And we just have to meet our obligations to 

do all we can to fund it and, as I said earlier, to find any ideas 
93 

on ways of funding and getting more money for NIH. We just cannot give up on this. We just cannot. Too much is at stake. 

I often think there are so many young people out there with keen 

minds, want to get into science, biotechnology. We need to give 

them the hope that if they want to pursue that as a life career like 

so many of you have had, that they are going to have the opportunity to succeed. They are going to have the opportunity to put 

those keen minds to work and investigating and asking those questions of how and why and what happens. 

Basic research to me has always been the most stimulating. I 

often put it in the past in terms of if you have—let us say you have 

10 doors to a potential cure. Well, if you open one door, the odds 

are, what, 10 to 1, 9 to 1—I am not too good at math—that you 

are not going to find the right door. If you open five doors, the odds 

become even better, or eight or nine. That is what basic research 

is, is opening those doors. A lot of times it may not lead to where 

you think it is going to lead, but sometimes that basic research 

leads to something else. I always remember John—Dr. Enders and 

the kidney cells, and the Salk polio vaccine. That is not where he 

was headed, but that is what happened later on. 

And so, to me basic research needs to be—we just have to fund 

it. It always pains me when people say, ‘‘Oh, we put all that money 

into basic research, but, you know, when are we going to have an 

end date? When are we going to find this cure and stuff?’’ I say, 

‘‘Well, that is not a legitimate question to ask of basic research. 

The legitimate question to ask of basic research is do you have a 

question. Does something stimulate your curiosity that you are 

willing to spend some time to investigate it and take it as far as 

you can without knowing exactly what the end result is going to 

be?’’ That is what basic research is. 

And we need to stimulate that kind of thinking in America, that 

kind of excitement about basic research. And if we do not fund 

NIH, we are telling young people and these keen minds do something else maybe. Maybe there is something else for you to do. So 

to me, the funding for NIH is not only the here and the now, but 

it is the next generation, the generation after that we encourage 

to take this up and to devote their lives to science and to basic research. We will do whatever we can to make sure that that happens. 

ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

And I thank you all for all of your dedication—your lifetime dedication to exploring the frontiers of science and health, finding so 

many cures and therapies. It has been amazing, amazing thing to 

see what has happened in the last 25, 30 years that I have been 

here. There next 30 years can be even better. Let us make it so. 

Thank you very much. 

I am supposed to—we will keep the record open—the record will 

remain open until April 9 for Senators to submit other questions 

and for responses to questions. 

[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were 

submitted to the Department for response subsequent to the hearing:] 
94 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

CHIMPANZEE RETIREMENT

Question. Dr. Collins, I want to thank you for the partnership you have had with 

this subcommittee and the Humane Society on the process of retiring chimpanzees 

from research. As you know, I was one of three Senators who requested the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report that revealed that chimpanzee research could not be 

justified except for a very few conditions. You are to be commended for adopting the 

IOM recommendations so promptly—the very day the report was released. Your decision to retire approximately 310 of the 360 government-owned chimpanzees currently in laboratories was suitably bold. 

As a long-time appropriator, however, I know that the work takes far longer than 

the issuing of a policy or the signing of a bill. I am keenly aware of the complexity 

of creating sanctuary space, grouping and transporting chimpanzees, and arranging 

for their care. Many of these chimpanzees suffer from illnesses and conditions we 

gave them for the sake of research goals. 

Can you update the subcommittee on the plan for retiring these chimpanzees? 

Can you highlight the challenges and considerations involved, including any funding 

challenges? 

Answer. Thank you for your leadership in working with the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH) and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to resolve issues related to 

NIH-owned or supported chimpanzees in research. An update on the NIH plan for 

chimpanzee retirement follows. Many factors must be considered to ensure a successful chimpanzee retirement process: Availability and complexity of creating the 

physical sanctuary space, grouping of animals based on individual and group behavioral characteristics, transporting chimpanzees (which requires healthy animals and 

temperate weather), and arranging for the care of an aging population. NIH has retired approximately 270 chimpanzees. At the present time, there is insufficient 

space in the Federal chimpanzee sanctuary system to accommodate all of the chimpanzees that will eventually be transferred. Sufficient and appropriate sanctuary 

space is one of the major hurdles to retiring more animals. Another is the need to 

select carefully the 50 most suitable research animals prior to retiring the remainder. 

Since 2005, NIH has moved nearly 270 chimpanzees into the Federal Sanctuary 

System. Our plan to transfer all remaining NIH-owned chimpanzees from the New 

Iberia Research Center has been completed. The last group of nine chimpanzees was 

moved to the Federal Sanctuary System on June 12th. Currently, Chimp Haven, 

Inc. is the only facility in the Federal Sanctuary System, and it is nearing capacity. 

As a result of natural attrition and careful planning of group composition, we anticipate retiring approximately 30 more chimpanzees by the end of 2014. We are actively looking for alternate sites that meet, or can be modified to meet, the high 

standards required to ensure that these chimpanzees are well cared for. These requirements include adherence to PHS Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, the CHIMP Act of 2000 (Public Law 106–551); Chimp Haven is Home 

Act (Public Law 110–170); the CHIMP Act Amendments of 2013 (Public Law 113– 

55); and the sanctuary specific regulations at 42 CFR Part 9. Chimp Haven, Inc. 

meets these requirements. 

A Request for Information NOT–OD–14–067 (April 7, 2014) was issued to solicit 

information from facilities potentially qualified to join the Federal Chimpanzee 

Sanctuary System. Responses identified three potential options for additional sanctuary space, but all would require additional and potentially costly construction. 

NIH is looking at all options to develop sufficient sanctuary space but cannot yet 

estimate the time required. 

Second, a major hurdle is the determination of the 50 chimpanzees most suitable 

for critical research. This selection must occur prior to retirement because the 

Chimp Act, as modified by the Chimp Haven is Home Act, mandates that retired 

chimpanzees cannot be returned to invasive research. These research chimpanzees 

will be chosen after an extensive NIH review of experimental protocols to ensure 

that all IOM criteria are met. These protocols, and the final selection of research 

animals, may require a period of several years. No chimpanzees will be used for 

NIH-supported invasive biomedical research unless chosen as part of the group of 

50. Chimpanzees will stay at their current facilities, receiving high-quality medical 

and dental care, in their social groups, and under the care of familiar staff. Once 

the 50 have been chosen, remaining animals will be transferred to the Federal Sanctuary System as space permits. NIH will regularly reevaluate research needs and 

reduce the number of research animals as warranted. 
95 

Some chimpanzees at the research or reserve facilities will be available to move 

to the Federal Sanctuary System almost immediately because they will not be suitable for research protocols. The professional staff at each facility is currently identifying these animals based on many criteria. We are making progress, but it is not 

yet possible to specify a timeline for the disposition of all chimpanzees. It is likely 

to be several years before the completion of all chimpanzee retirements. 

DISEASE PREVENTION

Question. I don’t have to tell anyone here about my passion for disease prevention. 

NIH has an important role to play in conducting research on disease prevention— 

after all, it is the National Institutes of Health, not the National Institutes of Treatment. 

I was very pleased to see that NIH recently released its first 5-year strategic plan 

for the Office of Disease Prevention, within the Office of the Director. How will this 

new plan help advance disease prevention research? I’m particularly interested in 

how the plan will address gaps in research that are identified by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. 

As you know, the ACA included a provision that requires insurance companies to 

cover any preventive service recommended by the US Preventive Services Task 

Force (USPSTF) with no deductible, no co-pay. When the USPSTF review interventions, they often find that there is not enough research to make a recommendation. 

In those cases, they publish a number of questions that need to be answered before 

a recommendation could be made. NIH does not currently use these questions in 

their research agenda planning process. 

The Office of Disease Prevention (ODP) was created in 1986 in response to the 

Health Research Extension Act of 1985 which required the creation of an Associate 

Director for Prevention. ODP includes the Office of Dietary Supplements, the Tobacco Regulatory Science Program, and supports NIH’s Prevention Research Coordinating Committee. 

On January 3, 2014, NIH adopted its first-ever strategic plan for disease prevention research, which had the following priorities: 

—Systematically monitor NIH investments in prevention research and assess the 

progress and results of that research. 

—Identify prevention research areas for investment or expanded effort by the 

NIH. 

—Promote the use of the best available methods in prevention research and support the development of better methods. 

—Promote collaborative prevention research projects and facilitate coordination of 

such projects across the NIH and with other public and private entities. 

—Identify and promote the use of evidence-based interventions and promote the 

conduct of implementation and dissemination research in prevention. 

—Increase the visibility of prevention research at the NIH and across the country. 

Some examples of grants funded by ODP in 2013 are: 

—Transforming Cancer Health Messaging: Engaging Alaska Native People 

Through Digital Storytelling 

—Cyber Partners: Harnessing Group Dynamics to Boost Motivation to Exercise 

—Uganda Working Group on Non-communicable Disease Risk Factors 

—Psoriasis and the Risk of Diabetes 

—Financial Incentives for Smoking Cessation Among Disadvantaged Pregnant 

Women 

—Mood and Insulin Resistance in Adolescents at Risk for Diabetes 

—Natural Disaster Effects on Aggressive Children and Their Caregivers 

—Biomarkers in HPA Axis and Inflammatory Pathways for Suicidal Behavior in 

Youth 

—Collaborating to Measure the Effects of Stroke Preventive Interventions 

Answer. In February 2014, the NIH Office of Disease Prevention (ODP) released 

its first Strategic Plan which outlines the priorities that the Office will focus on over 

the next 5 years. The goal of this effort is to increase the scope, quality, dissemination, and impact of prevention research supported by NIH. The ODP will achieve 

this goal by providing leadership for the development, coordination, and implementation of prevention research in collaboration with NIH Institutes and Centers and 

with other partners. While the priorities and objectives outlined in the plan are designed to benefit the broader NIH prevention research community, the plan itself 

was developed as a tool for the ODP and does not represent a trans-NIH plan for 

prevention research. 

The ODP strategic plan includes six strategic priorities that will allow the Office 

to expand its influence by, for example, providing training in prevention method-
96 

ology and developing new strategies for identifying research needs—activities that 

may not otherwise be addressed by a single NIH Institute or Center but are important for advancing disease prevention research more broadly. Interest in disease 

prevention has grown, and NIH has a responsibility to ensure that the best prevention science is supported to inform clinical and public health initiatives at the individual, organizational, community, and policy levels. The strategic priorities included in the plan will allow the ODP to play an important role in that process 

while giving NIH Institutes and Centers the flexibility to support prevention research within its extramural and intramural programs that best reflects its mission 

and state of the science of their programs. 

Strategic Priority II supports the identification of prevention research areas that 

may benefit from investment or expanded effort by NIH. In addition to utilizing results of new portfolio analysis tools that are under development (Strategic Priority 

I), the ODP will achieve this goal by working closely with the NIH Institutes and 

Centers, as well as other Federal and non-Federal partners such as the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) to identify and prioritize gaps in prevention 

science and promote research in these areas to broaden the knowledge base. The 

USPSTF conducts scientific evidence reviews of a broad range of clinical preventive 

healthcare services (such as screening, counseling, and preventive medications) and 

develops recommendations for primary care clinicians and health systems. As part 

of its clinical recommendation process, the USPSTF identifies significant gaps in 

key areas of knowledge that may limit the full realization of the benefits of evidence-based preventive services recommendations. Of particular concern to the research community are areas that receive an Insufficient or ‘‘I’’ recommendation by 

the USPSTF, which indicates that current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of the service under consideration. As the NIH liaison 

to the USPSTF, the ODP refers Insufficient or ‘‘I’’ recommendations made by the 

USPSTF to NIH scientific program staff. The NIH Institutes and Centers can use 

this information to help them make decisions during the post peer-review process 

to further expand knowledge within a given research area. 

To further advance Strategic Priority II, the ODP is also developing a systematic 

process that can be used by NIH Institutes and Centers to report recent advances 

or on ongoing research that addresses the research gaps identified by the USPSTF 

and other partners. This information, along with identified gaps, will help to highlight research areas that are in need of additional support. In addition to disseminating this information to our colleagues, the ODP will incorporate this information 

into its own efforts to promote collaborative prevention research projects and facilitate coordination of such projects across NIH and with other public and private entities (Strategic Priority IV). 

REHABILITATION RESEARCH

Question. I was pleased to hear that NIH is implementing many of the recommendations of the 2012 Blue Ribbon panel on rehabilitation research. This is a 

critical area of research to improve the functions and abilities of people with severe 

injuries, illnesses or conditions so that they can live independently. 

This research is done across many Institutes and Centers, but there is no consistent definition of rehabilitation research. Without a common definition, it is difficult to ensure that core priorities are being addressed and to accurately track the 

science across all of the Institutes and Centers. In the fiscal year 2012 Labor-HHS 

bill, this subcommittee asked that NIH adopt an NIH-wide definition. A year later, 

the Blue Ribbon panel went a step further to recommend that NIH adopt the WHO 

definition. What steps is NIH taking to address this issue? 

Rehabilitation research is cross-cutting and focuses on improving the ability of 

people with severe injuries, illnesses, disabilities and chronic conditions to improve 

skills and functions and live as independently as possible. 

Medical rehabilitation research is conducted at NIH through numerous Institutes 

and Centers. The research is intended to be coordinated by the National Center for 

Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR) within the National Institute for Child 

Health and Human Development (NICHD). One of the main difficulties in coordinating the work being done at the various Centers and Institutes is that NIH does 

not have a consistent definition of ‘‘rehabilitation research’’. 

The fiscal year 2012 Senate LHHS report language: 

Rehabilitation Research.—The Committee commends NIH for appointing a 

blue-ribbon panel to evaluate rehabilitation research at the National Center for 

Medical Rehabilitation Research [NCMRR] and across all of NIH. The Committee requests a copy of the panel’s report when it is available. The panel is 

urged to identify gaps in the field of rehabilitation research and recommend 
97 

which ICs or other Federal agencies should be responsible for addressing them. 

In addition, the Committee recognizes the improvements that have been made 

in delineating rehabilitation research as part of NIH reporting mechanisms established since the passage of the NIH Reform Act. However, the Committee 

encourages NIH, through the leadership of NCMRR, to further clarify a consistent definition of rehabilitation across all institutes and centers and to seek 

ways to delineate between physical, cognitive, mental and substance abuse rehabilitation when characterizing NIH-supported research. Finally, the Committee encourages NCMRR to explore the broader social, emotional and behavioral context of rehabilitation, including effective interventions to increase social 

participation and reintegrate individuals with disabilities into their communities. 

The December 2012 report from the Blue Ribbon Panel on Medicare Rehabilitation Research further emphasized the importance of taking action to clarify the definition of ‘‘rehabilitation research’’ by recommending the following: 

‘‘The study of mechanisms and interventions that prevent, improve, restore or replace lost, underdeveloped or deteriorating function, where function is defined at the 

level of impairment, activity and participation according to the WHO-ICF model 

(World Health Organization’s International Classification of Function, Disability 

and Health).’’ 

Answer. Since enactment of the 1990 law authorizing the establishment of the 

National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR) under the auspices 

of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), NIH has been using the definition of 

medical rehabilitation research included in the statement of purpose for the Center 

(Sec. 452 of the Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. 285g–4), which states that the 

purpose of the Center is to support research, training, and health information dissemination ‘‘with respect to the rehabilitation of individuals with physical disabilities resulting from diseases or disorders of the neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, pulmonary, or any other physiological system (hereafter in this section 

referred to as ‘‘medical rehabilitation’’). This definition, which is used consistently 

across NIH, has allowed medical rehabilitation research to be distinguished from 

other rehabilitation research efforts, such as those that involve mental health or addictive disorders. The World Health Organization (WHO) definition was adopted 

since that time; while NIH has no objections to using the WHO definition, the law 

would need to be amended to replace current language. 

If the definition were changed, it would need to be translated into an operational 

definition to allow appropriate characterization of the more than 11,000 competing 

grants that NIH currently funds each year. NIH uses its ‘‘Research, Condition, and 

Disease Categorization (RCDC)’’ system—a sophisticated text-data mining software—to categorize and cluster words and phrases that reflect agreed-upon definitions. See http://report.nih.gov/rcdc/. NIH has already started to develop an RCDC 

‘‘fingerprint’’ for medical rehabilitation research, which will allow NIH to track the 

research portfolio as it changes over time, and to understand the breadth and depth 

of the portfolio as part of the upcoming effort to develop a strategic research plan. 

MEDICATION IN PREGNANCY

Question. Each year more than four million women give birth in the United States 

and more than 3 million breastfeed their infants. Nearly all of these women will 

take a medication regularly or receive a vaccine, but little is known about the effect 

of most drugs on the woman or her child. For most drugs, we don’t know the impact 

on child development and we don’t know the impact on the effect of the medication. 

A study in the American Journal of Medicine illustrated that fewer than 10 percent 

of medications approved by the FDA since 1980 have enough information to determine their risk for birth defects. Women and doctors are forced to guess whether 

to continue their treatment. 

This gap in understanding has become increasingly problematic as more women 

delay childbearing and rates of chronic disease rise. More expectant mothers than 

ever before are requiring medications to manage conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, depression, and asthma. 

What types of research activities is NIH engaged in to fill these research gaps? 

What is the state of our understanding of the effect of drugs during pregnancy and 

breastfeeding? 

Answer. Primarily through its Obstetric and Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics Branch (OPPTB), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child 

Health and Human Development takes a range of approaches to support research 
98 

activities on medication use in pregnancy and during breastfeeding, collaborating 

with other NIH Institutes and Centers as appropriate for their areas of expertise. 

The Obstetric-fetal Pharmacology Research Units (OPRU) Network was established in 2004 with four academic research institutions to improve the safety and 

effectiveness of the medications commonly used (but often never having been tested) 

in women during pregnancy and postpartum. The OPRU Network has provided critical research infrastructure for a multidisciplinary collaboration of researchers to 

perform basic/translational studies and phase I/II clinical trials aimed at characterizing and evaluating the impact of medications on metabolism and physiological, cellular, and molecular changes during pregnancy. The OPRU Network also conducted 

opportunistic studies of medications in women who were already taking these medications during pregnancy. More than 100 research articles from these studies have 

been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. 

Some study results have directly informed clinical practice. For example, a study 

of the anti-diabetes drug glyburide use during pregnancy showed that glyburide can 

cross the placenta and that the drug’s concentrations are about 50 percent lower in 

pregnant women with type 2 diabetes than in non-pregnant women with type 2 diabetes, suggesting that a higher dose may be needed to achieve optimal therapeutic 

effects. A study of oseltamivir, a medication for treating and preventing influenza, 

indicated that the drug plasma concentrations are much lower and apparent clearance significantly higher in pregnant women compared with non-pregnant women, 

suggesting an increased dose may be necessary to achieve comparable effects. 

The OPRU Network currently supports a randomized clinical trial to determine 

the pharmacologic effects of anti-diabetic drugs (glyburide and metformin) separately, and in combination for management of gestational diabetes, a phase I clinical 

trial to evaluate the effect of early treatment with pravastatin for prevention of 

preeclampsia, and an exploratory study to identify vaginal biomarkers of response 

to progestin treatment of preterm birth. The Network also is funding several investigator-initiated grants on nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation during pregnancy and safety and effectiveness studies on anti-hypertensive medications 

in pregnancy. In addition, to encourage young investigators working in this area of 

research, the OPPTB supports several postdoctoral training programs. 

CANCER AND DISTRESS

Question. I know first-hand that a cancer diagnosis can be devastating for patients and families. Studies show that half of all cancer patients experience psychological and social distress as a result of their cancer diagnosis. But there is good 

news: a study conducted by Dr. Barbara Andersen and published in the Journal of 

Oncology showed that patients with breast cancer who receive distress screening 

and social and emotional follow-up care have a 45 percent reduced risk of cancer 

recurrence, a 56 percent reduced risk of death; and a 59 percent reduction in breast 

cancer death even WITH recurrence. 

These are remarkable outcomes. Yet the Institute of Medicine has consistently 

concluded that cancer care provides state of the art biomedical treatment but does 

little address the psychological and social needs of cancer patients. 

What requirements, if any, does NCI have on its intramural and extramural research programs to screen patients for distress and ensure follow up care? What 

kind of research is being done, either at NCI or at the Mental Health Institute, to 

further this promising area of research? 

Answer. As the Federal agency that supports the Nation’s cancer research enterprise, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) conducts and facilitates research and the 

development of valid tools that can inform standard clinical practice and medical decisionmaking. However, NCI does not establish standards of care or place requirements on care-givers. Other Federal agencies and private-sector organizations (such 

as specialty societies and cancer-specific groups) develop medical recommendations 

for cancer, building upon NCI’s research and the work of these other agencies in 

the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop guidelines or recommendations about all aspects of medical practice related to cancer care. 

Still, it is important to emphasize that both NCI and the National Institute of 

Mental Health (NIMH) support research related to screening for emotional distress 

experienced by patients who receive a cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment. 

In this area, NCI’s role is to fund and support research that shows the efficacy and 

impact of systematic screening for emotional distress on cancer survivors’ subsequent health and function. Historically, we have funded—and we continue to support—randomized controlled trials that test the ability of psychosocial and behavioral interventions to reduce psychological distress and promote adaptation to illness. This research has shown that a wide variety of interventions (both at the indi-
99 

vidual and group levels and varying in content) are effective in improving understanding of illness and adherence to treatment, reducing depression, fatigue, and 

stress, and adopting healthy behaviors. 

A key response by NCI to the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Cancer Care 

for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial Health Needs, was to include attention 

to survivorship and palliative care in the funding of NCI’s Community Cancer Centers pilot program (NCCCP). One of the deliverables for funded NCCCP sites was 

to develop the capacity to screen for distress and refer individuals to appropriate 

psychosocial care as needed. NCCCP sites also had to expand their psychosocial programs, as well as training of staff to identify and manage these issues in patients 

being treated at each institution. In addition, NCI solicited information from the 

clinical-investigator community about the tools they are using to screen for distress, 

as part of the Grid Enabled Measures (or GEM) initiative. The GEM database collects questions that measure unmet needs, depression, and anxiety. These are available for clinicians and researchers to access, evaluate, and (with the exception of 

copyrighted instruments) be used to care for patients under active treatment and 

other cancer survivors. NCI is initiating collaborations with the American Society 

of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the Commission on Cancer. In 2012, the Commission gave member sites until 2015 to implement psychosocial distress screening in 

their centers. 

NIMH has funded several studies in recent years investigating psychological distress and depression associated with cancer diagnosis and treatment. For example, 

NIMH has supported the development of the Mental Health Assessment and Dynamic Referral for Oncology software, which enables oncology treatment providers 

to screen for and monitor several patient care domains, including: (1) mental health 

functioning; (2) cancer-related symptoms and side effects; (3) the patient-provider 

partnership; (4) barriers to treatment; and (5) adherence with medical regimen and 

lifestyle change recommendations. Another team of NIMH-funded researchers has 

studied whether depression can be prevented in patients with head and neck cancer 

during treatment (with relevance to other cancers), as well as whether initiating 

prophylactic antidepressant treatment can improve timely completion of the cancer 

therapy and preserve quality of life. Other NIMH-funded researchers have studied 

the impact of cancer treatment, as opposed to diagnosis, on mental health—for example, whether antidepressants can prevent the impact of melanoma treatment on 

the brain, endocrine, and immune systems. 

In addition to these extramural efforts, the NIMH Division of Intramural Research Programs conducted a multiyear study investigating biological, psychological, 

and social factors that affect living with a chronic life-threatening illness such as 

cancer, HIV, or other rare diseases, as well as suicide risk and palliative care decisionmaking procedures for treating children and adolescents with life-threatening 

conditions. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

AMERICAN CURES ACT

Question. In 1965, the U.S. spent more than 25 percent of our non-defense discretionary budget on research and development—last year that number was 10 percent. Between 2003 and 2012, the NIH budget has not even kept up with inflation, 

resulting instead in a 22 percent decline in real purchasing power. The number of 

research grants at NIH has declined every year for the past 10 years. 

Dr. Collins, you have warned that continuing this trend of funding will cause 

some of America’s best young researchers to take their talents to other industries— 

or other countries. 

What promising breakthroughs or developments do you think are at risk of delay 

due to the U.S. Federal Government failing to keep pace with inflation in funding 

the NIH? 

Answer. NIH-supported researchers make scientific discoveries every day, advancing research related to countless health and disease issues. While it is impossible 

to predict exactly when breakthroughs will occur in a particular scientific field, the 

pace of discovery will be delayed if funding fails to keep pace with inflation. For example, this could cause delays in the significant progress that researchers are making in developing a universal flu vaccine that could offer protection against any flu 

virus strain, including those that may cause pandemics. Similarly, NIH efforts to 

develop a vaccine for HIV or even a cure for AIDS may be hampered. 

In cancer research, recent results indicate that immunotherapy may be a new and 

effective form of treatment. However, opportunities to expand this research to in-
100 

1http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/2014/03/05/comparing-success-award-funding-rates/ 

#sthash.aM0tN2GL.dpuf 2 NIH’s definition of ‘‘award rate’’ is the number of awards made in a fiscal year divided by 

the absolute number of applications. 

clude additional patients and other types of cancer may not be possible if NIH funding remains stagnant. NIH also is engaged in extensive efforts to respond to the 

emerging public health threat from antimicrobial resistance (AMR), including support for basic research, development of new and faster diagnostics, and creating a 

national database of genomic sequence data. These efforts could be hampered if NIH 

funding does not keep pace with inflation. NIH efforts to leverage its resources in 

partnerships with the private sector also could be disrupted, such as the new Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) that brings biopharmaceutical companies and 

several nonprofit organizations together with NIH to identify and validate biological 

targets of disease for future drug development. 

Please describe the biomedical discoveries, training of junior scientists, and economic benefits that could result if NIH was provided with a steady source of funding 

that increased year after year to keep up with inflation? 

Answer. A steady source of funding helps support biomedical scientists. Having 

a budget that keeps pace with inflation would help to reassure scientists that they 

will have the necessary support for the duration of their projects. Steady investment 

in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) helps enable our researchers to achieve 

their full scientific potential in all research areas, fueling biomedical discoveries 

from autism to Alzheimer’s disease to cancer to diabetes. Inflation-adjusted budgets 

also may enable NIH to award more grants to fund investigator-initiated research, 

thereby allowing the country’s most innovative scientific thinkers to chart the best 

path forward in their research areas. 

Promising young scientists who have chosen career paths outside of biomedical research in recent years due to uncertain funding also would be encouraged by a stable funding model and may reconsider pursuing research careers. Coupled with 

NIH’s commitment to fund new investigators at success rates equal to those of established investigators, this scenario would enable NIH to attract and sustain a talented biomedical research workforce. 

NIH investments reap substantial economic benefits; the agency directly supports 

about 300,000 researchers at more than 2,500 institutions in every state, and these 

investments spur additional job creation in those communities as well. In 2012, 

United for Medical Research estimated that NIH investments supported more than 

402,000 jobs and resulted in $57.8 billion in economic output nationwide. A report 

from the Milken Institute indicates that a $1 increase in NIH funding can increase 

the bioscience industry output by $1.70 in a given year, and the long-term effects 

could be even greater. Given these short-term economic effects, an inflation-adjusted 

budget for NIH could spur job growth across the country, increase economic output, 

and reduce health spending by producing better, more cost-effective treatments and 

prevention strategies. Over the long term, increased support for NIH will lead to 

reductions in disease, longer lifespans, and improved quality of life for all Americans. 

SEQUESTRATION AND GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

Question. The National Institutes of Health is the Nation’s medical research agency and the leading supporter of biomedical research in the world. More than 80 percent of the NIH’s budget goes to over 300,000 research personnel at more than 2,500 

universities and research institutions through the United States. Last year, sequestration cut the NIH’s $30.7 billion budget by almost $1.6 billion. The deleterious effects of sequestration were compounded by the government shutdown which took 

place October 1 to October 16 of 2013 and temporarily curtailed most of NIH’s operations. 

Please summarize the impact that sequestration and the government shutdown 

had on NIH’s ability to award grants and support the training and education of scientists. Please describe the impact that sequestration and the government shutdown 

had on biomedical innovation and how the cuts in funding impacted patients currently enrolled in clinical trials. 

Impact of Sequestration 

Answer. Sequestration dampened NIH’s ability to support biomedical research. 

The overall award rate for NIH research project grant applications in fiscal year 

2013 fell to approximately 15 percent, a historic low.1 2 Compared to fiscal year 

2012, in fiscal year 2013, NIH funded approximately 750 fewer competitive research 

project grants (e.g., new or renewal applications) that were determined to be highly 
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3 Association of American Universities, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, and 

The Science Coalition. Survey on Sequestration Effects: Selected Results from Private and Public Research Universities. November 2013. 

meritorious in grant review, including over 200 fewer competing renewal applications. Competing renewal applications represent promising follow-on research stemming from previously funded grants. Lack of continued funding diminishes the 

NIH’s ability to leverage previous investments and capitalize on recent scientific 

progress. 

NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs) were also forced to reduce funding for noncompeting, ongoing research grants. Reductions varied by IC, but the NIH-wide average was ¥4.7 percent. Further, at least ten new funding initiatives (‘‘request for 

applications’’ or ‘‘request for proposals’’ concepts) were planned but not published, 

including cancer studies that could have improved our ability to distinguish accurately non-lethal tumors from life-threatening ones, and autism studies to investigate genetic and environmental factors that affect the risk of autism in preterm 

infants. 

Many of the NIH ICs also reduced their funding for training grants and fellowships. For example NIGMS, which sponsors the majority of NIH-supported pre-doctoral trainees, funded 186 fewer trainees than it would have without sequestration. 

Trainees who were already funded also were affected, as there was no increase in 

stipend levels for National Research Service Award recipients in fiscal year 2013. 

Sequestration also diminished NIH’s ability to conduct research at the Clinical 

Center. Approximately 750 fewer new patients were admitted to the NIH Clinical 

Center, a decrease from 10,695 new patients in 2012 to approximately 9,945 new 

patients in 2013. This reduced the number of patients who could have benefitted 

from enrollment in clinical protocols, as well as slowed the pace of important clinical 

research. Note that while much of the decrease in enrollment numbers is due to 

funding, patient recruitment is dependent on multiple factors. 

Funding cuts driven by sequestration have had ripple effects throughout the biomedical research community. One recent survey examined sequestration’s impact on 

research conducted by universities across the country.3 The most commonly cited 

impacts of the sequester among survey respondents were a reduction in the number 

of new Federal research grants (70 percent of responding universities), delayed research projects (also 70 percent), personnel reductions (58 percent), reduced research activity (81 percent), admission of fewer graduate students (23 percent), as 

well as tuition reductions and reduced stipend levels for students (14 percent). 

Impact of Government Shutdown 

The Government shutdown impacted NIH and the biomedical research community. Approximately 75 percent of the NIH workforce was furloughed during shutdown. For the community of NIH’s extramural investigators, shutdown caused 

delays in grant review and funding processes. Typically, NIH receives the largest 

number of grant applications in October. Because of the prolonged shutdown, all of 

the October receipt dates were rescheduled for November, including those for NIH’s 

largest grant activities, such as the investigator initiated R01 applications, Small 

Grants (R03), Exploratory Development Grants (R21), AREA awards (R15), and Career Development (K) activities. Reviews of more than 11,000 grant applications 

were delayed by the shutdown. 

October is also one of the 3 months with the largest volume of NIH Scientific Review Group meetings, the first step of peer review. Over 200 Scientific Review 

Group meetings had to be rescheduled due to the shutdown; most of the October 

meetings involved reviewers travelling to meetings scheduled to be convened ‘‘inperson’’. These ‘‘in-person’’ meetings had to be rescheduled, and travel arrangements 

had to be cancelled and re-arranged. 

The NIH Intramural Research Program (IRP) was also profoundly affected and 

lost progress during the shutdown. The Clinical Center did not enroll any new patients in clinical trials or to start new trials. Therefore, approximately 200 new patients were not admitted to the Clinical Center. Of those denied access, 30 were 

children, including 10 with cancer. Only 15 to 20 percent of IRP staff were ‘‘excepted’’ from furlough, so that they could protect life (mostly in the Clinical Center, 

where 75 percent of the staff were required to work), guarantee safety (infrastructure support including security and the power plant), and protect large investments 

in materials and property (animals, cell cultures, and expensive equipment). 

The shutdown took a toll on NIH intramural training programs and trainees, too. 

In addition to being a biomedical research enterprise, NIH is the largest training 

facility in the world for biomedical researchers. During the shutdown, there were 

approximately 4,000 postdoctoral fellows, 800 post baccalaureate students, 500 grad-
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uate students, and 45 medical students who were unable to conduct their research. 

For many of these trainees, time is of the essence. Their appointments are timelimited (less than 1 year for the medical students, up to 2 years for the post baccalaureate students, and usually three to 4 years for the postdoctoral fellows and 

graduate students). Loss of a few weeks of research and mentoring as well as the 

additional work time needed to regain momentum—while cell lines are started up 

again, animals are bred, and experiments that may have suffered in the shutdown 

are repeated—represent a significant proportion of their NIH training experience 

that could affect their future careers. 

CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE

Question. Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is one of the most prevalent birth defects in the United States and a leading cause of birth defect-associated infant mortality. Due to medical advancements, more people with congenital heart defects are 

living into adulthood. 

The healthcare reform law includes a provision that authorizes the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to expand surveillance and track the epidemiology of CHD across the life-course, with an emphasis on adults. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 provided the CDC with $2.9 million in new funding for enhanced CHD surveillance. Recent data suggest that the number of infant 

deaths related to CHD is decreasing. Successful interventions in infancy and childhood are resulting in an aging population of congenital heart disease survivors. 

How is the NIH systematically responding to this new population of survivors 

reaching adolescence, adulthood, and advanced age? 

How is NIH utilizing adult congenital heart disease research experts in these efforts? 

How is NIH supporting adult CHD professionals so the field can grow? Is the NIH 

offering training grants to grow the field? Is the Pediatric Heart Network inclusive 

to adult CHD experts? Is your agency formally engaging adult populations in CHD 

research? 

Answer. Advances in diagnosis and care have led to significant improvement in 

survival rates for Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) such that more adults than children are now living with CHD. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute 

(NHLBI) supports research on the causes of CHD and the evolving natural history 

and co-morbidities in adults with CHD across the lifespan. For example, the Bench 

to Bassinet Program (B2B) is identifying genetic and epigenetic causes of CHD to 

help risk-stratify and personalize treatment for children and adults with CHD. The 

Pediatric Heart Network (PHN) was launched in 2001 to conduct studies to improve 

outcomes and quality of life in children with heart disease and includes experts in 

adult congenital heart disease (ACHD). The PHN is following the largest assembled 

cohort of individuals with single ventricle physiology into adulthood to determine 

barriers to transitioning to adult care and to evaluate their health status and comorbid conditions at specific intervals. The PHN is also in the process of launching 

a trial in adolescents and young adults with single ventricle physiology to assess 

whether use of a phosphodiesterase-5-inhibitor medication will prevent functional 

deterioration and delay the onset of heart failure. 

NHLBI also partners with ACHD-themed organizations to advance the field of 

ACHD research, such as The Health, Education and Access Research Trial 

(HEART–ACHD) and The Research Empowerment for Adult Congenital Hearts 

(REACH) project, both funded by NHLBI and conducted in partnership with the 

Adult Congenital Heart Association (ACHA) and the Alliance of Adult Research in 

Congenital Cardiology (AARCC). In June 2014, NHLBI and the ACHA will host a 

working group, ‘‘Adult Congenital Heart Disease: Emerging Research Questions,’’ to 

identify critical research gaps in the care of adults with CHD. This group will build 

partnerships between ACHD experts and experts in the complementary fields of 

adult cardiovascular care and pediatric cardiology. Participants will develop methodological approaches that leverage recent progress in multicenter ACHD research 

and existing congenital heart disease data infrastructure, and will develop strategies to engage patients in the development and execution of research studies. 

To ensure a robust community of ACHD investigators spanning basic and clinical 

research, NHLBI supports institutional training grants for CHD, the PHN Scholars 

award, to fund small pilot studies, and individual career development awards for 

ACHD investigators For example, an NHLBI-supported career development awardee 

is developing, testing, and validating a Quality Assessment Tool for Adults with 

Congenital Heart Disease (QAT–ACHD) for the outpatient management of selected 

ACHD conditions to help standardize high-quality ACHD care. Another NHLBI career development awardee is studying the role of myocardial fibrosis in three ACHD 
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conditions. The same investigator has also secured funding from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) 

for a pilot study on enlarged thoracic aortas in patients with bicuspid aortic valve. 

Mechanisms such as these are designed to ensure growing expertise in the field of 

ACHD research, with a strong focus on the long-term implications of CHD and its 

treatment for the increasing number of persons who survive for many decades after 

diagnosis. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

OPPNET

Question. Can you provide an update about OppNet, the 5-year initiative to support basic behavioral and social sciences research that began in 2010? What can you 

tell us about the findings of that initiative? When will a report be available? 

Answer. Between October 2010 and May 2014, the Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet) provided $64.2 million to fund 152 extramural research projects. OppNet lists all its grants by original year of funding at 

http://oppnet.nih.gov/resources-initiatives.asp. Among the OppNet grants is early investigator Dr. Santosh Kumar’s Predicting Smoking Abstinence via Mobile Monitoring of Stress and Social Context. This study demonstrates that modern sensor 

technology can obtain a much more detailed and accurate representation of personal 

and environmental influences on smoking than previously possible. Based partially 

on this work, Popular Science magazine named Dr. Kumar one of the 10 most brilliant young scientists. Another project, Neural Mechanisms of Habit Formation and 

Maintenance, analyzes cellular, molecular, and circuit mechanisms to understand 

how behaviors become ‘‘automatic’’ regardless of outside influences. Dr. Henry Yin 

found that stimulating mouse neurons to generate dopamine can foster the adoption 

of healthy behaviors and reduce unhealthy behaviors—all without providing incentives (e.g., food rewards). These findings, already appearing in at least five peer-reviewed publications, suggest exciting possibilities for future studies with important 

clinical implications. 

OppNet has expanded both the perspective of researchers and NIH program directors. Nineteen of OppNet’s 28 new investigators (68 percent) received non-Federal 

funding prior to applying, compared with 21 percent of basic behavioral and social 

sciences research (basic-BSSR) and 39 percent of applied behavioral and social 

sciences research (applied-BSSR)—an example of the initiative’s success at expanding NIH’s scope of basic-BSSR. NIH program directors report that OppNet has increased their knowledge of other NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs)’ missions and research interests and that OppNet has allowed them to solicit and fund projects that 

likely could not have occurred without OppNet’s infrastructure. Perhaps the best examples to date are the grants funded through the funding opportunity, Basic Behavioral Research on Multisensory Processing http://oppnet.nih.gov/resources2013fundedapp.asp. These projects explain how a combination of visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, non-pain somatosensory, and/or vestibular input influences basic 

perceptual and behavioral processes. This initiative stimulated new collaborations 

between ICs that were supporting research on sensory processing, but from the perspective of single sensory systems, such as vision or audition. 

ICs are organized somatically or by disease. OppNet’s infrastructure facilitates 

the trans-sensory and transdisciplinary research projects that likely would lack a 

clear ‘‘home.’’ Moreover, OppNet has been so successful at coordinating basic and 

applied BSSR across the NIH that some ICs decided to fund all or part of 23 additional projects beyond what was planned for in the OppNet budget. As the grants 

funded under OppNet have not gone through a full five-year funding cycle, a formal 

and comprehensive program evaluation would be premature at this time. However, 

OppNet makes its activities and accomplishments available to the public through 

its Web site at http://oppnet.nih.gov/. 

DIABETES

Question. I understand that, as a result of previous studies, there is evidence of 

a link between poor blood glucose control and development of diabetes complications, and the tremendous long-term benefits of early, effective blood glucose control, 

particularly in recent onset diabetes. Can you tell me what the agency is doing to 

better understand the underpinnings of complications like kidney disease? 

Answer. Controlling and preventing diabetes are the best approaches to preventing or minimizing its many health complications, including kidney disease. Diabetes—both type 1 and type 2—is the major cause of end-stage kidney failure. The 
104 

landmark NIH-supported Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT) and its 

follow-up study, the Epidemiology of Diabetes Interventions and Complications 

(EDIC), demonstrated how critically important it is to control blood glucose levels 

early in the course of type 1 diabetes in order to reduce the likelihood of subsequent 

complications. DCCT participants who intensively controlled their blood glucose levels had significantly lower rates of eye, nerve, kidney, and cardiovascular complications than those who received standard care. This effect extended for many years 

after the study ended. 

A second landmark NIH-supported clinical trial, the Diabetes Prevention Program 

(DPP), showed that an intensive lifestyle intervention designed to achieve modest 

weight loss through a combination of diet and exercise lowered type 2 diabetes rates 

by 58 percent, and that the generic diabetes medication metformin reduced diabetes 

rates by 31 percent, relative to placebo. A follow-up study to the DPP, the DPP Outcomes Study (DPPOS), is assessing the long-term effects of interventions used in the 

DPP on the development of type 2 diabetes and its complications. After 10 years 

of follow-up, DPPOS found that the lifestyle intervention continued to dramatically 

reduce the development of type 2 diabetes—and consequently its complications—and 

also reduced cardiovascular risk factors. 

Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney disease, followed by high blood pressure. 

Abnormally high blood glucose levels damage the kidney’s filtering units, which progressively and irreversibly impairs kidney function. Thanks to NIH-supported research, scientists have made great progress in developing methods, in addition to 

controlling blood glucose levels, which slow the onset and progression of kidney disease in people with diabetes. Two types of drugs used to lower blood pressure, 

angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers 

(ARBs), have proven effective in slowing the progression of kidney disease in people 

with diabetes or high blood pressure. 

Because there is no way, at present, to restore kidney function once it is lost, NIH 

research focuses on early detection of kidney disease and strategies to slow or prevent the progression of disease. The Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) 

Study, one of the largest and longest ongoing studies of chronic kidney disease epidemiology in the United States, is examining the natural history of kidney disease 

as well as the broad range of illnesses experienced by people with kidney disease. 

NIH is supporting a study that aims to identify biomarkers that indicate a risk of 

progression of kidney disease. Research supported by NIH has enhanced our understanding of the origin of scar tissue that is common in many forms of kidney disease, how it can impair kidney function, and how it might be prevented or treated. 

A new initiative, currently in development, will address challenges associated with 

growing nephrons, the kidneys’ basic filtering unit. NIH supports several studies 

that the private sector most likely would not undertake, including pilot studies of 

novel therapies for kidney disease. 

EMERGENCY CARE

Question. The NIH recently created a new division, the Office of Emergency Care 

Research. Considering that in New Hampshire, and throughout the United States, 

there is an epidemic of narcotic prescription abuse and overdose deaths, what can 

the this new office do to help emergency providers curtail excess narcotic prescribing? How can we increase awareness among providers to decrease medically 

unnecessary narcotic prescriptions? 

Answer. The Office of Emergency Care Research (OECR) was established in 2012 

to coordinate and develop emergency care research across the National Institutes of 

Health. Emergency departments (EDs) are unique treatment settings in that they 

serve some patient populations that have little or no access to medical care, and 

who have few available resources. For example, EDs may be the only facilities at 

which poor and underserved populations receive care. For substance-using populations, they provide a unique opportunity to assess the overall health needs of the 

patient and link them to the care and the support required to meet all of their 

health needs. OECR and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) are concerned about the epidemic of narcotic abuse and are aware of the role of the emergency care system in reducing this abuse. 

NIDA is investing in research to develop clinical interventions tailored to the ED 

setting. The goals of these interventions are to facilitate accurate diagnoses and 

linkage to long-term care programs to protect the overall health of the individual. 

Halting accidental or unnecessary opioid prescriptions is a key component to thwarting the devastating rise in opioid overdoses. For this reason, NIDA is supporting 

research that will increase ED physician knowledge when treating opioid patients 

by: 
105 

—identifying ways to effectively implement the use of prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) within the ED to decrease prescription opioid prescribing, overdoses, and deaths. Widespread use of PDMPs will provide ED physicians with the information they need to prescribe opioids to those patients 

who would benefit most from these essential medications, while preventing 

these medications from reaching populations for which they are not intended. 

(For more details see NIH grant 1R01DA036522–01.) 

—developing improved, non-invasive devices that can detect traces of narcotics 

and alcohol. This will help ED physicians to diagnose and treat patients with 

substance abuse issues, because an accurate diagnosis of substance abuse is the 

first step to its treatment. (For more details see NIH grant 5R44DA031530–03.) 

Since assuming the position of Director of OECR, Dr. Jeremy Brown has met with 

program officers and senior staff at NIDA to discuss strategies to increase research 

on drug abuse in the emergency care setting. In addition, in October 2013, OECR, 

CDC, and NIDA staff were scheduled to attend a special day training session on 

effective approaches to addressing substance abuse disorders in the Emergency Department. This conference was held as part of the annual meeting of the American 

College of Emergency Physicians. Although the Government shutdown prevented 

NIH staff from attending in person, this meeting emphasizes the way in which 

NIDA, OECR and professional organizations are cooperating to address the substance abuse epidemic. 

Funding for research on the narcotic epidemic is provided by NIDA, and the Office 

of Emergency Care Research will continue to work with staff from NIDA to support 

and grow initiatives in this area. 

ASTHMA

Question. In November Congresswoman DeLauro and I wrote to Secretary 

Sebelius to inquire about a provision in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) 2007 Expert Panel Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Management 

of Asthma that recommends that physicians who treat the majority of children with 

asthma ‘‘determine exposures, history of symptoms in presence of exposures, and 

sensitivities.’’ They make this recommendation so that ‘‘physicians can advise patients on ways to reduce exposure to allergens.’’ While it has been many years since 

release of the guidelines, we are concerned that we are failing to meet this objective. 

I’d like your assurance that this work will remain a high priority for the NIH and 

that you will continue to work with all stakeholders to accelerate implementation 

of this laudable objective. 

Answer. NHLBI’s National Asthma Education and Prevention Program’s (NAEPP) 

Guidelines Implementation Panel Report offers suggested strategies to enhance dissemination and adoption of key recommendations in the Guidelines. These strategies were offered as a list of possible activities for NAEPP member organizations 

and other professional, private sector, state and local government, and patient 

groups to consider undertaking within their respective organizations in order to improve asthma care, which many organizations have done. All programs address exposures to environmental allergens and irritants as part of the comprehensive approach to asthma necessary to achieve and maintain asthma control. 

National professional societies and patient groups and local healthcare and community groups have made considerable progress in engaging primary care providers, 

allergists, and representatives of health plans to identify and overcome local barriers and accelerate implementation of recommendations in the Guidelines, including those relating to control of allergens. For example, the Centers for Medicare and 

Medicaid Services Health Care Innovation Awards Program included five awardees 

that address asthma; all of these programs incorporate attention to environmental 

allergens. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) vibrant Community Network (http://www.asthmacommunitynetwork.org/) and annual EPA leadership 

Awards program offer outstanding examples of community organizations, clinicians, 

and healthcare administrators, including Medicaid service providers, across the 

country working together on programs that incorporate measures to control environmental asthma triggers, including allergens, into comprehensive asthma management. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Asthma Program 

and the NHLBI’s National Asthma Control Initiative showcase tools and programs 

developed by state public health and local community clinics that can be adapted 

by other stakeholders. These tools include home-visit guides, environmental assessment checklists, and clinical pathways for assessing, treating, and monitoring all aspects of asthma care. 
106 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

ACCELERATING MEDICINES PARTNERSHIP

Question. The Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) is expected to address 

the ‘‘valley of death’’ in drug development. How much with the Partnership shorten 

the current drug development timeline and how much money will be saved? 

If the Accelerating Medicines Partnership is successful, how will you determine 

what future disease and conditions will be added to the program? 

Answer. The Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) is a unique type of publicprivate partnership of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug 

Administration (FDA), nonprofit organizations, and biopharmaceutical companies. 

AMP is supporting research focused on identifying and validating biological targets 

for new therapeutics, a process called target validation. AMP was just launched in 

February and is beginning with three specific pilot projects, in Alzheimer’s disease, 

type 2 diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis/lupus. 

Over half of drugs fail in phase II and phase III clinical trials due to lack of efficacy, and improvements in the target validation process should reduce that failure 

rate. So while AMP may not affect the development timeline for a particular drug, 

it should increase the success rates of trials by increasing the chances that a particular drug will be effective. If AMP succeeds in validating a drug target for a particular disease, that could reduce drug development costs in that area, since companies should be less likely to conduct costly clinical trials with compounds that will 

fail in phase II or III because the targets of those compounds don’t have the desired 

effect on the particular disease. 

The AMP partners intend to consider other project ideas later this year. As in the 

selection of the pilot projects, the AMP partners would need to agree that there is 

a scientific opportunity in target validation in a particular disease area with these 

characteristics: the research project would be amenable to a public-private partnership with joint scientific planning and governance; data would be shared broadly 

and not be patented; and industry or research foundations would be willing to commit substantial financial and other support. The Foundation for the NIH has a 

project proposal form on its Web site at http://fnih.org/work/key-initiatives-0/accelerating-medicines-partnership to guide interested parties in developing project proposals for the AMP members to consider, and the AMP partners will also continue 

identifying and exploring their own areas of mutual scientific interest. 

DARPA-LIKE PROGRAM

Question. I am concerned that researchers are now reluctant to take risks because 

of their concern that their research efforts will not be supported. How will NIH’s 

new DARPA-like program address this concern? 

The new DARPA-like Program is funded at $30 million and would support high 

risk, goal-driven activities aimed to achieve rapid technology development. While I 

support this type of research, I am concerned that the funding for the new program 

is coming from another program that supports exceptionally creative scientists proposing innovative and transformative research—High-Risk High-Reward Research. 

The High-Risk High-Reward Research program’s funding is reduced by $21.8 million. If funding ‘‘maverick’’ science is a priority for NIH, why does the budget cut 

one high risk research program’s funding to start a new one? 

The Guardian ran a letter in March from a group of prominent researchers promoting additional funding to support scientific mavericks. The letter stated, ‘‘Agencies claiming to support blue-skies research use peer review, of course, discouraging 

open-ended inquiries and serious challenges to prevailing orthodoxies.’’ In a time 

when budget resources are constrained, how do you balance funding for high-risk 

research projects with peer-reviewed science? 

Answer. Scientific progress often advances by building incrementally upon a 

strong foundation of previous research and preliminary data. However, rapid advances in progress may require approaches that foster innovation and risk taking. 

For certain objectives, where research teams need to be actively managed to achieve 

defined, high-risk goals so that new expertise can be added as initial high-risk attempts fail or as new discoveries are made, the DARPA-like Other Transaction Authority (OTA) provided to the Common Fund can be very helpful. The NIH Common 

Fund’s Stimulating Peripheral Activity to Relieve Conditions (SPARC) program will 

use the OTA to support a high-risk, goal-driven endeavor to develop proof of concept 

for an entirely new class of neural control devices that have the potential to precisely treat a wide variety of diseases and conditions. Neuromodulation to control 

end-organ system function has been recognized as a potentially powerful way to 

treat many diseases and conditions, such as hypertension and heart failure, gastro-
107 

intestinal disorders, diabetes, and inflammatory disorders. However, the mechanisms of action for neuromodulation therapies are poorly understood. The SPARC 

program will support interdisciplinary teams of investigators to deliver neural circuit maps of several organ systems, novel electrode designs, minimally invasive surgical procedures, and stimulation protocols, driven by an end goal to develop new 

neuromodulation therapies. The program is expected to be iterative and dynamic, 

with the novel technologies informing mapping efforts, and mapping results defining 

new technology requirements. Rapid progress in this nascent field requires high levels of innovation and risk taking as well as aggressive project management to 

achieve these ambitious goals and capitalize on the therapeutic promise of this 

emerging research area. 

In addition to the SPARC program, several other initiatives within the Common 

Fund specifically support high-risk research. The High-Risk High-Reward program, 

which includes the Pioneer, New Innovator, Transformative Research, and Early 

Independence Awards, supports exceptionally creative scientists to undertake bold 

and innovative research projects in any scientific area relevant to the NIH mission. 

For these projects, NIH has no pre-defined objective other than to foster innovative, 

exceptionally high-impact research through investigator-initiated projects. Therefore, for these projects, a grant mechanism, rather than the OTA mechanism, is 

most useful. Although Common Fund support for the High-Risk High-Reward program decreases in fiscal year 2015, the successful track record of the High-Risk 

High-Reward program has moved NIH’s Institutes and Centers to increase their 

support of these awards, providing additional funding beyond the Common Fund investment. 

All NIH-supported research, including programs designed to support high-risk research, undergoes a rigorous peer-review process to identify the most scientifically 

meritorious projects. Programs designed to support high-risk research may emphasize different criteria during peer review compared to more traditional grant mechanisms, weighting innovation and potential impact more heavily than feasibility and 

preliminary data. Highly innovative ‘‘blue skies’’ research and peer review are not 

mutually exclusive. Although the specific review processes for SPARC and other 

OTA programs may be different from grant or contract reviews, external input will 

still be sought to help guide the decisionmaking process. 

The question of how to balance funding for high-risk research with research that 

is more grounded by preliminary data is perennial, and the answer varies across 

the NIH as scientific opportunities and challenges vary between fields of research. 

However, risk tolerance is a founding principle of the NIH Common Fund so that 

innovative solutions to the most pressing challenges may be reached. 

CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE AWARDS

Question. How has NCATS implemented the Institute of Medicine’s Clinical and 

Translational Science Awards (CTSA) recommendations and how do you see the program growing over the next several years? 

Answer. In June 2013, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report following 

a review of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) Program. The report recommended that the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 

(NCATS) take a more active role in the program’s governance and direction, formalize the evaluation processes of the program, advance innovation in education 

and training programs, and ensure community engagement in all phases of research. 

NCATS leadership is committed to implementing the recommendations of the 

IOM report. As a first step, NCATS has increased the programmatic and fiscal management of the grants that support this program and streamlined the way the consortium is governed, consulting closely with the CTSA Principal Investigators (PIs). 

For example, we have appointed a new steering committee that includes 12 CTSA 

PIs with staggered terms to replace the previous 90-member group. 

In parallel, NCATS assembled a Working Group of its Advisory Council to provide 

advice on measurable objectives for the CTSA program. The group was tasked with 

developing clear, measurable goals and objectives for the program that address critical issues across the full spectrum of clinical and translational research (i.e. ‘‘what 

does success look like?’’). The Working Group presented its report (http:// 

www.ncats.nih.gov/files/CTSA-IOM-WG-Draft-Report.pdf) at the NCATS Advisory 

Council meeting in May. Its report addressed four of the seven recommendations in 

the IOM report and focused on: (1) translational workforce development, (2) engagement and collaboration with patients and communities, (3) integration of 

translational science across its multiple phases and disciplines within complex populations and across the individual lifespan, and (4) systemic improvements in meth-
108 

ods and processes of translation. The measurable goals and outcomes in this report 

are serving as a guide for NCATS as it moves forward in developing and implementing strategies to strengthen the CTSA program and for measuring progress. 

NCATS recently announced the selection of Petra Kaufmann, M.D., M.Sc., to head 

the NCATS Division of Clinical Innovation, which includes the CTSA program. Dr. 

Kaufmann served as Director of the Office of Clinical Research at NIH’s National 

Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and brings a wealth of expertise across the translational sciences spectrum. 

With the appointment of a permanent Director for the program, the recommendations of the IOM report, and the results of deliberations by the Advisory Council 

and its working group, NCATS is poised to work closely with the CTSA community 

to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the process of translation from scientific discovery through clinical research to improved health outcomes. 

BRAIN RESEARCH THROUGH APPLICATION OF INNOVATIVE NEUROTECHNOLOGIES

Question. We discussed the Brain Research through Application of Innovative 

Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative at last year’s budget hearing. This is an exciting proposal that could revolutionize the field of neuroscience and advance therapies 

for numerous diseases, including Alzheimer’s. The subcommittee provided funding 

for this initiative in fiscal year 2014 and requested a report on the goals, objectives, 

budget, and timeline for the BRAIN Initiative. Could you elaborate on the commitment we are undertaking and provide specific details on what the 10 year budget 

picture may entail? 

Answer. NIH charged a high-level working group of the Advisory Committee to 

the Director (ACD) to develop a rigorous plan for the Initiative that includes scientific milestones and budgetary projections (roster at http://www.nih.gov/science/ 

brain/acd-roster.pdf). This working group comprised visionary leaders across neuroscience disciplines that were expertly positioned to delineate bold, yet achievable, 

multi-year timetables, milestones, and cost estimates. Over the last year, the working group met with the scientific community, patient advocates, and the general 

public to ensure its plan would be sufficiently informed by stakeholder input. 

The working group delivered its final report for consideration by the ACD at its 

June 5–6 meeting. The scientific vision outlined in this report was unanimously supported by the Committee and subsequently endorsed by the NIH Director. In its 

findings, the group emphasized that the NIH efforts on the BRAIN Initiative should 

seek to map the circuits of the brain, measure the fluctuating patterns of electrical 

and chemical activity flowing within those circuits, and understand how their interplay creates our unique cognitive and behavioral capabilities. The following seven 

scientific goals were identified as high priorities for achieving this vision: 

1. Identify and provide experimental access to the different brain cell types 

to determine their roles in health and disease. 

2. Generate circuit diagrams that vary in resolution from synapses to the 

whole brain. 

3. Produce a dynamic picture of the functioning brain by developing and applying improved methods for large-scale monitoring of neural activity. 

4. Link brain activity to behavior with precise interventional tools that 

change neural circuit dynamics. 

5. Produce conceptual foundations for understanding the biological basis of 

mental process through development of new theoretical and data analysis tools. 

6. Develop innovative technologies to understand the human brain and treat 

its disorders; create and support integrated brain research networks. 

7. Integrate new technological and conceptual approaches produces in Goals 

1–6 to discover how dynamic patters of neural activity are transformed into cognition, emotion, perception, and action in health and disease. 

These scientific goals will be maximized through seven core principles: 

1. Pursue human studies and non-human models in parallel. 

2. Cross boundaries in interdisciplinary collaborations. 

3. Integrate spatial and temporal scales. 

4. Establish platforms for preserving and sharing data. 

5. Validate and disseminate technology. 

6. Consider ethical implications of neuroscience research. 

7. Create mechanisms to ensure accountability to NIH, the taxpayer, and the 

community of basic, translational, and clinical neuroscientists. 

The first year of the BRAIN Initiative, fiscal year 2014, was seeded by a $40 million commitment from NIH. The President has requested $100 million in his fiscal 

year 2015 budget for the second year of the Initiative. For the remaining years, the 

working group suggests an investment ramping up to $400 million a year for fiscal 
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years 2016–2020 to focus on technology development and validation. They called for 

$500 million a year for years 2021–2025 to focus increasingly on the application of 

those technologies in an integrated fashion to make fundamental new discoveries 

about the brain. The working group emphasized that its cost estimates, which are 

provisional, assume that the budget for the BRAIN Initiative will supplement—not 

supplant—NIH’s existing investment in the broader spectrum of basic, translational, 

and clinical neuroscience research. 

A full copy of the report can be found at http://www.nih.gov/science/brain/2025/ 

index.htm. 

ALZHEIMER’S FUNDING

Question. Historically, NIH has opposed disease specific funding to allow research, 

not politics, to drive scientific funding decisions. However, this appears to cause a 

chicken and egg scenario. It is difficult for scientists to propose Alzheimer’s research 

when there is not a robust funding stream to support their work, yet there is not 

a robust funding stream because scientists may not be proposing Alzheimer’s research projects. So which comes first? The dedicated funding stream or the research 

ideas? 

Answer. NIH develops targeted funding initiatives to address areas of scientific 

need and opportunity as identified by program staff in consultation with experts in 

the scientific community. The resulting initiatives are strategically deployed to 

make every dollar count by establishing priorities, setting goals that are both ambitious and realistic, and identifying the most promising opportunities for progress 

through careful planning, coordination, and resource allocation. 

Although these targeted initiatives have enabled us to support a number of 

groundbreaking projects, it is important to note that the bulk of NIH’s funding, in 

Alzheimer’s disease and elsewhere, goes to investigator-initiated proposals—that is, 

proposals that are not developed in response to a specific funding initiative. For example, in fiscal year 2013, fewer than 10 percent of NIH’s Alzheimer’s-related research project grants were awarded under an Alzheimer’s-specific funding opportunity announcement (FOA). The majority of Alzheimer’s-related studies were either 

awarded under a more general neuroscience-focused FOA or an FOA in a related 

area, or were truly investigator-initiated studies reflecting the creativity and innovation of researchers seeking to build on scientific advances or offering new ways 

of thinking about the disease. 

The importance of Alzheimer’s disease research within the overall NIH research 

portfolio continues to be reflected in our strategic planning process and scientific 

funding initiatives. Our Alzheimer’s-related funding opportunity announcements 

(FOAs) are carefully developed to advance the field consistent with the priorities established under the National Action Plan for Alzheimer’s Disease and the 2012 Alzheimer’s Disease Research Summit. In addition, in the past 5 years NIH has released over 40 FOAs directly relevant to Alzheimer’s, and the response to each of 

these has been robust. In fact, each year we receive many more applications for 

meritorious research in Alzheimer’s disease than we are able to fund. 

Question. How do you prioritize funding for a disease when you know, as in the 

case of Alzheimer’s disease, that the disease burden is only going to increase over 

the next 20 years? 

Answer. Priority-setting processes at both the NIH and individual Institute levels 

are designed to maintain a balance among a wide array of diverse and compelling 

priorities, based on close monitoring of the scientific and medical landscapes by expert program staff and outside advisors. This enables us to use our funds efficiently 

and effectively in order to have the optimal impact both on the scientific field and 

on the public health. Alzheimer’s disease is one such high-priority research area. 

Our planning, priority-setting, and funding initiatives fully take into account the 

projected increase in disease burden in this area. 

The NIH Director is responsible for program coordination across the NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs) and for ensuring a balanced overall research portfolio. In 

turn, each IC has a process for establishing research and funding priorities based 

on its specific mission and the long-term research goals articulated within relevant 

strategic plans. These priorities are reflected in the ICs’ plans to distribute resources. 

To ensure that these priorities are harmonized with the wider NIH mission, the 

NIH Director provides centralized coordination and communication across NIH. 

During biweekly meetings with the IC Directors, the NIH Director considers the entire biomedical research landscape and discusses with his colleagues ways that NIH 

can be most effective with its investments. They hear from innovative scientists 
110 

about cutting-edge results and deliberate potential new initiatives that could significantly advance the science in a particular field. 

NIH receives input from many sources when setting research and funding priorities for Alzheimer’s. In addition to scientific workshops, international conferences, 

and other interactions with the scientific community, these sources include the National Advisory Council on Aging and the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, 

Care, and Services, established under the 2011 National Alzheimer’s Project Act. In 

addition, input from the 2012 Alzheimer’s Disease Research Summit and the 2013 

workshop on Alzheimer’s Disease-Related Dementias has been instrumental in facilitating the development of our Alzheimer’s research agenda. 

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY SENATOR THAD COCHRAN

JACKSON HEART STUDY

Question. Dr. Collins, the Jackson Heart Study, located in Jackson, Mississippi, 

is the largest-ever investigation of cardiovascular disease in African Americans. In 

the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s congressional budget justification for 

this year, one of your focuses is on preventing and pre-empting chronic heart, lung, 

blood and sleep disorders. Can you tell me how the Jackson Heart Study’s recent 

collaboration with the Framingham Heart Study can be leveraged to specifically address this particular theme? 

Answer. Since it began in 1998, the Jackson Heart Study (JHS) has provided extensive information on the causes of cardiovascular disease in African Americans. 

JHS is also one of the largest studies of the genetic factors that affect high blood 

pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other diseases that disproportionately 

affect African Americans. A recent JHS-related paper, for example, showed that the 

gene APOL1, which is known to contribute to chronic kidney disease, was found to 

also increase risk of cardiovascular disease in African Americans. Genetic analyses 

such as this provide promise for targeted therapies that can pre-empt disease. In 

August 2013, NHLBI contracts supporting the JHS were renewed for another 5 

years. 

A new collaborative research relationship has been established between the American Heart Association (AHA) and the University of Mississippi and Boston University, the academic coordinating center homes of the JHS and Framingham Heart 

study (FHS), respectively. The AHA-led study, called the Cardiovascular Genome 

Phenome Study (CVGPS), will expand upon the research taking place within the 

Framingham and Jackson Heart studies by investing in parallel genomic and genetic analyses among other research subjects, expanding diversity and enhancing 

new approaches to find more ‘‘personalized’’ treatment and prevention interventions 

that could pre-empt chronic cardiovascular disease and other conditions. The 

CVGPS will also seek to make new data available for analysis by qualified investigators. 

More generally, NHLBI is taking the necessary steps to transform its epidemiology research efforts in a way that builds on emerging scientific tools and data 

platforms. NHLBI has established an Advisory Council Working Group on Epidemiology Research to strategically examine how to maximize the potential of our epidemiological studies by joining complementary data across cohorts such as the FHS 

and the JHS for new scientific investigations. Leveraging our available resources, 

through strategic partnerships and collaborations, offers the best hope to address 

critical needs that will not only improve treatment but also change the course of 

disease before irreversible consequences occur. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS

Question. The fiscal year 2015 budget request, once again, proposes a reorganization of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. While 

the STEM proposal kept the Science Education Partnership Awards program at 

NIH, the budget proposes to eliminate four other STEM initiatives throughout the 

agency. What metrics were used to decide these programs should be eliminated? 

Answer. The President’s budget for fiscal year 2015 proposes a reorganization of 

all Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education 

programs. Consistent with the Government-wide STEM reorganization, NIH decided 

to phase out four of its smaller STEM programs and notified grantees of the discontinuation of future new STEM programs supported by the National Institute on 
111 

Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Institute of Environmental Health Science 

(NIEHS), the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), and 

the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). This decision to 

discontinue or eliminate these programs follows the recommendations of the Federal 

STEM Education 5-Year Strategic Plan (Appendix Table A6: STEM Education 

Funding in Millions by Agency, page 98). Consistent with the report language accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014 (Public Law 113–76), NIH 

is continuing support of the Science Education Partnership Award program and the 

Office of Science Education. 

CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE AWARDS

Question. Dr. Austin, can you tell me how the Clinical and Translational Science 

Awards (CTSA) program is helping underserved populations, for example in my 

home state of Alabama, and in other underserved states in the Deep South? 

Answer. The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) CTSA began a new 

program in 2010 called, ‘‘The Deep South Network for Translational Research 

(DSNTR).’’ It involves the UAB CTSA as the organizing hub, with participation of 

other institutions in the Deep South that do not have a CTSA including, Louisiana 

State University, Tulane University, Tuskegee University, University of AlabamaTuscaloosa, University of South Alabama, and University of Mississippi Medical 

Center. It makes the sophisticated research capabilities of UAB available to investigators at these other institutions for use in multi-institutional collaborative research projects, especially those that focus on underserved populations. Further, in 

collaboration with Alabama’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the UAB 

CTSA has built an extensive network for training the next generation of health disparities researchers. 

The University of Arkansas Translational Research Institute (TRI) aims to translate successful healthcare research projects directly to patient care delivery regardless of where they live. The TRI partners with key community organizations across 

the state to facilitate research contacts and clinical care connections among rural 

and medically underserved populations. The TRI has leveraged and built upon Arkansas’ statewide telemedicine program, in particular the Antenatal and Neonatal 

Guidelines, Education, and Learning System (ANGELS) program, which links obstetricians across the state to UAMS maternal-fetal medicine specialists. Its partnership with the Tri-County Rural Health Network has connected elderly and adult 

disabled citizens with home and community-based services as alternatives to nursing homes. Finally, a nascent partnership with the Philips County Faith Task Force 

has enabled development of a community-based program for rural veterans in Jefferson County to build capacity to conduct participatory research. The project’s overarching goal is to establish a community-linked infrastructure that will increase minority participation in translational research intended to reduce racial and ethnic 

health disparities. 

At the Atlanta CTSA, experts in community engagement seek out community 

healthcaregivers that can articulate the heath needs of the local population, especially those who face disproportionately higher health risks. The Atlanta CTSA includes Emory University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and the Morehouse 

School of Medicine, which is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of individuals and communities with emphasis on the underserved urban and rural populations in Georgia. Morehouse provides leadership in developing programs that 

specifically address healthcare needs in the Atlanta region. Examples include ‘‘eHealthy Strides,’’ which partnered with Big Bethel AME Church to collect health 

data and transmit it to the parishioners’ physicians; ‘‘i-Adapt,’’ a program designed 

to provide instruction and motivation to people with diabetes to facilitate self-care; 

and EPICS (Educational Program to Increase Colorectal Cancer Screening), a program aimed at teaching primary healthcare teams about screening more effectively 

for colorectal cancer. 

ACCELERATING MEDICINES PARTNERSHIP

Question. Under the new Accelerating Medicines Partnership program, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus will receive $41.6 million in research funding over 5 

years, with about half of this funding coming from the NIH and half from pharmaceutical companies. I am concerned that the funding for lupus is not new NIH 

funds, but redirected funding from current research projects. Are you concerned that 

AMP is taking away from current lupus research resources as opposed to allocating 

additional resources towards lupus? 

Will data generated as a result of the Accelerated Medicines Partnership be available to other scientists studying these diseases? 
112 

What other diseases and conditions will this program be supporting in the future? 

Answer. The Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP) is a unique type of publicprivate partnership of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug 

Administration (FDA), nonprofit organizations, and biopharmaceutical companies. 

AMP is supporting research focused on identifying and validating biological targets 

for new therapeutics, a process called target validation. AMP was just launched in 

February, and as noted, is beginning with three specific pilot projects, including a 

rheumatoid arthritis and lupus project. 

The AMP program offers an exceptional opportunity to leverage NIH investments 

in lupus research with substantial funds and intellectual support from industry and 

non-profit organizations. Recognizing the need and opportunity, NIH, after consulting with the research community, released two Requests for Applications (RFAs) 

to implement the AMP program in lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. The RFAs will 

not take money away from existing lupus projects. We expect that a number of researchers studying lupus will apply and be funded through the AMP. 

Because a major goal of the AMP is to generate pre-competitive, disease-specific 

data that will be accessible to the broad biomedical community, the program will 

also facilitate research by lupus investigators not funded through the AMP. AMP 

partners have also agreed that the research findings should not be patented. 

The AMP partners intend to consider other project ideas later this year. As in the 

selection of the pilot projects, the AMP partners would need to agree that there is 

a scientific opportunity in target validation in a particular disease area with these 

characteristics: the research project would be amenable to a public-private partnership with joint scientific planning and governance; data would be shared broadly 

and not be patented; and industry or research foundations would be willing to commit substantial financial and other support. The Foundation for the NIH has a 

project proposal form on its Web site at http://fnih.org/work/key-initiatives-0/accelerating-medicines-partnership to guide interested parties in developing project proposals for the AMP members to consider, and the AMP partners will also continue 

identifying and exploring their own areas of mutual scientific interest. 

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM

BREAST CANCER SCREENING

Question. From 1990 to 2010, deaths from breast cancer decreased by 34 percent. 

However, in 2013, 230,000 new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in the United 

States and almost 40,000 women died from breast cancer. 

Recent news coverage has focused on studies that called into question the value 

of screening for breast cancers. Although the majority of scientific studies have corroborated the value of early detection of breast cancers through screening, these recent articles have created a less clear picture of the benefits of screening and may 

lead women to avoid periodic mammography, an experience some women already 

view as uncomfortable. 

Given these current controversies, do you think the NCI should undertake a new 

study to clarify the benefits of screening so that women and their doctors will have 

a better idea of how breast cancer screening should fit into a woman’s overall preventative health program? 

Answer. We are aware of the growing concerns about the balance of benefits and 

harms associated with screening mammography. Some of these concerns have recently been outlined by the Swiss Medical Board in its recommendation to end the 

national Swiss breast cancer screening program (Reference: Biller-Andorno N and 

Juni P: N Engl J Med 2014;3760:1965–1967). The concerns fall into two categories. 

First, the reduction in cancer mortality by early detection of breast cancer using 

mammography may decline as more effective adjuvant chemotherapy has been developed for treatment of early- and mid-stages of breast cancer. (Much of this unequivocal progress in treatment came from NCI-sponsored randomized trials of adjuvant therapy.) Nearly all of the randomized trials testing the efficacy of mammography were conducted decades ago, in the pre-adjuvant therapy era. A recently reported and widely publicized Canadian trial started early in the era of adjuvant 

therapy and showed no reduction in breast cancer mortality associated with mammography screening as opposed to screening by physical examination (Reference: 

Miller AB, et al.: BMJ 2014; doi: 10.1136/bmj.g366). Second, new evidence of harms 

associated with mammography has emerged in recent years, particularly one known 

as overdiagnosis—the detection of non-life threatening tumors that caused anxiety 

and were treated with measures that carry risks, such as surgery, radiation, and 

chemotherapy (Reviewed in: Pace LE and Keating NL: JAMA 2014;311:1327–1335). 
113 

The emerging evidence has led to calls for additional studies in the current modern era of breast cancer therapy that would clarify the balance of benefits and 

harms of breast cancer screening. The ideal or ‘‘gold standard’’ test would be a large 

randomized trial comparing screening mammography to a control group that does 

not receive screening mammography, but such a study would not be feasible in the 

United States. National surveys show that a large proportion of American women 

continue to get routine screening mammography, with no change in usage after the 

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force issued its recommendations against routine 

screening for women ages 40–49 and for spacing mammography for women age 50– 

74 from annually to every 2 years (Reference: Pace LE, et al.: Cancer 

2013;119:2518–2523). Given current practice, a true control group for an optimally 

informative ‘‘gold standard’’ trial appears to be impossible. 

Therefore, NCI is actively funding and planning other types of studies to learn 

more about the benefits and harms of breast cancer screening, and to try to maximize any benefits while limiting the harms. First, NCI is taking several approaches 

to improve on the benefits of mammography as currently practiced. NCI funds a 

multi-institutional Breast Cancer Screening Consortium, a collaborative network of 

seven research registries designed to track outcomes of screening mammography in 

the community, including recall and biopsy rates, and tumor stages at diagnosis. A 

goal is to explore ways to achieve optimal and reproducible mammography reading 

in the community. A recently developed inter-divisional NCI request for applications 

(RFA) will focus on studying the process of screening and subsequent therapy, with 

a focus on overdiagnosis, which, as noted above, often leads to inappropriate and 

potentially harmful treatment. This project will compare tumor biology and clinical 

aggressiveness with the method of detection, including breast imaging, and with the 

criteria used for diagnosis. The research aims to identify ways to ensure timely follow-up of abnormal findings and institution of effective therapy when necessary. 

Additionally, in an effort to minimize the harms of overdiagnosis, several other 

methods for screening are under investigation. The Early Detection Research Network (EDRN) is studying new methods to identify the molecular ‘‘fingerprints’’ of 

screen-detected tumors with little lethal potential, so that more patients can be followed without institution of unnecessary aggressive treatments. A funding opportunity announcement (FOA) for a consortium of multidisciplinary scientists specifically focused on identification of early screen-detected ‘‘non-progressor’’ lesions that 

can be safely followed is under consideration, with breast cancer as one of the four 

primary areas of emphasis of the proposed consortium. 

A related research area involves the study of other imaging modalities to detect 

breast cancer. The balance of benefits and harms of breast MRI in the general population is not known, so it is not usually considered to be suited to general screening. 

However, some experts have recommended it as an adjunct screening tool for 

women at extremely high risk of breast cancer, such as women who have high-risk 

inherited mutations of their BRCA 1 or 2 genes, a history of ionizing radiation treatments to the chest (administered to treat other malignancies), or a family history 

of breast cancer. The screening recommendations for these women include both an 

annual mammogram and MRI for the BRCA mutation carriers and an optional MRI 

or ultrasound for the rest. (An update on breast cancer screening and prevention. 

Cruz MS, Sarfaty M and Wender RC; Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice Vol. 

41, Issue 2, June 2014, Pages 283–306.). 

FDA has approved digital breast tomosynthesis or 3–D mammography devices, 

which use low dose x-rays for breast cancer screening but experts do not agree on 

its clinical use. A few small studies have shown that adding digital breast 

tomosynthesis to standard mammography screening may result in a significant reduction in patients being recalled for additional testing compared to routine screening mammography alone, but more research is needed. NCI is considering potential 

studies to see if breast tomosynthesis can improve sensitivity and lower recall rates. 

SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much. 

[Whereupon, at 11:55 a.m., Wednesday, April 2, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of the 

Chair.] 

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DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND 

RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014 

U.S. SENATE, 

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

The subcommittee met at 10:06 a.m., in room SD–192, Dirksen 

Senate Office Building, Hon. Tom Harkin (chairman) presiding. 

Present: Senators Harkin, Merkley, Moran, Alexander, and 

Johanns. 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS E. PEREZ, SECRETARY 

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR TOM HARKIN

Senator HARKIN. The Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, 

Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies will 

come to order. 

Today, we welcome to our subcommittee our Secretary of Labor, 

Secretary Tom Perez. 

Again, I want to thank you, Mr. Secretary, for joining me in Iowa 

this past weekend. We had an interesting visit with the Job Corps 

Center in Ottumwa, one of the newer Job Corps Centers. It is kind 

of unique in how it is combined with the community college. It is 

one of those new setups, and it is working out really well. So I appreciate you coming out and looking at that, Mr. Secretary. 

I also want to say your commitment to working Americans is reflected in the subject we will discuss today, and that is the President’s budget for fiscal year 2015 for the Department of Labor 

(DOL). 

This budget proposes critical investments that will equip Americans with the skills they need for today’s jobs, something I know 

that you have been a great leader on. 

It recommends also increased funding to ensure that working 

Americans are paid what they have earned and not denied benefits 

to which they are entitled. 

As the Secretary knows, there are some tough choices to be made 

in our nondefense discretionary spending cap. The fiscal year 2015 
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spending cap is roughly the same as for the current fiscal year. It 

is tough. It is not draconian, but it is tough. 

Again, I hope that we can continue on with that budget, rather 

than the budget set forth by the Budget Committee in the House, 

which would cut nondefense discretionary spending by $43 billion, 

or 9 percent, in fiscal year 2016. That would make it very, very 

tough on this subcommittee to do its job, and for you, I think, to 

do your job, if we were to have that kind of a huge cut in 1 year. 

Now, I won’t be in the Senate for the fiscal year 2016 appropriations process, but I think we can and must do better than to just 

continue to disinvest in programs critical to working families. 

I might, just at the outset, say I think one of the good places to 

start would be to replace the sequester. I have advocated for a long 

time just get rid of the darn thing, get it over with, and move on. 

I am also pleased to see several proposals in the department’s 

budget request that address important priorities for working families, increases for protecting the rights of workers to take family 

and medical leave, ensuring that workers are paid what they have 

earned, enhancing oversight of the subminimum-wage program for 

workers with disabilities. I will have a question about that. 

These are important investments that build on key accomplishments of this department and this subcommittee. 

For example, the department’s Wage and Hour Division has returned over $1 billion. Think about that. The Wage and Hour Division has returned over $1 billion in wages to more than 1.2 million 

workers who have earned it, but had not been paid. This includes 

over 100,000 workers who had not been paid the minimum wage 

for all of the hours that they had worked. 

The budget also continues to invest in key employment and 

training activities, including increased funding to build on the success of the Reemployment and Eligibility Assessments (REAs) program. Since 2005, this subcommittee has provided more than $400 

million for this activity. 

Research shows that REAs can help connect unemployment insurance beneficiaries with jobs faster. The budget request would 

expand and enhance services to help prevent these workers from 

joining the ranks of the long-term unemployed. I look forward to 

hearing more about this. Again, this is something that has endured 

through both Republican and Democratic administrations. 

So again, Secretary Perez, I want to thank you for your dynamic 

leadership of the Department of Labor and for being here today to 

discuss how the budget impacts American workers and what we 

can do to assist them in helping strengthen the middle class in 

America. 

And with that, I will turn to Senator Moran for his opening 

statement. 

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JERRY MORAN

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you. 

Mr. Secretary, it was a pleasure to meet you this morning and 

I look forward to developing a good working relationship with you 

and your department. And we would welcome you to visit Kansas 

so that I can have stories to tell like the chairman does. Thank you 

very much. 
117 

We all know we have a struggling economy and unemployment 

remains way too high. And my concern is that the administration’s 

budget is not prioritizing employment and training programs that 

put Americans back to work. 

The unemployment national rate is 6.7 percent, and the fiscal 

year 2015 budget request provides virtually level funding for Workforce Investment Act programs, which are the cornerstone of our 

Nation’s employment training. 

There have been significant increases during this administration’s time in office that fund regulatory aspects of the Department 

of Labor, such as OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) and mine safety, and the Wage and Hour Division. 

But in looking at those numbers, there is a stark contrast to employment and training programs, which have decreased by 10 percent. And I just want to emphasize that, for getting Americans 

back to work, we will be looking toward employment and training 

programs to help accomplish that goal, and that too often it seems 

to me that the regulations are part of the problem in creating job 

opportunities for Americans. 

It seems to me that really since 2010, the primary function and 

responsibility of Congress and the President is to put together an 

effort to create an environment in which more jobs are created, 

which Americans feel more secure and safe in their jobs and have 

a sense that they have an opportunity for economic mobility. And 

we want to make certain that the focus is on training and job creation, to begin with, and then training people to meet those jobs 

and their qualifications. 

A couple things that have happened in the last few months that 

I would like to highlight, and we can visit about during the questions, is the President’s executive order directing the Department 

of Labor to redefine and expand current overtime regulations. I am 

worried that this move could drastically increase Labor costs and 

uncertainty for employers as well as employees. 

And also, it seems to me you have taken some steps to address 

this issue, and I am interested in hearing about it, the regulatory 

action that OSHA took against a Nebraska farm that has a consequence that is based upon, perhaps, a redefinition of what a farm 

is, as exempted under those labor laws. 

Again, 5 years of high unemployment, it seems to me that we 

have to focus on finding ways to work with employers to create a 

safe environment without creating penalties and fines and uncertainty. And I look forward to hearing your thoughts about the role 

of those regulators in that regard. 

Again, I look forward to working with you as we try to find ways 

to make certain that Americans feel safe and secure, have greater 

job opportunities, and can advance to the benefit of themselves and 

their families. 

Thank you for your presence today. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Moran. 

It is my honor to welcome Secretary Perez to his first appearance 

before this subcommittee. 

Secretary Perez became the 26th Secretary of Labor on July 23, 

2013. Secretary Perez has experience serving in all levels of government, both at the county level, in Montgomery County nearby, 
118 

also at the State level as the Secretary of Maryland’s Department 

of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation. He was a member of the 

Montgomery County Council. And then at the Federal level, Secretary Perez served as a career attorney at the Department of Justice, as well as the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil 

Rights in the Clinton administration. And just before this appointment, he was Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, again, 

at the Department of Justice. 

And again, the most important part of Secretary Perez’s entire 

career was when he worked for this committee—no, on the HELP 

(Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions) Committee, not this committee. I always get confused which committee I am chairing here. 

On the HELP Committee. 

So, Secretary Perez, thank you very much for your lifetime of devotion to public service and for your stewardship now at the Department of Labor. Your statement will be made a part of the 

record in its entirety, and please proceed as you so desire. 

SUMMARY STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS E. PEREZ

Secretary PEREZ. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you, 

Senator Moran. It has been an honor to meet you, and I look forward to sitting down with you. 

Senator Alexander, it is great to see you again. 

Senator Harkin, Mr. Chairman, thank you for the visit last 

weekend to Iowa. And much more importantly, thank you for your 

service. 

As I said to the kids at the Job Corps Center, they have a Senator who has done great service to Iowa, has done a great service 

to America, and has done great service to vulnerable people around 

the world. And we will miss you dearly. 

Your common decency is one thing that I will always take away 

from you, and my experience being mentored by you. So thank you 

for everything that you have done for so many people. 

We also have a retirement. This woman to my right, Teri 

Bergman, has been around. This is her last approps cycle before 

she enters retirement; she refuses to allow me to tell you how 

many years of service. So I will just say she has been here awhile 

as well, and I want to thank Teri for her service. 

Senator HARKIN. She is smiling. 

Secretary PEREZ. She is smiling. I asked if she was happy or sad 

today, and she said probably happier than sad. But we have valued 

from her service. You all know that you are only as good as your 

staff, and we have a great staff at the Department of Labor. We 

are going to miss Teri. 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET

The budget that we present today, like any other, is more than 

a compilation of dollar figures; it is an expression of our values. 

The Labor Department’s values include helping people acquire the 

skills they need to succeed in the jobs of today and tomorrow, helping employers to get those skilled workers so they can grow their 

business; ensuring nondiscrimination in the workplace; making 

sure hard work is rewarded with a fair wage; and enhancing our 
119 

enforcement capacity to protect workers’ wages, benefits, and safety on the job. 

Our budget calls for the funding necessary to make meaningful 

progress toward these goals, and I would like to take a few minutes 

to highlight some of the key items. 

We continue our investment in training and employment services 

to more than 20 million Americans at our 2,500-plus American job 

centers nationwide. 

At the height of the recession, these centers were the Nation’s 

emergency room for jobseekers, administering the critical care necessary to restore economic health and get people back to work. 

The American Job Centers are resources for businesses as well. 

During the State of the Union, the President singled out Andra 

Rush, a small-business woman from Detroit. Her manufacturing 

firm is thriving because she found roughly 700 of her workers 

through the local American Jobs Center. We effectively served as 

her human resources department. I often like to think of the Department of Labor as playing a Match.com kind of role, helping 

workers and employers find the right fit. And in that case, we were 

able to find the right fit for over 700 people who are now thriving 

and have punched their ticket to the middle class. 

REVIEW OF THE NATION’S TRAINING PROGRAMS

During my 8 months on the job, I have spent a lot of time speaking to dozens of business leaders and CEOs (chief executive officers). And to a person, they are bullish about the future. 

They also tell me that in order to grow and expand, they need 

a steady pipeline of skilled workers. So we need to build on our 

success, and we need to fix what is in need of being fixed. 

And that is why the President has tasked Vice President Biden 

with conducting a review of our Nation’s training programs. I was 

with the Vice President recently, in New Hampshire, as part of this 

initiative. 

This review will be guided by the principle of job driven workforce investment. The goals of this effort are, number one, expanding employer engagement and ensure that our system is truly demand driven. If you are going to create jobs, you have to talk to 

the job creators. No more train and pray. We are not going to train 

widget makers if no one is hiring widget makers. We learn who is 

hiring for what by making sure we expand and sustain our employer engagement. 

Number two, making it easier for people to acquire those in-demand skills necessary to punch their ticket to the middle class. 

Number three, spurring innovation at all levels of the workforce 

system. 

Number four, promoting what works in the workforce settings 

and fixing what isn’t working. 

And number five, growing and transforming registered apprenticeship programs to meet the increasing and exciting needs. 

I have had the good fortune of working on these issues at the 

local, State, and Federal level. In my experience, these issues have 

never been partisan issues. They don’t need to be partisan issues. 

Senator Moran, I listened to what you said very carefully, and 

I would love to have a conversation with you, not only today, but 
120 

in the weeks and months ahead, about how we can work together 

in a bipartisan fashion on the critical issue of making sure people 

have the skills to succeed. 

Our Opportunity, Growth, and Security Fund addresses many of 

the training concerns that you have brought to our attention here 

today. 

COMBATING LONG-TERM UNEMPLOYMENT

One of the most vexing challenges we are confronting is the 

plight of the long-term unemployed. Frankly, having met so many 

long-term unemployed, it is probably the one issue on my plate 

that keeps me up at night more than anything, because they keep 

telling me how hard they are working, in terms of looking for work. 

I had a guy in Cleveland last week who said to me, ‘‘I have got 

no quit in me.’’ When someone says that to you, and looks you in 

the eye, you are not going to quit on them. I had another person 

in New Jersey who said, ‘‘I fought and licked cancer. Fighting cancer was far easier than fighting long-term unemployment.’’ 

So, I applaud the efforts in the Senate and the passage of the bipartisan bill on Monday. I hope the House follows suit. 

Unemployment benefits like this, while very important, certainly, 

aren’t the end of the story. We need to work together on ways to 

get people back on the job and back in the workforce. 

Toward that end, I am very excited about the $158 million request for an enhanced, integrated, and expanded Reemployment 

and Eligibility Assessment and Reemployment Services program, 

which will use an evidence-based approach to help long-term unemployed workers and returning veterans find work faster. 

We also request $15 million in grants to support sector strategies, helping the long-term unemployed, and other targeted populations, receive the training or other services they need for careers 

in these areas. These recommendations are built on a growing understanding of what works. You can be assured that the budget assumes that we are incorporating rigorous evaluations in everything 

we do. 

We are measuring what we are doing to make sure it works. If 

it doesn’t work, we either fix it, or we don’t do it anymore. 

I hope we can work together to invest in these and other programs that have a demonstrated record of effectiveness in helping 

people get back on their feet. 

OPPORTUNITY, GROWTH, AND SECURITY INITIATIVE

Although it is not before the committee, the President’s 2015 

budget also sets forth an Opportunity, Growth, and Security initiative that includes a robust investment in our community colleges, 

one-third of which would be used to promote greater use of apprenticeships, a proven workforce development strategy that is still undervalued in the United States. 

We really need to change the national mindset on apprenticeships. A 4-year college degree is the right choice for so many people, but it isn’t the only way to punch your ticket to the middle 

class. So, we need to let young people and their parents know that 

there is a bright future in America for people who want to work 
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with their hands. Training and skills development is just one piece, 

an important piece, of the Labor Department’s work. 

PROTECTING EMPLOYEE WAGES, SAFETY, AND RETIREMENT SECURITY

As I have said before, we play a critical role in making sure that 

Americans get paid the wages they are due, that they are safe on 

the job, and that their benefits are secure. 

Our budget includes an increase of almost $30 million for the 

Wage and Hour Division to cover the cost of hiring new investigators. These resources will be used to ensure that people who work 

get paid a fair wage, and that employers who play by the rules 

aren’t undercut by those who don’t. No worker should have to sacrifice their life for their livelihood. 

So the 2015 budget calls for substantial investments in the ability of OSHA and its State partners to keep workers safe. 

To safeguard the retirement of American workers, we also request $188 million to protect more than 141 million people covered 

by the benefits plans together, which hold over $7 trillion in assets. 

Mr. Chairman, we have come a long way since the depths of the 

great recession. The private sector has now created roughly 9 million jobs over the past 49 months of consecutive private sector job 

growth. The economy is moving in the right direction, but there is 

no doubt that we need to pick up the pace. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

We need to do more. We need to invest in more skills for workers 

so they can get back on their feet. And the Labor Department 

stands ready to play a critical role in creating and expanding that 

opportunity. 

And with that opening statement, I look forward to hearing your 

questions and responding. Thank you very much, and thank you 

for your leadership. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS E. PEREZ

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran and members of the subcommittee, 

thank you for the invitation to testify today. I appreciate the opportunity to appear 

before you to discuss the fiscal year 2015 budget request for the Department of 

Labor. 

President Obama’s 2015 budget builds on his vision of opportunity for all Americans of which he spoke in January in the State of the Union address. The President’s budget sets forth concrete, practical investments and proposals to achieve his 

vision by growing the economy, strengthening the middle-class, and empowering all 

those hoping to join the ranks of the middle-class. It is an agenda of opportunity, 

action, and optimism. It is the agenda for our work at the Department of Labor over 

the next 3 years. 

The core principle is as American as they come—if you work hard and play by 

the rules, you should have the opportunity to succeed. In America, your ability to 

get ahead should be determined by hard work and personal responsibility—not by 

the circumstances of your birth. 

Making good on the promise of opportunity has always been central to the Labor 

Department’s mission to help create jobs and build a stronger middle class, to invest 

in human capital to build a skills infrastructure that supports business growth, to 

give every American the chance to retire with dignity and a measure of economic 

security, to promote a fair wage and safe working conditions, to help our Nation’s 

veterans find a place in the civilian economy, and to help historically marginalized 

populations, like immigrant communities and people with disabilities, move into the 

economic mainstream. But now, more than ever, as the President’s agenda is our 
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agenda, working to fulfill the promise of opportunity is fundamental to what we do, 

and the budget proposal would provide the investments necessary to enable us to 

help fulfill the promise. 

We have come a long way since the depths of the Great Recession. We have seen 

48 consecutive months of private sector job growth, which has added 8.7 million 

jobs, and the unemployment rate has reached its lowest point in over 5 years. Moreover, our manufacturing sector is experiencing the largest and most consistent 

growth since the mid-1990s. Over 600,000 manufacturing jobs have been added 

since February 2010. We have cut our deficits by more than half to their lowest 

share of GDP since before President Obama took office. 

By those measures, we are well on our way to a full recovery. But the statistics 

do not tell the whole story as economic growth is still hamstrung by stubbornly high 

unemployment. They are cold comfort to the underemployed construction worker 

who continues to be laid off in between sporadic jobs. They do not encourage the 

factory worker whose application never gets a second look after the human resources department sees she has been unemployed for 6 months; or the waitress or 

bank teller who works full-time but must depend on public assistance to feed her 

family. They do not help the country’s youth for whom so much depends on that 

critical first job. So while we have come a long way, much work remains. 

The President’s budget outlines a comprehensive agenda to make America a magnet for middle class jobs and business investment. Equipping workers with the skills 

they need and for which employers are hiring is not just a workforce development 

issue, it is an economic development issue. No matter what your political party, we 

can all agree on one thing: good jobs and low unemployment are good for the country. As part of the effort to achieve this shared goal, the President is acting on a 

set of specific, concrete proposals that will make sure American workers have the 

skills they need for in-demand jobs of today and the jobs of tomorrow. These initiatives will allow industry to identify the skills and credentials required for jobs they 

are seeking to fill now and tomorrow; give workers and job seekers access to education and training that meets those needs; and provide employers with easy ways 

to find workers who have or can acquire those skills. Some of these proposals will 

require new legislation while others can be done within existing program authorities. I am eager to work with all who are willing to roll up their sleeves with me 

to enact these critical programs. 

The President’s budget also supports the extension of emergency unemployment 

benefits for the long-term unemployed. If not extended, 3.6 million additional people 

are estimated to lose access to extended UI benefits by the end of 2014, despite remaining unemployed and looking for work. 

As I will explain, the President’s budget request creates opportunity for all Americans while continuing long term deficit reduction through: 

—Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative. 

—Investing in a Competitive Workforce. 

—Protecting American Workers and their Income and Retirement Security. 

OPPORTUNITY, GROWTH AND SECURITY INITIATIVE

While the 2015 budget will adhere to the spending levels agreed to in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 and reflect the tradeoffs that are required to maintain 

those levels of spending, the budget also presents the President’s vision for an economy that promotes opportunity for all Americans. As part of this vision, the budget 

sets forth a fully paid for Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative (OGSI), 

which will include additional policies to grow the economy and create jobs without 

adding a dime to the deficit. The OGSI would increase the fiscal year 2015 discretionary caps to make room for priority defense and nondefense investments, paying 

for $56 billion in funding with a balanced package of spending reforms and closed 

tax loopholes. It will increase employment, while achieving important economic outcomes in education, research, manufacturing and public health and safety. Although 

not included in our budget totals before the Committee, the OGSI envisions a significant role for the Department. At DOL, the OGSI includes: 

—Community College Job-Driven Training Fund.—The OGSI includes $1.5 billion 

per year to support a 4-year investment in a Community College Job-Driven 

Training Fund that will offer competitive grants to partnerships of community 

colleges and other entities to reform curricula and launch new training programs. Of this amount, $500 million per year will go toward a dedicated apprenticeship training fund to provide grants to States and regional consortia to 

work with employers to create new apprenticeships and increase participation 

in existing apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeship is a strategy that we know 

works to provide good jobs and paths to the middle class. This 4-year invest-
123 

ment will support doubling the number of high quality, registered apprenticeships in America over the next 5 years. 

—Supporting and Improving Training and Employment Services.—The Initiative 

would provide $750 million to fully restore prior cuts in job training and employment services, invest more intensively in innovation, and target resources 

to populations that face significant barriers to employment. 

—State Paid Leave.—The OGSI also proposes an additional $100 million for the 

State Paid Leave Fund to support States that wish to establish paid leave programs. Currently, only California, New Jersey, and Rhode Island offer such programs, which they call family leave insurance. More States should have the 

chance to follow this example. 

INVESTING IN A COMPETITIVE WORKFORCE

To continue the economic recovery, the 2015 budget proposes a set of initiatives 

that would reduce long-term unemployment and hasten reemployment including the 

New Career Pathways program (formerly the Universal Displaced Workers initiative), reemployment services and eligibility assessments and services, and the threepronged Job-Driven Training legislative proposal comprising the following programs: 

Bridge to Work; Back to Work Partnerships; and Summer Jobs Plus. 

—New Career Pathways.—The 2015 budget proposes mandatory funding for a 

New Career Pathways (NCP) program that will provide workers with a set of 

core services by combining the best features of both the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers (TAA) and Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Dislocated 

Worker (DW) programs. Upon enactment, NCP will streamline administrative 

steps and integrate proven practices, service delivery platforms, and infrastructure of the TAA and WIA DW programs to offer a universal suite of training 

and reemployment services to a broader number of displaced workers. 

To invest in the Nation’s youth and the long-term unemployed, the 2015 budget 

also includes a package of mandatory funding for job-driven training proposals. 

These proposals would be designed with employer needs in mind, putting an end 

to what I call the ‘‘train and pray’’ era of training workers for jobs with limited demand or with credentials employers do not value. This $8.5 billion package of proposals includes: 

—Bridge to Work.—The $2 billion Bridge to Work program is designed to provide 

States with flexible funding to implement Bridge to Work and other innovative 

reemployment initiatives targeted to the long-term unemployed and to design, 

develop, and implement their own path-breaking strategies to encourage reemployment. 

—Back to Work Partnerships.—The Back to Work Partnerships will support partnerships between education and training institutions and businesses to get the 

long-term unemployed back to work. Funded with $4 billion over 2 years, the 

program would provide competitive grants that support promising and innovative local work-based job and training strategies to place low-income adults and 

youth in jobs quickly. Such strategies include on-the-job training; sector-based 

training; training in collaboration with an industry sector partnership; connections to immediate work opportunities; career academies; and/or adult basic 

education and integrated basic education and training models. 

—Summer Jobs Plus.—This is a $2.5 billion one-time investment to support opportunities for hundreds of thousands of low-income youth. The first component 

is a $1.5 billion formula grant program that will provide funds to States, available up to 2 years, to support summer and year-round jobs for 600,000 youth. 

The second component is a $1.0 billion innovation fund to provide competitive 

grants to support promising and innovative employment and training strategies 

designed to improve outcomes for low-income youth. 

I am working closely with the Vice President to continue other evidence-based efforts to replicate approaches that have been proven to work, move funds from those 

that have not, and continue to encourage and evaluate innovative and promising 

strategies. As that process unfolds, there are steps that we can take right away. The 

budget proposes to maintain a strong foundation with funding for existing programs, 

while taking steps to foster innovation and improvement. The budget includes: 

—Training and Employment Services.—The 2015 budget includes more than $3 

billion in formula and other grants to States and localities to provide training 

and employment services to more than 20 million Americans at over 2,500 

American Job Centers across the country. The budget maintains the State-wide 

reserve at 8.75 percent, as enacted in fiscal year 2014. 

—Workforce Innovation Fund.—The 2015 budget proposes $60 million to support 

innovative State and regional approaches to the design and delivery of employ-
124 

ment and training services that generate long-term improvements in the performance of the public workforce system, both in terms of employment outcomes 

and cost-effectiveness. 

—Incentive Grants.—The 2015 budget requests $80 million for revamped Incentive Grants for States and tribal governments. These funds will be used to reward States and tribal governments that demonstrate the greatest success in 

their WIA programs serving subpopulations facing significant barriers to employment, such as the long-term unemployed, disconnected youth, individuals 

with disabilities, and veterans. A limited number of grants would be awarded 

based on the extent to which eligible entities improve their performance relating to employment outcomes. Combined with the Workforce Innovation Fund, 

the grants would invest an amount equal to 5 percent of WIA formula grants 

to drive innovation and better performance at the State and local level. 

—Reemployment and Eligibility Assessments/Reemployment Services (REA/ 

RES).—For those who have lost their jobs, the budget request would reconnect 

unemployed workers to jobs more quickly through an investment of $158 million 

in discretionary funds for reemployment and eligibility assessments and reemployment services (REA/RES), an evidence-based approach to speed the return 

to work of UI beneficiaries. Research has shown that when reemployment eligibility assessments are delivered seamlessly with reemployment services, they 

are significantly more effective, with claimants less likely to exhaust their UI 

benefits, shorter UI durations and lower benefits paid, and faster returns to 

work with higher wages and job retention. Savings attributable to the program 

were almost three times higher than the cost. Included in this proposal is dedicated funding to ensure that all recently separated military personnel receiving 

Unemployment Compensation for Ex-Servicemembers (UCX) get these services 

to help them successfully transition to the civilian workforce. The request is 

also sufficient to provide services to the top quarter of UI beneficiaries most 

likely to exhaust benefits. 

—Sector Strategy.—The Department requests $15 million for grants to States, 

consortia of States, or regional partnerships to develop employment and training strategies targeted to particular in-demand industry sectors in regional 

economies. These grants will help ensure that the long-term unemployed and 

other targeted populations receive the training they need for careers for in-demand industry sectors. 

—Job Corps.—The 2015 budget proposes $1.7 billion for the Job Corps program 

to prepare disadvantaged young people for jobs in high-demand occupations 

with good wage potential and to further their education and training as well 

as their responsibilities of citizenship and adulthood. The 2015 budget includes 

$13.8 million to open and fully enroll students in two new Job Corps centers 

in New Hampshire and Wyoming, the last two States without centers, and continues the Administration’s commitment to improving and reforming the Job 

Corps program. These reforms include closing a small number of underperforming Job Corps centers; focusing the program on the older youth for whom 

it has been demonstrated to be effective; improving procurement and financial 

oversight; modernizing operations with a revised Policy and Requirements 

Handbook; and ongoing cost–savings reforms. 

PROTECTING AMERICA’S WORKERS AND THEIR INCOME AND RETIREMENT SECURITY

Worker protection programs are crucial to protecting the health, safety, wages 

and working conditions of America’s workers. The American people rely on the Department to fulfill our responsibility to make these protections not just words in the 

statute books, but real safeguards against threats to their lives and livelihoods. The 

budget includes nearly $1.9 billion for the Department’s worker protection agencies. 

Some highlights of our worker protection request include: 

—Wage and Hour.—The 2015 budget proposes an increase of almost $30 million 

for the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) to hire 300 new investigators to target 

the industries and employers most likely to break laws that ensure workers receive a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work, including the minimum wage and 

overtime pay, as well as the right to take leave to care for their own or their 

families’ medical needs. Included in this increase are funds transferred from the 

Women’s Bureau to enhance enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act and 

the Family and Medical Leave Act, two laws of critical importance to women. 

An additional $0.8 million will be used to strengthen the agency’s training and 

professional development program, ensuring that all new and existing investigators have the information and skills they need to be effective. The budget also 

provides $5.8 million for WHD to develop a new integrated enforcement and 
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case management system that will allow investigators to better employ data 

analysis in identifying violations, targeting investigations and compliance assistance efforts, and evaluating the impact and quality of enforcement. —State Paid Leave Fund.—Too many American workers must make the painful 

choice between the care of their families and a paycheck they desperately need. 

While the Family and Medical Leave Act allows many workers to take job-protected unpaid time off, millions of families cannot afford this. A handful of 

States have enacted policies to offer paid leave, but more States should have 

the chance to follow their example. The budget includes a $5 million State Paid 

Leave Fund to provide technical assistance and support to States that are considering paid leave programs. In addition, as discussed above, the Administration’s Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative includes $100 million in additional funds for this Fund. —Employee Misclassification.—The 2015 budget provides nearly $14 million to 

help identify and combat the misclassification of workers as independent contractors, which deprives workers of the benefits and protections to which they 

are legally entitled, such as minimum wage, overtime pay, unemployment insurance, and antidiscrimination protections. This includes $10 million in continued grants to States to recover unpaid unemployment taxes and $3.8 million 

of the WHD increase for personnel to investigate violations. —Occupational Safety and Health Administration.—No worker should have his or 

her life on the line for a paycheck. Workers need the Occupational Safety and 

Health Administration (OSHA) to enforce their right to a safe and healthful 

workplace. The vast majority of employers want to keep their workers safe and 

they need OSHA to have the resources necessary to help them find the best way 

to do so. The 2015 budget provides $565 million for OSHA to inspect hazardous 

workplaces and foster employer compliance with safety and health regulations. 

The request includes an increase for State grants to ensure that State Plan 

States can do the same. In addition, the request includes an additional $4 million to strengthen OSHA’s enforcement of the 22 whistleblower laws that protect workers against retaliation for reporting unsafe and unscrupulous practices 

and to centralize the agency’s audit function and improve the information technology used by investigators to collect case data. —Mine Safety and Health Administration.—The 2015 budget requests $377 million for the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), to build on the remarkable progress MSHA has made to bring the incidence of fatal injuries in 

the mining industry to an all-time low in fiscal year 2013. The request includes 

funding increases to improve the timeliness of special assessments, support 

rulemaking activities, improve systems and data analytics that support enforcement functions, and reform Federal training delivery to help protect workers in 

one of our Nation’s most dangerous industries. 

—Federal Contract Compliance.—The 2015 budget proposes an additional $1.1 

million to strengthen efforts by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to combat pay discrimination. OFCCP works to eliminate employment discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, and 

sex, to eliminate employment discrimination for our Nation’s veterans and 

workers with disabilities, and to secure equal employment opportunity for workers. 

—Defined Benefit Pension System.—The budget proposes to give the Board of the 

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) the authority to adjust premiums to take into account the risks that different sponsors pose to their retirees and to PBGC. The Board would be able to adjust premiums in both the single employer and multiemployer programs. These premium increases are crucial 

to improving solvency but will not be sufficient to address the complex challenges facing these plans, and the Administration looks forward to working with 

Congress on a more comprehensive solution. 

—Employee Benefits Security Administration.—To protect the health and retirement benefits of America’s workers, the Department is requesting $188 million 

for the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). These funds will 

protect more than 141 million people covered by an estimated 684,000 private 

retirement plans, 2.4 million health plans and a similar number of other employee welfare plans, which all together hold $7.8 trillion in assets. 

In addition, the budget request includes legislative proposals to modernize two 

worker benefit programs to improve the operation of both programs. 

—Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA).—The fiscal year 2015 request for 

the Department of Labor proposes once again to act on longstanding recommendations from the Government Accountability Office, Congressional Budget Office, and DOL’s Inspector General to improve the Federal Employees’ Com-
126 

pensation Act (FECA), which has not been substantially updated since 1974. 

These reforms will help workers return to the dignity of work and will generate 

government-wide savings of more than $340 million over 10 years. —Unemployment Insurance (UI) Reform.—The combination of chronically underfunded reserves and the economic downturn has placed a considerable financial 

strain on States’ UI operations. It is important to enhance the UI system’s solvency and financial integrity while maintaining benefits for job seekers. The 

budget proposes to provide immediate relief to employers to encourage job creation now, improve State fiscal responsibility going forward, and work closely 

with States to eliminate improper payments. 

ADDITIONAL PRIORITIES

The Department’s budget request also includes other programmatic increases outside the training and employment services and worker protection areas that support 

the well-being of American workers. —Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).—BLS is the principal Federal statistical agency responsible for measuring labor market activity, working conditions, and 

price changes in the economy. Its mission is to collect, analyze, and disseminate 

essential economic information to support public and private decisionmaking. 

These policies and decisions affect virtually all Americans. The budget request 

of $610 million includes an increase of $1.6 million to add one annual supplement to the Current Population Survey that would collect information relevant 

to labor force trends, including data on contingent work and alternative work 

arrangements, and workplace flexibility and work-family balance. The budget 

also includes an increase of $2.5 million for the Consumer Expenditure (CE) 

Survey to support the Census Bureau in its development of a supplemental statistical poverty measure using CE data. 

—Information Technology Modernization.—The goal of the Department’s IT Modernization effort is to provide the foundation for the technology needed to transform the way the Department provides services to, and interacts with, the 

American public. It continues the integration of the Department’s many infrastructures and consolidation of data centers to provide a more robust, reliable, 

cost-effective, and energy-efficient computing environment. Additional resources 

are being requested for a new Digital Government Integrated Platform, which 

will be used to provide a foundation of mobile computing and open data services 

that can be leveraged by agencies to enhance and deploy mission-specific applications and capabilities. These services will contribute to improved customer 

service and collaboration opportunities and maximize the return on investment 

in technology to support agency business operations. 

—Evidence and Evaluation.—The Department continues its evidence-based approach incorporating rigorous evaluation in all agencies and in every discretionary grant program, ensuring the best and most secure technology is used 

to make administrative data available for program management and evaluation. 

The 2015 budget proposes to continue the provision for a setting aside funding 

for Departmental evaluations, preserves dedicated funding for Labor’s Chief 

Evaluation Office, and also includes an additional $2.4 million and 5 FTE to 

create a department-wide data analytics unit, to create the capacity for the Department to use its administrative data to assess performance, analyze trends, 

and better target it work. 

—Legal Services.—The 2015 budget proposes an increase of $6.6 million to support initiatives proposed for the Wage and Hour Division, OSHA’s Whistleblower Protection Program, EBSA’s Health Benefits Security project, and to enable SOL to continue to provide a full range of legal services to OWCP’s Division of Coal Mine Workers’ Compensation. 

—Adjudication.—The 2015 budget proposes an increase of $2.0 million for the Office of Administrative Law Judges to support productivity increases and alleviate the growing backlog of cases before the judges; an increase of $1.3 million 

from the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund to fully fund adjudication of claims 

under the Black Lung Benefits Act; and $0.2 million for the annual maintenance and support funding of the DOL Appeals Management initiative for the 

Adjudicatory Boards. 

CONCLUSION

In fiscal year 2015 the Department of Labor will strive to advance our mission 

of serving American workers and employers and to build the foundation for our next 

100 years. Our request helps create opportunities for working Americans by investing in skills and our enforcement infrastructure. The budget will help ensure that 
127 

the Department has the resources to lead the job-driven workforce system to hone 

the job skills of American workers; bolster efforts that address long-term unemployment; maintain safe and healthy workplaces; strengthen worker voice in the workplace; safeguard critical minimum wage and overtime protections for workers; and 

ensure secure retirements. The Department’s budget request is really a request to 

invest in the opportunity and potential of the American people. 

That’s why I am so eager to tackle these challenges every single day. As it’s been 

for all 101 years of our existence, I believe the work of the Labor Department is 

the work of America. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me today. I look forward to working with 

you during the coming year and I am happy to respond to any questions that you 

may have. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

We will begin with a round of 5-minute questions. 

IMPROVING EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE WITH

DISABILITIES

Mr. Secretary, I would just like to lead off with something I am 

sure you know has been an intense interest of mine for all my 

adult life, and that is the employment of people with disabilities. 

We worked together in fiscal year 2010 here to initiate the Disability Employment Initiative. This effort is helping to improve the 

physical and programmatic accessibility of our Nation’s workforce 

system for individuals with disabilities. 

More than $80 million has been awarded to 26 States under this 

effort, from this committee. Last year, the Department of Education awarded grants for 11 States to undertake the PROMISE 

(Promoting the Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income) Initiative, a more than $200 million effort. 

Your department has collaborated on this important initiative 

designed to improve education and employment outcomes for 14- to 

16-year-olds with disabilities and their families. 

Now, again, we are working very hard. Senator Alexander and 

I and others have been working for a long time on the Workforce 

Investment Act bill to get it reauthorized. We are still working on 

it. Our staffs will be working on it while we are gone for the next 

2 weeks. We hope to have something together shortly on this. 

Part of that will be focused on this issue of making sure that 

young people with disabilities get access to, or encouragement for, 

support for, integrated what we call competitive employment. 

I would just like to get your thoughts on the Department of 

Labor and how can we be more helpful to realize employment outcomes for people with disabilities, and ensuring that they just 

aren’t all in 214(c) or 14(c) subminimum wage programs. 

I would just like to hear your thoughts on what the Department 

of Labor is looking ahead to do. 

Secretary PEREZ. Sure. Well, first of all, thank you for your leadership on this issue, Senator. You take a backseat to no one on 

this. When I think of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), 

I think of Tom Harkin. 

I remember the 10-year anniversary when I was working in the 

Clinton administration. It was at the FDR Memorial, and you did 

your entire speech, you signed it, and I will never forget that. 

I will never forget the 20th anniversary where I got to celebrate 

it when I was in my old job with Governor Thornburgh, because 

he has become a good friend and he was a champion because this 
128 

issue has always been bipartisan. And I want to commend President George Herbert Walker Bush for his leadership. 

And that tradition continues. 

Senator HARKIN. Just to interrupt you, I want to say, last Friday, 

I was at the George H.W. Bush Library in College Station, Texas, 

for the 25th anniversary of the Bush presidency. You might say, 

what were you doing there? 

Secretary PEREZ. I know exactly what you were doing there. 

Senator HARKIN. I was invited down by Fred McClure, who runs 

that, and Boyden Gray, and others. The first panel they had on 

Friday was on the ADA, so we had Lex Frieden, John Wodatch, 

Boyden Gray, and myself on the panel, talking about it. The President was there. And Barbara, the First Lady, was there. A huge 

crowd. 

And it was just wonderful to see the old crowd together again. 

The Dick Thornburghs and Lou Sullivans and the people who 

worked so much on getting the ADA passed. It was just an uplifting day last Friday. I just wanted to throw that in. 

Secretary PEREZ. We have come such a long way, not only eliminating physical barriers, but attitudinal barriers, and it is a result 

of the bipartisan leadership. 

However the area where I think we have a long way to go is in 

the area of employment of people with disabilities. 

Just yesterday, the Department of Justice, my old office, we had 

been working together with them on this, announced a statewide 

settlement with the State of Rhode Island. I want to commend Governor Chafee, because he was a big proponent of the settlement, 

which addresses the exact issue that you are talking about: People 

with disabilities, who can do so much more, were basically segregated into the sheltered workshops. 

What I have said repeatedly, and you said it last weekend when 

we were together, people with disabilities don’t want pity; they 

want opportunity. The settlement yesterday that we reached, 

which has gotten a lot of good coverage, is based on the notion that 

if you can do the work, you should be allowed that opportunity to 

do so. And we have given people a significant raise, because they 

are no longer in the subminimum wage. 

WORKING WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY TO EMPLOY PEOPLE WITH

DISABILITIES

Other things that we are doing, in addition to cases like that, is 

the 503 reg. I am very proud of the work we have done there. I 

am very appreciative of the leadership in our OFCCP (Office of 

Federal Contract Compliance Programs) office. 

Frankly, we have been doing a lot of outreach to the business 

community on this. Governor Ridge wrote an op-ed talking about 

how the process in the 503 reg is a model of how regulations should 

be produced. 

We are continuing to work there, and I want to commend 

Walgreens, because I have visited their place in Connecticut. This 

is their distribution center, Senator, that distributes all the 

Walgreens products from Maine down to Baltimore, and I think 45 

percent of their employees are people with disabilities. It is the 
129 

most productive facility that they have. Everyone is making a minimum of, I think, $14 an hour plus benefits. 

It was a remarkable experience, and I again commend the CEO 

of Walgreens, who has made an unflagging commitment to the empowerment of people with disabilities. 

Senator HARKIN. Greg Wasson. He is wonderful, the CEO of 

Walgreens. 

My time is running out, but looking ahead, the business community has really stepped forward on this. I am having the CEO of 

Procter & Gamble in tomorrow at our hearing. A lot of them have 

visited that facility up there in Connecticut. I have been there myself. 

And so the business community is really moving ahead. I just 

would like to say, again, I hope you and the department will join 

together with the business community in making sure that they 

have people with disabilities that they can hire when they get out 

of school. 

There is a role for the Department of Labor to play in that, and 

I hope that we can join forces with these great leaders in the business community. 

Secretary PEREZ. And I will be meeting with many of them at the 

end of the month, because we are continuing that outreach. 

And Greg, I refer everybody to him, because if he can do it, you 

can do it. That is our mantra. 

Senator HARKIN. Exactly. Thank you. 

Senator Moran. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Secretary, thank you again. I want to refer 

first to the farming activities and OSHA regulations, and then I 

want to talk to you about the fiduciary rule and ERISA (Employee 

Retirement Income Security Act). 

APPLICATION OF THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT TO

FARMING OPERATIONS WITH LESS THAN 10 EMPLOYEES

From 1976 forward, Congress has included specific appropriations language prohibiting OSHA from using taxpayer funds to 

apply requirements under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 

to farming operations with less than 10 employees in our LaborHHS bill. 

In 2011, the director of OSHA’s enforcement program issued a 

memorandum indicating that rider did not preclude OSHA from 

conducting enforcement activities, regardless of the type of operation performed on the farm. 

You have heard from 43 Senators in an effort led by the Senator 

from Nebraska, Senator Johanns, regarding this policy, expressing 

some concerns. 

And my question really is, and my understanding is: You have 

taken a step back, indicated that you do not want to change the 

intent of that rider, that the department is not intending to expand 

or to violate the intent of that rider since 1976. And I just would 

like for you to bring me up-to-date on where this issue is within 

the department and in OSHA. 

Secretary PEREZ. Sure. Yes, sir. 

We have removed the memo, that is the 2011 memo, which was 

the source of confusion. We take these riders very, very seriously. 
130 

We have instructed the team at OSHA that when you are in a circumstance where you discover that it is a family farm under 10 

employees, that is the end of statement, and case closed. 

Senator MORAN. I appreciate that answer. 

REWRITING THE RULE DEFINING FIDUCIARY UNDER EMPLOYEE

RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT

Let me then turn to the fiduciary rule. This goes back to a proposed rule in 2010. The Department of Labor proposed regulations 

regarding the definition of a fiduciary, which is regulated under 

ERISA. 

According to the department, the intent of the proposed rule was 

to define more broadly the circumstances under which a person or 

entity is considered a fiduciary when giving investment advice to 

an employee benefit plan or the plan’s participants. 

There was significant bipartisan opposition concerns raised with 

expanding the definition of fiduciary. And again, a rider was included in the Labor-H appropriation bill. That rider prohibited the 

department from moving forward with its proposed rule. 

And my questions here are, because of that rider—I assume you 

would say the same thing; you take those riders seriously; you can’t 

go forward with that rule—but does the department intend to propose a rewrite of the rule? 

Secretary PEREZ. The original proposed rule was withdrawn, and 

the process has been slowed down at my direction significantly, because we wanted to take a step back, listen, and learn from everyone. 

The issue that we are trying to address, Senator, is the following: 

The most important two financial decisions that people make in 

their lives are the decision to buy a home, and now with the transformation from defined benefit plans to 401(k) and others, the decision of how to invest your retirement nest egg. 

In both contexts, we want to make sure that people make informed decisions and that the person giving you that advice is 

working in your best interest. And so that is the needle that we 

are trying to thread. That is the goal that we are trying to achieve. 

The reason that we slowed this process down is that I want to 

make sure that we hear from everybody. We have been engaged in 

a significant amount of outreach, and I have met with a number 

of Senators on both sides of the aisle, and a number of Members 

of Congress on both sides of the aisle. We are going to continue to 

do that, because I am learning a lot. 

As I mentioned before, when Senator Ridge wrote about the work 

that we did, and the process that we undertook in the section 503 

reg, that is the process that we want to undertake in everything 

we do. I am a big believer that you get the best results when you 

build a big table and make sure that everyone’s voice is heard. 

Senator MORAN. I appreciate that. 

How would you describe the status of that process now? You are 

taking input. Is there a draft of a rule in the works? 

Secretary PEREZ. We continue to take input, and again, I have 

had a number of meetings with folks in Congress, et cetera, and 

we are looking carefully at the best way to address this issue. 
131 

One thing I would say to you, or ask of you, really, is, if you have 

a constituent that contacts you and says, ‘‘I have been trying to 

talk to DOL, and I have been having trouble,’’ I hope you will let 

me know, because I want to make sure that we hear every voice. 

Senator MORAN. Let me ask this, I think for a second time, but 

maybe I wasn’t clear the first time: Is there a rule that is being 

written now, or are you only in the stage of soliciting information 

about the possibility of a rule? Do you plan on writing a rule? 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, we are taking in all the information right 

now, because I want to hear from people in terms of what their 

perspectives are, what their thoughts are. The rider language allowed for a re-proposal, as I read it. 

This is different from the farm rule, which I interpret as pretty 

clear in terms of what you can and can’t do. I think this is equally 

clear. 

That is what we are doing right now, trying to listen and learn. 

Senator MORAN. No rule is being written at the moment? 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, again, we are taking in information right 

now, so that we can figure out what the best course of action is, 

and that is exactly where we are in the process. 

Again, we are also consulting with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), because one of the sets of feedback I heard, 

Senator, was that the SEC has equities in this. I agree. The SEC 

has equities, and as recently as a week ago, I had a conversation 

with Chair Mary Jo White, and we continue to talk on a regular 

basis. 

We will continue to do that. I have read all the letters of concern. 

I have had numerous meetings on this. I probably have spent as 

much time on this as just about any issue, because I appreciate the 

stakes. 

Whenever you do a rulemaking, you have to be concerned with 

what I call the doctrine of unintended consequences. You are trying 

to solve a problem. In the course of solving a problem, you don’t 

want to create new problems. 

Senator MORAN. I almost appreciate your entire answer, and particularly appreciate the part about unintended consequences. 

I think we use that excuse way too often in Congress, in the administration. ‘‘Well, that is an unintended consequence.’’ ‘‘Well, our 

job is to determine what the consequences——’’ 

Secretary PEREZ. Anticipate them. 

Senator MORAN. Correct. 

Secretary PEREZ. Absolutely. I couldn’t agree more. 

Senator MORAN. So I appreciate your answer. I know that working with the SEC is important. They had some criticism of the proposed rule in the first place. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. 

Secretary PEREZ. Thank you, Senator. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator. 

I will go to Senator Alexander, and then I will go to Senator 

Merkley, and then Senator Johanns. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Welcome, Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary PEREZ. Good morning. Good to see you again, Senator. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Good to see you again. 
132 

I want to use my 5 minutes to talk just a little bit more about 

the fiduciary rule and some about what is going on with the overtime letter from the President. 

Secretary PEREZ. Sure. 

Senator ALEXANDER. On the fiduciary rule, this seems to me to 

be the case, you talked about you have a background in States. 

And my experience is, with all respect, that States have a way of 

being more pragmatic. Sometimes up here, we are more ideological 

in Washington. And your experience in the State might be wellserved as you try to deal with this fiduciary rule. 

Without relitigating an old issue, one of the unintended consequences we may have learned from the Affordable Care Act is 

that even though it sounds like a good idea to require people to buy 

more benefits with a health insurance policy, they end up costing 

more and get outside their budget. 

STRATEGIES FOR REWRITING THE DEFINITION OF A FIDUCIARY

And in thinking about the fiduciary rule and the way you work 

on this, I think about the difference between the Government as 

an enabler and the Government as a mandater. 

I mean, we have maybe 75 million households who get investment advice from somebody. And what we are really talking about 

is the difference between the conversation they might have with an 

investment adviser and the conversation they might have with a fiduciary, someone who has a duty—a legal duty—to them to give 

them a certain amount of responsibility. 

Now all these people can have a fiduciary responsibility, if they 

want to pay for it. I mean, it is available, if they want to pay for 

it. But many don’t want that much advice. Or they don’t need that 

kind of fiduciary advice, and they can’t afford that kind. 

So it would seem to me that one of the strategies for dealing with 

this might be to let people know that a higher level of advice is 

available to them, if they want it and if they want to pay for it, 

but not to suddenly turn just your everyday investment advice conversation into one that is fraught with all the legal responsibilities 

of the fiduciary duty, which is available to anybody who wants to 

pay for it, and who can afford to pay for. 

Is that a promising strategy? 

Secretary PEREZ. Senator, I very much agree with what you said 

at the outset, when you said that working at the State level sometimes is a useful set of experiences. What was useful about my experience as the Labor Secretary in Maryland is I was the Governor’s point person on the foreclosure crisis. 

Working together with all the stakeholders, we enacted a series 

of forward-leaning reforms, all of which had virtually unanimous 

support in the State Senate and the State House and the support 

of the industry. The way we got there was: We built a big table. 

Points like the point you are making, I spent a lot of time with 

mortgage brokers, because there were a lot of concerns raised about 

whether brokers were providing information to potential lenders 

that was in that lenders’ self-interest, or if they were trying to, 

frankly, line the brokers’ pockets. 

We had a lot of open and frank conversations about this. We 

were able to thread the needle in a way that had the support of 
133 

the brokers at the end, the support of the lenders, the support of 

the consumer groups. 

That is the process that we are undertaking here, listening to 

your points—— 

Senator ALEXANDER. I have about 30 seconds to ask—— 

Secretary PEREZ. No, no. So your point is very well-taken, and 

those are examples of the types of things that we need to consider 

moving forward. 

Senator ALEXANDER. I would encourage that. We have some big 

ideological differences on this committee, but we also get a lot 

done, sometimes unanimously, because we go through that process. 

Secretary PEREZ. I agree. 

UPDATING REGULATIONS ON OVERTIME

Senator ALEXANDER. Now, what is going on here with the overtime? Normally, under the law, if you are going to change overtime 

regulations, which affect a maximum of 130 million—you know, everybody, working Americans. 

The law says you are supposed to come out once in the spring 

and once in the fall with these big regulatory changes. And you 

typically, I am paraphrasing here, but basically, you summarize 

what you are about to do, and you often indicate a schedule of 

when you are going to do it. And it lets people all over the country 

know what you are going to do. 

But here came a memo from the President that was outside the 

law that was basically making it look like it came from his State 

of the Union Address, where he said, if Congress won’t do it, I am 

going to do it anyway. 

There is a law here that says if you are going to affect overtime 

rules, there is a way to do it. Why aren’t you doing it that way? 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, we are. In fact, it is my understanding 

that the day the President announced this, we contacted your staff 

and offered to brief them. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Well, that has nothing to do with a law that 

says twice a year these kinds of regulations are supposed to be included in a document that is public to everybody, once in the spring 

and once in the fall. 

Shouldn’t you get this back on that kind of track? 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, Senator, we are moving forward with the 

overtime rule, and we are doing so, and will continue to do so, in 

a way that is very consistent with how we did 503, and with how 

we are doing the other issue that you asked about, in terms of the 

conflict of interest. 

We have a long way to go. I have spoken to a lot of business 

leaders. I have spoken to other informed stakeholders, because I 

want to make sure that we get it right. 

We received your letter last night asking about this. We, certainly, intend to respond to you in short order. I read that letter 

at roughly 8 o’clock or so last night, and I will make sure that we 

respond to all your questions on the overtime rule. 

Senator ALEXANDER. But what about the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act. Shouldn’t you be doing this within the terms of the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, which is a law? 
134 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, we intend to have, and will continue to 

make sure that we are compliant with all of the regulatory—— 

Senator ALEXANDER. It is a yes or no, isn’t it? Shouldn’t you only 

be doing that within the terms of the law and not freewheeling 

this? 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, I wouldn’t describe anything that we are 

doing as freewheeling, sir. Again, there is a reason why we offered 

to brief you the day that we announced it, because we wanted to 

go on a bipartisan basis—— 

Senator ALEXANDER. It does not say in the law, ‘‘Go brief Senator 

Alexander.’’ 

Secretary PEREZ [continuing]. And we went above and beyond—— 

Senator ALEXANDER. This is a law. Do this according to the 

terms of this act. And so far as I know, you haven’t done it. If you 

are doing it, I would like to know it. 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, sir, we received your letter last night, and 

we will respond as soon as possible to your letter. 

I am confident that this process is going to mirror the processes 

that we undertake in all of our regulatory work. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you. 

Senator Merkley. 

Oh, I am just told we have a vote at 11 a.m. So Senator Merkley 

and then Senator Johanns. 

Senator Merkley. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

And thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary PEREZ. Good morning, Senator. 

PROHIBITING WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL

ORIENTATION OR GENDER IDENTITY

Senator MERKLEY. Last month, I joined more than 200 Members 

in the House and Senate to send a letter to President Obama renewing our request that the President issue an Executive order 

banning contractors from receiving Federal Government contracts 

unless they have a policy of prohibiting discrimination on the basis 

of sexual orientation or gender identity. 

According to various reports, your department has completed its 

preparatory work, and that decisionmaking now rests with the 

White House. 

Understanding that the department would play a critical role in 

implementing any Executive order, are there any additional actions 

the department is taking to prepare or that it could take to prepare 

for the possibility of such an order? 

Secretary PEREZ. I recall the letter. I read the letter. I believe we 

actually responded to the letter, if my memory serves me, or we are 

in the process of responding. 

I appreciate your longstanding leadership not only on ENDA 

(Employment Non-Discrimination Act), but on the whole issue of 

nondiscrimination. 

We are working very hard on this issue. I worked very hard on 

this issue at the Department of Justice (DOJ). The first hearing I 
135 

had after I was confirmed to DOJ was on ENDA, the bill that you 

introduced, and was one of the original cosponsors of. 

We are going to continue those efforts, because I want to make 

sure that everybody gets judged by the content of their character 

and the quality of the work that they do and no irrelevant factors. 

This matter continues to be a matter of significant importance to 

the administration, to me, and to the Department or Labor. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you. I appreciate that. 

And I will just use this occasion to continue my urging that—I 

was very pleased that the Senate, on a bipartisan, 2-to-1 basis, said 

it was time to end discrimination in the workplace. 

It doesn’t appear that bill is going to get a vote in the House. I 

wish there would be a vote. There should be a vote on something 

as key to our Constitution as equality and opportunity. 

But in the absence of such action, I want to continue my encouragement for the President to consider issuing an Executive order 

in this regard. 

IMPLEMENTING REASONABLE BREAK TIME FOR NURSING MOTHERS

PROVISION OF AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

Let me turn to a second issue. The Affordable Care Act included 

a section called Reasonable Break Time for Nursing Mothers. It is 

a provision I took from work that I have done in Oregon State, that 

women going back to work who have just had babies have the privacy and flexibility and break time to express breast milk, which 

is not only wonderful for the health of the baby but is also wonderful for the health of the mother and has been widely embraced in 

Oregon. 

We have a clause that allows a company to exempt itself, and not 

a single company has exempted itself. They have all found ways to 

make this work. 

So it has been implemented at the national level through your 

department, and I just want to check in to see if appropriate resources for educating companies, assisting companies to find a way 

to make sure that this bill could work, are occurring, and whether 

you have any insights in the implementation. 

Secretary PEREZ. Well, again, thank you for your leadership on 

this. This is one of those really important issues that confront 

working mothers. 

I recall, when I was at DOJ, we took steps prior to passage of 

the Affordable Care Act to address these issues, because it was the 

right thing to do, and it was the smart thing to do. 

We continue to take our responsibility in this regard very seriously. 

I would say that our experience has been identical to how you 

describe your experience in Oregon, Senator, which is that technical assistance and education have been very, very successful. Employers recognize that this is, again, the right thing to do, the 

smart thing to do, and they are doing it. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you. And if there are challenges that 

arise, I, certainly, would like to hear about them, as we think about 

how to expand this, not just from the current law, which is for 

wage-earning workers, but we like to expand it to cover salaried 

workers as well. 
136 

And I won’t ask you now, but if you have any thoughts on challenges on such an expansion, it would be appreciated. 

Secretary PEREZ. Sure. 

CONVERTING THE EXPERIMENTAL CONSUMER PRICE INDEX FOR THE

ELDERLY INTO AN OFFICIAL PUBLISHED INDEX

Senator MERKLEY. With the balance of my time, I wanted to ask 

about the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-E (for the elderly). I would 

like to see the Department of Labor convert the experimental CPI– 

E into a fully official published index. 

The CPI–W (Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers) only 

represents about 32 percent of the U.S. population. It doesn’t reflect the inflation experience of older Americans. And according to 

the Congressional Research Service, the cost of living under CPI– 

W rose at an average rate of 2.9 percent over that period of time, 

while the cost of living for seniors rose at 3.2 percent, or roughly, 

if you will, a 0.3 percent difference. 

Over time, that makes a difference, a significant difference, as 

we think about having accurate indexes for areas that it might be 

applied, such as in Social Security. 

So I just would like to express this interest in seeing the department pursue that conversion from the experimental to the officially 

published index, and whether you have any insights or comments 

on that. 

Secretary PEREZ. Sure. Well, this is not the first time I have 

heard this, and it is an important issue. I appreciate you bringing 

it to our attention. I meet regularly with the head of BLS (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) to have this discussion. 

One of the challenges that we are working through is that there 

are some design issues, cost issues. However, I also recognize the 

point that you are making, and I look forward to talking to you and 

really getting your insight as we move forward to figure out what 

the best course of action is in this area. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you very much. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Johanns. 

Senator JOHANNS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Secretary PEREZ. Good morning, Senator. 

Senator JOHANNS. Good to see you, Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary PEREZ. Good to see you, Senator. 

FAMILY FARM EXEMPTION UNDER THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND

HEALTH ACT

Senator JOHANNS. Let me, if I might, just ask a question or two 

to follow-up on the questions that Senator Moran asked you about 

the family farm exemption. 

I thank the Senator from Kansas for bringing this up, because 

this is a very important issue, and not just in Nebraska, but across 

the country. 

As Senator Moran pointed out, for about 35 years, Congress has 

looked at this area and put language in that basically said, if you 

employ more than 10 outside employees, then you are subject to 

OSHA. If not, then you are not. 
137 

And lo and behold, that world changed, and I appreciate the fact 

that the memorandum has now been pulled back, and I know the 

enforcement actions have been pulled back. 

Let me ask you this, just so I understand your testimony relative 

to what you were asked by Senator Moran. You said that if there 

are fewer than 10 outside employees, the inquiry is over. Is that 

the current position of the Department of Labor? 

So you are working with a farm, fewer than 10 outside employees, you take no further action? 

Secretary PEREZ. If it is a farming operation with fewer than 10 

people, that is my understanding of what the rider was intended 

to get at, and that is the end of the story. 

Senator JOHANNS. Okay. And so long as that language is in the 

rider, that will continue to be the position of the Department of 

Labor? 

Secretary PEREZ. Yes, sir. 

Senator JOHANNS. Okay. Do you have any current plans, as you 

know, I would say, you were attempting or your department was 

attempting to get around this language by classifying certain pieces 

of the farming operation as not a part of the farming operation. 

In this case, it would be grain storage. Theoretically, it could be 

a whole host of things. 

Do you have any current plans that your goal would be to separate certain operations that I would regard as farming operations 

from that definition and thereby go in and regulate? 

Secretary PEREZ. We don’t have current plans. What I have 

learned from my experience getting up to speed on this is that 

sometimes answering the question of whether you are a family 

farm is easier said than done. 

I spend a lot of time in rural Wisconsin. That is where my inlaws live, and we go up there two or three times a year. It is all 

farm country. And what we have seen in some cases is that when 

we go in, there was one facility that had a tomato canning operation on the side. There were others where their grain silos were 

actually servicing a number of other farms in the area. There was 

another case where when they were asked to define their operation, 

they used a code that was above and beyond what the definition 

of a family farm was. 

One of the things I have learned from this is that it is easier said 

than done. What we are trying to do, and make sure we do a better 

job of, is determine, at the outset, what is the operation that we 

are seeking to go into, and get that answer. If the answer is as we 

just discussed, then that is the end of the issue. 

The thing that was motivating us in this case, and I think we 

all have a shared interest, is making sure that we prevent deaths 

in grain silos; that was the issue that was out there. We have done 

a lot of work, very collaboratively, with farmers and associations to 

prevent these very tragic deaths that were the impetus for some of 

this work. 

Senator JOHANNS. Yes, and we, certainly, share that. I grew up 

on a farm myself. I have been around grain bins, power takeoff 

shafts, all of those things. 

Secretary PEREZ. Right. 
138 

Senator JOHANNS. But having said that, here is what I am getting to: When it comes to family farms, haven’t we, as Congress 

with this rider language, basically told you what we believe the situation is in terms of how to define a family farm? We have said, 

if you have more than 10 outside employees, guess what, you are 

no longer a family operation. According to our view of the world, 

you are something else, and subject to OSHA jurisdiction. If you 

are under 10, on the other hand, you are a family farming operation. 

Would you agree with that? 

Secretary PEREZ. I would agree with that. I would also note that 

you instructed us to consult with USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) on this issue and make sure that we have guidance that 

is consistent with your directive. I can tell you that we are in the 

middle of doing that as well, and that we have begun that process, 

pursuant to your request. That has been very, very helpful, so that 

we can make sure that we understand the situations that you have 

clearly defined, that the Department of Labor, OSHA should not be 

in, and that we can ensure we are in compliance. 

Senator JOHANNS. Right. Here is my thought on that, and I am 

out of time, so I will wrap up here very quickly, no one wants these 

deaths to occur. They are just hugely tragic. Oftentimes, they involve young people, and we don’t want that to happen. 

I think if you would work with us, USDA, the Farm Bureau, FFA 

(Future Farmers of America), 4–H, on and on, about a program 

that says, look, here are some practices we would like to talk about 

in terms of protecting yourself, and kind of a self-education, education awareness program. 

I was in FFA growing up, 4–H, both. And I just think they would 

embrace it. I think they would say to you, yes, that makes so much 

sense to us. And they probably have programs like that going on 

anyway. 

That is where I really want you to focus your attention, because 

I think we have defined family farms as something less than 10 

employees, outside employees. 

So I will continue to encourage you the way I did in my letter. 

Reach out, work with us. That is really what we are trying to 

achieve here, a safer environment for that kind of process. 

Secretary PEREZ. I look forward to working with you on that, because we have learned a lot and we have actually had some success 

working collaboratively. I would like to go to school on your experience, so that we can really fulfill our shared interest in preventing 

tragic deaths. 

Senator JOHANNS. Great. Thank you. 

Secretary PEREZ. Thank you. 

FARM SAFETY FOR JUST KIDS ORGANIZATION

Senator HARKIN. If I might, I just want to add to that, I would 

encourage you, Mr. Secretary, and your staff, to reach out to an organization called Farm Safety for Just Kids. It was started by 

Marilyn Adams about, oh, about 30 years ago, I guess. Her son lost 

his life in a grain silo accident. 

So she started an organization to start teaching farmers about 

farm safety. A lot of kids work on farms. And kids, nothing can 
139 

hurt you when you are a kid, you know. They take all kinds of 

chances. 

They have built up a great deal of expertise over the years. It 

has become a national organization. I don’t know if their headquarters are still in Iowa or not, or where it is. 

Senator JOHANNS. I think in Iowa. 

Senator HARKIN. It is still there? They have done great work in 

teaching farmers and farm families how to set up systems so that 

kids don’t get hurt, young people don’t get hurt. 

I will just say, as long as you are pursuing this thing, to check 

with that group. They really have developed a lot of expertise. 

Secretary PEREZ. I will make sure that we do that. 

Senator JOHANNS. Mr. Chairman, I am so glad you mentioned 

that, because she is outstanding. I met with her when I was Secretary of Agriculture. 

Senator HARKIN. Is that so? 

Senator JOHANNS. This came about because of a very tragic 

event, but she has taken that as kind of a catalyst to really engage 

here. She has laid a tremendous foundation. 

I wasn’t thinking about that when I was talking about whom to 

partner with here, but that would be perfect. 

Senator HARKIN. Yes. I just found out she retired, so now the organization has taken on different people. It was taken over and 

continues, so she built quite an organization. 

But I just say, have your people look at that, because they have 

a lot of good background information on this. 

Secretary PEREZ. We have been doing a lot, and we can learn a 

lot more from all of you. So we look forward to doing that. 

Senator HARKIN. I know we are going to be called for a vote pretty soon. I just have one short question, and that is on employee 

misclassification. 

Secretary PEREZ. Yes. 

IDENTIFYING AND COMBATING EMPLOYEE MISCLASSIFICATION

Senator HARKIN. You mentioned that the budget provides for $14 

million to identify and combat misclassification, and you say this 

includes $10 million in continued grants to States to recover unpaid unemployment taxes at $3.8 million of the Wage and Hour Division increase for personnel to investigate violations. 

Is the total amount that you are putting in for employee 

misclassification $14 million? Or is it $27 million or $28 million? 

I am trying to figure out—— 

Secretary PEREZ. $14 million, sir. 

Senator HARKIN. $14 million. Again, I just want to encourage 

you, I hear so much about employee misclassification, both as the 

chairman of the authorizing committee, but as a Senator from 

Iowa, too. I just hear a lot about this, about misclassification, and 

how workers are really, well, I will say it frankly, being cheated 

out of what they should be paid, because of misclassification. I encourage you to really pursue this. 

Secretary PEREZ. Thank you. I hear this as much as anything 

from business owners. There was a guy, he develops residential 

housing, and he tells me, ‘‘Tom, I am playing by the rules. I am 

paying my employees. I pay their workers comp. I do all that. The 
140 

guy down the road who is competing with me is paying everyone 

under the table. I keep getting undercut. I can’t do this, and I don’t 

want to cheat.’’ 

There are three victims: There is the worker, himself or herself; 

there are the business owners who are playing by the rules; and 

there is the tax collector. 

And I saw this in Maryland. We called it workplace fraud in 

Maryland. 

Senator HARKIN. That is what it is. 

Secretary PEREZ. Because ‘‘misclassification’’ feels like a clerical 

error. You have to call it what it is. 

We are doing partnerships with States. We have MOUs (memoranda of understanding) with States across this country, and it is 

not a red state/blue state thing. We have partnerships with Utah. 

We have partnerships with other States, because it is a real issue 

across this country. 

Senator HARKIN. A big issue. 

That is all I have. 

Senator MORAN. Do I have time for one more? 

Senator HARKIN. Sure you do. 

IMPROVING EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR VETERANS

Senator MORAN. Mr. Secretary, what do we need to do to significantly improve the opportunities for veterans’ employment? You 

have a number of tools. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) 

works on these issues. But we continue to have a significant challenge in this country with our veterans returning, with our military 

men and women returning and becoming veterans and unable to 

find employment. 

Secretary PEREZ. This is one of those things that I spend as 

much time on as any, Senator. There are a lot of tools in the toolbox. 

One of the tools, as it relates to the fiscal year budget request 

for this coming year, is the enhanced RES (Reemployment Services)/REA, that is targeted at two populations. It will enable us to 

target two populations, veterans coming out of service and the 

long-term unemployed, so that we can help them get the training 

they need. 

One other thing we are doing, and I know you have to run to a 

vote, but we are working very closely with the VA and DOD (Department of Defense) to get people further upstream. With the 

mandatory discharge, as the drawdown in Afghanistan picks up, 

what we are trying to do now is get them 6 months before they are 

actually out of the service, and then figure out, what are your 

goals? We don’t want to get them for the first time when they are 

doing transition assistance a week before they are leaving. We 

want to get them 6 months upstream, so that we can help connect 

them perhaps to the apprenticeship program, so when they leave, 

they are ready to work. 

We are doing a lot of work upstream. We are doing a lot more 

work through the First Lady’s office with the business community. 

We just had an event with the construction industry, and we have 

a lot of individual employers who stepped up. 
141 

However, in the construction industry, what they did was they 

said that we are going to embed veteran hiring into the DNA of all 

of what we do, not just the ABC Company, but every employer. 

You have Helmets to Hardhats that the labor unions and others 

have put forth. 

I am really heartened by what I see in terms of the level of interest. The demand is growing and growing, and that is why this has 

been an all-hands-on-deck enterprise for the administration. 

I welcome any ideas you have about how we can do it better, because nobody has a monopoly on good ideas in this. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Secretary, let me suggest to you that a concept that I have a lot of interest in is entrepreneurship, the ability 

to start a business. We have worked with the Department of Veterans Affairs in trying to have them focus some of the benefits that 

a veteran is entitled to for education, for training, on the ability to 

create the capital necessary to start a business. 

And if there are ways that we can work with the Department of 

Labor to create an environment in which a startup, a new business 

origination, it very well may be a veteran’s choice, but may not 

have the tools to accomplish that. 

So while I ask about employment, and that would lend itself to 

thinking about training and education, in addition to that, if you 

put into your broad thinking, are there ways to help a veteran who 

has an entrepreneurial idea pursue the American dream in their 

garage or their barn, take an idea to market? We want to explore 

those opportunities with the Department of Labor as well. 

Secretary PEREZ. I love it, and I would love to brainstorm with 

you. 

Senator MORAN. Thanks very much. 

Secretary PEREZ. Great. Thank you. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

CLOSING STATEMENTS

First, before you all leave, I also want to recognize Terri 

Bergman for all your years of public service, both at DOL, but also 

on the Hill when you were here and working with us and when you 

were over on the House side. You have been, I shouldn’t say, just 

a familiar face; you have been an integral part of a lot of our appropriations processes for a long, long time. 

I understand you are retiring and relocating to Cape Cod. Let me 

know how it is up there. I am retiring next year, myself. 

But again, you have been a tremendous asset as the Deputy Assistant Secretary on our Congressional and Governmental Affairs. 

And I know I can speak on behalf of all of our staff in saying we 

are going to miss you. You have been a great asset to the smooth 

functioning of this process, and we thank you for your years of public service. We wish you well in your retirement. 

ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

Now, Mr. Secretary, thank you again for being here, for your 

forthrightness and your openness in responding to our questions. 
142 

The record will remain open for additional statements and questions for 10 days. 

[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were 

submitted to the Department for response subsequent to the hearing:] 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

BUREAU OF INTERNATIONAL LABOR AFFAIRS EFFORTS TO COMBAT CHILD LABOR ABUSES

ABROAD

Question. Mr. Secretary, as you know, I have been a strong supporter of the Bureau of International Labor Affairs’ (ILAB) efforts to protect labor rights and combat 

the worst forms of child labor around the world. In fact, you and I were together 

last week with the Ivorian and Ghanaian government representatives assessing 

some of the progress with have made in reducing the worst forms of child labor in 

the cocoa sector as a result of some technical assistance programs funded through 

ILAB. I want to give you an opportunity to comment on an element of ILAB’s work 

that is particularly close to my heart: ILAB’s technical assistance projects. Would 

you please share some of the ways that these projects are making a difference on 

the ground and, discuss some of the safeguards in place to ensure that project funds 

are well spent on this critical mission? 

Answer. ILAB’s technical assistance funding is an essential element of its successful efforts to advance worker rights and livelihoods throughout the world. Since 

1995, DOL has funded 278 projects in 94 countries to address child labor. Currently, 

DOL is funding 37 active projects in 64 countries, worth over $240 million. These 

projects use an integrated approach that helps remove and prevent children from 

exploitative work, while offering them schooling alternatives and livelihood support 

for their families, so that they can overcome reliance on the labor of their children 

to meet basic needs. To date, DOL-funded child labor reduction projects have rescued approximately 1.7 million children from exploitative child labor. DOL projects 

also play a major role in building the capacity of governments and other key actors 

to combat child labor at the national, district, and community levels. In addition, 

DOL projects train labor inspectors and law enforcement officials to improve child 

labor law enforcement. 

In addition, ILAB funds technical assistance projects that address broader worker 

rights issues, particularly in those countries with which the United States has free 

trade agreements and trade preference programs. These projects promote the effective enforcement of labor laws by strengthening labor inspections systems, raising 

awareness and capacity of employers to comply with labor law and of workers to 

exercise and claim their rights, improving occupational safety and health, promoting 

productive labor-management relations, and strengthening social safety nets for vulnerable workers. 

We consider oversight of technical assistance funding to be one of ILAB’s most important responsibilities. We use a variety of tools to ensure proper oversight. 

Projects funded by DOL are required to submit regular technical and financial 

progress reports. DOL uses these reports to track the grantees’ use of funds and implementation of agreed upon project activities. DOL also contracts with independent, external evaluators and auditors, who are charged with assessing project 

performance and compliance with required regulations. Through the use of this combination of oversight tools, DOL seeks to ensure proper use of USG funds and to 

maximize project benefits for workers, children, and families in target communities. 

WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION PLANS TO PREVENT ABUSES OF WORKERS WITH DISABILITIES

Question. Mr. Secretary, the Department plays a critical role in promoting ramps 

and ladders of opportunity for all Americans and in protecting their rights in the 

workplace. That’s why I know you share my outrage about the abuse of workers 

with disabilities that occurred in Atalissa, Iowa. Please tell me what your specific 

plans are for making sure we never have another situation like that at Henry’s Turkey Service? 

Answer. Since 2010, the Department has initiated a full review of its procedures 

for enforcement and administration of section 14(c). A number of changes have already been made. For example, Henry’s Turkey Service allowed their certificate authorizing the payment of subminimum wages pursuant to section 14(c) to lapse and 

indicated they would choose to pay the full minimum wage equivalent to all workers, but we later learned that they did not do so. The Department’s strategic enforcement protocols for 14(c) now includes a sampling of lapsed certificate holders 
143 

1http://wdr.doleta.gov/research/keyword.cfm?fuseaction=dsplpuListingDetails&publid= 

2487&mp=y&start=21&sort=7 

to ensure these former certificate holders are not continuing to pay subminimum 

wages in violation of the law. In addition, the Department has initiated action to 

revoke certificates in certain circumstances, and is currently developing standardized protocols for dissemination to all staff on revocation of certificates for egregious 

or willful violations of the law. With an increase in FTE for the enforcement of section 14(c), the Department will be able to increase its directed enforcement activity 

and further develop strategies to address the most egregious violators. 

The Department also partners with other Federal agencies such as the Department of Justice, the Department of Education, and the Department of Health and 

Human Services to ensure that employers with 14(c) certificates provide adequate 

protections to individuals with disabilities. These collaborations help to ensure that 

all protections are available to workers with disabilities as a part of a comprehensive and vigorous enforcement program. 

In addition to its enforcement efforts, the Department is committed to ensuring 

that all our stakeholders—employers, community rehabilitation programs, advocates, and workers—fully understand the rules that apply to employing workers 

with disabilities at subminimum wage rates. We have increased our outreach to 

stakeholders, conducting at least 10-day-long seminars on section 14(c) each year 

since 2012. These seminars are free and open to all interested parties. Finally, the 

Department has recently added a senior advisor to enforcement agency staff to help 

promote and connect the work we do in section 14(c) with national, regional, and 

local organizations who work with people with disabilities. This key staff member 

will help ensure the agency has an open line of communication for workers and 

their advocates. 

REEMPLOYMENT ELIGIBILITY ASSESSMENTS

Question. Mr. Secretary, since 2005, this subcommittee has provided more than 

$400 million to support Reemployment and Eligibility Assessments (REAs). As you 

know, the President’s budget request includes $158 million, an increase of $78 million, to expand the existing REA program to include reemployment services. This 

enhanced model would provide personalized assistance to unemployed workers and 

target services to UI claimants most likely to exhaust their benefits and to all returning service members who are receiving unemployment benefits. Can you explain 

why the model of combining REAs and reemployment services as proposed in the 

President’s budget is effective in helping people get jobs faster and preventing longterm unemployment? 

Answer. There is a compelling rationale for supporting an expanded integrated 

Reemployment Services and Reemployment and Eligibility Assessment (REA) program to support rapid reemployment of UI claimants and to reduce UI improper 

payments. Research has shown that both REAs and the provision of reemployment 

services to UI claimants—and particularly the combination of the two—are effective 

at reducing UI costs. Both models reduce UI duration and save UI trust fund resources by helping claimants find jobs faster and eliminating payments to ineligible 

individuals. REAs have been found to be effective in reducing duration and total 

benefits received by claimants in Florida, Idaho, and Nevada. Nevada’s model was 

particularly effective in reducing benefit costs. A further study of the Nevada model, 

which delivered REAs seamlessly with reemployment services, found it to be significantly more effective than the other states studied in the following ways: 1

—Claimants were significantly less likely to exhaust their benefits; 

—Claimants had significantly shorter UI durations and lower total benefits paid 

(1.82 fewer weeks and $536 lower total benefits paid); 

—Claimants were more successful in returning to work sooner in jobs with higher 

wages and retaining their jobs; and 

—The savings from the program were almost 3 times higher than the cost. 

This integrated approach was also explored in the implementation of the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program when it was extended through 

December of 2013. 

In addition, on February 14, 2014, Nevada’s REA model was recognized as a 

‘‘Near Top Tier Initiative’’ by the nonprofit, non–partisan Coalition for EvidenceBased Policy. 
144 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JACK REED

JOB CORPS PROGRAM YEAR 2012 SURPLUS

Question. The Job Corps Program ended Program Year (PY) 2012 with a substantial surplus. In January, 20 of my colleagues and I sent a letter urging the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) to prioritize increasing the number of students served with the surplus funds. We also asked that ETA develop a plan for 

increasing On Board Strength (OBS) in a transparent manner, in collaboration with 

Job Corps stakeholders. Please provide information on: 

—The exact dollar amount of the PY 2012 surplus; 

—The factors that led to the surplus; 

—How the surplus funds will be utilized, including the dollar amounts that will 

be allocated for specific activities; 

—The plan for increasing OBS, including the timing and allocation by Job Corps 

center of additional OBS; and 

—The steps that the Department is taking to maximize OBS for PY 2013 and PY 

2014. 

Answer. The Exact Dollar Amount of the PY 2012 Surplus.—In consultation with 

the contractors, the Department determined that there were PY 2012 funds that remained unspent and uncommitted on the center operators’ contracts for PY 2013. 

After an evaluation of the balances remaining on the contracts and negotiations 

with the contractors, we were able to reduce center operators’ funding PY 2013 

needs by $40,060,523 due to funds remaining available on these contracts and the 

ability to spend funds across fiscal or program years. This reduction in center operator needs in PY 2013 allows Job Corps to use the funds to address additional critical needs. 

The Factors That Led to the Surplus.—The underrun occurred due to cost savings 

measures implemented in Program Year (PY) 2012 and the slower than anticipated 

enrollment of students after the enrollment suspension was lifted in April 2013. Expenditures by contractors were, in a majority of cases, less than what was obligated 

to the contracts, and that funding remained available on those contracts after the 

end of PY 2012. DOL worked with the contractors to quantify how much funding 

remained available on their contracts, as well as to determine their funding needs 

for the remainder of both the contract year and PY 2013. This collaborative process 

resulted in the identification of approximately $40 million in obligated but unspent 

and uncommitted funds that remained on the contracts. We reached agreement with 

the contractors that this amount would be reduced from their remaining PY 2013 

allocations, allowing Job Corps to repurpose the money for the remainder of PY 

2013. 

How the Surplus Funds Will Be Utilized, Including the Dollar Amounts That Will 

Be Allocated for Specific Activities.—As a result of the cost savings, Job Corps will 

re-allocate some PY 2013 funds for crucial needs, including ramping up on–board 

strength (OBS) to the proposed PY 2014 level, improving Job Corps infrastructure, 

examining program design, and strengthening procurement support. 

Because we are committed to ensuring that the Job Corps program serves as 

many students as affordable under the appropriation, we have allocated a portion 

of the recaptured funds to begin to ramp up to the PY 2014 OBS level supported 

by the Consolidated Omnibus Appropriations Act (Public Law 113–76). We recently 

announced the plan for increasing OBS to the PY 2014 levels, and have begun working with the Job Corps operators to implement it. The methodology considers performance, center capacity, and prioritization of high-performing Career Technical 

Training (CTT) programs. 

In addition to increasing OBS to the level that can be afforded in PY 2014, we 

are using the recaptured funds to make important investments in the Job Corps 

program that have not occurred in recent years due to the budget constraints. These 

program investments include: 

—Job Corps Infrastructure.—Job Corps has implemented a much-needed modernization of equipment and technology at Job Corps Centers. A recent survey 

of Job Corps operators indicated specific equipment needs at Job Corps Centers, 

many of which were items that are worn, broken, outdated, or have created 

safety concerns. These equipment purchases were prioritized to help ensure 

that our students have a safe and effective learning environment where the students are trained on equipment that can continue to meet accreditation standards. This investment includes not only training equipment, but educational 

and information technology (IT) upgrades that will benefit current and future 

students. 
145 

—Program Redesign and Streamlining.—The Program and Requirements Handbook (PRH), the key guiding document for Job Corps activities, is cumbersome 

and outdated. We are reexamining the program’s design to create a more costeffective program model, while also updating operational standards to better 

serve today’s students. We are dedicating a small portion of the funds to a complete review of the program design and a revision of the 1,371-page PRH. This 

will be a collaborative and open process, and we have already begun collecting 

input from Job Corps’ many stakeholders. —Procurement Support.—A small portion of the funds is being invested towards 

responding to a recommendation from the Office of the Inspector General’s Job 

Corps financial audit. This funding will be used to acquire expert assistance 

through contractors to assist with the preparation of Independent Government 

Cost Estimates (IGCEs). See Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.404–1. 

An IGCE is the government’s own assessment of what a particular scope of 

work, activity, service, or product needed should cost based on an evaluation of 

a similar scope of work, activity, service, or product available in the private 

marketplace. As part of the acquisition process, this expertise will improve the 

Department’s estimate of the operating costs of contracts for Job Corps centers, 

outreach and admissions, and career transition assistance for students. This is 

one of many steps we continue to take to ensure contracting integrity and sound 

financial management. —Contract Closeouts.—ETA is working with Job Corps center operators to reconcile historical obligations to actual costs incurred, such as direct costs for 

serving students and adjustments to indirect cost rates. We are currently working to review close-out claims submitted by contractors and want to ensure we 

have funds available to pay all liabilities owed. 

The Plan for Increasing OBS, Including the Timing and Allocation by Job Corps 

Center of Additional OBS.—ETA recently announced the plan for increasing OBS 

to the PY 2014 levels, and we have begun working with the Job Corps operators 

to implement it. 

The Steps That the Department Is Taking to Maximize OBS for PY 2013 and PY 

2014.—The reduction in contracted OBS in PY 2012 was a critical step undertaken 

to ensure financial stability within the program and establish an OBS level for PY 

2013 that was supportable under the fiscal year 2013 appropriation, including sequestration. We are continuing to monitor contractor expenditures against OBS levels as we evaluate the efficacy of our OBS levels and contract amounts. Based on 

an increased appropriation in fiscal year 2014 and reviews of the contract expenditures and OBS levels, DOL plans to increase OBS levels to a level supportable in 

PY 2014 to ensure the program serves the most students possible within the appropriation. 

REVISION OF PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS HANDBOOK FOR JOB CORPS

Question. The Department has indicated that it plans to undertake a full revision 

of the Program Requirements Handbook for the Job Corps program. Please provide 

a detailed plan for the review process, including timelines, staffing requirements, 

and the estimated cost. 

Answer. Job Corps has launched an initiative to re-examine its policies and practices to create a more streamlined, focused and efficient system for the delivery of 

essential residential, job-based training services to youth to ensure they are prepared with the industry-recognized education and technical credentials to enter and 

remain attached to the workforce. The process is collaborative, leveraging the depth 

and breadth of knowledge and experience within the Job Corps community. It will 

result in a full revision of the program’s Policy and Requirements Handbook (PRH). 

The process, timeline, staffing requirements and estimated costs are as follows. 

Action Timeline 

Initiate plan: develop scope, action plan & guiding principles ..................................................... Complete 

Procure Support Contract: develop scope, conduct procurement, award contract ...................... Spring 2014 

Launch initiative: conduct webinar series ...................................................................................... Complete 

Collaborate with ETA partners: Contracting & Budgeting offices to address policy change implications.Ongoing 

Solicit Job Corps community input: 

—Conduct Opinion Request to solicit field policy recommendations ................................... Complete 

—Conduct series of Listening Forums to prioritize policy issues ......................................... Complete 

—Hold policy discussions with Federal Management Team ................................................. Spring 2014 

—Establish PRH Modernization Workgroup with operator representation. Conduct in-person & virtual meetings.Spring 2014—ongoing 
146 

Action Timeline 

—Develop and launch Web-based Job Corps Community of Practice .................................. Spring 2014—ongoing 

Conduct policy review: 

—Form expert field practitioner workgroups ......................................................................... Summer 2014 

—Review existing policy & develop new policy recommendations ....................................... Summer 2014 

—Identify performance expectations, assessment strategies, technical assistance resources.Fall 2014 

—Organize & consolidate all policy recommendations ......................................................... Fall 2014 

Review& assess policy content recommendations: Field review & comment; management decisionmaking.Winter 2014 

Modify accountability systems to align with revised policy: outcome measures, student accountability, reporting; financial management.Fall 2014–Spring 2015 

Conduct training for the Job Corps Community: 

—Design & conduct face-to-face training conferences ........................................................ TBD 

—Develop virtual and online training courses ...................................................................... TBD 

Develop transition strategy: 

—Develop procurement transition timeline & revised Statement of Work ........................... TBD 

—Establish transition period & target date for implementation ......................................... TBD 

Staffing Requirements.—The work will be accomplished primarily within existing 

Federal and contract operator staffing resources. Assistance in soliciting input, organizing and conducting workgroups, consolidating recommendations, revising and indexing content to ensure consistency, and designing and conducting training for the 

Job Corps system will be provided through a National Office PRH support contract 

with approximately five FTE, as follows: 

Project Director ............................................................................................................... 1 FTE 

Project Assistant ............................................................................................................ 1 FTE 

Senior Policy & Program Specialist ............................................................................... 2 FTE 

Subject Matter Experts ................................................................................................... 1 FTE 

Cost.—We are still working on developing the scope of the solicitation, but we an- ticipate the base contract to be no more than $1 million. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

INSPECTOR GENERAL’S REPORT/CORRECTIVE ACTIONS FOR JOB CORPS

Question. Mr. Secretary, the Job Corps program ran significant funding shortfalls 

in Program Year 2011 and 2012. As a result, enrollment freezes and reductions in 

on-board strength occurred at Job Corps centers. The Department of Labor’s Inspector General released an audit report in May 2013 that reviewed the internal controls in place and found that programmatic, budgetary, and managerial problems as 

a well as a lack of proper program integrity controls contributed to the budget shortfalls. The fiscal year 2014 Senate Labor/HHS report directed the Department to provide a report no later than December 1, 2013, on the progress of the Department’s 

implementation of the Inspector General’s recommendations. While this report is delayed, I hope you can update us on the Department’s progress. 

What changes have been made in the financial system after the budget shortfalls? 

Answer. The Department has implemented strong oversight and cost–saving 

measures to ensure that the Job Corps program remains solvent and is able to deliver education and vocational services to participants served. ETA’s Office of Financial Administration (OFA) has instituted several initiatives to strengthen and coordinate existing controls and create new controls to ensure that obligations stayed 

within budget and to track contractor expenditures against their submitted spend 

plans. Working closely with ETA’s Office of Contracts Management (OCM), which 

was created in 2010 to consolidate all ETA contracting in the national and regional 

offices, OFA ensures that Job Corps’ centers cost reimbursements are accounted for 

in a more timely and accurate way. The added coordination between OFA and OCM 

has resulted in significant improvements in the financial oversight of Job Corps. In 

addition, funds have been set aside to integrate the Job Corps program’s financial 

reporting systems with those of ETA to further this critical coordination. Finally, 

additional training has been provided to staff members who monitor Job Corps contracts to enable them to provide better oversight and improve their ability to monitor these contracts. 

Progress toward resolving the issue has been a priority. Of the six recommendations in the Office of the Inspector General’s (OIG) report, four are classified by the 

OIG as ‘‘Resolved and/or Closed.’’ ETA is committed to resolving the remaining two 
147 

recommendations as soon as possible. Below is the status of the six recommendations. Additional details are available on the Job Corps Web site: http:// 

www.jobcorps.gov/AboutJobCorps/performancelplanning/oigreport.aspx. 

1. Resolved.—Establish necessary criteria and thresholds for detecting potential financial and program risks to be routinely documented and communicated, 

and identify the appropriate personnel within DOL to receive this periodic information. 

2. In Progress.—Develop and implement formal policies and procedures or enhance existing policies and procedures. 

3. Resolved.—Conduct a formal assessment of human capital resources needed 

for processes and internal controls over Job Corps funds, and periodically update the assessment. 

4. In Progress.—Periodically review and update the policy for developing cost 

models applied in determining the IGCE used in Job Corps center contracting 

activities to incorporate the use of more current guidance and assumptions. 

5. Resolved.—Formally reconcile data on a routine basis between NCFMS, 

JFAS, and JC–FMS. 

6. Resolved.—Evaluate the cost-benefit of creating system interfaces between 

NCFMS, JFAS, and JC–FMS. 

ETA currently is refining the process for OJC planning, requirements determination, budgeting, and evaluation in order to enhance internal controls beyond the actions already taken. This effort will lay out a more defined process for all aspects 

of OJC financial and contractual activity for a program year well in advance of the 

start of the year and allow for a more rapid response to OJC budget changes. 

Question. What assurances can you give us that additional budget shortfalls will 

not occur? 

Answer. In recent years, we faced a serious challenge when the Office of Job 

Corps projected a funding shortfall and was temporarily forced to suspend new student enrollment. Job Corps has adopted recommendations made by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and has undertaken a variety of measures to strengthen contract oversight and financial management of the program. In particular, Job Corps 

and the Department’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) have established 

mechanisms for detecting potential financial and program risks to improve related 

policies, procedures, and internal controls, and to routinely reconcile accounting systems data. In addition, Job Corps has adjusted student on-board strength OBS to 

levels that are sustainable within its appropriation and is using improved processes 

to prevent similar issues in the future as DOL takes steps to increase the OBS. The 

Employment and Training Administration (ETA) has developed a new on-board 

strength cost model to help the Job Corps program better track operational costs 

by center and project differences between centers’ spending plans and actual expenditures. These actions, taken together, will ensure that Job Corps can prevent 

future issues and correct for past deficiencies. We are also committed to reviewing 

the contracting approaches for the program, and determining what type of contracts 

will allow us to deliver services at the lowest risk and best value to the Federal Government. 

Question. What steps have been taken to prevent Job Corps’ financial problems 

from re-emerging? 

Answer. ETA has undertaken a variety of measures to strengthen contract oversight and financial management of the Job Corps program. These include thorough 

analysis and monitoring of programmatic and financial data; aligning the number 

of students with the levels supportable under the program’s appropriation; improving communication between program, contracting, fiscal, and agency leadership; and 

improving contract administration and oversight as well as providing additional 

training for contracting staff. These necessary changes will ensure that we will not 

have this problem in the future. 

JOB CORPS CENTER CLOSURES

Question. The Administration has stated in both the fiscal year 2014 and fiscal 

year 2015 budget requests that it plans to close a ‘‘small number of centers that 

are chronically low-performing.’’ In January 2013, the Department issued a notice 

seeking public comment on the proposed methodology for closing centers. However, 

no further public action has been taken. Yet, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget 

request assumes a savings for the Job Corps program of $11.6 million resulting from 

the closure of centers. Mr. Secretary, does that figure mean that the Department 

will close centers in fiscal year 2015? 

Answer. The Department continues to finalize the closure methodology and plans 

to issue a Federal Register Notice responding to comments received from the public 
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and announcing the revised proposed methodology as the next public action. The 

Department has not yet established a date for publication of the final closure methodology. 

Question. If so, how many centers will close? 

Answer. The Department continues to finalize the closure methodology and has 

not yet determined the exact number of centers for closure or the individual centers 

that will be closed. 

Question. What methodology will be adopted for closing centers? 

Answer. The Department continues to finalize the closure methodology and will 

issue a Federal Register Notice responding to comments received from the public. 

Question. How will the slots at the centers closing be redistributed throughout the 

Job Corps program? 

Answer. We have not yet made a final decision about slot redistributions. As we 

move forward with this process, we will work with the Job Corps stakeholder community to take these considerations into account. 

JOB CORPS NEW ON-BOARD STRENGTH MODEL

Question. In Program Year 2012, the Employment and Training Administration 

formulated a new on-board strength model. How will the new on-board strength 

model help the Job Corps program to better account for operational costs and prevent future budgetary shortfalls? 

Answer. The new on-board strength (OBS) model recognizes the relationship between students and costs. The key results of this recognition allowed Job Corps to 

create a methodology to better account for operational costs, prevent future budgetary shortfalls, and avoid a repeat of past ‘‘savings drills.’’ The model provides a 

new method for Job Corps’ budgeting, provides a logical basis for decisionmaking, 

and recognizes that the center funding level should be based on OBS level—i.e. 

number of student slots. This model was developed and implemented in February– 

March 2013. The assumptions of the model are listed below: 

—Relationship between center costs and the number of students; 

—Variation by each of Job Corps’ 29 cost categories for each Center; 

—Tie inflation increases to projected increases in the budget; 

—Restore reductions to critical academic support areas; 

—Base Job Corps student slots on the appropriation level in each Program Year. 

While the new model is essential to the continuity of operations, it requires a stable program of operation and accurate and timely submission of costs by Job Corps 

contractors to be evaluated. The Department continues to work on refining and improving the model. 

Question. Were stakeholders consulted in the process of developing this new onboard strength model? 

Answer. The on-board strength (OBS) model was developed to identify the affordable levels of OBS based on data supplied by contractors and the appropriated budget. A center’s OBS level was initially based on the centers’ previous OBS level. ETA 

and the Job Corps community have established a workgroup to examine current financial management reporting practices in the Job Corps community. ETA has 

shared the OBS model with that workgroup, though no decisions will come from the 

workgroup. This workgroup is comprised of Job Corps contractors and other stakeholders. Job Corps is committed to continued open communication with the Job 

Corps community to harness their expertise. 

Question. If so, how were they consulted? 

Answer. ETA and the Job Corps community have established a workgroup comprised of Job Corps contractors and other stakeholders to examine current financial 

management reporting practices in the Job Corps community, and ETA has shared 

the OBS model with that workgroup, though no decisions will come from the group. 

In addition, the Department has briefed Congressional staff on the model and continues to work with the contractor community on improving the data used in the 

model. 

SECTOR STRATEGIES

Question. The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget requests $15 million for a new 

Sector Strategies competitive grant initiative that would encourage development 

and implementation of sector strategies, or partnerships, of local businesses, regional workforce boards, and educational organizations to support and develop the 

workforce needs of specific industries in that area. A January 2012 GAO report entitled ‘‘Innovative Collaborations between Workforce Boards and Employers Helped 

Meet Local Needs,’’ highlighted Sector Strategies as an important workforce approach for meeting the skill needs of workers and employers within local or regional 
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economies. Will you share with us the details of the Department’s new Sector Strategies initiative? 

Answer. The Department’s request for $15 million for a new Sector Strategies 

competitive grant initiative will provide funds to states, regions, or localities to implement sector-based strategies that meet the needs of small, medium, and large 

businesses in in-demand sectors. 

The Department anticipates awarding competitive grants to implement sectorbased strategies to meet the dual goals of meeting the needs of businesses while 

providing training and career advancement opportunities for targeted populations. 

These grants would support the development of partnerships between the workforce 

system, business, community colleges, economic development, and others such as organized labor, the adult basic education system, and supportive service providers. 

The grants also would be used to modify existing training based on business demand as well as train and provide career advancement opportunities for targeted 

populations such as acutely or chronically long term unemployed, low-wage workers, 

new labor market entrants, and veterans. 

In addition, the Department will award smaller capacity building grants to States 

to support or promote the development of sector partnerships. State applicants 

would identify a local or regional area that would pilot the capacity-building activities during the grant period. 

Question. In particular, how many grants will be awarded and at approximately 

what amount per grant? 

Answer. Through the Sector Strategies competitive grant initiative, the Department anticipates awarding four to five grants potentially ranging in size from $2– 

3 million to implement sector-based strategies to meet the dual goals of meeting the 

needs of businesses while providing training and career advancement opportunities 

for targeted populations. The Department also anticipates awarding approximately 

five, smaller capacity building grants to states to support or promote the development of sector partnerships. 

Question. How do you plan to involve local industry leaders in this initiative? 

Answer. Local industry leaders would be partners and valued customers for all 

Sector Strategies competitive grants. These leaders would identify critical, immediate workforce needs, inform curriculum design and delivery, provide work-based 

learning opportunities, and receive integrated business services that meet their 

workforce needs. Integrated business services are the range of workforce development, economic development, regulatory compliance, and other services available 

from a variety of Federal, State, and local resources that meet business’ needs. 

JOB-DRIVEN TRAINING FOR WORKERS PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM

Question. For the last several years, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) 

has cited duplication across job training programs. In addition to GAO’s work, concerns have been raised by the subcommittee about evaluations of job training programs. It is my understanding that the Department continues to work on a ‘‘Workforce Investment Act Gold Standard Evaluation,’’ which it has been undertaking 

since 2011. However, the evaluation’s first findings are not expected until the fall 

of 2015, and final impact findings will not be released until the summer of 2017. 

Can you explain how the new Job-Driven Training for Workers Presidential Memorandum will accomplish in 180 days what your Department has already been working on for 3 years and will not complete for three more? 

Answer. DOL views the Workforce Investment Act Gold Standard Evaluation and 

the overall job training review that is directed by the Presidential Memorandum as 

complementary but not identical efforts. 

In his State of the Union address, President Obama laid out a vision based upon 

the principle of opportunity for all. Key parts of that vision are helping people get 

the skills they need to succeed in good-paying jobs and ensuring that America’s employers have the skilled workers they need to successfully compete in the global 

economy. On January 31, 2014, the President issued a memorandum tasking Vice 

President Biden to conduct a broad review of our Nation’s employment and training 

programs to make this vision a reality, focusing on making workforce programs and 

policies throughout the government more focused on imparting relevant skills, more 

easily accessed by both employers and job seekers, and more accountable for positive 

employment and earning outcome results. This review is guided by the principle of 

job-driven training for workers. The review will result in an action plan that identifies steps to make sure that programs throughout the Federal Government deliver 

on the promise of job-driven training for workers and for employers. The Department of Labor is working with the Vice President and our colleagues at the Departments of Commerce, Education, Health and Human Services, and in other agencies 
150 

to implement this review and identify concrete ways to help more of American’s 

workers on a faster path to valuable skills and credentials, good jobs, and meaningful careers. 

In contrast to the Vice President’s review, the Gold Standard evaluation is a longterm evaluation that will determine the impact of services provided to adults and 

to dislocated workers under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. The evaluation 

will produce the first impact estimates in December 2015 as scheduled, and the final 

impact results in the summer of 2017. The Vice President’s review is also focused 

on improving the accountability for the outcomes of training programs. 

I look forward to discussing with the Committee the results of the Vice President’s 

review. 

Question. Why have the reports from GAO on job training duplication not spurred 

any significant budget proposals from the Department on consolidation? 

Answer. The GAO report does not recommend that training and employment programs be consolidated. Rather, it recommends better collaboration across programs. 

The Administration is focused on improving coordination and alignment in the 

workforce system as GAO has suggested. The Vice President is currently leading an 

across-the-board review of employment and training programs. One of the key goals 

of that review is to improve workforce system coordination across program funding 

streams. 

The Administration is also taking steps to improve service delivery and increase 

coordination and alignment within its current authority as well as through proposals in the President’s budget. For example, the Workforce Innovation Fund, 

launch last year, supports State, regional, and local efforts to wok across program 

silos to produce better employment outcomes for job seekers and workers. The latest 

solicitation for grant applications was released in mid-May of this year. The 2015 

President’s budget requests $60 million for the Workforce Innovation Fund in 2015. 

In addition, the budget requests $80 million for WIA Incentive Grants, which would 

provide grants to states that demonstrate strong performance in serving populations 

with barriers to employment. Since these individuals are likely to be served by multiple programs, States that improve program coordination and alignment will be 

more likely to receive these grants. The Administration has also sought greater 

flexibility to blend funding in exchange for greater accountability for outcomes. The 

proposed Performance Partnership authority was enacted in the 2014 and will permit greater cross-program work to achieve better outcomes for disconnected youth. 

A slightly expanded version of this authority was reproposed in the 2015 budget. 

The 2015 President’s budget also includes some proposals to consolidate employment and training programs in a targeted way that protect the most vulnerable populations. The public workforce system, authorized by the Workforce Investment Act, 

provides States and local areas flexibility in determining how best to implement 

their job training and employment programs by tailoring the system to meet the 

needs of local jobseekers and employers and support regional economic growth. Further, the Department’s job training and employment programs are geared to serve 

diverse individuals with specific needs, including veterans, dislocated workers, individuals with disabilities, women, low income youth, Indians and Native Americans, 

and migrants and seasonal farmworkers. The Department is committed to working 

with its Federal partners to ensure access to services. 

Further, the fiscal year 2015 budget request includes several plans to streamline 

or align workforce and training services, and it also emphasizes building on what 

is working and encouraging innovation to improve service delivery and performance. 

We have proposed to transfer the Senior Community Service Employment Program 

to the Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community 

Living, placing the program in an agency that shares the mission of helping older 

Americans maintain their independence (both economic independence and living arrangements) and actively participate in their communities. Additionally, the budget 

proposes to consolidate the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers and the WIA 

Dislocated Worker programs into a single New Career Pathways program that will 

streamline the delivery of training and reach as many as one million displaced 

workers a year with a set of core services. 

The Department has also already eliminated some employment and training programs that it viewed as duplicative, including the Community-Based Job Training 

Grants and the Veterans Workforce Investment Act programs. 

COMMUNITY SERVICE EMPLOYMENT FOR OLDER AMERICANS PROGRAM

Question. The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget requests $380 million in funding 

for the Community Service Employment for Older Americans program. The budget 

also proposes transferring the program to the Department of Health and Human 
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Services, which the subcommittee has consistently rejected. Mr. Secretary, how does 

this budget request account for the President’s proposed minimum wage increase? 

Answer. The number of participants that can be served under the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) depends on minimum wages at the national, State or local levels. Consistent with standard practices, the fiscal year 2015 

Budget request assumes current law in estimating the number of participants 

served. As Congress considers raising the minimum wage, the Department of Labor, 

in conjunction with the Department of Health and Human Services, would be glad 

to discuss with Congress how various implementation and timing options for a minimum wage increase would affect SCSEP slots. 

Question. How would an increase in the minimum wage affect the number of slots 

available to program participants? 

Answer. At the fiscal year 2015 request level, an increase in the Federal minimum wage would increase the participant wage rate and decrease the number of 

participant slots in areas where the current minimum wage is not at least $10.10. 

As Congress considers raising the minimum wage, the Department of Labor, in conjunction with the Department of Health and Human Services, would be glad to discuss with Congress how various implementation and timing options for a minimum 

wage increase would affect SCSEP slots. 

H–1B VISA PROGRAM

Question. As part of the H–1B visa program, the Department of Labor currently 

receives a portion of the fees assessed to companies who apply for these temporary, 

high-skilled worker visas to provide training to U.S. workers. These training programs are designed to assist American workers in gaining the skills needed to obtain or advance employment in high-growth industries. In addition to annual H–1B 

fees, the Department of Labor received additional funds from the American Recovery in Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to train Americans. Please provide the subcommittee the following information: 

What is the dollar amount distributed from H–1B fees to the Department of Labor 

for the past 5 fiscal years? 

Answer. The Department of Labor collected $668,231,275 in H–1B fees from fiscal 

year 2009 through fiscal year 2013 for the Job Training for Employment in High 

Growth Industries program. The distribution of collections by year follows: 

Fiscal year 

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 

H–1B collections .............................. $110,820,955 $114,026,359 $130,975,268 $161,232,760 $151,175,933 

Question. What is total amount of money provided to the Department of Labor 

from the ARRA? 

Answer. The Department of Labor received $4,806,000,000 in discretionary funds 

from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. 

Question. What evidence is there to demonstrate the training funds—both H–1B 

fees and the ARRA funds—have resulted in meaningful employment for Americans? 

Answer. Since 2008, the Department has funded approximately $1.539 billion 

through the following competitive grants using H–1B fees and American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funds appropriated for high-growth and 

emerging industries (HGEI). (Approximately $750 million of ARRA funds were designated for HGEI grants, compared to over $4 billion in total ARRA funding for 

Training and Employment Services programs.) Several of these training grants include program evaluations, as described below: 

High Growth Job Training Initiative (HGJTI) 

The High Growth Job Training Initiative, which began in 2001 and ended in 2013, 

engaged business, education, and the workforce investment system in the development of integrated solutions to the workforce challenges facing high-growth industries. These industries included Advanced Manufacturing, Geospatial Technology, 

Aerospace, Health Care, Automotive, Hospitality, Biotechnology, Information Technology, Construction, Retail, Energy, Transportation, and Financial Services. This 

program was funded by H–1B fees. 
152 

2 Available at: http://wdr.doleta.gov/research/etaldefault.cfm?fuseaction=dsplresultDetails 

&publid=2478&basloption=Title&start=1&usrt=4&stype=basic&sv=1&criteria= 

High%20Growth. 

The final report 2 documents the national initiative, describes the structure and 

implementation of projects by selected grantees, and provides non-experimental 

analysis of the early training outcomes of HGJTI-funded programs, including some 

information on early impacts of job training activities. Some of these early impacts 

reported by the grantees demonstrate evidence of meaningful employment for participants. For example: 49 percent of 593 trainees in the Chicago Women in Trades 

program were placed in jobs with an average earnings of $17.62 per hour; 81 percent of 1,098 dislocated workers in the Community Center Learning Center entered 

jobs as full-time entry-level aircraft assembler positions earning $10 per hour, and 

78 percent retained those jobs; and the High Plains Technology Center had 2,162 

training completers of which 74 percent were placed in jobs with an average wage 

of $14–$18 per hour for floor hands and $26 per hour for derrick hands. 

H–1B Technical Skills Training (TST) 

The H–1B TST Grant Program, which began in November 2011, provides education, training, and job placement assistance in the occupations and industries for 

which employers are using H–1B visas to hire highly-skilled foreign workers on a 

temporary basis, and the related activities necessary to support such training. This 

program is intended to raise the technical skill levels of American workers so they 

can obtain or upgrade employment in high-growth industries and occupations. Over 

time, these education and training programs will help businesses reduce their use 

of skilled foreign professionals permitted to work in the U.S. on a temporary basis 

under the H–1B visa program. The grants represent significant investments in sectors, such as information technology, advanced manufacturing, and healthcare. 

These grants are currently active. The Department is funding an implementation 

study of this program that will provide a cross-cutting summary of grantees’ program operations, including participant recruitment and enrollment practices, program services, and key partner roles and responsibilities, as well as detailed information on special topics of interest and lessons learned. The draft Final Report is 

expected in the spring of 2018. 

H–1B Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge (JIAC) 

The Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge (JIAC), which began in October 

2011, is designed to help regions achieve the demonstrated benefits of collaborative, 

cluster-based regional development. This initiative represents the implementation of 

Administration policy priorities to accelerate bottom-up innovation in urban and 

rural regions, as opposed to imposing ‘‘one-size-fits-all’’ solutions. The JIAC also 

meets Administration goals for smarter use of government resources through reduction of Federal silos and promotion of coordinated Federal funding opportunities 

that offer more efficient access to Federal resources. The three Federal funding 

agencies for this project include the Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA); Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration; and the Small Business Administration. These grants are currently active. 

The study being conducted of the JIAC is a process evaluation that focuses on the 

regional industry cluster implementation plans, as well as processes and strategies 

used to develop and accelerate regional economic development that translate into 

new jobs and increased wages through these regional partnerships. The draft Interim Report is due to ETA in November 2014, and the draft Final Report is expected in the spring of 2016. 

H–1B Make it in America (MIIA) 

The Make it in America (MIIA) grant program, which began in October 2013 and 

is funded by H–1B fees, seeks to encourage foreign and domestic businesses to build 

or expand their operations in the United States. This is intended to accelerate job 

creation by encouraging re-shoring of productive activity by U.S. firms, foster increased foreign direct investment, encourage U.S. companies to keep or expand their 

businesses—and jobs—here at home, and train local workers to meet the needs of 

those businesses. The MIIA also meets Administration goals for smarter use of government resources through reduction of Federal silos and promotion of coordinated 

Federal funding opportunities that offer more efficient access to Federal resources. 

The three Federal funding agencies for this project include the Department of 

Labor, Employment and Training Administration; U.S. Department of Commerce’s 

Economic Development Administration (EDA) and National Institute of Standards 
153 

and Technology Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST MEP); and, Delta Regional Authority (DRA). These grants are currently active. 

The MIIA evaluation will examine partner infrastructures, strategic planning, 

technical assistance, workforce development resources used for workers to develop 

the needed skills, as well as the local community clusters. The evaluation will document successes in measureable project outputs, capacity-building outcomes, and realized outcomes that lead to building a highly skilled and diverse workforce to meet 

employer demand. 

ARRA High growth and Emerging Industries (HGEI) 

Awarded through the Recovery Act, ARRA High Growth and Emerging Industries 

(HGEI) grants that focused on training and placement activities included the Energy Training Partnership Grants, Pathways Out of Poverty Grants, State Energy 

Sector Partnership and Training Grants, and Health Care Sector and Other High 

Growth and Emerging Industries Grants. These grants ended June 2013. 

ETA funded a random-assignment impact evaluation of four grants awarded from 

two of the ARRA Solicitations for Grant Applications (SGA): Pathways Out of Poverty/Green Jobs and Health Care Sector and Other High Growth and Emerging Industries SGA. The overall aim of this study is to determine the extent to which 

grantees’ participants achieve increases in employment, earnings, and career advancement as a result of their participation in the training provided by the grantees, and to identify promising best practices and strategies for replication. The draft 

Interim Report is due to ETA in June 2015 and the draft Final Report is expected 

in December 2016. 

Youth Career Connect 

These grants, awarded in April 2014, are designed to provide high school students 

with education and training that combines rigorous academic and technical curricula focused on specific in-demand occupations, particularly in science, technology, 

engineering, and math (STEM) related fields. An evaluation of these grants is in 

the early stages of planning at the Department. 

H–1B Ready to Work Partnership Grants 

These grants, totaling approximately $150 million, are being competed in spring 

2014 and expected to be awarded in fall 2014. They will be focused on providing 

long-term unemployed workers with individualized counseling, training and supportive and specialized services leading to rapid employment in occupations and industries for which employers use H–1B visas to hire foreign workers. The grants 

will support public-private partnerships that include the workforce investment system; training providers, such as community colleges and community-based and 

faith-based organizations; and businesses including at least three actively engaged 

employers. As part of its commitment to producing strong evidence on effectiveness 

its programs, the Department is requiring full participation in a planned impact 

evaluation as a condition of all grants awarded in this competition. 

Quarterly Performance Reporting 

Grantees for the above programs report key outcomes (entered employment rate, 

employment retention rate, and average earnings) each quarter for participants who 

have exited the program. These outcome data are not yet available for the H–1B, 

TST, JAIC, or MIIA programs, as grantees complete a mandatory planning period 

before enrolling any participants, and most participants have not yet exited training 

programs. Quarterly performance outcomes from these programs will be posted as 

they become available at: http://www.doleta.gov/performance/results/#etaqr. 

Archived outcome data are available at: http://www.doleta.gov/performance/results/ 

ArchivelReports.cfm for the HGJTI (see December quarterly reports for 2008–2012 

and March 2013) and ARRA HGEI programs (see June 2013). 

Question. What percentage of individuals receiving H–1B funded training obtains 

employment after completing that training? 

Answer. Through the High-Growth Job Training Initiative (HGJTI) grants, which 

operated from 2003 through 2013, 63,716 participants completed training activities. 

Of these, 28,753 were placed into positions of new employment. The Entered Employment Rate for completers is 45 percent. Prior to new reporting requirements implemented in the quarter ending December 31, 2011, grantees only reported results 

for individuals who entered employment if those participants entered employment 

and completed training in the same quarter. As a result, the total number of individuals that ultimately entered employment and training-related employment are 

actually higher than the results above indicate. 

The current H–1B funded training grants, awarded at different times since October 2011, have served 43,606 participants as of December 31, 2013, including 9,967 
154 

who were unemployed at enrollment. Of these unemployed participants, 8,835 began 

training by December 31, 2013, including 3,762 who completed training. Of these 

training completers, 1,990 (52 percent) entered employment by December 31, 2013. 

These H–1B grants are at different stages of their grant periods of performance, including some that were still in the planning and startup phase and had not yet enrolled participants during the latest (December 2013) reporting period. 

Question. What is the average timeframe for receiving employment after receiving 

H–1B funded training? 

Answer. The Department cannot calculate an average time from training completion to entering employment because it does not collect data on individual hire 

dates. The Department tracks an entered employment rate based on the number of 

participants who are employed in the quarter after the quarter in which they exited 

the program. (See http://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/attach/TEGL17-05lAttachA.pdf.) 

Question. Does the Department collect data on whether individuals receiving H– 

1B funded training remain employed 1 year after they are trained? 

Answer. The Department collects employment retention data using the Common 

Performance Measures. The Employment Retention Rate is based on the number of 

people who were employed in the first quarter after they exited the program and 

are still employed up to 9 months after exit. 

For the current H–1B funded investments, the Employment Retention Rate 

(which includes both unemployed and incumbent worker participants) is 99 percent 

for the quarter ending December 31, 2013. 

Question. How does H–1B training help the long-term unemployed? 

Answer. Of the more than $340 million awarded in two rounds of H–1B Technical 

Skills Training (TST) grants in fiscal year 2012, the Department designated more 

than $200 million for grantees serving the long-term unemployed. 

In addition, in February 2014 the Department announced the Long-term Unemployed H–1B Ready to Work (Ready to Work) Partnership grant program, currently 

open for solicitation of grant applications. The Ready to Work grant program will 

utilize approximately $150 million in H–1B funds for projects that recruit long-term 

unemployed workers and employ strategies that are effective in getting them back 

to work in middle to high-skill occupations. The Department is planning a rigorous 

evaluation of these grants. 

GOVERNOR’S SET-ASIDE

Question. The fiscal year 2014 omnibus increased the Governor’s Set-Aside to 8.75 

percent. This program has been successful with states that use the funding for 

state-wide or regional employment initiatives. In Kansas, it is my understanding 

that the State intends to use the additional funding from fiscal year 2014 to support 

employment services for veterans. Specifically, Kansas plans to hire a point person 

at Fort Riley, the state’s largest military installation, to provide case management 

services to exiting service members. With improved coordination of services, the 

State is confident it can improve the employment outcomes of its veterans. However, 

there is concern from the State that until the Governor’s Set-Aside is restored to 

its authorized level of 15 percent, limited resources will prevent the State from assisting more veterans in finding jobs as they transition to civilian life. Why does 

your Department not support restoring the Governor’s State Set-Aside to its fully 

authorized level so that states will have the resources and flexibility they need to 

pursue promising ventures such as the one I have referenced? 

Answer. The 2015 budget adheres to the spending levels agreed to in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, which was an important first step toward replacing the 

damaging cuts caused by sequestration with sensible long-term reforms. However, 

remaining at these levels necessitates difficult decisions, and means that we cannot 

accommodate additional investments in key areas like the job training formula 

grants. The Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative proposed in the 2015 

budget acknowledges this, and included funds to restore prior cuts in the formula 

grants. The fiscal year 2015 budget does, however, request the continuation of the 

reserve at the fiscal year 2014 level, which allows for fundamental state oversight 

and accountability activities. Increasing the State reserve without increasing formula funding would cut into local funding. The Department will continue to work 

with States to identify ways to operate within these funding levels while continuing 

essential activities. 

The 2015 budget adheres to the spending levels agreed to in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, which was an important first step toward replacing the damaging 

cuts caused by sequestration with sensible long-term reforms. However, remaining 

at these levels necessitates difficult decisions, and means that we cannot accommodate additional investments in key areas like the job training formula grants. The 
155 

Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative proposed in the 2015 budget acknowledges this, and included funds to restore prior cuts in the formula grants. The fiscal 

year 2015 budget does, however, request the continuation of the reserve at the fiscal 

year 2014 level, which allows for fundamental state oversight and accountability activities. Increasing the State reserve without increasing formula funding would cut 

into local funding. The Department will continue to work with States to identify 

ways to operate within these funding levels while continuing essential activities. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR THAD COCHRAN

GULFPORT, MISSISSIPPI JOB CORPS CENTER

Question. Secretary Perez, the Job Corps center in Gulfport, Mississippi was badly 

damaged during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The former Secretary of Labor, Secretary Solis, committed to work with me to ensure that the Gulfport Job Corps Center is rebuilt and able to return to serving the number of young people that it once 

served. Here we are, nearly 9 years later, and this center has yet to be fully repaired. Is this acceptable to you? 

Answer. The Gulfport Job Corps Center was closed due to extensive damage 

caused by Hurricane Katrina in late 2005. The center occupies the former 33rd Avenue High School, which is eligible for inclusion in the National Registry of Historic 

Places as it dates back to 1921 as the only Gulfport high school that served AfricanAmerican students until Gulfport schools were integrated in 1968. The property and 

buildings are owned by the City of Gulfport and leased to Job Corps. Work began 

in 2006 to determine whether existing buildings could be repaired and renovated. 

A determination was made in 2007 that this option was not feasible due to the condition of the structures and environmental remediation costs. DOL contracted a design/build contractor in 2008 to include demolition and construction of temporary 

modular facilities to reopen the Center. Temporary center facilities were completed 

in late 2009, a contract for a Center operator was procured, and the Center reopened with a reduced student population in 2010 (the current OBS is 107). The 

construction design of the new permanent Center was completed and a construction 

contract was awarded in 2011. However, alumni of the 33rd Avenue school objected 

to the demolition of the historic buildings and invoked the historic preservation 

laws. DOL conducted extensive negotiations and meetings with the community, but 

when no agreement was reached, the construction contract was cancelled in March 

2012. At the community’s request, DOL hired a local contractor to assess issues regarding renovation and preservation, and the report was received in December 2013. 

Before the structural analysis can be completed, the site needs significant remediation to determine whether any of the buildings (or parts thereof) are structurally 

sound enough to be preserved. We are currently revising the scope of work for the 

assessment and stabilization of the buildings. Once the scope is completed, we anticipate issuing a request for proposal by June 30, 2014. 

Question. What are you doing to fix it? 

Answer. Job Corps has worked extensively to address the historic preservation 

concerns of the community. At the community’s request, DOL hired a local contractor to assess options for renovation and preservation, and the report was received in December 2013. The site needs significant remediation before the structural analysis on whether any of the buildings (or parts thereof) are structurally 

sound enough to be preserved as part of the new Center can be completed. We are 

currently revising the scope of work for the assessment and stabilization of the 

buildings. Once the scope is completed, we anticipate a request for proposal by June 

30, 2014. 

Question. Secretary Perez, we have three Job Corps centers in Mississippi that 

serve hundreds of underprivileged young people. How does the Department’s budget 

request seek to resolve issues in the Job Corps program caused by poor planning 

by the Department so that Job Corps centers are not forced to continue to lay off 

employees and reduce the number of students they serve? 

Answer. In recent years, we faced a serious challenge when the Office of Job 

Corps projected a funding shortfall and was temporarily forced to suspend new student enrollment. Job Corps has adopted recommendations made by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and has undertaken a variety of measures to strengthen contract oversight and financial management of the program. We have made necessary 

changes that will prevent similar issues in the future. 

In particular, Job Corps and the Department’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) have established mechanisms for detecting potential financial and program risks to improve related policies, procedures, and internal controls, and to rou-
156 

tinely reconcile accounting systems data. Improvements implemented since 2013 include thorough analysis and monitoring of programmatic and financial data; aligning the number of students with the levels supportable under the program’s appropriation; improving communication between program, contracting, fiscal, and agency 

leadership; and improving contract administration and oversight as well as providing additional training for contracting staff. 

The reduction in contracted on-board strength (OBS) at the end of the enrollment 

suspension in April 2013, was undertaken to ensure financial stability within the 

program and establish an OBS level for Program Year (PY) 2013 that was supportable under the fiscal year 2013 appropriation, including sequestration. Reducing 

OBS was a critical step in ensuring that we started PY 2013 with Job Corps’ total 

financial and budgetary commitments aligned with our appropriation. We are continuing to monitor contractor expenditures against OBS levels as we evaluate the 

efficacy of our OBS levels and contract amounts to inform future discussions about 

increasing OBS system-wide. 

Question. Have you planned accordingly for the upcoming fiscal year? 

Answer. Yes, the reduction in contracted on-board strength (OBS) in 2013 was undertaken to ensure financial stability within the program and establish an OBS 

level for PY 2013 that was supportable under the fiscal year 2013 appropriation, including sequestration. Reducing OBS was a critical step in ensuring that we started 

PY 2013 with Job Corps’ total financial and budgetary commitments aligned with 

our appropriation. We are continuing to monitor contractor expenditures against 

OBS levels as we evaluate the efficacy of our OBS levels and contract amounts. 

Based on an increased appropriation and reviews of the contract expenditures and 

OBS levels, DOL plans to increase OBS to a level that is supportable in PY 2014. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

H–2B RULES

Question. The Department has repeatedly proposed H–2B rules that would add 

regulatory burdens and costs to American businesses. In particular, the 2011 wage 

rule could have increased H–2B hourly wages by upwards of 50 percent. Many small 

businesses that use the H–2B program cannot afford this regulation and may ultimately close, which will result in more job losses, including putting the American 

jobs at those businesses at risk. The fiscal year 2012 Labor/HHS appropriations bill 

prohibited the Department from moving forward with this dangerous rule. That prohibition was continued through fiscal year 2013. However, since that time, the Department announced it will move forward with a re-proposal of the 2011 wage rule. 

Mr. Secretary, why is your Department moving forward with a re-proposal of the 

2011 wage rule, despite overwhelming opposition from Congress, industry leaders, 

and stakeholder interests who feel this rule is unworkable and will ultimately undermine the program? 

Answer. The Department does not plan to ‘‘re-propose’’ the prevailing wage rule 

issued in 2011, but will work off of its provisions in developing a proposal for consideration by the regulated community and other interested parties on a final wage 

rule in the H–2B program. Following litigation in which a court invalidated the regulatory provision setting forth skill levels to set the prevailing wage in the H–2B 

program, the Department issued an interim final rule in April 2013 (2013 IFR) that 

eliminated the use of skill levels in setting the prevailing wage. Instead, where 

there is not a collective bargaining agreement that governs the wage determination, 

the Department will set the prevailing wage as the mean of the wages of similarly 

employed workers in the geographic area of employment. Under the 2013 IFR, the 

Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) Survey is 

used to determine the mean wage of similarly employed workers in the geographic 

area, unless the employer requests a wage determination based on another source, 

such as wage surveys for workers employed under Federal government contracts or 

statistically sound private surveys. The Department invited public input on the 

2013 IFR and received over 300 public comments. In light of those public comments, 

recent developments in the H–2B program, Congressional actions, and judicial decisions, the Department has determined that further notice and comment on setting 

the prevailing wage in the H–2B program is warranted. Therefore, DOL intends to 

publish a notice of proposed rulemaking on the proper wage methodology for the H– 

2B program, working off of the 2011 Wage Rule as a starting point. The Department 

will review comments on the 2013 IFR, along with comments we receive after we 

publish the notice of proposed rulemaking prior to issuing a final rule. 
157 

GOVERNOR’S SET-ASIDE

Question. The Governor’s Workforce Investment Act set-aside allows 15 percent of 

Workforce Investment Act funding to be used by the Governor, at the state-level, 

to pursue creative workforce development initiatives. Limiting the amount of funds 

available to Governors’ workforce training initiatives stifles state-wide and regional 

employment training efforts. Governors are uniquely equipped to identify and address the workforce training needs of their state’s local employers and should be 

given the tools necessary to do so. Why does the Department not support increasing 

the set-aside to 15 percent? 

Answer. The 2015 budget adheres to the spending levels agreed to in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, which was an important first step toward replacing the 

damaging cuts caused by sequestration with sensible long-term reforms. However, 

remaining at these levels necessitates difficult decisions, and means that we cannot 

accommodate additional investments in key areas like the job training formula 

grants. The Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative proposed in the 2015 

budget acknowledges this, and included funds to restore prior cuts in the formula 

grants. The fiscal year 2015 budget does, however, request the continuation of the 

reserve at this level, which allows for fundamental state oversight and accountability activities. The Department will continue to work with States to identify ways 

to operate within these funding levels while continuing essential activities. 

Question. Are you concerned that under the reduced set-aside Governors no longer 

have the flexibility to implement innovative statewide projects? 

Answer. Investments in innovation are essential to helping the public workforce 

system identify and implement more efficient and effective ways of equipping workers with the skills employers’ need. The Department is committed to spurring innovation in the public workforce system, and the fiscal year 2015 budget request includes several initiatives that directly support innovation, such as the Workforce Innovation Fund. The Department has taken care to design these initiatives in ways 

that ensure states are positioned to compete for or otherwise leverage these resources through partnerships. In addition, the 2015 budget proposes a revamped 

WIA Incentive Grant program, which would provide grants to states that demonstrate the ability to achieve positive outcomes for populations with barriers to employment. States that are innovative and work across program siloes will be best 

positioned to receive these grants. Although structurally different from the Governor’s reserve, these national initiatives support significant increases in partnership, flexibility, dissemination, and coordination of strategies. 

BUREAU OF INTERNATIONAL LABOR AFFAIRS (ILAB)

Question. Mr. Secretary, since this Administration took office in 2009, the Bureau 

of International Labor Affairs’ (ILAB) has grown significantly. Comparing fiscal year 

2009 funding to the budget requested in fiscal year 2015, ILAB’s budget will have 

increased 6.2 percent, with the office growing by 22 full-time employees, a 26.5 percent increase. In this constrained budget environment, wouldn’t the Department’s 

funding be better spent on training workers in the United States as opposed to 

using taxpayers’ dollars to establish labor unions abroad? 

Answer. The Department of Labor is committed to supporting workers in the 

United States and ensuring that those workers, and the businesses in which they 

are employed, have a fair playing field with respect to worker rights in the global 

economy. These efforts seek to prevent workers and businesses in the United States 

from facing unfair competition based on the violation of worker rights. ILAB promotes respect for internationally recognized worker rights, improves working conditions and workplace safety, and combats exploitive child labor, forced labor, and 

human trafficking in other countries, particularly among key trading partners. 

The increases in ILAB’s budget beginning in fiscal year 2009 were preceded by 

several years of sharply declining budgets for the bureau—from nearly $150 million 

in fiscal year 2003 to $82.5 million in fiscal year 2008. These budget reductions occurred in the context of an increasing workload for ILAB related to expanded trade 

agreement monitoring, congressionally required reporting, and ongoing technical assistance oversight responsibilities. In fiscal year 2009, ILAB’s budget was increased 

to enable it to more effectively carry out its mandates and to address strategic 

areas. Since fiscal year 2010, ILAB’s budget has remained stable or has declined. 

The budget request for fiscal year 2015 of $91.3 million and 105 FTE remains at 

approximately the same level as the fiscal year 2014 appropriations. 

To meet its mandates and address strategic areas, ILAB has added full time employees since fiscal year 2008 primarily to the following three areas: 

—Research and analysis to meet statutory reporting responsibilities related to 

child and forced labor; 
158 

—Monitor labor conditions in current or prospective U.S. trading partners, enforcement of labor provisions of free trade agreements, and labor eligibility criteria of trade preference programs; and 

—Monitor, evaluate, and audit grant-funded projects to ensure effectiveness, impact, and management and financial accountability. 

WORKFORCE INNOVATION FUND

Question. Mr. Secretary, I remain concerned that as more workforce training programs become competitively awarded they will not reach those for whom training 

programs are intended. I also have reservations specific to the competitively awarded Workforce Innovation Fund. The fiscal year 2015 budget requests a fifth year of 

funding for a program whose outcomes are unknown. In a time when our national 

unemployment rate is 6.7 percent, the Workforce Innovation Fund does not provide 

any direct services to jobseekers. Wouldn’t funding be better utilized on programs 

that directly serve jobseekers? 

Answer. Almost all WIF grants directly serve job seekers, youth, and/or business 

customers, with the exception of two grants focused on the delivery of workforce information and integration of performance data systems. The Workforce Innovation 

Fund (WIF) invests in innovative approaches to the design and delivery of employment and training services that generate long-term improvements in the performance of the public workforce system, outcomes for job seekers and employers, and 

cost-effectiveness. The 28 current WIF grantees are testing a variety of innovations 

in four categories: sector strategies and business engagement (including entrepreneurship training); career pathways and system alignment; data systems and online 

service delivery; solutions for targeted populations; and Pay for Success, an innovative funding model. In addition, WIF grants leverage significant funds from Federal, 

state, and local workforce development programs, to support long-term sustainability of effective innovations. The goal of these grants is for these innovations, 

products, and models to help make the broader workforce system more effective, 

leading to better, more cost-effective services for individuals across the system. 

Because the WIF grants are testing a variety of innovations, performance measures vary by project. Examples include the DOL common performance measures 

(entry to employment, employment retention, and 6 months average earnings), credential attainment, businesses started, number of businesses served, employer satisfaction with job candidates, and participants that attain permanent housing. In aggregate, the current WIF grantees are expected to serve nearly 38,000 adults, 2,800 

youth, and 6,600 businesses. Details about the WIF grants can be found at innovation.workforce3one.org. 

Question. Are you concerned that the Workforce Innovation Fund siphons off 

funding that could otherwise be distributed to every state for training efforts, but 

now is instead only awarded to a few grantees? 

Answer. The Workforce Innovation Fund (WIF) makes efficient use of scarce resources by awarding funds competitively to experiment and build information about 

effective approaches, and disseminating this knowledge to the broader workforce 

system. WIF findings, products, models, and results are then shared widely with the 

workforce investment system. The resources are improving the quality and efficiency of the entire workforce system. For example, through the ‘‘Eye on Innovation 

Stakeholder Engagement Series,’’ the Employment and Training Administration will 

share promising practices from WIF grantees on business services, systems alignment and career pathways, data systems, and online service delivery with other 

WIF grantees and the public workforce system throughout this summer. Technical 

assistance provided to the WIF grantees is available to the entire workforce system 

at innovation.workforce3one.org. 

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION’S REGIONAL EMPHASIS PROGRAM

Question. Mr. Secretary, it is my understanding that the Occupational Safety and 

Health Administration (OSHA) has announced formation of a Regional Emphasis 

Program targeting auto parts supply manufacturers in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. OSHA is looking at excessive ‘‘workplace exposures to safety hazards’’ in 

the Southern states’ auto parts manufacturing industry. What defines ‘‘excessive 

workplace exposure to safety hazards,’’ what data do you have to support this claim, 

and how is that data collected? 

Answer. OSHA has been conducting Regional Emphasis Programs (REPs) since 

the early 1980s. They are designed to focus OSHA’s resources in areas where a regional or local office has determined that special attention is needed. 

In order to determine which industries may need special attention, OSHA uses 

a combination of data resulting from OSHA’s recent inspection activity in the indus-
159 

try in that area, as well as injury and illness rates, when available. Over the past 

5 years, OSHA has been responding to worker complaints, fatalities, and injuries 

in the automotive parts manufacturing industry in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. In response to the complaints and referrals, OSHA conducted inspections 

in these regions. 

For example, in 2013 a worker employed at a plant in Alabama that had been 

inspected by OSHA on more than one occasion since 2006, suffered a double amputation. OSHA found eight violations of safety standards in those inspections. Another plant covered by the emphasis program had seven inspections since 2009, with 

findings of serious and willful violations. Inspections like these led to the decision 

to start the Regional Emphasis Program. 

Worker injury and illness data supports the decision to focus on worker safety in 

the auto supply parts industry. The most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 

data show that the auto parts supplier industry in Alabama has a higher injury and 

illness rate—4.6 per 100 full-time workers—than the same industry nationwide, 

which had a rate of 3.0 per 100 full-time workers. 

Below are the rates for the auto supply industry, both nationally and in Alabama 

(2010 was the last year that Alabama data was available for this industry.) 

DART Rates 

Annual 

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 

NAICS 3363 US .............................................. 5.1 4.5 4.4 4.3 3.7 3.3 2.6 3.0 2.7 2.8 

NAICS 3363 Alabama .................................... ........ ........ ........ 3.4 3.9 3.3 3.0 4.6 

Source: BLS SOII 

The all-industry private sector average injury and illness rate in Alabama and the 

United States in 2010 was 1.8 per 100 full-time workers, meaning that the Alabama 

auto supply industry has an injury and illness rate more than two and a half times 

higher than the overall injury and illness rate for all private workplaces in Alabama. 

Question. Your Department claims to have undertaken efforts to address these 

hazards through cooperative efforts and compliance assistance ‘‘for several years’’ 

prior to announcing formation of a Regional Emphasis Program. In exact terms, how 

many years did your department provide compliance assistance to these manufacturers? 

Answer. OSHA always stands ready to provide compliance assistance to businesses that request it. Most of OSHA’s Area Offices have a Compliance Assistance 

Specialist whose sole job is to provide assistance to organizations that request assistance. You may also be aware that OSHA funds a free on-site consultation program for small and medium-sized businesses. (https://www.osha.gov/dcsp/ 

smallbusiness/consult.html) 

The REP was initiated after a long period of working cooperatively with the industry to address the safety and health problems in the workplace. OSHA began 

a partnership in 2005 with an auto manufacturer (Hyundai) and its suppliers. During the partnership, OSHA provided the auto supplier manufacturing industry with 

a great deal of compliance assistance and education to help correct serious safety 

and health hazards. OSHA, however, continued to find a high number of serious 

safety and health hazards during inspections (resulting from complaints or referrals) in the auto supplier manufacturing industry, so OSHA ended the partnership 

in 2010. 

OSHA’s emphasis programs begin with compliance assistance. Employers are notified of the program and offered information and training on OSHA standards and 

the tools they need to assure that they can come into compliance before an OSHA 

inspection. 

Thirty days prior to launching the Regional Emphasis Program, OSHA sent a letter offering information about the hazards we were targeting, as well as training 

and presentations about how to prevent injuries and illness related to these hazards. This provided the employers the opportunity to seek assistance or contact the 

consultation services. The REP was also included in speeches presented by OSHA 

to different groups and organizations in the Southeast. 
160 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR LAMAR ALEXANDER

PROPOSED SILICA RULE

Question. My staff has heard from many different stakeholders who have testified 

during Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) public hearing sessions, and each of these industries have signaled how difficult it would be to comply 

with the proposed rule. 

How can you assure us that OSHA will actually produce a Final Rule that reflects 

the concerns expressed at these hearings? 

Answer. OSHA carefully considers the concerns expressed by all stakeholders, 

along with supporting data and other evidence, in developing a final rule. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the OSH Act) mandates that any final rule 

issued by OSHA must be feasible for affected industries, and must be supported by 

substantial evidence in the record considered as a whole [29 U.S.C. 655(b)(5); 29 

U.S.C. 655(f)]. Accordingly, OSHA will consider the concerns expressed by stakeholders regarding their ability to comply with the proposed rule in developing a 

final rule. 

Question. When do you expect OSHA to issue a Final Rule? 

Answer. OSHA has not established a target date for issuing a final silica rule. 

The Agency is accepting post-hearing comments on the proposed rule from hearing 

participants until June 3, 2014, and will be accepting post-hearing briefs until July 

18, 2014. OSHA will then review the evidence in the record as a whole and develop 

a final rule, if appropriate, based on that evidence. 

Question. What would it cost a manufacturing plant, which operates in an enclosed environment, and employs 1,000 people, to comply with this proposed regulation? 

Answer. OSHA did not develop a cost estimate specific to the facility you describe. 

Manufacturing establishments vary enormously in their costs per employee depending on the nature of their operations. 

Question. The proposed rule requests commenters to submit information about 

their financial backers if they submit scientific or technical data. How many commenters have done that? 

Answer. After searching the public comments submitted to the silica docket, we 

found very limited information pertaining to such disclosures. Several commenters 

have either disclosed funding sources or indicated that they did not receive funding. 

We have also received general comments both supporting and objecting to OSHA’s 

request for disclosure. 

Question. In what way has this information contributed to the rulemaking? 

Answer. The request for this information is voluntary, and not required for submitting comments. OSHA has a legal responsibility to review and consider all material submitted to the rulemaking record in its development of a final rule and supporting analyses and will do so. The Agency believes that this voluntary request will 

only serve to enhance the transparency of the process. 

WAGE DETERMINATIONS ON MILITARY BASES

Question. The National Restaurant Association said in a March 20 letter to DOL, 

that the Wage and Hour Division, for the first time instituted a new health and welfare benefit of $3.81 per hour on fast food occupations under the Service Contract 

Act. These fast food franchises that operate on military installations, like Fort 

Campbell in Tennessee and Kentucky, or Fort Bragg in North Carolina provide military personnel and their families a fast alternative to eating at the cafeteria, while 

not to mention, employ a few dozen young workers at each location. This new health 

and welfare benefit, coupled with the President’s Executive order increasing the 

minimum wage, has some fast food operators facing a 50 percent increase in wages. 

What is the reason for the first time application of this fringe benefit? 

Answer. The Department’s Wage and Hour Division is responsible for determining 

what prevailing wages and benefits are under the Service Contract Act. 

In reviewing the fast food wage determinations last summer, the Wage and Hour 

Division determined that those fast food workers should receive fringe benefits. According to our long-standing regulations, we generally apply a standard fringe benefit amount of $3.81 to the wages of all workers covered by the Service Contract 

Act, and did so for fast food workers. 

Our regulations also provide that government agencies with contracts covered by 

the Service Contract Act may ask us to reconsider application of that nation-wide 

fringe benefit rate if they think that because of the special circumstances of a particular industry, a variation in fringe benefits is necessary and proper in the public 

interest or would avoid the serious impairment of government business. On May 16, 
161 

2014, we responded to a request from the Department of Defense that we review 

the wages, fringe benefits, and vacation/holiday pay for fast food workers on Federal 

contracts. After careful consideration of DOD’s request, our regulations, and the relevant data, the Department determined that we will no longer require a fringe benefit rate of $3.81. Instead, contractors employing fast food workers on Federal contracts will be required to pay $.66 in fringe benefits, $.17 in vacation pay for workers who have been employed for more than a year, and $.09 in holiday pay. We believe that these wage and benefit rates more accurately reflect the conditions in the 

industry and the definitions of prevailing rates embodied in the statute. 

Question. Are you concerned that some fast food operators will have to close their 

location on military installations? And what will this do to small business operators? 

Answer. On May 16, 2014, we responded to a request from the Department of Defense that we review the wages, fringe benefits, and vacation/holiday pay for fast 

food workers on Federal contracts. After careful consideration of DOD’s request, our 

regulations, and the relevant data, the Department determined that we will no 

longer require a fringe benefit rate of $3.81. Instead, contractors employing fast food 

workers on Federal contracts will be required to pay $.66 in fringe benefits, $.17 

in vacation pay for workers who have been employed for more than a year, and $.09 

in holiday pay. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MIKE JOHANNS

NEW WHD RULE AND ELIMINATION OF COMPANIONSHIP EXEMPTION

Question. In September 2013, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a 

final rule that essentially eliminated the Companionship Exemption (minimum 

wage and overtime exemption for non-medical companion care workers). The new 

regulation is scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2015. The final rule posted 

in the Federal register indicated that this new rule is likely to have an annual effect 

on the economy in excess of $100 million. Does your Department intend to issue further guidance to state Medicaid programs and other stakeholders on the complex 

implementation of this rule? If so, when does it plan to do so? 

Answer. The Department has been very active in providing compliance assistance 

to all stakeholders since issuing the companionship services rule, including 

webinars and meetings specifically for state Medicaid programs. The Department 

has also had a number of meetings and other communications with representatives 

from various states to discuss the regulation’s impact on their particular Medicaid 

programs, and anticipates having more such conversations as implementation continues. The Department has engaged with the disability community around issues 

of particular importance to them, including the Medicaid services designed to allow 

people living with disabilities to remain in their homes and communities. The Department continues to develop and issue guidance, including the recent Administrator’s Interpretation specifically regarding shared living arrangements, most of which 

are funded through Medicaid programs, and has additional webinars and meetings 

scheduled to further inform the regulated community about implementation matters. The Department will develop additional guidance as issues are brought to us 

for clarification. In all of these efforts, we continue to work closely with our colleagues at the Department of Health and Human Services, and in particular the 

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. 

Question. Do you think that states will have enough time to implement this final 

rule without undermining quality and access to care for Medicaid beneficiaries? 

Answer. The Department adopted a 15-month delayed implementation when it 

published the regulation on October 1, 2013. This delayed effective date was intended to allow state Medicaid programs sufficient time to make adjustments to 

their programs so neither the quality of, or access to, the programs will be disrupted. 

Question. Would you consider delaying the rule if states assert that they will not 

have time to implement the rule without disrupting quality and access to care for 

Medicaid beneficiaries? 

Answer. The Department is constantly monitoring implementation of the companionship services rule and will make appropriate adjustments as indicated. 

Question. Under this final rule, do you believe it is likely that home care recipients will attempt to control costs by independently hiring caregivers other than 

those employed by home care companies? 

Answer. We have no information that indicates that consumers will hire home 

care providers directly rather than continuing to purchase these services through 

home care agencies. 
162 

Question. If so, will this result in fewer caregivers being in a position to receive 

healthcare through an employer? 

Answer. We have no information that would indicate this result. 

UNION PRESENCE DURING OSHA INSPECTIONS

Question. According to a February 2013 OSHA letter of interpretation, an unspecified number of employees in a nonunion workplace may designate a union as their 

representative during safety inspections, even though the majority of workers have 

not authorized the union as their representative for any purpose. Do you believe 

that OSHA inspectors can remain neutral enforcers of the law if they are accompanied by outside union organizers when they inspect nonunion employers’ private 

property? 

Answer. The status of OSHA inspectors as neutral enforcers of the law does not 

change when they are accompanied by third party ‘‘walk-around’’ representatives. 

Section 8(e) of the OSH Act provides that ‘‘[s]ubject to regulations issued by the Secretary, a representative of the employer and a representative authorized by his employees shall be given an opportunity to accompany the Secretary or his authorized 

representative during the physical inspection of any workplace . . . for the purpose 

of aiding such inspection.’’ Allowing a third party representative to accompany 

OSHA compliance officers on an inspection is solely related to protecting workers 

by achieving an effective and thorough health and safety inspection and consistent 

with the law and long-standing OSHA regulations. 

OSHA INSPECTION OF FAMILY FARMS

Question. Regarding the inspection of family farms, in the letter I received from 

you dated February 10, 2014, you said ‘‘DOL will issue new guidance after consulting with USDA and with organizations representing farmers.’’ Could you provide 

me with a list of meetings and discussions you or your staff have had with USDA, 

farm organizations, and other relevant groups regarding revisions to the guidance 

on postharvest activities on farms with more than 10 employees? Please include the 

name of the entity and the date of contact. I encourage you to actively consult with 

as many of the farm groups and producers throughout the country as possible before 

moving forward in this area. These are the people who know best what happens on 

a daily basis on America’s farms. Finally, I encourage you to ensure that any revised guidance draws as bright a line as possible between OSHA regulations and 

farming operations with 10 or fewer employees in order to ensure that the agency 

abides by the law. 

Answer. On January 31st, Department of Labor staff met with representatives 

from the USDA to consult with them regarding OSHA’s guidance defining farming 

operations. OSHA has developed draft revised guidance to ensure that OSHA inspectors understand the limitations on OSHA’s authority to conduct enforcement activities involving farming operations and will consult with USDA and other groups 

before finalizing the guidance. OSHA is currently in the process of contacting other 

farming groups such as the Farm Bureau to discuss its revised guidance. 

REDEFINING FIDUCIARY UNDER EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY ACT

Question. As you know, there has been a lot of concern surrounding the Department of Labor’s proposed rule to redefine who is a fiduciary for plans regulated 

under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). A rule was proposed 

and then withdrawn, and Assistant Secretary Borzi is reportedly working on a reproposal. My colleagues and I, in a strong bipartisan fashion, have expressed concern about the rule’s potential impact on small savers, investor choice and small 

business. All of us certainly want to ensure that beneficiaries receive unbiased financial advice and we want to protect investor interests, whether someone is saving 

for retirement or for a child’s college education fund. Thus, we must ensure that a 

re-proposed rule will not ultimately harm the very beneficiaries we’re trying to help. 

Can you assure us that the Department’s re-proposal will not increase the cost of 

IRA accounts or harm investor choice? 

Answer. We have not made a decision on the proposed rulemaking, and we would 

not make any decisions before we had listened to all sides, as we have committed 

to do. We regularly engage with stakeholders and solicit their views on a range of 

issues, and we welcome input from those who want to help us improve this marketplace before we make any decisions. The President has been clear that he is committed to strengthening retirement security for all Americans and we continue to 

believe that the most secure retirement requires a three-legged stool of social security, pensions, and personal savings. 
163 

Question. Will your expanded definition of fiduciary align with the SEC’s definition? It is essential that any rule changes still allow broker-dealers to provide affordable financial advice to working class Americans. 

Answer. ERISA and the securities laws serve important complementary, but distinct, purposes. In July 2013, we renewed our Memorandum of Understanding 

(MOU) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on sharing information 

on enforcement, policy, and regulatory projects related to retirement and investment 

matters. In line with standard process, DOL continues to consult with the SEC, consistent with its status as an independent agency. In addition to regular, ongoing 

staff-level discussions, I have spoken to Chair White on several occasions since I became Secretary. 

Question. Also, Ms. Borzi has said that the re-proposal will be out this year. When 

can we expect to see it? 

Answer. We have not made a decision, and we would not make a decision before 

we have listened to all sides, as we have committed to do. 

SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

Senator HARKIN. With that, the subcommittee stands adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 11:10 a.m., Wednesday, April 9, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of the 

Chair.] 

(165) 

DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND 

RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2014 

U.S. SENATE, 

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

The subcommittee met at 10:04 a.m., in room SD–192, Dirksen 

Senate Office Building, Hon. Tom Harkin (chairman) presiding. 

Present: Senators Harkin, Landrieu, Merkley, Moran, Alexander, 

and Kirk. 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

STATEMENT OF HON. ARNE DUNCAN, SECRETARY 

ACCOMPANIED BY THOMAS P. SKELLY, DIRECTOR, BUDGET SERVICE 

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR TOM HARKIN

Senator HARKIN. The Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, 

Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies will 

come to order. Good morning and welcome, everyone. 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET REQUEST

Welcome back, Secretary Duncan. It is great to see you again. I 

am glad to have you here to talk about your Department’s fiscal 

year 2015 budget request. 

Your budget’s proposed $1.3 billion increase is one of the largest 

of any Federal agency, second only to Veterans Affairs. The increase proposed for the Department of Education demonstrates this 

administration’s continued commitment to our Nation’s future. And 

the budget goes a step further with the Opportunity, Growth, and 

Security Fund, which would fully replace sequester in fiscal year 

2015 and the subsequent 6 years of the budget. 

This stands in stark contrast with the approach of Chairman 

Ryan’s budget. That budget would cut nondefense discretionary 

spending by $43 billion, or about 9 percent, in fiscal year 2016 and 

$791 billion over 10 years. 
166 

FISCAL YEAR 2014 OMNIBUS APPROPRIATIONS BILL

The Ryan budget charts a different course than that established 

by the 2014 omnibus appropriations bill. Congress passed that bill 

on a bipartisan basis earlier this year. This subcommittee negotiated over $l billion in new funding for early learning programs at 

Education and the Department of Health and Human Services. 

We also secured over $1 billion total for title I and IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), the core Federal programs 

for elementary and secondary education. The increases for these 

programs allowed us to restore most of the sequester cuts in fiscal 

year 2013. 

For higher education, we included a new investment of $75 million for the First in the World initiative to address college affordability. Colleges and universities will be able to compete for funding to test and develop strategies that reduce college costs and improve student outcomes. This is the first competition to support innovation in higher education since fiscal year 2010. 

We made a good start in the bipartisan omnibus bill, and I think 

we need to continue these important investments, not cut them and 

leave fewer of our students served. 

NONDEFENSE DISCRETIONARY SPENDING CAP

However, as the Secretary knows, there are some tough choices 

to be made under our nondefense discretionary spending cap. The 

fiscal year 2015 spending cap is roughly the same as the funding 

level for the current fiscal year. 

As I noted earlier, the Education Department’s proposed increase 

of $1.3 billion is more than the increase allowed for all of nondefense discretionary spending. 

This makes it very difficult to provide the kind of investments 

this budget so wisely advocates. But that is not our only challenge. 

I am hopeful that this hearing will give the Secretary an opportunity to answer those who question the necessity of continuing to 

support the important work being done by your Department at all 

levels of education. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

Again, Secretary Duncan, I want to thank you for appearing before the subcommittee. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN TOM HARKIN

The Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related 

Agencies will now come to order. 

Welcome back, Secretary Duncan. It’s great to see you again. I’m glad to have you 

here to talk about your Department’s fiscal year 2015 budget request. 

Your budget’s proposed $1.3 billion increase is one of the largest of any Federal 

agency, second only to Veterans Affairs. The increase proposed for the Department 

of Education demonstrates this administration’s continued commitment to our Nation’s future. And, the budget goes a step further with the Opportunity, Growth, Security Fund which would fully replace sequester in fiscal year 2015 and the subsequent 6 years of the budget. 

This stands in stark contrast with the approach of Chairman Ryan’s budget. That 

budget would cut nondefense discretionary spending by $43 billion, or about 9 percent, in fiscal year 2016, and $791 billion over 10 years. 
167 

The Ryan budget charts a different course than that established by the 2014 Omnibus appropriations bill. Congress passed that bill on a bipartisan basis earlier this 

year. This subcommittee negotiated over $1 billion in new funding for early learning 

programs at Education and the Department of Health and Human Services. 

We also secured over $1 billion total for Title I and IDEA, the core Federal programs for elementary and secondary education. The increases for these programs allowed us to restore most of the sequester cuts in fiscal year 2013. 

For higher education, we included a new investment of $75 million for the First 

in the World initiative to address college affordability. Colleges and universities will 

be able to compete for funding to test and develop strategies that reduce college 

costs and improve student outcomes. This is the first competition to support innovation in higher education since fiscal year 2010. 

We made a good start in the bipartisan omnibus bill and I think we need to continue these important investments, not cut them and leave fewer of our students 

served. 

However, as the Secretary knows, there are some tough choices to be made under 

our nondefense discretionary spending cap. The fiscal year 2015 spending cap is 

roughly the same as the funding level for the current fiscal year. As I noted earlier, 

the Education Department’s proposed increase of $1.3 billion is more than the increase allowed for ALL of nondefense discretionary spending. 

This makes it very difficult to provide the kind of investments this budget so wisely advocates. But that’s not our only challenge. I am hopeful that this hearing will 

give the Secretary an opportunity to answer those who question the necessity of continuing to support the important work being done by your Department at all levels 

of education. 

Again, Secretary Duncan, I want to thank you for appearing before the Subcommittee. I turn now to Senator Moran for his opening statement. 

Senator HARKIN. I turn now to Senator Moran for his opening 

statement. 

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JERRY MORAN

Senator MORAN. Secretary Duncan, thank you very much for 

joining us today. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

VALUE OF EARLY LEARNING

There is no doubt about the important role education plays in a 

child’s life. As I walk the halls of Kansas schools, I am struck by 

the faces of students who have such high hopes for their future. 

Whether opening doors to new opportunities or serving as a catalyst to achieving the American dream, it is clear that the foundation of our society is access to a quality education. 

And like you, Mr. Secretary, I believe that begins in the early 

years of development. 

Decades of research demonstrate that access to quality early 

childhood programs produce lasting effects on children’s cognitive 

and social development. Children who are not proficient in reading 

by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school 

than children who read at or above grade level. A child’s brain 

grows to approximately 85 percent of its full capacity in the first 

5 years of life. Simply put, early learning is essential to the success 

of our students and society. 

However, as we strive to ensure all students have access to quality early learning and pre-kindergarten through grade 12 programs, we must refrain from simply proposing new programs as 

the only solution, especially new competitive programs. 
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FUNDING OF COMPETITIVE VERSUS FORMULA GRANT PROGRAMS

I remain concerned with this administration’s continued emphasis on competitive grant programs. Once again, this budget directs 

new or increased funding primarily to competitive grant programs. 

Of the administration’s proposed $1.3 billion increase to the Department of Education’s budget, no increase is provided for title I 

of ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act) or Special 

Education Grants that are distributed by formula to every State. 

In fact, rather than increasing base funding for Special Education 

Grants to States, the budget request provides $100 million in new 

funding for competitive incentive grants under special education. 

Students in every State should benefit from any increase in funding for the Department of Education, yet that is not what is supported by the Department’s budget request. 

Further, the fiscal year 2015 budget request proposes $300 million for a new Race to the Top: Equity and Opportunity competition 

at the expense of an increase in funding for ESEA Title I grants. 

This new competition, as envisioned by the administration, is 

aimed at improving academic performance of students in the Nation’s highest poverty schools by closing opportunity and achievement gaps. Yet rather than increasing funding for ESEA Title I 

grants, the cornerstone of Federal education funding for disadvantaged students since 1965, this budget invests in another new component of Race to the Top, the fifth since the program was created. 

It is important to note that not one of the Race to the Top components has yet demonstrated sustainable results. 

Mr. Chairman, the success of every student in every State should 

be our goal. The Department of Education should not pick winners 

and losers by funding only a few States to the detriment of students in all States. 

I look forward to working with you and the Department to ensure that fiscal year 2015 funding is directed toward initiatives 

that benefit all students and support increased educational opportunities in every State. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

INTRODUCTION OF SECRETARY OF EDUCATION

Senator HARKIN. This is Arne Duncan’s sixth appearance before 

this subcommittee. He became the ninth Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education on January 20, 2009. 

Before his appointment, Secretary Duncan served as the chief executive officer of the Chicago Public Schools. Before serving in Chicago, he ran the Ariel Education Initiative, which covered college 

costs for a group of inner-city youth and was instrumental in starting a new public elementary school, which ranks among the top 

schools in Chicago. 

Secretary Duncan also played professional basketball in Australia. Secretary Duncan graduated from Harvard University and 

played basketball at Harvard. He stills plays the game, so I guess 

you could say he still shoots a mean hoop. 

Welcome, Secretary Duncan. 
169 

SUMMARY STATEMENT OF HON. ARNE DUNCAN

Secretary DUNCAN. Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, 

and Senators, the story of American education today is a good 

news/bad news story. 

GOOD AND BAD NEWS FOR EDUCATION

Let me begin by thanking you for your work on the 2014 budget, 

which increased our investment in education over the previous 

year. 

This investment is essential for the ‘‘good news’’ side of the story, 

which is that our students are making substantial progress in 

graduating from high school and enrolling in college. 

Our Nation’s on-time high school graduation rate reached a 

record high in 2012 of 80 percent. That is a great testament to the 

hard work of our Nation’s teachers, school leaders, students, and 

their families. College enrollment is up as well since President 

Obama took office, with Latino and African-American students 

leading the way. 

The bad news is that we still have unacceptable opportunity gaps 

in America, and it will be very difficult to close those gaps when 

Federal discretionary funding for education, excluding Pell grants, 

remains below the 2010 level. 

Our international competitors are not making the mistake of 

disinvesting in education, and their students are making more 

progress than America’s students, endangering our country’s competitiveness and prosperity. 

In a knowledge-based, global economy, the need to close these opportunity gaps and strengthen our competitiveness is one of the 

most urgent challenges facing our Nation. To continue to fall behind would hurt our country economically for generations to come. 

BIPARTISAN SUPPORT NEEDED TO CLOSE OPPORTUNITY GAPS

So I appeal to you today to continue America’s longstanding, bipartisan commitment to investing in education. 

Dating back to our Nation’s founding, the Federal Government 

has provided incentives to State and local governments to invest in 

education and expand educational opportunity. Before the States 

ratified the Constitution, the Continental Congress required townships to reserve money for the construction of schools and granted 

Federal lands to States to create and support public schools. 

PRESCHOOL EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY GAP

Despite the educational progress we have made as a Nation, 

large opportunity gaps remain at a time when education is more 

important than ever to accelerate economic progress, increasing upward mobility and reducing social inequality. 

President Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget would increase investment in education to boost that progress and close those opportunity gaps. Sadly, those opportunity gaps start with our youngest 

learners in early childhood education. If we could look at our first 

slide, America today is 25th, 25th in the world, in our enrollment 

of 4-year-olds in preschool. 

[The graphic follows:] 
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SUPPORT FOR HIGH-QUALITY EARLY LEARNING

Secretary DUNCAN. Four in 10 public school systems in the 

United States don’t even offer preschool, setting the stage for a 

huge gap in school readiness that not only President Obama, but 

most of our Nation’s Governors, find unacceptable. 

In the real world, outside of Washington, and away from congressional dysfunction, this has become a truly bipartisan issue. In fact, 

last year alone, 30 Governors—17 Republicans and 13 Democrats— 

increased funding for preschool in their State budgets. 

In tough economic times, these leaders chose to use scarce taxpayer dollars to expand access to high-quality early learning opportunities. Budgets, not just words, not empty rhetoric, reflect our 

true values. And these 30 Governors, in a bipartisan way, chose to 

walk that walk. 

Just one quick example, this year, Governor Snyder of Michigan committed to putting $65 million more into the State program to 

ensure children in need of preschool actually have access to it. He 

said he was going to make Michigan ‘‘a no-wait State for early 

childhood education.’’ 

PRESCHOOL EDUCATION FUNDS IN FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET

We need to help every State to be able to make that claim. 

And that is why the President requests $500 million for Preschool Development Grants and $75 billion in mandatory funding 

for the Preschool for All program; programs essential to our Nation’s future. They would support State efforts to provide access to 

high-quality preschool through a mixed delivery system of both 
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public and private providers, for all 4-year-olds from low- and moderate-income families. 

VALUE OF EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS

Very encouragingly, a diverse, highly unusual coalition is working together to support these efforts. State attorneys, sheriffs, and 

police associations all support high-quality early learning because 

it reduces crime when those young children grow up. 

Military leaders support it, because a staggering three-quarters 

of young adults today are not able to serve in our voluntary military, because they have dropped out of high school, can’t pass the 

entrance exam, are physically unfit for service, or have a criminal 

record. High-quality early learning reduces all of those problems. 

Our military has always been our strongest defense. Our education system must be our strongest offense. 

In addition, hundreds of hardheaded business leaders and CEOs 

are big advocates of early learning, because they know high-quality 

opportunities produce a better workforce and have a high ROI, or 

return on investment. 

In fact, Nobel Prize-winning economist Dr. James Heckman 

found a return of $7 to every $1 of public investment in high-quality preschool programs. I would ask how many other uses of taxpayer dollars have such a high rate of return for the American people. 

Unfortunately, opportunity gaps in early learning continue all 

the way through high school, as new data from our civil rights data 

collection shows. I will show you the next slide, please. 

[The graphic follows:] 
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OPPORTUNITY GAP IN ACCESS TO POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

Secretary DUNCAN. Today, students of color, students with disabilities, and English language learners simply don’t get the same 

opportunity as their white and Asian-American peers to take the 

basic math and science courses necessary that figure so importantly in preparing for college and careers. 

Often, this lack of access means students can’t take the required 

classes they need to apply to 4-year universities. Or it means they 

go to college but must burn through Pell grants and other financial 

aid taking noncredit-bearing remedial classes because they simply 

weren’t ready. They weren’t prepared. 

Nationwide, black and Hispanic students are close to 40 percent 

of high school students overall, but just over a quarter of students 

taking AP (Advanced Placement) classes and only 20 percent of 

those enrolled in calculus classes. 

This dumbing down of expectations is devastating to students, 

their families, their communities, and ultimately to our Nation as 

a whole. 

GAP IN ACCESS TO HIGH-SPEED BROADBAND

And the final slide highlights opportunity gaps in access to highspeed broadband in our schools. Most schools today have nowhere 

near the bandwidth they need to support current applications and 

instruction. Fully two-thirds of our teachers wish they had more 

technology in their classrooms. 

Technology both empowers teachers and engages students in 

their own learning. Simply put, other nations take these responsibilities and these opportunities more seriously than we do here. 

[The graphic follows:] 
173 

PERCENTAGE OF U.S. SCHOOLS WITH BROADBAND ACCESS

Secretary DUNCAN. In South Korea, for example, 100 percent of 

schools have high-speed Internet. Here in the United States, it is 

only about 20 percent, so 20 percent versus 100 percent. 

So our students, our teachers, and our schools often lack the 

bandwidth to take advantage of new technologies and tools that 

could accelerate efforts to close those insidious achievement gaps, 

to individualize instruction, and ensure that all students graduate 

from high school truly college- and career-ready. 

How is that fair to our children or to their hardworking teachers? 

How is that in our Nation’s self-interest? 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET GOAL—CLOSING OPPORTUNITY GAPS

Making progress in closing these opportunity gaps is the ribbon, 

the theme that runs throughout President Obama’s 2015 education 

budget request. It is the overarching goal of the Preschool Development Grants and Preschool for All. It is behind our request for a 

$300 million Race to the Top: Equity and Opportunity Fund to help 

States and districts develop roadmaps to ensure that all students 

can reach their potential, and our $200 million Connect Educators 

initiative to provide teachers with the expertise they need to use 

technology to teach students to high standards and to personalize 

instruction. 

RYAN BUDGET IMPACT ON EDUCATION

By contrast, the House Republican budget would widen, would 

increase, opportunity gaps. OMB (Office of Management and Budg-
174 

et) estimates that the Ryan budget would cut funding for education 

by 15 percent in 2016, or by about $10 billion. 

If that 15-percent cut were applied to this year, ESEA Title I 

would be cut by $2.2 billion, and IDEA grants to States would be 

cut by $1.7 billion. That is exactly the wrong direction to go for our 

children and for our Nation’s future. We can and we must do better, and do better together. 

The American dream has always been about opportunity. Today, 

our Nation is failing to live up to that core American idea for all 

of our citizens. We must do more now to level the playing field and 

make great public education available to every child. That is who 

we are, and that is who we should be. As former Florida Governor 

Jeb Bush says, ‘‘The sad truth is that equality of opportunity 

doesn’t exist in many of our schools . . . That failure is the great 

moral and economic issue of our time, and it is hurting all of America.’’ 

So I ask, can we please get back to working together to close 

those opportunity gaps that we all agree are deeply at odds with 

the American promise of equal opportunity? 

LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTIONS OF CHAIRMAN HARKIN

And just quickly, Mr. Chairman, before I close, I just want to 

thank you so much for your leadership. I know this is probably the 

last hearing that we will do together. I have learned so much from 

you over these past 51⁄2 years. You have been a lifelong advocate 

on very tough issues and you have always had a heart for those 

folks who don’t always have the strongest voice themselves. 

Your leadership in the disability community is just exemplary. 

Like so many of us doing this work, this work is very personal for 

you. I have heard you speak eloquently about the opportunities— 

or, frankly, the lack of opportunities—your brother missed out on 

because he was deaf. And you have helped create more opportunities for literally millions of children who needed a voice. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

And finally, both you and Mr. Moran, Senator Moran, spoke as 

well on this push on early childhood education. And if we think 

about return on investment, if we think about strengthening our 

families, strengthening our country, I can make a pretty compelling 

case that the best investment we can make is in high-quality, early 

learning opportunities. And no one has been a clearer and more 

passionate advocate for that than you, so thank you so much. It 

has been a fantastic journey together. I will miss working with you 

greatly. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ARNE DUNCAN

I want to begin by thanking Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and 

other Members of this Subcommittee for your work on the 2014 appropriation for 

education. I appreciate the funding increases that you included in the fiscal year 

2014 appropriation. However, it’s important to recognize that total discretionary 

funding for the Department of Education, excluding Pell Grants, remains below the 

fiscal year 2010 level, and I worry about the long-term impact of the continuing 

slide in Federal education funding on the health of our economy and our democracy. 
175 

PRESIDENT OBAMA’S 2015 BUDGET REQUEST

Turning to 2015, the overall discretionary request for the Department of Edu- cation is $68.6 billion, an increase of $1.3 billion, or 1.9 percent, over the 2014 level. 

Within this total, we have six key priorities: (1) increasing equity and opportunity 

for all students; (2) strengthening support for teachers and school leaders; (3) expanding high-quality preschool programs; (4) improving school safety and climate; 

(5) promoting educational innovation and improvement; and (6) ensuring access to 

affordable and quality postsecondary education. 

EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY

We are requesting $300 million for a new Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity competition centered on improving the academic performance of students in 

our Nation’s highest poverty schools. RTT—Opportunity grantees would support: (1) 

developing systems that integrate data on school-level finance, human resources, 

and academic achievement; (2) developing and retaining effective teachers and leaders in high-poverty schools; (3) increasing access to rigorous coursework; and (4) 

other evidence-based activities that mitigate the effects of concentrated poverty. 

SUPPORT FOR TEACHERS AND SCHOOL LEADERS

A second priority in our 2015 request is to provide significant support for school 

teachers and leaders who are implementing new college- and career-ready (CCR) 

standards, turning around our lowest performing schools, and using new evaluation 

systems to improve their practices. A key request in this area is $200 million that 

would help educators transition to using technology and data to personalize learning 

and improve instruction, in support of the FCC’s ConnectED initiative to equip our 

Nation’s schools and libraries with high-speed connectivity. The program would benefit educators and students by creating high-quality, open digital learning resources 

aligned to CCR standards; using digital tools to personalize learning and implement 

new assessments; analyzing real-time data to improve student outcomes; using technology to increase student engagement; and providing remote access to effective 

educators. 

We are requesting $2.3 billion for Excellent Instructional Teams, which would 

provide both formula grants and competitive awards to help States and LEAs increase the effectiveness of teachers and principals. This total includes $2.0 billion 

for Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grants to provide flexible, formula-based 

support for States and LEAs; $320 million for the Teacher and Leader Innovation 

Fund to reform school leader advancement and compensation systems; and $35 million for a transformed School Leadership program to expand the Department’s focus 

on current school leaders aimed at strengthening essential leadership skills. 

EXPANDING HIGH-QUALITY PRESCHOOL

The third major priority in the 2015 request is to continue the President’s commit- ment to expanding educational opportunity for millions of children through a $75 

billion mandatory Preschool for All program that would partner with States to support universal access to high-quality preschool for all 4-year-olds from low- and moderate-income families. Our preschool request also includes $500 million to expand 

the Preschool Development Grants program that would help build State and local 

capacity to implement high-quality preschool programs. In addition, we are requesting $441.8 million for the Grants for Infants and Families program under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), an increase of $3.3 million to help States implement statewide systems of early intervention services for all eligible children with disabilities from birth through age 2 and 

their families. 

AFFORDABILITY AND QUALITY IN POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

Our 2015 request also includes key initiatives to improve affordability and quality 

in postsecondary education. For example, we are asking for $7 billion in mandatory 

budget authority over 10 years for new College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus 

grants to reward colleges that successfully enroll and graduate a significant number 

of low- and moderate-income students on time. This initiative would support innovations to further increase college access and success by providing funding to eligible 

institutions based upon the number of Pell students they graduate on time. The Satisfactory Academic Progress initiative would make changes to the Pell Grant eligibility provisions by strengthening academic progress requirements to encourage students to complete on time. The Budget would also provide Pell Grant eligibility to 

students who are co-enrolled in adult and postsecondary education as part of a ca-
176 

reer pathway program to allow adults without a high school diploma to gain the 

knowledge and skills they need to secure a good job. 

Second, we would use $4 billion in mandatory funding to create a State Higher 

Education Performance Fund that would make 4-year competitive grants to States 

to support the successful implementation of performance-based policy and funding 

reforms that encourage and reward college affordability and ensure that students 

attend and complete postsecondary education. 

Third, our 2015 request proposes $100 million to expand support for the First in 

the World fund to make competitive awards to support improving educational outcomes, including on time completion rates, and making college more affordable for 

students and families, particularly for low-income students. The request also asks 

for $75 million for College Success Grants for Minority-Serving Institutions, which 

would make competitive awards to minority-serving institutions designated under 

Title III and Title V of the Higher Education Act. 

Lastly, we are continuing our efforts to help student borrowers with existing debt 

to manage their obligations through income-driven repayment plans. Our 2015 request proposes to extend Pay As You Earn, which caps student loan payments at 

10 percent of discretionary income, to all student borrowers. 

EDUCATIONAL INNOVATION AND IMPROVEMENT

We continue to support innovation and improvement in elementary and secondary 

education, beginning with $165 million for Investing in Innovation (i3), an increase 

of $23.4 million, to maintain strong support for using an evidence-based approach 

to scale up the most effective approaches in high-need areas. The i3 request would 

provide up to $49.5 million for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Education, an initiative that would pursue technological breakthroughs with the potential to improve the effectiveness and productivity of teaching and learning. 

Second, we are requesting $150 million for a new High School Redesign program 

to support the transformation of the high school experience by funding competitive 

grants to school districts and their partners to redesign high schools to help ensure 

all students graduate from high school with college credit and career-related experiences or competencies. 

Third, our 2015 request seeks $170 million in new funding for a comprehensive 

STEM Innovation proposal to transform STEM education. This total includes $110 

million for STEM Innovation Networks to provide competitive awards to LEAs in 

partnership with institutions of higher education, other public agencies, and businesses to help increase the number of students who are effectively prepared for postsecondary education and careers in STEM fields. We also are asking for $40 million 

to support STEM Teacher Pathways that would make competitive grants for recruiting recent college graduates and mid-career professionals in the STEM fields in 

high-need schools. An additional $20 million would support the activities of a National STEM Master Teacher Corps, which would identify models to help America’s 

brightest math and science teachers make the transition from excellent teachers to 

school leaders and advocates for STEM education. 

In addition, the Budget provides a $100 million increase for Special Education 

State Grants. This increase would support Results Driven Accountability incentive 

grants to improve special education services for children with disabilities. States 

awarded these grants would identify and implement promising, evidence-based reforms while also building State and local capacity to improve long-term outcomes. 

Our 2015 request also includes a request of $1.1 billion for a reauthorized Carl 

D. Perkins Career and Technical Education program. The reauthorization proposal 

would build on the experience of the i3 program by creating a discretionary fund 

aimed at promoting innovation and reform in CTE and replicating the success of 

proven models. 

IMPROVING SCHOOL SAFETY AND CLIMATE

The 2015 request would continue support for the Now is the Time school safety 

initiative by providing $50 million for School Climate Transformation Grants to help 

create positive school climates that support effective education for all students; $45 

million for a Successful, Safe, and Healthy State and Local Grants program that 

would award grants to increase the capacity of States, districts, and schools to create safe, healthy, and drug-free environments; and $25 million for Project Prevent 

grants to help LEAs break the cycle of violence through expanded access, schoolbased strategies that prevent future violence. 
177 

OPPORTUNITY, GROWTH, AND SECURITY INITIATIVE

The Administration’s Budget also includes a separate $56 billion Opportunity, Security, and Growth Initiative. Our Education Budget would use this initiative to include additional investments of $250 million for Preschool Development Grants, 

$300 million for the Connect Educators initiative, and $200 million for Promise 

Neighborhoods. All of these funds are in addition to the discretionary requests 

under the caps. 

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, our 2015 Budget reflects the President’s determination to make the 

investments necessary to secure America’s future prosperity. I look forward to working with the Subcommittee to secure support for the President’s 2015 Budget for 

education. 

PRESCHOOL EDUCATION LEADERSHIP AND SUPPORT

Senator HARKIN. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary. I 

will respond in kind and just say that it has been great working 

with you for these last 5 years. You have been a great Secretary. 

You have really pushed the envelope on a lot of different things. 

And I think there has been tremendous change for the better in 

our schools in America because of your leadership. 

And I especially appreciate your strong and forceful leadership 

on early education. As you mentioned, that is something that I 

think we all—bipartisan, bicameral, executive, legislative—all 

agree on. 

Hopefully, we can come up with a good funding level for the preschool program. I think it has finally caught on around America. 

I did not know the number that you stated about the 30 Governors 

who have increased their funding for preschool. But I think finally 

the American people, and, certainly, the business community has 

been behind this forever. For 25, 30 years, the business community 

has been pushing for more funding for preschool. 

So now it is really catching on. It is not too late, but I wish we 

would have done this 25 years ago. 

But your leadership has been great on this. I appreciate it very 

much. 

And this is the last time I will chair a budget hearing with you, 

with the Department of Education. And wouldn’t you know it, my 

last year here, we have a tough budget. So we have some tough 

things to work out, but we will. We will work them out, and we 

will do our best to meet our obligations and do our best to work 

out with you and the President a meeting of the minds between the 

interests of the people on this committee and the legislative branch 

and the interests of the executive branch. I am sure we will get 

that done. 

So again, Mr. Secretary, I thank you for your great leadership. 

I am going to miss our association a lot. 

SPECIAL EDUCATION IN FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET REQUEST

Mr. Secretary, we will start a 5-minute round of questions now. 

Let’s start with kids with disabilities. We made great progress on 

access, thanks to IDEA. We are improving quality of services. We 

have lifted IDEA funding in the Recovery Act. We did up to 33 percent, which got us close to the 40 percent, which we had promised 

so many years ago when I was a House Member. 
178 

But we have more to do to make sure that students with disabilities are graduating with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in postsecondary education and the workplace. 

RESULTS DRIVEN ACCOUNTABILITY INCENTIVE GRANTS

That is why I was concerned to see the lack of any increase in 

IDEA formula funds. However, you do have an increase proposed— 

targeted to the Results Driven Accountability (RDA) incentive 

grants, which I am all for, because we are trying to change, as I 

said to you one time before, the focus on kids with IEPs (Individualized Education Program), so that when they get out of school, 

they won’t feel that the only place for them to go is into subminimum wage jobs, that they can actually go out for competitive, integrated employment in the workplace. 

So many businesses have found that these people with intellectual disabilities can do a lot more than what we thought they could 

do in the past. 

And so I want to know more about the RDA incentive grants, 

and how you are going to work with, let’s say, Vocational Rehabilitation on the HHS (Health and Human Services) side and the Department of Labor side to mesh these, to look at what schools can 

do, how they can work with the States’ workforce development programs, to get these kids ready for competitive, integrated employment when they get out of school. 

CHANGING SPECIAL EDUCATION TO OUTCOMES

Secretary DUNCAN. So I really appreciate the opportunity to talk 

about this. And Michael Yudin, who leads this office, I think is 

doing extraordinary work, and really challenging us to challenge 

the status quo. 

As you know, we try to push States and districts very hard to 

raise expectations and raise the bar, and we have to do the same 

internally. And while we have done some really good things and 

good things together, I think a pretty compelling case can be made 

that, in this area, there probably has been too much focus on compliance, too much focus on checking boxes, and not enough focus on 

exactly what you are saying. Are we preparing these young people 

to be successful, to be self-sufficient in a competitive workforce, and 

focusing not just on inputs and on compliance, but on outcomes? 

What are we doing to increase high school graduation rates? 

What are we doing to increase college graduation rates? What are 

we doing to increase a successful transition into the workforce? We 

want to challenge people to step up and do more here. 

We want to identify those best practices. We want to replicate 

them. We want to take them to scale. 

So I am happy to talk further off-line. It would be great to have 

you and Michael Yudin spend some time together. 

But we think there is a chance to take the hard work that is 

going on around the country to a different level, and we want to 

be part of the solution, not part of the problem. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I look forward to 

working with Mr. Yudin and our staff, if not on this committee, on 

the authorizing side, too. 
179 

But I am just very interested in this funding for that new initiative. 

COLLEGE OPPORTUNITY AND GRADUATION BONUS GRANTS

Let me just ask about college affordability. As you know, this is 

one of the key things we are going to be looking at, both on the 

authorizing level and on the appropriations level, too. 

We included a new investment of $75 million for the First in the 

World initiative in last year’s omnibus. It will provide competitive 

grants to colleges and universities to develop and test strategies to 

make college more affordable and improve student completion 

rates. The higher education community has not had an opportunity 

to compete for funds that support innovation since fiscal year 2010. 

So this recent investment represents a long overdue opportunity 

to start moving the needle on college costs and student success at 

campuses across the country. 

Can you just provide a few details on what the Department 

hopes to accomplish with the upcoming competition for these 

funds? 

Secretary DUNCAN. Well, I think that the cost of college and college affordability is just a hugely important issue and one that we 

have a lot of work on ahead of us. 

And hardworking American families, not just in disadvantaged 

communities, but middle-class families, in far too many places, people are starting to think that college is for the wealthy, not for 

them. 

And I always tell the story—it was actually a visit to Iowa— 

where we did a town hall meeting and a young girl came up to me 

afterward and was talking—very sharp, very committed—and 

ended up saying, she is a twin. She was a senior in high school, 

and this is like 2 years ago. But she said her parents had been trying to decide which twin to send to college, her or her brother. 

It was absolutely devastating. And families should not be put in 

that position. So we all have a lot of work to do to make college 

more accessible, more affordable. 

FIRST IN THE WORLD IN COLLEGE COMPLETION

What we are trying to do in First in the World is incentivize universities to move in that direction, to focus on keeping costs down, 

to focus not just on access but completion rates at the backend. The 

goal is not to go to college; the goal is to complete at the backend. 

We are going to put out a notice on the First in the World competition in probably the next month, in mid-May, and then awards 

would go out by the end of the fiscal year in September. 

Senator HARKIN. Well, that is good. That is good to know. I didn’t 

know that. Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary. 

Senator Moran. 

COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM CRITERIA

Senator MORAN. Mr. Secretary, let me start with my questions 

about, in this case, higher education. The President has directed 

that the Department develop a new college rating system for the 
180 

2015–2016 school year. And in this budget request, the request is 

made for $10 million to further develop that program. 

Let me raise a couple questions and thoughts about this topic. 

First of all, I would like to know, to date, what has transpired. And if we don’t specifically include the $10 million in this appropriation bill, does the Department intend to continue to develop 

this college rating system? 

Secondly, let me raise the topic of performance information for 

the college rating system that could be used to determine that criteria. I know it is in the works. You don’t have the criteria in place 

yet. 

But I am concerned that, depending upon that criteria or the incentive that is created by this rating program, will it discourage 

universities from encouraging students from difficult backgrounds 

to pursue a college education? I guess they don’t discourage the 

student; they just discourage them from coming to their university. 

And then finally on this topic, depending upon those metrics, 

how will you take into account something that I think is very important for us to, certainly, not discourage and if we can encourage, 

it is good, but if there is any criteria that is based upon the college 

graduate’s income, what we would call financial success, are we not 

excluding people who enter the military, young people who decide 

they want a faith-based career, missions work—— 

Secretary DUNCAN. Teachers. 

Senator MORAN. Teachers. Yes, I almost beat you to that word. 

Are we not discouraging some things that are very noble in our 

society, if there is any criteria based upon what we would call ‘‘success’’ by those college graduates? 

CONSIDERATIONS IN DEVELOPING RATINGS CRITERIA

Secretary DUNCAN. Those are all great questions, and we are 

working through all of those very tough issues as we speak. Again, 

I would be happy to have these conversations with you and your 

staff in detail. 

So to be clear, if we come up with something that does those 

things that you talked about, then we would have failed. So we absolutely want to not discourage, but encourage universities to take 

young people who are Pell grant recipients, who are first-generation college-goers. And if we do the incentive structure wrong, that 

will be a problem. 

We have some very clear thoughts about how to do it, to encourage universities to do it, and not discourage it. But happy to do 

that. 

We need more teachers. We need more social workers. We need 

more people to go into Government service. We need more people 

to go into the Peace Corps. And so making sure we encourage that, 

rather than discourage that, will be key. 

So we are being very, very thoughtful in how we put this system 

together. We are taking a huge amount of time. I have said repeatedly, we are going into this work with a great sense of humility. 

We have had dozens and dozens of roundtables with college students and college presidents and boards. I am happy to sit down 

with you and your staff to work it through. And our only interest 

is getting this right. 
181 

Let me talk to you about, as difficult and intellectually challenging as this is, why it is so important. 

EDUCATION INVESTMENT IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Together, you and I, all of us, we put out about $150 billion in 

grants and loans to support higher education each year, $150 billion. Similar to the IDEA special education grants conversation, 

virtually all of that is based on inputs. Virtually none of that is 

based on outcomes. 

NEED FOR FOCUS ON COMPLETION AS WELL AS ACCESS

So taxpayers are supporting a massive investment each year and 

have very little sense of whether they are getting a good return on 

that or not. 

As you know, some universities do a great job of increasing access. Others, frankly, don’t. Some do a great job of encouraging 

first-generation college students to come. Others don’t. 

I am very focused not just on access, but on completion, on attainment. Some universities do a great job of supporting students 

through mentoring programs and bridge programs. Others let them 

walk in the door, and they sort of sink or swim on their own. 

So we think we have to do something better. We have to do it 

together. We have to do it very thoughtfully. 

But having none of our money moving toward universities that 

are taking these responsibilities that you and I think are so significant, so profound, the status quo doesn’t make sense to me. 

COMMITTED TO DEVELOPMENT OF COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM

Senator MORAN. In the absence of that $10 million being included in our appropriation bill, do you have the money and the authority to pursue this program? 

Secretary DUNCAN. We absolutely need to pursue this. We will 

pursue it. The money would be very, very beneficial. It would be 

very helpful. But we are moving forward on this, yes. 

Senator MORAN. Thanks very much, Mr. Secretary. 

I don’t have enough time to ask a second question. I will have 

an opportunity later. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Alexander. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Thanks, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. Secretary, welcome. It is good to see you. 

Let me discuss something that I am sure we agree on, and something I am afraid we disagree on, and ask you a question about it. 

STUDENT PERFORMANCE-BASED TEACHER EVALUATION

We agree that we want higher standards for our 100,000 public 

schools. I am pretty sure we agree that teacher evaluation based 

on student performance is sort of the Holy Grail of elementary and 

secondary education. 

Where I am afraid we disagree is that I believe that is a State 

and local responsibility, and you believe it can be required from 

Washington, DC. 
182 

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND WAIVER AUTHORITY

For example, you revoked a waiver the other day for the State 

of Washington because the legislature there wouldn’t enact a teacher evaluation system according to your standards. Now, I looked at 

the law, Federal law, and section 9527 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act says: An employee of the Federal Government can’t mandate, direct, or control a school’s curriculum, program of instruction. Section 1232 of the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act said: Any department or agency here cannot exercise 

any direction, supervision, or control over curriculum, program of 

instruction, personnel. Section 3403 of the Department of Education Organization Act prohibits any direction over curriculum, instruction, personnel. 

In other words, it is clear to me that Congress says no national 

school board. 

Looking for the authority for you to make decisions like this, I 

go to the Secretary’s waiver under No Child Left Behind, which is 

very simple. It says you may waive any requirement of the act that 

a State asks you to waive. 

But it seems to me, if it were ‘‘Mother, May I,’’ the old childhood 

game, you have turned it into where the child says, ‘‘Mother, may 

I go outside and play,’’ and you say, ‘‘Yes, you may, but you need 

to sweep the floor, and make your bed, and cook the breakfast, and 

go to school, and do your homework, and be nice to your father,’’ 

and do all these things. And the kid said, ‘‘I didn’t ask about that.’’ 

And the mother said, ‘‘Well, that is what you have to do.’’ 

REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND WAIVER

To get a waiver for No Child Left Behind, for example, your requirements say you have to adopt standards. There are two 

versions of that that are approved, only two. You have to adopt ambitious, achievable performance goals about whether schools are 

succeeding or failing. There are two versions of that, only two. You 

have to have prescriptive turnaround models if schools are low-performing and have significant achievement gaps. There are four 

types of that, only four. And you have to have a certain kind of 

teacher and principal evaluation. It has to meet each of seven Federal criteria. And this didn’t happen in Washington State. 

Now you know how much I care about teacher evaluation. Tennessee became the first State to do it when I was Governor. But 

I don’t think you can do it from here or order it from here or define 

it from here. 

And in my opinion, what you are doing with this very well-intentioned overreach, I think, is creating a backlash among conservatives who don’t like the Federal Government involved, and a backlash among teachers unions who don’t want any form of student 

achievement related to teacher evaluation. And you are undermining, I am afraid, the very high standards and teacher evaluation systems that I think both of us want to do. 

In other words, I think the way to get to where both of us would 

like to go is not by ordering it from here, but by letting the Governors and the States have the responsibility to do it. 
183 

TEACHER EVALUATION AND FEDERALLY GRANTED WAIVERS

So my question is: Would you please explain to me how using 

your waiver authority to place conditions on States about common 

standards, about performance targets, about teacher evaluation 

systems that are not otherwise required by Federal law—and in 

the case of standards, in my opinion, is prohibited by the law—how 

does that not amount to, in effect, a national school board? 

Secretary DUNCAN. This is a conversation you and I have had a 

number of times. Just to be very, very clear, to paraphrase a 

former Senator, I know what it is to be a superintendent. As you 

know, I used to be a superintendent, and I am not a national superintendent now. 

And what we have tried to do is very simple. Where States want 

to move away from the onerous provisions of No Child Left Behind, 

where they want to partner with us, and where we want to provide 

some flexibility, we just say some very simple things. You have to 

have high standards. And they can be State-developed. They can 

be common. We are open there. There is lots of flexibility there in 

terms of what folks have done. We just say you can’t dummy down 

standards. 

Again, you have the right to do that. We are just not going to 

provide you additional flexibility, if you are dumbing things down. 

We think that the goal of teaching is not to teach. The goal of 

teaching is to actually have children learn and to have a piece of 

teacher evaluation be based upon student learning, we think, is 

just sort of basic common sense. 

I think it is very important that we use language very precisely, 

encouraging high standards. Again, common, or not common, our 

goal is high standards. We feel very good about that. 

NO FEDERAL ROLE OR INVOLVEMENT IN CURRICULUM

We never have, never will, touch curriculum. Curriculum is not 

standards. Those things get conflated either through—well, I won’t 

get into why they get conflated. But standards are the bar we want 

people to reach, which is college- and career-ready once they graduate from high school. 

How you teach to those standards is curriculum. And it would be 

the height of arrogance for us to say anything about it. We never 

have, and we never will. That is always best left up to local communities. 

And so again, I would just use as a case study of where I think 

we have been a very important, effective partner, Exhibit A, quite 

candidly, Senator, is your State, the State of Tennessee. 

I came to that State 2 or 3 years ago. Tennessee was one of the 

lowest performing States in the Nation. I challenged the State to 

figure out, could it be the fastest improving State in the Nation, 

not the highest performing, but the fastest improving. 

I think if you asked your Governor, who I have a tremendous relationship with, if you asked your State superintendent, who I have 

a tremendous relationship with, have I and my Department supported them in their efforts—not told them what to do, not mandated things, but supported them in their efforts—I think we will 

let their words speak for themselves. 
184 

And we are thrilled—thrilled—that Tennessee is the fastest improving State in the Nation. And all the credit goes to the great 

work at the local level. But I would like to think a small bit of the 

help of support they got from us has been part of that story. 

So I will stop there. 

Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

This is a longer conversation, and my time is up. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator. 

Senator Landrieu. 

Senator LANDRIEU. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And 

let me begin by thanking you for your extraordinary leadership all 

these years on this committee. And as an appropriator and an authorizer, you have had just an enormous impact for good for our 

country, for our children’s health and education. And it has been 

an honor to work with you, and I look forward to our next few 

months together in these roles. 

CHARTER SCHOOL PROGRAM

Mr. Secretary, you know that I have been, along with many 

Members of Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, a strong 

champion for charter schools, for public charter schools—public, 

open access, free charter schools—that are really, in essence, independent, entrepreneurial, inspirational, exciting places in this 

country, for the most part. Not every charter school is inspirational 

or working. But the idea of it, the model of it, is very entrepreneurial. 

I know that you are familiar with the just unbelievable growth 

in grades and academic achievement happening in Orleans Parish, 

which is sort of ground zero in a positive way for the charter school 

movement that Senator Alexander has been so supportive of, and 

Representative Miller, Representative Cantor, and Representative 

Kline, and a growing number of Senators here of both parties. 

So it was perplexing to me, having been able to see so carefully 

and so closely the tremendous opportunity that kids of all races 

and backgrounds are achieving in public charter schools, to see in 

your budget flat funding for this initiative, the charter school program. It was disappointing to see the level of charter school funding flat. 

Can the Department outline your expectations for successful implementation of the charter school program, given the level of funding at $248 million for 2015? 

And the reason I say that is because I know that moving to charter schools is not the answer for every failing public school. I realize that there are other choices, good choices, that can be made. 

But the evidence is in and clear that charter schools that are operating with quality leadership, it is in—the evidence is in; it is indisputable. With quality leadership, with open enrollment, with 

choice, it is actually working. And I see it every day when I go 

home. 

So why did you all flat fund it? And do you not agree with the 

evidence that has been presented to you and your department? 

Secretary DUNCAN. I appreciate your tremendous leadership and 

courage on this issue and others. 
185 

I think the charter community has felt very well-supported by 

me and our administration. I think we have lots of bows and arrows, slings, to show for some of the challenges we have faced in 

support of that. 

These are, obviously, very tough budget times. We are thrilled to 

be able to maintain funding there. 

I just want to be very clear, for the record, that I am just a huge 

proponent of high-performing public schools, be they traditional 

schools or charter schools. And so many of the extraordinary public 

schools that I have seen in disadvantaged communities are charters, where they are changing the opportunity structure for kids 

and families—— 

FUNDS FOR CHARTER SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS

Senator LANDRIEU. Let me ask you this, then, because you and 

I have had a long conversation about this, like you have with Senator Alexander over the issues that he raised. 

You always say that, ‘‘I am a strong supporter of high-performing 

public schools.’’ So we have $248 million for public charters, which 

are a proven model, when they work correctly. We then gave you, 

over the last several years, billions of dollars for traditional public 

school improvement. 

Do you know how much money to date this administration has 

been given, to you by Congress, for that? What is it, $6 billion? Is 

that the number for—— 

Secretary DUNCAN. Which fund? Which item are you talking 

about? 

Senator LANDRIEU. School Improvement Grants. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Oh, okay. 

Senator LANDRIEU. How much money have you had for School 

Improvement Grants? How much? 

Secretary DUNCAN. Yes, that is the right ballpark, yes. 

Senator LANDRIEU. About $6 billion. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Yes. 

Senator LANDRIEU. Okay, for School Improvement Grants. 

So my question is: You have given a very small amount of money 

for public high-performing charters. The evidence is in that they 

work. We have given 10 times that much money to School Improvement Grants for traditional public schools. So can you take 30 seconds, and then submit in writing to me, what evidence do you have 

that the $6 billion that we have spent for general improvements in 

public schools, not charters, what other models are working? And 

are they working as well as charters? 

Secretary DUNCAN. A couple things. Let me just walk through 

the math. 

That $6 billion is aggregated over a couple years. If you aggregate the charter money, it would be closer to $1 billion or so. 

Senator LANDRIEU. Okay, so it is $1 billion versus $6 billion. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Roughly. 

Senator LANDRIEU. That is good. 
186 

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS FUNDS

Secretary DUNCAN. This funding is going to the bottom 5 percent 

of schools in the Nation, to turn them around. This is tough work. 

It is challenging. No one ever has funded this before. 

Part of the reason high school graduation rates are up across the 

Nation is we are challenging those dropout factories. 

CHARTER SCHOOLS AS MEANS FOR TURNING AROUND SCHOOLS

One of the potential models that Senator Alexander talked about 

for those turnarounds is to convert to charters. Quite honestly, one 

of the challenges we have faced is that I would love more folks in 

the charter community to think about turning around traditional 

schools, and there has not been a lot of—— 

Senator LANDRIEU. That is exactly what we have done in New 

Orleans. And I know I am taking my time, but 20 more seconds. 

The charter community, which is $1 billion with 1 million kids 

on the waiting list, is turning around, in our State, the lowest performing schools, taking them from the lowest to the highest. It is 

a model that works. It has been proven, proven, proven, proven. 

Secretary DUNCAN. So charter—— 

Senator LANDRIEU. Let me just finish. 

It is a proven model. So I am going to be pressing this budget 

to spend our money where it works, and stop spending money 

where it doesn’t. It is just as simple as that. 

So I am going to be looking for some very hard evidence on the 

$6 billion that you all have spent on general turnaround models, 

because I want you to prove to me that those other models work, 

because I know the charter model works. 

CHARTER SCHOOL ACCESS TO SCHOOL TURNAROUND FUNDS

Secretary DUNCAN. Okay, just to be very, very clear, charters can 

access that $6 billion as a turnaround, and we don’t have many 

charter providers who want to do this work. 

Senator LANDRIEU. I don’t agree with that, but we will look into 

it. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Okay. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Merkley. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

COMPETITIVE GRANT VERSUS FORMULA ALLOCATION PROGRAMS

Mr. Secretary, one thing I wanted to draw to your attention that 

I am sure you have heard many times before; we have 200 school 

districts in Oregon, many of them very small. They consistently ask 

me to encourage the Department to focus on the formula funding 

distributions, simply because they don’t have grant writers. 

They don’t have extra administrators who can write grants. They 

are stressed as it is. This is something I can relate to. I ran small 

nonprofits, and I was a grant writer. And I was a grant writer between midnight and 2 a.m. to try to get those grants out. And after 

you write five or six of them, and nothing comes back, you kind of 

give up. 
187 

So they feel like the emphasis on grant writing is highly disadvantageous to small schools. And I have heard that in every part 

of my State. So I just wanted to emphasize that message back to 

you. 

Is that something you are familiar with? 

COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAMS AS PERCENTAGE OF EDUCATION

FUNDS

Secretary DUNCAN. Very aware of. And just to be clear, and it is 

sometimes a misconception here, approximately 89 percent of our 

budget is formula based. Only about 10 percent or 11 percent is 

competitive. So the majority of every dollar, $.89, is going out on 

a formula basis. 

Having said that, we feel very good about the few programs we 

have on the competitive side. We have seen, increasingly, rural districts come in. We have seen consortia of districts come in. And we 

can sort of walk through whether it is a Promise Neighborhoods 

initiative or the Investing in Innovation Fund, where we have gotten some very nontraditional players, folks who think they can’t 

compete or can’t play are able to come into the game and do very, 

very well. 

So please challenge us to make sure we continue to level the 

playing field when we do that. But we think we have actually gotten better at that over time. 

Senator MERKLEY. Well, I will just note that the 2015 proposals 

take the discretionary grant funds from 10 percent of the budget 

to 16 percent of the budget, which is the opposite of the direction 

my school districts would like to see us go. So I would just share 

that back with you. 

HIGH COST OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

One of the things I am extremely concerned about is the cost of 

higher education. In this regard, certainly, I support more Pell 

grants. I support tuition freezes. I support low interest rates on 

student loans. 

But even with all that, in working-class communities, there is a 

growing conversation about whether or not there is really a pathway for children to succeed. And they are worried. And their parents are worried about having their kids trapped between high loan 

payments and low wages, and being squeezed between those. 

And demographically, we are actually seeing this impact in terms 

of people living in their parents’ spare bedrooms, their basement, 

and marriage being postponed. It is not just an unfounded fear; it 

is a real thing. 

And it goes to the heart of an aspirational society where every 

child has a path to succeed. 

OREGON’S PAY IT FORWARD PROGRAM

There is a concept that has started in Oregon called Pay It Forward, which is designed to address this. It basically says, instead 

of getting a loan, you get a Pay It Forward grant. And in exchange, 

you pledge to pay back 2 percent of your future income over 2 decades, roughly, roughly speaking. 
188 

The details are more complicated to work it out, but I am proposing experimenting with this, because it solves that compression, 

because you can’t be trapped between low wages and high loan 

payments, because if your wages are low, your payments are low. 

And if you are the next Bill Gates, then you have the blessing of 

putting $1 billion or $2 billion into the grant fund for the next generation. 

It would create a different message that, indeed, there is an aspirational path for every child to succeed. 

Do you support experimenting with this type of different approach? Are you willing to engage deeply in the conversation, because our current system is not working? 

Secretary DUNCAN. First of all, Senator, I just want to say how 

much I appreciate your sensitivity on these issues. You understand 

them at a level of detail and nuance that most folks don’t. You 

have lived this. You represent folks who are living this. And so 

having your thoughts, having your advice on this, is hugely helpful. 

That Pay It Forward model is very, very interesting to me. As 

you may know, it is based on the Australian and New Zealand 

models. I spent 4 years in Australia. My wife is Australian. She 

went to school there. So I am very, very familiar with it. I am 

happy to discuss it further. I am happy to look at whether you can 

experiment or do an exercise or do something interesting there in 

Oregon. 

But together, whether it is that or something else, I think we all 

have to find ways to do something radically better than what is 

happening today. 

So thinking outside the box, thinking differently, this idea came 

not from a bunch of academics, but from students in Oregon who 

are very, very thoughtful in doing the research and looking internationally. So we would love to continue the conversation in a 

meaningful way. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you. I will take you up on that offer 

to continue that conversation, because for untold numbers of high 

school students right now, they are getting the message from their 

community that they might as well give up, because they are not 

going to be able to afford to go forward. And that is something that 

should concern all of us. 

This is the American dream just slipping through our fingers for 

millions of working Americans. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Just quickly, we have tried to do as much as 

we can. There is a lot of work to do. We had, as you know, a $40 

billion increase in Pell grants, without going back to the taxpayers 

for a nickel. It went from 6 million Pell recipients to almost 9 million, a 50-percent increase, many first-generation college-goers, 

probably many of the residents you represent. 

So we feel great about that, but we have a lot of hard work 

ahead of us. We are not where we need to be. 

Senator MERKLEY. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Moran. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Secretary, there is an irony here that at 

least I see as an irony, that I want to explore with you. 

The President announced the ConnectED initiative last June, 

and the goal was to get 99 percent of our schools across the country 
189 

to be connected. And, certainly, I am pleased by that. We work 

hard at bringing broadband services to rural America. It is a high 

priority for me. You have a part of that, and your budget request is for $200 million for a new Connect Educators part of that program. It is to 

train and bring our teachers up to a level of understanding and appreciation for what may come when connectivity actually occurs. 

But 84 percent, almost 85 percent, of the money that you are re- questing of that $200 million is based upon a competitive grant. So 

you are asking rural and underserved areas of the country to compete for the $200 million that is in your budget. 

The irony of that to me is this: That we have already determined 

that we have these rural schools that will struggle to connect. And 

then we are making them compete for the money to help them be 

prepared for the money that will come. 

ABILITY OF RURAL SCHOOLS TO COMPETE FOR GRANT FUNDS

To me, this is the broader issue that I tried to raise in my opening statement, in which we have competitive grants—and this is in 

part me being an advocate for rural America, an advocate for a 

State like ours. 

I will speak at graduation in 11⁄2 weeks. There are 11 high school 

seniors graduating from the class. Those kind of circumstances 

can’t lend themselves to being capable of competing for the grants 

that your Department so actively promotes. 

And it seems to me, the point I want to make and have you respond to, is here we have a program that is initially designed to 

help rural schools. But even rural schools have to compete for those 

dollars. And already the decision has been made that there is a disadvantage. 

And my point being that those disadvantaged schools, whether it 

is this interconnectivity issue or it is Title I or it is IDEA, we just 

have school districts that are unlikely to be able to compete. They 

don’t have the personnel. They don’t have the grant writing expertise. It is hard to find somebody. 

Many of our school districts in Kansas will have a school superintendent who is also the building principal. And yet, we are asking those schools to figure out how they can compete for dollars 

that you want to use to promote excellence. I want to promote excellence, but I want to make certain we don’t leave behind those 

that we claim already are underserved or disadvantaged because 

they are rural. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Great questions. I actually think we have 

very good answers. Again, I would be happy to follow up with you 

later. 

So we have, frankly, thought all these things through. When we 

do these competitions, we are not going to the wealthy communities. When we do Promise Neighborhoods, we are going to the 

most disadvantaged communities. 

So we are very intentionally targeting in these competitions 

those areas of the greatest need, not of the greatest grant writers, 

not of the greatest wealth. 

And again, if you look program by program, School Improvement 

Grants, Promise Neighborhoods, the Investing in Innovation Fund, 
190 

when we did the School Improvement Grants that Senator 

Landrieu talked about, there was a huge outcry that rurals couldn’t 

compete, it wouldn’t work in rural communities. Quite surprisingly, 

to us, rural communities actually got slightly more than their ‘‘fair’’ 

share; they got disproportionately more of the dollars than did 

urban and suburban areas and have, frankly, done very, very well. 

So you can look across what we have done. We have made some 

significant grants in places like Appalachia. We have made grants 

in poor rural communities in other parts of the Nation. 

We have done competitive priorities. We have done absolute priorities and set asides. And again, I would be happy to talk through 

the structure with you. But we think we have done, frankly, over 

time, a pretty good job of making sure those rural communities 

who don’t have the fancy grant writers are being very well-served. 

MAXIMIZING IMPACT WITH LIMITED FUNDS

The other important point to make is that, as you guys know, 

$200 million sounds like a lot. Spread across 15,000 school districts, that is like pennies. And trying to maximize the benefits 

with scarce tax dollars—we are asking for $200 million. I could use 

$2 billion, $4 billion, pick a number. It is just not realistic in these 

financial times. I understand that. 

We are trying to make sure that we have maximum impact in 

the places that could use the money the most, again, not the 

wealthiest districts, not those with the best grant writers, but to 

have maximum impact in the places that could use it the most. 

The final thing I will say is that, as we do the Connected Educators part, as the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) 

looks to increase access to high-speed broadband, we know rural 

communities have the greatest need. We know that is where the 

greatest cost is going to be. Just know that we are absolutely committed to serving those communities. 

Senator MORAN. I don’t think that there is a set aside for rural 

districts in Connected Educators. It is a broad program for all 

schools across the country to compete. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Again, we are happy to work it through, but 

whether it is a set aside, whether it is a competitive advantage, we 

want to make sure that every competition we do is being used in 

very different communities because we are trying to create spots 

that can demonstrate best practices. 

So we can work through with you, technically, how we are going 

to set this up. But rest assured, we will make sure that rural communities get their fair share of those resources. 

Senator MORAN. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Moran. 

We have been joined by our neighbor to the east, Senator Kirk. 

Welcome. I yield to you, if you are prepared. 

Senator KIRK. I am. 

ALL YEAR SCHOOL STUDY ACT (S. 2029)

Mr. Secretary, I have a present for you. I wanted to give you this 

chart, which shows countries that have all-year schools substantially outscoring the United States. It is for you and your office, so 
191 

you can always look at it and be reminded of S. 2029, which Senator Booker and I have endorsed. 

[The chart and information on All Year School Study Act from 

Senator Kirk’s office follow:] 

FROM THE OFFICE OF SENATOR MARK KIRK

ALL YEAR SCHOOL STUDY ACT, S. 2029

Kirk-Booker bill to establish a pilot program for year-round schools to boost academic achievement in low-income, low-performing districts 
192 

The Problem 

A long summer vacation within the school calendar is an outdated relic from the 

agricultural economy of 19th century. We no longer need kids to bring in the harvest. Moreover, the long summer breaks of the traditional school calendar can be 

detrimental to academic achievement. 

—Over the course of the summer, students lose on average one-month of math 

skills 

—Low-income students lose as much as 3 months of learning in reading skills 

while their higher-income peers actually make gains in the same skills 

However, very few schools have adjusted their calendars. 

Year-Round Schools Are an Effective Solution 

—In Illinois, year-round schools have been consistently successful at increasing 

academic achievement. At Alain Locke Elementary in Chicago, 25% and 23% 

more low-income students hit state benchmarks in reading and math than the 

state overall. It was also recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as 

1 of 7 schools in the nation best at ‘‘Closing the Achivement Gap.’’ 

—A 2012 study of year-round schools in Virginia found that certain student 

groups are more likely to improve faster. 74% and 65% of African American students at year-round schools improved faster than their traditional calendar 

peers in reading and math respectively. 

—The United States overall has seen stagnant growth for student performance in 

recent years, while other OECD countries that employ year-round schools such 

as Singapore, Japan, and Austrailia routinely dominate on international math 

testing. 

—According to 2013 PISA results, the U.S. average math score was 13 points 

below the OECD average, meanwhile Singapore, whose average scores ranked 

2nd overall, outscored the OECD average by 79 points. 

We need to cultivate our future workforce to be prepared to master the skills of 

the 21st century information economy—and follow the example of some of our 

toughest competitors by embracing innovative approaches to education. 

All Year School Study Act 

—Authorizes a $4 million multi-year pilot program to establish year-round schools 

in the U.S. 

—Target low-income, low-performing areas and focus on STEM education. 

Staff Contact: Jordan Hynes 

YEAR-ROUND SCHOOLING

Senator KIRK. I just wanted to get you on the record: Do you endorse this legislation to encourage all-year school? 

Secretary DUNCAN. First of all, it is great to see you and to be 

able to work with you. 

And there are other areas where we need lots of studies. I am 

not sure if we need another study on summer reading loss. We 

have study after study after study, particularly in disadvantaged 

communities, where teachers work hard to get children to a certain 

point in June, and they come back in the fall, in September, and 

they are further behind than when they left. It is absolutely heartbreaking. 

So I will take it one more step. We don’t need just longer years. 

We need longer days. We need longer weeks. We need to think 

about time in a very different way. And again, not for every single 

child. 

When Senator Landrieu, before you got here, Senator Kirk, 

talked about high-performing charter schools, many of those highperforming charter schools, they just have longer school days. They 

are working on Saturdays. They are working through the weekend. 

We talked a lot in my opening statement about opportunity gaps. 

We have to close those opportunity gaps with more time with great 

instruction, more time with great academic enrichment, more time 
193 

for debate and academic decathlon, and yearbook, and drama, and 

sports, and robotics. All those types of things—summer months, 

after school, Saturdays—give us a chance to give children what 

they need to be successful. 

Senator KIRK. As you remember, in Chicagoland, we increased 

the learning time for Chinese to make sure that people could get 

some sophistication in that language, which was a key thing for 

Chicago Public Schools to make sure we had kids who were prepared for the 22nd century economy. 

Secretary DUNCAN. So when I talk about more time and longer 

days and longer weeks, adults usually cheer and kids usually boo 

or throw tomatoes at me. So be prepared for a few tomatoes to be 

thrown your way as you talk about this. 

Senator KIRK. I think Cory and I can handle it. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Kirk, anything else? 

Senator KIRK. That is it. 

CHAIRMAN’S CLOSING REMARKS

Senator HARKIN. We are going to close up here. I will just say 

that I tend to think that we do need longer school days. I don’t 

know about a longer week. 

Longer school days and a longer school year, I would agree with 

Senator Kirk on that. Our days are very, very short. I do think we 

need to look at longer school years also. 

Mr. Secretary, do you have anything else that you want to add? 

Secretary DUNCAN. Again, thank you very much for your leadership. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you. 

Secretary DUNCAN. And I know you, as a leader here, have some 

very tough budget decisions to make. But you have always been 

collaborative. You have always been thoughtful. And no one is 

more passionate about the closing of opportunity gaps, so thank 

you for your leadership. 

ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

Senator HARKIN. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary, and 

we will work with you on getting this appropriations bill through 

in the next few months anyway. 

The hearing record will remain open for 1 week for Senators to 

submit other statements and questions. 

[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were 

submitted to the Department for response subsequent to the hearing:] 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

HIGH QUALITY EARLY LEARNING

Question. Mr. Secretary, I applaud the President and you for your continued commitment to advance early learning in the United States. I have been calling for this 

kind of investment for a number of years, and I think it’s just what we need. We’ve 

been able to move the needle some on the issue. Last year’s omnibus included an 

increase of $1 billion in Head Start. It included new resources and authority under 

Race to the Top for Preschool Development Grants. And, the administration’s fiscal 

year 2015 budget request builds on these investments. 
194 

Some have suggested that we don’t need another Federal program or more Federal resources invested in high quality early learning programs. I disagree. I’d like 

to hear your response to that criticism of your budget proposal. 

Answer. It is important to understand that despite existing investments in programs like Head Start, there is tremendous unmet need in this country for access 

to high-quality preschool. There is near-universal agreement on the importance of 

high-quality preschool education, and parents want what is best for their children, 

but there simply are not enough affordable, high-quality slots for children to attend 

these programs. Nationally, only 3 in 10 children are enrolled in high-quality preschool programs. In almost every State, the unmet need for early learning is enormous. For example, in Pennsylvania, 6,700 children are waiting for openings in the 

State preschool program; in Colorado, districts report that over 8,000 eligible children cannot be served; and in Michigan, Governor Snyder reported last year that 

29,000 needy preschool age children didn’t have an opportunity to go to subsidized 

preschool. 

In addition, we need to recognize that what parents and children need is access 

to high-quality early learning opportunities from birth through age 5. So we’re not 

talking about just creating more slots, but slots in high-quality preschool programs. 

Very few existing programs are meeting the demand for both access and quality, 

whether you’re talking about cities, suburbs, or rural communities. 

HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION INITIATIVE

Question. Mr. Secretary, I am pleased that your budget proposes to continue investing in high school reform, building on activities currently funded through the 

High School Graduation Initiative. Please tell me more about what we are learning 

through the high school graduation initiative and how this would inform high school 

reform activities proposed in the fiscal year 2015 budget request. 

Answer. High School Graduation Initiative grantees are implementing a variety 

of research-based and other promising strategies to keep at-risk students from dropping out and re-engage out-of-school youth. These include using data tools to identify and serve at-risk students more effectively, such as early warning indicator systems; offering personalized support services, including graduation coaching and 

mentoring, through proven approaches like Check and Connect and Advancement 

Via Individual Determination (AVID); and implementing school climate interventions such as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports. 

Although targeted strategies such as these hold promise, the President and I believe that more fundamental reforms are needed if efforts to improve the graduation 

rates of our Nation’s chronically underperforming high schools and to prepare students graduating from these schools truly for college and careers are to meet with 

lasting success. The proposed High School Redesign program, funded at $150 million 

in the President’s budget, would call on local educational agencies and their partners to provide a radically overhauled and more engaging high school experience 

through instruction that is personalized to the needs and interests of individual students; relevant for the careers of the 21st century, including through improved use 

of technology; and complemented by an array of support services, including those 

currently supported with High School Graduation Initiative funds. Similarly, College Pathways and Accelerated Learning, which under the administration’s reauthorization proposal would consolidate the High School Graduation Initiative and 

other current-law programs and for which we request $75 million in fiscal year 

2015, would support local efforts to improve and sustain student interest by introducing more challenging curricula in high schools with low graduation rates, such 

as Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses, dual-enrollment 

programs, and early college high schools, while providing support services for students not on track to graduate. 

STUDENT OUTCOMES AND 21ST CENTURY WORKFORCE NEEDS

Question. Also, how would the program address the misalignment between student outcomes and the needs of the 21st century workforce, particularly through 

partnerships among school districts, employers, and institutions of higher education? 

Answer. The High School Redesign program would incorporate a number of strategies to improve alignment between workforce needs and programs serving high 

school students. Under our proposal, eligible entities would have to include organizations that can help structure and facilitate career-related experiences for students 

as well as help schools prepare students to apply academic concepts to real-world 

challenges and entities. Such organizations might be nonprofits, community-based 

organizations, government agencies, or other business or industry-related organiza-
195 

tions. In addition, all grantees would be expected to provide students with careerrelated experiences or competencies, obtained through organized internships and 

mentorships, structured work-based learning, and other related experiences. We 

would also give special consideration to projects that plan to work with employers 

that help participants attain career-related credentials. 

In addition, our fiscal year 2015 budget request also provides $1.1 billion for a 

reauthorized Perkins Career and Technical Education (CTE) program that would increase alignment between CTE and labor market needs and strengthen collaboration among secondary and postsecondary CTE programs and business and industry. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT WAIVERS AND STUDENT PROTECTIONS

Question. Mr. Secretary, last month you responded to my February 19, 2014, letter related to ESEA flexibility granted to State Educational Agencies. As you know, 

I expressed great concern about how waiver implementation may erode protections 

for our most vulnerable students. I was hopeful that the response would provide 

more details about the Department’s plans to address the concerns I identified in 

my letter. Specifically, my letter outlined four main concerns: 

(1) Waiver States identifying drastically lower numbers of schools for interventions; 

(2) Waiver States not providing interventions in schools that are low-performing, but not identified as priority and focus schools; 

(3) The use of super subgroups in States’ accountability systems; and 

(4) The lack of accountability for high school graduation rates in States’ accountability systems. 

Could you please provide more details about the Department’s plans for addressing each of these concerns? 

Answer. I want to emphasize that I share your concern about improving educational opportunities for our most vulnerable students, including low-income and 

minority students, students with disabilities, and English learners. This concern 

was a driving force behind our ESEA flexibility initiative, under which we are working with States to ensure access to a high-quality education for all students, and 

I would be pleased to have my staff meet with yours to discuss how we are addressing your concerns in ESEA flexibility, to date. As we continue to develop, in the 

coming months, our plans for the ESEA flexibility renewal process, we will continue 

to closely examine the issues you raise in your letter, and look forward to continuing 

to work with you on behalf of America’s students. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR PATTY MURRAY

GUIDANCE PROVIDED ON USE OF TITLE I FUNDS FOR HOMELESS STUDENTS

Question. The number of homeless students in America’s public schools has increased 72 percent since the great recession. Although homeless students are eligible to be served under Title I, the Department of Education’s guidance has actually 

made it challenging for school districts to effectively serve these vulnerable children. 

To address this, the fiscal year 2014 appropriations bill includes language specifically stating that funds under Title I can be used to provide homeless students with 

transportation to school, and to support homeless liaisons, and the school district 

staff that identify homeless students and help to stabilize their education during 

this time of extreme hardship for the students and their families. 

Guidance issued by the Department of Education in a March 21, 2014, Dear Colleague letter directly contradicts the language of the fiscal year 2014 appropriations 

bill. Specifically, the Department’s guidance poses the question: May a local educational agency use funds it reserves under section 1113(c)(3)(a) of the Elementary 

and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) to pay for a homeless liaison or to provide 

transportation to the school of origin? 

The answer provided by the Department is: ‘‘No,’’ followed by additional commentary that undercuts the very clear congressional intent of our fiscal year 2014 

bill language. Can you explain why the Department took this action, and what the 

Department will do to fix it so that the Department is in compliance with the law 

that was passed last year? 

Answer. Our intention was to make clear that, in addition to the new authority 

to pay for the liaison and school-of-origin transportation, the requirement to provide 

comparable Title I services remains. We are continuing to work with your staff on 

this issue. 
196 

AMERICAN PRINTING HOUSE RESOURCES WITH ENHANCED ACCESSIBILITY FOR LEARNING

PLAN

Question. The American Printing House for the Blind (APH) is the world’s largest 

nonprofit organization creating educational, workplace, and independent living products and services for people who are blind and visually impaired. APH has worked 

in partnership with the Federal Government since 1879 to fulfill their mission. The 

Department of Education’s fiscal year 2015 request for APH is $24.456 million, the 

same level the APH has received each year since fiscal year 2010. 

Digital technology is rapidly changing the ways in which educational materials 

are delivered to students. The APH has developed a ‘‘Resources with Enhanced Accessibility for Learning’’ (REAL) Plan to streamline and speed up the delivery of digital educational materials from publishers to students who are legally blind in accessible formats—both hard copy and digital braille and large print. This work is important for students who are blind and visually impaired to continue receiving the 

same educational content as their sighted peers. 

Secretary Duncan, given the high cost of developing technology, does the Department plan to increase funding for the American Printing House for the Blind’s 

REAL Plan? 

Answer. The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request would provide a total of 

$24.5 million in discretionary funding to the American Printing House for the Blind 

(APH). The President recognizes the historical legacy of APH and its commitment 

to creating educational, workplace, and independent living products and services for 

people who are blind and visually impaired. ‘‘Resources with Enhanced Accessibility 

for Learning (REAL) Plan’’ is a new initiative for which APH has already proposed 

to use its endowment funds to cover costs associated with consultation and production for fiscal year 2015. 

ENSURING TIMELY ACCESS TO PRINTED TEXT FOR BLIND AND DISABLED

Question. What additional investments can the Department make to ensure timely access to accessible content for students who are blind or have another disability 

affecting their ability to read printed text and graphics? 

Answer. Due to budgetary constraints, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request of $24.5 million would maintain level funding at the fiscal year 2014 level. 

The Department has met with APH to discuss the development of performance 

measures for APH’s newest technologic innovations, with the intent to ensure timely 

access to accessible content for students who are blind or have another disability 

affecting their ability to read printed text and graphics. 

FUNDING FOR HIGH SCHOOL EQUIVALENCY PROGRAM AND COLLEGE ACCEPTANCE

MIGRANT PROGRAM

Question. The High School Equivalency Program (HEP) and the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) are critical to promoting educational access, retention, and completion for children of migrant farmworkers which are some of the 

most underserved, disadvantaged, and at-risk students in the country. Frequent 

moves contribute to very high dropout rates and the low enrollments in higher education. Yet, according to the Department’s own estimates, HEP and CAMP programs 

are very successful: 89 percent of all CAMP participants successfully completed 

their first year at an institution of higher education and 74 percent of HEP students 

who completed their course of study earned a GED. CAMP’s freshman cohorts have 

higher continuation rates than most college’s general freshman population. 

Given the success of this program, please explain why the Administration for fiscal year 2015 proposed $34.6 million for the HEP and CAMP programs which is the 

post-sequestration level, and did not propose the pre-sequestration level funding of 

$36.6 million for the HEP and CAMP programs in fiscal year 2015 which the Administration proposed in fiscal year 2014? 

Answer. We agree that the High School Equivalency Program and the College Assistance Migrant Program programs provide important support for helping individuals from migrant populations to receive their GED credential and to complete their 

first year of postsecondary education. There are many good, effective programs in 

the Department, but in order to maintain fiscal discipline and adhere to the spending levels set in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, we had to make tough choices 

and set priorities for spending increases among programs, even increases that would 

only bring back program spending to pre-sequester levels. 

Please note that HEP and CAMP programs are not the only source of funding 

that can assist youths and adults from migrant farmworker and seasonal worker 

populations who are interested in obtaining their GED credential or completing 
197 

their first year of postsecondary education. The administration’s fiscal year 2015 

budget request also provided $898.3 million for Federal TRIO programs and $597.7 

million for Adult Education State grants. 

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE CONNECTED INITIATIVE

Question. I was very interested to see that your fiscal year 2015 budget request 

proposes $200 million for a new Connect Educators initiative that helps educators 

transition to using technology and data to personalize learning and improve instruction and assessment. As a strong supporter of the Enhancing Education Through 

Technology program, which has not received funding since fiscal year 2010, as well 

as the ATTAIN Act—the Accelerating Technology Transfer to Advance Innovation 

for the Nation Act of 2014, I was pleased to see a renewed focus from your Agency 

on education technology. 

Can you please provide more information about the types of professional development that you envision being provided through this program? 

Answer. The administration’s ConnectED initiative will connect 99 percent of 

America’s students to the digital age through next-generation broadband and highspeed wireless in their schools and libraries. The initiative invests in improving the 

skills of teachers, ensuring that every educator in America receives support and 

training in using education technology tools that can improve student learning. 

ConnectED calls for additional funding and support for schools to improve their 

network connectivity and provide device access to all students. Connect Educators 

is designed to help teachers and principals understand how to use technology to 

help with the implementation of new assessments as well as to leverage technology 

to support needed professional development and increase access to online resources, 

including sample lessons and e-books that are aligned with college- and career-ready 

standards. 

The increased connectivity called for through ConnectED opens up opportunities 

for teachers and principals to engage and collaborate with other educators across 

the country to improve practice and share approaches. Becoming a connected educator can accelerate the adoption of best practices for all teachers and principals, but 

is crucial for teachers in schools where there may only be one teacher in a particular 

grade/subject in the school, who otherwise may have limited opportunities for collaboration, and for principals so that they can connect with other principals across 

schools. Connect Educators calls for funding for teachers and principals to receive 

‘‘at the elbow’’ support in both of these areas as well as to get connected to online 

communities and personalized professional development that meets the individual 

learning needs of educators, much like personalized/blending learning is used to improve instruction and support for students. 

CONNECT ED AND TEACHER EVALUATION SYSTEMS

Question. How would this program support school districts as they implement new 

teacher evaluation systems? 

Answer. This program would support district efforts to align their professional development with new educator evaluation systems by offering teachers and principals 

access to personalized professional supports, in the form of Web-based professional 

development courses or online communities, that are designed to address needs 

identified in evaluations and help educators improve their practice and become more 

effective over time. 

CONNECT ED AND COMMON CORE ASSESSMENTS

Question. How would this program support school districts as they implement new 

assessments linked to the Common Core State Standards? 

Answer. Providing schools with the connectivity and device access that they need 

is essential to helping them implement new assessments linked to college- and career-ready standards, whether they are in a State that has chosen to adopt the 

Common Core State standards or to use other college- and career-ready standards. 

There are a number of advantages of computer-based assessments, including more 

immediate feedback and the possibility for adaptive assessment (assessing students 

at the most appropriate level regardless of which grade they may be taking the assessment for). But these advantages require student access to devices and 

connectivity. ConnectED calls for additional funding and support for schools to improve their network connectivity and provide device access to all students. Connect 

Educators is designed to help teachers and principals understand how to use technology to help with the implementation of new assessments as well as to leverage 

technology to improve access to needed professional development and other online 
198 

resources, including sample lessons and e-books that are aligned to college- and career-ready standards. 

ENSURING PRIVACY OF STUDENT DATA UNDER CONNECT ED

Question. How would your agency ensure privacy of student data under this program; in particular, how would you ensure that student data would not be used for 

advertising and marketing purposes? 

Answer. As part of the requirement to receive eRate funding, schools must implement filtering software to restrict access to potentially harmful sites (such as those 

that might be using student personal information in inappropriate ways). ConnectED, administered by the FCC, will not require any new student data to be collected. However, as Internet access improves under the ConnectED Initiative, it is 

critical that school systems and educators understand the major laws and best practices protecting student privacy while using online educational services. 

The Department shares your concerns about commercialization of student data, 

and our Privacy Technical Assistance Center released guidance in February 2014 

about how schools and districts can protect student data in connection with contracting for online educational services. The guidance clarifies that FERPA would 

not permit a school or district to give FERPA-protected data to a third party solely 

for it to develop a product to market to a school or district and that the Protection 

of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) also provides parents with rights with regard 

to some marketing activities. This guidance can be found at the following Web link: 

http://ptac.ed.gov/sites/default/files/Student%20Privacy%20and%20Online%20 

Educational%20Services%20%28February%202014%29.pdf. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MARY L. LANDRIEU

FUNDING FOR CHARTER SCHOOL PROGRAM

Question. For years I have been very supportive of the Charter Schools Program 

(CSP), and thus was disappointed that the administration level-funded the Charter 

Schools Program in its fiscal year 2015 budget. As you know, the most recent independent research confirms that charter schools have made significant strides in closing the achievement gap. In communities across the country, students are making 

significant learning gains in core academic subjects. In particular, I have continued 

to advocate for the Charter Management Organization (CMO) Replication and Expansion Grant, and appreciate that the President’s budget does request $75 million 

for it. However, the President’s budget does not allocate any new funds for the SEA 

grants program. Can the Department outline its expectations for a successful implementation of the Charter School Program given the level funding of $248 million 

for fiscal year 2015? 

Answer. The administration strongly supports efforts to expand the number of 

high-quality educational options available to our Nation’s students, especially those 

living in poverty. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget would help accomplish this 

by directing scarce Federal resources to a new charter schools program, Supporting 

Effective Charter Schools, which under the administration’s proposal to reauthorize 

the Elementary and Secondary Education Act would support, through subgrants 

from State educational agencies (SEAs) or charter school authorizers and through 

grants directly from the Department, the start-up or expansion of high-quality charter schools, prioritizing projects that serve concentrations of students from low-income families. 

If the Elementary and Secondary Education Act is not reauthorized prior to enactment of fiscal year 2015 appropriations, the Department will conduct a competition 

for new grants to SEAs under current law. At level funding, we anticipate allocating 

approximately $100 million for 10 to15 new SEA grants, in addition to the $46 million we will use for continuation awards to current SEA grantees. We expect to pursue rulemaking to ensure these grants support the start-up only of high-quality 

schools. 

As you note, the fiscal year 2015 budget includes a request to use, absent reauthorization, up to $75 million for the high-quality charter school replication and expansion grants currently authorized in appropriations language, which in fiscal year 

2014 requires that not less than $45 million be used for these grants. This request 

recognizes the need to increase students’ access to proven charter school models 

while providing the Department with flexibility to direct funds to the most deserving projects across CSP competitions. 
199 

TITLE II FUNDING FOR SEED PROGRAM

Question. In my State of Louisiana, the Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) Grant program has been used to train 604 teachers over the past 2 

years, and will be used to train approximately 230 additional teachers for placement 

next year. Can you tell the committee whether and why or why not, you think a 

percentage of Title II funding should be designated specifically for the SEED grant 

program, which supports evidence-based teacher preparation programs, such as 

Teach for America and the National Writing Project, who have won these competitive awards in the past? 

Answer. We think the current set-aside under Title II, Part A of the ESEA that 

supports the SEED program is one of the most effective uses of Title II funds, largely because, as you stated, it supports evidence-based teacher preparation programs. 

As you know, we have long sought to increase the size of this set-aside in order to 

expand our ability to support more effective teacher and principal preparation programs, help States raise standards for such programs, and recruit and retain school 

leadership teams with the skills and experience needed to turn around low-performing schools. We were pleased that this Committee supported a small increase 

in the set-aside in fiscal year 2014, and we are hoping you will give serious consideration to our request to raise the set-aside to 10 percent in fiscal year 2015. 

USE OF PERFORMANCE AND OUTCOME INFORMATION TO INFORM POLICY AND

IMPROVEMENT

Question. As our Nation continues to deal with shrinking budgets and growing demand for services, the Federal Government needs to find ways to invest scarce Federal resources more efficiently and more effectively in evidence-based, results-driven 

solutions. I am pleased to see programs like Investing in Innovation (i3) prioritized 

in the President’s 2015 budget as they are focused on ensuring evidence-based practices are used to improve student outcomes. 

How is the Department using evidence, data and information about performance 

and outcomes to inform policy and drive continuous improvement in its programs 

and grantee interventions? 

Answer. Two key priorities in all of President Obama’s budget proposals for education have been to use evidence and data to guide investment decisions and to 

structure both existing programs and new proposals to build the evidence base for 

what works in education. For example, many of our proposals to eliminate or consolidate education programs were based on evaluation and performance data, contributing to the elimination of 49 Department of Education programs since President Obama took office, for a total annual savings of more than $1.2 billion. New 

programs such as Investing in Innovation (i3) were specifically designed to build the 

evidence base for effective instruction and improvement. We have built in rigorous 

evaluation requirements for key competitive grant programs, such as Race to the 

Top, School Improvement Grants, and Promise Neighborhoods. Finally, we recently 

amended the Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) 

to strengthen the use of evidence in Department competitive grant competitions and 

to improve the quality of data generated and reported by grantees. 

FUNDING FOR HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

Question. As we take stock of access and affordability to postsecondary educational options, it is critical that we take into consideration that historically black 

universities like Dillard University, Southern University, Grambling State University, and Xavier University in Louisiana are leading the way in the President’s goal 

to graduate more students, boost the economy, and enhance global competitiveness. 

I applaud your ongoing efforts to ensure success for all students in their goals to 

pursue postsecondary options through programs like First in the World, TRIO, and 

Strengthening Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). 

Can you tell the committee how the Department plans to continue to support the 

needs of HBCUs throughout the Nation with level funding at $223.8 million? 

Answer. The President recognizes that HBCU’s play a unique and vital role in 

providing higher education opportunities for African American students and students from low-income backgrounds. However, due to current constraints on budgetary resources, the President’s request for the Title III Strengthening HBCUs program, like the vast majority of Higher Education programs, is maintained at the 

fiscal year 2014 level. In addition to the request of $223.8 million in discretionary 

funding, HBCUs will also benefit from $85 million in mandatory funding and $57.9 

million in discretionary funding for the Title III Strengthening Historically Black 

Graduate Institutions. For over 150 years, these institutions have educated genera-
200 

tions of Americans and produced many of the Nation’s leaders in business, government, academia, and the military. The fiscal year 2015 budget request will enable 

these institutions to continue serving a growing population of students and encourage and prepare more of these students to pursue advanced study. The 2015 budget 

request includes $75 million for a new grant initiative designed to improve affordability, quality, and success in postsecondary education. The College Success Grants 

for Minority-Serving Institutions and Historically Black Colleges and Universities 

would provide competitive awards to minority-serving institutions to support implementation of sustainable strategies, processes and tools (including technology) to reduce costs and improve outcomes for students. 

ACCESS TO POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION

Question. What are some other ways that the Department intends on supporting 

low-to-moderate income students in pursuing their dream of attaining a postsecondary degree? Answer. In addition to fully funding the maximum Pell Grant Award to $5,830, 

continuing support for TRIO, GEAR UP, Title III and V programs, and making additional investments requested under First in the World and the new $75 million 

College Success Grants for MSIs, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request includes significant initiatives to help expand college access and completion for lowand moderate-income students, such as: 

—Encouraging States to support, reform, and improve the performance of their 

public higher education systems through the State Higher Education Performance Fund, which would generate an $8 billion new investment to make college 

more affordable and increase college access and success, especially for low-income students; 

—Rewarding colleges that successfully enroll and graduate a significant number 

of low- and moderate-income students on time and encourage all institutions to 

improve their performance through the new College Opportunity and Graduation bonus program; 

—Reforming the campus-based programs to target those institutions with a demonstrated commitment to providing a high-quality education at a reasonable 

price that enroll and graduate higher numbers of Pell-eligible students and offer 

an affordable and quality education such that graduates can repay their educational debt; 

—Reinstating the Ability to Benefit provision for students enrolled in eligible career pathways programs, which will allow adults without a high school diploma 

to gain the knowledge and skills they need to secure a good job; and 

—Helping borrowers manage their debt by extending Pay As You Earn to all student borrowers, ensuring the program is well targeted, and simplifying the borrower’s experience while reducing program complexity. 

MEASURING THE SUCCESS OF PROGRAMS PROVIDING ACCESS TO POSTSECONDARY

EDUCATION

Question. How will the Department measure the success and impact of these programs to ensure a wise investment of Federal dollars? 

Answer. While specific measures for proposed programs have not yet been determined, the Department would make sure that the final measures are consistent 

with the overriding goal of the Federal student financial aid programs: To ensure 

that all Americans who wish to pursue a postsecondary education have access to 

high-quality postsecondary education by providing financial aid in an efficient, financially sound, and customer-responsive manner. 

RACE TO THE TOP—EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY

Question. It is clear that the Department is focused on equity and opportunity especially in our lowest performing schools. In Louisiana, where 250,000 students are 

attending a school with a D or F letter grade rating, this issue rings true with me. 

Like the Charter School Program, it is evident that the Race to the Top—Equity 

and Opportunity is focused on ensuring that students who were once faced with inequities have the opportunity and option to reach their full potential. 

Can you talk about the impact that Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity will 

have on our education system, particularly in a State like Louisiana? 

Answer. Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity (RTT–O) will address key elements that contribute to persistent opportunity and achievement gaps, including 

those in the lowest performing schools. By developing, enhancing, and integrating 

fiscal, human capital, and achievement data systems, grantees will be able to identify LEAs, schools, and student groups with the greatest disparities in opportunity 
201 

and outcomes and will be better able to direct resources based on need. Strategies 

for supporting the highest need students include attracting, retaining, and supporting high-quality teachers and leaders in high-need schools, increasing access to 

rigorous coursework, and providing additional student supports designed to help 

mitigate the effects of concentrations of poverty, which will particularly benefit 

areas with large proportions of students and schools that are struggling or failing. 

Additionally, using integrated data, grantees will measure the success of these and 

other strategies for program improvement and will examine the use and alignment 

of existing Federal education resources to ensure they are being used effectively and 

are aligned with their comprehensive plans. 

OVERVIEW OF IMPLEMENTATION OF SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS

Question. Since 2009, the Federal Government has spent nearly $6 billion on 

school improvement dollars. Schools in Louisiana have had the opportunity to benefit from these grants, totaling over $95 million at over 90 schools. However, there 

seems to be a lack of adequate data informing Members of Congress and members 

of the community overall about strategies that work within School Improvement 

Grants (SIG) and therefore how we can best invest Federal dollars. 

Can you tell the subcommittee about the successes and challenges of SIG implementation over the last 4 years? 

Answer. In February 2014 the Department published an analysis of State assessment results for schools receiving School Improvement Grants funding from the fiscal year 2009 and 2010 competitions (see http://www2.ed.gov/programs/sif/ 

assessment-results-cohort-1-2-sig-schools.pdf). 

Comparing, where data permit, schools’ average proficiency rates in the 2011– 

2012 school year to their rates in the year prior to receiving SIG funds, the analysis 

notably found that: 

—Proficiency rates in SIG schools have on average increased in both reading/language arts and mathematics; and 

—Proficiency rates in 2009 cohort SIG schools continued to increase on average 

in the second year of implementation. 

In May 2014, the Department’s Institute of Education Sciences released the first 

report on its intensive studies of a sample of 25 schools that began SIG implementation in the 2010–2011 school year (see http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/pubs/20144015/pdf/ 

20144015.pdf). Among its findings, the report indicated that most schools with higher organizational capacity (as determined by ratings on a set of capacity indicators) 

reported perceived improvements in many areas during the first year of implementation, whereas schools with lower organizational capacity reported improvement in 

few or no areas. 

These and other findings suggest that the Department should continue to improve 

its support for local turnaround efforts, with a particular emphasis on schools struggling to implement interventions with fidelity and on key areas of need. For instance, many local educational agencies—particularly those in rural areas—have 

difficulty recruiting or developing school leaders with the specialized skills essential 

to carrying out successful school turnarounds. Accordingly, in March 2014, the Department initiated the Turnaround School Leaders Program, through which SIG national activities funds are being used to make competitive grants to support the development or expansion of high-quality leadership pathways serving 5 or more SIG 

or SIG-eligible schools. We expect to make 10–15 awards under the program later 

this fiscal year, totaling approximately $19 million. We will continue to monitor implementation and identify topic areas that may benefit from additional resources in 

future years. 

SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL TURNAROUND PROJECTS

Question. What turnaround strategies have you observed making the largest impact in schools across the country? 

Answer. The February 2014 analysis of State assessment data mentioned above 

showed that the average proficiency gains of schools implementing the turnaround 

or restart models generally exceeded those of schools implementing the relatively 

less rigorous transformation model. The May 2014 case study report found that 

schools with higher levels of strategic leadership or that had experienced a disruption from past operations reported perceived improvement in more areas than 

schools without these characteristics, but did not identify relationships between perceived improvement and other examined school characteristics, including the SIG 

model implemented. 

With respect to specific improvement actions implemented in turnaround schools, 

the Department is currently developing a set of profiles of carefully selected SIG im-
202 

plementation sites that focus on topics such as data-based decisionmaking, school 

climate, and parent and community engagement. We expect that these profiles, 

which are scheduled for release in fall 2014, will serve as a helpful reference for 

stakeholders, including local educational agencies preparing school intervention 

plans under SIG. 

USING PERFORMANCE INFORMATION TO TURN AROUND LOWEST PERFORMING SCHOOLS

Question. How does the Department intend to capture accurate data that can better inform the decisions of policy makers and implementation so that we can better 

invest Federal dollars and more quickly turn around our lowest performing schools? 

Answer. The Department has developed and continues to implement a coordinated 

strategy for obtaining and analyzing a variety of SIG data to inform policymaking 

and local implementation. In addition to the strategy-specific information provided 

by the profiles, the detailed implementation reports from the case studies, and the 

annual analyses of State assessment and leading indicator results discussed above, 

the Department is also conducting a formal evaluation of the SIG program that will 

focus, among other things, on the impact of the receipt of SIG funds on student outcomes and the relationship between the four school intervention models (and related 

improvement strategies) and student outcomes and school performance. The first 

full evaluation report is scheduled for release in late 2014. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JACK REED

INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO LITERACY GRANT APPLICATION

Question. This year, the Department will be holding a new competition for the Innovative Approaches to Literacy grant. For the first competition, the Department 

did not publish the application until July—a time when many school districts are 

not fully staffed to write grants. 

When will the Innovative Approaches to Literacy grant application become available? 

Answer. The Department is in the process of developing the Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) grant application and plans to make it available in late 

June. 

DEPARTMENT OUTREACH FOR INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO LITERACY GRANT

APPLICATIONS

Question. What outreach does the Department have planned so that school districts and national nonprofit organizations have the time and information to submit 

quality proposals? 

Answer. The Department informed professional groups and associations when the 

Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) Notice of Proposed Priorities, Requirement, 

And Definitions was published in the Federal Register on February 28, 2014 (Vol. 

79. No. 40). In addition, professional groups, literacy professionals, and national not 

for profits involved with literacy were made aware of the proposed 2014 competition 

in the call for reviewers for the competition. We currently are working to publish 

the final Notice and application package as soon as possible to ensure that eligible 

entities have sufficient time to prepare high-quality applications. 

We also are planning to conduct three webinars that will be designed to cover all 

aspects of the grant application process for the IAL program. Each of these presentations will include an opportunity to ask specific questions regarding the competition and its requirements. 

LEARNING FROM PREVIOUS INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO LITERACY GRANT COMPETITION

Question. As the first round of grants finishes this year, can you share with us 

some preliminary information about what was successful and what could be improved for future competitions? 

Answer. The first round of Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) grants was 

enthusiastically received by parents, school administrators, reading specialists, library workers, content area teachers, and students. The Department gathered data 

from June through December of last year from the annual performance report, 

project specific goals, and the GPRA measures, but needs more time for an in-depth 

analysis of these data due to varying approaches taken across grantees and their 

projects. However, the initial review indicates that the IAL program has led to increased parent involvement, improved instructional practices, greater access to high 

quality literacy resources in both traditional and digital print, extended library 
203 

hours, increased technology-based instruction, and increased reading ability in both 

reading classes and content area classes. The greatest gains have been in programs 

that combine parent involvement, print distribution (either traditional books or digital text), and good instructional practice. 

For future competitions, the Department will explore ways to improve the evaluation of the program and identify leading indicators of successful programs. 

ACCESS TO EFFECTIVE LIBRARY PROGRAMS

Question. We know that student achievement is correlated with having access to 

effective school library programs as well as books in the home. This is an important 

piece of the equity agenda. 

What, specifically, does the Administration plan to do to ensure that disadvantaged children have access to effective and well-equipped school libraries staffed by 

well-trained school librarians and books at home? 

Answer. The administration’s reauthorization proposal for the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act includes a new Effective Teaching and Learning: Literacy 

program that would make competitive grants to State educational agencies to support comprehensive State and local efforts to develop and implement high-quality 

literacy programs. Such programs may include efforts to strengthen access to wellequipped school libraries as well as home-based literacy instruction, which could include making books available to low-income families. 

COLLEGE ACCESS CHALLENGE GRANTS

Question. Congress gave the Administration a great deal of flexibility in determining what waivers under the College Access Challenge Grant would be equitable 

and what constitutes ‘‘significant effort’’ in redressing a violation of maintenance of 

effort. Instead of using its flexibility, the Department has developed a rigid approach to reviewing and approving waiver requests, which resulted in more than 

half of the available funds being returned to the Treasury last year. 

According to an analysis by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, 28 States that were denied a waiver or did not receive funds last year had 

increased higher education appropriations in fiscal year 2013. Twenty-one of these 

States had increased funding in fiscal year 2012. 

How many States are in danger of losing their College Access Challenge Grant 

this year, and, how is the Department working with States to address this issue? 

Answer. Section 137 of the Higher Education Act (HEA) requires States to maintain financial support for higher education at least at a level equal to the average 

amount provided over the 5 preceding fiscal years for public institutions of higher 

education (excluding capital expenses and research and development costs), and also 

for financial aid for students attending private institutions of higher education. If 

a State fails to meet these requirements, the Department must withhold any funds 

that would otherwise be available to that State under the College Access Challenge 

Grant (CACG) Program, authorized by section 781 of the HEA. The Department 

may waive the maintenance of effort requirements for a State if the Department determines that doing so would be equitable due to exceptional or uncontrollable circumstances. However, we execute this waiver authority carefully and reluctantly, 

given the importance we place on States maintaining fiscal support for higher education. 

Unfortunately, the number of requests the Department has received for waivers 

of the requirements of section 137 of the HEA has increased dramatically in the 

past 4 years. In Federal fiscal year 2013, 41 States failed to meet the maintenance 

of effort requirements in State fiscal year 2012; 33 of these States requested a waiver. Ultimately, the Department granted six of the 33 requests it received. Of the 

27 States whose requests were denied, 17 had increases in their revenues over the 

preceding 5-year period and two additional States had sizeable surpluses. In such 

instances, the Department determined that these States did not meet the statutory 

standard of a ‘‘precipitous and unforeseen decline in... financial resources.’’ 

USE OF MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT STANDARD

Of the remaining waiver request denials, the Department applied the standard 

used across the Department’s programs with maintenance of effort requirements, including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Under this standard, States requesting a waiver that demonstrate a precipitous and unforeseen decline in resources must also demonstrate that higher education spending was not 

disproportionately targeted for reductions. The Department believes that this standard plays a critical role in preventing harmful cuts to higher education spending at 
204 

the State level and ensuring that higher education is treated equitably as States 

are confronted with difficult budget decisions. 

When States fail to meet the maintenance of effort requirements and do not receive a waiver of those requirements, section 137(d) of the HEA allows States that 

make a significant effort to correct their violations to receive their full College Access Challenge Grant funds. Of the 27 States whose waiver requests were denied 

last year, five ultimately received CACG funding by reinvesting in higher education. 

While we recognize that States must prioritize and sometimes make tough choices 

when making budget decisions, we continue to believe that granting waivers to 

States that do not treat higher education equitably is contrary to the intent of Congress in drafting section 137 of the HEA. 

We are still in the process of determining the number of States that have met 

the maintenance of effort requirements in State fiscal year 2013. As in prior years, 

the Department will continue to work with States to ensure that our decisions are 

based on complete information, including providing States with ample opportunities 

to provide additional information in support of their waiver requests. This outreach 

will include extensive contact with State program and budget officials via conference 

call and e-mail to clarify information submitted in conjunction with the waiver request, updating the State on the Department’s assessment of the data, and discussing the State’s options for meeting the maintenance of effort or waiver requirements, or making a significant effort to correct their maintenance of effort violation. 

As we begin this year’s review of maintenance of effort waiver requests, we will 

continue to work with States to gather information and release decisions as expeditiously as possible. 

POSTSECONDARY SUPPORT PROGRAMS

Question. What alternatives has the Department considered to avoid having millions of students miss out on the college outreach, student aid awareness, financial 

literacy, and other vital student supports provided under these grants? Answer. The Department annually invests over $1.1 billion in college preparation programs targeted at disadvantaged students through the Federal TRIO ($838 million in fiscal year 2014) and GEAR UP ($302 million in fiscal year 2014) programs. 

Collectively, these programs provide approximately 3,000 grants to States, institutions of higher education, local education agencies, and other nonprofit entities to 

undertake activities designed to assist disadvantaged students in enrolling and succeeding in postsecondary education. 

TEACHER QUALITY PARTNERSHIP GRANTS APPLICATION

Question. This year, there will be a new round of competition for the Teacher 

Quality Partnership grants. When will the grant application become available? 

Answer. Applications for funding under the Teacher Quality Partnership program 

became available on May 28, 2014. Applications will be due to the Department July 

14, 2014. The Department also is currently planning two pre-application webinars 

for potential applicants—Tuesday, June 10, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. and Thursday, June 

12, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. 

TEACHER QUALITY PARTNERSHIP GRANTS APPLICATION PRIORITIES

Question. Will the Department be including any new priorities for this round of 

competition, for example, a competitive priority for programs that address both 

teacher and principal preparation? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2014 Teacher Quality Partnership competition includes 

two absolute priorities from the statute, and two competitive preference priorities 

from the notice of final supplemental priorities and definitions for discretionary 

grant programs published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2010 (75 FR 

78486) and corrected on May 12, 2011 (75 FR 27637). Under this competition, the 

Department will support projects training teachers and early childhood educators at 

(a) the pre-baccalaureate level, and (b) in teacher residency programs. These two 

project types are outlined in the statute. 

In addition, the Department will provide a competitive preference to applications 

promoting effective science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) teacher 

preparation and to applications for projects designed to support the implementation 

of internationally benchmarked, college- and career-ready academic standards, including the development of professional development aligned to those standards as 

well as strategies that translate those standards into classroom practice. The Department believes that these priorities will ensure a robust competition and effective 

targeting of Teacher Quality Partnership program funds in critical areas of teacher 

preparation. 
205 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MARK PRYOR

DATA COLLECTION ON ONLINE LEARNING PROGRAMS

Question. Distance learning plays an increasing role in postsecondary education. 

Millions of college students take at least one online course in a given year. The 

number of students utilizing online courses continues to increase rapidly each year. 

Online learning has the potential to expand access to higher education to students 

who might not otherwise have access to physical classes. Given the increased use 

of distance and online learning, what steps is the Department of Education taking 

to collect data on online learning and the effectiveness and how institutions could 

help improve and promote online learning and, if not, does the Department have 

any plans to begin collection of this information? Given the importance of distance 

learning in my State, I would like to work with you to focus efforts on collecting 

this data in an effort to improve delivery and outcomes of online and distance learning. 

Answer. The Department plans to announce in late spring/early summer a new 

competition for the Center for Distance Education and Technological Advancements 

program. This competition, funded by Congress in fiscal year 2014 under the Fund 

for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education, will award a grant to an institution of higher education to develop a research agenda that would yield rigorous research increasing our knowledge in the area of online learning. The Department is 

still in the process of determining the design and focus of the competition. 

In addition, the Department’s Institute of Education Sciences recently published 

a Request for Applications under the Education Research and Development Center 

program that includes as one of three topic areas a focus on Virtual Learning. The 

successful applicant will establish a Virtual Learning Laboratory to conduct a focused program of research that will (1) use experimental methods to evaluate and 

improve the instructional practices, content, and/or learning tools offered by one or 

more widely used online instructional delivery platforms, with a particular focus on 

making improvements for low-income and low-performing students in K–12; and, (2) 

advance the field’s understanding of how the large amounts of data generated within online instructional delivery platforms may be used to address important research questions and improve teaching and learning. 

In addition, the lab will provide leadership and outreach that will: (1) inform policymakers, practitioners, and other nontechnical audiences about big data for education research and practice, (2) create a hub where researchers, developers and 

practitioners will come together—both virtually and in person—to discuss research 

goals and methods related to online learning, review emerging research findings, 

and support new partnerships and collaborations; and, (3) build the field’s capacity 

to conduct well-designed studies of online learning and to use big data by offering 

workshops and other activities. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS AND COMPETITIVE ABILITY OF SMALL, RURAL STATES

Question. The fiscal year 2015 Department of Education Budget contains a number of important priorities that will continue to improve the education received by 

students throughout the country and in turn prepare them for college and the workforce. Focusing on educational equity is particularly important as we begin to anticipate the changing needs of our future workforce. 

The education community in New Hampshire remains concerned about the Department’s shift to competitive funding, and as a former teacher and governor, I appreciate the unique needs that arise in all schools and communities, not only those 

traditionally defined as most in need that often receive funding under competitive 

programs. States like New Hampshire do not necessarily have the resources, such 

as staff, to submit competitive applications for many of the programs that could 

make critical improvements in our State’s educational system. 

Stakeholders in New Hampshire indicate that formula-driven grant programs provide a more sustained impact that allows educators and administrators to perform 

their critical work. This continued investment is critical to ensuring that States and 

school districts can reasonably depend upon the funding source for continuity and 

can be relied on to institute desired changes. 

Your budget request for fiscal year 2015 proposes an increase of 62 percent for 

competitive grant programs over the amounts appropriated for such programs in fiscal year 2014. Can you provide information regarding the number of competitive 

grant programs that you propose in your fiscal year 2015 budget request and the 
206 

specific steps that you are taking to ensure that small, rural States would be supported should these programs be funded and implemented? 

Answer. Most competitive grant programs that would be funded under our 2015 

budget request arise from authorizing statutes such as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. We do believe strongly in the use of competitive grants to 

promote innovation and maximize the impact for students of limited Federal education funding by funding the highest quality applicants, and this strategy has informed such key Administration education reform initiatives as Race to the Top, Investing in Innovation, and Promise Neighborhoods. We also believe that we have 

been increasingly successful in structuring our competitive grant programs— 

through such strategies as the use of absolute and competitive preference priorities—to maximize the opportunities for success by rural applicants. For example, 

rural applicants have demonstrated considerable success in winning grants in the 

Race to the Top—District competitions and the School Improvement Grant program. 

We intend to use similar strategies to ensure that we meet the needs of rural States 

and communities under new competitive grant proposals in our 2015 request, such 

as Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity, STEM Innovation, High School Redesign, and Connect Educators. We also are proposing hybrid programs where such 

an approach makes sense. Our Connect Educators proposal, for example, includes 

both formula grant funds aimed at increasing State capacity and competitive funds 

for LEAs prepared to use high-speed networks and related devices to improve instruction for all students. Finally, approximately 89 percent of the discretionary 

funding for elementary and secondary education programs included in our 2015 

budget request would continue to be allocated to States and school districts by formula. 

PARTICIPATION RATE OF STATES AND SEAS IN COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS

Question. What data is the Department of Education currently using to determine 

whether all eligible States and districts apply for opportunities that they qualify for? 

Answer. The Department does not collect or use such data because no State or 

school district is required to apply for any discretionary or formula-based Federal 

education program. We have, however, provided targeted technical assistance to entities that are experiencing difficulty developing and submitting high-quality applications for our competitive grant programs. 

COMPETITIVE GRANT AWARDS AND RECIPIENTS IN FISCAL YEARS 2013 AND 2014

Question. Can you please provide a comprehensive list of competitive grants 

awarded in fiscal year 2013 and fiscal year 2014 and the States or districts that 

received them? 

Answer. The report included below, 2013 New Discretionary Grant Awards to 

States and LEAs, lists the new fiscal year 2013 discretionary grant awards to States 

and school districts that were identified in the Department of Education’s financial 

data base. Fiscal year 2014 information was not included because few 2014 discretionary awards have been made at this time; most awards are made at the end of 

the fiscal year. Note that information on all Federal grant awards is available on 

www.usaspending.gov. Federal agencies provide regular updates to this system, so 

that current award information is available to the public. 

[The report follows:] 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

Account name: English Language Acquisition 

Program name: Language Acquisition State Grants 

T365C130001 Kashunamuit School District ........................ Chevak ....................... AK ........ LEA ..... $355,638 

T365C130015 Yukon-Koyukuk School District ..................... Fairbanks ................... AK ........ LEA ..... $243,256 

T365C130022 Painted Desert Demonstration Project .......... Flagstaff .................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $285,398 

T365C130008 Arlee Joint School District #8 ....................... Arlee .......................... MT ........ LEA ..... $299,984 

T365C130009 Arlee High School .......................................... Arlee .......................... MT ........ LEA ..... $188,730 

T365C130005 Missouri River Educational Cooperative 

(MREC).

Mandan ..................... ND ........ LEA ..... $250,000 

T365C130023 Stilwell Public Schools .................................. Stilwell ....................... OK ........ LEA ..... $253,825 
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FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

T365C130024 Tenkiller Elementary School .......................... Welling ....................... OK ........ LEA ..... $203,287 

T365C130025 Chief Leschi Schools, Inc., Puyallup Tribe of 

Indians.

Puyallup ..................... WA ........ LEA ..... $289,850 

Account Name: Higher Education 

Program Name: Federal TRIO Programs 

P047A130829 Coffeeville School District ............................. Coffeeville .................. MS ........ LEA ..... $236,925 

Account Name: Impact Aid 

Program Name: Impact Aid: Construction 

S041C130002 Lower Kuskokwim School District ................. Bethel ........................ AK ........ LEA ..... $2,616,974 

S041C130004 Red Mesa Unified School District ................. Teec Nos Pos ............. AZ ........ LEA ..... $6,800,440 

S041C130018 Ganado Unified School District #20 ............. Ganado ...................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $1,076,433 

S041C130022 All Tribes Charter aka All Tribes American 

India.

Valley Center ............. CA ........ LEA ..... $3,881,900 

S041C130009 Harlem High School District #12 .................. Harlem ....................... MT ........ LEA ..... $68,500 

S041C130012 Lodge Grass Elem. School Dist. #27 ............ Lodge Grass .............. MT ........ LEA ..... $470,700 

S041C130014 Douglas School District #51–1 ..................... Box Elder ................... SD ........ LEA ..... $4,000,000 

S041C130008 Wellpinit School District #49 ........................ Wellpinit .................... WA ........ LEA ..... $532,689 

Account Name: Indian Education 

Program Name: Special Programs for Indian Children 

S299A130007 Chugach School District ............................... Anchorage .................. AK ........ LEA ..... $299,943 

S299A130020 Blackwater Community School ..................... Coolidge ..................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $266,314 

S299A130051 Magdalena Municipal School District ........... Magdalena ................. NM ....... LEA ..... $293,741 

S299A130037 Tahlequah Public Schools ............................. Tahlequah .................. OK ........ LEA ..... $298,591 

S299A130077 Ada City Schools ........................................... Ada ............................ OK ........ LEA ..... $295,989 

Account Name: Innovation and Improvement 

Program Name: Arts in Education 

U351D130013 Rockford Public Schools ............................... Rockford .................... IL .......... LEA ..... $325,000 

U351D130010 Neighborhood House Charter School ............ Dorchester ................. MA ........ LEA ..... $245,609 

U351D130015 Everett Public Schools .................................. Everett ....................... MA ........ LEA ..... $293,450 

U351D130039 Independent School District #625 ................ St. Paul ..................... MN ....... LEA ..... $314,988 

U351D130020 Mt. Vernon City School District .................... Mt. Vernon City ......... NY ........ LEA ..... $314,532 

Program Name: Charter Schools Grants 

U282B130014 Innovative Schools Development Corporation Wilmington ................ DE ........ LEA ..... $175,000 

U282B130030 Innovative Schools Development Corporation Wilmington ................ DE ........ LEA ..... $175,000 

U282B130065 Chief Tahgee Elementary Academy, Inc. 

(CTEA).

Pocatello .................... ID ......... LEA ..... $192,066 

U282B130037 Intrinsic Schools ........................................... Chicago ..................... IL ......... LEA ..... $199,760

U282B130063 Catalyst Schools ........................................... Chicago ..................... IL ......... LEA ..... $192,414 

U282B130012 Madison-Tallulah Education Center ............. Tallulah ..................... LA ........ LEA ..... $200,000 

U282B130004 Cornville Regional Charter School ................ Cornville .................... ME ....... LEA ..... $242,329 

U282B130020 Columbus Collegiate Academy, Inc. ............. Columbus .................. OH ........ LEA ..... $175,000 

U282B130006 York Academy Regional Charter School ....... York ........................... PA ........ LEA ..... $207,750 

U282B130071 Utah International Charter School ................ Salt Lake City ............ UT ........ LEA ..... $140,000 

U282C130006 Arts & College Preparatory Academy ............ Columbus .................. OH ........ LEA ..... $123,975 

Program Name: FIE Programs of National Significance 

S215G130158 Lake Worth Independent School District ...... Lake Worth ................ TX ........ LEA ..... $668,249 

S215G130159 Poteet Independent School District .............. Poteet ........................ TX ......... LEA ..... $416,420 
208 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

Program Name: Investing in Innovation 

U411C130060 ASU Preparatory Academy ............................. Tempe ........................ AZ ........ LEA ..... $2,969,338 

U411C130116 Maricopa County Education Service Agency Phoenix ...................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $2,969,722 

U411C130025 Carroll County Schools .................................. Carrollton ................... GA ........ LEA ..... $2,969,517 

U411C130073 Cabarrus County Schools .............................. Concord ..................... NC ........ LEA ..... $2,969,641 

Program Name: Magnet Schools Assistance 

U165A130055 Texarkana Arkansas School District ............. Texarkana .................. AR ........ LEA ..... $3,142,066 

U165A130031 SAN DIEGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT ........ San Diego .................. CA ........ LEA ..... $3,853,939 

U165A130049 Los Angeles Unified School District ............. Los Angeles ............... CA ........ LEA ..... $3,714,306 

U165A130070 Oxnard School District .................................. Oxnard ....................... CA ........ LEA ..... $4,000,000 

U165A130084 Napa Valley Unified School District ............. Napa .......................... CA ........ LEA ..... $2,834,293 

U165A130094 Pasadena Unified School District ................. Pasadena ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $3,141,770 

U165A130097 Ventura Unified School District .................... Ventura ...................... CA ........ LEA ..... $3,379,273 

U165A130042 Pueblo City School District #60 .................... Pueblo ........................ CO ........ LEA ..... $3,433,666 

U165A130027 New Haven, City of (inc) DBA New Haven 

Public School System.

New Haven ................ CT ........ LEA ..... $3,733,989 

U165A130037 Bridgeport City School District ..................... Bridgeport .................. CT ........ LEA ..... $3,239,384 

U165A130023 Seminole County Public Schools ................... Sanford ...................... FL ......... LEA ..... $737,626 

U165A130039 School Board of Miami-Dade County, FL ..... Miami ........................ FL ......... LEA ..... $3,532,735 

U165A130083 The School Board of Broward County, Florida.Fort Lauderdale ......... FL ......... LEA ..... $3,993,290 

U165A130087 School Board of Polk County ........................ Bartow ....................... FL ......... LEA ..... $3,997,000 

U165A130092 Brevard Public Schools ................................. Viera .......................... FL ......... LEA ..... $3,999,747

U165A130009 Unified School District 259 (DBA Wichita 

Public Schools).

Wichita ...................... KS ........ LEA ..... $3,999,993 

U165A130071 Springfield Public Schools ............................ Springfield ................. MA ....... LEA ..... $3,850,000 

U165A130051 Lansing School District ................................. Lansing ...................... MI ......... LEA ..... $3,396,230 

U165A130088 Clarksdale Municipal School District ........... Clarksdale ................. MS ........ LEA ..... $1,995,391 

U165A130013 NYC Department of Education—Community 

School District 13.

Brooklyn ..................... NY ........ LEA ..... $3,150,000 

U165A130022 NYC Community School District 28 .............. Jamaica ..................... NY ........ LEA ..... $2,836,829 

U165A130007 Richland School District Two ........................ Columbia ................... SC ........ LEA ..... $1,683,734 

U165A130095 School District Five of Lexington and Richland Counties.Irmo ........................... SC ........ LEA ..... $3,990,500 

U165A130045 Houston Independent School District ........... Houston ..................... TX ........ LEA ..... $3,999,597 

U165A130047 Galveston ISD ................................................ Galveston ................... TX ........ LEA ..... $4,000,000 

U165A130077 Waco Independent School District ................ Waco .......................... TX ........ LEA ..... $2,199,120 

Program Name: Race to the Top 

S412A130039 Office of the Governor, State of Georgia ...... Atlanta ....................... GA ........ State ... $51,739,896 

S412A130045 Office of the Governor, State of Kentucky .... Frankfort .................... KY ........ State ... $44,348,482 

S412A130044 Office of the Governor, State of Michigan ... Lansing ...................... MI ......... State ... $51,737,456 

S412A130049 Office of the Governor, State of New Jersey Trenton ...................... NJ ......... State ... $44,286,728 

S412A130040 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Governor’s 

Office.

Harrisburg ................. PA ........ State ... $51,734,519 

S412A130038 Office of the Governor, State of Vermont ..... Montpelier .................. VT ......... State ... $36,931,076 

B416A130097 Galt Union School District ............................ Galt ............................ CA ........ LEA ..... $9,999,973 

B416A130108 Lindsay Unified School District .................... Lindsay ...................... CA ........ LEA ..... $10,000,000 

B416A130266 New Haven Unified School District ............... Union City .................. CA ........ LEA ..... $29,351,345 

B416A130131 St. Vrain Valley Schools ................................ Longmont ................... CO ........ LEA ..... $16,589,553 

B416A130341 KIPP DC ......................................................... Washington ................ DC ........ LEA ..... $9,999,844 

B416A130077 School Board of Miami-Dade County ........... Miami ........................ FL ......... LEA ..... $31,993,016 

B416A130156 Metropolitan School District of Warren 

Township.

Indianapolis ............... IN ......... LEA ..... $28,570,886 

B416A130137 Guilford County Schools ................................ Greensboro ................. NC ........ LEA ..... $35,222,004 

B416A130160 Iredell-Statesville Schools ............................. Statesville .................. NC ........ LEA ..... $19,999,703 
209 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

B416A130158 Carson City School District ........................... Carson City ................ NV ........ LEA ..... $10,000,000 

B416A130040 Middletown City School ................................. Middletown ................ NY ........ LEA ..... $19,995,588 

B416A130264 Charleston County School District ................ Charleston ................. SC ........ LEA ..... $19,388,399 

B416A130117 IDEA Public Schools ...................................... Weslaco ..................... TX ......... LEA ..... $31,228,967

B416A130301 Harmony Science Academy ........................... Houston ..................... TX ........ LEA ..... $29,866,938 

B416A130186 Puget Sound Educational Service District .... Renton ....................... WA ........ LEA ..... $39,964,930 

Program Name: School Leadership 

U363A130115 Wheaton R3 School District .......................... Wheaton ..................... MO ....... LEA ..... $428,734 

U363A130057 Tulsa Independent School District No. 1 

Tulsa Public Schools.

Tulsa .......................... OK ........ LEA ..... $990,874 

U363A130164 Shelby County Board of Education ............... Memphis .................... TN ........ LEA ..... $623,402 

U363A130077 Region 5 Education Service Center .............. Beaumont .................. TX ........ LEA ..... $725,463 

U363A130106 Granite School District .................................. Salt Lake City ............ UT ........ LEA ..... $996,743 

U363A130143 The Board of Education of the County of 

McDowell.

Welch ......................... WV ........ LEA ..... $816,915 

Program Name: Teacher Incentive Fund 

S374A130171 New York State Education Department ........ New York ................... NY ........ State ... $4,242,719 

Account Name: Rehabilitation Services and Disability Research 

Program Name: Assistive Technology Programs 

H224D130016 Missouri Assistive Technology Council ......... Blue Springs .............. MO ....... State ... $621,778 

Program Name: Special Education PROMISE Initiative 

H418P130007 Arkansas Department of Education .............. Little Rock ................. AR ........ State ... $18,870,843 

H418P130003 California Department of Rehabilitation ...... Sacramento ............... CA ........ State ... $20,422,782 

H418P130005 Maryland Department of Disabilities ............ Baltimore ................... MD ....... State ... $19,394,303 

H418P130011 Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, 

Inc.

Albany ........................ NY ........ State ... $19,500,000 

H418P130009 Utah State Office of Rehabilitation .............. Salt Lake City ............ UT ........ State ... $20,330,901 

H418P130004 Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.Madison ..................... WI ........ State ... $20,529,147 

Account Name: Safe Schools and Citizenship Education 

Program Name: Elementary and Secondary School Counseling 

S215E130298 County of Maricopa Osborn School District 

#8.

Phoenix ...................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $396,780 

S215E130003 Willits Unified School District ....................... Willits ........................ CA ........ LEA ..... $396,373 

S215E130012 Alhambra Unified School District ................. Alhambra ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $396,657 

S215E130185 Cajon Valley Union School District ............... El Cajon ..................... CA ........ LEA ..... $399,304 

S215E130223 Mountain Empire Unified School District ..... Pine Valley ................. CA ........ LEA ..... $397,320 

S215E130233 Elk Grove Unified School District ................. Elk Grove ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $398,498 

S215E130274 Summerville Elementary School District ....... Tuolumne ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $340,547 

S215E130303 Earlimart School District .............................. Earlimart ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $249,738 

S215E130305 Montebello Unified School District ............... Montebello ................. CA ........ LEA ..... $395,768 

S215E130407 Desert Sands Unified School District ........... La Quinta .................. CA ........ LEA ..... $267,922 

S215E130451 Sierra Sands Unified School District ............ Ridgecrest ................. CA ........ LEA ..... $200,000 

S215E130519 Cutler-Orosi Joint Unified School District ..... Orosi .......................... CA ........ LEA ..... $322,694 

S215E130025 Southington Public Schools .......................... Southington ............... CT ........ LEA ..... $389,789 

S215E130073 Bloomfield Public Schools ............................ Bloomfield ................. CT ........ LEA ..... $308,740 

S215E130534 School Board of Alachua County .................. Gainesville ................. FL ......... LEA ..... $317,305 

S215E130338 Calhoun City Board of Education ................. Calhoun ..................... GA ........ LEA ..... $394,458 

S215E130034 Geary County United School District #475 ... Junction City .............. KS ........ LEA ..... $399,940 

S215E130384 Harlan County Board of Education ............... Harlan ........................ KY ........ LEA ..... $400,000 
210 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

S215E130420 Northern Kentucky Cooperative for Educational Services.Cold Spring ............... KY ........ LEA ..... $371,377 

S215E130186 Terrebonne Parish School District ................ Houma ....................... LA ......... LEA ..... $397,386 

S215E130148 Everett Public Schools .................................. Everett ....................... MA ........ LEA ..... $382,900 

S215E130467 Harford County Public Schools ..................... Bel Air ....................... MD ....... LEA ..... $382,037 

S215E130080 Academy for Business and Technology ........ Dearborn .................... MI ......... LEA ..... $395,267 

S215E130142 Eastern Upper Peninsula ISD ....................... Sault Ste Marie ......... MI ........ LEA ..... $372,944 

S215E130143 Salamanca City Central School District ....... Salamanca ................ NY ........ LEA ..... $312,009 

S215E130364 Eastern Suffolk BOCES ................................. Patchogue .................. NY ........ LEA ..... $365,590 

S215E130047 Bellaire Local School District ....................... Bellaire ...................... OH ........ LEA ..... $169,173 

S215E130153 Meigs Local School District .......................... Pomeroy ..................... OH ........ LEA ..... $379,397 

S215E130431 Columbus Preparatory Academy ................... Columbus .................. OH ........ LEA ..... $399,160 

S215E130137 Rattan Public Schools .................................. Rattan ....................... OK ........ LEA ..... $254,042 

S215E130172 Kershaw County School District .................... Camden ..................... SC ........ LEA ..... $394,372 

S215E130215 Navasota ISD ................................................ Navasota ................... TX ......... LEA ..... $399,922 

S215E130477 Waco Independent School District ................ Waco .......................... TX ......... LEA ..... $399,584 

S215E130241 Tooele County School District ....................... Tooele ........................ UT ........ LEA ..... $399,649 

S215E130355 Milton Town School District .......................... Milton ........................ VT ........ LEA ..... $204,143 

Program Name: Physical Education 

S215F130110 Springdale Public School District ................. Springdale ................. AR ........ LEA ..... $735,081 

S215F130160 Alameda County Office of Education ........... Hayward ..................... CA ........ LEA ..... $661,906 

S215F130165 Diego Hills Charter School aka Diego Hills 

Public Charter Sc.

Lancaster ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $211,023 

S215F130171 Desert Sands Public Charter, Inc. ................ Lancaster ................... CA ........ LEA ..... $422,942 

S215F130017 New London Public Schools .......................... New London ............... CT ........ LEA ..... $687,138 

S215F130373 Westport Public Schools ............................... Westport .................... CT ........ LEA ..... $616,157 

S215F130329 District of Columbia Public Schools ............. Washington ................ DC ........ LEA ..... $570,942 

S215F130109 School Board of Pinellas County, FL ............ Largo ......................... FL ......... LEA ..... $775,179 

S215F130255 Brevard Public Schools ................................. Viera .......................... FL ......... LEA ..... $311,955 

S215F130260 School Board of Miami-Dade County, FL ..... Miami ........................ FL ......... LEA ..... $763,761 

S215F130020 Cedar Falls Community School District ........ Cedar Falls ................ IA ......... LEA ..... $605,083 

S215F130040 Marshalltown Community School District ..... Marshalltown ............. IA ......... LEA ..... $494,201 

S215F130099 Marion Independent School District ............. Marion ....................... IA ......... LEA ..... $354,001 

S215F130148 Iowa City Community School District ........... Iowa City ................... IA ......... LEA ..... $263,408 

S215F130012 Middleton School District .............................. Middleton ................... ID ......... LEA ..... $441,228 

S215F130218 Chicago Public Schools, District 299 ........... Chicago ..................... IL ......... LEA ..... $750,000 

S215F130283 Hononegah Community High School District 

207.

Rockton ...................... IL ......... LEA ..... $615,733 

S215F130150 Newport Independent Schools ....................... Newport ..................... KY ........ LEA ..... $478,403 

S215F130261 ERLANGER-ELSMERE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL 

DISTRICT.

ERLANGER ................. KY ........ LEA ..... $725,893 

S215F130019 Watertown Public Schools ............................. Watertown .................. MA ........ LEA ..... $391,269 

S215F130056 North Brookfield Public Schools ................... North Brookfield ........ MA ........ LEA ..... $390,196 

S215F130194 Maine School Administrative District 15 ...... Gray ........................... ME ........ LEA ..... $465,133 

S215F130198 LIVONIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS SCHOOL DISTRICT LIVONIA ...................... MI ........ LEA ..... $593,365 

S215F130119 Stillwater Area Public Schools ISD #834 ..... Stillwater ................... MN ....... LEA ..... $727,030 

S215F130368 Winona R-III School District ......................... Winona ....................... MO ....... LEA ..... $190,358 

S215F130064 Buncombe County Schools ............................ Asheville .................... NC ........ LEA ..... $752,093 

S215F130102 Public Schools of Robeson County ............... Lumberton ................. NC ........ LEA ..... $698,129 

S215F130145 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools .................... Charlotte .................... NC ........ LEA ..... $599,514 

S215F130211 Iredell-Statesville Schools ............................. Statesville .................. NC ........ LEA ..... $749,916 

S215F130154 South Orange-Maplewood School District .... Maplewood ................. NJ ......... LEA ..... $542,081 

S215F130023 Mexico Academy & Central School District .. Mexico ........................ NY ........ LEA ..... $640,727 

S215F130043 Holland Central School District .................... Holland ...................... NY ........ LEA ..... $605,957 

S215F130105 Greater Amsterdam School District .............. Amsterdam ................ NY ........ LEA ..... $633,071 

S215F130221 Palmyra-Macedon Central School District .... Palmrya ..................... NY ........ LEA ..... $328,417 

S215F130232 Watkins Glen Central School District ........... Watkins Glen ............. NY ........ LEA ..... $592,110 

S215F130238 Queensbury Union Free School District ........ Queensbury ................ NY ........ LEA ..... $547,829 
211 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

S215F130258 The Renaissance Charter School .................. Jackson Heights ........ NY ........ LEA ..... $471,986 

S215F130269 South Colonie Central School District .......... Albany ........................ NY ........ LEA ..... $714,708 

S215F130309 Caledonia-Mumford Central School District Caledonia .................. NY ........ LEA ..... $448,469 

S215F130321 City School District of New Rochelle ............ New Rochelle ............. NY ........ LEA ..... $675,000 

S215F130418 Freeport Union Free Schools ......................... Freeport ..................... NY ........ LEA ..... $326,416 

S215F130158 Perry Local Schools ....................................... Perry .......................... OH ........ LEA ..... $762,811 

S215F130311 Southern Local Schools ................................. Racine ....................... OH ........ LEA ..... $384,507 

S215F130326 Wickliffe City Schools ................................... Wickliffe ..................... OH ........ LEA ..... $384,522 

S215F130180 Beggs Public School District ........................ Beggs ........................ OK ........ LEA ..... $422,176 

S215F130153 PAWTUCKET SCHOOL DEPARTMENT .............. Pawtucket .................. RI ......... LEA ..... $575,244 

S215F130111 Beresford School District 61–2 .................... Beresford ................... SD ........ LEA ..... $398,590 

S215F130122 Crockett Independent School District ........... Crockett ..................... TX ........ LEA ..... $640,012 

S215F130324 IDEA Public Schools ...................................... Weslaco ..................... TX ........ LEA ..... $747,092 

S215F130281 Ogden City School District ............................ Ogden ........................ UT ........ LEA ..... $719,869 

S215F130022 Newport Consolidated School District #56– 

415.

Newport ..................... WA ........ LEA ..... $378,000 

S215F130065 Mead School District 354 ............................. Mead .......................... WA ........ LEA ..... $430,409 

S215F130116 NorthEast Washington Educational Service 

District 101.

Spokane ..................... WA ....... LEA ..... $369,783 

S215F130025 School District of Monroe ............................. Monroe ....................... WI ......... LEA ..... $423,080 

S215F130067 Southern Door County School District .......... Brussels ..................... WI ......... LEA ..... $461,590 

S215F130336 School District of Wild Rose ......................... Wild Rose .................. WI ........ LEA ..... $497,431 

Account Name: School Improvement Programs 

Program Name: State Assessments 

S368A130003 Maryland State Department of Education .... Baltimore ................... MD ....... State ... $4,999,994 

S368A130002 North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.Raleigh ...................... NC ........ State ... $6,131,422 

S368A130004 Texas Education Agency ............................... Austin ........................ TX ........ State ... $3,988,124 

Account Name: Special Education 

Program Name: Special Education PROMISE Initiative 

H418P130003 California Department of Rehabilitation ...... Sacramento ............... CA ........ State ... $86,498 

Program Name: Special Education Technical Assistance and Dissemination 

H326T130036 Arkansas Department of Education .............. Little Rock ................. AR ........ State ... $118,534 

H326T130032 Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and the 

Blind.

Tucson ....................... AZ ........ LEA ..... $175,338 

H326T130024 Colorado Department of Education .............. Denver ....................... CO ........ State ... $154,079 

H326T130040 Delaware Department of Education .............. Dover ......................... DE ........ State ... $83,362 

H326T130038 Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School .......... Vinton ........................ IA ......... LEA ..... $97,054 

H326T130081 Illinois State Board of Education ................. Springfield ................. IL ......... State ... $335,444 

H326T130016 Education, KS State Board of DBA KS 

School for the Blind.

Kansas City ............... KS ........ LEA ..... $128,122 

H326T130085 Kentucky Department of Education .............. Frankfort .................... KY ........ State ... $165,145 

H326T130037 Maryland State Department of Education .... Baltimore ................... MD ....... State ... $229,366 

H326T130020 State of Minnesota, Minnesota Department 

of Education.

Roseville .................... MN ....... State ... $171,335 

H326T130018 Missouri Department of Elementary and 

Secondary Education.

Jefferson City ............. MO ....... State ... $197,129 

H326T130010 North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.Raleigh ...................... NC ........ State ... $313,649 

H326T130034 North Dakota Department of Public Instruction.Bismarck ................... ND ........ State ... $65,000 

H326T130021 Nebraska Department of Education ............. Lincoln ....................... NE ........ State ... $78,471 

H326T130083 Montgomery County Intermediate Unit ......... Norristown ................. PA ........ LEA ..... $371,952 
212 

FISCAL YEAR 2013 NEW DISCRETIONARY GRANT AWARDS TO STATES AND LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES— 

Continued 

New Discretionary Grants Awarded in Fiscal Year 2013 

NOTE: Funding is the amount in the year of award only and may include funds from multiple fiscal years for programs with multi-year funds. 

Award number Name from application City State Type of 

recipient Amount 

H326T130092 Department of Education, Associated Secretariat of Special Ed.San Juan ................... PR ........ State ... $65,000 

H326T130082 The South Carolina School for the Deaf and 

the Blind.

Columbia ................... SC ........ LEA ..... $154,204 

H326T130086 Texas Education Agency ............................... Austin ........................ TX ......... State ... $575,000 

H326T130009 Utah State Office of Education .................... Salt Lake City ............ UT ........ State ... $92,039 

H326T130029 Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.Olympia ..................... WA ....... State ... $195,750 

H326T130027 Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Madison ..................... WI ......... State ... $173,484 

H326T130028 West Virginia Department of Education ....... Charleston ................. WV ........ State ... $125,020 

H326T130093 Wyoming Department of Education .............. Rawlins ...................... WY ....... State ... $65,000 

GRANT PERIODS OF COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAMS

Question. Can you indicate the periods of investment that are involved in competitive awards? 

Answer. Project periods for Department of Education competitive grant programs 

generally range from 3 to 5 years. There are exceptions, such as when an applicant 

does not request funding for the full proposed project period, and one recent grant 

competition made 2-year grants. 

ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF FORMULA VERSUS COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAMS

Question. Furthermore, stakeholders are looking for further justification for how 

the Department of Education assesses the impact of the dependability and sustained 

impact of formula grant programs versus the unpredictability that can be associated 

with grants awarded competitively. Can you provide your justification for this shift? 

Answer. Formula grant programs typically are intended to provide ongoing support to States and school districts in areas where they often struggle to produce 

positive educational outcomes, such as in serving students from low-income families, 

students with disabilities, and English Learners. Competitive grant programs, by 

contrast, generally are designed to provide extra resources for a limited period of 

time that allow a State or district to develop and demonstrate innovative approaches to meeting educational challenges. Successful innovations then may be 

supported, following the end of the project period for a competitive grant program, 

through a combination of Federal, State, and local funding. We see a robust portfolio 

of competitive grant programs as a critical complement to our much larger investment in formula grant programs, providing much-needed incentives and resources 

to support State and local innovation and build the evidence base for effective educational practice. 

EFFECTIVE TEACHERS AND LEADERS STATE GRANTS

Question. Your budget proposal includes a request for the Excellent Instructional 

Team initiative, and a component of this proposal is Effective Teachers and Leaders 

State grants. New Hampshire’s higher education institutions that train educators 

are currently working with stakeholders in the State toward implementing a program that not only trains teachers for the workforce, but also follows them for at 

least 2 years post-graduation to provide them with additional support and preparation to effectively manage a classroom as they begin their careers. This can help ensure that teachers receive the preparation and support they need and help keep 

young educators in the profession. 

The Department’s Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grant program provides 

a number of overarching goals that States can implement to improve the profession 

and ensure the highest quality educators are working with students. Would your 

formula grant distribution take into consideration the work currently being done by 

States to support quality teacher preparation efforts and ensure that such efforts 

would not be duplicative but could rather build off of the work that is already being 

done? 

Answer. Consistent with the current Title II, Part A statute, under the Effective 

Teachers and Leaders State Grants program, the Department would allocate funds 
213 

to States based on each State’s relative share of the population, age 5 to 17, and 

on each State’s share of children, age 5 to 17, from low-income families. States 

would be able to reserve State-level funds for activities such as those you describe, 

and would have flexibility to build on existing work to support and prepare teachers 

as they embark upon their new careers. 

INCORPORATING NONTRADITIONAL SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, AND MATH

ACTIVITIES IN AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS

Question. As we continue to look at the jobs of the future in our country, it is 

clear that a strong comprehension of STEM subjects will be increasingly important. 

I believe we need to do more to expand understanding of STEM subjects through 

all facets of education, and I view out-of-school time as a critical period during 

which students can participate in nontraditional STEM activities like FIRST robotics in New Hampshire. How do you envision your Department incorporating more 

nontraditional STEM activities into federally supported afterschool initiatives as 

you work to provide our Nation’s children with the skills they will need to succeed 

in the future? 

Answer. After school programs like 21st Century Community Learning Centers 

are an important example of how we are able to provide flexible Federal funding 

for initiatives that meet State and local needs and help States and communities lead 

the way in innovations that help prepare our children for college and careers in our 

globally competitive economy. In the STEM space, of course, we also believe that 

our STEM Innovation Networks proposal could provide significant support for the 

kind of out-of-school learning opportunities offered by participation in programs like 

the First Robotics Competition. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS

Question. I recognize the important role that early childhood education plays in 

helping all students enter the classroom prepared to learn. That said, I am concerned the administration may direct funding for Preschool Development Grants to 

States that are willing to implement administration-driven approaches rather than 

allow for flexibility in funding on State and local identified needs for preschool education. Is the Department concerned that predetermined approaches would restrict 

flexibility for State and local entities to meet the unique conditions or needs of their 

communities? 

Answer. The Department is committed to funding high-quality preschool programs that meet State and local needs. Although programs funded by Preschool Development Grants would be required to meet nationally recognized program quality 

standards, grantees would have the flexibility to determine which local communities 

they wish to serve and how these programs should be delivered. For example, preschool services could be delivered through a mixed-delivery system of providers including schools, licensed child care centers, Head Start, or other community-based 

organizations. In addition, only preschool programs funded through this program 

will need to meet the competition’s criteria for high-quality preschool programs. 

Other preschool programs within the State will not be required to meet these criteria. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—PROGRAMS REQUIREMENTS AND STUDENT

OUTCOMES

Question. The fiscal year 2015 budget request states that Preschool Development 

grantees will be required to meet minimum standards to receive funding, such as 

specific staff qualifications, training, and employee salaries that are comparable to 

K–12 teachers, among other requirements. There are local programs in States currently that are making impressive strides in early child education, but may not be 

able to comply with all of these standards based on how they are customized to 

serve their unique communities. Again, while I support early childhood education, 

I am concerned that this approach will not provide necessary flexibility. How does 

this focus on specific requirements reconcile with a Department that continuously 

asserts that it is focused on outcomes in education? 

Answer. The Preschool Development Grant program would not require States to 

meet the criteria of a high-quality preschool program to be eligible for funds. All 

States will be eligible to apply. Rather, grantees will need to show how the programs implemented with these funds will meet the competition’s criteria for highquality preschool programs. Preschool Development Grants are intended to support 
214 

the creation of high-quality model programs in select high-need communities. Given 

the scope and scale of these awards, the Department believes that grantees should 

be able to direct resources to the highest quality programs—including those that 

meet high staff qualifications and other high-quality benchmarks—in a few communities. Research has shown that early childhood teachers’ education and training 

have been linked to global measures of program quality, language and social interaction between teachers and children, and improved student outcomes. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—FUNDING SUBGRANTS

Question. Will the Department commit to allowing funding to be subgranted to entities by States that will work toward meeting high-quality standards, but may not 

meet all of the minimum standards at this time? 

Answer. The Department is committed to funding high-quality preschool programs. Early learning providers do not need to meet all of the standards when they 

apply for a Preschool Development grant. However, subgrantees must use grant 

funds to implement a program that meets the high-quality benchmarks outlined in 

the competition. For example, a subgrantee may not currently offer a full-day program or maintain a staff:child ratio of 1:10, but would need to commit to doing so 

upon receipt of program funding. 

SUSTAINING PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS

Question. Given the high cost of implementing some of these standards, what assurances will there be that these preschool programs will be sustainable after the 

grant period? 

Answer. The Department is very interested in funding high-quality projects that 

are sustainable after the grant period ends and will consider ways to further that 

goal. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—ENCOURAGING STATE AND COMMUNITY

COOPERATION

Question. Flexibility at the State and local levels will be key to the success of the 

grant and the early childhood education systems in the States. Is there an expectation that collaborative local councils will or can use existing high quality programs 

at the State and local levels to move toward a State early childhood system? And, 

how will the Department encourage opportunities for schools and community programs to work together? 

Answer. The Department is very interested in encouraging collaboration, both between States and local entities, and among local preschool providers and is planning 

to include such measures in the selection criteria for Preschool Development Grants. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—FAMILY ENGAGEMENT

Question. Please provide clarification as to the Department’s expectations for family engagement implementation using Preschool Development Grants? Will States 

have the flexibility with funds to include evidence-based home visiting with preschool classroom families to extend learning and facilitate parent engagement and 

partnership? 

Answer. The Department is committed to supporting family engagement efforts 

through the Preschool Development Grants program, and is considering including 

family engagement strategies throughout the priorities, requirements, definitions, 

and selection criteria sections of the Notice Inviting Applications. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

Question. Will Preschool Development Grants encourage States to use funding to 

maximize more inclusive opportunities so that children who have disabilities and 

the programs that serve them can participate fully in this funding opportunity? 

Answer. Yes; one of the elements of the Department’s definition of high-quality 

preschool programs is the full inclusion of children with disabilities. 

PRESCHOOL DEVELOPMENT GRANTS—COMPREHENSIVE SERVICES

Question. Please provide clarification as to the specific comprehensive services 

that will be required to be provided onsite by preschool programs to qualify for Preschool Development Grant funding. Will a preschool program be eligible to receive 

funding should it commit to providing comprehensive services in the future under 

the grant if they are not currently provided? 
215 

Answer. Early learning providers delivering a high-quality preschool program 

would need to offer comprehensive services that meet children’s needs across a 

range of domains of development, including: education, health, mental health, nutrition, and family engagement. Comprehensive services must be accessible or delivered on site. 

While the Department believes that providing comprehensive services should be 

a part of a high-quality preschool program, States and subgrantees do not have to 

currently provide comprehensive services to be eligible to receive Preschool Development Grant funds. 

COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT FUNDS

Question. Please provide a detailed breakdown of funding that has been used to 

date to develop a college ratings system. This should include the source of funding 

for each activity, including funds relating to the information collection request on 

development of a college ratings system, funds relating to the actual development 

of the system, funds relating to travel and cost of conducting symposiums, among 

all other activities. 

Answer. The costs to date associated with the college ratings system, officially the 

Postsecondary Institutions Ratings System, or PIRS, are provided below, excluding 

full-time equivalent employee (FTE) costs. 

COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM COSTS TO DATE 

Activity Costs Funding Source 

Planning and Development Costs .......... N/A ......................................................... N/A 

Operations and Maintenance ................. Not Yet Developed ................................. N/A 

Symposium Costs (includes travel) ....... Approximately $23,500 .......................... Student Aid Administration 

COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM IN THE FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET REQUEST

Question. Could the Department please provide additional detail on the proposed 

use of $10 million in fiscal year 2015 to develop the college ratings system, as well 

as any planned use of funds beyond the $10 million? 

Answer. The college ratings system’s development and refinement will require ongoing costs beyond the initial costs associated with the first iteration that we are 

currently in the process of developing. That is why the President’s fiscal year 2015 

budget request includes $10 million to support further development and refinement 

of a new college ratings system, including Web site design and continuous improvement, and validation of the data and methodology. Specifically, we anticipate costs 

for a contractor to design, maintain, and update the Web site of the college ratings 

system; research and data costs associated with designing different methodologies 

and models, and for obtaining, validating, and analyzing data for the ratings system; as well as ‘‘data-runs’’ of rating methodologies and models. 

ALTERNATE FUNDING SOURCES FOR COLLEGE RATINGS SYSTEM

Question. Please provide detailed information on the source, use, and amount of 

funding that will be utilized by the Department to develop the college ratings system if $10 million is not provided in fiscal year 2015 specifically for this purpose? 

Answer. If any amount less than the $10 million request is provided, the Department would need to utilize a combination of existing resources to make up for the 

shortfall. 

RACE TO THE TOP—EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY

Question. In a time of tight fiscal budgets, I question why the fiscal year 2015 

budget request creates yet another new, competitive program under Race to the Top. 

Why fund the Race to the Top: Equity and Opportunity program when it provides 

duplicative services with ESEA, Title I grants that already reach all disadvantaged 

students? 

Answer. The Elementary and Secondary School Act (ESEA), Title I program provides essential support for State and local efforts to meet the educational needs of 

disadvantaged students in high-poverty schools. We think that the modest $300 million investment we have proposed for Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity will 

generate innovative approaches and promising practices aimed at increasing educational equity that could have a meaningful impact on improving the performance 

and outcomes of the $14 billion Title I program. 
216 

STUDENTS BENEFITING FROM RACE TO THE TOP AND ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY

SCHOOL ACT, TITLE I SERVICES

Question. Since Race to the Top was created, over $6 billion has been appropriated for initiatives which have been aimed at ultimately reducing achievement 

and opportunity gaps for students. How many more students, especially in States 

like Kansas that have yet to benefit from Race to the Top funding, could have benefited from $6 billion in additional Title I services? 

Answer. Race to the Top is focused on helping States and school districts develop 

and implement systemic education reforms that can transform their ability to improve educational outcomes for all students. If an additional $6 billion had been allocated through Title I over the past 5 years, we estimate that Kansas might have 

been able to serve, on average, an additional 8,500 students annually. However, 

Kansas’ share of that $6 billion—an estimated $42 million—would have been considerably less than the nearly $71 million that the State received in additional Title 

I funds provided in fiscal year 2009 through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). ARRA provided $10 billion for ESEA, Title I, along with $4 billion for Race to the Top State Grants, or the bulk of the $6 billion total referenced 

in your question. In other words, ARRA allowed us to invest in transformational reform programs like Race to the Top while still keeping faith with traditional sources 

of Federal formula grant support relied upon by States and school districts. 

EQUITY AND COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS

Question. How is equity achieved for all students when competitive programs, by 

their nature, result in only some students receiving services? 

Answer. The goal of the Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity proposal is to 

create incentives for States and school districts to make comprehensive changes in 

how they identify and close opportunity and achievement gaps. In other words, equity in education is not just about equalizing expenditures or services, but also 

about using data to identify the needs of individual students and developing strategies to meet those needs. We think competitive grants are a more efficient and effective way to target these limited resources on this goal than spreading the funds 

thinly through formula grants. A key purpose of our Race to the Top proposal for 

fiscal year 2015 is to generate a set of evidence-based practices and interventions 

that successfully address disparities in educational opportunity and improve outcomes, so that those practices and interventions can be scaled up with existing Federal resources, such as our annual $14 billion investment in Title I, to provide equitable educational opportunities to all students. 

COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS AND THE REDUCTION OF ACHIEVEMENT AND OPPORTUNITY

GAPS

Question. How will another $300 million for a new Race to the Top program that 

only reaches students in States and local school districts that successfully compete 

for funding, further the goal of reducing achievement and opportunity gaps for students? 

Answer. These funds would be awarded to States and school districts that submit 

high-quality applications demonstrating the greatest promise of using data to (1) 

identify the greatest disparities in opportunity and performance and (2) develop effective strategies and practices for addressing those disparities. Our goal is to identify a set of evidence-based practices and interventions that successfully address disparities in educational opportunity and improve outcomes. Then we would encourage States and school districts to use existing Federal resources, such as ESEA, 

Title I funding, to scale up those proven practices and interventions to provide equitable educational opportunities to all students. 

SPECIAL EDUCATION—RESULTS DRIVEN ACCOUNTABILITY INCENTIVE GRANTS

Question. Why did the Department choose to include $100 million for an Incentive 

grants competition under Special Education at the expense of increasing formula 

funding for Special Education Grants to States? 

Answer. While protecting funding for foundational programs like Special Education State Grants, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 

and ESEA, Title I State grants is incredibly important, we also need to invest in 

reform. The reform dollars we invest in competitive grants encourage States and 

districts to rethink their existing ways of doing things, including their use of formula funds, to produce better outcomes for students—especially students that have 

historically been underserved, like students with disabilities. Our new $100 million 

Results Driven Accountability Incentive Grants (RDA) competition will improve spe-
217 

cial education services for children with disabilities while also building State and 

local capacity to continuously improve outcomes. 

Funds under the IDEA, Part B program are primarily used for program and services at the local level. The Department believes that these new competitive grants 

can be used together with formula funds to drive meaningful, targeted and systemic 

reforms to address gaps in performance that will have a significant and long-term 

impact on results for children with disabilities. RDA would support State efforts to 

identify and implement reforms that would improve results for children with disabilities, such as school readiness, academic performance, and graduation rates. 

CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION FUNDING

Question. Given the critical role that hands-on experiences play in helping students prepare for future careers, why does the fiscal year 2015 Department of Education Budget Request only provide level funding for Career and Technical Education (CTE)? 

Answer. We agree that the programs authorized under the Perkins Career and 

Technical Education Act provide important support for helping students prepare for 

future careers. The President’s budget proposal for education represents hard 

choices for funding among multiple worthy programs in a difficult fiscal environment. The fiscal year 2015 budget request respects the spending levels set in the 

Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, with new discretionary funding dedicated to areas 

where we think it will have the greatest impact on improving educational outcomes. 

We also believe that a reauthorized Act that strengthens alignment between secondary and postsecondary education and enhances accountability will enhance the 

quality of CTE programs available to students at the current funding level. 

IMPACT OF INNOVATION FUND SET-ASIDE ON CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

STATE FUNDING LEVELS AND STUDENTS

Question. What would be the impact to individual States if Career and Technical Education Grants to States are reduced by a $100 million set-aside for a new innovation fund? And, how many less students will be served in States that are not successful in competing for this proposed use of funding? 

Answer. The Department’s fiscal year 2015 budget request for Career and Technical Education (CTE) State Grants presumes that the fiscal year 2015 appropriation would support a reauthorized Perkins program consistent with the Department’s reauthorization proposal. We envision that a reauthorized Perkins program 

would incorporate revisions to the State allocation formula so that the formula 

drives funds to States based on current data. If Congress were to enact the set-aside 

absent reauthorization, we would be happy to work with Congress to explore ways 

to fairly distribute the impact on individual State allocations. The impact of the reduction in the amount of funds distributed to States would vary due to the provisions of the State allocations formula, particularly the hold-harmless provision that 

ensures that no State’s share of the appropriation is less than its share of the fiscal 

year 1998 appropriation. We are unable to estimate the impact on students served 

because States do not track the number of students served with Federal funds 

versus State and local CTE funding, and Perkins Career and Technical Education 

program funds constitute a small percentage of the total funding used for CTE programs; the majority of the funding for CTE programs comes from State and local 

sources. Note that although directing funds to an innovation fund would reduce the 

amount of funds distributed to State and local entities, activities carried out through 

an innovation fund would help to strengthen CTE for all students by expanding the 

availability of CTE programs that work and encouraging States to establish policies 

that ensure that CTE programs are of high quality and lead to positive academic 

and career outcomes. 

IMPACT AID PAYMENTS FOR FEDERAL PROPERTY

Question. Mr. Secretary, this subcommittee demonstrated its commitment to the 

Impact Aid program by restoring funding in fiscal year 2014 for all sections of the 

program to 99.8 percent of the fiscal year 2012 level. Given strong congressional 

support, why has the Department proposed to once again eliminate Payments for 

Federal Property? 

Answer. The policy of the Administration is to use available Impact Aid funds to 

help pay for the education of federally connected children, including children of 

members of the uniformed services, children of Federal employees who both live and 

work on Federal property, children of foreign military officers, children living on Indian lands, and children residing in federally assisted low-rent housing projects. 
218 

Given the continued need for fiscal discipline, the Administration has proposed to 

maintain $1.2 billion in funding to four Impact Aid programs (Basic Support Payments, Payments for Children with Disabilities, Construction and Facilities Maintenance) as part of its continued commitment to improving the educational outcomes 

of federally connected students supported by those Impact Aid programs. 

Unlike other Impact Aid programs, Payments for Federal Property are made to 

local educational agencies (LEAs) without regard to the presence of federally connected children and do not necessarily support educational services for such children. When the Payments for Federal Property authority was first established in 

1950, its purpose was to provide assistance to LEAs in which the Federal Government had imposed a substantial and continuing burden by acquiring a considerable 

portion of real property in the LEA. The law applied only to property acquired since 

1938 because, in general, LEAs had been able to adjust to acquisitions that occurred 

before that time. Over 64 percent of districts that currently receive Payments for 

Federal Property first applied before 1970. We believe that the majority of LEAs receiving assistance under this program have now had sufficient time to adjust to the 

removal of the property from their tax rolls. 

In addition, many LEAs receiving funds under this authority consist of two or 

more LEAs that consolidated, at least one of which originally met the eligibility criterion of a loss of 10 percent of the aggregate assessed value of real property removed from the tax rolls. The current statute allows such LEAs to retain eligibility 

even though they are no longer demonstrably burdened. 

STUDENT IMPACT OF ELIMINATION OF PAYMENTS FOR FEDERAL PROPERTY

Question. What impact would the elimination have on the educational opportunities of students in districts that currently benefit from such payments? 

Answer. It is not possible to estimate the direct impact on educational opportunities of students in districts that currently receive Payments for Federal Property as 

each district’s budget situation would need to be considered individually. Please also 

note that these funds do not necessarily support educational services to federally 

connected children and are calculated without regard to such children. 

COST TO IMPACT AID PROGRAM OF REDUCED DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FUNDING OF

DOMESTIC DEFENSE SCHOOLS

Question. Has the Education Department (ED) discussed with the Defense Department the impact on public schools should the Defense Department reduce its 

commitment to the Domestic Defense schools? As I am concerned about the strain 

that would be put on the Impact Aid program to offset the increased cost to school 

districts of educating additional students, does the Department have similar concerns and what would be the estimated cost to the Impact Aid program? 

Answer. There have been no discussions between the Department of Defense and 

ED regarding the impact of the Department of Defense’s potential reduction in commitment to Domestic Defense schools. The Department of Defense was conducting 

an independent needs study regarding Department of Defense schools in 2012, however, we were not informed of its results. 

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Question. As we think about the current fiscal environment, one way we can help 

reduce the Federal deficit is to grow the economy. To do this, I have advocated for 

the need to strengthen our support of entrepreneurs given that new businesses account for the creation of an average of 3 million jobs each year. Support for entrepreneurship begins with developing our next generation of American talent and 

independent thinkers. What specific activities and programs at the Department of 

Education focus on helping students attain the skills necessary to become entrepreneurs and compete in a global economy? 

Answer. Nearly all of our programs are aimed at helping students attain the 

college- and career-ready skills they need to be successful in our 21st century globally competitive economy, including traditional employment in business and industry as well as more entrepreneurial activities. In particular, our emphasis on new 

college- and career-ready standards and aligned assessments reflects the growing 

need for all students to master the higher-order thinking and reasoning skills that 

are essential for the creative work involved in entrepreneurship. And two key proposals in our 2015 request—STEM Innovation Networks and High School Redesign—would provide significant new support for locally determined activities consistent with your interest in entrepreneurship. For example, the $150 million request for High School Redesign would support the redesign of high schools in innovative ways that better prepare students for college and career success so that all 
219 

students graduate from high school with college credit and career-related experiences or competencies, obtained through project or problem-based learning, realworld challenges, and organized internships and mentorships. And a $110 million 

request for STEM Innovation Networks would encourage partnerships of LEAs, 

higher education, nonprofit organizations, and business to increase opportunities for 

students to engage in hands-on STEM learning activities that will give them the 

skills to help America compete and innovate in our technology-driven world. 

EDUCATION RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Question. I am pleased that the University of Kansas (KU) has been a leader in 

special education research. Currently KU is receiving funding from the Office of 

Special Education programs to develop a national center to assist schools in educating general and special education students together and improving school-wide 

academic outcomes. Given the tight fiscal budget, what resources can the Department direct towards research and development in teaching, use of technology and 

student learning, including learning of special education and high-risk students, to 

make certain that American schools are at the forefront of educational progress? 

Answer. The Department’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES) supports research and development through the National Center for Education Research 

(NCER) and the National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER). Since 

2002, NCER has invested over $1.5 billion to fund a wide variety of studies focused 

on strategies to improve student outcomes. These include research grants on effective teaching, education technology, and cognition and student learning, among 

other topics. Since its initial grant competitions in 2006, NCSER has invested about 

$530 million to build a comprehensive program of special education research designed to expand the knowledge and understanding of children with disabilities 

from birth through the transition from high school. Active grants include those addressing the development and testing of interventions and assessments, as well as 

innovative uses of technology, to help children with or at risk of disabilities and 

their families, teachers and other professionals who provide support or services. 

Major NCSER investments in the last few years have included, for example, National Research and Development Centers on improving mathematics instruction for 

students with mathematics difficulties; developing and testing a comprehensive 

school-based intervention for secondary students with autism; and strategies for accelerating the academic achievement in reading and math of students with learning 

disabilities. While budget constraints prevented NCSER from holding grant competitions in fiscal year 2014, new proposals for research funding will be accepted for fiscal year 2015. Fewer awards are anticipated based on available funding. Finally, 

IES runs a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program that offers funding 

to for-profit small business for the research and development of commercially viable 

education technology products to support students and teachers. For example, one 

awardee developed iPrompt, which allows teachers to customize and present different visual supports for students with autism using various mobile devices. 

HIGHER EDUCATION SERVICES FOR DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS

Question. While I support the goals of increasing college access and attainment 

for disadvantaged students, why did the Administration choose to create the new 

$75 million College Success Grants for Minority-Serving Institutions program when 

the proven TRIO programs already exist to provide support services to disadvantaged students to assist with college completion? 

Answer. TRIO projects provide essential services to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds to enter and succeed in undergraduate and graduate education. 

The Administration’s request maintains funding for these essential programs. However, we also believe that new approaches are needed to increase college attainment, 

particularly among under-resourced Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) that face 

unique challenges, serve a large share of low-income students, and are in need of 

additional support. 

The College Success Grants for MSIs initiative would provide funding for highquality proposals by individual MSIs or consortia to implement evidence-based 

strategies that are designed to increase the numbers of students, particularly Pell 

Grant recipients, completing postsecondary education. While certain aspects of the 

College Success Grants for MSIs program may be similar to the Federal TRIO programs, successful applicants would use funding to undertake a much broader set of 

activities than are permitted under TRIO, including the following: 

—Partnering with school districts and schools to provide college recruitment, 

awareness, and preparation activities, to enable students to enter and complete 

postsecondary education. 
220 

—Establishing high quality dual-enrollment programs. 

—Implementing evidence-based course redesigns of high enrollment courses to improve student outcomes and reduce costs. 

—Reforming institutional need-based aid policies to enhance educational opportunities for low-income students and provide incentives for on-time completion. 

—Providing comprehensive student support services, both academic and non-academic. 

—Reducing the need for, and improving the success of, remedial education. 

MANDATORY FUNDING—TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL EFFECTIVENESS

Question. I am aware that the Department has requested $5 billion in mandatory 

funding for Recognizing Education Success, Professional Excellence, and Collaborative Teacher (RESPECT) grants which would be used to address teacher recruitment, overhaul tenure and evaluation systems, and link salaries to performance. 

Recognizing that mandatory funding is not likely to be provided this fiscal year, 

could you elaborate on whether the Department intends to use any discretionary 

funding under Title II or other funding streams to begin undertaking these activities? 

Answer. Under the Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grants program, States 

would have a limited amount of State-level funds with which to provide support for 

effective teacher career ladders, reform certification and licensure requirements, increase professional development opportunities, and reform teacher and school leader 

compensation systems. The Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) program, part of a set-aside under the State Grants program, would allow the Department to make additional grants to national nonprofit organizations to support teacher and school leader enhancement projects. Also, under the State Grants program, 

the Department would make competitive awards to States and school districts for 

the purpose of raising standards for teacher and principal preparation. In addition, 

the proposed Teacher and Leader Innovation Fund would support State and school 

district efforts to develop and implement innovative approaches to improving human 

capital management systems through a competitive grant process. 

USE OF TITLE II NATIONAL ACTIVITIES FUNDS

Question. Mr. Secretary, could you provide the subcommittee with a specific 

breakdown on use of funds to date for any Title II funding for national activities 

in fiscal year 2014? 

Answer. Commitments for Title II National Activities in fiscal year 2014 are: 

—Impact Evaluation of Teacher and Leader Performance Evaluation Systems (5- 

year study, ending in 2016). 

—Study of Teacher Quality Distribution and Measures of Teacher Quality (mathematics) (5-year study, ending in 2015). 

—Study of Teacher Prep Experiences and Early Teacher Effectiveness (6-year 

study, ending in 2016). 

—Impact Evaluation of Math Professional Development for Elementary School 

Teachers (3.5 year study, ending in 2016). 

—Analytic and Technical Support to the Improving Teacher Quality State Grants 

Program (Support for data collection, monitoring, and an annual meeting of 

State coordinators). 

—Support for Connected Educators Month. 

—Impact Evaluation of Data-Driven Instruction: Professional Development for 

Teachers (4-year study, ending in 2017). 

—Impact Evaluation of Support for Principals (5-year study, ending in 2018). 

CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER ROLE IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENTS

Question. Describe the role of your Department’s Chief Information Officer in the 

oversight of information technology (IT) purchases. How is this person involved in 

the decision to make an IT purchase, determine its scope, oversee its contract, and 

oversee the product’s continued operation and maintenance? 

Answer. The Chief Information Officer (CIO) has the primary responsibility to ensure that Information Technology (IT) is acquired and information resources are 

managed in a manner consistent with statutory, regulatory, strategic departmental 

requirements, and priorities. The CIO oversees the Lifecycle Management process 

(LCM) that is used to manage systems from concept through retirement. This process includes funding, acquisition, design, implementation, operation, and retirement 

of IT systems. The CIO manages the LCM process using the Department’s IT governance process, which measures the value and priority of IT investments and their 

alignment to departmental strategic objectives. The CIO also ensures that projects 
221 

are managed in accordance with Federal and departmental IT policies and industry 

best practices for IT project management throughout their lifecycle. 

FUNDING OF DEMONSTRATION, MODERNIZATION, AND ENHANCEMENT OF IT SYSTEMS

Question. How much of the Department’s fiscal year 2015 budget request would 

be for Demonstration, Modernization, and Enhancement of IT systems as opposed 

to supporting existing and ongoing programs and infrastructure? And, how has this 

changed in the last 5 years? 

Answer. Over the past 5 years, the Department has placed a high priority on ensuring its IT programs are able to fund Development, Modernization, and Enhancement (DME) activities. The table below shows the Department’s DME funding over 

the past 5 fiscal years. Data is derived from the OMB Exhibit 53, which is a report 

of all Federal agency IT investments, and Exhibits 300A and 300B, which report 

on budgetary and management information necessary for sound planning, management, and governance of IT investments. 

DEVELOPMENT, MODERNIZATION, AND ENHANCEMENT FUNDING 

[Dollars in million] 

Source OMB Exhibit 53 

fiscal year column Fiscal year Total DME funding 

DME funding 

as % of IT 

budget (%) 

Total IT 

funding 

OMB Exhibit 53 BY 2015 ........................ BY ........................... 2015 $124.1 17.80 $697.3 

OMB Exhibit 53 BY 2015 ........................ CY ........................... 2014 141.9 20.80 683.0 

OMB Exhibit 53 BY 2015 ........................ PY ........................... 2013 99.2 16.80 590.4 

OMB Exhibit 53 BY 2014 ........................ PY ........................... 2012 65.2 11.91 547.8 

OMB Exhibit 53 BY 2013 ........................ PY ........................... 2011 49.1 9.20 536.6 

NOTE: OMB Exhibit 300A includes IT-related full-time equivalent (FTE) funding. 

DEPARTMENT TECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS—CLOUDFIRST AND SHAREFIRST INITIATIVES

Question. Describe the progress being made in the Department to transition to 

new, cutting-edge technologies and applications such as cloud, mobility, social networking, and so on. What progress has been made in the CloudFirst and ShareFirst 

initiatives? 

Answer. The Department is in the process of implementing its Access Anywhere 

transformation initiative. This initiative will allow the Department’s users to benefit 

from access to Department IT systems, applications and shared IT services from 

anywhere, at any time, and from any device. ED employs multiple virtual private 

network (VPN) technologies to enable remote access to email, files, intranets, and 

applications from a variety of tablet, phone, and PC platforms. Since calendar year 

2012, ED has offered Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) access upon the employee’s 

acceptance of the terms of service for BYOD access. 

During fiscal year 2014 through fiscal year 2017, the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) plans to provide the following cloud computing services: 

Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS).—The Department will provide fundamental 

computing resources such as processing, storage and networks so that Department 

users can deploy and run software, operating systems and applications. IaaS will 

increase utilization of existing investments, reduce infrastructure investments, and 

decrease IT expenses. 

Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS).—The Department will provide an integrated platform-based computing solution on the cloud consisting of specific operating systems, 

applications software and development tools; that will be available via the Web. 

PaaS will improve the management and procurement of IT systems development capabilities. 

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).—The Department will migrate some of its desktop 

software applications and data to the cloud infrastructure. The software is accessible 

from various client devices through a thin client interface, such as a Web browser. 

SaaS will improve the management, cost, and accessibility of software applications. 

Additional migration of technology services to the cloud will be evaluated on an 

ongoing basis. 

The table below outlines some of the shared services the Department currently 

utilizes: 
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SELECTED DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SHARED SERVICES 

Service Service model Deployment model Shared Service 

Provider (SSP) 

Hiring Services ...................................................................

Office of Personnel Management (OPM) (via Monster Government Solutions) supports the ED-HIRES system for 

completing employee job descriptions and postings 

with USAJOBS.GOV.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

OPM 

Personnel Folders ..............................................................

OPM supports the Department through its Electronic Office Personnel Folder (eOPF) system, which provides 

secure access to employee personnel files in support 

of human resources/human capital.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

OPM 

Talent/Learning Management Services .............................

Department of Interior/Interior Business Center (DOI/IBC) 

provided ED with a Learning Management Module (online learning, instructor-led course sign-up and SF– 

182 processing for external training) and the Performance Management Module (for employee performance 

appraisals) via https://tms.nbc.gov/.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

DOI/IBC 

Payroll Services ..................................................................

DOI/IBC hosts the Federal Personnel Payroll System 

(FPPS), which is used for payroll, time & attendance 

for the Department’s employees.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

DOI/IBC 

Workforce Transformation and Tracking System (WTTS) 

Services & On-boarding Services.

ED is leveraging the DOI/IBC Tracking System (WTTS)/Entrance On-Duty System (EODS), which integrates with 

FPPS and ED-HIRES for hiring.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

DOI/IBC 

Implementation of Invoice Process Platform (IPP) ........

OCIO has collaborated with the Department’s Office of 

the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) to support the implementation of the Department of the Treasury’s Invoice Processing Platform (IPP). The implementation of 

IPP will allow vendors to submit their invoices electronically within the IPP application. In addition to 

being Web-based and supporting electronic submissions, IPP enables the Department to define invoice 

workflow for approval routing. OCIO has completed all 

application changes required for Financial Management Support System (FMSS) to support the IPP. OCIO 

will work collaboratively with OCFO to develop and deliver training to the procurement staff in a threephased approach, beginning with the pilot on Monday, 

April 8, 2013.

SaaS ...................... Shared Service 

Provider.

Department of the 

Treasury 

ED leverages cloud computing services for best-of-class solutions in support of the 

CloudFirst initiative. ED is leveraging the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) to establish a standard approach to assess and authorize 

cloud services to migrate to an end-state that features agile, secure, and cost effective services that can rapidly respond to changing mission needs. 

DEPARTMENTAL CENTRAL PROCESSING SYSTEM AND FAFSA-ON-THE-WEB

Question. One of the major IT investments for the Department of Education is the 

Central Processing System, which is responsible for FAFSA-On-The-Web. This 

project has an appropriated cost of $59.14 million and is scheduled to be completed 

by 2015, but has faced significant challenges, resulting in both cost variance and 

schedule variance. Recent developments have improved the status of the project; 

however, the Federal IT Dashboard indicates the project is moderate-to-high risk, 

and the most recent information submitted to the Dashboard was for December 

2013. 

Please provide an update about the progress of this project. 

Answer. The Front End Business Integration (FEBI) contract was restructured 

under an initiative called FEBI Modernization during fiscal year 2012 to better 

align the way FSA manages the FAFSA-on-the Web releases and other contracted 
223 

products and services that support the Central Processing System (CPS). Prior to 

modernization, the CPS was invoiced as a separate component of the contract, but 

with the contract changes, CPS was included as part of a tiered pricing structure 

where FSA is invoiced based on the volume of FAFSAs processed. These structural 

changes to the contract affected the way schedule and cost should be tracked in the 

OMB Exhibit 300 even though the project remained on schedule and at the planned 

cost. Around this same time, FSA underwent an organizational realignment where 

the management of the FEBI contract, funding, and OMB Exhibit 300 were shifted 

to another business unit which caused a disruption in timely reporting. In fiscal 

year 2013, there was also a strategic change to the FAFSA on the Web release 

schedule to allow for the deployment of multiple releases throughout the year. 

Under this multi-release schedule, there were further changes to the way the schedule and cost should be tracked in the OMB Exhibit 300 even though schedule and 

cost remained on target. 

Since fiscal year 2012, development work has been completed on schedule and at 

the contracted price with no overruns despite the reporting discrepancies in the 

OMB Exhibit 300. Schedule and cost are tracked monthly through the invoicing 

process as new development work occurs on CPS and its related products and services. A billing schedule with dates for delivery, associated deliverables, and the contracted cost is issued as part of the contract modification and when invoices are received, the date of completion, contracted cost and associated deliverables are 

verified before payment is made. To date, the completion dates and contracted cost 

of development work have been on schedule. 

FAFSA-ON-THE-WEB MANAGEMENT

Question. Additionally, the Federal IT Dashboard indicates the project manager 

does not have the required certification. What has the Department done to address 

this? 

Answer. As per Department of Education policy, major IT investment project 

managers have 1 year to complete certification requirements and the CPS project 

manager was granted a waiver. The required FAC–PP/M certification approved 

waiver is effective until November 2014. 

While the current project manager had the necessary experience, she needed to 

complete some additional training. Her waiver application contained a training plan, 

which has been executed over the period of her waiver. As soon as all necessary 

training is complete, she will submit her FAC–PP/M application for certification. 

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY SENATOR THAD COCHRAN

TITLE II FUNDING AND THE SUPPORTING EFFECTIVE EDUCATOR DEVELOPMENT GRANT

PROGRAM

Question. In Mississippi, the Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) 

grant program has been used to train 384 teachers over the past 2 years, and will 

be used to train approximately 175 additional teachers for placement next year. 

Needless to say, the positive impact that these teachers have had on Mississippi 

children has been remarkable. Can you speak to the importance of the investment 

Congress has made by requesting the Department to designate a percentage of Title 

II funding for this program? 

Answer. We believe the SEED program is an excellent example of the kind of innovative and effective work that Congress can support through a set-aside of funds 

under Title II, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). We 

hope to increase this set-aside from the current level of 2 percent in fiscal year 2014 

to 10 percent in fiscal year 2015, to expand our ability to support similarly effective 

teacher and principal preparation programs, help States raise standards for such 

programs, and recruit and retain school leadership teams with the skills and experience needed to turn around low-performing schools. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING AND MATHEMATICS COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS

Question. If American students are going to compete in a global economy, they 

must succeed in the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. 

While I am a leading proponent of STEM instruction, it is difficult to understand 

why the Administration would prioritize the consolidation of STEM programs across 
224 

the Federal Government, but then create new, competitive STEM programs within 

the Department of Education. 

Why did the Department choose to direct scarce Federal resources toward the creation of new, competitive STEM programs, rather than increase investments in the 

proven Math and Science Partnerships program which support services for students 

in all States? 

Answer. The Administration’s STEM Innovation proposal is a key part of the Governmentwide strategy for delivering STEM education that is more cohesive and coordinated and, thus, more likely to improve STEM outcomes for more students. The 

Mathematics and Science Partnerships program in current law—as it primarily supports teacher professional development projects that may be implemented in isolation from other STEM education efforts—is not designed to support the comprehensive reforms our Nation needs to improve our supply of STEM talent. 

PRIORITIZING AND FUNDING STEM INITIATIVES WITHIN COMPETITIONS OF EXISTING

FEDERAL PROGRAMS

Question. Can the Department elaborate on efforts to prioritize STEM initiatives 

within competitions across existing Federal programs within the Department? And, 

how will the Department continue these efforts with fiscal year 2015 funding? 

Answer. The Department continues to carefully identify opportunities to target 

limited program funds on the Administration’s core education reform areas, including STEM education. In fiscal year 2013, we included an absolute priority for 

STEM-focused projects in competitions for new grants under Investing in Innovation 

(grants under the competitions totaled $135.7 million) and gave competitive priority 

to STEM-focused projects under Magnet Schools Assistance ($89.8 million) and Supporting Effective Educator Development ($29.8 million). In fiscal year 2014, we are 

maintaining an absolute priority for STEM under Investing in Innovation’s ScaleUp grants and including a STEM invitational priority in new competitions under 

Special Programs for Migrant Students, Strengthening Alaska Native and Native 

Hawaiian-Serving Institutions, and Arts in Education. We expect to maintain a 

STEM focus in Investing in Innovation in fiscal year 2015 and may prioritize STEM 

reforms in making new grants under other programs as funding permits. 

VETERANS’ EDUCATION

Question. As our Nation’s veterans return from overseas, many will take advantage of the education benefits they earned while serving our country by pursuing 

an undergraduate or graduate degree. How does the fiscal year 2015 budget request 

for the Department of Education ensure that adequate resources are dedicated to 

assisting veterans on college and university campuses with successful degree completion? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget would enable the Department to 

continue to support approximately 50 Veterans Upward Bound projects nationwide. 

Veterans Upward Bound projects assist veterans in preparing for postsecondary 

education by providing comprehensive student support services, including tutoring; 

mentoring; cultural enrichment activities; work-study programs; assistance in 

course selection, preparing for college entrance exams, and in completing college applications; and information on available financial aid and assistance in completing 

the FAFSA. 

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION VETERANS’ RESOURCE CENTERS

Question. In the past, the Department of Education provided funding for a Centers of Excellence for Veteran Student Success program that specifically assisted 

veterans. This program supported the establishment and development of universitybased programs to support military veteran student success. Given our Federal responsibility to the veterans that have served this country, wouldn’t the Department 

agree that these resource centers play a critical role in helping veterans achieve 

postsecondary education success? 

Answer. In fiscal year 2010, Congress provided $6 million to support the Centers 

of Excellence for Veteran Student Success program, authorized under Title VIII of 

the Higher Education Act (HEA). With this funding, the Department made 3-year 

awards to 15 institutions of higher education to support the development of Centers 

to coordinate services to address the academic, financial, physical, and social needs 

of veteran students. 

It is absolutely essential that we make certain that veterans can access crucial 

services to enable them to enter and succeed in postsecondary education. In 2015, 

the Administration proposes to allocate $14 million to support 50 Veterans Upward 
225 

Bound projects designed to provide veterans with the support they need to maximize 

the educational opportunities that are available to them. 

RACE TO THE TOP—EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY

Question. This Administration has touted the Race to the Top program as critical 

to the development and testing of model education reform strategies, as well as the 

implementation of these reforms throughout the country. However, to what extent 

has this over $6 billion investment led to reform strategies being replicated in 

States that have yet to receive any Race to the Top funding? Please provide specific, 

meaningful, impactful, and sustained examples as to how students in States that 

have yet to receive funding have benefited from Race to the Top. 

Answer. Race to the Top has changed the debate around education across the Nation and reinforced next-generation reforms launched by States. One reason that 

more than 40 States have been approved for Elementary and Secondary Education 

Act (ESEA) flexibility is that the competition for Race to the Top helped initiate key 

reforms that positioned the majority of States to move beyond No Child Left Behind 

(NCLB) and commit to far-reaching changes around standards and assessments, 

new differentiated accountability systems emphasizing turning around the lowestperforming schools and closing achievement gaps, and developing and implementing 

educator evaluation systems that take into account student growth data. Race to the 

Top has contributed to the fact that, since 2009, 46 States and the District of Columbia (DC) have developed statewide reform plans and 42 States and DC have 

adopted high college- and career-ready standards. 

Race to the Top States have led the way in many of these important reform efforts 

and other States can learn from their experiences. For example, Race to the Top 

States collaboratively created a Student Learning Objectives (SLO) Toolkit. The 

SLO Toolkit helps States and Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) implement measures of student growth in tested and non-tested grades and subjects. It provides resources related to making SLO policy, providing SLO tools, selecting or creating assessments and setting targets, communicating with teachers and principals, training 

district staff and school administrators, and ensuring continuous improvement. The 

Toolkit is available at https://rtt.grads360.org/services/PDCService.svc/ 

GetPDCDocumentFile?fileId=4504. 

Additionally, there are numerous publications and case studies that the Department has compiled and made available to all States. These resources include lessons 

learned and other materials from Race to the Top States that are applicable to all 

States and LEAs and are available at http://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/implementation-support-unit/tech-assist/index.html. 

PELL GRANTS

Question. While I have reservations about the direction that this Administration 

is headed in with respect to the proposed college ratings system, I think we all agree 

that graduation rates for Pell Grant recipients are a serious concern. It is important 

that we work together to not only increase graduation rates for Pell Grant recipients, but to also address the sustainability of the program before it experiences discretionary shortfalls in future years. Yet, proposing a $7 billion mandatory funding 

proposal for a College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus program is unrealistic 

and does not represent a good faith effort towards working together to achieve these 

goals. Mr. Secretary, what can the Department of Education do at this moment to 

help increase the graduation rate of Pell Grant recipients without linking it to a 

controversial college ratings system or drastically increasing mandatory or discretionary funding and thereby exacerbating the pending shortfall in the Pell Grant 

program? 

Answer. Let me start by clarifying that the 2015 cost of the proposed College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus program would only be $647 million; $7 billion 

would be the cost of the program over the (10-year) budget window. 

I strongly believe that rewarding colleges for results through this program would 

advance our shared goal of increasing graduation rates for Pell Grant recipients and 

promoting on-time completion. The College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus program would reward colleges that successfully enroll and graduate a significant number of low- and moderate-income students on time, and encourage all institutions 

to improve their performance, but also incentivize eligible institutions to continue 

improving their performance and graduate even more low-income students by providing a larger bonus amount for additional Pell graduates. Grants would be used 

for making key investments and adopting best practices that will further increase 

college access and success for low-income students, such as by awarding additional 

need-based financial aid, enhancing academic and student support services, improv-
226 

ing student learning and other outcomes while reducing costs, using technology to 

scale and enhance improvements, establishing or expanding accelerated learning opportunities, as well as other innovations, interventions, and reforms. 

In addition to this program, the fiscal year 2015 President’s budget proposes to 

make two reforms to the Pell Grant program. First, it will strengthen academic 

progress requirements in the Pell Grant program in order to encourage students to 

complete their studies on time. Second, it would reinstate the Ability to Benefit provision for students enrolled in eligible career pathways programs, which would allow 

adults without a high school diploma to gain the knowledge and skills they need 

to secure a good job. 

Finally, the 2015 President’s budget proposes to reform Federal allocation in the 

campus-based programs to target those institutions that enroll and graduate higher 

numbers of Pell-eligible students, and offer an affordable and quality education such 

that graduates can repay their educational debt. If adopted, these reforms would 

have a significant impact on increasing the graduation rate of Pell Grant recipients. 

REGULATIONS AFFECTING MANAGEMENT AND DISBURSEMENT OF FEDERAL STUDENT AID

Question. I understand that a Negotiated Rulemaking Committee was established 

by the Department to consider how Federal Title IV student loan credit balances 

are distributed. While I support the need for transparency, I am also concerned 

about the overregulation of higher education institutions and already heavily regulated banks. 

Is it the Department’s intent to cover all accounts held by a student who receives 

a Federal student aid disbursement? If so, why does the Department presume jurisdiction over privately held accounts that may be unrelated to Title IV funds? 

Answer. The Department’s primary goal in formulating draft regulations and conducting negotiated rulemaking governing payment of Title IV credit balances has 

been to ensure that students have access to their credit balances, and to protect students from the concerning banking practices identified by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) (see the related report at http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-14- 

91), the Department’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) (see the related report at 

http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/auditreports/fy2014/x09n0003.pdf), and the 

U.S. Public Interest Research Group (see the related report at this site http:// 

www.uspirg.org/sites/pirg/files/reports/thecampusdebitcardtriplmay2012l 

uspef.pdf), among others. The Department is trying to ensure that students have 

easy, free, and convenient access to their full Title IV credit balances so they can 

afford academically related expenses and complete their academic programs in a 

timely manner. 

REGULATED BANKS AND NON-BANK CAMPUS FINANCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS

Question. How will the Department take into account the difference between regulated banks and non-bank campus financial service providers when considering regulations? 

Answer. Over the course of the negotiated rulemaking process, negotiators discussed a number of possible approaches to ensure sufficient student protections 

within the context of Title IV credit balance disbursements without expanding the 

regulations beyond the Higher Education Act’s purview. The committee made significant progress on this front and the Department will carefully consider all proposals in drafting a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). From the point of view 

of the Department, practices that erode credit balances pose the same risk to student, Department, and taxpayer interests regardless of whether they are engaged 

in by banks or non-bank campus financial service providers. 

REGULATORY COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS

Question. The proposed rule may have measurable costs to all parties should it 

be promulgated. Will the Department commit to undertaking and making public a 

cost-benefit analysis of the impact of additional regulations on students, higher education institutions, and financial institutions prior to their implementation? 

Answer. As required under Executive Orders 12866 and 13563, the Department 

will include a regulatory impact analysis (RIA) in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). The Executive Orders require that the Department propose or 

adopt regulations only upon a reasoned determination that their benefits justify 

their costs, tailor the regulations to impose the least burden possible, and select 

those approaches that maximize net benefits. The public is free to comment on this 

RIA and provide the Department feedback on the impact of the proposed regulations. 
227 

DISBURSEMENT OF FEDERAL STUDENT AID—DEBIT AND PREPAID CARDS

Question. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report acknowledged 

that the benefits of college debit and prepaid cards can include convenience for students and cost savings and efficiencies for schools. Did the Department take into 

account the impact on efficiencies in the disbursement of Federal student aid when 

proposing changes to the management and disbursement of Title IV Higher Education Act funds? If so, please explain in detail. 

Answer. The Department recognizes that, as noted in the GAO and Office of Inspector General (OIG) reports, the debit and prepaid cards offered to students provide certain benefits to students and institutions, especially compared with the sole 

use of credit balance disbursements via paper checks. During the negotiated rulemaking process, we repeatedly solicited feedback from representatives of students, 

institutions, third-party servicers, and the banking sector, and made significant 

progress in amending our regulatory proposals to meet the goals of these various 

constituencies. However, we were also troubled by the primary findings of the GAO 

and OIG reports, which noted a fee structure that often deprives students of a significant portion of their Federal student aid funds, a lack of convenience access to 

those funds, and a lack of neutrality both in the presentation and delivery of credit 

balances. In its regulatory proposals presented at the negotiations, therefore, the 

Department sought to maintain the advantages to students of choice of financial accounts while ensuring that easy, free, and convenient student access to Title IV 

credit balances remained the primary goal. 

TRANSPARENCY AND CONSUMER CHOICE IN PROVISION OF FEDERAL STUDENT AID

Question. Additionally, the GAO report included a recommendation that schools 

and college debit and prepaid card providers present students with objective and 

neutral information on their options for receiving Federal student aid payments. 

Recognizing that transparency is important to consumer choice, regulated banks 

often already provide transparent disclosures related to their accounts and card 

usage. Will the Department commit to working with financial institutions and 

schools to improve existing transparency disclosures prior to issuing final regulations, especially given that this issue may be addressed without the need for new 

and burdensome regulations? 

Answer. One of the unique aspects of the negotiated rulemaking process is that 

it affords both the Department and representatives of affected constituencies the opportunity to discuss regulatory proposals and work toward a draft regulatory proposal that is better for students and takes into account the important perspectives 

of those who provide services to students. One of the committee’s areas of agreement 

was the importance of neutral presentation of information relating to financial accounts, so students could make an informed and individualized choice that is best 

for them. As the NPRM is drafted, the Department will continue to consider the 

feedback received at the negotiating table and the numerous supporting documents 

submitted by the nonFederal negotiators. Once an NPRM is published, the Department will carefully consider all comments that are submitted regarding the NPRM 

as part of the rulemaking process. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR LAMAR ALEXANDER

COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT REGULATION

Question. The proposed Gainful Employment (GE) regulation represents an unprecedented expansion of administrative and regulatory functions at the Department of Education. Given the complexity of the regulation and reporting requirements for the nearly 8,000 affected programs, I am interested in understanding the 

costs associated with this new scope of work for the Department. 

Please provide exactly how much the Department has spent to date on promulgating this rule, beginning with the first rulemaking process in 2010 and including 

an itemization of how much taxpayers spent defending the regulation before the 

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. 

Answer. In fiscal years 2011–2012, prior to work stoppage in August 2012, Federal Student Aid obligated a total of $5,783,561. The table included below excludes 

full-time equivalent (FTE) costs. 
228 

DISTRIBUTION OF FSA GE OBLIGATIONS IN FISCAL YEARS 2011–2012 

Fiscal year Totals 2011 2012 

Data Collection, Calculations and Distribution ..................................................... $3,083,298 $1,019,463 $4,102,762 

Social Security Agency Interaction ........................................................................ 250,000 .................... 250,000 

Challenge Solution ................................................................................................. .................... 1,430,800 1,430,800 

Total by fiscal year .................................................................................. 3,333,298 2,450,263 5,783,561 

In addition to the amount spent above by Federal Student Aid for a system, the Department estimates that it spent over $100,000 on the first negotiated rulemaking process that began in 2010, and approximately $125,000 on the second negotiated rulemaking process for non-FTE related expenses including facilitation, 

logistical support and travel for some of the negotiators. 

ESTIMATED COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH IMPLEMENTATION OF GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT

REGULATION

Question. Additionally, please provide a comprehensive estimate of the annual financial costs and the number of full-time equivalents (FTEs) that will be needed 

to administer the regulations if the rule is implemented as proposed, including a 

breakdown of the costs associated with each step in the process such as interactions 

with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and data computations related to 

wages, earnings and programmatic default rates. 

Answer. The proposed Gainful Employment (GE) regulations are estimated to provide budgetary savings between $666 million and $973 million over 10 years (http:// 

www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-03-25/pdf/2014-06000.pdf). In addition to producing 

these savings, additional benefits include: Improving quality of programs, reducing 

student debt, assisting prospective and current students and their families to make 

more informed decisions, and eliminating poor performing programs. The Department of Education and the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) anticipate needing 

additional staff, as well as non-pay budgetary resources, in order to successfully implement the proposed regulations. 

Specifically, Federal Student Aid (FSA) anticipates the need for approximately 28 

FSA full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). This total includes FTEs for the GE Operations Team (16) to manage the challenge process and approvals and the challenge systems solution and labor pool; FSA systems teams National Student Loan 

Data Systems (NSLDS–4); and FSA’s Program Compliance Regions (8). 

Separately, FSA expects to spend approximately $46 million in non-pay on implementing GE regulations in fiscal years 2013–2016. This includes the following expenses: 

—GE Data Collection and Calculations of Debt Measures and Disclosures–$10 million.—We estimate the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) and other 

current systems will need approximately $10 million for FSA system updates 

to collect GE data from schools, receive and store additional data from the Social Security Administration (SSA), calculate three debt measures and eight disclosure metrics, distribute the data to schools, make recalculations based on 

challenges, and distribute data to other FSA systems. 

—Social Security Administration (SSA) Interactions–Less Than $100,000.—Based 

on an interagency agreement with SSA, FSA will receive aggregate earnings information from SSA on an annual basis. This data will be used in the calculations of any Debt to Earnings ratios and Median Earnings disclosure information. The estimate for the interagency agreement is less than $100,000 over 4 

years. 

—Challenge Solution With Labor Pool–$35 million.—FSA is currently looking at 

solution alternatives for the management of student level data challenges that 

will be received from institutions for individual programs that have evidence 

that data elements within the calculations are inaccurate. To manage a high 

level of challenges, FSA is looking at solution alternatives that will include a 

system with workflow capabilities, interfaces with FSA and other partner data 

systems, analytical capabilities for basic checks in challenge data, and contracted staffing to resolve challenges within the timeframe indicated in the regulation. To resolve the challenges, we estimate needing 50 contractors, making 

it the primary cost driver for challenge management. While this is a current 

estimate, the variability of challenge volume (i.e., how many challenges FSA actually receives) may increase or decrease the overall total cost. 
229 

—Contractor Support for Program Management of GE Implementation–Less Than 

$1 million.—This includes contractor support for the program management of 

implementing the gainful employment requirements. The contractor(s) would 

manage the schedule, documentation, and other aspects of program management for implementation. 

ESTIMATED GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT REGULATION IMPLEMENTATION COSTS 

Fiscal year 

Totals 

2013 2014 2015 2016 

Data Collection, Calculations and Distribution .. .................... $3,000,000 $4,500,000 $2,500,000 $10,000,000 

SSA Interaction .................................................... $18,849 20,000 20,000 20,000 78,849 

Challenge Solution ............................................... 199,521 2,500,000 18,410,000 13,910,000 35,019,521 

Contractor Support for Program Mgmt. .............. 209,946 169,946 169,946 169,946 719,784 

Total by fiscal year ................................ 428,315 5,689,946 23,099,946 16,599,946 45,818,153 

GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT INSTITUTIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY METRICS

Question. I generally believe that all regulations should be implemented prospectively. In the case of the Department of Education’s Gainful Employment regulation, 

it is my understanding that although the Department is providing a transition period for the regulation’s implementation, the proposed transition period still uses 

student loan debt levels from previous years that institutions may not be able to 

influence. What steps is the Department taking to ensure that the accountability 

metrics, such as the student debt levels in the debt-to-earnings ratio, are constructed to provide institutions with ample opportunity to revise policies and procedures to improve program performance? 

Answer. Several provisions in the proposed rule would give institutions time and 

opportunity to improve programs that do not meet the standards. First, all programs are given multiple years to pass the accountability metrics before they would 

become ineligible for Title IV, HEA program funds. Second, for marginal programs, 

the Department proposes to create a ‘‘zone’’ status where programs are given more 

time to improve before they would lose access to Federal student aid. And, finally, 

the proposed rule includes a transition period for the first 4 years after implementation of the regulations during which, in calculating a program’s debt-to-earnings 

rates, we will take into account any immediate cost, and in turn student debt, reductions that institutions make. 

GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT—CALCULATION OF DEBT-TO-EARNINGS RATIOS

Question. The Department of Education is taking an unprecedented step by using 

personal student data to calculate program eligibility for Title IV, including calculating a debt-to-earnings ratio using individualized direct wage data from the Social 

Security Administration (SSA). 

Please provide an overview of the steps involved in the matching of personal student loan debt levels to the Social Security Administration’s wage database to calculate the debt-to-earnings ratios. 

Answer. For each program, the Department will develop a list of students in the 

applicable cohort period based on information submitted by the institution. The list 

is subject to a corrections process. Once the list is final, the Department will submit 

it to SSA. The Department will obtain from SSA the aggregate mean and median 

earnings for the program—and not individualized earnings data—for those students 

on the list whom SSA has matched to its earnings data. If SSA is unable to match 

certain students on the list, the Department will exclude from the calculation of the 

median loan debt the same number of students with the highest loan debts as the 

number of students whose earnings SSA did not match. The information used to calculate the median loan debt is from the Department’s National Student Loan Data 

System (NSLDS) and is not submitted to SSA. The debt-to-earnings rates are then 

calculated based on the program-level median debt and mean or median earnings— 

and not calculated on an individual level. 

GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT—PRIVACY PROTECTIONS

Question. Additionally, please describe the steps that the Department is taking to 

ensure that personal information is not compromised during the calculation of the 

debt-to-earnings metrics during the data transfers between the Department and the 

Social Security Administration (SSA). 
230 

Answer. The SSA and the Department will comply with the requirements of the 

Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), 44 U.S.C. 3541–3549; related Office of Management and Budget (OMB) circulars and memoranda, such as 

Circular A–130, Management of Federal Information Resources (November 28, 

2000), and Memorandum M–06–16, Protection of Sensitive Agency Information 

(June 23, 2006); National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) directives; 

and the Federal Acquisition Regulations. These laws, directives, and regulations include requirements for safeguarding Federal information systems and personally 

identifiable information (PII) used in Federal agency business processes, as well as 

related reporting requirements. 

The file transmitted through a secure batch process from the Department to the 

SSA will contain items of PII necessary to complete the match with SSA records. 

The return file from SSA will not contain any PII. The data files exchanged remain 

the property of the providing agency. SSA will retain the electronic files received 

from the Department only for the time required for any processing related to the 

information exchange under the agreement and will electronically dispose of the 

data. SSA will destroy the data received from the Department after completing the 

information exchange activity. 

The Department and SSA will each follow their own procedures for reporting loss 

of data or breach of PII notifications. The Department and SSA will use administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to ensure the data provided or created in 

this process is under the immediate supervision and control of authorized personnel 

in a manner that will protect the confidentiality of the data. Electronic files will be 

encrypted using the FIPS 140–2 standard. The Department and SSA will store the 

data provided or created in an area that is physically and technologically secure 

from access by unauthorized persons during duty hours as well as non-duty hours 

or when not in use (e.g., door locks, card keys, biometric identifiers, etc.). Only authorized personnel will transport the data provided or created. 

INSTITUTIONAL ACCESS TO DEBT-TO-EARNINGS METRICS

Question. It is my understanding that the proposed Gainful Employment (GE) 

regulation offers very little visibility to institutions on the performance of their programs prior to the Department of Education’s release of the metrics for accountability purposes. In particular, institutions will have no visibility into the direct 

earnings information from the Social Security Administration that will be used to 

generate the debt-to-earnings metrics. What alternative measures of earnings, including those outside of the transition period, such as the use of Bureau of Labor 

Statistics salary information, will be available to institutions to help them understand where they stand on the metrics and provide institutions with some ability 

to improve program performance? 

Answer. To help institutions understand how their programs might fare under the 

debt-to-earnings metric, the Department has published two sets of informational results that include program-level earnings: The first in connection with the previous 

rulemaking, and the second with the release of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 

in March 2014. These data sets are an estimated 1-year snapshot of potential results under the proposed rule for informational purposes only and are not intended 

to predict long-term outcomes for programs. In addition, institutions will be able to 

approximate a program’s program cohort default rate by breaking its institutional 

cohort default rate down by program level. 

Once the regulations are implemented, for programs without an earnings history, 

an institution will have available, through the required disclosures for GE programs, earnings and other performance information of comparable programs that 

can be used as a benchmark for estimating the performance of a program. Institutions would also have the ability to appeal their debt-to-earnings rates results by 

submitting alternate measures of earnings from two sources, data obtained from a 

State earnings database or data collected through a survey of students who completed the program. 

CONGRESSIONAL PROVISIONS FOR SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS PROGRAM

FLEXIBILITY

Question. Since 2009, this Administration has spent more than $6 billion through 

the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program to help States turn around low-performing schools. States receiving these grants must agree to implement one of four 

federally defined turnaround models. The latest results released by the Department 

of Education confirm that schools receiving grants have made little progress in improving student achievement. 
231 

Recently, Congress granted greater program flexibility to the School Improvement 

Grants by allowing States to develop and present for approval, their own models for 

turning around low-performing schools. What steps has the Department of Education taken to implement this provision in a manner consistent with congressional 

intent? And, will you confirm that States, which have received waivers through the 

Administration’s ESEA Flexibility program, will be able to take advantage of this 

provision? 

Answer. The Department is currently developing a notice of proposed requirements that would implement the new SIG program provisions in the fiscal year 

2014 appropriations act, make other changes that reflect lessons learned from 4 

years of implementation under the current requirements, and help ensure consistency across the Department’s programs. We anticipate publishing the proposed requirements in August 2014 and finalizing the requirements no later than the end 

of the calendar year. The requirements would apply to the subgrant competitions 

that States conduct in spring 2015 using fiscal year 2014 funds. 

A local educational agency applying for fiscal year 2014 funds in a State implementing ESEA flexibility would not be prevented from taking advantage of the provision allowing implementation of an alternative school improvement strategy established by the State and approved by the Department. 

INNOVATION IN EVALUATION OF TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAMS

Question. You recently announced your intention to issue new Federal regulations 

governing the evaluation of teacher preparation programs. Ensuring that teachers 

are well-prepared to lead their classrooms has traditionally been left to the States, 

and many States are currently developing new policies in this area. For example, 

Tennessee and Louisiana are using data from teacher evaluation systems to improve 

their teacher preparation programs. But given that we don’t have proven models of 

effective policy in this area, I am concerned that the Department’s plans to impose 

a one-size-fits-all Federal mandate that States use data from teacher evaluation systems to assess their teacher preparation programs will discourage State innovation. 

What efforts will the Department make to ensure that States have the flexibility 

to develop innovative ways to assess the performance of their teacher preparation 

programs? 

Answer. This summer we will release a proposal to support the pipeline of future 

teachers by strengthening teacher preparation programs; importantly, we will seek 

additional input on this plan through a public comment process. This proposal will 

encourage all States to develop their own meaningful systems to identify high- and 

low-performing teacher preparation programs across all kinds of programs, not just 

those based in colleges and universities, while also asking States to move away from 

current input-focused reporting requirements, streamline the current data requirements, incorporate more meaningful outcomes, and improve the availability of relevant information on teacher preparation. These changes will help to improve systems-level accountability for supporting the high-quality instruction all students deserve. Moreover, strengthened preparation and support will help to make teaching 

an increasingly desirable and rewarding career. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MARK KIRK

SUPPORT FOR YEAR-ROUND SCHOOL PROGRAMS—I3 AND PROMISE NEIGHBORHOODS

Question. As you noted during the hearing, extended day education and yearround schools are a proven way to improve student achievement. Given this, is the 

Department of Education providing funding for any year-round school models 

through any of its programs aimed at innovation in education, such as your Investing in Innovation (i3), or Promise Neighborhoods programs? If not, why not? 

Answer. For the 2014 competition for i3 Development grants, the Department included a priority for improving low-performing schools by either (1) changing elements of the school’s organizational design to improve instruction by differentiating 

staff roles and extending and enhancing instructional time; or (2) changing elements 

of the school’s organizational design to improve instruction by differentiating staff 

roles and extending and enhancing instructional time. 

This year’s pre-application competition for Development grants closed on April 14, 

2014, and of the 94 applications submitted under the priority for improving low-performing schools, 14 applications addressed the subpart for extending and enhancing 

instructional time. At this time, the review process is still in progress. Although the 

Department had not included a priority that explicitly focuses on extended day education and year-round schools on any of the i3 competitions to date, in 2011 Boston 
232 

Public Schools received an i3 Development grant to focus on extended learning time 

under a priority for improving low-performing schools. 

Under the Promise Neighborhoods program, there are currently two grantees that 

provide support for year-round schools. The program has not included a specific priority or requirement for year-round schools, but they are an accepted model. 

YEAR-ROUND SCHOOL PROGRAMS RESEARCH

Question. Is more research needed to show how these year-round programs are 

effective? 

Answer. My understanding is that research on the academic benefits of yearround schools has been inconclusive. As with other approaches to restructuring the 

school day, week, or year, the success of year-round schools may depend on both the 

particular State and local context and the details of implementation. For example, 

if a year-round schedule is adopted primarily to address overcrowding and other facility constraints, and is not accompanied by an effort to rethink the delivery of instruction to take advantage of the new schedule, it may not produce improved academic outcomes. 

OTHER PROGRAM SUPPORT FOR YEAR-ROUND SCHOOLING

Question. With what other existing grant programs could the Department fund 

year-round schools? I am particularly interested in a school model of shorter breaks 

spread out throughout the year. I have seen this model improve student achievement in Chicago charter schools. 

Answer. Most Federal elementary and secondary education program funds may be 

used to support year-round schools, as eligibility for these programs is not dependent on the structure of the school year. However, we do not have any programs that 

specifically support State efforts to restructure the school year, such as by implementing year-round schools. 

YEAR-ROUND SCHOOLS AND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT OUTCOMES

Question. Does the Department track or collect information regarding year-round 

schools in any way, including which areas of the country have such schools and 

what are the student achievement outcomes? 

Answer. The Department does not track separately information on year-round 

schools. 

FOREIGN LANGUAGE IMMERSION PROGRAMS AND INVESTING IN INNOVATION FUNDING

Question. Does the Investing in Innovation (i3) Fund support any foreign language immersion programs for grades K–6? And, if not, why? 

Answer. The i3 program does not include a priority or subpart that specifically 

reference foreign language immersion, and there is not currently a grantee in the 

portfolio whose project has this focus. However, the i3 program does include an absolute priority focused on English learners (and has included a competitive preference priority in previous i3 competitions). Currently 46 of the 117 grants include 

a focus (either explicitly under an absolute or competitive preference priority, or implicitly through the project’s work) on English learners. 

The Department’s process for developing priorities for the i3 competition is complex and considers, among others, policy needs, urgent needs, the quality of the evidence base on particular topics, and the availability of models. To date, foreign language immersion programs have not emerged as a pressing area to be addressed 

through the i3 program during our consideration of topics for past competitions. 

USES OF I3 PROGRAM FUNDING

Question. What is the i3 program spending its money on? 

Answer. The Department has awarded approximately $1.07 billion to 117 projects 

since 2010. Five of those 117 projects have been Scale-Up grants, for a total of 

$219.9 million; 35 have been Validation grants, for a total of $575.6 million; and 

77 have been Development grants, for a total of $277.4 million. 

The table below shows the main topic areas for which the Department has provided funding, mostly through absolute priorities. The information in this table does 

contain duplication because grantees sometimes address more than one of these 

topic areas. The table shows aggregated information for all the cohorts that have 

received funding to date. The first cohort was funded in fiscal year 2010, and no 

grants have ended yet. The first set of grants to expire will do so later in 2014. 
233 

TOPIC AREAS FUNDED BY THE INVESTING IN INNOVATION FUND 

Topic Area Number of grants Total funding 

Teacher and Principal Effectiveness ...................................................... 23 $314,483,707 

Turning Around Low-Performing Schools ................................................ 22 264,027,914 

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) ................ 26 220,158,904 

Standards and Assessments .................................................................. 21 180,805,322 

Use of Data ............................................................................................. 9 66,422,464 

Parent and Family Engagement ............................................................. 8 22,216,648 

Serving Rural Communities .................................................................... 24 249,503,263 

English Learners ..................................................................................... 38 351,635,234 

Students with Disabilities ...................................................................... 17 98,176,186 

Technology ............................................................................................... 3 17,991,838 

SUCCESSFUL AND EFFECTIVE I3 PROGRAM MODELS

Question. The i3 program, or the Investing in Innovation Fund, is now 4 years 

old; what are the successes and effective models that the Department has seen as 

a result of this program? 

Answer. The first cohort of i3 grantees was funded in September 2010. These 

projects are 4 to 5 years in length, and complete findings about their implementation and effect will not be available until 2015 at the earliest, when the first cohort 

concludes its project activities. While most i3 grantees will be sharing findings in 

a formal evaluation report at the end of their grant projects (and the i3 program 

will have a report of the national evaluation of i3 in spring 2016), some grantees 

are releasing interim reports with interim findings. Grantees with interim reports 

that show positive findings include Reading Recovery (The Ohio State University), 

Success for All Foundation, and AppleTree Institute. In the 2013 grant competition, 

we found that one of the projects funded under the Validation competition used evidence produced under a 2010 Development grant to meet the moderate evidence requirement and receive the Validation grant. We are very excited about seeing the 

progression of i3 grantees across the evidence pipeline. 

In addition, the Department has made modifications to grant competitions based 

on lessons learned from previous competitions. Specifically, we give careful consideration to priorities we use each year to identify gaps in the portfolio where a competition would help us find projects with potential for success and effective models. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JOHN BOOZMAN

INVESTMENT IN CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

Question. I am very proud of the career and technical education (CTE) classes offered across the State of Arkansas. I constantly hear about the programs and their 

strong collaborations with employers and businesses in their communities, full classes and many students who are honor students and both career- and college-ready. 

In striving to provide the best possible education for our students and prospects for 

their future, why aren’t there further investments in CTE, in many cases a proven 

successful program, in the fiscal year 2015 President’s budget request? 

Answer. We agree that the programs authorized under the Perkins Career and 

Technical Education Act provide important support for helping students prepare for 

future careers. The President’s budget proposal for education represents hard 

choices for funding among multiple worthy programs in a difficult fiscal environment. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget request respects the spending levels 

set in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, with new discretionary funding dedicated 

to areas where we think it will have the greatest impact on improving educational 

outcomes. We also believe that a reauthorized Act that strengthens alignment between secondary and postsecondary education and enhances accountability will enhance the quality of CTE programs available to students at the current funding 

level. 

ENSURING WIDESPREAD BENEFITS FROM COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS

Question. In testimony you have delivered to both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, it is clear there is a focus and investment in competitive 

funding and grants, and a desire for innovation with these new competitive grants. 

Since the President has not requested any increases in ESEA, Title I and IDEA formula funding which are so crucial to a majority of districts across the country, espe-
234 

cially in a rural State like Arkansas which has a more difficult time finding resources to compete for these grants, I’m concerned about the focus of your budget. 

How are you planning on disseminating innovative ideas and best practices from all 

of these new grants to ensure that schools who aren’t beneficiaries of these grants 

will benefit in some way from these investments? 

Answer. The Reform Support Network (RSN), which was created to support the 

Race to the Top grantees as they implement reforms in education policy and practice, also shares promising practices and lessons learned with other States attempting to implement similarly bold education reform initiatives. Similarly, the School 

Turnaround Learning Community supported by the School Improvement Grants 

program shares turnaround resources with all schools, districts, and States. 

COMPETITIVE PROGRAMS AND EQUITY AND OPPORTUNITY GAPS

Question. Do you have any concerns that further competitive funding will create 

more opportunity gaps and less equity? 

Answer. We believe targeted, competitively awarded investments can produce innovative models of effective instruction and improvement that can shrink opportunity gaps and increase educational opportunity for all students, and serve as models on how to use existing funds to improve equity. 

SUPPORT FOR SUCCESSFUL CHARTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS

Question. In many cases, public charter schools operate at best with around 80 

percent of funding that traditional public schools have, and these high-performing 

charters are doing exceptional work even within these financial constraints, like one 

rural public charter in my State, the KIPP Delta Collegiate which was recently 

ranked by US News and World Report as the 2nd Best High School in Arkansas. 

What investments or policies in this budget or actions is the Department taking to 

help successful charters spread their impact? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget supports efforts to expand the 

number of high-quality educational options available to our Nation’s students in several ways. Most notably, the budget includes $248 million for a new charter schools 

program, Supporting Effective Charter Schools, which under the Administration’s 

proposal to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act would support 

grants to State educational agencies (SEAs), charter school authorizers, charter 

management organizations, local educational agencies (LEAs), and other nonprofit 

organizations for the start-up or expansion of high-quality charter schools. Funds 

could also be used for grants to SEAs, LEAs, and financial institutions to improve 

access by high-quality charter schools to facilities and facilities financing. 

Successful charter schools also would benefit from other key proposals in the budget. For instance, charter high schools are well-positioned to access the $150 million requested for the proposed High School Redesign program, which would support 

innovative approaches for improving the high school experience and increasing the 

number of students prepared for college and careers without the need for remediation. The effective practices of high-performing charter schools could also be further developed, validated, and scaled up with resources from Investing in Innovation, for which the Administration has requested $165 million for fiscal year 2015. 

TRIO FUNDING

Question. Given that the Administration has focused so heavily on expanding the 

numbers of low- and moderate-income, first generation students entering into college and on their successful graduation, is there a reason why TRIO funding in the 

fiscal year 2015 budget is maintained at fiscal year 2014 levels? 

Answer. The President has articulated a bold vision for the United States to once 

again lead the world in college attainment by 2020. We regard the Federal TRIO 

programs as a key component of the President’s strategy to realize this ambitious 

goal. In fiscal year 2014, Congress restored most of the sequester reduction to the 

Federal TRIO programs, providing $838.3 million, a level the Administration has 

proposed to maintain in the fiscal year 2015 President’s Budget Request. At this 

level, the Department expects to support approximately 2,790 TRIO projects serving 

nearly 800,000 students nationwide. 

However, the Administration believes that such a bold objective also requires new 

Federal approaches to stimulate States and institutions of higher education to pursue innovative college access and completion strategies. To that end, the President’s 

2015 budget request includes the following: 

—Encouraging States to support, reform, and improve the performance of their 

public higher education systems through the State Higher Education Performance Fund, which would generate an $8 billion new investment to make college 
235 

more affordable and increase college access and success, especially for low-income students; 

—Rewarding colleges that successfully enroll and graduate a significant number 

of low- and moderate-income students on time and encourage all institutions to 

improve their performance through the new College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus program; 

—Reforming the campus-based programs to target those institutions with a demonstrated commitment to providing a high-quality education at a reasonable 

price, that enroll and graduate higher numbers of Pell-eligible students, and 

that offer an affordable and quality education such that graduates can repay 

their educational debt; 

—Reinstating the Ability to Benefit provision for students enrolled in eligible career pathways programs, which will allow adults without a high school diploma 

to gain the knowledge and skills they need to secure a good job; and 

—Helping borrowers manage their debt by extending Pay As You Earn to all student borrowers, ensuring the program is well-targeted, and simplifying borrowers’ experience while reducing program complexity. 

SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Senator Kirk. 

Thank you, Senator Moran. 

Thank you, Mr. Secretary. 

Secretary DUNCAN. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. The meeting will stand adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 11:06 a.m., Wednesday, April 30, the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of the 

Chair.] 

(237) 

DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND 

RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014 

U.S. SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, Washington, DC. 

The subcommittee met at 10:02 a.m., in room SD–138, Dirksen 

Senate Office Building, Hon. Tom Harkin (chairman) presiding. 

Present: Senators Harkin, Durbin, Reed, Mikulski, Shaheen, 

Moran, Shelby, Alexander, and Johanns. 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

STATEMENT OF TIMOTHY LOVE, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, CENTERS FOR MEDICARE AND MEDICAID SERVICES 

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR TOM HARKIN

Senator HARKIN. The Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, 

Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies will 

please come to order. 

Each year this subcommittee questions the Secretaries of agencies under our jurisdiction. But because Secretary Sebelius has resigned and the nominee to serve as the next HHS Secretary, Mathews Burwell, has not yet been confirmed, we are sort of in an odd 

situation, so we decided on a different approach for HHS this year. 

We have before us today leaders from each of the HHS operating 

divisions that have the large proposals in the President’s budget, 

new programs as well as programs with proposals for significant 

increases and/or cuts. 

So this is a great opportunity for this subcommittee to get answers from the leaders most responsible for implementing our bills, 

so I look forward to this. Each of your agencies administers at least 

one program that holds special interest for me, and I am sure for 

others on this committee. 

Overall, the budget request for HHS is $1.5 billion less than last 

year. The budget request is consistent with the overall funding levels in the Bipartisan Budget Act. That agreement partially restored 

cuts from sequestration and prevented further cuts to nondefense 

discretionary programs in 2014 and 2015. 

However, as this budget request shows, this committee knows all 

too well that cuts to nondefense discretionary spending over the 

last several years have forced some very difficult decisions. 
238 

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), I have been 

deeply committed to expanding access to high-quality early learning programs for most of my career. I am pleased with the budget’s 

proposed $270 million increase for Head Start and the $57 million 

increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant. This bill 

honors significant investments this committee made in those programs just last year. 

I am particularly interested in hearing more today about the ACF work in implementing the $500 million provided last year to 

expand Early Head Start, including the establishment of new Early 

Head Start-Child Care Partnerships. 

At the same time, I am deeply concerned about proposed cuts to 

the Community Services Block Grant program and LIHEAP (Low 

Income Home Energy Assistance Program). 

For CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), Dr. 

Frieden and I have had conversations about the importance of public health. The challenge of public health is that when it is working 

well, no one should notice it. We in the U.S. notice it least because 

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a world-class 

public health institute. 

In fact, that is why I was pleased to allocate funding in 2014 to 

create a program to help other countries create their own CDCs to 

organize their health systems around public health and data. 

So I look forward, Dr. Frieden, to hearing about progress on that 

effort. 

Dr. Wakefield, it is nice to have you back on Capitol Hill, where 

you are no stranger here. You spent most of your career here with 

both Senator Burdick and Senator Conrad, both of whom were 

great leaders in rural health and rural healthcare. Your career has 

demonstrated your commitment to delivering high-quality care to 

those who need it most, and I can think of no greater calling and 

no greater mission than HRSA’s (Health Resources and Services 

Administration), which is to increase access to comprehensive primary care services for medically underserved communities. 

So that is why I am deeply troubled by the repeated budget proposals to cut or delay health center openings and to reduce the 

number of pediatricians and nurses that we train. I will also have 

a question about integrative medicine and how we are doing with 

that. 

Last but not least, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Although Ms. Tavenner is unable to attend today—her 

mother passed away just last evening—I want to congratulate 

CMS, its leaders and staff, on the latest enrollment estimates, including 8 million people who signed up for coverage in the State 

and Federal exchanges, close to 5 million in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. So despite a rocky start with 

that Web site, the Affordable Care Act remains the most significant 

human services legislation in decades. It is giving millions of men, 

women, and children affordable insurance options for the first time. 

So I look forward to hearing from you, Mr. Love, about the steps 

CMS is taking to ensure that the people who signed up for coverage have access to and receive quality care. 

I am particularly interested in hearing about two things: CMS’s 

continued efforts to reduce healthcare fraud and abuse. As we 
239 

know from our data, for every $1 we spend in that area, we are 

getting $8 returned to the Treasury in savings. So that work is 

critical to ensuring that Medicare is available for millions of Americans for generations to come. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

The other is, again, the provision of prevention and wellness programs under CMS and how that is being implemented in the Affordable Care Act. 

So I hope that the format of this hearing will give us renewed 

appreciation for the breadth of human needs that HHS serves 

every year. So I look forward to all of your testimony. 

Before Senator Moran starts his statement, Chairwoman Mikulski submitted a statement to be inserted for the record. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHAIRWOMAN BARBARA A. MIKULSKI

Today we are here to discuss the fiscal year 2015 budget request for the Department of Health and Human Services. I would like to thank Chairman Harkin and 

Ranking Member Moran who worked so hard to enact the 2014 Omnibus. By negotiating with their House counterparts, we were able to ensure HHS would no longer 

have to operate under a continuing resolution or sequestration. 

This hearing is part of the Senate Appropriation Committee’s mission to hold 

more than 60 hearings in a span of 6 weeks and to complete all of our appropriations work by October 1. We will begin the process of marking up our bills on May 

22, and hope to consider this subcommittee’s bill sometime in June. 

It saddens me to acknowledge that this will be the last LHHS appropriations bill 

authored by Senator Harkin. However, it should also inspire us to get the LHHS 

bill to the Senate floor for the first time in 7 years. It would be a fitting way to 

pay tribute to Senator Harkin, who has either chaired or served as the ranking 

member of this subcommittee for the past two decades. 

I look forward to hearing from our panel of witnesses, which represent HHS’ Administration for Children & Families (ACF); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). 

I hope all of you touch on how the Health and Human Services’ budget will help 

to create jobs and support innovation, while protecting the public’s health and providing kids with quality healthcare, child care and a jump start on education. 

Mr. Greenberg, I will want to discuss two areas of ACF’s budget request with you: 

Child Care Development Block Grants (CCDBG) and Unaccompanied Alien Children. 

Senator Burr and I worked together on a bipartisan reauthorization of the 

CCDBG program that followed regular order and had an open amendment process 

on the Senate floor. We were able to make important reforms that improved the 

quality of care children receive. I was thrilled to see our bill pass with overwhelming bipartisan support and a vote of 96–2. 

I appreciate that your fiscal year 2015 request increases funding levels for 

CCDBG, but additional funding will still be needed to ensure that the reforms in 

our bill are implemented effectively. Kids must be taken off waiting lists and provided with the child care they deserve. 

While your requests for CCDBG give reason for optimism, I am very disappointed 

with the budget you have requested to tackle the issue of Unaccompanied Alien 

Children. You have asked for level funding even though you had to transfer millions 

of dollars to this program in fiscal year 2014 in order to fulfill your needs. 

I am worried because these are some of our most vulnerable children. They have 

left their countries and travelled thousands of miles to enter the United States, 

often fleeing violence to avoid becoming victims of abuse or organized crime. 

Their journey here is often riddled with danger—these kids put their life, health 

and safety in jeopardy. Along the way, they risk being subjected to trafficking and 

the violence they were attempting to escape. These brave children deserve our consideration. 

On April 22, I convened a bipartisan, bicameral staff level meeting with various 

Federal agencies that are responsible for these unaccompanied alien children. We 
240 

learned that the number of unaccompanied children entering the United States is 

rising. 

In fiscal year 2012 there were 14,000. In fiscal year 2013 there were 25,000 and 

that number is projected to balloon to 60,000 for fiscal year 2014. This issue is not 

going away—we expect tens of thousands more to enter the country in fiscal year 

2015—and we need to keep these children in mind when appropriating our resources. 

What I need from you is a better estimate of the budget you will need to provide 

these kids with proper services so you don’t have to transfer funds in the future. 

Dr. Frieden, as America’s chief public health officer, I look forward to hearing 

your plans for new and existing initiatives. 

How do you plan to continue the creation of blue zones, which were supported by 

$80 million in Community Prevention Grants? 

I hope you will delve into how you plan to use the $45 million in funding to improve global health security. What will your approach be in helping other countries 

build and strengthen their own Centers for Disease Control as well as improve early 

detection and response to epidemics? 

You have also requested $30 million to combat antibiotic resistance by quickly 

identifying deadly microbes and use common sense practices to protect patients from 

infection. I encourage you to work with Dr. Peter Pronovost of Johns Hopkins, his 

checklist has proven very effective in reducing central line infections. 

Lastly Dr. Frieden, I am keen to hear more about the $16 million budgeted to 

address prescription painkiller abuse. 

Administrator Wakefield, I look forward to hearing about your work to strengthen 

the healthcare work force and increase the number of primary care doctors, nurses, 

pediatricians and dental providers in underserved communities. 

I am also interested in hearing how communities, families and patients are benefiting from the additional funding dedicated to health reform and community health 

centers. 

Finally, Mr. Love, I have particular interest in CMS because it employs over 4,200 

in my home State of Maryland. CMS does important work to process Medicare 

claims, increase access to health insurance, prevent fraud and abuse, help States 

expand their Medicaid programs, support new healthcare delivery innovations and 

implement healthcare reform. 

I want to hear how this budget will enable you to fulfill those crucial responsibilities. I also want to know what specific plans you have to increase health insurance 

enrollment; improve the functionality and operation of the Federal health insurance 

exchange; and help States expand their own Medicaid programs. 

I understand that there are some proposals in this budget that will not be universally supported across the aisle—that’s the nature of any bill or budget. We all have 

things we like and things we don’t like, but we must try to refrain from making 

any one issue a ‘‘deal breaker.’’ 

It is my hope, however, that we can work together to come to an agreement. I 

think we all recognize that sequesters and continuing resolutions are not an effective way to run a Federal agency like the Department of Health and Human Services. Our Nation is better off when we work together and govern together. 

Senator HARKIN. I will now turn to our ranking member, Senator 

Moran, for his opening statement. 

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JERRY MORAN

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. 

Before I give my remarks, let me express my condolences to 

Marilyn Tavenner and her family. We have a good, solid working 

relationship with Marilyn, and I really do express my sincere concern and care for her loved ones. We are sorry for the loss of her 

mother. 

I am, Mr. Chairman, disappointed that the Secretary of Health 

and Human Services is not here today. In my view, she declined, 

refused to testify, to talk about and defend the budget request. 

I know there were numerous press accounts last week about this 

issue, and what I know about it is that our staff invited all Cabinet 

Secretaries under the purview of this committee with the option of 
241 

certain dates. We asked those Cabinet Secretaries to accept one of 

those dates, and we do it in whoever accepts first gets that date. 

And Secretary Sebelius accepted the opportunity to testify at a 

hearing to be held on April 2, and then at her request, we moved 

her opportunity to testify to May 7, to accommodate her schedule. 

The Department of Health and Human Services budget requests nearly $70 billion for fiscal year 2015, and I would expect the head 

of any Department, regardless of its budget size, regardless of its 

budget request, to appear before the Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss and defend, for our consideration, their thoughts 

on that budget. 

More closely, the total discretionary and mandatory budget com- bined of Health and Human Services for fiscal year 2015 is $1.02 

trillion. That is more than the amount of the discretionary budget 

cap for the entire Federal Government. And so we get the view of 

how big Health and Human Services is. 

And I, certainly, appreciate the individuals who are here to testify today. I know that you have expertise and experience. 

But none of you can testify to the overall strategy or management of the Department. Not one person on the panel before us can 

explain the give-and-take that goes into determining how funding 

is allocated throughout the entire budget. Not one witness here 

with us today can answer the questions regarding the priorities of 

the Department as a whole. And not one of the panelists can speak 

to why specific decisions were made. 

All of these questions would be answered by a Secretary. And in 

that role, I believe she should be here. And I am disappointed that 

she declined to appear before our panel today. 

I have worked hard to be a valuable and hardworking member 

of the Appropriations Committee. I have praised Barbara Mikulski 

and her leadership of our Appropriations Committee. There has 

been a great desire to get us back to regular order. Her leadership, 

along with Senator Shelby, has been very much appreciated by me 

and I assume by all members of the Appropriations Committee. 

And I wanted to make certain that the circumstance we find ourselves into today doesn’t become a norm for the Appropriations 

Committee. In my view, regular order would require that a Cabinet 

Secretary be here to discuss and defend his or her budget. 

And I want the committee’s work to be responsible and received 

well and to be respected. And I think we lose something if we easily forgo the opportunity to have a conversation with a Cabinet Secretary. 

My colleagues tell me, who have been here longer than I have, 

that no one can remember a Cabinet Secretary declining to appear 

before their appropriations subcommittee. Whether or not that fact 

is exactly true or not, I am not certain. But at least for those who 

have told me, there is no recollection of that not being the case. 

And I want to make clear from my perspective, and I hope this 

is not a Republican/Democrat perspective, is the Appropriations 

Committee is deserving of the respect of a Cabinet Secretary to be 

here in front of us to have the conversations necessary for us to 

make decisions, to elucidate the facts surrounding the appropriations request, and to make sure that we do our jobs as appropriators as best as we can to our abilities. 
242 

So, Mr. Chairman, I used my opportunity in my opening statement to, certainly, express my respect for the folks who are in front 

of us, but to indicate my disappointment at the absence of the Secretary. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thanks, Senator Moran. 

Again, I just want to make it clear, in statements referred to last 

week, and since I made the statements, I want to respond in kind. 

I want to make it very clear that as the chair of this subcommittee, 

I never formally asked or invited the Secretary to appear. Staff 

started working this stuff out, trying to figure out dates and all 

that kind of stuff, when it is mutually agreeable. 

In between time, Secretary Sebelius submitted her resignation. 

And then the President nominated Ms. Burwell to be the head of 

HHS. Budget hearings, these kinds of budget hearings, look forward. They look at what is coming. That is what the budget is 

about, next year. 

Secretary Sebelius is not going to be here next year. But Ms. 

Burwell hasn’t taken over yet. And so we were sort of in a kind 

of limbo. 

I will admit that this is my idea, to have the heads of the agencies under HHS that have the lion’s share of the funding to come 

here. 

I said earlier to the group, I said a lot of times if I were asked 

to appear and testify on something under my jurisdiction, I would 

have all my staff in back of me, backing me up, because they are 

the repository of the knowledge. They are the ones who carry out 

this. 

Secretaries, Senators, we have sort of a broader vision of things. 

And so I thought it would be interesting, and perhaps even hopefully maybe a precedent to have the people here who actually do 

the work, and who carry out the bulk of the spending of the money 

that we appropriate. 

And so there is nothing sinister or anything other than that. If 

we were having an oversight hearing over the past, yes, you would 

have someone like that here who was responsible for implementing 

things in the past. But that is not why we are here. We are talking 

about the budget for the future and what that is going to be about. 

And that is why I set this up in this way. 

Each of you here, your statements will be made a part of the 

record in their entirety. We will start left to right. We will start 

with Mr. Love, if you can sum up in 5 minutes, also Mr. Greenberg, 

Dr. Frieden, Dr. Wakefield. And then we will start our rounds of 

questioning. 

So, Mr. Love, please start, and if you can just sum it up in 5 

minutes. 

SUMMARY STATEMENT OF TIMOTHY LOVE

Mr. LOVE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the 

subcommittee, thank you for the invitation to discuss the Centers 

for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ discretionary budget request 

included in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget. 
243 

I am appearing today on behalf of Administrator Tavenner, who 

the chairman and ranking member graciously acknowledged her 

loss last night. I will do the best I can as her understudy. 

My name is Tim Love, and I was appointed CMS’s chief operating officer in January of this year. As a career public servant, I 

have spent nearly 3 decades in public service, including the United 

States Navy, a Peace Corps volunteer, and over 22 years in CMS. 

I would like to begin by saying that our agency is committed to 

strengthening and modernizing the Nation’s healthcare system to 

provide access to high-quality care and improved care at lower 

costs for beneficiaries and consumers enrolled in our programs. 

I would like to thank the subcommittee for the support you have 

provided CMS that allows us to carry out this important work. 

Our fiscal year 2015 budget request allows CMS to build on the 

successes we have achieved in helping more Americans obtain 

healthcare coverage while improving the quality and value of the 

care provided. 

CMS has led efforts to expand affordable health insurance coverage to Americans through the health insurance marketplace. We 

are pleased to report that at the end of the first enrollment period, 

8 million Americans have signed up for private health insurance. 

An additional 4.8 million Americans have enrolled in a State Medicaid program during this period. 

In addition to the marketplace, CMS continues to serve 54 million Americans through Medicare, 65 million through Medicaid, 

and nearly 6 million through the Children’s Health Insurance Program, also known as CHIP. 

Our fiscal year 2015 program management budget request enables reforms in healthcare delivery, while continuing to support 

the ongoing Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP programs, as well as 

the marketplace. 

The CMS budget supports fraud prevention and the reduction of 

improper payments, which are top priorities for the administration. 

The program integrity investments in the budget are projected to 

yield $13.5 billion in savings for Medicare and Medicaid over the 

next 10 years. 

Our budget includes a package of Medicare legislative proposals 

that will save $407 billion over 10 years, while more closely aligning payments with actual costs of care, strengthening provider payment incentives to promote high-quality care, and by creating incentives for beneficiaries to seek high-value services. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

Together, these measures will extend the hospital insurance 

trust fund solvency by 5 years. 

Our budget reflects the administration’s commitment to fiscal responsibility while providing CMS with the resources it needs to 

support demographic trends in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP, and 

continued administration and oversight of the marketplace. 

We look forward to continuing our work with this subcommittee, 

and I would like to thank you for your time this morning. 

[The statement follows:] 
244 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF TIMOTHY LOVE

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the subcommittee, 

thank you for the invitation to discuss the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services discretionary budget request included in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget. 

Our request will allow us to build on the successes we have achieved in helping 

more Americans access healthcare coverage and improving the quality and value of 

care provided across our delivery system. 

In fiscal year 2014, CMS led efforts to expand affordable health insurance coverage to Americans through the Health Insurance Marketplace. We are pleased to 

report that 8 million Americans have signed up for private health insurance through 

the Marketplace and more than 4.8 million more Americans enrolled in Medicaid 

and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Additionally outside experts 

estimate that millions more enrolled directly with insurers for new high-quality coverage. In 2015, we will continue our work to expand quality, affordable coverage to 

millions of Americans. In addition to the Marketplace, CMS continues to serve 54 

million Americans through Medicare, 65 million through Medicaid, and nearly 6 

million through CHIP. 

Fixing America’s healthcare system doesn’t stop with guaranteeing that everyone 

has coverage. To address the rising costs of healthcare, we must improve the way 

that healthcare is delivered, including the coordination and safety of care. We are 

working closely with providers, hospitals, and others to improve our healthcare delivery system for all patients. Already, we have made significant progress. For the 

second consecutive year, overall health costs grew more slowly than the economy as 

a whole. We have also seen low spending growth per enrollee in 2012 for Medicare 

(0.7 percent), Medicaid (1.3 percent), and private health insurance premiums (2.7 

percent). 

We began tying Medicare payments for hospitals to their readmission rates, and 

saw the 30-day, all-cause readmission rate decline in both 2012 and 2013. In 2012, 

Medicare Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) began participating in the Shared 

Savings Program that encourages providers to invest in redesigning care for higher 

quality and more efficient service delivery, without restricting patients’ freedom to 

go to the Medicare provider of their choice. The program is off to a strong start with 

338 Medicare ACOs participating in the Shared Savings Program. We are encouraged by the interim results and we look forward to final performance year one results later this year. 

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

The budget for CMS Program Management enables reforms in healthcare delivery 

while continuing to support the ongoing Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP programs 

in CMS, as well as the recently implemented Health Insurance Marketplace. The 

request also accommodates substantial increases in CMS’ workload because of demographic trends and program changes driving higher Medicare and Medicaid enrollment and implements responsibilities assigned in the Affordable Care Act and 

other legislation related to Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP. The fiscal year 2015 discretionary budget request for CMS Program Management is $4.2 billion, an increase 

of $108 million above fiscal year 2014. This request will allow CMS to continue to 

effectively administer Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), as well as new health insurance reforms contained in the Affordable 

Care Act. 

With Medicare enrollment projected to grow to 55 million beneficiaries in fiscal 

year 2015, CMS will require additional resources to effectively oversee the programs. For example, the budget requests an additional $49 million in Survey and 

Certification funds to conduct mandated Federal inspections of key facilities—such 

as nursing homes—serving beneficiaries. This increase is needed to complete surveys at frequencies consistent with statutory and policy requirements, given continued growth in the number of participating facilities, increased survey responsibility, 

and inflation. The budget improves survey frequencies for dialysis facilities, nonaccredited hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and other providers. Additionally, 

this budget requests funding to survey community mental health centers for the 

first time. 

PRIVATE INSURANCE AND THE MARKETPLACES

The Affordable Care Act provides vital new protections for consumers receiving 

or shopping for private health insurance. New reforms ensured that essential care 

will become a standard part of most private health insurance plans, and that consumers can continue to rely upon their insurance when they become ill. Consumers 
245 

are able to purchase more efficient coverage due to rate review and medical loss 

ratio protections. By providing one-stop shopping, the Marketplace has helped individuals better understand their insurance options and assisted them in shopping 

for, selecting, and enrolling in high-quality private health insurance plans. The budget includes $629 million for CMS activities and administrative expenses 

to support Marketplace operations in fiscal year 2015. For the federally facilitated 

Marketplace (FFM), CMS performs eligibility and appeals work, certification and 

oversight of qualified health plans, payment and financial management functions, 

and operates the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP). As a part of this 

work, CMS operates a number of IT systems to support the Marketplaces, such as 

the system that operates FFM functions including eligibility, and plan management. 

The data services hub provides eligibility verification services to all Marketplaces 

through interfaces with trusted data sources in other Federal departments. Other 

IT costs include hosting services and data management systems. 

Additionally, CMS oversees operations of State-based Marketplaces and provides 

technical assistance as needed. To help individuals better understand their coverage 

options, CMS provides Marketplace consumer assistance through a call center and 

website for the FFM, as well as in-person support through Navigator grants. 

PROGRAM INTEGRITY

The fiscal year 2015 budget supports fraud prevention and the reduction of improper payments, which are top priorities of the administration. For fiscal year 

2015, the budget invests a total of $428 million in new Health Care Fraud and 

Abuse Control Program (HCFAC) and Medicaid program integrity funds. Together 

the program integrity investments in the budget will yield $13.5 billion in gross savings for Medicare and Medicaid over 10 years. The budget also proposes legislative 

changes to give HHS important new tools to enhance program integrity oversight; 

cut fraud, waste, and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance 

Program (CHIP); and generate an additional $1 billion in program savings over 10 

years. 

The HCFAC investment supports efforts to reduce the Medicare fee-for-service improper payment rate and initiatives of the joint HHS–DOJ Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team task force, including Strike Force teams in 

cities where intelligence and data analysis indicate high levels of fraud, and the 

Health Care Fraud Prevention Partnership between the Federal Government, private insurers, and other stakeholders. CMS will also make further investments in 

innovative prevention initiatives, such as the Fraud Prevention System that analyzes all Medicare FFS claims using sophisticated algorithms to identify suspicious 

behavior. In fiscal year 2015 and beyond, CMS will continuously refine these technologies to better combat fraud, waste, and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP. 

Finally, these funds will support more rigorous data analysis and an increased focus 

on civil fraud, such as off-label marketing and pharmaceutical fraud. 

IMPROVING THE EFFICIENCY OF MEDICARE AND MEDICAID

The budget includes a package of Medicare legislative proposals that will save 

$407.2 billion over 10 years by more closely aligning payments with costs of care, 

strengthening provider payment incentives to promote high-quality efficient care 

and making structural changes that will reduce Federal subsidies to high-income 

beneficiaries and create incentives for beneficiaries to seek high-value services. Together, these measures will extend the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund solvency by 

approximately 5 years. The budget seeks to preserve stability in the Medicaid program and CHIP during the first full year of the Affordable Care Act expansion of 

coverage while also including $7.3 billion in Medicaid savings and $345 million in 

CHIP investments over 10 years to make Medicaid and CHIP more flexible, efficient 

and accountable. 

CONCLUSION

The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request reflects the administration’s commitment to fiscal responsibility, while also providing CMS with the resources it 

needs to support beneficiary growth in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP, continue administration of the FFM, and conduct effective oversight of State-based Marketplaces. Thank you for your interest in CMS’ efforts to strengthen and modernize the 

Nation’s healthcare system to provide access to high-quality care and improved 

health at lower costs, and I look forward to continuing to work with the subcommittee on these important issues. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Mr. Love. 
246 

Mr. Greenberg, for the Administration for Children and Families. 

STATEMENT OF MARK H. GREENBERG, ESQ., ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY, ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES 

Mr. GREENBERG. Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, 

members of the subcommittee, thank you for inviting me to discuss 

the 2015 budget proposals for the Administration for Children and 

Families. 

Mr. Chairman, I want to begin by thanking you for your years 

of leadership and your support of ACF programs over this time. In 

particular, your leadership in education for the Nation’s youngest 

children has been critical for Head Start and to advancing the Nation’s early education agenda. We wish you the very best for your 

retirement. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much. I am looking forward to 

it. 

Mr. GREENBERG. ACF’s budget supports programs serving our 

most vulnerable children and families, including victims of domestic violence, of human trafficking, youth and foster care, runaway 

and homeless youth, and others. 

In my opening statement this morning, I will focus on our early 

childhood initiatives, but I would be happy to discuss other aspects 

of our budget in response to your questions. 

Research shows that one of the best investments we can make 

in a child’s life is high-quality early education. In 2015, the President has renewed his call for investments to create a continuum of 

high-quality early learning services for children from birth through 

age 5. The initiative would expand voluntary evidence-based home 

visiting programs, expand access to high-quality care for infants 

and toddlers through Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships, 

and help States provide high-quality preschool for 4-year-olds in 

low- and moderate-income families through a partnership with the 

Department of Education. 

We appreciate this committee’s strong support for the Early 

Head Start-Child Care Partnerships in 2014. Our budget requests 

$650 million to support and expand those partnerships. The funding will assist communities in increasing access to programs that 

meet Early Head Start standards of quality for infants and toddlers. 

Through the partnerships, Early Head Start programs and child 

care providers will work together to provide high-quality, full-day 

services, offering comprehensive support to meet the needs of working families and to prepare children for preschool. 

We are seeking an increase of $270 million for the Head Start 

program in order to maintain current service levels. That would 

bring the total funding for the program to $8.9 billion. 

The 2015 request for the child care and development fund involves both mandatory and discretionary funds, a total of $6.1 billion between mandatory and discretionary. It would support subsidies for 1.4 million children and important initiatives to raise the 

quality of child care. 
247 

PREPARED STATEMENT

In discretionary funding, we are seeking an additional $57 million. We are also proposing that of the discretionary funding, that 

$200 million be targeted to help States develop higher health and 

safety standards, to improve monitoring, to increase provider quality through evidence-based professional development, and to improve access to information for parents choosing a child care provider. 

In concluding, ACF’s budget strives to promote the economic and 

social well-being of children, individuals, families, and communities. It addresses critical needs in a period of limited Federal resources. 

And I would be happy to answer any questions. Thank you. 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF MARK H. GREENBERG

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the subcommittee, 

thank you for supporting the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) in fiscal year 2014 and for inviting me to discuss ACF’s proposed budget for fiscal year 

2015. In addition to an overview of ACF’s budget, I would like to share with you 

three areas in which we are working to address important needs: (1) early childhood 

development, (2) unaccompanied alien children, and (3) reducing the over-prescription of psychotropic drugs for children in foster care. 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 BUDGET

The fiscal year 2015 budget request for ACF is $51.3 billion. ACF’s budget supports expanding access to high-quality early education to prepare our youngest children for success in life. Funds are also included for programs that serve our most 

vulnerable children and families, including victims of domestic violence and human 

trafficking, and runaway and homeless youth. In addition, the budget supports important improvements in Head Start, Child Care, and Child Support. 

The budget includes mandatory funding for a new demonstration, in partnership 

with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, to address the over-prescription 

of psychotropic drugs for children in foster care. The budget also proposes to create 

subsidized job opportunities for low-income parents by redirecting $602 million in 

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funding to a Pathways to Jobs 

initiative. 

The fiscal year 2015 discretionary request for ACF is $17 billion, a decrease of 

$637 million below fiscal year 2014, reflecting a fiscal climate that forces difficult 

choices among worthy programs. The budget advances high-quality care for infants 

and toddlers as part of the President’s plan to help prepare America’s children for 

success in life by expanding access to early education. Additional investments are 

also included to continue a groundbreaking study of children at risk of abuse or neglect and of children in the child welfare system, and to study the prevalence of 

youth homelessness and the characteristics of homeless youth in order to better advance efforts to end youth homelessness. 

EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

As the President stated in his State of the Union Address, research shows that 

one of the best investments we can make in a child’s life is high-quality early education. These programs can help level the playing field for children from lower income families by improving school readiness through increased vocabulary and social and emotional development. In fiscal year 2015, the President renews his call 

for a series of investments that will create a continuum of high-quality early learning services for children beginning at birth through age 5. This initiative would expand current Federal investments in voluntary, evidence-based home visiting programs, expand access to high-quality care for infants and toddlers through HHS’ 

Early Head Start—Child Care Partnerships, and help States provide high-quality 

preschool for 4 year olds in low and moderate income families through a partnership 

with the Department of Education. 

We appreciate the strong support provided by this committee for Early Head 

Start—Child Care Partnerships in fiscal year 2014. The budget requests $650 mil-
248 

lion, an increase of $150 million above fiscal year 2014, to support and expand the 

Partnerships. This funding will assist communities in increasing access to early 

learning programs that meet Early Head Start standards of quality for infants and 

toddlers. The funds will be competitively awarded to new and existing Early Head 

Start programs. Applicants may propose to partner with child care providers that 

serve lower income children, especially those receiving Federal child care subsidies, 

or to expand existing services. Through these partnerships, Early Head Start programs and child care providers will work together to provide high-quality full-day 

services that offer comprehensive supports to meet the needs of working families, 

and prepare children for preschool, in a variety of settings. 

An increase of $270 million is sought for the Head Start program in order to 

maintain current service levels. This will bring total funding for the program to $8.9 

billion. In addition to the EHS–CC Partnerships, this funding level includes over 

$8.2 billion to provide services for an estimated 929,000 slots for Head Start and 

Early Head Start children and their families. The budget continues to include $25 

million in transitional funding for the Designation Renewal System to minimize disruption of services to Head Start children and families during the transition period 

to new Head Start providers from low-performing Head Start programs. 

The fiscal year 2015 request for the Child Care and Development Fund is $6.1 

billion, which includes $3.7 billion for the Child Care Entitlement and $2.4 billion 

for the Child Care and Development Block Grant. The total funding level represents 

an increase of $807 million over fiscal year 2014 in combined discretionary and 

mandatory funds, and will support subsidies for 1.4 million children—approximately 

74,000 more children than would otherwise be served. Of the $2.4 billion available 

in discretionary funds for child care, $200 million is targeted to help States raise 

quality by developing higher health and safety standards, improving monitoring, increasing provider quality through evidence-based professional development, and improving access to information for parents choosing a child care provider. 

UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHILDREN

Unaccompanied alien children (UAC) apprehended trying to enter the United 

States unaccompanied by a parent or guardian are among the most vulnerable populations ACF serves. By law, ACF must accept UAC into its care and custody upon 

referral from the Department of Homeland Security or other Federal agencies. 

These children reside in State-licensed shelter facilities until ACF can place them 

with sponsors, usually parents or other relatives. The annual number of arriving 

UAC has increased from 6,560 in fiscal year 2011 to an estimated 60,000 in fiscal 

year 2014. Reasons for this increase are complex, but a key factor is the high level 

of violence in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador, the countries of origin for 

most UAC. 

In the last 3 years, ACF has streamlined its placement process, reducing the average amount of time unaccompanied alien children spend in shelters. ACF has cut 

the average length of stay for all UAC from 75 days between fiscal year 2005 and 

fiscal year 2011 to 35 days in fiscal year 2014. ACF has also been able to decrease 

the per bed costs by 5 percent. Despite these efforts, total UAC costs have increased 

significantly due to the rising number of UAC. 

As directed by Congress, ACF is working with the Departments of Homeland Security, State, and Justice—in an effort to better understand the reasons for the increase in the number of UAC arrivals and develop strategies for managing rising 

UAC costs. We appreciate the committee’s willingness to provide UAC funding 

based on updated arrival estimates in fiscal year 2013 and fiscal year 2014. This 

action has enabled ACF to serve all incoming UAC without reducing services for refugees. We are continuing to monitor the flow of UAC in 2014 and will keep the committee updated on what impact this will have for the amount of funding needed in 

2015. 

ADDRESSING THE OVER-PRESCRIPTION OF PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGS FOR CHILDREN IN

FOSTER CARE

May is National Foster Care Month, which provides us an opportunity to reflect 

on the efforts we’ve made on behalf of the vulnerable children we have taken into 

our care. Children in foster care receive a disproportionate level of prescriptions of 

psychotropic medication compared to other children receiving Medicaid. A 2011 Government Accountability Office report using Medicaid claims from five States found 

that 20 percent to 39 percent of children in foster care received a prescription for 

psychotropic medication in 2008, compared with 5 percent to 10 percent of children 

not in foster care. 
249 

For fiscal year 2015, ACF’s budget includes a request for $250 million over 5 

years in mandatory funding to support State efforts to reduce over-prescription of 

psychotropic medications and improve outcomes for young people in foster care by 

scaling up evidence-based psychosocial interventions, in concert with a Medicaid 

demonstration. This initiative will encourage the use of evidence-based screening, 

assessment, and treatment of trauma and mental health disorders among children 

and youth in foster care in order to reduce the over-prescription of psychotropic 

medications. This new investment and continued collaboration will improve the social and emotional outcomes for some of America’s most vulnerable children. 

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, ACF’s budget strives to promote the economic and social well-being 

of children individuals, families, and communities. This budget addresses critical 

needs in a period of limited Federal resources. Again, thank you for the opportunity 

to discuss ACF’s proposed budget with you. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Mr. Greenberg. And 

thank you for your kind words. I appreciate it. And thank you for 

your long work in this whole area. 

Dr. Frieden, welcome back. 

STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS R. FRIEDEN, M.D., M.P.H., DIRECTOR 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION 

Dr. FRIEDEN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, Ranking 

Member Moran, and members of the subcommittee. We appreciate 

this opportunity to share with you our plans for the coming year. 

And we thank you for your support in 2014, and I will be able to 

discuss how some of that support is already being brought to bear 

to protect Americans better. 

CDC works 24/7 to protect Americans from threats, whether they 

come from this country or anywhere in the world, whether they are 

infectious or noncommunicable, whether they are intentional manmade or naturally occurring. 

Last week, the U.S. had its first case of MERS coronavirus, the 

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, which has been highly lethal 

in several countries of the Middle East and has been exported to 

countries in Europe. 

This is the first case we had in the U.S. It was in a traveler who 

went from Saudi Arabia to London to Chicago and took a bus to 

Indiana, where he has been hospitalized. 

And this really emphasizes that we are all connected by the air 

we breathe, by the water we drink, by the food we eat. And diseases anywhere are just a plane ride away. 

One of the things we do at CDC is to respond to emergencies. 

And a few years ago, the U.S. Ambassador to Africa said to me that 

CDC is the 911 for the world, and I thought, that is wonderful, but 

really, what we want to do is make sure that countries all over the 

world have their own public health 911, so that they can find, stop, 

and prevent health threats at the source. 

That will protect us better. That will protect them better. And 

that is what our Global Health Security Initiative is for the 2015 

budget proposal. 

This will allow us to do better at finding and stopping things like 

Ebola. We currently have a team in West Africa. The first time 

West Africa has had an Ebola virus outbreak. It has been large, 

highly lethal. 
250 

And outbreaks like this destabilize countries. They kill people. 

They also undermine economic development. And they affect us in 

the United States. 

In fact, the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak 10 years ago cost the world more than $30 billion in just 3 months. 

So we have plenty of good reasons to invest in global health security, and the 2015 request is for a $45 million expansion of what 

we have done in 2013 and 2014 to better protect countries and better protect ourselves by having a safer world. 

The second major initiative that we are proposing for 2015 is addressing a second growing threat to Americans, and that is antimicrobial resistance, drug-resistant bacteria. 

We are seeing now at least 23,000 deaths, at least 2 million ill- nesses, about $20 billion in healthcare costs in the U.S. from drugresistance. We are losing really our last lines of defense. These are 

miracle drugs. 

I am trained as an infectious disease physician. I practiced before 

there was treatment for HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), and 

then I saw the wonders of HIV treatment, and how that transformed the world. I worked in tuberculosis control for many years 

and I, unfortunately, took care of patients for whom there were no 

drugs to treat. 

We are potentially facing a challenge that we will have no drugs 

to treat common infections, if we don’t address antimicrobial resistance more effectively and urgently. And we are confident that we 

can make real progress. 

Our 2015 request is for $30 million, a 5-year program that we 

are confident will be able to cut two of the most deadly threats in 

terms of microbial threats to the U.S., what is called CRE, or 

carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae, and C. difficile. Each of 

these is a very big problem. We think we can cut them in half in 

5 years with this support, as well as reducing other problems. Just 

for one of those conditions, that would save $2 billion over 5 years. 

The third major new initiative we are proposing is on prescription opiate abuse, and this is a huge problem. It is one of the very 

few problems that is getting worse in terms of health in this country. We have had a fourfold increase in the number of people dying 

from prescription opiate abuse, and that is related to a large increase in prescriptions of these drugs, which are very important for 

drugs for patients with pain palliation, such as those with terminal 

cancer, but are being overused to a very great extent. 

We are confident that with this resource, what we will do is support States to do a better job helping patients and helping doctors 

use these dangerous medications as effectively as possible, and 

drive down overdoses and overdose deaths. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

So I want to thank you again for your support in 2014. We are 

already using the support you gave us through the Advanced Molecular Detection Initiative to do rapid sequencing of the MERS 

coronavirus case that is already in the U.S. so we can better understand that case. So thank you for that. Public health really is the 

best buy, and I very much look forward to answering your questions. 
251 

[The statement follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THOMAS FRIEDEN, M.D., M.P.H. 

Good morning, Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and other distinguished members of the subcommittee. It is a pleasure to appear before you as Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Nation’s leading 

health protection agency and an operating division of the Department of Health and 

Human Services, to discuss CDC’s fiscal year 2015 budget request. Today I would 

like to focus on how CDC works 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to protect Americans 

from health threats, and how we propose to make even more progress in fiscal year 

2015. We thank this committee for supporting CDC through your 2014 appropriations. 

CDC works 24/7 to keep America safe from health, safety, and security threats, 

both foreign and domestic. Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are chronic 

or acute, curable or preventable, human error or deliberate attack, CDC fights disease and supports communities and people to do the same. For fiscal year 2015, 

CDC has requested additional funding to accelerate the fight against three growing 

threats—the risk of infectious disease threats from around the world, growing resistance to antibiotics, and the increasing epidemic of prescription drug overdose. 

WORKING TO PROVIDE HEALTH SECURITY 24/7

CDC helps save lives 24/7 by preventing, detecting, and controlling the growing 

risks of infectious disease outbreaks, emerging infectious diseases, drug-resistant 

bacteria, and natural and manmade hazards and disasters. We provide emergency 

response support, technical expertise, and critical rapid development of prevention 

technologies, including vaccines and other medical countermeasures. 

CDC provides boots on the ground presence in the United States and throughout 

the world, supported by our state-of-the-art laboratories, which are critical to our 

Nation’s safety and health. With this committee’s support, CDC is now building our 

advanced molecular detection capacity, unlocking microbial genomes to track and 

stop outbreaks more effectively, and finding new ways to prevent these outbreaks 

in the first place. 

CDC’s response to diseases such as influenza, salmonella, hantavirus, HIV, and 

Ebola are highly visible ways CDC protects the public from health threats, but it 

is often what the public does not see every day that keeps Americans safe from everpresent health threats. CDC plays a pivotal role in our country’s ability to respond 

to and mitigate potentially catastrophic events—such as pandemics, natural disasters, and acts of bioterrorism—by ensuring that local, State and global public health 

systems are prepared for public health emergencies and by working to keep health 

threats from entering our country. 

CDC plays another critically important role protecting Americans from the leading causes of death and disability. CDC applies life-saving solutions that work to 

drive down the incidence of costly diseases and improve the lives of Americans. 

CDC leads prevention and health promotion efforts to improve health and reduce 

chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, which account for 75 

percent of the $2.7 trillion in healthcare costs spent in the United States each year. 

Together with State and local partners, CDC deploys proven interventions to build 

healthier communities. For example, CDC worked with Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services (CMS) and private-sector partners to launch the Million Hearts® 

initiative, which will prevent one million heart attacks and strokes by 2017 through 

proven strategies such as improving blood pressure control and promoting smoking 

cessation. Our efforts to control chronic diseases are expanding in 2014, thanks to 

the support of this committee. 

KEEPING AMERICA AND THE WORLD SAFE THROUGH GLOBAL HEALTH SECURITY

Diseases and disasters know no borders; we are all connected by the air we 

breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat. CDC deploys scientists and disease detectives globally 24/7, because outbreaks that start in remote corners of the 

world can travel here as quickly as a plane can fly. Detection and response time 

is critical. Diseases infecting people around the world in the past 10 years—such 

as MERS Coronavirus, SARS and H1N1 and H7N9 influenza—cost lives and caused 

enormous economic disruption. These and other diseases have far-reaching health, 

economic, political, and trade implications. Less than a week ago we confirmed our 

first MERS case in the United States, and CDC has a team on the ground helping 

to prevent the spread of that deadly virus. 
252 

Our fiscal year 2015 budget requests $45 million to support expanded global 

health security activities. Over the next 5 years, CDC and U.S. Government partners, including the Departments of State and Defense, will work with up to 30 countries to protect at least 4 billion people through global health security efforts. As 

an important step toward this larger goal, CDC’s funding request will allow us to 

partner with up to 10 countries in fiscal year 2015 to advance global health security, 

building on successful demonstration projects in Uganda and Vietnam, as well as 

others currently underway. CDC will help countries find threats faster, stop them 

closer to the source, and prevent them wherever possible. 

FIGHTING ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Antibiotic resistance—when bacteria do not respond to the drugs designed to kill 

them—threatens to return us to the time when simple infections were often fatal. 

Today, antibiotic resistance causes more than 23,000 deaths, more than 2 million 

illnesses, and up to $20 billion in healthcare costs in the United States each year. 

Tomorrow could be even worse: A simple cut of the finger could lead to a life-threatening infection; routine surgical procedures, such as hip and knee replacements, 

would be far riskier; and common complications of life-saving treatments such as 

chemotherapy and organ transplants could prove fatal. 

Now is the time to address this threat. CDC’s 2015 budget request includes $30 

million to detect and protect against antibiotic resistance. With strategic investment 

over the next 5 years, CDC can turn the tide on the most dangerous of these infections, including reducing infections with CRE—the nightmare bacteria—by 50 percent and reducing C. difficile infections by 50 percent. Reduction in C. difficile alone 

will save 20,000 lives, prevent 150,000 hospitalizations, and cut more than $2 billion 

in healthcare costs. Achieving these goals requires investments in laboratory capacity to detect resistance across the Nation, implementing best practices for infection 

control in healthcare settings, and improving antibiotic prescribing practices. 

REVERSING THE PRESCRIPTION DRUG OVERDOSE EPIDEMIC

We are witnessing a new epidemic rapidly unfold in America: deaths from prescription painkiller overdoses. Prescription painkiller overdose deaths increased 

four-fold between 1999 and 2010, killing more people than all illicit drugs combined—including cocaine and heroin. The prescription drug overdose epidemic is 

driven in large part by fundamental changes in the way healthcare providers prescribe opioid pain relievers. We can prevent abuse of prescription drugs while at the 

same time making sure patients receive safe, effective, and appropriate pain treatment. CDC’s fiscal year 2015 budget requests $16 million to work with States and 

the healthcare system to begin to reverse this epidemic. 

As the Nation’s health protection agency, CDC has led the way in identifying the 

connection between inappropriate opioid prescribing and resulting overdose deaths. 

CDC’s proposed investment would target States with the highest burdens of prescription drug overdose to implement proven strategies to reverse the trend, including assisting insurers and clinicians in improving coordination of care for high-risk 

patients; supporting development and effective use of universal, real-time, and actively managed prescription drug monitoring programs—State-run prescription 

tracking databases; and evaluating State programs and policies to build the evidence base for overdose prevention. 

Public Health Challenges in a 24/7 World 

In the next few years, CDC and our Nation must face both new and ongoing challenges to protect our health security in a time of fiscal constraint. We must accurately detect and quickly respond to numerous and unpredictable disease threats, 

whether natural or man-made. We must also ensure that CDC is able to protect 

Americans from the leading causes of death and disability that weaken our economic productivity and global standing. Thank you for your continued support of 

CDC’s important work to serve this Nation, and I am happy to answer your questions. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Dr. Frieden. 

Dr. Wakefield. 

STATEMENT OF HON. MARY K. WAKEFIELD, PH.D., R.N., ADMINISTRATOR, HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. Good morning, Mr. Chairman. Before I begin, I 

too want to acknowledge your upcoming retirement and personally 
253 

thank you for the support you have given to the programs that are 

operated through the Health Resources and Services Administration across the years. Clearly, you place a high priority on the communities and the populations that are served by these programs. 

So thank you for that. 

I should also provide a little bit of a shout-out to your staff. Over 

the years, too, they have just been terrific, both in advancing your 

goals and the goals of this committee. 

With that, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify 

today on behalf of the Health Resources and Services Administration. 

HRSA is the primary Federal agency charged with improving access to healthcare services for people who are medically underserved because of their economic circumstances or because of geographic isolation or serious chronic diseases, among other factors. 

To address these issues, HRSA’s programs work through partnerships. We engage in partnerships with States, community-based organizations, academic institutions, healthcare providers, and others 

to strengthen the Nation’s primary care infrastructure, to bolster 

the healthcare workforce, and to achieve health equity. 

I want to take just a few minutes to provide the committee with 

an overview of HRSA’s priorities for fiscal year 2015. 

In terms of strengthening the primary care infrastructure, our 

community health centers program support community-based organizations that provide comprehensive primary care services in 

medically underserved communities. 

Health centers provide a really wide range of services, medical 

services, dental, behavioral services. And frequently, those services 

are located in one setting. 

I think it is important to note, too, that when it comes to health 

centers and that infrastructure, nearly half of all of them are located in rural communities. 

The HRSA budget includes $4.6 billion for the health centers 

program. This funding will enable us to serve about 31 million patients, and that is an increase from about 21 million patients that 

were reported in our most recent data. 

That care is provided through 9,500 service delivery sites, and 

those sites stretch across the Nation. They are in every State, in 

the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 

the Pacific basin. 

In fiscal year 2015, $100 million is allocated to fund 150 new 

health center sites that will serve an additional about 900,000 patients. 

HRSA also has a priority focus on supporting a highly skilled 

healthcare work force through health professions training, through 

curriculum development, and through scholarships and loan repayment programs. 

In order to increase the availability of high-quality care, HRSA 

health workforce programs provide targeted support for health professions, and for parts of the country where shortages of health 

professionals exist. 
254 

To this end, the HRSA budget includes a new workforce proposal 

to increase the supply of needed healthcare providers that are well 

distributed across the country. 

One of our most important primary care workforce programs is 

the National Health Service Corps. The corps works to build 

healthy communities by supporting qualified health providers dedicated to working in rural and urban areas of the country where 

shortages of healthcare providers persist. 

Employed by local primary healthcare sites including rural 

health clinics and community health centers, National Health Service Corps technicians work every day to promote health and to 

treat illness and injury. In this case, too, nearly half of all our current corps providers work in rural communities. 

To meet the needs of both rural and urban underserved populations, the President’s budget includes the largest increase in 

funding in the history of the National Health Service Corps, and 

it is projected to support an annual field strength of more than 

15,000 providers from fiscal year 2015 through 2020. These are 

providers who will meet primary healthcare needs of more than 16 

million patients. 

HRSA’s health workforce funding will also support a new competitive grant program, the Targeted Support for Graduate Medical 

Education Program. This new program will fund teaching hospitals, children’s hospitals, and community based consortium of 

teaching hospitals and other healthcare entities in order to expand 

residency training with a focus on ambulatory, primary, and preventive care. 

Also integral to ensuring that vulnerable populations have access 

to critical health services is the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program. 

We now know that people living with HIV who are on drug treatment and are virally suppressed are much less likely to transmit 

the infection to others. 

By helping people to stay in care and adhere to their 

antiretroviral treatments, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program 

plays a critical role in preventing the spread of HIV. 

Armed with this knowledge, the Ryan White program supports 

the national HIV/AIDS strategy of reducing transmission by serving patients across the care continuum. 

HRSA also administers a number of other critically important 

healthcare programs that collectively touch the lives of millions of 

people across the country, including poison control centers, national 

programs for countermeasures and vaccine injury compensation, 

and Federal organ and blood stem cell transplantation. 

PREPARED STATEMENT

Across the agency, we take seriously the stewardship of our programs and our responsibility for the funds that are awarded to 

grantees and communities. And over the last few years, we have 

developed a number of strategies to ensure the integrity of the programs that we operate. 

Thank you again for providing me with the opportunity to share 

our work with you today, and I too will be pleased to answer questions. 

[The statement follows:] 
255 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF MARY K. WAKEFIELD, PH.D., RN 

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the subcommittee, 

thank you for the opportunity to testify today on the Health Resources and Services 

Administration’s (HRSA) budget request for fiscal year 2015. HRSA is the primary 

Federal agency charged with improving access to healthcare services for people who 

are medically underserved because of their economic circumstances, geographic isolation, or serious chronic disease. Our fiscal year 2015 budget addresses these issues 

by providing critical investments in programs that bolster our primary care infrastructure, strengthen the healthcare workforce, and improve health equity. 

BOLSTER PRIMARY CARE INFRASTRUCTURE

To bolster the Nation’s primary care infrastructure, the budget includes $4.6 billion for the Health Center program, which supports community-based, patient-directed organizations that provide comprehensive primary care services in medically 

underserved communities. Health centers provide a wide range of medical, dental, 

and behavioral services, often making all of these services available at one location. 

It is important to note that nearly half of all health centers serve rural populations. 

The fiscal year 2015 investment will allow health centers serve approximately 31 

million patients, at nearly 9,500 service delivery sites and provide care in every 

State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and 

the Pacific Basin. The budget also allocates $100 million to fund 150 new health 

center sites that will serve an additional 900,000 patients. 

STRENGTHEN HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE

HRSA is also charged with strengthening the healthcare workforce by supporting 

the education and distribution of a highly skilled primary care workforce through 

training, curriculum development, and scholarship and loan repayment programs. 

To this end, the budget provides $1.8 billion for health workforce programs and 

makes new and strategic investments to strengthen our supply of healthcare providers that are well-distributed throughout the country. 

One of our most important primary care workforce programs is the National 

Health Service Corps. Employed by local rural health clinics, community health centers, and other primary care sites, Corps clinicians work every day to promote 

health and treat illness and injury in rural and urban areas of the country where 

access to care is limited and where shortages of healthcare professionals persist. 

Nearly half of all current Corps providers work in rural communities. The President’s budget includes $810 million for the Corps in fiscal year 2015, which represents the largest level of funding in the history of the Corps. This level of funding 

is projected to support an annual field strength of more than 15,000 providers over 

fiscal years 2015–2020 and serve the primary healthcare needs of more than 16 million patients annually. 

HRSA will also invest in our Nation’s health workforce through the new Targeted 

Support for Graduate Medical Education (GME) program, which will expand residency training in primary care and other high-need specialties with the goal of encouraging innovation in training models and greater accountability for GME funds. 

This program will support 13,000 residents over 10 years through competitive 

grants to teaching hospitals, children’s hospitals, and community-based consortia of 

teaching hospitals and/or other healthcare entities. 

The budget also invests $144 million to develop the Nation’s nursing workforce 

through programs that, among other strategies, support the enhancement of advanced nursing education and practice, increased nursing education opportunities 

for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, and an expanded nursing pipeline. 

The budget also provides for two new workforce initiatives, including $10 million to 

support a new Clinical Training in Interprofessional Practice program to increase 

the capacity of community-based primary healthcare teams to deliver quality care. 

In addition, $4 million is provided to fund new Rural Physician Training grants to 

help rural-focused training programs recruit and graduate students likely to practice medicine in rural communities. 

ACHIEVE HEALTH EQUITY

HRSA considers our work with special populations and eliminating health disparities a top priority. The budget includes $2.3 billion for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS 

Program to improve and expand access to care for persons living with HIV/AIDS. 

As a payor of last resort, the Ryan White Program funds services not covered by 

health insurance but which are nonetheless critical to ensuring that individuals living with HIV are linked into care and started on anti-retroviral drug regimens. Due 
256 

to the Affordable Care Act, many Ryan White clients will continue to gain access 

to health insurance or see improvements in their current health insurance coverage 

in fiscal year 2015. In response to these changes, as well as the evolving nature of 

the epidemic, the Federal Government will continue to coordinate closely with State 

and local governments and Ryan White Program grantees to ensure that vulnerable 

populations living with HIV have regular access to quality HIV care and life-extending medications. 

The budget also proposes better serve the needs for women, infants, children and 

youth by consolidating funds from Part D of the Ryan White program to Part C. 

The consolidated program will emphasize care across all vulnerable populations and 

will allow resources to be better targeted to points along the HIV care continuum 

and to populations most in need throughout the country. 

One of our largest programmatic areas focused on special populations is our maternal and child health programs. The HRSA budget includes funding through fiscal 

year 2024 to extend and expand the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home 

Visiting program, through which States are implementing evidence-based home visiting programs that enable nurses, social workers, and other professionals to work 

with at-risk families and to connect them to assistance that supports the child’s 

health, development, and ability to learn. These programs are strictly voluntary and 

have been shown to improve maternal and child health and developmental outcomes, improve parenting skills and school readiness. 

In addition to the investments in health centers and the National Health Service 

Corps that will improve access to healthcare in rural areas, the budget provides 

$125 million for targeted programs to assist Americans living in rural communities 

through the HHS Office of Rural Health Policy, which is housed within HRSA. The 

Office serves as the Department’s primary voice on rural health issues and funds 

a number of State and community-based grant and technical assistance programs 

to help meet the healthcare needs of rural communities. 

HRSA also makes investments in a number of other critically important 

healthcare programs that collectively touch the lives of millions of people across the 

country. These include the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which provides discounts 

on outpatient prescription drugs to program that serve a high number of low-income 

patients, and efforts to support Federal organ and transplantation oversight, as well 

as efforts to promote awareness of organ transplantation issues and increase organ 

donation rates. 

CONCLUSION

In fiscal year 2015, HRSA will continue its efforts to strengthen the safety net 

by expanding and enhancing primary care services, primary care health professionals, services for low-income individuals and people with serious health conditions, such as HIV/AIDS or in those in need of an organ transplant. We will continue to leverage our work on important health services for mothers and children, 

and targeted health professions training. HRSA will also continue to work in partnership with other Federal entities, State and local governments, private organizations, and Members of Congress to strengthen access to care with the aim of improving the health of millions of Americans. Thank you again for providing me the opportunity to discuss HRSA’s fiscal year 2015 budget with you today. I am pleased 

to respond to your questions. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Dr. Wakefield. 

We will now start a series of 5-minute questions, and I will start 

off. 

EARLY HEAD START-CHILD CARE PARTNERSHIPS

Mr. Greenberg, I want to start with you, the Administration for 

Children and Families. The budget request includes $150 million 

to expand Early Head Start, including the new Early Head Start 

and child care partnerships. This subcommittee had provided $500 

million for the same purpose last year. I understand the grant competition for these fiscal year 2014 funds will be announced in the 

next couple weeks. There is a lot of excitement and interest in communities across the country, because of this. 

So could you talk, just very briefly, about ACF’s vision for these 

new Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships, because, as I un-
257 

derstand it, what we were trying to do, obviously, in promoting 

more Early Head Start, we recognize that there are a lot of different providers of child care out there. They are doing good jobs, 

too, but we want them to be coordinated with Early Head Start, 

not one-size-fits-all, but how can we start coordinating it, so these 

kids are ready to go to kindergarten, basically, and first grade? Is 

that the idea? 

Mr. GREENBERG. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yes, it is. 

I should say, we are very excited about the Early Head StartChild Care Partnerships, and we have been struck over the last 

number of months, as we have talked and worked with Head Start 

programs and child care programs, and those interested in early 

childhood across the country, how much excitement there is. 

Mr. Chairman, as you indicate, the basic concept is that there 

are very high standards that apply in the context of Early Head 

Start, but only a very small number of eligible infants and toddlers 

are able to participate in the Early Head Start program. A much 

larger number are in child care settings across the country, and the 

child care settings vary considerably in their quality. 

The vision for the partnerships is that Early Head Start providers will actively work with child care providers in their communities. In doing so, that will ensure that Early Head Start services 

can be provided to children in child care settings, and at the same 

time, there is a potential to use this as a way of raising the overall 

quality of child care that can benefit a much larger group of children. 

So we are excited about it. There is tremendous enthusiasm in 

the field. We are expecting a strong and vigorous competition. And 

we are seeking additional funding, because we know that in this 

first round of competition, we will only be able to respond to what 

is likely to be a fraction of the interest that is out there in moving 

this direction. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Mr. Greenberg. 

GLOBAL HEALTH SECURITY

Dr. Frieden, we included $7.5 million in last year’s omnibus for 

CDC to establish national public health institutes in developing 

countries. A lot of this came about because of a trip I took with you 

to Africa one time. And what we saw was a lot of fragmentation 

in these countries, different departments doing different things and 

taking a long time to determine what was causing an outbreak, or 

where it was located, how it was being transmitted. 

So the idea was to help set up CDC-like structures in other countries. As you know, CDC sort of sets the standard for the world. 

I noticed China has even called its own public health institute the 

China CDC. That speaks volumes. 

So we put that $7.5 million in there. It was, hopefully, to start 

this, to make your agency’s job easier when there are disease outbreaks. So now the budget for next year zeroed out this initiative. 

So tell me what that is all about. And how does your budget request for $45 million for global health security fit in with this initiative? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. Thank you very much, Senator Harkin. Thank you 

for your leadership on this and so many other issues. I think your 
258 

understanding and commitment to public health have been extraordinarily helpful in getting us the progress that we have made. 

And as we have seen when we go around the world, the leading 

question I am asked is how can we have our own CDC? With these 

resources, we have put out a call and asked countries what they 

would like to do. 

We have more than 30 countries interested in doing more in this 

area. We anticipate giving five countries cooperative agreements to 

expand an existing public health institute and make it more of an 

effective program, and three countries to begin that planning process so they can have something in the future. 

The budget always has hard choices, and we wish things could 

be in this that aren’t. However, I do think there is a synergy between the Global Health Security Initiative and national public 

health institutes. Global health security is about helping other 

countries best find, stop, and prevent disease outbreaks within 

their borders. 

In order to do that, they need a laboratory network. They need 

trained epidemiologists. They need emergency operations centers. 

They need a way of operating. And to do that, they have to have 

effective national public health institutions. 

So I think there is a great deal of synergy between these programs. Resources are not what we would all wish they would be 

for the kind of programs that we would like to run, but I do think 

the national public health institutes program is a very important 

one. 

Senator HARKIN. My time has run out. I want to follow up on 

that, maybe in the next round, because, one, it seems to me it is 

facilities, bricks and mortar, laboratories. It seems like the other 

one is setting up systems. And I don’t know how that is working 

out with both of these. 

Senator Moran. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. In deference to my colleague from Nebraska who has an Ag Committee 

hearing, I will yield my time to Senator Johanns. 

Senator JOHANNS. I thank the ranking member. Sometimes we 

are called to be in two places at once, and I appreciate it, because 

that is an important hearing also. 

Let me just start out and say, thank you for being here. We, certainly, appreciate it. 

I would like to offer a comment, though, about the absence of 

Secretary Sebelius. I have been in the chair of a Cabinet Secretary 

before. I am astonished, absolutely blown away, that she is not 

here today. 

I am a fairly new member to the Appropriations Committee, and 

I can’t think of more important work than what we do. We guard 

the taxpayer’s dollar. 

We not only look forward in these hearings to what is coming in 

the next year. We look back at how those dollars were spent in the 

past year. So I am very troubled by the fact that she is not here. 

It is part of the job of being a Cabinet Secretary. I had the honor 

of being a Cabinet Secretary. And at one point in that career, the 

chairman of this committee was also my chairman of my committee 

of jurisdiction. 
259 

There never would have been a day where, if I was asked to appear before a committee he was chairing, that I would not have attended. That simply would not have happened. 

Most importantly, what we do here is we try to assure Nebraskans and people across this country that tax dollars are spent wisely. 

I can tell you, having been in your chair many times, I am not 

sure I would describe it as a pleasant experience, but it was important that I defended the priorities in the budget that I proposed to 

Congress. 

And as long as I was Secretary, there was no one else that could 

replace my presence. 

So by not being here, Secretary Sebelius and, I feel, the White 

House, too, because they could direct that she be here—is sending 

the message that somehow they are not accountable, not accountable to me, not accountable to my colleagues, but most importantly, 

not accountable to the American taxpayer. 

Leadership is not about convenience and being available when it 

works into someone’s schedule. It is about accepting responsibility 

for the job you have taken on. 

The fact of the matter is that this budget was compiled under the 

Secretary’s watch. No one else’s. She was in charge. Not only that, 

she is still running this agency. 

Unfortunately, her absence speaks volumes about lack of transparency. 

The Secretary’s time at HHS has, certainly, not been a picture 

of success. Last month, a nonpartisan Congressional Research 

Service report revealed that the administration has failed to meet 

more than half—more than half—of the 83 statutory deadlines required under Obamacare. She is the Secretary. I should have the 

right to ask about that. And the Department of HHS was responsible for virtually all of those missed deadlines. 

This administration has unilaterally delayed or changed parts of 

the healthcare law more than 20 different times. Again, virtually 

all of these delays are under the jurisdiction of HHS. So we have 

a slew of missed deadlines, changes to the law that, quite honestly, 

we haven’t approved in Congress. 

But if anything, that would underscore the importance of her 

being here, to justify that, to tell me why she thinks she has the 

ability to do that. 

Last year during the appropriations process, I actually offered an 

amendment that required HHS to be more transparent in spending 

on Obamacare. I was very pleased that the language was included 

in the final appropriations package. 

It required the Department to submit in this year’s budget request an outline of the sources of funding used to implement the 

healthcare law’s exchanges, and specifically how the Department 

used that money. But she is not here to answer for that. Unbelievable. 

I don’t believe the HHS budget came close to following those requirements, and I have the requirements right here. Why should 

I not be entitled to ask her about that? 

So I want to reiterate my disappointment. I think it was important that I use my time to express this. I hope somehow the mes-
260 

sage gets back to the White House that we are serious about oversight. We are serious about transparency. And we are serious when 

we ask Cabinet members to attend our hearings. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Johanns. 

And while we might have some disagreements on certain things, 

we both agree on one thing: It is time to retire. 

Senator JOHANNS. And we are. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Mikulski. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Thank 

you for holding this hearing. 

I wanted to come for several reasons. One, of course, is our responsibility to do due diligence on these budgets. But also to thank 

the men and woman at this table and the people who work at the 

agencies that they are the executive leadership of. I want to thank 

them for their service. 

In each and every way and every day, our country is better and 

safer, and our children’s lives are brighter, because of your leadership, your executive ability, your trying to guide us during great 

times of budgetary turmoil and uncertainty. And then facing sequester, facing furloughs, facing uncertainty, and facing a rather 

skimpy cost-of-living increase. 

So I want to thank you. I want to thank people at each and every 

one of these agencies for the job that you do. And I know the other 

day, they gave the so-called Sammies awards for thanking people 

for their service, but we can’t do the job we want to without that. 

Each and every one of you, we could have had a separate hearing 

on the work that you do, from the CDC, to CMS, to Children, and 

HRSA, et cetera. 

But today, because of a sense of urgency to really hold our hearings, do our due diligence, and be able to avoid a lame duck, we 

are working on a bipartisan, bicameral basis to restore regular 

order. 

I want to thank Senator Shelby, for all of his cooperation, and 

then my chairs and my ranking, to be able to accomplish this. 

Our goal is to be able to move our committees in an expeditious 

way, and then to be able to complete our work by October 1. It is 

a bodacious, audacious effort, because it has not been done since 

1996. Since 1996, the Congress of the United States has not completed this. So we are going to give it a go, and we are going to 

give it a try. 

ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES’ FISCAL YEAR 2015

BUDGET REQUEST

I am going to focus my time, though, with you, Mr. Greenberg. 

Ordinarily, I go with health and talk to CMS, talk to CDC, and 

talk to HRSA. But I am going to focus on you today for two reasons: One, early childhood; and then the other, the unaccompanied 

children. 

I want to thank Senators Alexander, Shelby, Harkin, and Burr. 

We led a bipartisan effort here on children. 

First of all, in last year’s appropriation, we put money into Head 

Start, and we did it by working together. And you felt that plus- 
261 

up. So we say Congress did. This is the Congress that did it. This 

is the Congress that did it. 

And then working on a bipartisan basis, we passed the Child 

Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) that had not been reauthorized in, again, over 20 years, by working together. 

So let me get to my question. Is this budgetary request—first of 

all, let’s go to the CCDBG grant—enough resources to implement 

the new authorizing legislation that was passed on a bipartisan 

basis, particularly on the quality initiatives? 

Mr. GREENBERG. Thank you, Senator Mikulski, for your comments. I first just want to recognize how much we appreciate the 

bipartisan support in the appropriations process and the—— 

Senator MIKULSKI. We appreciate the thanks, but I have 5 minutes. 

Mr. GREENBERG. Okay, so for the requirements of the bill that 

would strengthen health and safety, and strengthen consumer education, and strengthen a number of other aspects of State performance, States, if their funding is limited, States will need to make 

judgments within their block grant funds around prioritizing. 

Senator MIKULSKI. I am getting lost here. Do you have the 

money or don’t you? I mean, is this enough or not? 

Mr. GREENBERG. The budget request that the administration 

made was one that was recognizing the importance of additional 

funding for child care, both for access and for quality. It is also a 

budget request that is necessarily constrained by the figures that 

we are operating within. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Can we go to the Head Start program? You 

say the additional $270 million will maintain current service levels. 

Now, we love the President’s new initiative. But what we feel 

right now is we have to keep going on that which we have, where 

we don’t have new programs, new regs, new compliance standards, 

but keep that which we are doing. 

Now is this Spartan, skimpy, or do you think adequate? Because 

there is a code word here: To maintain current service levels. I am 

concerned about this, that it is not really enough. And, again, there 

is strong bipartisan support for Head Start here. 

And I might say, on the other side of the dome, too. 

Mr. GREENBERG. Sure. And in the Head Start request, we did 

structure it in order to maintain current services, certainly, to go 

further than that would have required additional funding. And we 

were constrained in what we could request in discretionary funding. 

Senator MIKULSKI. So what I hear you saying is that what we 

are doing here is good, but it is going to be barely enough to meet 

that which we already have on the books. 

I am not trying to put you on the spot. 

Mr. GREENBERG. Sure. 

Senator MIKULSKI. So let me then go to unaccompanied children. 

I am really frustrated about this. 

Colleagues, I would really ask you, knowing your concern, both 

as Senators and fathers, and so on, we have children pouring over 

the border from Central America. These are unaccompanied children. We have, like, boat people, but they are border children. 
262 

They are pouring over the border. The numbers are escalating. 

When they come over, HHS picks up these children. We don’t want 

to warehouse them. We try to put them in foster care. 

They are being sent by their families to escape the violence in 

Central America. 

There was a little girl from Ecuador who, when she was moved 

to a shelter, hung herself in the shower. And she had been on the 

road all by herself, and she was 11 years old, and she had been 

on the road for 2 months. 

Now Sebelius called me when I was doing the omnibus, asked for 

more money because they didn’t have it. They underestimated the 

numbers. 

So we put in more money. Barbara Mikulski, a social worker, 

working with Richard Shelby, who was not going to leave children 

warehoused in Quonset huts, and, I must say Hal Rogers and Nita 

Lowey, we put the money in. 

Now, I have been saying to the Administration, ‘‘Tell me what 

you need, and don’t stick us with the bill at the end.’’ And I feel 

that you are not telling me what you need. I really don’t feel that 

HHS is telling me what you need. 

So you have gone from—and I say this to my colleagues, please 

go to page 5 of the testimony—in 2011, it was 6,500 kids. In fiscal 

2014, it was 60,000. We have gone from 6,500 to 60,000, and everybody is saying you can’t give me the numbers because you can’t 

make the estimates. 

Well, what do you think? 

Really, I have taken this up to Sebelius. I have taken it up to 

Burwell. I am taking it to John Kerry. Senator Harkin has done 

the same. I know I have the support from—we just need to know. 

We have to look out for these children while we work on root 

cause. I have been down to root cause before. While we were working on root cause, we still have thousands of unaccompanied children whose parents paid coyotes and someone to bring them over 

the border to safety. 

Mr. GREENBERG. So, as you indicated, Senator, the numbers have 

gone up very dramatically over the period since 2011. And the 

numbers continue to grow. 

The children are principally children from Guatemala and Honduras and El Salvador. The best indications are that there are a 

mix of reasons, that the violence that is occurring in these countries appears to be a significant contributing factor. Additional factors are economic conditions, and in some cases, family reunification. So there are a set of reasons. But the numbers do continue 

to grow. 

For HHS, our responsibility is—— 

Senator MIKULSKI. Mr. Greenberg, I so respect you. You have 

such a long history of fighting poverty. But if HHS does not receive 

enough funding for this program where we have adequate—not 

adequate—we need real projections. 

The Department of Homeland Security could end up holding 

these children in cells intended for adults unless we come to grips 

with what are we going to do and how we are going to bridge this 

while we are looking at the root cause. 
263 

So I don’t want to take the time of my colleagues. Members have 

been waiting patiently. Senator Harkin did this. I am going to stop. 

But this is a humanitarian crisis, and we have to go to the edge 

of our chairs to at least get the estimate for fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I just felt the committee needed to be 

aware of this because this is not only a funding problem, it is a humanitarian crisis. But our failure to appropriate could exacerbate 

the humanitarian crisis. 

Mr. GREENBERG. Senator Mikulski. 

Senator MIKULSKI. I need numbers. Thank you very much. My 

time is up. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Moran. 

Senator MIKULSKI. Thank you. And thank you, colleagues. I really think this is a new hot potato here. 

Senator HARKIN. A huge issue. And it is a funding issue that confronts not only HHS, but also Homeland Security, too. 

Senator MIKULSKI. And the Department of State. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. 

I apparently established a precedent. I am going to soon yield to 

the ranking member, the Senator from Alabama. 

But, Madam Chair, while you and your colleagues, counterparts 

in the House, and Senator Shelby, work on trying to figure out the 

gap of $4 billion in the Federal Housing Authority that creates 

huge problems for all of the appropriations process, this, in my 

view, is the issue in this subcommittee that is very similar—a $1.1 

billion gap, we believe, that somehow needs to be addressed, based 

upon the tremendous humanitarian need. 

And while all of us are sympathetic broadly to humanitarian 

needs, particularly when it comes to children, it is exacerbated. So 

it is a high priority. 

But my point would be: We have a similar problem to what we 

have in Federal housing here in this budget as a result of this 

issue. 

Let me yield the balance of my time to the Senator from Alabama, the ranking member. 

Senator SHELBY. Thank you. 

Thank you, Chairman Harkin. 

First of all, I want to just restate what I have said many times— 

I appreciate what all of you do and what you are trying to do. We 

are short of money, but not short of ideas, not short of people that 

would be great scientific investigators, and so forth. We have to 

make tough decisions. I hope we make some wise ones. 

But I support what you do, individually and collectively. 

But now I want to direct my remarks not to you, but to Secretary 

Sebelius. 

On April 2, 2009, then-Governor Sebelius testified before the 

Senate Finance committee at her confirmation hearing to serve as 

Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. At 

that hearing, the chairman of the Finance Committee asked her 

the following direct question, and I quote, ‘‘Do you agree, without 

reservation, to respond to any reasonable summons to appear and 

testify before any duly constituted committee of Congress, if you 

are confirmed?’’ 
264 

Governor Sebelius, at that time she was still Governor, answered 

unequivocally, and I quote again, ‘‘I do. And I look forward to it.’’ 

Well, the then-nominee gave us her word that she would appear 

when asked to do so. Apparently, she has changed her mind. 

This subcommittee and, of course, the whole committee, has two 

former Secretaries, Senator Alexander who was Secretary of Education, and Governor—I call him Governor—Senator Johanns. I 

thought his statement earlier was right on point. 

What has not changed is this subcommittee’s responsibility to ensure that taxpayer dollars appropriated to HHS are spent wisely. 

That is why we wanted Secretary Sebelius up here. 

And in light of the failures of Obamacare, a lot of us believe, it 

is entirely reasonable to expect the Secretary to explain how she 

spent money previously allocated to her Department before we consider her request for $60.8 billion more. 

Nevertheless, Secretary Sebelius has reneged on her promise to 

the Senate and refused a reasonable summons to appear and testify here today. Why? Because, according to the Obama administration, she doesn’t want to. That is not sufficient. 

We deserve better than that. We deserve more respect on this 

committee. Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Senator Reed. 

Senator REED. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

And thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for your testimony. 

LOW-INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

Mr. Greenberg, we understand—it has been highlighted by my 

colleagues—the fiscal pressures the Department is under. One area 

which I have worked on consistently, on a bipartisan basis with 

Senator Collins, is LIHEAP. And once again, the budget is very 

disappointing, honestly. 

We will do our best to try to restore funding. This is critical, not 

just to our region of the country, but it is particularly critical in 

the Northeast, because we are paying energy prices that are sometimes three and four times the national average. And so, less dollars with higher prices means more and more families are literally 

cold in the winter. 

And I think in the summertime, other parts of the country have 

a similar problem with cooling. 

My question is: I don’t know what you can do at this point, but 

I want to stress my disappointment. And can you give us an idea 

of why we couldn’t get more money into the LIHEAP budget from 

the administration? 

Mr. GREENBERG. Senator Reed, thank you. The LIHEAP decision 

was an extremely difficult one. It does simply reflect the need to 

make decisions and make priority judgments among competing priorities with limited discretionary funding. 

For LIHEAP, we are very mindful of the tremendous importance 

of the program. We are very mindful that it only reaches a fraction 

of the eligible households, that for those who it does reach, that the 

benefits that are provided are limited in relation to their heating 

and cooling costs. 

We are mindful of all those limitations. And this was simply a 

judgment about priorities with limited discretionary funds. 
265 

We have proposed, as part of the budget, to also move forward 

on energy burden reduction grants, recognizing that a part of an 

overall strategy has to be helping families develop ways of lowering 

their energy costs. 

But, fundamentally, this is about constrained resources. 

Senator REED. Well, I think, as you can anticipate, we will try 

our best to rebalance. 

HEALTHY HOMES AND LEAD POISONING PREVENTION

Dr. Frieden, let me move on quickly. CDC, the Healthy Homes 

and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, is another extremely important program. Lead poisoning is a completely avoidable childhood disease that can cause irreparable damage to children. We 

have made progress. We were able to restore some funding last 

year to CDC. 

Can you tell us what your plans are to use these resources and 

also to make them stretch further, go further, and help more children? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. Thank you, Senator Reed. Thank you for your support for this and other public health issues. 

Lead poisoning prevention is critically important, as you say. 

And CDC has a unique role in both surveillance, so we know what 

is happening, and targeting interventions. 

We know that even slight elevations in lead levels can result in 

a lifelong reduction in both intellectual potential and in earnings 

capacity, so it has major economic implications. 

What we will do with the funding restored by Congress is to support roughly 30 city or State health departments to do a better job 

at surveillance and targeting prevention to better protect children 

and continue to drive down lead poisoning rates. 

Senator REED. Thank you very much. 

In this context, I have to thank Senator Mikulski and our former 

colleague, Kit Bond. When they were leading the Housing and 

Urban Development Subcommittee here, they targeted remediation, 

so that we could literally get the lead out of houses. And without 

Barbara’s leadership, thousands and thousands of children—and 

Senator Bond’s—would have been not only adversely affected—— 

Senator MIKULSKI. And Jack Kemp. 

Senator REED. And Secretary Kemp, too. So this was a bipartisan 

effort. We like to see it that way. 

HOME VISITING AND LEAD EXPOSURE

Final question: If I may, Dr. Wakefield, and that is, you have a 

home visiting program. This relates to the lead exposure. You have 

a home visiting program, and it is an opportunity to check on many 

hazards, including lead exposures, and to coordinate with CDC. 

Can you tell us what you intend to do to coordinate between 

these home visits and the Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Program, so we are getting more bang for the buck? That is what we 

want to do around here. 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. Sure. So the home visiting program is being deployed in all 50 States, and it has as a basis, evidence-based programs that are deploying nurses, social workers, other health care 
266 

providers, to families that choose to participate in the program voluntarily. 

But they are families that tend to be at risk, of course, and living 

in at-risk communities. 

So through the home visiting program now, we have over the 

course of about the last year or so, infused in six of those evidencebased programs information about lead poisoning prevention and 

healthy housing. 

So I know that is a priority for you and for other Members of the 

Senate, and we have tried to embed that in the program in a number—not all yet, Senator—but in a number of the home visiting 

programs. 

Senator REED. And are you working with CDC? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. We do very closely. And I have personally had 

conversations with CDC on this topic. 

Senator REED. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Reed. 

Senator Moran. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you. I thought it was finally my time to talk, but Senator Alexander has asked that I yield 

to him, and I am happy to yield. 

Senator ALEXANDER. I am glad we have such a yielding ranking 

member. 

I thank you for your courtesy, Senator Moran. 

Mr. Love, I hope you will express to Marilyn Tavenner our sympathy for the loss of her mother, and respect for the way she does 

her job. And we look forward to seeing her soon. 

Dr. Frieden, I wanted to especially thank you for the terrific job 

the CDC did in the meningitis outbreak. You worked fast and 

quickly. And by doing that, and the help that you gave the Tennessee Department of Public Health, and Vanderbilt and others 

who worked on that, you saved a lot of lives in that. 

And to all of you, I think we all appreciate and respect the work 

that you do and look forward to more informational hearings. 

But this is not an appropriate hearing. I think my colleagues 

know I spend as much time as anybody on the Republican side trying to make this Government work in the way it is supposed to 

work. 

I especially appreciate what Chairman Mikulski said about the 

regular order, and I like the fact that she and Senator Shelby and 

Senator Harkin and others and Senator Moran, are trying to have 

us do our job with appropriations, and to do it together in the way 

we are expected. So I am supporting that effort, and intend to do 

everything I can to help her do that. 

But this is not right for the Secretary of the Department to not 

appear to defend the President’s budget. 

I was a Secretary. I am pretty sure I answered the same question when I was asked, would I show up, when I was asked by the 

committee. And I believe I did, whenever I was asked, at least for 

this specific occasion. 

And I notice that the chairman mentioned a couple times that he 

is retiring this year. But if he is, I haven’t noticed it. If anybody 

from Iowa were to ask me if Tom Harkin was slowing down in this 
267 

year of his retirement, I would say, as far as I can tell, he is speeding up. I mean, we have a hearing every other day, it seems like. 

And he is busily doing his job, and I am glad he is. I enjoy working 

with him. We have gotten more done than any other committee in 

the Congress, authorizing committee. 

I notice that the Senator from Nebraska is also retiring, and he 

not only came to this hearing, he is on his way to another hearing. 

So where is the Secretary of Health and Human Services? She 

is still on the job. And if the Secretary of Defense were still on the 

job and waiting for the next Secretary, and we were invaded, or 

Ukraine happened, would the Secretary of Defense not show up? 

That is not appropriate. 

And it is more, I am afraid, than just the Secretary playing 

hooky. I mean, this is getting to be a persistent problem with this 

administration regarding, Article 1 of the Constitution and the 

Congress, the representatives of the people as an inconvenience. 

I think Presidents ought to begin their terms by taking the Cabinet down to Mount Vernon and reminding themselves that while 

the chief executive is extremely important, the Founders didn’t 

want a king. And George Washington, who could have stayed forever, as long as he lived, as President, imprinted his humility and 

respect for the people on the Constitution that he helped to write. 

And every President since then, almost, has tried to stretch that 

envelope. 

But this administration has gone further than any I can remember, with its recess appointments and its czars and its waiver authority for school boards and raising money privately to do what 

Congress did not authorize to do and turning the Senate into a 

place where the majority can do whatever it wants, whenever it 

wants to get a result that the administration wants. That is not the 

way our constitutional framework was set up. 

I hope I would say the same thing if we had a Republican President whose Secretary didn’t show up to testify before a Republican 

committee. 

We have Article 1 for a reason. We represent the people of this 

country for a reason. We are here, ready to do our jobs. 

And I am extremely disappointed that the Secretary of Health 

and Human Services, who helped write this budget over the last 

6 months, is not here to do her job. What if the next Secretary said 

she couldn’t come testify because she didn’t have anything to do 

with writing the budget? It is the job of the Secretary to be here, 

to show respect, not for each of us, but for the people we are elected to represent under Article 1 of the Constitution of the United 

States. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Alexander. 

Senator Shaheen. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

LOW-INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

Mr. Greenberg, before I get into the meat of my questions, I do 

want to just echo what Senator Reed had to say about the LIHEAP 

program. 
268 

As you know, in the Northeast, we had a very cold winter, and 

we have a lot of people in New Hampshire who did not get the assistance that they really needed through the LIHEAP. So while I 

appreciate we have very challenging resource issues, I, certainly, 

will be arguing on this committee that we should increase the 

amount of funding for LIHEAP. 

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

Mr. Love, I am really pleased that despite all of the challenges 

with the rollout of healthcare.gov that this past week we heard 

that over 40,000 people in New Hampshire had selected a health 

insurance plan through the exchange. That is a significantly greater number than the 19,000 that CMS had targeted, so we were 

pleased about that. 

I am also pleased that there was recently a bipartisan compromise in our New Hampshire Legislature that allowed the Governor and the Legislature to agree to an expansion of Medicaid in 

the State. 

That will require a waiver, as you know, and I understand that 

there are discussions already underway between the State of New 

Hampshire and CMS, so I would urge those discussions to go forward as expeditiously as possible. And I appreciate all the work 

that you are doing to try to make that happen. 

We have 50,000 residents in New Hampshire who will benefit 

from an expansion in Medicaid. 

I wonder if you could talk a little bit about the steps that CMS 

is taking to continue to improve the implementation of the 

healthcare law, specifically with respect to the healthcare.gov Web 

site. What steps are you taking to ensure that problems don’t exist 

moving forward? And can you talk about the importance of what 

I believe is the importance of having a permanent CEO to head up 

the effort around the technology and the Web site? 

Mr. LOVE. Thank you, Senator. 

Regarding the rollout of healthcare.gov, as you and other members of the committee have mentioned, we have a number of 8 million that no one I think would have predicted in the early fall. And 

there has been an extremely diligent effort, both on the part of the 

agency as well as our colleagues elsewhere in Government, and the 

private sector, quite frankly, to help us get up to speed on that. We 

have made tremendous progress. 

What we are very much focused on in the next 6 months—the 

end of open enrollment, the first season—is really building on that 

infrastructure, particularly as it regards the consumer experience 

and interacting with the Web site. That is of primary importance 

to us. 

There are other aspects of the Web site that the consumer may 

not see but are also quite important. We are focused on the financial management piece of it and various oversight functions. And 

we are working just as hard during the down period as we were 

during the open enrollment. And we hope to see a dividend. We 

hope you will see a dividend to that in the next open enrollment 

in the fall. 

Regarding your question on a chief executive officer for our Center for Insurance—CCIIO (Center for Consumer Information and 
269 

Insurance Oversight) is our shorthand—but basically, the component that is central within CMS that has lead responsibility for 

that. I know that there are different management leadership models under consideration. Right now, we do have an acting director, 

Dr. Mandy Cohen, who is doing a great job stepping up since her 

predecessor left a short while ago. And we are looking at different 

management models to bring the type of leadership effort I think 

you are considering. 

I know the Administrator is consulting both with the Department and the White House now on what the most rigorous leadership model for the CCIIO front office will be. I am sure you will 

be hearing more about that. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you. I would urge you to make sure 

that there is a permanent person in charge of that effort in the future. 

PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE

Dr. Frieden, I am sure you are aware that in northern New England, we have had an epidemic of heroin use. In New Hampshire, 

we had more deaths last year from drug overdoses than from car 

accidents, so it is something that we are very concerned about. 

I have done several panels with law enforcement, with treatment 

providers, to talk about what might be done to address this epidemic. And one of the things I heard recently from a former DEA 

(Drug Enforcement Administration) agent who had worked in this 

field for about two decades was that we should be doing more to 

ensure that there are some protocols around how doctors decide on 

prescriptions, since that, in too many cases, has been the avenue 

through which people got into drug use. 

And I wonder if you could talk about what CDC is doing or can 

do to educate providers for appropriate prescription drug practices. 

Dr. FRIEDEN. Thank you very much. 

This is, indeed, a huge problem. We have seen a fourfold increase 

in deaths from prescription opiates, currently, more deaths than 

from heroin and cocaine combined. 

And we have also seen devastating impacts on communities, 

where there are some communities where it is so rampant that it 

is difficult to recruit new businesses in because people can’t pass 

drug tests. 

We see this as an opiate problem. As you point out, many, perhaps even most, people who currently use heroin started off with 

prescription opiates. We have tracked these trends, both overall 

and by State. And the numbers are, frankly, shocking. 

This is, to a significant extent, a doctor-caused, or iatrogenic, epidemic. And we do believe it can be reversed by things like good 

guidelines. 

In fact, enough prescription opiates are given each year to give 

every adult in the country 75 opiate pills a year. It is just way too 

much. It is 18 billion pills a year. And we find in some States, as 

many as one in three people get a prescription each year. 

So what we have focused on for the 2015 request is to be able 

to support States with several specific things. 

One is strengthening prescription drug monitoring programs. 

These are very important, but there isn’t one in the country that 
270 

is yet real-time, universal, and actively managed. So we want to 

get to that key area of tracking prescriptions, and intervening with 

both patients and providers for services as needed, or law enforcement if appropriate. 

The second key area is supporting States on a variety of measures that they can do with insurers, Medicaid, and others. 

And the third is specifically the issue of guidelines. Washington 

State and some communities have guidelines, but they aren’t wellfollowed. They aren’t well-established. And by establishing guidelines, then insurers, Medicaid programs, others can ensure that 

pain relief, which is very important—for example, for patients with 

terminal cancer pain—continues, but without the great risk that 

these drugs provide. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Well, thank you very much. 

Mr. Chairman, if I can just have one follow-up question. I know 

I am over my time. 

So how much of the requested $15.6 million for prescription drug 

overdose programs is going to be targeted to help providers become 

smarter prescription providers? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. The overwhelming majority of that would go to 

States. And within the States, each State would decide where they 

would move the money, where they would invest it. 

But the three key components are improving prescription drug 

monitoring programs, tracking the system in real-time, and 

strengthening prescriber practices and provider behavior. 

Senator SHAHEEN. Thank you very much. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Shaheen. 

Senator Moran, please take the time you desire. 

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. 

First of all, Dr. Frieden, you have invited me to visit the CDC, 

and I want to express my gratitude and also express my sincere interest in accepting the invitation. We will work toward accomplishing that. I look forward to that visit. 

The chairwoman of our full committee, the Senator from Maryland, talked about the Unaccompanied Alien Children program. 

This is an example of a question that I would ask the Secretary 

if she were here. If she were here, I would ask this question: The 

Unaccompanied Alien Children program is underfunded by more 

than half, $1.1 billion. It is my understanding that the administration will not submit a budget amendment to address that shortfall. 

I guess I would ask the Secretary if that is true. 

And I would say, Madam Secretary, if we have to live within our 

budget allocations, what HHS programs would you recommend 

that we would use to make up for that $1.1 billion? 

And again, there is no one here who can help us directly answer 

that question. 

Further, on ACA risk corridors, I would ask the Secretary that 

section 1342 of the Affordable Care Act requires the Secretary to 

establish and administer those corridors. Does the Secretary have 

the authority to make payments from the risk corridor fund? And 

if not, how would the administration pay for that funding gap? 

Again, perhaps someone here could answer their belief as to 

whether the authority exists, but I don’t think there is anybody 
271 

here who could tell us how the administration would then pay for 

that gap. 

We have had a lot of conversation, mostly in the House, about 

the evaluation tap. It was originally implemented throughout the 

Department’s budget to use for evaluations of those program activities within the Department. Perhaps, unfortunately, it is now 

used—I guess not ‘‘perhaps.’’ Unfortunately, it is now used to supplant budget authority. 

And I would ask how does the Department of Health and Human 

Services justify taking funding from the National Institutes of 

Health to fund programs that should receive independent budget 

authority. 

There has been a request for an increase in that evaluation tap 

from 2.5 percent to 3 percent, and, Madam Secretary, how was it 

determined that increase in the tap was necessary in fiscal year 

2015? What deliberations took place within HHS, and within the 

White House, to decide which agencies are sources and which are 

receivers of evaluation tap transfers? And specifically, why does the 

Department use what I would say is a budget gimmick to highlight 

an increase in NIH funding of $200 million even though NIH is left 

with only a $58 million increase above 2014, after accounting for 

the tap increase? 

And finally, an example of what I would ask the Secretary is regarding the nonrecurring expenses funds. I am trying to become 

more knowledgeable about information technology. We have a hearing later today in the Appropriations Subcommittee on FSGG. 

The nonrecurring expenses fund dollars went to fund the Affordable Care Act-related information technologies, but the fund can be 

used to cover any one-time capital I.T. acquisition. And I would be 

interested in knowing what analysis the Department does before 

moving unobligated funds into the nonrecurring expenses fund, and 

the details of that process for the subcommittee. 

How does HHS decide what I.T. projects merit nonrecurring expense fund dollars? Does HHS solicit formal or informal requests 

from agencies for nonrecurring expense fund-related projects? What 

programs would have received funding over the past 2 years had 

funding not been siphoned off to fund implementation of the health 

insurance exchange? 

And then finally, an issue that is in my view so important. In 

last year’s budget request, there was the $80 million increase for 

Alzheimer’s disease research. Congress, in our omnibus bill, we 

were successful in finding $100 million for an increase for Alzheimer’s disease research. 

And why did the Department not include that increase for Alzheimer’s disease research in its 2015 budget proposal? 

And perhaps most importantly, will NIH be able to reach the 

goal for finding a cure for Alzheimer’s by 2025, the stated goal, 

without an increase in its research funding? 

Mr. Chairman, I thank you for conducting this hearing. I am 

sorry that I don’t think these folks can answer my question. We 

will continue the efforts to try to find those answers. 

I was interested in Senator Mikulski’s conversation with Secretary Sebelius. And perhaps we will have that opportunity, either 
272 

in a hearing sometime or with the new Secretary, to explore these 

issues further. 

Thank you. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you, Senator Moran. 

I just have a couple follow-ups I want to do. 

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

Dr. Wakefield, I want to talk just a little bit about community 

health centers. As you know, we are going to face a funding cliff 

here if we don’t extend the mandatory part of this budget. So talk 

to me a little bit about how you envision this moving ahead to 

make sure that we have the necessary funds, so that we don’t have 

that budget cliff. I think it is 2016. 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. Sure. Thank you, Senator. 

The community health centers program is extremely important 

to ensure that individuals across the country have access to primary healthcare services and preventive healthcare as well. 

And the importance of that program has really been increasing 

since about 2009 when that infrastructure was seeing about 17 million patients. As I mentioned in my opening remarks, as of about 

2012, we are seeing about 21 million patients. And in 2015, we expect we could be seeing as many as 31 million patients in that infrastructure. 

So your point about sustainability and stability, to ensure that 

individuals and communities across the country have access to primary healthcare services, is an important one. And we, of course, 

are concerned about long-term funding as well. 

So in fiscal year 2015, we have $3.6 billion. That is the last year 

of funding through the Affordable Care Act for community health 

centers, in fiscal year 2015. 

Our ask is $1 billion in discretionary for fiscal year 2015, to provide a total of $4.6 billion to fund community health center programs. 

Of that money, Senator, about $1 billion would be applied for 

nonrecurring costs. That is, to invest in construction and renovation. And frankly, from the field, from health centers across the 

country, because of this increased demand in numbers of people 

who are seeking healthcare services, a lot of them now with insurance coverage, this will allow those community health centers to 

build out and to reconfigure the centers in order to be able to accommodate that increased number of patients that are being seen. 

So about $1 billion, as I said, in 2015 will be used for nonrecurring construction funds. 

Going forward, then, to replace the Affordable Care Act funds for 

fiscal year 2016, 2017, and 2018, we are proposing in the budget 

mandatory funding of $2.7 billion per year. 

In addition, we would assume that there would be appropriations 

made available by the Congress, but that is the proposal to ensure 

stability and access to healthcare services in the subsequent years. 

Senator HARKIN. Will that $2.7 billion be enough to alleviate the 

funding—— 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. So, Senator, if we were to assume that in addition to that $2.7 billion, there would be appropriations that would 
273 

also be made available in fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018, to support the program. 

Senator HARKIN. How much? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. That provides baselines to support operations, 

and so on. 

Senator HARKIN. What would that be, about how much a year, 

which you anticipate that would be in terms of discretionary budget? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. Well, I couldn’t speak—— 

Senator HARKIN. We would have to come up with that. I am not 

going to be here, but he is going to be here. 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. So, Senator Moran—— 

So, Senator, we are looking closely at the out-years additional 

needs. What we can count on is that need for $2.7 billion. So we 

are tracking, for example, the number of individuals that are receiving care in health centers that are now coming through the 

doors with insurance coverage, so that provides some additional 

revenue. 

Senator HARKIN. So you get some funds coming in through the 

Affordable Care Act? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. To replace Affordable Care Act, we will have our 

mandatory funding of $2.7 million per year. In addition—— 

Senator HARKIN. Are you anticipating money that will come in 

because people now have insurance coverage? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. Yes. So people will be coming in with insurance 

coverage. So we have that phenomenon. People coming through the 

door with insurance coverage, either Medicaid insurance coverage 

where it has been expanded, or private insurance coverage. 

But we also know that that is going to be uneven, Senator Harkin, because there will be some States where Medicaid has not 

been expanded and individuals have become aware of community 

health centers as a place where they can access services. No one 

is turned away. A sliding fee scale is used for people under 200 percent of poverty. 

So we have a little bit of both of those dynamics. And we will 

have to look very closely at that for years 2016 and on. 

Senator HARKIN. Do you anticipate any fall off of attendance— 

maybe that is the wrong word—people seeking medical care from 

community health centers because they now do have insurance coverage and they might be going to their primary care doctor someplace else? 

Dr. WAKEFIELD. We don’t. We don’t expect a decline in demand 

for services through community health centers based on a couple 

things. 

First of all, we can look to the State of Massachusetts that has 

enacted healthcare reform a number of years ago. And even though 

their rate of uninsured decreased markedly, their demand for 

healthcare services through their community health centers increased markedly. So these are health centers that are located in 

underserved communities. They are trusted sources of care. They 

have been embedded in those communities for now, in many cases, 

a number of years. And frankly, they provide very high-quality and 

comprehensive care. 
274 

If you go to a health center, you can access oral healthcare services generally onsite. You can access behavior of mental health 

services, generally onsite, in addition to traditional medical services. So these are comprehensive healthcare delivery settings that 

have a strong tie to the communities that they serve. 

So the answer is no. Sorry. 

Senator HARKIN. Thanks. 

HEALTHCARE FRAUD AND ABUSE

Mr. Love, let me just quickly go to you. I mentioned the 

healthcare fraud and abuse program. The latest study showed that 

for every $1 spent, we got $8.10 recovered. This is the highest 3- 

year average return on investment in the 17-year history of this 

program. 

Now the Budget Control Act included cap adjustments that encouraged Congress to increase this funding by $898 million over 

the past 3 years, an amount that would have saved taxpayers more 

than $6.2 billion. 

But the President’s budget did not request utilizing this funding. 

Can you give the subcommittee an idea of what has been lost over 

the last 2 years by not taking advantage of the additional funding 

encouraged in the Budget Control Act? 

Mr. LOVE. Senator, Mr. Chairman, thanks for the question area. 

I cannot answer that specific question, but I can tell you what the 

budget is projected going forward, and that, as you said in your 

earlier remarks, there was an 8-to-1 return on investment, which 

is an excellent investment, indeed. And we remain very supportive 

of the fraud, abuse, and program integrity program. 

What the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget does do is request 

$428 million for the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Fund, 

HCFAC, which would provide both a dividend for Medicaid and 

Medicare. And the projected dividend on that over 10 years is $13.5 

billion. 

So I think you will see it is, certainly, projected to be consistent 

with the 8-to-1 return on investment that you mentioned earlier. 

Senator HARKIN. So your budget request increases HCFAC funding by $428 million? Is that, which you are saying? 

Mr. LOVE. Yes, sir. 

Senator HARKIN. That is lifting the cap? 

Mr. LOVE. I believe that is discretionary. 

Senator HARKIN. Yes, lifting the cap on the mandatory side gives 

you that $428 million. And with that, you anticipate how much of 

a return? 

Mr. LOVE. $13.5 billion return over 10 years. 

Senator HARKIN. Okay. I got that. 

GLOBAL HEALTH SECURITY INITIATIVES

Dr. Frieden, one last thing for you, following up a little bit on 

what I started earlier, and that is setting up CDCs in other countries. 

You had a global health initiative, but then the request zeroes 

out the money we put in last year, which was $7.5 million. 
275 

Again, tell me, how was the $7.5 million utilized? And why 

wouldn’t we want to continue that effort rather than just putting 

it all in the global health initiative? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. We certainly do want to continue the effort of 

strengthening national public health institutes around the world. 

The current fiscal year, what we are doing is working with 

around eight countries to either strengthen or start the process of 

creating a national public health institute. Some of those, it has 

multiple institutions, binding them together. Some of them, it is 

new. 

We anticipate working in multiple regions in the world. We have 

countries very interested in this area. And it is the kind of project 

that we would hope to be able to continue going forward. 

The global health security proposal would also enable us to 

strengthen national public health institutes, but not as directly as 

the funding in the fiscal year 2014 budget. So I can’t really say 

more than that, but thank you for that support. 

I will comment that, Senator, if I might, after several decades, 

three decades of support for public health, we really appreciate 

your support for public health, not only in this country but around 

the world. 

You, of course, changed our name from the Centers for Disease 

Control to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and we 

embrace that mission, and we thank you for your support. 

Senator HARKIN. I appreciate that. I will follow-up with you further on the continuation of your effort to help other countries set 

up their own CDCs, and basically, to make sure that they start 

having coordinated effort. 

Again, what I picked up in some of my travels, there were just 

so many fragmented parts. And they just don’t have a CDC-like 

structure to pull it all together. 

They do need labs. They need equipment. They need all that. I 

understand that, too. But they need to change their structures. 

So I am going to have my staff further inquire about that. And 

I am a little disappointed that was not in the budget. I will get 

some more information on that as we move ahead in our decisions 

on what we want to do on that. 

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Two other just quick questions: One, tell us again about the 

looming crisis that I keep reading about in terms of antibiotic resistance, what is happening in our country. At least here, we are 

losing the ability to fight off certain bugs because of antibiotic resistance. So what is happening? Where are we in this? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. What we are seeing, Senator, is a steady increase 

in the proportion of different bacteria, in particular, that are resistant to antibiotics. 

And earlier, a few months ago, we released the first-ever report 

on our national status in terms of antimicrobial resistance. We 

found that there are more than 2 million resistant infections per 

year, more than 20,000 deaths per year in the U.S. from resistant 

infections. Another estimate is more than $20 billion in expenses. 

We highlighted—— 
276 

Senator HARKIN. Do you have something in your budget request 

that zeroes in on this? 

Dr. FRIEDEN. Yes, we have a specific initiative to expand our efforts to reverse antimicrobial resistance. It is a $30 million request 

each year over 5 years. And with that investment, we think we can 

cut some of the deadliest resistant infections in half. We are confident we can deliver that value. 

Again, one of them, in particular, that I am very concerned 

about, something called CRE. It is a deadly bacteria. It is spreading in hospitals. It started out in one State, and then it was in 10, 

and now it is in virtually every State. 

It can be lethal to half of the hospitalized patients who get it. 

And I called it a ‘‘nightmare bacteria’’ because it can spread not 

only from patient to patient, but between different species of bacteria. So whole classes of bacteria that can cause routine infections, 

like urinary tract infections, could become resistant to virtually all 

or even all of our available antibiotics. 

And we need to respond quickly. So we would do that by working 

intensively with hospitals by setting up regional centers of excellence and by moving forward as rapidly as possible, to improve 

both the detection of persistence and control of outbreaks, control 

measures where there are outbreaks. We have been able to see big 

reductions where we have been able to control this using a statewide or communitywide approach, and prevention measures, which 

could be as simple as hand-washing or vaccination, or as complex 

as more complex interactions that would reduce the number of resistant infections. 

We recommended that every single hospital in this country have 

an antibiotic stewardship program so that they can make sure that 

the antibiotics used in the hospitals, where we are seeing some of 

the most resistant infections, can be prescribed appropriately. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you. 

AFFORDABLE CARE ACT FUNDING

Mr. Love, please take back to CMS for me this: That this is my 

last year here, but I am going to be really vigilant in making sure 

that CMS follows the law and follows what this committee prescribes in terms of how the Affordable Care Act money is used. 

And let me cut to the quick on this: That there won’t be any 

more shifting of money from prevention and wellness programs into 

base programs that CMS already has. Okay? It is just not going to 

happen. So just please take that back. Let everybody know. 

Mr. LOVE. I certainly will, Senator. Thank you. 

ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

Senator HARKIN. I appreciate that. Thank you. 

Listen, thank you all very, very much. This has been a good 

hearing. 

Again, please take back to Ms. Tavenner the sympathies of all 

of us on the committee. She has been a great administrator, and 

this is a tough time for her, and please take that back to her, our 

deepest sympathies. 
277 

To all of you, thank you again for all of your public service. You 

have been great public servants, carrying out your responsibilities 

well. 

And we will leave the record open for 1 week for other Senators. 

[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but were 

submitted to the Department for response subsequent to the hearing:] 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO TIMOTHY LOVE

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

HEALTH CARE FRAUD AND ABUSE CONTROL PROGRAM

Question. The latest HHS report released in March found that for every $1 spent 

on fraud and abuse in fiscal year 2013, $8.10 was recovered. This is the highest 3- 

year average return on investment (ROI) in the 17-year history of Health Care 

Fraud and Abuse Control Program (HCFAC). The budget Control Act included cap 

adjustments to encourage Congress to increase this funding by $898 million over the 

past 3 years. I am disappointed that the President’s budget did not request utilizing 

this funding. Please describe the savings that have been lost over the last 3 years, 

and the fraud and abuse that has gone undetected, by not taking advantage of the 

additional funding encouraged in the Budget Control Act? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2015 budget supports fraud prevention and reduction of 

improper payments, which are top priorities of the administration. Despite enactment of multiyear discretionary cap adjustments in the Budget Control Act (BCA), 

annual appropriations bills have not provided the full amount of program integrity 

funding authorized in that law. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 

actuaries conservatively project that for every new $1 spent by HHS to combat 

healthcare fraud, about $1.50 is saved or avoided. Applying this rate of return to 

the $932 million in HCFAC funding that was not provided between fiscal year 2012 

and fiscal year 2014 results in an estimated $1.4 billion in lost savings. In addition, 

HCFAC funding has also been subject to the cumulative effects of rescissions and 

sequestration, further affecting CMS’ ability to detect fraud and abuse. Historically, 

for every $1 spent on healthcare-related fraud and abuse investigations through 

HCFAC and other programs in the last 3 years, the Government recovered $8.10. 

This is the highest 3-year average return on investment in the 17-year history of 

the HCFAC Program. Therefore, the President’s budget proposes to build on recent 

progress on efforts to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse by increasing support for the 

HCFAC program through both mandatory and discretionary funding streams. 

The budget includes $697 million in new HCFAC program funding in fiscal year 

2015: $294 million in base discretionary funding, $25 million in new discretionary 

funding, and $378 million in proposed new mandatory funding. Starting in fiscal 

year 2016, the budget requests all additional HCFAC funds as mandatory, instead 

of through the discretionary cap adjustment included in the Budget Control Act 

(BCA). All proposed HCFAC program investments, including gradual growth over 

time, are consistent with BCA levels. 

Providing additional resources for HCFAC as a dedicated, dependable source of 

mandatory funding will allow the Departments of HHS and DOJ to conduct necessary program integrity activities and make sure that only accurate payments are 

made to legitimate providers for appropriate services to eligible beneficiaries. Providing additional mandatory funding for HCFAC will also eliminate delays in annual appropriations that make it difficult for HHS and DOJ to execute budget plans 

and achieve targeted results each year. The more stable mandatory program integrity funding will produce new deficit savings of $2 billion over 10 years. 

PROVIDER NON-DISCRIMINATION (SECTION 2706)

Question. Section 2706 of the Affordable Care Act, the provider ‘‘non-discrimination’’ provision is intended to prohibit health insurance plans from discriminating 

against entire classes of licensed and certified healthcare professionals solely on the 

basis of the provider’s licensure or certification. Despite the clear intent of this provision, I believe that the HHS, Treasury and Labor erred when it released the 2013 

FAQ document that subverted the congressional intent of the section. The fiscal 

year 2014 Omnibus directed HHS to work with Labor and Treasury to correct the 

FAQ to reflect the law and congressional intent within 30 days of enactment of the 

bill. Recently HHS chose to issue a Federal Register notice requesting additional 
278 

public comment as to the appropriate interpretation of this provision. When does 

HHS plan to correct the FAQ to reflect what congressional intent is of the provision? 

Answer. The comment period for that Federal Register Request for Information 

is open until June 10, 2014. After the comment period closes, I would expect that 

HHS, together with the Departments of Labor and Treasury would evaluate the 

comments and use the public input to evaluate future rulemaking on that topic. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MARY L. LANDRIEU

Question. CMS recently implemented a final rule that changed payments for 

speech generating devices (SGDs) so that Medicare beneficiaries no longer have the 

option to purchase them, but instead must rent them. Constituents with diseases 

like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and cerebral palsy have expressed concern 

that Medicare will not pay the rental fees for the devices if they are admitted to 

hospice, a hospital or nursing home. These devices are highly customized and cannot 

be provided off-the-shelf. My understanding is that SGDs are overwhelmingly purchased, upwards of 99 percent of the time according to recent claims data. Why did 

you move SGDs into a rental category when the agency indicated that devices that 

are purchased 75 percent of the time should continue to have a purchase option? 

And how do you plan to address concerns about beneficiaries losing access? 

Answer. We recognize that patients may use long-term durable medical equipment (DME) such as SGDs because of chronic conditions or permanent disabilities. 

However, the statutory DME benefit is for equipment used in the home. When the 

beneficiary is admitted to a hospital, skilled nursing facility (SNF), or hospice, it is 

the responsibility of the institution to furnish this device and any other DME that 

a beneficiary needs. CMS is committed to carefully monitoring beneficiary access 

using real-time claims data to ensure that beneficiaries are receiving medically necessary items and services. 

Question. As your agency prepares for open enrollment this fall, what improvements are you making to help certified health insurance agents and brokers 

seamlessly enroll and assist consumers into the health insurance marketplaces? 

Health Insurance brokers are making sure consumers understand the nuances of 

their plans, and they are the only group of certified individuals who handle both 

enrollment and service to policyholders year-round. Specifically, do you plan to establish a toll-free helpline for agents and brokers, enable their National Producer 

Number (NPNs) to be added at any point during the enrollment process, and list 

certified agents and brokers on the local help section of Healthcare.gov? 

Answer. Agents and brokers will continue to play a vital role in enrolling individuals and businesses in coverage, as they do today. Agents and brokers act as trusted 

counselors, providing service at the time of plan selection and enrollment and customer service throughout the year. CMS provides training for agents and brokers 

to help them better assist consumers at purchasing coverage through the federally 

facilitated Marketplaces. In the first year, over 52,000 agents and brokers completed 

training from CMS. 

Agents and brokers continuing their participation in the individual market federally facilitated Marketplace (FFM) for the 2015 plan year and future plan years will 

complete an annual registration renewal process that includes re-completion of required training and re-execution of the applicable FFM Agent Broker Agreements. 

To continue participation in the FF–SHOPs for the 2015 plan year and future plan 

years, agents and brokers will execute the FF–SHOP Agent Broker Agreement annually, create an FFM user account, complete identity proofing, and are encouraged 

to re-complete testing and training. Agents and brokers who will be participating 

in the individual market FFM and/or the FF–SHOP for the first time for the 2015 

plan year must register, create an FFM user account, complete market-specific 

training, and execute the applicable FFM Agent Broker Agreements. 

In general, the agent or broker’s NPN, name, and FFM user ID should be recorded as part of the consumer’s application. This will identify the agent or broker 

on the enrollment transaction (called an ‘‘834’’) so the FFM can appropriately track 

enrollment and the issuer can compensate the agent or broker based upon the enrollment (as may be appropriate). However, should an issuer identify a particular 

enrollment that should have had an agent/broker associated with it, the issuer 

should add the agent or broker to the enrollment internally even if the agent or 

broker was not reflected on the 834, in case there is any follow-up required as a 

result of the enrollment. 

If an agent or broker has a legitimate reason to believe he or she should be credited for an FFM enrollment, but has not been credited for it, the agent or broker 

should contact the respective QHP issuer directly to discuss the specific situation. 
279 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

MEANINGFUL USE STAGE 2

Question. On May 6, 2014, CMS reported to the Health Information Technology 

Policy Committee that only 4 hospitals and 50 eligible professionals had successfully 

reached Stage 2 of the Medicare and Medicaid electronic health record (EHR) incentive program commonly referred to as Meaningful Use. We are now 7 months into 

the program year for hospitals and 4 months into the program year for physicians 

and other eligible professionals. Further complicating providers’ efforts are the lack 

of certified EHRs in the inpatient hospital setting. As of mid-April, only 29 complete 

EHRs have been certified to 2014 program requirements. CMS has also said the 370 

complete EHRs that were certified for the earlier edition of certified technology may 

not be used in 2014, even if providers are still at Stage 1 of the Meaningful Use 

program. These performance statistics for Stage 2 are alarming. What steps are you 

taking to ensure that providers are able to safely and effectively transition to Stage 

2 of the program? 

In addition, while I understand that there is a hardship exceptions process, this 

process currently provides relief only from the significant financial penalties for not 

attesting in a timely way. Could the exemption be broadened to include lost incentive dollars once providers attest to Meaningful Use, even if they attest up to one 

full year late? 

Answer. HHS has been listening to providers, healthcare associations, EHR vendors, and its partners in the healthcare industry. In December 2013, HHS announced that it would engage in rulemaking to extend Stage 2 of Meaningful Use 

for 1 year and allow Stage 3 to begin in 2017. In addition, Office of the National 

Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) issued a 2015 Edition EHR 

Certification Criteria Proposed Rule as part of its new regulatory approach to provide more frequent updates to the certification criteria. 

By extending Stage 2 until 2017, HHS would have an additional year of Stage 

2 implementation data to help inform any program changes. An extension also allows CMS and ONC to better align quality performance measures across Federal 

programs and to consider effective Stage 3 approaches to advance interoperability 

and clinical decision support capabilities that will help drive improved health outcomes. 

In response to stakeholder concerns that providers were having difficulties meeting the requirements of Stage 2, CMS and ONC announced in February 2013 that 

additional flexibility would be provided for payment adjustments and hardship exceptions. For example, eligible professionals (EPs) may request a hardship exception 

because the EP is unable to control the availability of Certified EHR Technology at 

one such practice location or a combination of practice locations. 

MEDICAID INSTITUTIONS FOR MENTAL DISEASES

Question. Given American Chiropractic Associations (ACAs) emphasis on patientcentered care and health outcomes, has CMS investigated the efficacy and long-term 

cost-effectiveness of residential substance abuse treatment services for Medicaid eligible recipients? 

Answer. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has identified existing and, in cooperation with our Federal partners, is developing new resources 

for States seeking to enhance their efforts to address the service need of individuals 

with mental and substance use disorders. These resources seek to support States 

in their efforts to improve benefit design, comply with the Mental Health Parity and 

Equity Act, develop community integration strategies and coordinate behavioral 

healthcare with primary care and other services. More information can be found in 

a Center for Medicaid & CHIP Services Information Bulletin issued on December 

3, 2012 (http://www.medicaid.gov/Federal-Policy-Guidance/downloads/CIB-12-03- 

12.pdf). Included as part of the Informational Bulletin is information related to the 

variety of current and new coverage options that States may use to cover behavioral 

health services. 

PACKAGING RULE

Question. In its 2014 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System Rule, CMS 

modified its packaging policy. Under Medicare’s previous packaging policy, a drug 

or biologic that is used 100 percent of the time, or costs less than $90, may be packaged in a payment to hospitals to cover healthcare items and services in a procedure. The revised policy allows packaged payments in cases in which the drug or 

biologic is used less than 100 percent of the time or when its cost exceeds $90. The 
280 

decision on which treatment to use is at the clinical discretion of the physician and 

is incorporated into the single payment the hospital receives from Medicare. 

How will CMS ensure the accuracy of its cost data in the absence of a requirement that hospitals report what drug or biologic is used within the package payment? Is CMS planning to conduct audits or implement a mechanism to ensure hospitals accurately reporting data? 

Also, is CMS concerned about the effect this rule will have on bladder cancer 

screening and treatment? 

Answer. In general, multiple drugs may or may not be used for a given service 

and the hospital outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) payment for that 

service reflects the average of all potential ancillary items and services used to furnish the primary procedure. The OPPS has never had a requirement that a drug 

is used 100 percent of the time with the primary procedure into which the drug payment is packaged. In the calendar year 2014 OPPS/ambulatory surgery center (ASC) 

final rule, for the vast majority of drugs and biologicals, we continued our traditional methodology for packaging drugs and biologicals with a per unit cost under 

a $1 threshold of $90, which is adjusted each year to reflect changes in nominal 

prices. We also finalized packaging all drugs for the following categories of products: 

(1) Drugs, biologicals, and radiopharmaceuticals that function as supplies when 

used in a diagnostic test or procedure; and (2) drugs and biologicals that function 

as supplies when used in a surgical procedure. Adopting these packaging policies 

followed our longstanding policy of packaging radiopharmaceuticals and contrast 

agents into the associated imaging test. 

In order to help ensure the accuracy of cost data, CMS expects hospitals to correctly report the items and services provided to patients according to correct coding 

principles. CMS provides coding guidance every year in our annual OPPS/ASC final 

rule with comment period and in several sections of our online CMS Manuals. For 

example, CMS specifically provides the following coding guidance in the Medicare 

Claims Processing Manual, chapter 4, section 10.4 A: ‘‘[I]t is extremely important 

that hospitals report all HCPCS codes consistent with their descriptors; CPT and/ 

or CMS instructions and correct coding principles, and all charges for all services 

they furnish, whether payment for the services is made separately paid or is packaged.’’ 

We are monitoring the effects of our 2014 packaging policies. However, because 

these policies became effective January 1, 2014, not enough time has elapsed with 

these policies in effect for us to meaningfully evaluate their effect. We are confident 

that Medicare beneficiaries have access to adequate bladder cancer diagnosis and 

treatment services and we will continue to examine these services as we do all other 

services through our annual rulemaking process. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

Question. CMS has used public reporting of hospitals’ performance on certain 

measures including 30 day outcomes, surgical complications, and healthcare associated infections to inform the public about a hospital’s performance on these and 

other important metrics. Public reporting encourages hospitals to improve their performance and quality because they know that they are being compared by their potential patients. 

Do you think that public reporting of hospitals’ prescription drug dispensement 

can help encourage more thoughtful and appropriate prescribing behavior? 

Answer. Under the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) program, hospitals 

report a variety of quality measures, most of which are publicly displayed on Hospital Compare. These measures encompass a wide variety of topics, including mortality measures, readmissions measures, healthcare-associated infection measures, 

survey measures of patients’ experience of care, and measures of timely and effective care. 

It is possible that a hospital prescription drug dispensement measure could help 

encourage appropriate prescribing behavior, but the details of any such measure 

would need to be carefully evaluated as part of the measure consideration process 

that CMS has adopted. CMS considers additions to measures for the Hospital IQR 

program every year and conducts its measurement activities in a transparent manner, which involves the solicitation of input from multiple stakeholders. The processes that have been established to solicit such input throughout the measure development, selection, and implementation cycle include posting calls on the CMS Web 

site for nominations for technical expert panels; posting proposed or candidate measures on the CMS Web site for public comment; holding CMS Open Door forums, 

publicly posting measures being considered by December 1 each year as part of the 
281 

pre-rulemaking process; engaging the National Quality Forum through their Measures Application Partnership to make recommendations on measures; soliciting comments through rulemaking on proposed measures; and soliciting suggestions 

through rulemaking on potential future measures. 

Question. Do you think that providers are prescribing more and engaging in more 

testing because they feel a pressure to satisfy their patients? 

Answer. Many different factors can contribute to overprescribing of medications. 

CMS has proposed improvements to the Medicare Part D program to address concerns about overprescribing and other abusive practices. These improvements include giving CMS the authority to revoke a physician or eligible professional’s Medicare enrollment if CMS determines that he or she has a pattern or practice of prescribing that is abusive, represents a threat to the health and safety of Medicare 

beneficiaries, or otherwise fails to meet Medicare requirements. CMS will also be 

able to revoke a physician or eligible professional’s Medicare enrollment if his or her 

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Certificate of Registration is suspended or 

revoked, or if the applicable licensing or administrative body for any State in which 

he or she practices suspends or revokes his or her ability to prescribe drugs. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

RATE STABILIZATION PROGRAMS

Question. Does the Secretary have the authority to make payments from the Risk 

Corridor fund? If not, how will the administration pay for a possible funding gap? 

Answer. Risk corridor payments can be made pursuant to section 1342 of the Affordable Care Act and longstanding CMS user fee authority provided in appropriations acts. 

Question. If the Secretary does have the authority to make payments from the 

Risk Corridor fund, how will any surpluses in receipts from the program be used? 

Specifically, could a surplus be used for Program Management activities? 

Answer. We intend to implement the risk corridors program in a budget neutral 

manner over the 3 years of the program. HHS issued guidance in April clarifying 

its plan to hold any excess risk corridor collections from 1 year to the next to be 

available to make risk corridor payments in subsequent years as set out in law and 

regulations. 

Question. What will happen if the incoming receipts for Risk Corridor, Risk Adjustment, and Reinsurance programs are less than the Department’s projected estimates? 

Answer. If reinsurance collections are not sufficient to fund the reinsurance payment pool, all payments will be reduced pro-rata to fall within collections received. 

The proposed rule entitled, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Exchange 

and Insurance Market Standards for 2015 and Beyond (79 FR 15808 March 21, 

2014) proposed that—in the event that collections are less than projected estimates—CMS would prioritize reinsurance contributions collected to the reinsurance 

payment pool to assure that the pool is sufficient to provide the premium stabilization benefits intended by the statute. 

Under the risk adjustment methodology, risk adjustment charges will be equal to 

risk adjustment payments and the program will net to zero. 

We anticipate that risk corridors collections will be sufficient to pay for all risk 

corridors payments over the life of the 3-year program. However, in the unlikely 

event of a shortfall for the 2015 program year, we recognize that the Affordable 

Care Act requires us to make full payments to issuers. In that event, we would use 

other sources of funding for the risk corridors payments, subject to the availability 

of appropriations. We will provide additional specificity in future guidance or rulemaking as necessary. 

Question. When will CMS start making payments under the Risk Corridor, Risk 

Adjustment, and Reinsurance programs? 

Answer. We anticipate payments for these programs will first be made in the 

summer of 2015 for the 2014 plan year. 

EXCHANGE ENROLLMENT

Question. How many previously uninsured Americans have enrolled in the Exchanges? 

Answer. In addition to the more than 8 million people who have selected plans 

through the Marketplace during the initial open enrollment period, Congressional 

Budget Office (CBO) recently estimated that 5 million people will have purchased 

coverage outside of the Marketplace in Affordable Care Act-compliant plans. More-
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over, recent national surveys indicate that the number of Americans with health insurance coverage is growing, and the number of 18 to 64 year olds who are uninsured is declining. For example, Gallup has found an almost 5 percentage point decrease in the uninsured rate for adults (18 and over) from the third quarter of 2014 

to April 2014 (18 percent versus 13 percent, respectively). Similarly, the Urban Institute estimates a 2.7 percentage point decrease in the uninsured rate for adults 

(18 to 64) between September 2013 and 2014 (corresponding to a 5.4 million decline 

in the number of uninsured adults). Meanwhile, the RAND Corporation estimates 

a 4.7 percentage point decrease in the uninsured rate (corresponding to a net decrease of 9.3 million uninsured adults, ages of 18 to 64) between September 2013 

and March 2014. 

Question. Since only 28 percent of the new enrollees represent the young, healthy 

population, how will the Marketplace avoid the so called ‘‘death spiral’’ or significant 

spikes in premiums in 2015? 

Answer. Consistent with expectations, through the end of 2014 open enrollment, 

the proportion of young adults (ages 18 to 34) who have selected a Marketplace plan 

through the State Based Marketplaces (SBMs) and Federally-Facilitated Marketplaces (FFMs) has remained strong. We expect that the robust sign-up numbers we 

are observing in the Marketplace’s first year—8 million at the close of 2014 open 

enrollment—will encourage insurers to compete on price for consumers during next 

year’s open enrollment period. In addition, provisions of the Affordable Care Act, including rate review and the medical loss ratio rule, will help protect consumers 

against unfair rate hikes. 

Question. What is the percentage of enrollees that have actually paid their premiums to date? 

Answer. CMS and the Department have a longstanding focus on transparency and 

accuracy. When CMS has accurate and reliable data regarding premium payments, 

we will see that this information is available. However, we do know that some 

issuers have made public statements indicating that 80 percent to 90 percent of the 

people who have selected a Marketplace plan have made premium payments. It is 

also important to note that issuers have the flexibility to determine when premium 

payments are due. 

EXCHANGE COST

Question. How did the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) come up 

with the $1.8 billion estimate necessary to operate the Marketplace for fiscal year 

2015? 

Answer. As with all of our budget requests, the fiscal year 2015 Marketplace request represents an assessment of needs based on the costs of existing contracts, 

as well as new functions that will be implemented in fiscal year 2015. 

Question. What happens if the Department does not receive the projected $1.2 billion in Marketplace user fees? 

Answer. Millions of Americans have already gained quality, affordable insurance 

coverage through the Marketplace, and funding continued operations is one of my 

highest priorities. In line with the 2015 President’s budget, we expect to collect $1.2 

billion in user fees from issuers participating in the Federal Marketplace in fiscal 

year 2015. The Department’s fiscal year 2015 request is critical to carry out the Department’s responsibilities to fund Marketplace operations. 

Question. In fiscal year 2014, the Department estimated $450 million in Marketplace user fees. Did CMS meet that estimate? 

Answer. User fees for the federally facilitated Marketplace were first collected in 

January 2014 to align with the first month of Marketplace coverage. We are still 

working on updating user fee projections for fiscal year 2014, which will be based 

on recent enrollment and premium data gathered from the initial enrollment period. 

STATE-BASED EXCHANGE REPLACEMENT COSTS

Question. Does the Department plan to provide funds to purchase replacement IT 

systems for the failed State-based Exchanges like Oregon? And if so, where will this 

funding come from? 

Answer. CMS is working with States on addressing the implementation challenges with their State-based Marketplace. CMS will be implementing contingency 

plans to smoothly and effectively assume the Marketplace functions for any States 

that are unable to demonstrate readiness to continued operation of their Marketplace. 

Question. Will the Department plan to recoup some of these funds from contractors who failed to deliver a working system? 
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Answer. We need to determine what went wrong and why (and in States where 

things are going right understand that too). In those States where Federal Government and taxpayer funds were misused, we need to use all available avenues to get 

those funds back for the taxpayer. Finally, we need to make sure that ensure that 

those who should be receiving access to quality, affordable healthcare through those 

States receive that access. 

CRITICAL ACCESS HOSPITALS

Question. When will the Committee receive the list of Critical Access Hospitals 

(CAHs) affected by the 10-mile rule that was requested in the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus? 

Answer. CMS is in the process of obtaining a new software package that will 

allow us to produce the list as requested by the committee. We will work to provide 

the list to your staff as quickly as possible. 

Question. How will the proposals regarding CAHs in the fiscal year 2015 budget 

request affect access to healthcare for Americans living in rural communities? 

Answer. The proposals in the President’s budget are aimed at preserving beneficiary access while promoting payment efficiency. These proposals narrowly targeted and designed to improve efficiency while preserving access to care. CMS does 

not expect either proposal would have any significant adverse impact on rural access 

to care. 

Question. How many hospitals will be at risk of losing their designation based on 

these CAH proposals? 

Answer. Currently, when making a determination of a Critical Access Hospital’s 

(CAH) satisfying the statutory location requirements concerning proximity to another CAH or a hospital, CMS starts by using online driving directions programs 

(such as Google maps) to calculate the number of driving miles to other CAHs or 

hospitals. CMS also considers any evidence to the contrary that the CAH chooses 

to submit before making its determination. Any list would preliminary estimate only 

based on the initial policy proposal. A final determination of the effect on the status 

of any particular CAH would be determined on a case-by-case basis and would depend on the legislative language and implementing regulations. 

RECOVERY AUDIT CONTRACTORS

Question. What is the current status of the new Recovery Audit Contractors 

(RACs) contracts? Please provide details on the new incremental changes that RAC 

auditors will have to follow under the terms of the new contracts. 

Answer. CMS is currently in the procurement process for the next round of Recovery Audit Program contracts and plans to award these contracts this year. In February 2014, CMS announced a number of changes to the Recovery Audit Program 

that will take effect with the new contract awards as a result of stakeholder feedback. CMS believes that improvements to the RAC program will result in a more 

effective and efficient program, including improved accuracy, less provider burden, 

and more program transparency. 

Question. When will the Department’s Working Group on the RAC program propose its recommendations? 

Answer. The Department has formed an intra-agency workgroup with representatives from CMS, Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA), and the Departmental Appeals Board (DAB) tasked with developing recommendations to improve 

the Medicare appeals process and address the significant backlog of appealed 

claims. We are working diligently to identify short- and long-term solutions to address the backlog. 

Question. What is the plan to address the current multiyear backlog at the Office 

of Medicare Hearings and Appeals? 

Answer. The Department has formed an intra-agency workgroup with representatives from CMS, OMHA, and the DAB tasked with developing recommendations to 

improve the Medicare appeals process and address the significant backlog of appealed claims. We are working diligently to identify short- and long-term solutions 

to address the backlog. 

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

Question. This is the last year of mandatory funding for Community Health Centers. How has the Department planned for the so-called funding cliff for Community 

Health Centers? How will the Department prioritize its current budget in the event 

that no additional mandatory dollars are provided? 

Answer. As you know, the Affordable Care Act appropriated $11 billion over 5 

years in mandatory funding for community health centers, with $1.5 billion avail-
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able to support major construction and renovation at health centers, and the remaining $9.5 billion available to support ongoing health center operations, establish 

new health center sites in medically underserved areas, and expand primary care 

health services at existing health center sites. While the Department has submitted 

proposals in the past to mitigate the impact of the declining mandatory funding, 

Congress included language in the fiscal year 2013 and fiscal year 2014 appropriations bills directing HHS to obligate all funding available for each respective fiscal 

year. 

The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget includes a proposal to extend mandatory 

funding for health centers at $2.7 billion annually over fiscal years 2016–2018, in 

addition to a discretionary investment. This funding level is projected to support 

continued operations for over 1,300 health centers with nearly 9,500 primary care 

sites. 

The President has not yet submitted a discretionary budget for fiscal year 2016, 

the year the mandatory Health Center funds will expire. If funding for the Health 

Center Program is significantly lower in fiscal year 2016 compared to the previous 

year a complex procedure of grant level reductions, and possibly terminations, could 

occur. This could result in numerous health center sites closing, and a reduction in 

patients served by health centers. 

Question. Why did the fiscal year 2015 budget proposal not attempt to offset the 

funding cliff with discretionary funding? 

Answer. The budget includes a proposal to continue mandatory funding for health 

centers in fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018 at $2.7 billion per year, for a total investment of $8.1 billion. The President has not yet submitted a discretionary budget 

for fiscal year 2016, the year the mandatory Health Center funds will expire. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

HEATHCARE.GOV BACKEND SYSTEMS

Question. What is the status of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) appeals system? 

Has the backlog been resolved? Where are the funds coming from to pay for the 

computer based infrastructure used to review these claims? 

Answer. Consumers applying for health coverage in the Marketplace receive an 

eligibility determination that informs them whether or not they are qualified to purchase coverage through the Marketplace or receive financial assistance. Consumers 

who disagree with the determination may request an appeal. 

CMS first attempts to resolve the appeal directly with the consumer through informal resolution, which involves contacting the consumer as expeditiously as possible to work through the consumer’s concerns. This approach has worked particularly well for consumers who filed appeals early in the open enrollment period, before system errors were corrected. Many of these consumers have since been able 

to successfully enroll in a qualified health plan and have withdrawn their appeals. 

CMS prioritizes medically urgent appeals, and as a result, is working to resolve 

those appeals as quickly as possible. CMS is now holding hearings for those cases 

that are not otherwise resolved through an informal process. 

Question. Provide an update on how much of the healthcare.gov backend remains 

incomplete including the automatic payment system. What are the current problems 

with completing this task and the timeline for resolving the issues? 

Answer. As CMS has said, the automated payment and reporting system between 

issuers and CMS is not complete or fully tested. CMS has an interim process for 

paying issuers that are owed Marketplace financial assistance in the form of Advanced Premium Tax Credits (APTC) or Center for Scientific Review (CSR) payments. Under this interim process, issuers who are owed payments submit initial, 

aggregate information on a monthly basis in order to receive Marketplace financial 

assistance payments. This data includes preliminary total effectuated enrollments, 

enrollees receiving Marketplace financial assistance, and the estimated amount 

owed to the issuer, all of which are subject to change and unconfirmed by CMS. On 

a monthly basis, CMS compares the effectuated enrollment counts submitted by the 

issuers to the enrollment counts generated from the FFM for individual market 

issuers. These data and payments will be further reconciled once the automated 

payment and reporting system is in place. The automatic payment system is a priority for CMS. 

NAVIGATORS

Question. How many Navigators have been hired? 
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Answer. HHS does not directly hire Navigators. The Affordable Care Act requires 

that each Marketplace, including the federally facilitated and State Partnership 

Marketplaces, establish a program under which it awards grants to Navigators. In 

August 2013, CMS, as operator of the federally facilitated and State Partnership 

Marketplaces, awarded Navigator grants to 105 grantees to provide Navigator services to consumers in those Marketplaces in 2013–2014. The CMS Navigator grantees represent a broad and diverse segment of stakeholders. Each Navigator grantee 

is responsible for determining staffing levels that would be appropriate for meeting 

the terms and conditions of their grants. Over the course of Open Enrollment, more 

than 28,000 in-person assisters, including Navigators, were trained, and they 

reached more than 2.4 million consumers through events, outreach activities, and 

storefront locations. 

Question. With the ACA enrollment period closed, have these people been laid off 

(i.e. are they temporary employees)? If not, what will the Navigators be doing until 

the next enrollment period? 

Answer. Staffing levels and deployment are determined by CMS Navigator grantees in a manner that best enables the grantee to fulfill the terms and conditions 

of the Navigator grant. 

Question. How much funding from fiscal year 2014 will be allocated to the Navigators’ program? 

Answer. The Funding Opportunity Announcement for Navigators in the federally 

facilitated and State Partnership Marketplaces for 2014–2015 has not yet been released. 

Question. How much funding do you expect to allocate to the Navigators’ program 

in fiscal year 2015? 

Answer. Funding decisions related to the Navigator program in the federally facilitated and State Partnership Marketplaces for fiscal year 2015 have not yet been 

made. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JOHN BOOZMAN

Question. According to title XVIII of the Social Security Act, in order for a hospital 

to continue to participate in the Medicare program, it must meet all of the statutory 

provisions of section 1861(e) of this Act. This section defines a hospital as an institution that ‘‘ . . . is primarily engaged in providing, by or under the supervision of 

physicians, to inpatients... diagnostic services and therapeutic services.’’ 

With no statutory or regulatory definition of ‘‘primarily engaged’’ in reference to 

inpatients treated at hospitals, what criteria and/or specific recognized quantitative 

method(s) is CMS using to determine whether a hospital meets the statutory provisions of 1861(e) of the Social Security Act? 

Answer. CMS has not yet identified any quantitative method, such as percentage 

of services or ratio of inpatient-to-outpatient services, which could solely be used to 

determine whether a facility is primarily engaged in furnishing services to inpatients. CMS has heard from stakeholders that a fixed standard might exclude certain rural hospitals. Therefore, CMS continues to interpret the phrase ‘‘primarily 

engaged’’ on a case-by-case basis to consider the facts and circumstances of each facility. 

Question. In Arkansas, safety net hospitals have been subject to overly aggressive 

contractors denying an overwhelming number of claims based on minor technicalities or the contractor’s own inaccuracies. Are you aware of this issue? If so, what 

is being done to address and/or correct these situations? 

Answer. CMS uses the Recovery Auditors to perform medical review to identify 

and correct Medicare improper payments primarily on a post payment basis. CMS 

uses the vulnerabilities identified by the Recovery Auditors to implement actions 

that will prevent future improper payments nationwide. Since full implementation 

in fiscal year 2010 through the first quarter of fiscal year 2014, the Recovery Auditors have returned over $7.4 billion to the Medicare Trust Fund. 

To ensure the accuracy of the Recovery Auditor’s claim determinations, CMS uses 

an independent validation contractor to review a monthly random sample of claims 

on which the Recovery Auditors has made an improper payment determination. The 

Recovery Audit Validation Contractor (RVC) establishes an annual accuracy score 

for each Recovery Auditor. The RVC employs policy experts and clinicians, and presents CMS with an independent decision regarding each sample. The accuracy score 

represents how often the Recovery Auditors were accurately determining overpayments or underpayments based on the validation contractor’s review. In fiscal year 

2012, all Recovery Auditors had a cumulative accuracy score of 92 percent or higher. 
286 

CMS is currently in the procurement process for the next round of Recovery Audit 

Program contracts and plans to award these contracts this year. In February 2014, 

CMS announced a number of changes to the Recovery Audit Program that will take 

effect with the new contract awards as a result of stakeholder feedback. CMS believes that improvements to the RAC program will result in a more effective and 

efficient program, including improved accuracy, less provider burden, and more program transparency. 

Question. What does CMS do when an overly aggressive contractor review threatens the financial solvency of a longstanding Medicare provider? Specifically, do you 

assist in the navigation of the appeals process, and do you encourage attempts to 

be creative to achieve an alternative resolution? 

Answer. Providers who disagree with a Recovery Auditor improper payment determination may utilize the multilevel administrative appeals process. Recovery Audit 

appeals follow the same appeal process as other Medicare claim determinations. 

However, CMS is sensitive to the concerns of the provider and supplier communities and continues to work with these communities to reduce the burden of the 

review process. The CMS has imposed additional documentation request limits on 

the number of medical records a Recovery Auditor may request in a 45-day timeframe. The limits establish continuity and help providers prepare for potential audits, as well as encourage the Recovery Auditors to select only those claims with 

the highest risk of improper payment. The limits and the acceptance of electronic 

health records help to minimize the time necessary to respond to Recovery Auditor 

requests and offers another alternative for providers to safely and quickly transport 

the documentation. The CMS understands that additional staffing is often required 

to address Recovery Auditor correspondence and it is constantly working to ensure 

providers can respond to requests without affecting beneficiary care. 

Each Recovery Auditor has a customer service center with representatives available to address provider concerns. They are required to have a quality assurance 

program to ensure that all customers receive professional and knowledgeable assistance with timely follow-up when necessary. Personnel are required to return telephone calls within 1 day, respond to electronic inquiries within 2 days, and respond 

to written requests within 30 days. The Medicare Administrative Contractors 

(MACs) are also available to address any Recovery Audit Program questions dealing 

with claims adjustment, recoupment, and appeals. If a provider is experiencing financial hardship, the MAC may be able to approve an extended repayment plan for 

the provider. 

CMS works across the agency to minimize provider burden. These efforts include 

ensuring that claims reviewed by one entity are not reviewed by another contractor 

again, unless there is a concern of potential fraud. CMS also works to ensure that 

multiple review entities such as Recovery Auditors, Medicare Administrative Contractors, and Zone Program Integrity Contractors are not reviewing the same providers and the same topics at the same time. CMS is exploring additional options 

to help providers navigate through the audit process. Initiatives include enhancing 

CMS Web sites with consolidated contractor information, standardizing documentation request letters, and standardizing medical review timeframes. The CMS understands that some providers utilize additional staffing to help manage the requirements of the Recovery Audit Program and is constantly working to streamline program operations as much as possible. 

Question. Are you aware that Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) contractors are 

denying claims based on minor documentation technicalities, which is explicitly prohibited by the RAC Statement of Work? If so, how are you striving to correct this 

problem? 

Answer. CMS regularly evaluates the Recovery Auditors’ performance and adherence to the requirements in their Statement of Work. Staff members go on location 

to observe medical reviewers, IT systems, and customer service areas. When onsite 

visits are not possible, CMS conducts desk audits on claims to confirm that all aspects of the review process were completed correctly and accounted for in the Data 

Warehouse. Regular meetings with claims processing contractors, provider groups, 

and other stakeholders are also monitored for additional contractor oversight. If 

there are any findings in these evaluations, CMS notifies the Recovery Auditor and 

requires a corrective action plan. The results of these regular evaluations are consolidated annually in the Contractor Performance Assessment Rating System 

(CPARS) for an overall performance rating for the year. These results are available 

to all Federal agencies. CMS believes that regular contractor oversight is essential 

to the success of the Recovery Audit Program. In addition, CMS uses the Recovery 

Audit Validation Contractor mentioned in the response to the first question to ensure Recovery Auditors are identifying accurate improper payments based on Medicare policy. 
287 

Question. Does CMS expect its contractors to agree to meet in-person with providers who have been the subject of an aggressive review of claims and a significant 

number of inappropriate denials? 

Answer. After notification of an improper payment, providers may request a discussion with the Recovery Auditors regarding their claim determinations. The discussion period offers providers the opportunity to discuss concerns about the determination with the Recovery Auditor Medical Director and submit additional documentation relevant to the determination to substantiate their claims. It also allows 

the Recovery Auditors to review the additional information without the provider 

having to file an appeal. If the Recovery Auditor reverses its claim determination, 

it will stop the claim from being adjusted, or work with the MAC to reverse the adjustment if it has already occurred. 

Each Recovery Auditor has a customer service center with representatives available to address provider concerns. They are required to have a quality assurance 

program to ensure that all customers receive professional and knowledgeable assistance with timely follow-up when necessary. Personnel are required to return telephone calls within 1 day, respond to electronic inquiries within 2 days, and respond 

to written requests within 30 days. The MACs are also available to address any Recovery Audit Program questions dealing with claims adjustment, recoupment, and 

appeals. 

CMS is exploring additional options to help providers navigate through the audit 

process. Initiatives include enhancing CMS Web sites with consolidated contractor 

information, standardizing documentation request letters, and standardizing medical review timeframes. The CMS understands that some providers utilize additional 

staffing to help manage the requirements of the Recovery Audit Program and is constantly working to streamline program operations as much as possible. 

Question. In the recently released fiscal year 2012 Recovery Auditor Report, CMS 

reports data as of the first level of appeal. What does CMS do to assess the accuracy 

of data cited by contractors? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2012 Recovery Auditor Report, in Appendix L includes information on the number of appeals at the first 4 levels of appeals, including the 

(1) Medicare Administrative Contractor, (2) Qualified Independent Contractors, (3) 

Administrative Law Judge (within the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals, an 

agency independent of CMS), and (4) the Departmental Appeals Board. The data reported in the Report to Congress is gathered by CMS with assistance from the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals and the Departmental Appeals Board. All 

collections and appeals data cited in the Report to Congress is CMS data and not 

contingent on Recovery Auditor data. 

To ensure the accuracy of the Recovery Auditor’s claim determinations, CMS uses 

an independent validation contractor to review a monthly random sample of claims 

on which the Recovery Auditors has made an improper payment determination. The 

Recovery Audit Validation Contractor (RVC) establishes an annual accuracy score 

for each Recovery Auditor. The RVC employs policy experts and clinicians, and presents CMS with an independent decision regarding the sample. The accuracy score 

represents how often the Recovery Auditors were accurately determining overpayments or underpayments based on the validation contractor’s review. In fiscal year 

2012, all Recovery Auditors had a cumulative accuracy score of 92 percent or higher. 

Question. CMS announced in February that it will require RACs to adjust the Additional Documentation Requests (ADRs) to levels in line with the provider’s denial 

rate, allowing providers with low denial rates to have lower ADR limits and providers with high denial rates to have higher limits. Although it is yet to be determined whether this change will alleviate provider burden as there is disagreement 

over the accuracy of RAC denial rates, I would urge the Agency to continue to pursue changes that ensure the RAC program targets improper payments while taking 

into consideration the overall burden on providers. Does the Agency have further 

plans to require such flexibility and reasonableness in the RAC program? 

Answer. CMS is currently in the procurement process for the next round of Recovery Audit Program contracts and plans to award these contracts this year. In February 2014, CMS announced a number of changes to the Recovery Audit Program 

that will take effect with the new contract awards as a result of stakeholder feedback. CMS believes that improvements to the RAC program will result in a more 

effective and efficient program, including improved accuracy, less provider burden, 

and more program transparency. 
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QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO MARK H. GREENBERG

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

HEAD START

Question. In fiscal year 2014, Congress restored the 5.27 percent reduction Head 

Start grantees received in fiscal year 2013 due to sequestration with the expectation 

that grantees would use the funds to restore services to pre-sequestration levels. In 

some cases, especially in rural Illinois, restoration of services to exactly match presequestration enrollment slots or other service levels may be impossible or no longer 

the best use of funds due to reduction in population or other changing needs of the 

community. How is the Department working with local grantees to provide flexibility to ensure the much needed restored resources are being used to best serve 

the local community? 

Answer. The Office of Head Start (OHS) communicated to grantees the expectation that they use the 5.27 percent Congress appropriated to restore the number of 

funded enrollment slots, the number of days or weeks in the program year, or the 

other cuts programs made to absorb the reduction. We asked grantees to work with 

their Regional Office if there are circumstances that make full restoration of services or slots challenging. As the Senator noted, there are situations where it is no 

longer possible or the best use of funds to restore exactly what was cut. For example, some grantees no longer have access to the facility where they provided centerbased care prior to sequestration or the needs of the community have changed, such 

as declining population or expanded pre-school services through other providers. In 

these cases, Regional Offices are working with grantees to explore other service enhancements to meet the needs of the community. If the grantee can only restore a 

portion of the slots that were cut, for example, Regional Offices engage in discussions on extending the hours or days of service as an alternative. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

HEAD START

Question. How will the Administration on Children and Families ensure that 

Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership funding reaches rural States like Kansas? 

Answer. We anticipate a robust nationwide competition, including rural States 

and communities. Funding is available within each State based on the number of 

young children in poverty and HHS hopes to fund high-quality applications from all 

50 States. 

UNACCOMPANIED ALIEN CHILDREN PROGRAM

Question. The budget request did not provide an increase for the Unaccompanied 

Alien Children (UAC) program, knowing that the number of children coming into 

the country illegally would increase this year. Therefore, what HHS programs do 

you suggest we reduce to address this shortfall? 

Answer. The fiscal year 2015 budget requested $868 million for the UAC program, 

consistent with the level provided in the fiscal year 2014 enacted bill, given the high 

degree of uncertainty around the program’s future needs. However, the budget also 

proposed over $2.2 billion in discretionary program terminations and reductions at 

the Department. We appreciate the additional funding provided in the fiscal year 

2015 bill reported out by the subcommittee as well as the enhanced authority to 

draw on other resources in the Department as needed. 

Question. After appropriating a $510 million increase in the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus for the UAC program, the subcommittee requested that HHS coordinate with 

the Departments of State, Homeland Security, and Justice in an effort to develop 

strategies for managing the rising cost of HHS’ program. What proposals have been 

developed to reduce funding increases for this program in the future? 

Answer. HHS has been coordinating with State, DHS, DOJ, and OMB on strategies to stem the flow of UAC, reduce the length of stay, and otherwise reduce costs. 

HHS efforts, in coordination with other Departments, have already reduced length 

of stay (from 75 days to 35 days) and costs, producing a 56 percent reduction in per 

capita shelter costs from 2011 to 2014. 

The Departments have also identified several strategies that are currently under 

consideration for feasibility of implementation. These strategies include: 

—Modified approach to children with non-parent relatives—to not treat some children that are apprehended at the border with a non-parent relative as a UAC, 
289 

and to develop alternate procedures for children apprehended throughout the 

interior of the U.S., if residing with a relative at the time of apprehension. 

—Modified approach to youth with serious criminal offenses, for whom release to 

a parent or sponsor is not appropriate. 

—Speeding up voluntary departure. 

—Developing improved transportation services—DHS and HHS are exploring 

whether an integrated transportation system could reduce costs while maintaining sufficient protections for children. 

—Developing a shared services model. 

—DHS and HHS are exploring a plan for a co-located site, which may yield savings. 

EVALUATION TAP

Question. How was it determined that an increase in the Evaluation Tap was necessary for fiscal year 2015? 

Answer. The Public Health Service (PHS) Evaluation Set-Aside is authorized by 

section 241 of the PHS Act, which has been amended in appropriations bills, to fund 

activities across HHS like AHRQ and CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. 

These funds are used to support critical public health and evaluation activities 

across HHS. Congress sets both the tap percentage and the usage of funds for the 

purposes specified in law. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget proposes an increase of the PHS Evaluation Set-Aside from 2.5 percent to 3 percent, consistent 

with the approach taken in the fiscal year 2014 President’s budget, and transparently reports how this funding would be used, both in program level totals and 

in appropriations language. 

Question. Please explain what deliberations take place within HHS and with the 

White House when deciding which agencies are to be the sources and receivers of 

Evaluation Tap transfers. 

Answer. The PHS Act Set-Aside is authorized by section 241 of the PHS Act, 

which has been amended in appropriations bills and allows HHS to assess a percentage of PHS Act authorized program funding to support activities across the Department. Historically, activities are excluded from the set-aside because they are 

not PHS Act authorized, they support program management, or they have been consciously excluded by Congress (e.g., the SAMHSA block grants). The Department examines sources and receivers during the annual budget process and Congress sets 

both the tap percentage and the usage of funds for the purposes specified in law. 

Question. Why does the Department use a budget gimmick to highlight an increase of $200 million for NIH, even though NIH is left with only a $58 million increase above fiscal year 2014 after accounting for the tap increase? 

Answer. The Public Health Service Evaluation Set-Aside plays a critical role supporting key public health programs and Congress sets both the tap percentage and 

the usage of funds for the purposes specified in law. As with most of the Department’s other public health agencies, NIH contributes its mathematical share of resources to the PHS Evaluation Fund. 

QUESTION SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION & NEW WORKFORCE INITIATIVE

Question. The new Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education (GME) program sets-aside $100 million for children’s hospitals. Children’s hospitals were funded at $265 million in fiscal year 2014. Why is the Children’s GME program targeted 

for such a significant reduction? 

Currently, the Children’s GME is distributed by a formula-based payment. Within 

the new $530 million workforce initiative, only $100 million will be distributed to 

children’s hospitals using the current formula. Children’s hospitals along with all 

teaching hospitals will be eligible to compete for the remaining $430 million. How 

will children’s hospitals continue to train physicians when they will only receive a 

small percentage of their prior formula-based payments and are not successful in 

the new competition? 

The National Health Service Corps and Targeted Support for GME programs are 

described with a focus on increasing the number of physicians in rural and other 

underserved areas. How will HHS accomplish this objective? 

Answer. The Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education (CHGME) Program 

will be integrated into the new, competitive community-based Targeted Support for 

Graduate Medical Education Program which will expand residency slots, with a 

focus on ambulatory and preventive care in order to advance the goal of higher 
290 

value healthcare that reduces long-term costs. To support the transition of CHGME 

into the new program, the budget includes $100 million of mandatory funding per 

year for 2 years to support the Children’s Hospital GME Program to be allocated 

using the existing formula. In addition, these hospitals will be able to apply for the 

competitive funding to support pediatric residency training through the new Targeted Support for Graduate Medical Education Program. 

The Targeted Support for Graduate Medical Education Program will continue to 

support graduate medical education in children’s hospitals. The program includes a 

$100 million set-aside for 2 years to be distributed to children’s hospitals using the 

current CHGME formula and they can compete for additional funding. While HRSA 

can’t estimate the number of FTEs supported in Children’s Hospitals in the TSGME 

program until a FOA is released and awards are made, HRSA supports efforts to 

train providers who treat children outside of the hospital setting, as well as current 

service delivery to children. 

—NHSC, through both scholarship and loan repayment programs, supported 540 

pediatricians, pediatric nurse practitioners, pediatric dentists, and child psychiatrists to serve in HPSAs (as of September 2013). 

—Currently, there are nearly 100 students, residents, and health providers specializing in the health of children and preparing to go into practice and are receiving support from these programs. 

—HRSA also funds the PC Residency Expansion program, which currently supports 14 pediatric residencies to increase the number of resident positions for 

5 years, from 2010–2015, adding well over 100 new pediatricians to the workforce. 

—And also relevant to access to care for children, in 2012, health centers treated 

more than 6.6 million patients under the age of 18; in fact, nearly 32 percent 

of all health center patients are children. 

The Targeted Support for Graduate Medical Education Program will focus specifically on key priorities for workforce development and transforming the healthcare 

delivery system. For example, the program will focus on increasing training opportunities in community-based settings, including in rural and underserved areas. Applicants will need to demonstrate that they provide diverse training experiences that 

will help ensure that we are training future physicians in the settings where we 

know patients get the bulk of their care, as well as being trained in the models of 

healthcare delivery that are most effective. This will help ensure that HRSA funds 

residencies that are likely to produce primary care practitioners who would work in 

rural and underserved areas, where the need is the greatest. 

In fiscal year 2015, HRSA expects to fund over 10,000 new National Health Services Corps loan repayment awards in order to build and sustain a field strength of 

15,000 primary care providers across the country, serving the primary care needs 

of more than 16 million patients in high-need rural, urban, and frontier areas across 

the United States. In fiscal year 2013, 100 percent of all new National Health Services Corps loan repayment awards were made to those serving in health professional 

shortage areas (HPSAs) of highest need (scores of 14 or higher) and nearly half of 

National Health Services Corps clinicians are serving at rural sites. 

A 2012 retention assessment survey found that 55 percent of National Health 

Service Corps clinicians continue to practice in underserved areas 10 years after 

completing their service commitment. Another recent study completed in fiscal year 

2013 showed 85 percent of those who had fulfilled their service commitment remained in service to the underserved in the short-term. Short-term is defined as up 

to 2 years after their service completion. 

HRSA continues to provide support to clinicians who practice in underserved 

areas. For example, HRSA has several social media outreach efforts to keep clinicians apprised of program updates and events, as well as networks to provide additional local resources for clinicians serving in underserved communities. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO THOMAS R. FRIEDEN, M.D., M.P.H 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

PRESCRIPTION DRUG OVERDOSE

Question. Our country is facing a major public health problem regarding the increasing use, and abuse, of prescription painkillers. In the past two decades, prescriptions for opioid painkillers in the U.S. nearly tripled to over 200 million per 

year. Just last month, a study reported that one in five women on Medicaid used 

prescription opioids during pregnancy. How will the funding you requested in the 
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President’s budget address the prescribing patterns of doctors regarding opioid painkillers? 

Answer. Prescription opioid overdoses quadrupled in the United States between 

1999 and 2010. During this same time period, the amount of prescription opioids 

prescribed in the United States also quadrupled. Centers for Disease Control and 

Prevention (CDC) identified two factors that account for a large percentage of prescription opioid overdoses: (1) patients receiving opioids from multiple prescribers 

and/or pharmacies and (2) increased number of prescriptions for high daily doses of 

opioids. As the Nation’s public health agency, CDC focuses on prevention, and prevention of this epidemic includes addressing the prescribing practices that fuel prescription drug abuse, addiction, and overdose. 

The President’s budget request reflects CDC’s focus on prescribing. The initiative 

will deliver the resources and expertise to funded States to address prescribing practices that are driving this epidemic. The $15.6 million proposed would expand the 

existing Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program (Core VIPP) funds to support 

State health department injury programs to (1) strengthen their ability to track and 

monitor prescribing and overdose trends, (2) build out effective insurance strategies 

to identify and stop inappropriate prescribing, and (3) enhance prescription drug 

monitoring programs (PDMPs) to equip doctors and pharmacists with the information they need to protect their patients. 

Sixteen of the currently funded 20 States currently use this funding to address 

problem prescribing in important and innovative ways. For example, States are improving or evaluating Medicaid patient review and restriction programs, protecting 

patients at the highest risk for overdose, integrating PDMP with electronic health 

record systems, or using PDMP data to identify doctors who may be prescribing inappropriately. 

LINKAGES WITH CLINICAL CARE

Question. In the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus, Congress provided CDC with funding 

to make big new investments in heart disease, diabetes, and community chronic disease prevention this year. Given all the changes in the healthcare system, please 

describe how these resources will help link public health and clinical care to prevent 

and control chronic disease and promote health in our communities. 

Answer. CDC provides scientific leadership and technical expertise to State, local, 

tribes/tribal organizations, and U.S. territories to assist them in building capacity 

to develop and implement chronic disease prevention and health promotion programs that have measureable impact. CDC is focused on implementing cross-cutting 

strategies to address school health, nutrition and physical activity risk factors, obesity, diabetes, heart disease and stroke: (1) conducting epidemiology and surveillance, (2) implementing environmental approaches, (3) expanding health system 

interventions, and (4) enhancing community-clinical linkages. 

With fiscal year 2014 funds from the Prevention and Public Health Fund, CDC 

will implement Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) DP14–1422, PPHF 

2014: State and Local Public Health Actions to Prevent Obesity, Diabetes, and 

Heart Disease and Stroke. CDC is supporting implementation of population-wide 

approaches to prevent obesity, diabetes, and heart disease and stroke and reduce 

health disparities. In addition, these new investments target priority population 

subgroups with uncontrolled high blood pressure and those at high risk for type 2 

diabetes that experience racial/ethnic or socioeconomic disparities, including inadequate access to care, poor quality of care, or low income. This competitive FOA to 

States and large cities has two components, both of which are designed to address 

heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Through these efforts, CDC builds on and expands the work funded in ‘‘FOA 13–1305-State Public Health Actions to Prevent 

and Control Diabetes, Heart Disease, Obesity, and Associated Risk Factors and Promote School Health’’. 

To specifically address linkages with clinical care, CDC is implementing key interventions such as: 

—Implementing systems to facilitate identification of patients with undiagnosed 

hypertension and people with pre-diabetes. 

—Increasing partnerships to facilitate bi-directional referral between community 

resources and health systems, including evidence-based lifestyle change programs. 

—Improving the delivery and use of clinical services by increasing implementation 

of quality improvement processes in health systems (e.g., fully utilizing electronic health records). 
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—Working to increase the use of team based care in health systems (e.g., increasing the use of self-measured blood pressure monitoring in conjunction with clinical support). 

—Increasing the use of community health workers (e.g., patient navigators) in the 

community to promote linkages between health systems and community resources for adults with high blood pressure and adults with pre-diabetes or at 

high risk for type 2 diabetes and to support self-management of chronic diseases 

and related risk factors. 

Such interventions have been shown to result in measurable impacts on heart disease, stroke, and other chronic conditions. The interventions build on the lessons 

learned implementing coordinated models intended to maximize CDC’s investment 

in the work of State and local departments of health. Using additional non-PPHF 

funds, CDC will work with awardees to operationalize community health needs assessments (CHNAs) as a critical tool in improving health and a tangible opportunity 

to link communities and health systems, including nonprofit hospitals. Throughout 

the course of this funding and beyond, CDC will continue to monitor and evaluate 

longer term outcomes associated with better connections between the public health 

and the health sector that result from these investments. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

Question. Many Americans think of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention 

(CDC) as a reactive agency that works to contain and manage viral epidemics and 

other public health threats—and it does—but the agency also conducts important 

proactive research work. 

What areas of biomedical research are being conducted by CDC? Has past research led to any significant health safeguards? How would CDC invest a steady 

increase in funding to expand and supplement this research? The fiscal year 2015 

budget request cuts CDC funding by more than $200 million. What research functions will CDC have to suspend as a result of this decrease? 

Answer. CDC has many unique roles that span the research continuum, as well 

as a primary role in applying the knowledge gained through research in addressing 

health threats and making Americans healthier. CDC research provides people the 

information they need to make healthier choices; provides clinicians with vaccines 

to protect children against deadly diseases; and gives health systems the tools they 

need to control healthcare-associated infections. CDC’s unique applied research role 

is in solving real-world problems, and in taking what we learn and know based on 

research and putting it to work in clinics and communities around the world. 

As the Nation’s public health protection agency, CDC funds and engages in a wide 

range of research, from laboratory investigations to epidemiologic analyses to prevention effectiveness research to clinical trials. A few examples of research conducted by CDC include the following: 

—Through new fiscal year 2014 funding, CDC is increasing its investment in Advanced Molecular Detection technology to use molecular sequencing tools and 

better develop bioinformatics capacity. These technologies can more rapidly deliver a greater level of detailed information on infectious pathogens, thereby 

more quickly identifying and responding to outbreaks, better understanding and 

controlling antibiotic resistance, and better developing targeted prevention 

measures. 

—CDC is the source of much of our knowledge about the population’s health, from 

rigorous surveys and scientific studies. For example, CDC’s National Health 

and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) takes measures of nutritional 

biochemistries, nutrients, toxic chemicals, and other direct biomedical measures 

to assess the Nation’s health. From this and other data from CDC surveys, scientists at CDC and elsewhere analyze the relationship between health risk factors and health outcomes. 

—CDC’s laboratories serve as key elements of our Nation’s defense against outbreaks, but also generate new knowledge that advances the biomedical sciences. 

As an example, tobacco laboratories measure addictive and toxic substances in 

tobacco products and smoke, as well as in the urine and blood of persons who 

use tobacco or are exposed to secondhand smoke. Similarly, the deadly 1918 influenza virus was safely reconstructed in secure CDC laboratories, using genetic 

fragments, allowing scientists to better understand influenza genetics and be 

more prepared to detect new, deadly flu strains. 
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—CDC tracks antibiotic resistance, having last year released the first-ever national report on the burden and threats posed by antibiotic-resistant infections. 

CDC not only tracks these threats, but also assesses and categorizes their hazard level, provides recommendations on preventing the spread of resistance, and 

addresses gaps in our current knowledge of antibiotic resistance. 

—CDC has developed a portable and effective light trap to kill mosquitoes and 

other insect vectors of disease. This trap is being used throughout the world. 

—Nutrition and chronic disease laboratories develop new or improved methods for 

measuring nutritional and dietary bioactive compounds to conduct the most 

comprehensive assessment of the Nation’s nutritional status, improve laboratory measurements to detect micronutrient deficiencies in the United States and 

developing countries, and operate reference laboratories that ensure the accuracy of clinical measurements for cardiovascular and other selected chronic diseases. 

Question. Has past research led to any significant health safeguards? 

Answer. CDC’s biomedical and other research has consistently supported the protection and improvement of the public’s health. New scientific discoveries lead to the 

development and refinement of clinical guidelines, health policies, and community 

programs. CDC identifies new pathogens, and develops new diagnostic tests for 

their identification by laboratories across the country and the world. Moreover, CDC 

continually tracks the health of the Nation and the emergence of new health 

threats, providing recommendations for action and guiding funding decisions elsewhere. 

—CDC has contributed significantly to the roughly 63 percent decrease in new domestic tuberculosis (TB) cases between 1992 and 2012. Since its inception in 

1997, CDC’s Tuberculosis Trials Consortium has brought together a number of 

U.S. research institutions and clinical trials sites around the world to develop 

new TB treatment and prevention strategies. In 2009, CDC’s TB laboratory developed and implemented the Molecular Detection of Drug Resistance Service, 

a national clinical referral service providing rapid confirmation of multidrug-resistant and extensively drug resistant TB. CDC also develops TB prevention 

and treatment guidelines, such as the recent release of guidelines for the use 

and safety monitoring of Bedaquiline Fumarate, the newest drug for the treatment of multidrug-resistant TB. 

—CDC’s influenza laboratories work to develop vaccines and track changes in the 

circulation of influenza viruses. These laboratories test influenza viruses from 

around the world to detect antigenic change, which provides information for 

pandemic preparedness and vaccine composition decisions. Additionally, they 

produce seed strains for influenza vaccine development, test the 

immunogenicity (ability to provide an immune response) of influenza vaccines 

among humans, and test transmissibility of newly emergent influenza viruses 

in animal models. 

—CDC health data collection drives health funding allocations. For instance, CDC 

provides HIV surveillance data to the HRSA Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program. 

Since fiscal year 2007, HRSA has used total counts of living cases of HIV and 

living cases of AIDS in the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Program Parts 

A and B allocation formulae. By providing these data to HRSA, CDC and HRSA 

are collaborating to ensure that the HIV care and treatment funds are rationally distributed according to the Ryan White program legislation. 

—Chemical threat agents and toxins laboratories support the public health response to emergencies with around-the-clock laboratory capability to identify 

human exposure to 150 chemical threat agents within 36 hours. This laboratory 

system provides support to and proficiency testing for State, local, and territorial public health laboratories to maximize national capacity for response to 

chemical incidents, and develop unique laboratory methods for measuring toxins 

for diagnosing botulism, anthrax, and ricin poisoning rapidly and accurately. 

Question. How would CDC invest a steady increase in funding to expand and supplement this research? 

Answer. CDC research is directed to solving real-world problems. Sustained increased funding for research would allow to CDC to steadily expand investments in 

current priorities areas, while also allowing for funding to address emerging health 

threats. The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget includes funding increases for key 

areas of research, such as: 

—Antibiotic Resistance.—CDC is proposing to establish a robust national network 

to deal with this rapidly growing threat to our Nation and the world. Additional 

funding will enable better detection of the deadliest antibiotic resistance threats 

and protect patients and communities, saving lives and healthcare costs. 
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—Global Health Security.—All our health security threats are amplified by the 

globalization of travel and the food supply. MERS is a recent example. CDC will 

work in partnership with other countries, U.S. Government partners, and global 

organizations to accelerate progress toward a world safe and secure from infectious disease threats. An important element of this proposal is to establish a 

global laboratory network capable of detecting all public health emergencies of 

international concern. 

—Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Public Health Informatics.—The budget request expands CDC’s capacity to monitor key health indicators, purchase 12 

months of electronic birth records enhanced data, phase in electronic death and 

birth records, and increase funding for public health systems research. 

Question. The fiscal year 2015 budget request cuts CDC funding by more than 

$200 million. What research functions will CDC have to suspend as a result of this 

decrease? 

Answer. The President’s budget request proposes strategic new investments and 

identifies targeted reductions that will allow CDC to advance its core public health 

mission in the most cost-effective manner. In a limited resource environment, the 

request includes elimination of CDC funding for Occupational Safety and Health 

Education Research Centers, as well as for the Agricultural, Forestry, and Fishing 

Sector of the National Occupational Research Agenda. CDC reductions focused primarily on eliminating duplicative, less effective, and lower priority programs in 

order to fund priorities and address urgent public health threats, such as global 

health security and antimicrobial resistance. 

TOBACCO AND E-CIGARETTES

Question. Smoking causes nearly one in every five deaths in the United States 

and costs the country $193 billion each year in healthcare expenses and lost productivity. An estimated 43.8 million American adults smoke cigarettes, and about 3,800 

young people under the age of 18 smoke their first cigarette every day. Congress 

created the Prevention and Public Health Fund, a dedicated funding stream for crucial investments in prevention for a healthier America, to begin addressing these 

and other public health challenges. The Fund provides an opportunity to reverse 

decades of increasing healthcare costs attributable to growing rates of obesity, 

chronic disease, and other preventable illness. 

Please summarize investments made through the Prevention and Public Health 

Fund (PPHF) to promote tobacco prevention and control. What measurable economic 

and health benefits have resulted from those investments? 

A portion of the fund went toward the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

Tips from Former Smokers campaign. Please summarize the status of this initiative 

and health and economic benefits of this campaign. If Prevention and Public Health 

Funds dollars are reallocated toward nonpublic health prevention initiatives, how 

would that reallocation of funds impact tobacco control and prevention efforts and 

the returns on those investments? 

The use and sale of e-cigarettes in the United States has grown significantly over 

the past decade. According to a recent CDC report, the number of calls to poison 

centers involving e-cigarette liquids rose from one per month in September 2010 to 

215 per month in February 2014. More than half of the calls to poison centers due 

to e-cigarettes involved young children under age 5, and about 42 percent of the poison calls involved people age 20 and older. 

Please summarize CDC’s current and planned research on the public health effects of e-cigarettes? 

Answer. PPHF-funded tobacco prevention initiatives such as Tips from Former 

Smokers and quitline support are having substantial impact. Without these investments we would expect to see substantially fewer Americans who have quit smoking. 

Tips From Former Smokers.—The Tips from Former Smokers Campaign is currently in its third year, and will return to the airwaves with new ads in summer 

2014. CDC estimates that so far, Tips has led millions of Americans to make a quit 

attempt, and hundreds of thousands to quit permanently. Because of the strong evidence of effectiveness of the Tips campaign, the 2014 Surgeon General’s Report recommended ‘‘the following action should be implemented: Counteracting industry 

marketing by sustaining high impact national media campaigns like the CDC’s Tips 

from Former Smokers campaign and FDA’s youth prevention campaigns at a high 

frequency level and exposure for 12 months a year for a decade or more.’’ 

On average, annual funding levels have sustained the Tips campaign between 3 

and 4 months of each year, and represent less than 3 days of tobacco industry 

spending on promotion and marketing. Nevertheless, at current levels the funds are 
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having a substantial impact. At a cost of less than $200 per life year saved, Tips 

is also a highly cost-effective strategy. In contrast, most clinical and preventive 

interventions cost thousands of dollars per year of life saved. 

Quitline Support.—PPHF funds also allowed CDC to dramatically expand the 

reach of State tobacco cessation quitlines through the Tips from Former Smokers 

national tobacco education campaign. PPHF funds supported both the campaign and 

State quitline capacity to handle the increased calls generated by the campaign. 

During the 2012 and 2013 Tips campaigns, which aired for a combined total of 28 

weeks, there were a total of 718,042 calls to 1-800-QUIT-NOW, a portal which 

routes callers to their State quitlines. This represents 359,055 additional calls beyond baseline levels. 

Community Investments.—In addition, PPHF-funded community investments addressing tobacco use (as well as nutrition and physical activity) have had substantial impact and reach. For example: 

—As a result of the CDC’s chronic disease community investments funded 

through recovery act funds, an estimated 27.4 million Americans now have increased protections from deadly secondhand smoke exposure in workplaces, restaurants, bars, schools, multi-unit housing complexes, campuses, and recreation 

areas. 

—As of December 2013, the chronic disease community investments funded 

through Prevention and Public Health Funds are estimated to have provided 

15.6 million new people with access to smoke-free or tobacco-free interventions. 

Question.—The use and sale of e-cigarettes in the United States has grown significantly over the past decade. According to a recent CDC report, the number of calls 

to poison centers involving e-cigarette liquids rose from one per month in September 

2010 to 215 per month in February 2014. More than half of the calls to poison centers due to e-cigarettes involved young children under age 5, and about 42 percent 

of the poison calls involved people age 20 and older. 

Please summarize CDC’s current and planned research on the public health effects of e-cigarettes? 

Answer. Through surveillance analysis and updates, original research, and coordination with HHS agencies, CDC is conducting cutting-edge research to capture the 

public health effects of e-cigarettes. 

Surveillance Analyses and Updates.—CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health (OSH) 

is in the process of analyzing available e-cigarette data and updating key surveillance systems to incorporate questions about e-cigarette use, including CDC’s National Adult Tobacco Survey, National Youth Tobacco Survey, and the Global Adult 

and Youth Tobacco Surveys. 

—Additionally, CDC is working with partners, other Federal agencies, and States 

to incorporate e-cigarette questions into existing surveillance systems, including 

the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), National Health and Nutrition 

Examination Survey (NHANES), Behavioral Risk Factor Survey (BRFS), Youth 

Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System 

(PRAMS), FDA’s Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH), 

SAMHSA’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), and State 

Youth (YTS) and Adult (ATS) Tobacco Surveys. 

—Finally, CDC is leveraging opportunities to collect data on e-cigarettes from 

rapid response sources, such as HealthStyles and YouthStyles surveys. 

Research.—CDC is developing a series of research projects to address significant 

knowledge gaps related to e-cigarettes. 

—A request for proposal (RFP) has been announced to support a contract for research to measure the effects of secondhand exposure to e-cigarette aerosol. The 

CDC study aims to simulate and examine real-life exposure to secondhand aerosol from e-cigarettes by conducting an observational pilot research study looking primarily at biomarkers of exposure to nicotine in research participants exposed to secondhand e-cigarette aerosol. CDC anticipates making the award this 

summer. 

—CDC’s Tobacco Laboratory is collaborating with the FDA on studies that address three main categories of e-cigarettes: cigarette look-alikes, pencil size ecigarettes (these use nicotine liquid) and tank e-cigarettes (large, often with 

voltage adjustment and use nicotine liquid). These studies will measure: (1) 

harmful and potentially harmful constituents of e-cigarette aerosol and nicotine 

liquid, (2) addictive compounds in e-cigarette aerosol and liquid, and (3) biomarkers of these harmful and addictive constituents in blood and urine of users 

and people exposed to e-cigarette aerosol. CDC is also working on standardized 

smoking machine measurement protocols so measurements of constituents in ecigarette aerosol can be reliably compared between different laboratories. 
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—CDC, in coordination with FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, is conducting a 

more in-depth analysis to build upon the MMWR published on e-cigarette exposures called to poison centers. The additional analyses will compare the health 

effects and demographics of reported e-cigarette exposures to other nicotine-delivery methods such as nicotine patches, lozenges, and gums. 

—Formative research is being conducted with adult smokers and former smokers 

18–54 years old to understand reasons for use of noncombustible tobacco products (e.g., e-cigarettes, chewing tobacco, snus) in combination with combustible 

tobacco products (e.g. cigarettes, little cigars). 

—In partnership with FDA, CDC is performing in-depth research with pregnant 

women and women planning a pregnancy to assess their understanding of risks 

associated with using electronic cigarettes and other nicotine-containing products during pregnancy. 

—Among youth and adults, CDC is also examining the impact of exposure to ecigarette advertising on intention to use e-cigarettes or other tobacco products. 

—Through a survey administered by the American College of Obstetricians and 

Gynecologists, CDC is examining screening practices, knowledge and attitudes 

of obstetricians toward the use of electronic cigarettes and other nicotine containing tobacco products during pregnancy. 

Coordination.—CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health works closely with HHS 

agencies to coordinate research priorities, including, for example: 

—CDC and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), with the North American 

Quitline Consortium, are assessing current quitline experiences regarding ecigarettes to inform future messaging and tracking. 

—CDC and FDA co-authored recent updates on youth use of e-cigarettes (September 2013) and e-cigarette related calls to poison centers (April 2014). 

—CDC and FDA are working together to analyze data from the National Adult 

Tobacco Survey (NATS) and the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) on the 

impact of e-cigarette use on cessation and on youth and young adult intentions 

to smoke conventional cigarettes. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

Question. The National Asthma Control Program helps millions of Americans control their disease. In the United States today nearly 26 million people have asthma, 

including 7 million children. This is concerning to me since New Hampshire’s asthma prevalence rates are higher than the national average. 

The CDC has requested level funding of $27.4 million for the National Asthma 

Control Program, which appears to only fund preventive work in 20 States. However, it is my understanding that this program was always envisioned to be nationwide. Is CDC committed to ensuring that every State has a comprehensive approach 

to asthma control? How much funding would it take to get a quality program in 

every State? 

Answer. CDC’s National Asthma Control program is committed to advancing 

knowledge on asthma interventions with the strongest evidence of effectiveness. 

Comprehensive asthma care entails providing a seamless alignment of the full array 

of services across the public health and healthcare sectors so that people with asthma receive all, not just some, of the services they need. Providing comprehensive 

care at a population level requires a stepwise approach. The first step is to ensure 

the availability of and access to guidelines-based medical management and 

pharmacotherapy for all people with asthma. Then, for the segment of people whose 

asthma remains poorly controlled, additional next steps provide or link them with 

progressively more individualized services (e.g., intensive self-management education, environmental trigger reduction services, and other environmental management strategies). 

CDC reduced the number of awards in order to increase the average award to 

States ($331,000 in fiscal year 2013 to $650,000 in fiscal year 2014). Additionally, 

CDC restructured the awards using a population-based model to ensure that funding was allocated based on need. Funding comprehensive care to a subset of States 

based on need is CDC’s current approach. 

Question. I am deeply troubled that 1 in 10 kids have asthma nationwide and it 

is a growing contributor to health disparities. What can we do to reverse this startling trend? 

Answer. CDC recognizes that asthma prevalence is increasing nationwide and is 

a significant contributor to health disparities. Today, African-Americans are 2–3 

times more likely to die from asthma than any other racial or ethnic group. CDC 

has a strong network of funded State asthma programs and partners and an estab-
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lished surveillance role in public health. States use the information we collect to target vulnerable populations and implement comprehensive, evidence-based asthma 

interventions. 

Asthma carries with it a significant economic burden. In 2007, asthma cost about $56 billion in medical cost, lost school and work days, and early deaths. Medicaid 

spends over $10 billion per year treating asthma. While we don’t know what causes 

asthma, we do know that attacks are sometimes triggered by allergens, exercise, occupational hazards, tobacco smoke, air pollution, and airway infections. 

CDC’s National Asthma Control program works with States to reduce the burden 

of asthma across the country. While the overall number of people with asthma has 

risen, trends show that more people with asthma are living with their disease under 

control. For example, we have seen the hospitalization rate decline by 14 percent 

in States receiving CDC asthma funds (2000–2007). 

Other progress in addressing asthma: 

—1.7 million fewer people had asthma attacks in 2009 

—Over 1,000 fewer people died in 2010 

—Children missed 4.2 million fewer school days because of asthma in 2008 

CDC’s asthma grantees have also reduced healthcare costs. In Connecticut, the 

‘‘Putting on AIRS Program,’’ a home based program focusing on self-management 

and elimination of asthma triggers, reported significant progress: 

—85 percent decline in emergency department visits 

—67 percent decline in asthma-related physician visits 

—62 percent decline in missed days of school and work 

—Net savings of $26,720 per patient after 6 months 

In Michigan, the asthma program worked with the Asthma Network of West 

Michigan and Priority Health, the largest payer in western Michigan, to reduce 

healthcare costs and improve asthma outcomes: 

—44.4 percent decline in emergency department visits among private members 

—24.4 percent decline in emergency department visits among Medicaid members 

—For every $1 invested in home visits, environmental assessments and trigger re- duction, it has recouped $2.10 in reduced costs due to uncontrolled asthma. 

These are just a few examples of how CDC is working to reverse trends. 

Question. I believe the National Diabetes Prevention Program holds great promise 

to reduce the burden of diabetes and I am anxious to see the program implemented 

in even more communities in New Hampshire and across the country. I was pleased 

to see that the President’s budget includes a request for $10 for the program. 

—Given the incredible promise of the National Diabetes Prevention Program to 

reduce the number of individuals with prediabetes that develop type 2 diabetes, 

can you share with us the agency’s plan for expanding the number of program 

sites and individuals participating in fiscal year 2015? 

—Currently there are 79 million people with prediabetes. Does the agency have 

an estimate of the resources needed for the National Diabetes Prevention Program to confront the human and economic impact of the disease beyond 2015? 

Answer. New estimates from CDC indicate more than 86 million adults in the 

U.S. have prediabetes, an increase from the previous estimate of 79 million in 2010. 

With an fiscal year 2015 appropriation request of $10 million (level with the 2014 

appropriation), CDC’s National Diabetes Prevention Program grantees will expand 

locations, target populations, settings, number of sites, number of participants, and 

number of lifestyle coaches, class offerings, and insurance reimbursement. Selected 

grantee activities include: 

—The Black Women’s Health Imperative will expand its program sites to New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where they have identified specific 

prediabetes health disparities. 

—Y of the U.S.A. (Y) plans to increase the number of sites offering the lifestyle 

change program from 11 to 46. 

—The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) has secured 

coverage of the lifestyle interventions for the Thomas Jefferson Health System 

medical school, medical center, and Accountable Care Organization clients. 

In fiscal year 2015, CDC plans to increase the number of organizations applying 

for CDC recognition through promotion of the Diabetes Prevention Recognition Program (DPRP). To date, 508 organizations have applied for recognition, serving approximately 10,200 participants. CDC is revising its DPRP standards to incorporate 

recognition of virtual lifestyle change programs. Initiating this type of program virtually will significantly increase the availability of lifestyle interventions in communities where no physical programs exist or for those who would prefer to engage at 

home. 

CDC is partnering with a national medical organization to educate their constituency and increase referral and uptake of the intervention for their patients with 
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prediabetes. Furthermore, CDC will continue educating employers and public/private payers across the U.S. about the benefits and cost-savings of offering the evidence-based lifestyle change program as a covered health benefit for employees and 

for reimbursing organizations who deliver the intervention. 

Additionally, with fiscal year 2014 funds from the Prevention and Public Health 

Fund, CDC will implement Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) DP14–1422, 

PPHF 2014: State and Local Public Health Actions to Prevent Obesity, Diabetes, 

and Heart Disease and Stroke. These new investments target priority population 

subgroups with uncontrolled high blood pressure and those at high risk for type 2 

diabetes that experience disparities, including racial/ethnic or socioeconomic disparities, inadequate access to care, poor quality of care, or low income. This funding will 

support environmental and system approaches to promote health, support and reinforce healthful behaviors, and build support for lifestyle improvements. Diabetes primary prevention strategies include: 

—Working with a network of partners and local organizations to build support for 

evidence-based lifestyle change (e.g., National Diabetes Prevention Program); 

—Implementing evidence-based engagement strategies (e.g. tailored communications) to build support for lifestyle change; and 

—Increasing coverage for evidence-based lifestyle change programs by working 

with employers and other network partners. 

Question. Currently there are 79 million people with prediabetes. Does the agency 

have an estimate of the resources needed for the National Diabetes Prevention Program to confront the human and economic impact of the disease beyond 2015? 

Answer. CDC is currently in the early stages of formulating an fiscal year 2016 

budget request and, therefore, does not have an estimate at this time for funding 

needs in fiscal year 2016 or beyond. 

Question. Studies show that gestational diabetes is a growing problem and affects 

up to 18 percent of all pregnancies in the United States. The same studies show 

that gestational diabetes puts women and their children at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life and is associated with more health problems for 

both mother and child during pregnancy and childbirth. 

Can you talk about steps the CDC is taking to understand, monitor and help providers understand and test for gestational diabetes? 

Answer. CDC agrees that gestational diabetes is a prevalent and growing public 

health problem, and considerable work has been conducted to demonstrate that the 

obesity epidemic has contributed to the problem of gestational diabetes. However, 

we do not believe that testing for gestational diabetes is an issue; virtually all 

women who obtain prenatal care are tested. Work funded by other HHS agencies 

(NIH’s NICHD) has demonstrated that treating even mild gestational diabetes has 

benefits for mothers and their offspring. CDC is mainly concerned with the impact 

of gestational diabetes on the future health of women who had a pregnancy affected 

by gestational diabetes. These women and their children are at substantial risk of 

developing Type 2 diabetes as they move through their life course. Short-term follow-up of these women may not be adequate; as a result, CDC has: 

—Partnered with national organizations including the National Association of 

Chronic Disease Directors (NACDD) and the Council for State and Territorial 

Epidemiologists (CSTE) to facilitate information exchange among members and 

to provide new information about gestational diabetes. Their reach includes 

over 500 State and local health departments, healthcare organizations, community health centers, WIC programs, nonprofit agencies, and private providers. 

—Worked with clinical partners to emphasize the need for postpartum testing of 

women who had a pregnancy affected by gestational diabetes 

—Funded a pilot study (Balance after Baby) to determine how best to structure 

an intervention for recently pregnant women who had a pregnancy affected by 

gestational diabetes so that they might optimize their weight, physical activity 

and nutritional status and prevent or delay the onset of Type 2 diabetes. We 

are considering expansion of this pilot study. 

—Recommended that all women with a Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) affected pregnancies be screened for diabetes at their postpartum visit (about 6– 

8 weeks after delivery); currently postpartum screening rates are very low. As 

a result, CDC funded a clinical study (Comparison of Glucose Tolerance Testing 

Immediately Postpartum and at 6 Weeks in Women with Gestational Diabetes 

Mellitus) to determine if women with GDM could be accurately screened for diabetes during their delivery hospitalization instead of waiting 6–8 weeks for 

their postpartum visit. If screening at the delivery hospitalization is comparable 

to the 6–8 week screen, it increases the ability to identify women who are at 

risk for diabetes and adverse health outcomes. 
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QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

PRESCRIPTION DRUG OVERDOSE

Question. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) budget re- quests $15.6 million for a new Prescription Drug Overdose initiative. Instead of focusing funds specifically to address this problem, the budget requests an increase 

to the Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program, which is a much broader injury prevention program. Why did CDC not design a program to specifically address 

this problem in the States where the burden is highest? 

Answer. CORE VIPP is an existing system that has shown evidence of success in 

preventing injuries and protecting residents in the States in which the program has 

been implemented. Of the 20 currently funded States, 16 have already identified 

PDO as a priority and have been working on this topic with existing resources. Additionally, 10 of the highest PDO burden States are already funded through Core 

VIPP. The Core VIPP mechanism allows CDC to target specific activities to address 

this critical public health epidemic while also supporting State health departments’ 

overall ability to collect data, use those data to act, and collaborate across sectors 

to address the highest burden injury and violence prevention issues. Through the 

expansion of Core VIPP, CDC can direct resources to the States who need it most 

(i.e., those with the highest burden) and those who to demonstrate their readiness 

to advance multiple, complementary approaches—insurance innovations, prevention 

programs, and enhanced State-focused analysis. CDC strives to capitalize on existing mechanisms to better coordinate State efforts and reduce administrative burden 

on States. 

The request of $15.6 million in the fiscal year 2015 President’s budget will support PDO work (via Core VIPP) at the State level, in two ways: 

—Provide base injury prevention funding to a number of States that are not currently part of the Core VIPP program, with an emphasis on States with the 

highest burden of PDO. The goal is to build a State’s basic ability for injury 

prevention in order to have a foundation for PDO-specific activities. Each of 

these States will be required to include PDO as one of their injury prevention 

priorities. 

—The majority of the funding will be used for a set of Core VIPP States to expand 

and intensify their PDO prevention activities. This funding will be competed 

among existing and new Core VIPP States, with an emphasis on States with 

the highest burden of PDO and those States most prepared to conduct PDO prevention activities. 

ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE RESEARCH

Question. Last year, the budget requested an $80 million increase for Alzheimer’s 

disease research. Congress provided $100 million in the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus. 

Why did the Department not include an increase for Alzheimer’s disease research 

in the fiscal year 2015 budget proposal? 

Answer. Unlike the one-time funds provided for Alzheimer’s research by the NIH 

Director in fiscal year 2012 and fiscal year 2013, the additional $100 million appropriated dollars are added to the base, and upcoming budgets for Alzheimer’s research will be estimated from this increased base. The estimated total NIH-wide 

support for Alzheimer’s disease in fiscal year 2014 and again in fiscal year 2015 is 

$566 million. This amount is an estimate that could potentially increase, or decrease 

depending on peer review results. Most of the efforts for implementation of the National Alzheimer’s Project Act and the development of the National Plan to Address 

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) are led by the National Institute on Aging (NIA). NIA has 

awarded several major new grants supporting translational and clinical research 

aimed at the disease; they are among the first projects to be developed with direction from the 2012 AD Research Summit, and focus on identifying, characterizing, 

and validating novel therapeutic targets and identifying possible ways to stop disease progression. 

This brain disease is being aggressively targeted on multiple fronts. For example, 

NIH recently launched the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP), an unprecedented partnership with the Food and Drug Administration, a number of biopharmaceutical companies, and several nonprofit organizations that will use cutting-edge scientific approaches to sift through a long list of potential therapeutic targets and biomarkers, and choose those most promising for further development. This 

public-private partnership will initially focus on three disease areas, including Alzheimer’s disease. This truly innovative and collaborative approach should speed up 

the development of new treatments and cures for multiple conditions and diseases. 

Another way NIH-funded scientists are accelerating the development and applica-
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tion of innovative technologies toward major advances in Alzheimer’s disease is with 

the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. NIH is a major player in this pioneering, multi-agency venture that will enable the creation of new tools to examine the activity of billions of nerve cells, networks, and pathways in real time. By measuring activity at the scale of circuits and 

networks in living organisms, researchers can begin to decode sensory experience 

and, potentially, even memory, emotion, and thought. The BRAIN Initiative will 

provide a foundational platform that has the potential to spawn remarkable opportunities in basic and applied research for several brain disorders. 

Question. Will NIH reach the goal of finding a cure for Alzheimer’s by 2025 without an increase in its research funding? 

Answer. While it is still impossible to predict with certainty when an effective 

treatment or preventive intervention will be available, the infusion of new Federal 

funds to Alzheimer’s research in the past several years has already energized the 

field, accelerated the pace of discovery, and facilitated the support of research 

projects that may not otherwise have been funded. 

In particular, the field is benefiting from the inclusion of an additional $100 million in the NIH’s fiscal year 2014 budget appropriation which will be applied to 

high-priority research on Alzheimer’s disease. The National Institute on Aging 

(NIA), an NIH Institute and lead Federal agency for research on Alzheimer’s disease, will manage the bulk of the projects awarded with these funds. Unlike the 

one-time funds provided for Alzheimer’s research by the NIH Director in fiscal year 

2012 and fiscal year 2013, these additional appropriated dollars are added to the 

NIA’s base, and upcoming NIA budgets will be estimated from this increased base. 

NIA is strategically distributing these funds among single-year and multiyear 

projects to maintain a stream of new competing dollars to support high-quality, 

peer-reviewed research on aging and Alzheimer’s disease in future years. 

This recent increase in funding comes at an opportune time, and we have more 

reason than ever to be optimistic about the possibility of an effective treatment or 

preventive intervention for Alzheimer’s. Recent breakthroughs in biomedical imaging are enabling us to identify and track the earliest pathological stages of the disease process in the living human brain, long before clinical symptoms appear. These 

discoveries, in addition to discovery of other early biomarkers of the Alzheimer’s disease process, have opened a ‘‘window of opportunity’’ for us to target and potentially 

reverse the disease’s underlying pathology before cognitive, behavioral, and emotional symptoms appear. 

NIH has begun to launch its first such clinical trials in presymptomatic individuals. For example, in one study, researchers are investigating whether an antibody 

treatment, crenezumab, which is designed to bind to, and possibly clear away, abnormal amounts of amyloid protein in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s, can 

prevent decline in cognitive function among members of a unique and large family 

population in Colombia sharing a genetic mutation known to produce early-onset 

disease. We anticipate initial results from this groundbreaking study by 2017. Another study, the A4 Trial, will test an amyloid-clearing drug in the pre-symptomatic 

stage of the disease, in symptom-free older volunteers who have had positron emission tomography brain images that show abnormal levels of amyloid accumulation. 

Positive results from these or similar studies would provide important ‘‘proof of concept’’ that targeting preclinical disease is an effective strategy, and would represent 

a major step forward in our efforts against Alzheimer’s disease. 

NIH also supports more than 35 Alzheimer’s disease clinical trials, including a 

number of studies of interventions to slow disease progression among individuals 

who are already showing symptoms. Over 40 compounds are currently under study 

to stimulate and advance research on the discovery and development of new preventive and therapeutic interventions for AD, mild cognitive impairment, and age-related cognitive decline. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

STRATEGIC NATIONAL STOCKPILE

Question. The budget proposes, for a second year, to reduce funding for the Strategic National Stockpile. This reduction could result in fewer people receiving treatment during an influenza pandemic and fewer people receiving post-exposure treatment following exposure to anthrax. The proposed reduction is more than an efficiency cut; it affects our capability to respond in the event of a terrorist attack. If 

this cut is sustained, how does HHS expect the Federal Government to adequately 

respond should there be a bioterrorist attack or disease epidemic? 
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Answer. Through collaboration on the Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise (PHEMCE) governance process, CDC and other HHS agencies 

coordinate priorities and activities for future fiscal years to utilize all available resources to safeguard the health of U.S. populations. CDC will prioritize replacement 

of expiring items that rank the highest on formulary priorities, based on an annual 

review of the SNS and result in efficiencies form improved procurement. 

DUPLICATION

Question. In the Government Accountability’s Office’s annual report on duplication, it highlighted that it takes 10 different offices at the Department of Health 

and Human Services to run programs addressing AIDS in minority communities, 

that autism research is spread over 11 different agencies, and that there are 45 

early learning and child care programs funded by the Federal Government. How is 

your Department addressing this issue? 

Answer. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mission is to provide the building blocks that Americans need to live healthy, successful lives. HHS 

programs span from infant home visiting to the largest healthcare provider for seniors. In addition to the breadth of HHS’ mission, several of the programs identified 

in the report have unique aspects to them, which warrant tailored approaches. 

Specifically for AIDS in minority communities, HHS does not support consolidating the Minority AIDS Initiative (MAI) into core HIV/AIDS funding at this time. 

MAI is distinct from other HIV/AIDS programs and funding as it focuses specifically 

on the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in HIV/AIDS prevention, care and 

treatment, and outreach and education in the United States. HHS continues to deliberate strategies to more efficiently administer MAI and reduce duplicative requirements for grantees, while ensuring that the Department is being responsive to 

the needs of racial and ethnic minority communities and populations disproportionately impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. 

For autism research, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) report cites 

that ‘‘84 percent of the autism research projects funded by Federal agencies were 

potentially duplicative.’’ HHS believes that this statement is misleading or could be 

easily misconstrued. It is important to recognize the difference between appropriately addressing complex problems using multiple strategies and funding redundant or duplicative projects. We do not believe that research is necessarily duplicative if two agencies fund the same broad objectives in a strategic plan. Although 

GAO’s report acknowledges that duplication is necessary in science for the sake of 

replication or corroborating results, it does not appreciate the full extent of the necessity of replication and the extensive policies in place at HHS and other Federal 

agencies to prevent redundant projects. HHS recognizes that scientific endeavors 

and the path of research discovery are not linear undertakings and often require 

verification and validation efforts. 

HHS is concerned about the GAO report’s implication that it is wasteful when 

more than one funding agency addresses an objective or aim of the Strategic Plan 

for Autism Research. It must be recognized that the goals and objectives of the Strategic Plan represent complex scientific questions that require a multidisciplinary approach, with multiple scientific strategies. For example, to develop effective interventions for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that will address the full range of 

symptoms and degrees of disability found in the ASD population, research studies 

on multiple intervention types, such as behavioral, pharmacological, educational, 

and occupational, may need to be undertaken simultaneously to facilitate rapid 

progress that benefits individual with varying needs. Based on the urgent need to 

address rapidly the health and services issues that are the most pressing in the 

community, it is not only appropriate, it is critical that multiple agencies address 

the complex questions related to understanding the neurobiology of ASD and identifying efficacious strategies for use across the lifespan. 

HHS is supportive of and committed to the call for greater coordination among 

Federal research funding agencies and actively engages in efforts to minimize risk 

of research duplication in all activities. HHS agrees that there should be continued 

vigilance and coordination to avoid unnecessary duplication across research projects. 

HHS has robust procedures in place for avoiding duplication before grant and contract awards are made and to keep the funding decisionmaking process fair and equitable. In addition, the internal NIH Autism Coordinating Committee (NIH ACC) 

and the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) provide opportunities 

for monitoring and collaboration within NIH and across Federal agencies. These 

policies and coordinating bodies have served HHS well in terms of identifying and 

preventing unwarranted duplication prior to making funding decisions. We will con-
302 

tinue to monitor the internal NIH ACC procedures, as well as participation on the 

IACC, to make full use of these opportunities. 

As part of the HHS Strategic Plan, HHS commits to collaboration across State, 

local, tribal, urban Indian, nongovernmental, and private sector partners to support 

early childhood initiatives. The most recent GAO report released in April 2014 (2014 

Annual Report: Additional Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and 

Duplication and Achieve Other Financial Benefits) did not include Early Learning 

in the 11 areas that were suggested to take action to address evidence of fragmentation, overlap, or duplication. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM

Question. Last month the CDC published the latest prevalence study on the rates 

of autism. The report focused on children born in the year 2002, and found a 30 

percent increase in the rates of autism in just 2 years—finding that 1 in 68 children 

born in 2002 is likely on the autism spectrum. 

The previous study had included the State of South Carolina and found an overall 

rate of 1 in 90 children born in 2000 on the autism spectrum with 1 in 55 boys. 

This latest report does not include South Carolina data. Why not? Can I presume 

that the rates of autism in South Carolina have also increased 30 percent? 

Answer. South Carolina was not able to provide suitable data in time to be included in the CDC’s 2014 report on autism. CDC is working with the South Carolina Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) site to finalize 

their 2010 data; it would not be appropriate to speculate or compare SC to the 

ADDM 2010 published findings. 

Question. There is great concern among the autism community that the CDC continues to take 4 years to publish the data on 8 year olds. The agency should be able 

to obtain and publish data more quickly. What are you doing to improve your turn 

around time on the data evaluation? 

Answer. CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network method for tracking autism has advantages and disadvantages. CDC’s ADDM 

Network collects and analyzes in-depth data to understand what is happening in 

communities across the United States, rather than simply counting the number of 

children with autism. The ADDM Network does not rely on parents’ or providers’ 

reporting of autism diagnoses; the network collects detailed information on symptoms that are consistent with a diagnosis of autism, as documented in tens of thousands of children’s health and education records. This method allows us to: 

—identify children with diagnosed and undiagnosed autism, 

—cover a very large and diverse population base, 

—track changes over time, 

—examine whether certain groups of children are more likely to be diagnosed 

with autism than others with similar symptoms, 

—analyze the age when children are being identified, and 

—demonstrate what progress is being made to identify children earlier. 

CDC’s ADDM Network is continuously working to maximize our tracking system’s 

efficiency. First, we recently rolled out a new Web-based data collection system that 

is helping us collect, manage and review data more efficiently. Second, many of the 

community sources from which we collect data have moved to electronic records. 

This switch might also help us collect and review data more quickly. Lastly, we are 

piloting new electronic data mining techniques that hold potential for streamlining 

record review in the future. 

Question. Last month the CDC published the latest prevalence study on the rates 

of autism. The report focused children born in the year 2002 and found a 30 percent 

increase in the rates of autism in just 2 years—finding that 1 in 68 children born 

in 2002 is likely on the autism spectrum. 

There is concern in the autism community that you are not requiring each of the 

State grantees to obtain education data, so that you are making apples to apples’ 

comparison from State to State. Two of the States included in this year’s published 

study do not have the education data, which your report States decreases the prevalence rate. If the two States are removed, then the rate of autism goes from 1 in 

68 to 1 in 58. Can you insure that going forward all grantees obtain educational 

data so we are getting the most accurate picture? 

Answer. CDC currently cannot ensure that all grantees will have access to educational data going forward. Decisions about whether CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network sites have access to educational 

data are made at the local level and are subject to change. CDC has and will continue to encourage ADDM Network surveillance sites to work closely with their local 
303 

communities to obtain access to as many sources of information on children with 

autism as possible. CDC is assessing ways to maximize information sources in the 

new ADDM Funding Opportunity Announcement in 2014. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR MARK KIRK

Question. NIH and NCI provide all kinds of grants to researchers to provide support for investigator-initiated projects. These grants are integral to researcher’s ability to pursue academic careers. I have heard from several constituents that many 

young, promising MD/Ph.D. investigators are leaving their training programs to go 

into private practice- abandoning their scientific scholarship because there isn’t 

funding to support their labs. This is a general problem, but I’m particularly concerned about the field of radiation oncology. I understand that when the NCI did 

a review of its grants, it determined that about 5 percent of NCI’s budget was going 

to fund radiation oncology grants/projects. I’m not sure what the right number 

would be, but 5 percent seems awful small given that radiation oncologists treat 

roughly two-thirds of all cancer patients. Does 5 percent seem small to you? And 

are you willing to review your internal processes to make sure that there aren’t any 

problems in the way radiation oncology proposals are reviewed that is leading to 

such a low funding rate? 

Answer. NCI’s primary goals are to support and conduct a broad spectrum of cancer research. The research NCI oversees uses a wide variety of approaches and 

funding mechanisms, with several goals: improving our understanding of the causes 

and biological mechanisms of a large variety of cancers; preventing cancers; detecting and diagnosing all types of cancers; and treating cancers, as well as the symptoms and sequelae of cancers, more effectively. NCI’s research projects and programs include studies of the basic aspects of cancer biology at the molecular and 

cellular levels: investigations of how cancer cells and processes affect, and are affected by, the cellular environment in which they exist, and applications of these 

discoveries toward successful detection, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and control of cancers of all types. 

All research efforts supported by NCI are subjected to rigorous review for quality 

and purpose by expert peer reviewers, program staff, and advisory groups. Decisions 

about individual research projects selected for funding are made for a limited period 

of time, based on a series of rigorous evaluations performed by scientific peers, NCI 

divisional program staff, and NCI Scientific Program Leaders, and then subjected 

to final approval by the National Cancer Advisory Board and the NCI Director. An 

emphasis on scientific merit is maintained throughout the review process. All of 

these efforts are monitored annually through written progress reports and subjected 

to competitive peer review or terminated on a regular basis, generally between 2 

to 5 years. Similar processes are used to oversee the representation of various types 

and costs of research in our portfolio. 

Radiation therapy plays a critical role in NCI’s portfolio of cancer clinical trials. 

It is incorporated as a standard part of the treatment plans for patients with stage 

III squamous and adenocarcinomas of the lung, limited stage small cell lung cancer, 

as well as esophageal, breast, brain, and rectal cancers. Investigational questions 

related to new radiation therapy techniques as well as how to best combine radiation therapy with systemic therapies and surgery comprise a major part of the 

portfolio of studies carried out by the NCI’s National Clinical Trials Network 

(NCTN). The majority of the trials conducted by one of the adult clinical trials 

groups, NRG Oncology, focus on studies to improve the use of radiation therapy. In 

addition to NRG, the Alliance, the Children’s Oncology Group, the Pediatric Brain 

Tumor Consortium, and the ECOG–ACRIN Cancer Research Group also have active 

studies that incorporate radiation therapy. This portfolio of trials is monitored by 

an NCI oversight committee, the Clinical Trials and Translational Research Advisory Committee. The overall quality control for radiation therapy clinical studies 

supported by the NCI is also directly supported by a grant to fund a core quality 

control group responsible for overseeing these activities across the NCTN. NCI currently supports 50 national trials that incorporate radiation therapy as a component 

of the investigational program under examination. In addition to the substantive resources provided for radiation therapy-related clinical trials, NCI supports basic research into radiation therapy and radiobiology. In fiscal year 2013, funding for this 

basic research was approximately $56 million. This, of course, is complemented by 

$107 million per year in funding for studies of critical DNA repair mechanisms that 

are of major interest and relevance to understanding the mechanism(s) of action of 

radiation therapy. 
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Question. Stroke is the leading cause of disability for adults in the United States 

and the 4th leading cause of death. Recent studies show that 1 of 6 veterans returning from war zones and 1 of 4 stroke survivors have symptoms of PTSD. Knowing 

these statistics what cross-coordinating efforts, if any, are happening within NIH, 

DOD and the VA? 

Answer. The high rate of PTSD among military servicemembers and veterans is 

of major concern to NIH. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is working with the Department of Defense (DOD), U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs 

(VA), and academic clinicians and researchers to focus on the mental health needs 

of military service personnel, as well as veterans and their families. A cross-agency 

priority goal (CAPG) of the DOD, VA, and HHS to improve mental health outcomes 

for Service Members, Veterans, and their families will help speed the progress of 

research efforts related to PTSD, suicide prevention, and common co-occurring conditions (e.g., traumatic brain injury (TBI) and substance abuse). The CAPG will be 

supported through specific cross-agency priority actions that will be accomplished 

over the next 3 years. Another example of collaborative efforts across agencies to 

address military mental health issues is the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers (Army STARRS) project, a partnership between NIMH and 

the Department of the Army to provide the Army with actionable data to help them 

drive down the suicide rate, and to address associated problems, such as PTSD, 

among soldiers. In addition, as a result of a 2012 Executive Order, DOD, VA, HHS 

(including NIH), and the Department of Education developed a National Research 

Action Plan, which provides a comprehensive approach to accelerating research on 

traumatic brain injury and PTSD. 

While PTSD most commonly develops after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal, it also occurs in individuals who have suffered an acute life-threatening illness, e.g., stroke survivors. An NIH-supported study estimated that 1 in 4 survivors 

of a stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) develop significant PTSD symptoms. 

More than one-third of stroke survivors suffer post-stroke depression. Post-stroke 

depression can interfere with daily functioning, inhibit quality of life, and if not 

treated and managed appropriately, can slow rehabilitation and lead to further disability. NIH-funded research is addressing ways to treat post-stroke depression, including psychosocial/behavioral interventions, in addition to novel rehabilitation protocols that improve motor function as well as reduce depression in stroke survivors. 

NIH-funded studies are also investigating ways to identify patients who will benefit 

most from these therapies, and more generally, trying to understand the mechanisms by which behavioral factors contribute to outcome and recovery from stroke. 

The new National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) 

StrokeNet, composed of 25 acute and rehabilitation stroke centers, is dedicated to 

testing new means of improving quality of life in stroke survivors which must include attention to post-stroke depression and PTSD. 

NIH will continue to look for ways to collaborate with other agencies as appropriate to help uncover connections between conditions such as PTSD, stroke, and 

depression. 

Question. Viral hepatitis is the leading cause of liver cancer—one of the most lethal, expensive and fastest growing cancers in America. More than 5.3 million people in the U.S. are living with hepatitis B (HBV) and/or hepatitis C (HCV) and as 

many as 75 percent of them are undiagnosed. With the lack of an adequate, comprehensive surveillance system, these estimates are only the tip of the iceberg. Viral 

hepatitis kills 15,000 people each year and is the leading non-AIDS cause of death 

in people living with HIV. These epidemics are particularly alarming given the rising rates of new infections and high rates of chronic infection among disproportionately impacted racial and ethnic populations. Additionally, recent alarming epidemiologic reports indicate a rise in HCV infection among young people throughout 

the country. Further, the baby boomer population (those born 1945–1965) currently 

accounts for two out of every three cases of chronic HCV. As these Americans continue to age, they are likely to develop complications from HCV and require costly 

medical interventions that can be avoided if they are tested earlier and provided 

with treatment options. Can you highlight the problems facing our country with 

viral hepatitis and the urgent need to address these two diseases and what could 

happen if we do not act? 

Answer. Viral hepatitis is an urgent public health problem in the United States. 

Hepatitis B (HBV).—There have been dramatic decreases in the number of new 

acute infections among children, resulting from universal infant immunization recommendations, and today most new infections are among adults. However, an estimated 1.2 million persons in the United States have chronic hepatitis B infection, 

and 25 percent will die of HBV-associated complications in the absence of medical 
305 

interventions. Preventing perinatal infections by screening pregnant women and 

vaccinating infants upon birth also remains a priority. 

Hepatitis C (HCV).—Recent data indicate that no more than 50 percent of HCVinfected persons in the United States have been tested for HCV. Of those tested, 

32–38 percent are referred for care, 7–11 percent are treated, and 5–6 percent 

achieve virologic cure. These low proportions reflect gaps in health-care delivery at 

every stage of the HCV continuum of care. Consequently HCV-related disease, 

healthcare costs, and mortality are increasing. Implementation of CDC and USPSTF 

recommendations for birth-year based HCV testing linked to HCV care and treatment can avert an estimated 121,000 deaths (Smith BD et al. Recommendations for 

the Identification of Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection Among Persons Born During 1945–1965. MMWR. 61(RR04);1–18. See Table 3 with Source: Rein DB et al. The 

Cost-Effectiveness of Birth-Cohort Screening for Hepatitis C Antibody in U.S. Primary Care Settings. Ann Intern Med. 2012;156(4):263–270. Modified and reprinted 

in MMWR with permission from Annals of Internal Medicine.). CDC is working to 

improve the continuum of hepatitis C testing, care, and treatment; and will leverage 

the use of newly FDA-licensed safe and curative therapies for new prevention opportunities. 

CDC plays a key role in implementing the HHS Action Plan for the Prevention, 

Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis. The plan sets out ambitious goals and a 

path forward to confront viral hepatitis. Its goals are to increase the proportion of 

those who are aware of their Hepatitis B or Hepatitis C infections; reduce new Hepatitis C infections; and, eliminate mother to child transmission of Hepatitis B. 

Question. Given the release of U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) 

grade ‘‘B’’ recommendation for HCV screening for baby boomers and individuals at 

risk, do you feel you have the resources to implement that recommendation and 

educate Medicare beneficiaries and healthcare providers about hepatitis C and its 

disproportionate impact on baby boomers? 

Answer. Currently, only a small proportion of the baby boomer cohort is eligible 

for Medicare. The cohort will steadily age into Medicare eligibility over the next 15 

years. 

Recent evidence from CDC demonstration projects indicates that a substantial 

number of people who are either currently Medicare-eligible or will become eligible 

over the upcoming decade can receive recommended HCV testing in nonprimary 

care settings. Therefore, Medicare beneficiaries receiving screening and in the near 

future can significantly increase the proportion of people who are aware of their infection. 

However, while screening those who are or will soon be Medicare beneficiaries is 

vitally important, it is also important to screen the rest of the birth cohort now, so 

that all who are infected can be screened for alcohol use, and receive care and treatment (including hepatitis A and B vaccination, as medically appropriate). 

Implementation of new CDC and USPSTF recommendations for HCV testing can 

save over 120,000 lives. 

In fiscal year 2012, CDC received Prevention and Public Health Funds to support 

demonstration sites for hepatitis B and hepatitis C testing to identify persons with 

undiagnosed infection, and for linkages to care when appropriate. Nine sites were 

selected to do hepatitis B testing, and 24 sites to do hepatitis C testing. Evaluation 

of these sites is ongoing, but preliminary data indicate that over 45,000 tests were 

completed in the first year of the initiative, yielding important lessons learned that 

can be implemented elsewhere. CDC was able to provide continuation funding to almost all of the sites in fiscal year 2013, and substantial gains in the total number 

of completed tests are expected in the second year. 

In 2014, CDC will support the development and evaluation of new viral hepatitis 

prevention programs in three jurisdictions. These viral hepatitis prevention programs aim to establish the platform needed to reduce new infections, improve systems of care, and combat hepatitis-related health disparities; activities will include 

but not be limited to education on hepatitis C. 

Question. Viral hepatitis is the leading cause of liver cancer—one of the most lethal, expensive and fastest growing cancers in America. More than 5.3 million people in the U.S. are living with hepatitis B (HBV) and/or hepatitis C (HCV) and as 

many as 75 percent of them are undiagnosed. With the lack of an adequate, comprehensive surveillance system, these estimates are only the tip of the iceberg. Viral 

hepatitis kills 15,000 people each year. These epidemics are particularly alarming 

given the rising rates of new infections and high rates of chronic infection among 

disproportionately impacted racial and ethnic populations. Additionally, recent 

alarming epidemiologic reports indicate a rise in HCV infection among young people 

throughout the country. Some jurisdictions have noted that the number of people 

ages 15 to 29 being diagnosed with HCV infection now exceeds the number of people 
306 

diagnosed in all other age groups combined. Further, the baby boomer population 

(those born 1945–1965) currently accounts for two out of every three cases of chronic 

HCV. As these Americans continue to age, they are likely to develop complications 

from HCV and require costly medical interventions that can be avoided if they are 

tested earlier and provided with treatment options. It is estimated that this epidemic will increase costs by billions of dollars—from $30 billion in 2009 to over $85 

billion in 2024—to private insurers and public systems of health such as Medicare 

and Medicaid, and account for additional billions lost due to decreased productivity 

from the millions of workers suffering from chronic HBV and HCV. Over the last 

2 years, CDC and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) have begun 

to align their recommendations for hepatitis screening, recommending one-time testing of baby boomers and screening vulnerable groups for HCV. In April, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) renewed the Action Plan for the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis which provides clear and attainable 

goals to increase the number of individuals diagnosed with viral hepatitis and reduce transmission of the viruses. The Action Plan identifies discrete activities for 

HHS and other Federal agencies to break the silence of this epidemic. Will the agency continue to focus cross agency attention on addressing the viral hepatitis epidemic and implementing the Action Plan? 

Answer. On April 3, 2014, HHS released the 3-year update of the Action Plan for 

the Prevention, Care and Treatment of Viral Hepatitis, which provides a framework 

around which both Federal and non-Federal stakeholders from many sectors can engage to strengthen the Nation’s response to viral hepatitis and work to improve 

viral hepatitis prevention, screening, and treatment through 2016. 

This update is the culmination of efforts across the Department of Health and 

Human Services as well as at the Departments of Justice, Housing and Urban Development, and Veterans Affairs who have worked to develop this framework for focused activity by both Federal and non-Federal stakeholders. Federal colleagues 

have identified more than 150 important actions their agencies and offices will undertake between 2014 and 2016 across six priority areas. 

—Educating Providers and Communities to Reduce Viral Hepatitis-related Health 

Disparities (Confront viral hepatitis by breaking the silence). 

—Improving Testing, Care, and Treatment to Prevent Liver Disease and Cancer 

(Take full advantage of existing tools). 

—Strengthening Surveillance to Detect Viral Hepatitis Transmission and Disease 

(Collect accurate and timely information to get the job done). 

—Eliminating Transmission of Vaccine-Preventable Viral Hepatitis (Take full advantage of vaccines that can prevent hepatitis A and B). 

—Reducing Viral Hepatitis Associated with Drug Use (Stop the spread of viral 

hepatitis associated with drug use). 

—Protecting Patients and Workers From Health Care-Associated Viral Hepatitis 

(Quality healthcare is safe healthcare). 

In shaping these actions, HHS sought substantial input from non-Federal partners and stakeholders through public webinars and a formal Request for Information (RFI) published in the Federal Register. In fact, a notable feature of the updated plan is a more explicit recognition that achieving the goals of this national 

plan will require the time, talent, and energy of a broad mix of partners from across 

all sectors of society, both governmental and nongovernmental. As such, the updated 

plan includes a listing of potential opportunities for non-Federal stakeholders to promote successful implementation. 

Finally, to maximize cross-agency and cross-departmental effort in support of the 

updated Viral Hepatitis Action Plan, the Office of HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease 

Policy, in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, actively coordinates a 

Viral Hepatitis Implementation Group (VHIG) composed of senior leaders from 

HHS, VA, DOJ/BOP, HUD and ONDCP. The VHIG meets on a regular basis to 

share progress, discuss challenges and highlight new opportunities. 

Question. There are a number of cancers, and stomach cancer is a prominent example, where there is both dismal survival rates and also a shortage of ongoing research. The vast majority of stomach cancer is diagnosed at metastatic stages, for 

which there are, at present, no cures. Stomach cancer treatments have made little 

progress in the past decade and are quite limited. The investment that the NCI is 

making in a number of cancers through The Cancer Genome Atlas has the potential 

to catalyze research in stomach and other cancers. But for cancers, like stomach 

cancer, with less-developed research infrastructures, how can we be confident that 

research to pursue the findings of the TCGA will occur? 

Answer. While NCI has made significant progress in preventing, detecting, and 

treating many cancers, gastric cancer is one of several types that are not well understood and remain difficult to treat. For such areas, NCI has a variety of tools 
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at its disposal to stimulate research in specific areas. Meetings of NCI and extramural experts to conduct ‘‘horizon scanning’’ for scientific opportunities on a variety 

of cancers occur as part of NCI’s standard practices. In fact, NCI invited a group 

of international experts in gastric and esophageal cancer to participate in a workshop in May 2011. In addition to discussing the basic biology, epidemiology and clinical research, they also focused on different patterns of gastric cancer observed in 

other countries. One result of the workshop was the initiation of a pilot project for 

obtaining pre-treatment gastric tumor specimens. (NCI has also recently convened 

workshops for hepatic, lung, and pancreatic cancers.) 

Initiatives, such as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), that provide new insights 

into a wide range of cancer types can greatly accelerate progress in many common 

and rare cancer types, such as gastric cancer, and generate prime research opportunities. The genomic sequence data from TCGA’s gastric cancer samples are already 

freely available to qualified researchers for further study. (NCI has developed 

websites that allow researchers to search for genetic alterations in any cancer studied by TCGA and will continue to support these cancer genomics portals to promote 

the widest possible utilization of these data.) The first 295 gastric cancer samples 

have been evaluated, and a report is expected to be published early this summer. 

The report shows that the current classification of gastric cancer subtypes by appearance under the microscope is imprecise and can be refined by analysis of tumor 

genomes. Some of the genetic abnormalities are characteristic of particular gastric 

cancer subtypes and might be amenable to therapeutic intervention. Additionally, 

several of the mutations found in gastric cancer are also present in other cancers 

studied by TCGA and other projects. NCI vigorously supports research into therapeutic strategies to target the abnormal molecular pathways that are caused by 

mutations that occur in one or many tumor types. 

The work that is expected to follow up findings from TCGA does not require specific research methods or equipment for each type of cancer, but it does require certain specific resources: tumor samples, appropriate experimental models for each 

disease, and investigators motivated by new opportunities to work on that disease. 

Suitable laboratory models are important for testing candidate drugs or 

immunotherapies for their ability to block abnormal molecular pathways and prevent tumor growth. Human cancer cell lines are the mainstay of this kind of research, but the currently available cell lines do not model all of the diverse subtypes 

of cancer, including gastric cancers, and do not possess all of the recurrent 

mutations that drive the malignant process. NCI is addressing this infrastructural 

deficiency by using biopsies of various kinds of human cancers to create a large 

number of new cancer models with newly available methods (e.g., so-called 

‘‘organoid’’ cultures and ‘‘conditionally reprogrammed’’ cells). When successful, NCI 

will distribute these new cancer models broadly to cancer researchers to help develop diagnostic and treatment strategies tailored to specific subtypes of cancer and 

to specific molecular abnormalities. To that end, NCI is soliciting applications to 

support pilot projects at NCI-designated cancer centers for the development and 

characterization of cell lines derived from human cancer specimens. These models 

could also help clarify cellular mechanisms that drive tumor progression and generate hypotheses about ways to interrupt those processes. Letters of intent have 

been received from several potential applicants, and at least one plans to develop 

models for gastric cancer. 

Question. How can the NCI assist stomach cancer researchers and researchers of 

other cancers with deficiencies in foundational knowledge in developing successful 

RO1 grant applications that can have an impact for patients battling stomach cancer? 

Answer. NCI can and does foster opportunities to study gastric (stomach) cancer 

in several ways: 

—by providing new information of the type illustrated by The Cancer Genome 

Atlas and discussed in response to the previous question (this kind of new information suggests new ideas and opportunities for research, often addressed to 

diseases that were previously difficult to study); 

—by offering an array of funding opportunities (including team awards), and not 

only RO1 grants; 

—by supporting the training of talented individuals who might develop an interest in gastric cancer through individual fellowships, institutional training 

awards, and career development awards; and 

—by highlighting NCI’s concerns about the slow progress against this disease 

through the organization of workshops and public discussion of public health 

needs and research opportunities. 
308 

In addition, NCI program managers are available to provide guidance to investigators who seek help in finding the most appropriate funding mechanisms to support proposed work on gastric cancer and other types of cancers. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED TO MARY K. WAKEFIELD

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR TOM HARKIN

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

Question. The Health Centers program received mandatory funding under the 

ACA, a critical investment that the National Association of Community Health Centers (CHCs) estimates created over 550 new health clinics and expanded capacity 

at thousands of existing sites. This investment needs to be extended, or the mandatory funding will expire in fiscal year 2016 and health centers will face a massive 

funding cliff. I have expressed support for fixing this issue by continuing mandatory 

funding, an approach supported in the President’s budget. If funding was not extended, please provide the administration estimate on how that would impact the 

CHC program in fiscal year 2016. Please include how much base funding for existing health centers will be reduced, the number of clinics that will close, and the loss 

in patient capacity. 

Answer. The budget includes a proposal to continue mandatory funding for health 

centers in fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018 at $2.7 billion per year, for a total investment of $8.1 billion. This investment is part of a total budget that includes more 

than $400 billion in specified health savings over 10 years. The President has not 

yet submitted a discretionary budget for fiscal year 2016, the year the mandatory 

Health Center funds will expire. If funding for the Health Center Program is significantly lowered in fiscal year 2016 compared to the previous year a complex procedure of grant level reductions, and possibly terminations, could occur. This could result in numerous health center sites closing, and a reduction in patients served by 

health centers. 

RYAN WHITE HIV/AIDS PROGRAM

Question. The President’s budget proposes to consolidate Part D of the Ryan 

White HIV/AIDS program into Part C of the program. Part D provides family-centered primary medical care for women, infants, children, and youth with HIV/AIDS. 

These services include case management for HIV-infected pregnant women and 

HIV-infected children and youth. 

Has Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) conducted an assessment of Part C programs to determine whether Part C programs are prepared and 

have the infrastructure to provide primary and specialty care to these populations? 

How many Part C grantees have pediatric providers and are currently equipped to 

provide primary and specialty medical care and support services to infants, children 

and youth? 

Answer. In 2014, 67 percent of Part D programs funded by the Ryan White HIV/ 

AIDS Program are dually funded by the Part C program. The consolidated program 

will continue to provide increased access to allowable services under Part C that 

meet the needs of the Part D community. All applicants to the fiscal year 2015 Part 

C Funding Opportunity Announcement will be required to demonstrate how they 

will provide care and treatment for the most vulnerable populations, including 

women, infants, children and youth. The assessment of an applicant’s capacity to 

provide the services proposed in their grant applicant is a key area of focus for the 

objective grant review committee. The consolidation will expand the focus on 

women, infants, children, and youth across all of the funded grantees and will increase points of access for the population. In addition, the consolidation will result 

in increased efficiencies, reduced duplication of effort and reporting/administrative 

burden among currently co-funded grantees, and allow more funding to be available 

for direct patient care services. 

Question. What are HRSA’s plans to ensure a seamless transition of services, including case management services, and to ensure that women, infants, children and 

youth are not lost to care, including plans to provide technical assistance to current 

and future grantees? 

Answer. Since 67 percent of Part D grantees are currently also Part C grantees, 

HRSA expects that transition will be manageable. Continuing to reduce mother-tochild transmission of HIV remains a priority. The President’s budget will result in 

more Part C programs providing women, infants, children and youth-focused services, which will result in increased access to proven medical care for these popu-
309 

lations across the country. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program provides extensive 

technical assistance opportunities to both current and future Ryan White HIV/AIDS 

Program grantees through our Technical Assistance Resources, Guidance, Education 

& Training (TARGET) Center, AIDS Education and Training Centers (AETCs), our 

national cooperative agreements, and during pre-application technical assistance 

calls when the new Funding Opportunity Announcement is released. In addition, 

one-on-one technical assistance from the HRSA staff will be available to assist 

grantees receiving new funding under Part C to ensure that the Program’s most vulnerable populations, which include women, infants, children and youth, are not lost 

to care and treatment. 

Question. What impact will the proposed consolidation have on Part C grantees 

needing to seek a waiver from the 75/25 core medical services requirement in order 

to provide case management services to Part D populations? 

Answer. HRSA takes seriously the responsibility to ensure that all of the needs 

of individuals living with HIV/AIDS are met. Under the President’s budget, all Part 

D programs that meet the Part C Program eligibility for grant funding are encouraged to apply for Part C funding. Eligible Part C grantees, and grantees awarded 

Part C funding through the fiscal year 2015 Funding Opportunity Announcement, 

would need to meet the legislative requirements in Part C regarding use of funds. 

This will result in more Part C programs providing women, infants, children, youth 

focused services, which means increased access to proven medical care for these populations across the country. HRSA will ensure that Part C grantees meet the needs 

of these populations through grant monitoring and technical assistance. 

THE 340 B DRUG DISCOUNT PROGRAM

Question. The President’s budget requests $17 million for the Office of Pharmacy 

Affairs (OPA) to improve program integrity and administration of the 340B Federal 

drug discount program. Congress provided $10 million in the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus, an increase of $6 million over fiscal year 2013, for program integrity consistent 

with existing requirements and recommendations from the Office of the Inspector 

General and the Government Accountability Office. Please provide an fiscal year 

2014 implementation plan for the program integrity effort and describe what has 

been accomplished to date with the increase in funding. How is HRSA prioritizing 

its program oversight activities? 

Answer. The $6 million of additional funding provided in the Omnibus Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2014 have enabled HRSA to develop a robust strategy to 

more effectively oversee the covered entities and manufacturers that participate in 

our program. Please find a detailed outline of our areas of investment that follows. 

Manufacturer Compliance 

—We are devoting resources to implement provisions of the Affordable Care Act 

(ACA) to prevent overcharges to 340B covered entities. 

—The resources will upgrade our current internal-facing pricing database, providing a secure access mechanism for covered entities and the capacity for 

HRSA’s Office of Pharmacy Affairs to conduct ceiling price verification. 

—The contract will be awarded this summer and upgrades will be complete in 

2015. 

—Work has begun to finalize rulemaking on Civil Monetary Penalties for manufacturers and Administrative Dispute Resolution. 

Covered Entity and Manufacturer Compliance 

—We are investing in a new compliance management system that will create a 

sophisticated tracking system for all covered entities and manufacturers participating in the 340B program. 

—We have designed a system overview for proposal, and the contract for building 

the system will be awarded this summer. Full implementation is expected in 

fiscal year 2015. 

Covered Entity Compliance 

—Five additional auditors, and one audit coordinator, will be hired in order to increase the number of program audits conducted. The resulting increase in audits will be seen in fiscal year 2015 when hiring is complete and new staff have 

been trained. 

Overall Program Integrity 

—We are have hired 2 staff and plan to hire 6 additional staff in the Office of 

Pharmacy Affairs to manage and analyze information from expanded program 

integrity efforts. This includes Program Integrity Specialists, Data Analysts, 
310 

and an individual devoted to technical assistance and education. Staff will review audits and other compliance related activities, develop policy, manage and 

analyze data, and continue work on implementing 340B ACA provisions. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD J. DURBIN

MENTAL HEALTH

Question. According to USDA, 50 million people live in rural America. This rural 

population is disproportionately affected by mental health disorders with higher levels of depression, along with domestic violence, and child abuse than their urban 

peers. 

Unfortunately many families in rural American find themselves cut off from mental health services, because of geographic and cultural barriers. As of January 2013, 

there are 3,800 Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas nationwide, as defined 

by HRSA. More than 85 percent of MHPSAs are in rural areas. As a result of the 

scarcity of mental health professionals, primary care providers in rural communities 

typically have a larger role in mental healthcare than their urban peers. 

Studies have shown that stigma is a significant concern for many in rural America. People suffering from a mental disorder are less likely to seek treatment if they 

fear being recognized. 

In light of this stark data, what steps is the agency taking to increase the mental 

health workforce in rural settings? What steps is HRSA taking to better integrate 

mental health and primary healthcare in rural hospitals and FQHCs? What steps 

does HRSA propose for further addressing the scarcity of mental providers in rural 

settings? 

Answer. The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) is one of the Administration’s 

most effective tools for getting healthcare providers to the areas where they are 

needed most, with half of all NHSC clinicians serving in community health centers. 

In fiscal year 2013, nearly one in three clinicians (2,854 as of September 2013) in 

the NHSC was a behavioral and mental health professional, which includes psychiatrists, health service psychologists, clinical social workers, licensed professional 

counselors, marriage and family therapists, psychiatric physician assistants, and 

psychiatric nurse specialists. All NHSC behavioral and mental health practitioners 

serve in high-need, underserved areas that have a mental Health Professional 

Shortage Area (HPSA) designation. 

The fiscal year 2015 President’s budget also includes a $3.96 billion increase in 

funding for the National Health Service Corps over 6 years, the largest increase in 

the program’s history. This increase will build and sustain an annual field strength 

of 15,000 and create incentives for providers to practice in the areas of the country 

that need them most. Since 2010, based on historical data, over 27 percent of the 

total field strength has been behavioral and mental health practitioners. 

In addition, HRSA is implementing programs that help train additional behavioral health providers. The Mental and Behavioral Health Education and Training 

(MBHET) Program supports accredited graduate schools and programs of social 

work and accredited doctoral psychology schools, programs and pre-degree internship organizations to increase the number of behavioral health providers serving the 

medically underserved populations, including rural areas. It is estimated that over 

2,900 individuals will be trained as a result of these activities. 

In fiscal year 2014, HRSA partnered with SAMHSA to expand the behavioral 

health workforce as part of the President’s plan to prevent gun violence. The initiative will include $35 million to expand training for roughly 3,500 behavioral health 

professionals and paraprofessionals, including master’s level social workers, psychologists and marriage and family therapists, as well as various behavioral health 

paraprofessionals. The program will include an emphasis on training to address the 

needs of children, adolescents, and transition-age youth (ages 16–25) and their families. The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget includes a request to continue to fund 

this effort. 

HRSA’s Graduate Psychology Education Program supports clinical training programs for doctoral-level psychology students to address the behavioral health needs 

of vulnerable and underserved populations. In Academic Year 2012–2013, the most 

recent data available over a third of the individuals supported in this program are 

from rural or disadvantaged backgrounds. In addition, more than half of individuals 

who received a financial award and completed their training reported that they 

were currently employed or pursuing further training in a Medically Underserved 

Community. 
311 

Further, in January, the Vice President announced a $50 million Funding Opportunity Announcement to expand access to behavioral health services at approximately 200 existing health centers nationwide. Health centers will be able to use 

these new funds, made available through the Affordable Care Act, for efforts such 

as hiring new mental health and substance use disorder professionals, adding mental health and substance use disorder services, and employing team-based models 

of care. All current health center grantees, nearly half of which serve rural areas, 

were eligible to apply for this funding. 

ORAL HEALTH

Question. According to HRSA, 108 million Americans currently lack access to dental coverage. In fact, a large number of people with dental insurance coverage lack 

access to dental care. The U.S. has 141,800 working dentists and 174,100 dental hygienists. However, according to HRSA data, there are 4,230 dental health professional shortage areas nationwide with 49 million people living in them. 

More than 16 million children in the United States go without seeing a dentist 

each year. Particularly vulnerable are children living in rural areas. Although the 

Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) provides comprehensive oral health 

coverage, dental care is the greatest unmet health need among children. More concerning, many dentists refuse to treat Medicaid beneficiaries, citing low reimbursement rates and administrative burdens. 

In 2009, HRSA embarked on an Oral Health Initiative, which included a series 

of Institute of Medicine reports. Based on this work, what has the agency done to 

implement the recommendations from the Initiative to close the coverage gap? 

States with the highest Medicaid reimbursement rates still have children enrolled 

in Medicaid who aren’t able to access adequate oral healthcare. What is the agency’s 

position on expanding the number of mid-level professionals to provide care in underserved areas? 

Answer. HRSA has used the IOM reports to advance its work to expand access 

to oral healthcare. In 2012, HRSA/MCHB launched the Perinatal & Infant Oral 

Health National Initiative in tandem with the release of the MCHB-funded document: Oral Health Care During Pregnancy: A National Consensus Statement. This 

effort responds to three of the IOM committee’s Organizing Principles for an HHS 

Oral Health Initiative: reduce oral health disparities (#4), explore new models 

for . . . delivery of care (#5), and promote collaboration among private and public 

stakeholders (#8). Concrete examples of success will include: increased utilization of 

preventive dental care by pregnant women, establishment of a dental home for infants by age one, reduced prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC), and reduced 

dental expenditures. In 2013, HRSA initiated the first phase of this initiative, funding the Perinatal and Infant Oral Health Quality Improvement Pilot grant program. 

The outcome will put into practice and continuously assess a statewide approach 

that responds to the comprehensive oral health needs of pregnant women and infants most at risk. In 2014, HRSA will award funding to establish the Perinatal and 

Infant Oral Health Quality Improvement National Learning Network. This learning 

network will coordinate the development and testing of an evidence-informed strategic framework that can inform statewide healthcare systems transformation. 

Knowledge gained will comprise the National Strategic Framework for Improving 

Perinatal and Infant Oral Health through Systems Change. 

HRSA also entered into a cooperative agreement with the National Network for 

Oral Health Access to provide specialized training and technical assistance to HRSA 

awardees around increasing access to primary oral healthcare services for underserved and vulnerable populations. In February 2014, HRSA issued a report on the 

Integration of Oral Health and Primary Care Practice (http://www.hrsa.gov/ 

publichealth/clinical/oralhealth/primarycare/integrationoforalhealth.pdf) as part of 

an initiative that strives to improve access for early detection and preventive interventions by expanding oral health clinical competency of primary care clinicians, 

leading to improved oral health. Furthermore, HRSA is supporting a pilot project 

to demonstrate implementation of a core set of clinical competencies for primary 

care clinicians in three Community Health Centers. The IOM reports have also informed work on an HHS Oral Health Strategic Framework by the HHS Oral Health 

Coordinating Committee. 

HRSA is also deploying its programs to increase access to oral health services. In 

the National Health Service Corps, the numbers of oral health providers (dentists 

and registered dental hygienists), have nearly tripled since 2008, increasing from 

approximately 480 to 1,300 in 2013. As of the end of fiscal year 2013, 164 dentists, 

committed to work in underserved areas, are currently in the training pipeline, 

being supported by the NHSC Scholarship Program. 
312 

HRSA’s oral health workforce training programs providing financial support to 

over 390 students, residents and fellows participating in degree, residency or fellowship programs in dentistry, public health and/or dental hygiene. In Academic Year 

2012–2013, these programs trained over 2,600 oral health students and 517 primary 

care dental residents. 

The State Oral Health Workforce Improvement Program provides grants to States 

to implement innovative programs to address their dental workforce needs in a 

manner that is appropriate to the States’ individual needs. As part of this program 

States have used HRSA funds for dentist recruitment and retention efforts, expanded training in community settings, increased preventive services such as dental 

sealant and fluoride programs, and expansion of clinical services in underserved 

areas. 

HRSA has provided funding to support curriculum development for dental therapists and development of community prevention programs using expanded practice 

dental hygienists. 

HRSA grantees have undertaken activities related to the use of alternative oral 

health providers with the goal of expanding the number of oral health providers and 

increasing access to oral health services. 

POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION

Question. Maternal depression is often unrecognized and untreated because pregnant and postpartum women are not universally screened for depression. Estimates 

of depression during pregnancy range between 14 and 23 percent. Rates of 

postpartum depression in the first year range from 5 to 25 percent. 

What is the assessment of HHS on the adequacy of current research into the 

causes of postpartum depression? Does HHS have a position on the value of universal screening as a meaningful goal and will the agency work with the Congress 

to encourage it? What is HHS doing to increase access to mental health services for 

low-income mothers? 

Answer. HHS supports numerous efforts to address the problem of depression 

among pregnant and postpartum women in the areas of research, prevention, 

screening, and care. In the U.S., we know that approximately 12 percent of recent 

mothers (2009) who had a birth in the past 2–9 months reported postpartum depression. We also know that postpartum depression disproportionately affects mothers 

with less education and with lower incomes, as well as American Indian/Alaska Native mothers. 

Research has shown that risk factors or possible causes of postpartum depression 

include previous depressive episodes, stressful life events, and low social support. 

HHS, through the National Institutes of Health, is conducting research examining 

the epidemiologic characteristics of severe postpartum depression, the effects of the 

high levels of stress hormones experienced by pregnant women living in poverty, the 

effects of postpartum depression on infants, and effective treatments for this type 

of depression. 

Regarding universal screening for postpartum depression, the Department, has reviewed healthcare research and found the following: 

—perinatal depression is one of the most common complications of the perinatal 

period; 

—validated screening tools exist that demonstrate high levels of both sensitivity 

and specificity (at least for major depression); and 

—screening and intervention demonstrate better outcomes for women experiencing perinatal depression. 

However, the agency does not recommend universal screening at this time due to 

an insufficient evidence base for how and when to screen and intervene, especially 

as it relates to non-White women. Further study in these areas is needed. 

HHS is also supporting a number of programs to increase access to mental health 

services for low-income and disadvantaged mothers, especially in the area of screening and care for pregnant and postpartum women. HRSA supports the Maternal, 

Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program, which provides voluntary, evidence based home visiting services for low income pregnant and postpartum women 

and their families in all 50 States, DC and territories. All home visitors assess maternal depression with valid depression screening tools, and they provide referrals 

to community mental health services as available and as needed. The program has 

established a new collaborative this year that focuses on optimizing the management of maternal depression. HRSA also supports the Healthy Start program, which 

focuses on reducing infant mortality and improving perinatal outcomes in areas of 

high need throughout the country. All Healthy Start grantees screen their clients 

for perinatal depression before, during, and after pregnancy. Screening is repeated 
313 

throughout the pregnancy, with screening frequency dependent upon the woman. If 

the woman is found to need services related to depression, she is referred for appropriate care. Healthy Start has also developed perinatal screening booklets and materials for materials in English and Spanish, which have been widely disseminated. 

Finally, SAMHSA supports Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs 

in Children’s Health) which seeks to promote the wellness of young children from 

birth to 8 years by addressing the physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral aspects of their development. One area in which Project LAUNCH focuses is 

on the strengths and challenges within the family system, including parental depression. SAMHSA is also preparing to launch a toolkit on maternal depression for 

family service providers that includes basic information about maternal depression, 

tips, resources and strategies for talking with women about depression, screening 

for depression and referral to mental health services. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JEANNE SHAHEEN

Question. HRSA invests a great deal of resources on doctors in training and also 

for continuing medical education. What can HRSA do to help educate providers 

about appropriate narcotic prescription drug dispensement and how to avoid excess 

prescribing? 

Answer. HRSA supported training is not specifically focused on training in prescribing narcotic medications for pain management; however, this topic is addressed 

as part of training curricula for many health disciplines. Through the National 

Health Service Corps (NHSC) program, HRSA will seek to increase education about 

appropriate narcotic prescription drug dispensement to NHSC providers through 

various available media, including webinars, newsletters and social media. 

Question. As you know, the United States has the lowest ratio of primary care 

providers in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. 

American medical students often choose specialist training over primary care training. 

How can we incentivize medical students to choose primary care specialties? 

Answer. The administration recognizes that primary care is the foundation of the 

healthcare delivery system today, and it will play an even greater role in the future. 

HRSA funds several programs that aim to encourage physicians to select a primary care specialty. Through the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) programs, 

students and clinicians receive scholarship or loan repayment awards in return for 

a commitment to provide primary health services in underserved areas (HPSAs) for 

at least 2 years. In fiscal year 2013, 100 percent of all new NHSC loan repayment 

awards were made to those serving in HPSAs of highest need (scores of 14 or higher) and nearly half of NHSC clinicians are serving at rural sites. In fiscal year 2015, 

HRSA expects to fund over 10,000 new NHSC loan repayment awards in order to 

build and sustain a field strength of 15,000 primary care providers across the country, serving the primary care needs of more than 16 million patients in high-need 

rural, urban, and frontier areas across the United States. In fiscal year 2012, the 

NHSC launched the Student to Service Loan Repayment Pilot Program which provides loan repayment awards to medical students in their last year of school as an 

incentive to pursue residency training in a primary care specialty. To date, 147 medical students have participated in this pilot program. In fiscal year 2015, the NHSC 

expects to award 100 new Student to Service Loan Repayment awards. 

In addition to the recruitment of providers, the NHSC also works to retain primary care providers in underserved areas after their service commitment is completed to further leverage the Federal investment and to build more integrated and 

sustainable systems of care. A 2012 retention assessment survey found that 55 percent of NHSC clinicians continue to practice in underserved areas 10 years after 

completing their service commitment. Another recent study completed in fiscal year 

2013 showed 85 percent of those who had fulfilled their service commitment remained in service to the underserved in the short-term. Short-term is defined as up 

to 2 years after their service completion. 

The Primary Care Training Enhancement (PCTE) program strengthens primary 

care by supporting innovation in primary care curriculum development, education 

and practice (i.e. Patient-Centered Medical Homes, team-based care, etc.) as well as 

expanding training opportunities by funding primary care residency positions. In 

Academic Year 2012–2013, the PCTE program trained a total of 23,830 physician 

and physician assistant students, medical residents, and fellows. Of those individuals trained, approximately 532 received direct financial support. 

In addition, in fiscal year 2012, HRSA modified the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students Program to better support the primary care workforce by giving pri-
314 

ority to applicants who could demonstrate a 15 percent or better rate of graduates 

practicing in primary care. The program provides funding to eligible health professions schools to support scholarships for financially needy students from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget includes a new Targeted Support for 

Graduate Medical Education program that will train 13,000 new physicians over 10 

years. This new Targeted Support for Graduate Medical Education Program will expand residency slots, with a focus on ambulatory and preventive care in order to 

advance the ACA’s goals of higher value healthcare that reduces long-term costs. 

Successful applicants will need to demonstrate that their training of residents addresses key workforce objectives, such as: training and retaining residents in primary care and providing comprehensive primary care that includes oral health, behavioral health, prevention and population health. 

Question. How do you ensure that funding for primary care training will not only 

go to large tertiary care teaching hospitals but also the smaller clinics and community hospitals that make up the backbone or primary care? 

Answer. HRSA actively seeks to expand primary care training in communitybased, ambulatory settings. The Affordable Care Act created the Teaching Health 

Center Graduate Medical Education Program to help move primary care training 

into community-based settings. The 5-year investment in this program is expected 

to support the community-based training of over 600 new primary care physician 

and dental residents by 2015. The program supports community-based training sites 

in 30 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and FQHC look-alikes, 2 Area 

Health Education Centers, 2 Native American Health Authorities, 1 Community 

Mental Health Clinic and 4 additional community-based entities. 

To build on the success of the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes a new initiative to 

expand residency training and build the health workforce needed for a changing 

healthcare system. The Targeted Support for Graduate Medical Education Program 

will focus specifically on key priorities for workforce development and transforming 

the healthcare delivery system. The program will fund new residency slots using a 

competitive approach in which applicants demonstrate how their training of residents addresses key workforce objectives, such training in new models of care that 

are interprofessional. 

Unlike Medicare GME, which is only paid to hospitals, this funding will be available to consortia of teaching hospitals and other community-based healthcare entities, as well as to consortia of community-based healthcare entities. Consortia partners would partner to deliver a broad range of training experiences in different settings to strengthen experiential training in ambulatory care settings where the vast 

majority of the public receive care. 

Question. The Office for the Advancement of Telehealth (OAT) administers grants 

to incorporate telehealth in underserved and rural communities. What is HRSA 

doing to help States like New Hampshire with a many rural communities benefit 

from telemedicine access? 

Answer. The Telehealth Network Grant Program (TNGP) helps communities build 

the human, technical, and financial capacity to develop sustainable telehealth programs. These networks can be used to deliver quality healthcare to medically underserved populations in rural and frontier communities and also to provide information and training to healthcare providers in remote areas. Currently the Office for 

the Advancement of Telehealth (OAT) funds 20 TNGP grantees, including Mary 

Hitchcock Memorial Hospital located in Lebanon, New Hampshire. 

Additionally, OAT funds the Telehealth Resource Center Grant Program (TRC), 

which provides funding to 14 centers of excellence that assist healthcare organizations, healthcare networks, and healthcare providers in the implementation of costeffective telehealth programs to serve rural and medically underserved areas and 

populations. The Northeast Telehealth Resource Center provides technical assistance to rural communities in New England (including New Hampshire), and New 

York. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR JERRY MORAN

PREVENTION AND PUBLIC HEALTH FUND

Question. What is the overall strategy in determining what HHS programs are 

funded with the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF)? 

What internal departmental discussions take place to determine which agencies 

are recipients from and which agencies are donors to the Fund? 
315 

Answer. Funding decisions for the Prevention Fund were made using the same 

formulation process used to develop the annual Federal budget and was decided in 

conjunction with other annual budget decisions. HHS works with public health, programmatic, and scientific experts in agencies across the department to identify effective and proven strategies that will improve health outcomes, promote prevention, 

and aim to reduce the cost of healthcare. Funds allocated to agencies are directly 

appropriated to HHS and are not based on contributions from agencies. 

NONRECURRING EXPENSES FUND

Question. What analyses does the Department do before moving unobligated funds 

into the Nonrecurring Expenses Fund? Please detail this process. 

Answer. Prior to moving unobligated funds into the Nonrecurring Expenses Fund 

(NEF), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) works closely with the 

program offices in determining which funds are eligible. HHS is restricted in the 

types of Federal funds that may be transferred to the NEF. Funds must be expired 

and unobligated, meaning the funding is not available for current year obligations 

and is not obligated to a vendor or grantee. However, statutory requirements (31 

U.S.C. 1551–1558) require expired unobligated balances be used for routine adjustments to previously recorded obligations, meaning not all expired unobligated funds 

may be transferred to the NEF. As an account nears its time of cancellation, HHS 

is able to identify with more accuracy the amounts eligible to transfer. These unobligated balances would otherwise cancel or return to the Department of the Treasury 

if not transferred to the NEF. In addition, HHS may only obligate funds after notifying the Committees on Appropriations in the House of Representatives and the 

Senate of the planned use. 

Question. How does HHS decide what information technology (IT) projects merit 

Nonrecurring Expenses Fund dollars? 

Answer. HHS has used the NEF to fund critical capital acquisition projects necessary for the operation of the Department. NEF funded projects have reduced the 

financial impacts on current year funds, thus ensuring appropriations support key 

programs targeted by Congress. When the Department considers funding a project 

with NEF funds, the HHS Office of the Chief Information Officer and subject matter 

experts conduct a thorough review of each project to confirm that each project is eligible to receive NEF funding consistent with HHS legal authority, regulations, and 

policies. 

Question. Does HHS solicit formal or informal requests from agencies for Non-recurring Expenses Fund-related projects? Please provide details on what each HHS 

agency requested. 

Answer. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does work with 

components to determine investments made through use of the Nonrecurring Expenses Fund (NEF). As part of the budget development process, HHS examines the 

needs across the agency seeking to balance funds availability, project timing, and 

optimal use of the fund sources available. Determining eligibility on a specific 

project is a fluid process with multiple stages including internal review, subject matter expert review, and approval by the Office of Management and Budget. In the 

fiscal year 2015 Congressional Justification to the Committees on Appropriations, 

HHS listed potential project investments, specifically financial system modernization and information technology infrastructure investments. 

Question. What programs would have received funding over the past 2 years had 

funding not been siphoned off to fund the implementation of the health insurance 

Exchanges? 

Answer. The NEF has funded a number of critical capital acquisition projects 

identified by the Department other than the implementation of the health insurance 

Marketplace, including the beginning work on financial system modernization, enabling HHS to upgrade its core financial platform for both functionality and security 

reasons, critical Cybersecurity infrastructure upgrades, and the initial stages for acquisition of an electronic case processing system in the Office of Medicare Hearings 

and Appeals. This system will aide in the processing of appeals and secure documents that are currently stored in paper files. 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Question. Describe the role of the department’s Chief Information Officer in the 

oversight of IT purchases. How is this person involved in the decision to make an 

IT purchase, determine its scope, oversee its contract, and oversee the product’s continued operation and maintenance? 

Answer. HHS is a federated environment where IT purchase decisions are made 

at the Operating Division (OpDiv) level. To improve departmentwide visibility, the 
316 

HHS Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) chartered the HHS Domain 

Governance Office which provides oversight for IT acquisitions across the Department of Health and Human Services. The Domain Governance Office requires that 

OpDivs within HHS share IT acquisition and project forecasts through the Annual 

Procurement Forecast System. The HHS Chief Information Officer is a member of 

the IT Steering Committee, which reviews planned acquisitions and projects to direct strategy and to prioritize investments. 

Question. Describe the existing authorities, organizational structure, and reporting relationship of your department Chief Information Officer. Note and explain any 

variance from that prescribed in the Information Technology Management Reform 

Act of 1996 (The Clinger-Cohen Act) for the above. 

Answer. The Department level Chief Information Officer (CIO) provides varying 

levels of oversight to HHS’s OpDivs in regard to the Clinger-Cohen Act. Many of 

the authorities are delegated to the OpDiv CIOs, such as governance, program 

training and management since the OpDiv CIOs have a direct line of sight into their 

investments. Since the HHS CIO operates in a decentralized funding structure, the 

office is working towards efforts to increase its ability to strategically manage the 

Department’s IT portfolio via the three Domains of the IT Steering Committee: Administrative, Health and Human Services, and Scientific Research. There is also an 

HHS CIO Council in order to provide transparency and communications throughout 

HHS. 

Question. What formal or informal mechanisms exist in your department to ensure coordination and alignment within the CXO community (i.e., the Chief Information Officer, the Chief Acquisition Officer, the Chief Finance Officer, the Chief 

Human Capital Officer, and so on)? How does that alignment flow down to department subcomponents? 

Answer. The IT Steering Committees (ITSCs) that were recently chartered include 

membership from the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Acquisition Officer 

(CAO). Additionally, the Deputy CFO has a Financial Governance Board that includes representation from the Chief Information Officer (CIO), CAO, Chief of Budget, and the Chief Human Capital Officer. The ITSC charter is built upon information from the Senior Procurement Executive regarding use and analysis of the Annual Procurement Forecast in order to leverage HHS’s buying power proactively. 

The CIO has also been proactively engaging with the Chief Human Capital Officer 

in transformative processes used to hire IT professionals. 

Question. How much of the department’s budget goes to Demonstration, Modernization, and Enhancement of IT systems as opposed to supporting existing and 

ongoing programs and infrastructure? How has this changed in the last 5 years? 

Answer. In fiscal year 2014, 12.4 percent of HHS’s total IT budget will go to Development, Modernization, and Enhancement (DME) of IT Systems. When Grants 

to States and Local IT investments are excluded (representing 40 percent of the 

total HHS fiscal year 2014 IT budget), the DME portion rises to 20.2 percent. In 

each case, the trend over the past 5 years has been downward from a high of 22 

percent in fiscal year 2010. An off-trend spike to 24.6 percent (30.8 percent without 

grants) in fiscal year 2011 represents DME activity related to implementation of the 

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. 

Question. Where and how are you taking advantage of this administration’s 

‘‘shared services’’ initiative? How do you identify and utilize existing capabilities 

elsewhere in government or industry as opposed to recreating them internally? 

Answer. HHS used the administration’s ‘‘shared services’’ initiative to institutionalize shared services requirements across the Department. A dedicated 

workgroup under the purview of the Enterprise Architecture Review Board developed HHS’s Shared Services Strategy which illustrates the long-term strategy and 

sets the foundations to successfully develop, deploy, and use shared services at 

HHS. To promote the identification and reuse of services, HHS documented and 

published the Shared Services Catalog (available to all HHS employees through the 

intranet). This catalog contains a list of services available to use across HHS or 

within a specific Operating Division (OpDiv). Additionally, HHS contributed a list 

of cross-Agency services to Uncle Sam’s List so other Agencies can reuse HHS’s 

services. A publicly available summary of the Shared Services Strategy can be found 

here: http://www.hhs.gov/ocio/ea/sharedservices.html. 

HHS continues to leverage cloud computing technologies, through carefully assessing technical, security, and contractual requirements to ensure seamless integration to avoid disruption of current services and the mission that we provide for 

the American public. 

Question. Provide short summaries of three recent IT program successes, projects 

that were delivered on time, within budget, and delivered the promised functionality 
317 

and benefits to the end user. How does your department define ‘‘success’’ in IT program management? 

Answer. Human Resources IT (HRIT).—The HRIT Shared Service project is in 

progress and has gone through the Enterprise Project Life Cycle (EPLC) with the 

approval to proceed to the final phase of implementation. The implemented solution 

is expected to provide HHS with a true end-to-end hire to retire solution that improves data integrity by eliminating errors caused by using three separate platforms 

(HR, Time & Labor, Pay). The project is expected to be fully implemented on time 

and within budget. 

HRIT will strengthen internal controls and support the administration’s 

PortfolioStat initiative which seeks opportunities to shift to commodity IT, leverage 

technology, procurement, and best practices across the whole of government, and 

build on existing investments. By implementing HRIT as a shared service, HHS is 

poised to achieve: 

—reduction of manual data calls; 

—implementation of a single data entry, multiple use model; 

—elimination of manual data reconciliation processes; 

—reduction in the number of handoffs to effect routine HR actions. 

Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Implementation.—HHS identified operational 

improvements to the Department Identity, Credential, and Access Management 

(ICAM) program in order to reduce costs and enhance security. The ICAM program 

reviewed the proposed design for the enhancements in the HHS Access Management 

System (AMS) to simplify the efforts by applications to integrate with the Department-wide Single Sign-On system. HHS has a mature capability to allow user access 

to the HHS network with a PIV badge issued at Level of Assurance (LOA 4). HHS 

also has the capability to accept PIV or Common Access Card (CAC) credentials 

from other Federal agencies/departments for access to applications that are integrated with the HHS Access Management System for Single Sign-On services. At 

this time there are 18 Enterprise systems and 5 Operational Division specific systems integrated with AMS. 

HHS LMS SABA 7.2 Upgrade.—The HHS Learning Portal, also referred to as the 

LMS (Learning Management System), is utilized by the Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS) to provide a single standardized training recording system 

for all of HHS. The LMS is currently used by approximately 80,000 HHS employees 

and 20,000 contractors. The LMS software is provided by Saba and is hosted by 

General Strategies (GS). GS also provides technical and consulting support to HHS 

for the LMS and associated technologies. HHS took advantage of new technology in 

SABA version 7.2 with a major upgrade that enabled the LMS application to run 

more efficiently and allow employees to have a more enjoyable user experience. 

Defining IT Program Management Success at HHS.—Success at HHS in IT Program Management is supported by the HHS Enterprise Performance Life Cycle 

(EPLC) established in 2008. It is an essential part of our IT management and governance. The process provides a framework for planning, managing and monitoring 

projects to ensure our projects are sufficiently resourced, well managed and achieve 

their objectives. In addition, the EPLC ensures compliance with a variety of IT management mandates, including: security, privacy, records management, and accessibility. All HHS IT projects are required to follow the EPLC. 

The Department’s ongoing commitment to the alignment between IT and business 

processes, organization structure, and strategy has strengthened Program Management at HHS. At the highest levels, this alignment is achieved through proper integration of enterprise architecture, business architecture (business need), process design, organization design, and performance metrics to provide value and support the 

mission of HHS. 

Question. What ‘‘best practices’’ have emerged and been adopted from these recent 

IT program successes? What have proven to be the most significant barriers encountered to more common or frequent IT program successes? 

Answer. Best Practices.—The Department will be offering an IT Project Management Training contract for all Operating Divisions to enhance the technical skill set 

of our project management community. 

HHS has also taken an active approach to advertise and reuse services that are 

shared between Government agencies, citizens, and industry at one or more levels. 

HHS has developed a catalog of inter-agency, intra-agency, and intra-OPDIV services that can be shared within HHS and with all Federal agencies as seen in our 

Shared Services Catalog. Currently, HHS offers 170 services within specific 

OPDIVs, across HHS, and to other Federal agencies. 

HHS also utilizes CIO Council Meetings as a forum within which best practices 

are collaboratively shared between the participating HHS Operational Divisions. 
318 

Significant Barriers.—Some of the most significant barriers to IT program success 

are ensuring that secured and trusted information is constantly updated and monitored to align with the rapidly changing technology environments. The lengthy acquisition process itself can be a barrier to IT success given the rapid pace at which 

technologies continually evolve. Other notable barriers include a risk adverse culture, lack of accountability, and shared risk. 

Lastly, one of the Department’s most valuable resources is our Federal workforce—hiring people with the right skill sets for the job. The HHS OCIO has previously relied strongly on contract support to supplement our Federal workforce. 

OCIO is in the process of hiring Federal staff to fulfill the needs within areas of 

Enterprise Architecture, capital planning and project management. The hiring of 

these candidates will allow us to build a reliable, talented and innovative workforce 

within the agency that can help accelerate the goals of HHS. 

Question. Describe the progress being made in your department on the transition 

to new, cutting-edge technologies and applications such as cloud, mobility, social 

networking, and so on. What progress has been made in the CloudFirst and 

ShareFirst initiatives? 

Answer. HHS continues to make progress in transitioning to new, cutting-edge 

technologies and applications departmentwide. HHS has operationalized and integrated a departmentwide Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program 

(FedRAMP) security authorization process and is actively using FedRAMP. HHS is 

developing cloud based use cases that will enable other programs to implement and 

manage cloud computing systems in accordance with best practices and Federal 

standards, to improve the transition to a cloud environment. 

Question. How does your department implement acquisition strategies that involve each of the following: early collaboration with industry; RFP’s with performance measures that tie to strategic performance objectives; and risk mitigation 

throughout the life of the contract? 

Answer. Within the OCIO’s office, the Vendor Management office provides outreach and serves as a conduit to industry and the CIO’s principal office to connect 

those vendors who provide products and services that meet the needs and requirements for projects that are underway or in the planning stage. 

Each departmentwide RFP is developed based on the requirements and needs of 

the Operating Divisions. Service Level Agreements and other performance measures 

are included to ensure these requirements are met in the most efficient and effective 

manner possible. 

Question. According to the Office of Personnel Management, 46 percent of the 

more than 80,000 Federal IT workers are 50 years of age or older, and more than 

10 percent are 60 or older. Just 4 percent of the Federal IT workforce is under 30 

years of age. Does your department have such demographic imbalances? How is it 

addressing them? Does this create specific challenges for attracting and maintaining 

a workforce with skills in cutting edge technologies? What initiatives are underway 

to build your technology workforce’s capabilities? 

Answer. OCIO completed an organizational assessment in March 2014 to update 

vision, goals, core principles and strategic mapping of OCIO goals which included 

efforts to position the IT workforce to readily meet new and complex challenges. 

OCIO is engaging the workforce through a series of communications efforts to include quarterly Town Halls, monthly Brown Bag discussions with the CIO and promotion of close engagements and frequent communications between managers and 

employees. Communication efforts also include OCIO branding to reflect the oneteam focus in response to OCIO customers. An IT Community Workforce Plan is 

under development which will allow us to: 

—identify IT goals and external workforce trends; 

—identify impact on IT Talent; 

—establish the resulting talent needs; 

—identify gaps in our IT competencies; and 

—describe how IT is to attract high-quality talent and build the best IT team. 

Question. What information does your department collect on its IT and program 

management workforce? Please include, for example, details about current staffing 

versus future needs, development of the talent pipeline, special hiring authorities, 

and known knowledge gaps. 

Answer. HHS has a CIO Workplan that sets goals for each OpDiv. The overall 

goal is to create and administer a comprehensive plan that aligns with the Information Resource Management Strategic Plan and day-to-day work of HHS IT employees that motivates them to achieve their best. One of the goals for 2014 is to develop 

an IT Community Workforce Development Plan to: 

—provide challenging projects to work; 

—ensure skills stay current with training; 
319 

—hold employees accountable to deliver; and 

—reward top performers. 

The OCIO is developing an IT workforce plan and establishing an OCIO led working group to prioritize goals and implement this activity by expanding opportunities 

for leadership, training, and workforce development. We will position the IT workforce to meet new and complex challenges by promoting collaboration and enabling 

free flow of information to others who can use it to advance public health and 

human services. Additionally, OCIO is actively sponsoring student interns to engage 

new IT professionals in government services through the Pathways program and the 

Student Volunteer Program. 

QUESTIONS SUBMITTED BY SENATOR RICHARD C. SHELBY

AREA HEALTH EDUCATION CENTERS

Question. The Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) program received a $1.8 

million increase in fiscal year 2014. Please provide an explanation on how these 

funds were used, including a rationale for the allocation between the Infrastructure 

Development Grants and the Point of Service and Maintenance Grants. In the response, please include a comparison of the funding allocation to the past 2 fiscal 

years. 

Answer. HRSA is currently exploring options for fiscal year 2014 to support the 

AHEC program with available resources. The options may include increasing funding to current AHEC grantees to the amount requested in their fiscal year 2012 

grant proposals, or supporting new AHEC centers. 

Use of the funds will be consistent with past years, and with the requirements 

of the fiscal year 2012 funding opportunity announcement of the program. Recognizing that Infrastructure Development (ID) grantees need additional funding support, the fiscal year 2012 AHEC Program funding opportunity announcement distinguished between the ID and Point of Service Maintenance and Enhancement 

(POSME) phases of the program. These phases were treated as two separate options 

with distinct funding levels in the grant competition. AHEC ID applicants were able 

to request for up to $250,000 for each center, and AHEC POSME applicants were 

able to request up to $102,000 per AHEC center. 

The grant competition and review processes for each of the phases also play a factor in how funding is allocated within program. No formula or targeted ratio of 

funding is utilized in making decisions for how much funding is allocated to grantees applying for the two phases. The proposals and funding requests of the grantees 

and the merit evidenced through their separate objective reviews guide decisionmaking for which grantees should receive an award, and at what amount. Applications for both phases of the program received an objective and independent peer review performed by a committee of experts who assessed the technical merit of each 

grant application. In the case of this program, the objective review committee also 

made a specific recommendation for each application as applicable to approve or disapprove any new center(s) requested. Last, based on the advice of the objective review committee, the HRSA was responsible for final selection of grantees and allocating funding as able per the grantee’s requests, and in making these decisions 

consideration was given to the Sense of the Congress per section 751 of the Public 

Health Service Act ‘‘that every State have an area health education center program 

in effect under this section.’’ 

Question. Why has HRSA held back funding for building approved centers when 

grantees included these in their budget when they were awarded multicenter 

grants? 

Answer. While the fiscal year 2013 enacted budget for the AHEC program did include an increase in funding for the AHEC program, sequestration significantly reduced available funding, and there was not sufficient funding for new activity within the AHEC program to support all of the new centers that had been proposed to 

be added in fiscal year 2013. Accordingly, funding for existing AHEC activity was 

prioritized and no new AHEC centers were funded in fiscal year 2013. 

Note that, in anticipation of budgetary constraints, the Notices of Award for all 

fiscal year 2012 grantees informed them of the fact that funding for new center(s) 

would depend on future appropriation levels. Specifically, the Notices of Award Stated if the fiscal year 2013 appropriation level for the AHEC program is the same or 

less than the fiscal year 2012 appropriation level, the additional new center(s) may 

not be funded. 
320 

Senator HARKIN. And I would just say publicly, my good friend 

from Kansas, that Ms. Burwell is testifying tomorrow before my 

other committee, the authorizing committee. Hopefully, we will get 

her through and get her in place soon. 

I will, as the chairman, give her some time. Working with my 

ranking member here, I hope that sometime after she gets settled 

and gets fully briefed up, that we will have her up here to talk 

about implementation. 

CONCLUSION OF HEARINGS

Senator MORAN. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. I welcome 

that. I have requested an appointment with the nominee and expect to have that within the next few days. I look forward to getting acquainted with her. 

The point I would make is that this kind of hearing that we just 

had today is valuable, but it ought not be in lieu of a Secretary. 

We ought to do this kind of thing on an ongoing basis, and I welcome the opportunity to work with you to accomplish that. 

Senator HARKIN. Thank you very much, Senator Moran. 

Thank you all very much. And with that, the committee will 

stand adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 11:40 a.m., Wednesday, May 7, the hearings 

were concluded, and the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene 

at the call of the Chair.] 
(321) 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND 

RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

FISCAL YEAR 2015 

U.S. SENATE, 

SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, 

Washington, DC. 

[CLERK’S NOTE.—The subcommittee was unable to hold hearings 

on departmental and nondepartmental witnesses. The statements 

and letters of those submitting written testimony are as follows:] 

DEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF PUBLIC TELEVISION STATIONS AND

THE PUBLIC BROADCASTING SERVICE

On behalf of America’s 170 public television licensees, we appreciate the opportunity to submit testimony for the record on the importance of Federal funding for 

local public television stations and PBS. We urge the Subcommittee to support level 

funding of $445 million in 2-year advance funding for the Corporation for Public 

Broadcasting (CPB) in fiscal year 2017, and pre-sequester level funding of $27.3 million for the Ready To Learn program at the Department of Education in fiscal year 

2015. 

Corporation for Public Broadcasting—fiscal year 2017 Request: $445 million, 2-year 

advance funded 

Local stations and PBS are committed to serving the public good in education, 

public safety, creating a well-informed citizenry, preserving and promoting American history and culture, and other essential fields. Federal funding for CPB makes 

these services possible and is deserving of continued support. The overwhelming majority of Americans agree. In a bi-partisan Hart Research Associates/American Viewpoint poll, nearly 70 percent of American voters, including majorities of self-identifying Republicans, Independents, and Democrats support continued Federal funding 

for public broadcasting. In addition, polls show that Americans consider PBS to be 

the second most appropriate expenditure of public funds, behind only military defense. 

Over 70 percent of the Federal funding for CPB goes directly to local stations, resulting in a nationwide system of locally owned and controlled, trusted, communitydriven and community-responsive media entities that form an incredibly successful 

public-private partnership providing unique and essential local public services. 

Education 

Local public television stations are America’s largest classroom, meeting their 

communities’ lifelong education needs by providing the highest quality educational 

content and resources on multiple media platforms and in person. Public television’s 

exceptional content, available to nearly every household in America, has helped 

more than 90 million pre-school age children get ready to learn and succeed in 

school. 

PBS, in partnership with local public television stations, has created PBS 

LearningMedia, an online portal where educators can access more than 35,000 

standards-based, curriculum-aligned interactive digital learning objects created from 

public television content, as well as material from the Library of Congress, National 

Archives and other high-quality sources. More than 1.3 million teachers are reg-
322 

istered to use PBS LearningMedia in K–12 classrooms serving millions of students 

throughout the country. In addition, twenty-eight thousand homeschoolers use PBS 

LearningMedia to enrich their curriculum in history, science, the arts and other 

subjects. Public television stations also operate virtual high schools that bring highquality instruction in the most specialized fields to the most remote locations in our 

country. 

Through the American Graduate Initiative, CPB and public media stations are 

working to confront the dropout crisis in America’s high schools by providing resources and services to raise awareness, coordinate action with local community 

partners, and work directly with students, parents, teachers, mentors, volunteers 

and leaders to lower the drop-out rate in their respective communities. In addition, 

by operating one of the most comprehensive non-profit GED programs in the country, public television stations have helped hundreds of thousands of second-chance 

students and adult learners get their high-school equivalency certificates and prepare themselves for meaningful work in a competitive marketplace. 

Public television stations have made it a top priority to help retrain the American 

workforce, including veterans, by providing digital learning opportunities for those 

looking for training, licensing, continuing education credits and more. 

Partners in Public Safety 

Public broadcasting stations throughout the country are also leading innovators 

and irreplaceable partners to local public safety officials—working in communities 

with schools, businesses and stakeholders to provide real-time emergency support 

for local law officials in times of crisis. In many communities, public broadcasting 

stations are the last locally-owned and operated media outlets—serving as a critical 

public safety life line. 

The Nation’s digital presidential alert and warning system depends on the backbone infrastructure of local public television stations to deliver critical national messages. This same digital infrastructure provides the backbone for emergency alert, 

public safety, first responder and homeland security services in many states and 

local communities. Stations are partnering with their local emergency responders to 

customize and utilize public television’s infrastructure for public safety in a variety 

of critical ways: equipping police cars with school blueprints when a crisis arises, 

providing access to 24/7 camera feeds for a variety of security challenges, connecting 

public safety agencies in real time, and more. Local public television stations are 

also using their broadcast equipment to help send emergency alert text messages 

to cell phone subscribers through their providers—reaching citizens wherever they 

are, even when the power is out. Many local stations are serving as their states’ 

primary Emergency Alert Service (EAS) hub for weather and AMBER alerts. 

Supporting an Informed Citizenry 

Public television strengthens the American democracy by providing citizens with 

access to the history, culture and civic affairs of their communities, their states and 

their country. Local public television stations serve as the ‘‘C-SPAN’’ of many state 

governments, providing the most remote corners of the country with access to the 

state legislative process, Governors’ messages, court proceedings and more. As one 

of the only locally-owned and operated media remaining in America, public television provides more public affairs programming, local history, arts and culture, 

candidate debates, specialized agricultural news, and citizenship information of all 

kinds than anyone else in the media universe. 

Public Broadcasting is a Smart Investment 

All of this is made possible by the Federal funding to CPB which amounts to an annual cost of about $1.35 per year for each American. On average, Federal funding 

for CPB makes up approximately 15 percent of local television station’s budgets. 

However, for many smaller and rural stations, Federal funding represents more 

than 30–50 percent of their total budget. This funding is particularly important to 

rural stations that struggle to raise local funds from individual donors due to the 

smaller and often economically strained population base. At the same time it is 

often more costly to serve rural areas due to the topography and distances between 

communities. As a result, public broadcasters, with their commitment to universal 

service, are often the only local broadcaster serving rural communities. For all stations, Federal funding is the ‘‘lifeblood’’ of public broadcasting, providing critical 

seed money to local stations that enables them to build additional support from 

state legislatures, private foundations and corporations, and ‘‘viewers like you.’’ 

Public broadcasting creates important economic activity while providing an essential educational and cultural service. For every Federal dollar, local public media 

stations raise an additional six dollars in non-Federal funding, providing a strong 

public-private partnership and an impressive 6 to 1 return on investment. In addi-
323 

1McCarthy, B., Li, L., Schneider, S., Sexton, U., & Tiu, M. (2013). PBS KIDS Mathematics 

Transmedia Suites in Preschool Homes and Communities. A Report to the CPB-PBS Ready to 

Learn Initiative. Redwood City, CA: WestEd. McCarthy, B., Li, L., Tiu, M. (2012). PBS KIDS 

Mathematics Transmedia Suites in Preschool Homes. Redwood City, CA: WestEd 2Public Broadcasting Service (2012). KBTC Ready To Learn Initiative 2012 Summary Report, 

pp. 15,16. 3McCarthy, B., Li, L., Schneider, S., Sexton, U., & Tiu, M. (2013). PBS KIDS Mathematics 

Transmedia Suites in Preschool Homes and Communities. A Report to the CPB-PBS Ready to 

Continued 

tion, public broadcasting supports approximately 20,000 jobs, with the vast majority 

in local public television and radio stations in hundreds of communities across 

America. 

Two-Year Advance Funding 

Two-year advance funding is essential to the mission of public broadcasting. This 

longstanding practice, proposed by President Ford and embraced by Congress in 

1976, establishes a firewall insulating programming decisions from political interference, enables the leveraging of funds to ensure a successful public-private partnership, and provides stations with the necessary lead time to plan in-depth programming and curriculum coordination with educational institutions 

Public television’s history of editorial independence has been rewarded in unprecedented levels of public trust—for the eleventh consecutive year, the American people 

have ranked PBS as one of the most trusted national institutions. Advance funding 

and the firewall it provides between the development of content and extraneous interference and control is vital to maintaining this credibility among the American 

public. 

In addition, local public broadcasting stations leverage the 2-year advance funding 

to raise state, local and private funds, ensuring the continuation of this strong public-private partnership. These Federal funds act as essential seed money for fundraising efforts at every station, no matter its size, and since many state legislatures 

are part-time institutions that budget State funds on a 2-year cycle and relate state 

funding to Federal funding, advance Federal funding is essential to the success of 

this unique partnership 

Finally, the 2-year advance funding mechanism also gives stations and producers 

the critical lead time needed to partner with local community organizations and 

plan and produce high-quality programs. The signature series that demonstrate the 

depth and breadth of public television, like Ken Burns’s The Civil War, take several 

years to produce. In addition, 2-year advance funding is essential to the creation of 

local programming over multiple fiscal years as stations convene the community to 

identify needs, recruit partners, conduct research, develop content and deliver services. 

Ready To Learn—fiscal year 2015 Request: $27.3 million (Department of Education) 

The Ready To Learn (RTL) competitive grant program uses the power of public 

television’s on-air, online, mobile, and on-the-ground educational content to build 

the literacy and STEM skills of children between the ages of two and eight, especially those from low-income families. Through their RTL grant, CPB and PBS are 

delivering evidence-based, innovative, high-quality transmedia content to improve 

the math and literacy skills of high-need children via broadcast television, the Internet, mobile and other dynamic new technologies. CPB and PBS, in partnership with 

local stations, have been able to ensure that the kids and families that are most 

in need have access to these groundbreaking and proven effective educational resources. In addition to the content, CPB and PBS are creating new tools like a sophisticated progress tracking system that gives parents the means to measure student progress, in real time. 

Results 

RTL is rigorously evaluated for its appeal and efficacy so the program can continue to offer America’s youngest citizens the tools they need to succeed in school 

and in life. Studies show that RTL content has a significant and positive effect on 

the educational lives of children who use it. Highlights of recent studies show that: 

use of PBS KIDS content and games by low-income parents and their preschool children improves math learning and helps prepare children for entry into kindergarten; 1 use of RTL content has been associated with a 29 percent improvement in 

reading ability in children grades K–2; 2 and parents who used RTL math resources 

in the home became considerably more involved in supporting their children’s learning outcomes.3 In combination, RTL games, activities and videos provide early 
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Learn Initiative. Redwood City, CA: WestEd. McCarthy, B., Li, L., Tiu, M. (2012). PBS KIDS 

Mathematics Transmedia Suites in Preschool Homes. Redwood City, CA: WestEd 

learners with the critical math and literacy skills needed to succeed in school, and 

in the process, help level the academic playing field. 

An Excellent Investment 

In addition to being research-based and teacher tested, the RTL Television program also provides excellent value for our Federal dollars. In the last 5-year grant 

round, public broadcasting leveraged an additional $50 million in funding to augment the $73 million investment by the Department of Education for content production. Without the investment of the Federal government, this supplemental funding would likely end. 

The Dangers of Consolidation 

The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes consolidating RTL into a larger 

grant program. APTS and PBS oppose this proposal as it would abandon the unique 

national-local partnership that has resulted in RTL’s ground-breaking educational 

impact on kids nationwide, particularly those with limited access to other educational resources. The current model effectively uses an economy of scale to create 

high-quality television and online content at the national level and then distribute 

it through local stations who can tailor outreach to the specific needs of their communities. This model allows PBS and local stations to annually reach 80 percent 

of America’s children ages 2 to 8 through television and another 13 million per 

month online and on mobile apps. The national-local partnership has made RTL tremendously efficient and effective and consolidation or elimination of the program 

would severely affect the ability of local stations to respond to their communities’ 

educational needs, eliminating the critical resources provided by this program for 

children, parents and teachers. RTL symbolizes the mission of public media and is 

a successful public-private partnership that leverages Federal funds to create the 

most appealing and impactful children’s educational content that is supplemented 

by online and on-the-ground resources. Without the RTL program, millions of families would lose access to this incredible high-quality education content, especially 

the low-income and underserved households that are a particular focus of this program. 

Conclusion 

Americans across the political spectrum rely on public broadcasting—on television, on the radio, online, and in the classroom—because we provide essential education, public safety, and informed citizenry services that are not available anywhere else. And none of this would be possible without the Federal investment in 

public broadcasting. A 2007 GAO report concluded that these Federal Community 

Service Grants are an irreplaceable source of revenue for public broadcasting, and 

a 2012 study requested by this Subcommittee and conducted by an independent 

third party for CPB came to the same conclusion as the GAO: Federal funding for 

public broadcasting is irreplaceable. 

For all of these reasons we request that Congress continue its commitment to the 

highly successful, hugely popular public-private partnership that is public broadcasting by providing level funding of $445 million in fiscal year 2017 for the 2-year 

advance of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and pre-sequester level funding 

of $27.3 million in fiscal year 2015 for the stand alone Ready To Learn Program. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO

Dear Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran and Members of the Subcommittee: Thank you for this opportunity to urge the Subcommittee’s support for 

an annual Federal investment of $445 million in America’s public media system 

through annual appropriations to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). 

With your support, the public radio system, consisting of some 950 locally managed, 

locally controlled and locally programmed stations, serves communities all across 

America. And these stations are as diverse as the communities they represent. Public radio is committed to being America’s public radio, bringing the diverse and 

changing voices of Americans to the airwaves and the new platforms that so many 

Americans are using. We strive to create a more informed public, one challenged 

and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas, and 

culture within the United States and across the globe. 

The public radio system, a uniquely American public service, non-commercial, 

media enterprise, includes stations in every State capitol and hundreds of American 
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communities, large and small, urban and rural. Producers and distributors of public 

radio programming, including American Public Media (APM), Public Radio International (PRI), the Public Radio Exchange (PRX) and NPR are united by a commitment to the highest standards of journalist ethics. Every minute of every program 

broadcast to some 38 million Americans weekly is routed through the Public Radio 

Satellite System (PRSS), a content distribution utility owned by the public radio 

system. 

Partnerships and collaborations are integral components of the programming and 

service found in the public radio system. Available on air, online, and on new and 

emerging mobile platforms, public radio is expanding its ability to reach audiences. 

And as traditional media undergoes dramatic changes, public radio is positioning 

itself to serve the needs of a growing audience in a shifting media landscape and 

rapidly changing world. 

A clear example of these new adaptations to improve journalism and meet audience needs comes from the recently formed merger between St. Louis Public Radio 

and the St. Louis Beacon newspaper, the area’s two largest nonprofit news organizations. This move combines newsrooms and significantly changes the face of independent local news in the region by providing more depth and perspective on issues 

and stories that impact the community. The consolidation creates an innovative 

model for a multiplatform news operation that results in more in-depth coverage of 

urban events and issues. St. Louis Public Radio’s move to join forces and expand 

serves as an example of how public radio news organizations are adjusting to an 

ever-changing media environment that involves greater competition for consumers 

and financial support. 

This new merger is just one among a growing list of public broadcasters teaming 

up with other nonprofit news outlets to beef up their local and investigative journalism. In Denver, Rocky Mountain PBS, public radio station KUVO, and I-News, 

the Rocky Mountain Investigative News Network, merged to create a cross-platform 

news operation that could better cover Colorado. WWNO in New Orleans hired its 

first-ever news director last spring to expand its coverage of stories. Oregon Public 

Broadcasting is building a statewide news network with 40 to 50 small news outlets 

across Oregon. Lastly, Harvest Public Media, a reporting collaboration of public 

radio stations KCUR, KBIA, Iowa Public Radio, Nebraska Public Broadcasting, 

KUNC and WUIS, focuses on issues of food, fuel and field. Based at KCUR in Kansas City, Harvest covers these agriculture-related topics through an expanding network of reporters and partner stations throughout the Midwest. 

But the partnerships don’t stop there for public radio. A recent collaboration includes Boston’s WBUR and NPR joining forces to expand and re-launch the daily 

public radio show Here & Now as a two-hour national news program for audiences 

in the middle of the day. The program airs weekday afternoons and is aggressively 

updated to provide local audiences with live, updated news coverage during midday. 

Public radio’s partnerships with public safety officials play a critically important 

role when natural or man-made disasters strike. Public radio stations provide essential and timely public emergency information, such as evacuation routes, shelter locations and severe weather updates. Effective emergency warnings allow people to 

take actions that save lives, and reduce damage and human suffering. Federal funding helps to bring crucial news and alerts to millions of Americans. 

Public radio’s innovative partnerships also expand our public service mission by 

enabling radio reception to all Americans during local emergency situations. This 

year, 26 public radio stations based in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and 

Texas are working with NPR Labs, the Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS) and 

the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/FEMA to demonstrate the delivery of 

emergency alerts to people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. This is the first effort 

to deliver real-time accessibility-targeted emergency messages, such as weather 

alerts, via radio broadcast texts. Our hope is to expand the pilot over time to other 

regions of our country thru the use of radio equipment to reach people who are both 

deaf and blind and non-English speaking. 

In addition, many public radio stations provide critical services through partnerships with radio reading services. These long established centers are in every major 

market in the United States to provide millions of visually impaired persons the 

ability to function more independently in their communities. 

Music in America would sound very different without public radio. Local stations 

take creative risks, nurture new talent, and give emerging artists a chance to be 

heard. They celebrate traditional music genres like classical and jazz, and partner 

with local music organizations to take these art forms to new heights of performance 

excellence and new audiences. And they play a key role in their local music economies, sustaining and growing the careers of musicians by connecting them to local 
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listeners. Across the country, more than 180 local public radio stations have fulltime music formats and more than 650 stations air play music as part of their programming lineups. 

Mr. Chairman and Senator Moran, public radio is essential in providing news, information and cultural programming to America and connecting with audiences 

wherever they are. We’re embracing America’s changing demographics and using 

digital media to connect better, more quickly and in more diverse ways. Today’s 

public radio isn’t going away, it’s going everywhere and we are working every day 

to earn the trust of the 38 million Americans who rely on us for news and insights 

that guide and inform. We ask for your continuing support in funding for stations 

that serve your communities, your constituents and America’s Democracy. 

[This statement was submitted by Michael Riksen, Vice President—Policy & Representation, National Public Radio.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD

Ms. Chairwoman and Members of the Committee: We are pleased to present the 

following information to support the Railroad Retirement Board’s (RRB) fiscal year 

2015 budget request of $112,150,000 for our retirement, unemployment and other 

programs. 

The RRB administers comprehensive retirement/survivor and unemployment/sickness insurance benefit programs for railroad workers and their families under the 

Railroad Retirement and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts. The RRB also has 

administrative responsibilities under the Social Security Act for certain benefit payments and Medicare coverage for railroad workers. The RRB has also administered 

special economic recovery payments and extended unemployment benefits under the 

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–5) and extended 

unemployment benefits under the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–92). More recently, we have administered extended unemployment benefits under the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–312), the Temporary 

Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 (Public Law 112–78), the Middle Class 

Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (Public Law 112–96) and the American 

Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (Public Law 112–240). 

During fiscal year 2013, the RRB paid $11.7 billion, net of recoveries, in retirement/survivor benefits to about 568,000 beneficiaries. We also paid $84.5 million in 

net unemployment/sickness insurance benefits to more than 26,000 claimants. Temporary extended unemployment benefits paid were $6.8 million. In addition, the 

RRB paid benefits on behalf of the Social Security Administration amounting to $1.4 

billion to about 113,000 beneficiaries. 

PROPOSED FUNDING FOR AGENCY ADMINISTRATION

The President’s proposed budget would provide $112,150,000 for agency operations, which would enable us to maintain a staffing level of 860 full-time equivalent staff years (FTEs) in 2015. The proposed budget would also provide $2,500,000 

for information technology (IT) investments for the conversion of a legacy Program 

Accounts Receivable (PAR) system to a modern accounts receivable module within 

our cloud-based core financial system that was implemented October 1, 2013. 

AGENCY STAFFING

The RRB’s dedicated and experienced workforce is the foundation for our tradition 

of excellence in customer service and satisfaction. Like many Federal agencies, however, the RRB has a number of employees at or near retirement age. About 63 percent of our employees have 20 or more years of service, and over 28 percent of our 

current workforce will be eligible for retirement by fiscal year 2015. As we continue 

to modernize our information technology infrastructure to automate and convert 

manual workloads, our agency will also improve training delivery and reporting 

within our workforce. We plan to acquire and implement a Learning Management 

System that will provide a comprehensive functionality for training administration, 

documentation, tracking, reporting and delivery of e-learning education and training 

programs. This will allow the agency to improve all aspects involved in the learning 

process to meet our human capital needs as we experience a high rate of change 

in personnel. Furthermore, we will complement this initiative by implementing an 

executive training program to prepare and mentor future agency leaders that are 

ready to replace a significant number of senior leaders within the agency that are 

eligible to retire. 
327 

In connection with these workforce planning efforts, the President’s budget request includes a legislative proposal to enable the RRB to utilize various hiring authorities available to other Federal agencies. Section 7(b) (9) of the Railroad Retirement Act contains language requiring that all employees of the RRB, except for one 

assistant for each Board Member, must be hired under the competitive civil service. 

We propose to eliminate this requirement, thereby enabling the RRB to use various 

hiring authorities offered by the Office of Personnel Management. Also, our budget 

request includes a legislative proposal to clarify the authority of the Railroad Retirement Board to retain in the competitive civil service attorneys hired prior to a 

change in OPM policy in 2013. 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS

We are actively pursuing further automation and modernization of the RRB’s various processing systems to support the agency’s mission to administer benefit programs for railroad workers and their families. In fiscal year 2015, funding is included for contractor support to complete the full design of the Financial Management Integrated System (FMIS) by migrating a benefit payment feeder system 

named Program Accounts Receivable (PAR) to FMIS. FMIS migration from an obsolete financial system was started Oct 1, 2012 and completed Oct 1, 2013. Due to 

reduction in funds of the FMIS program during the sequestered fiscal year, PAR migration into FMIS was delayed. Once completed, the PAR migration to FMIS will 

enhance the processing of debt transactions for improper benefit payments in an integrated financial system hosted in a cloud environment. We expect PAR migration 

to FMIS to reduce staffing requirements and improve efficiency of the improper payment process. 

OTHER REQUESTED FUNDING

The President’s proposed budget includes $34 million to fund the continuing phase-out of vested dual benefits, plus a 2 percent contingency reserve, $680,000, 

which ‘‘shall be available proportional to the amount by which the product of recipients and the average benefit received exceeds the amount available for payment of 

vested dual benefits.’’ In addition, the President’s proposed budget includes $150,000 

for interest related to uncashed railroad retirement checks. 

FINANCIAL STATUS OF THE TRUST FUNDS

Railroad Retirement Accounts—The RRB coordinates its financial needs with the 

National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust (Trust), the Trust was established 

by the Railroad Retirement and Survivors’ Improvement Act of 2001 (RRSIA) to 

manage and invest railroad retirement assets. Pursuant to the RRSIA, the RRB has 

transferred a total of $21.276 billion to the Trust. All of these transfers were made 

in fiscal years 2002 through 2004. The Trust has invested the transferred funds, 

and the results of these investments are reported to the RRB and posted periodically on the RRB’s website. Through December 2013, the Trust had transferred approximately $15.4 billion to the Railroad Retirement Board for payment of railroad 

retirement benefits. The net asset value of Trust-managed assets on September 30, 

2013, was approximately $25.0 billion, an increase of almost $1.4 billion from the 

previous year. 

In June 2012, we released the 25th Actuarial Valuation of the railroad retirement 

system required by Sections 15(g) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974. That report also met the requirements of Section 22 of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974, 

and Section 502 of the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983. The report addressed the 75-year period 2011–2085, including projections of the status of the retirement trust funds under three employment assumptions. It concluded that barring a sudden, unanticipated, large decrease in railroad employment or substantial 

investment losses, the railroad retirement system would experience no cash flow 

problems for the next 23 years. Even under the most pessimistic assumption, the 

cash flow problems would not occur until the year 2035. The report did not recommend any change in the rate of tax imposed by current law on employers and 

employees. 

The RRB’s latest annual report required by Section 502 of the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983 was released in June 2013. The overall conclusion was 

that barring a sudden unanticipated, large decrease in railroad employment or substantial investment losses, the railroad system will experience no cash flow problems during the next 25 years. 

Railroad Unemployment Insurance Account—The RRB’s latest annual report on 

the financial status of the railroad unemployment insurance system was issued in 

June 2013. The report indicated that even as maximum daily benefit rates will rise 
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approximately 42 percent (from $66 to $94) from 2012 to 2023, experience-based 

contribution rates are expected to keep the unemployment insurance system solvent, 

except for small, short-term cash-flow problems in 2015 and 2016 under the most 

pessimistic assumption. However, projections show quick repayment of any loans by 

the end of each fiscal year. 

Unemployment levels are the single most significant factor affecting the financial 

status of the railroad unemployment insurance system. However, the system’s experience-rating provisions, which adjust contribution rates for changing benefit levels, 

and its surcharge trigger for maintaining a minimum balance, help to ensure financial stability in the event of adverse economic conditions. No financing changes were 

recommended at this time by the report. 

Thank you for your consideration of our budget request. We will be happy to provide further information in response to any questions you may have. 

[This statement was submitted by Michael S. Schwartz, Chairman, Walter A. Barrows, Labor Member, and Jerome F. Kever, Management Member, Railroad Retirement Board.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL, RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: My name is Martin J. 

Dickman, and I am the Inspector General for the Railroad Retirement Board. I 

would like to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and the members of the Subcommittee for 

your continued support of the Office of Inspector General. 

BUDGET REQUEST

The President’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2015 would provide $8,750,000 to 

the Office of Inspector General (OIG) to ensure the continuation of the OIG’s independent oversight of the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). During fiscal year 2015, 

the OIG will focus on areas affecting program performance; the efficiency and effectiveness of agency operations; and areas of potential fraud, waste and abuse. 

OPERATIONAL COMPONENTS

The OIG has three operational components: the immediate Office of the Inspector 

General, the Office of Audit (OA), and the Office of Investigations (OI). The OIG 

conducts operations from several locations: the RRB’s headquarters in Chicago, Illinois; an investigative field office in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and five domicile investigative offices located in Virginia, Texas, California, Florida, and New York. 

These domicile offices provide more effective and efficient coordination with other 

Inspector General offices and traditional law enforcement agencies, with which the 

OIG works joint investigations. 

OFFICE OF AUDIT

The mission of the Office of Audit (OA) is to promote economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in the administration of RRB programs and detect and prevent fraud 

and abuse in such programs. To accomplish its mission, OA conducts financial, performance, and compliance audits and evaluations of RRB programs. In addition, OA 

develops the OIG’s response to audit-related requirements and requests for information. 

During fiscal year 2015, OA will focus on areas affecting program performance; 

the efficiency and effectiveness of agency operations; and areas of potential fraud, 

waste, and abuse. OA will continue its emphasis on long-term systemic problems 

and solutions, and will address major issues that affect the RRB’s service to rail 

beneficiaries and their families. OA has identified four broad areas of potential 

audit coverage: Financial Accountability; Railroad Retirement Act and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act Benefit Program Operations; Railroad Medicare Program 

Operations; and Security, Privacy, and Information Management. OA must also accomplish the following mandated activities with its own staff: Audit of the RRB’s 

financial statements pursuant to the requirements of the Accountability of Tax Dollars Act of 2002, evaluation of information security pursuant to the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), and an audit of the RRB’s compliance 

with the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010. 

During fiscal year 2015, OA will complete the audit of the RRB’s fiscal year 2014 

financial statements and begin its audit of the agency’s fiscal year 2015 financial 

statements. OA contracts with a consulting actuary for technical assistance in auditing the RRB’s ‘‘Statement of Social Insurance’’, which became basic financial information effective in fiscal year 2006. In addition to performing the annual evaluation 
329 

of information security, OA also conducts audits of individual computer application 

systems which are required to support the annual FISMA evaluation. Our work in 

this area is targeted toward the identification and elimination of security deficiencies and system vulnerabilities, including controls over sensitive personally 

identifiable information. 

OA undertakes additional projects with the objective of allocating available audit 

resources to areas in which they will have the greatest value. In making that determination, OA considers staff availability, current trends in management, Congressional and Presidential concerns. 

OFFICE OF INVESTIGATIONS

The Office of Investigations (OI) focuses its efforts on identifying, investigating, 

and presenting cases for prosecution, throughout the United States, concerning 

fraud in RRB benefit programs. OI conducts investigations relating to the fraudulent receipt of RRB disability, unemployment, sickness, and retirement/survivor benefits. OI investigates railroad employers and unions when there is an indication that 

they have submitted false reports to the RRB. OI also conducts investigations involving fraudulent claims submitted to the Railroad Medicare Program. These investigative efforts can result in criminal convictions, administrative sanctions, civil 

penalties, and the recovery of program benefit funds. 

OI INVESTIGATIVE RESULTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2013 

Civil Judgments Indictments/Informations Convictions Recoveries/Receivables 

37 47 81 1 $414,254,000 

1 This total includes the results of joint investigations with other agencies. 

OI anticipates an ongoing caseload of about 400 investigations in fiscal year 2015. 

During fiscal year 2013, OI opened 156 new cases and closed 238. At present, OI 

has cases open in 48 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada with estimated 

fraud losses of nearly $217 million. Disability fraud cases represent the largest portion of Ol’s total caseload. These cases involve more complicated schemes and often 

result in the recovery of substantial amounts for the RRB’s trust funds. They also 

require considerable resources such as travel by special agents to conduct surveillance, numerous witness interviews, and more sophisticated investigative techniques. Additionally, these fraud investigations are extremely document-intensive 

and require forensic financial analysis. 

Of particular significance is an ongoing disability fraud investigation in New 

York. To date, 33 individuals have been indicted; 28 of these have pleaded guilty 

and five more were convicted in Federal court. In addition, 44 former railroad employees avoided prosecution by admitting their role in the fraud and agreeing to the 

termination of their benefits. OI agents will likely have to spend a substantial 

amount of time traveling to New York for continuing investigations and trial preparation in fiscal year 2015. 

During fiscal year 2015, OI will continue to coordinate its efforts with agency program managers to address vulnerabilities in benefit programs that allow fraudulent 

activity to occur and will recommend changes to ensure program integrity. OI plans 

to continue proactive projects to identify fraud matters that are not detected 

through the agency’s program policing mechanisms. 

CONCLUSION

In fiscal year 2015, the OIG will continue to focus its resources on the review and 

improvement of RRB operations and will conduct activities to ensure the integrity 

of the agency’s trust funds. This office will continue to work with agency officials 

to ensure the agency is providing quality service to railroad workers and their families. The OIG will also aggressively pursue all individuals who engage in activities 

to fraudulently receive RRB funds. The OIG will continue to keep the Subcommittee 

and other members of Congress informed of any agency operational problems or deficiencies. 

[This statement was submitted by Martin J. Dickman, Inspector General, Railroad Retirement Board.] 
330 

NONDEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ACADEMY OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS

Dear Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies: 

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics appreciates the opportunity to submit testimony for the fiscal year 2015 appropriations. The Academy is the world’s largest 

organization of food and nutrition professionals, and is committed to improving the 

Nation’s health with nutrition services and interventions provided by registered dietitian nutritionists. Nationwide, The Academy has over 75,000 members. 

As Congress begins work on fiscal year 2015 appropriations, we strongly urge you 

to fully fund Federal nutrition programs that will provide a return on investment 

to improve health. Investment in these programs through the appropriations process 

will help prevent costly healthcare expenses due to chronic diseases. 

Senior Nutrition Funding: Administration for Community Living (ACL) 

The congregate and home-delivered (commonly known as Meals on Wheels) senior 

nutrition programs, the Native American Nutrition Program, and the Nutrition 

Services Incentive Program (NSIP) are the largest and most visible components of 

the Older Americans Act. We strongly believe that the funding levels for the senior 

nutrition programs under the Administration for Community Living must be adequate, as these programs are key to keeping this population independent and in 

their homes. The President’s budget proposes no increase for the senior nutrition 

programs in fiscal year 2015, yet we know that fuel and food costs—primary costs 

borne by senior nutrition programs—continue to increase. This is extremely alarming as these programs ensure that vulnerable older adults can continue to receive 

cost-effective nutrition services, ultimately saving Medicare and Medicaid dollars. 

Due to an ever-increasing demand for services, even flat funding will result in several million fewer home-delivered and congregate meals served, which could lead to 

more expensive hospitalizations or a need for long term care for older adults who 

cannot safely prepare meals themselves. 

The Academy strongly supports the President’s fiscal year 2015 request for $20 

million for Preventive Health Services under the Older Americans Act. This program provides grants to States and Territories to support activities that educate 

older adults about the importance of health lifestyles and promotes healthy behaviors that can help to prevent or delay chronic disease and disability, thereby reducing the need for costly medical interventions. 

The Academy also supports the Administration’s proposal for standalone funding 

of $8 million for Chronic Disease Self-Management Programs (CDSMP) in the Administration for Community Living. CDSMP is a low-cost, evidence-based disease 

prevention model that utilizes state-of-the-art techniques to help older Americans 

with chronic diseases better manage their conditions and improve their health status, thus reducing their need for more costly medical care such as hospital care and 

hospital readmissions. According to the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Promotion, seven out of ten deaths and more than three-quarters of all 

health expenditures for older adults are the result of preventable chronic conditions 

such as diabetes, obesity, cancer, arthritis and depression. 

In addition, the Academy supports the President’s fiscal year 2015 request for $25 

million in funding for the Elder Justice Act. Cases of elder abuse, neglect and exploitation are on the rise in this country; recent studies estimate that 14.1 percent 

of older adults face some sort of abuse, and another study estimates seniors lose a 

minimum of $2.5 billion each year as a result (MetLife and the National Committee 

for the Prevention of Elder Abuse). Elder abuse is a major threat to the health of 

our elderly population. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Funding 

The Academy respectfully requests adequate funding for CDC’s fiscal year 2015 

‘‘core programs.’’ We strongly believe that the activities and programs supported by 

CDC are essential to protect the health of the American people. CDC is faced with 

enormous challenges and responsibilities, from bioterrorism preparedness to chronic 

disease prevention and eliminating health disparities. In addition, CDC funds effective community programs including health promotion efforts and nutrition interventions that help prevent heart and lung disease, cancer, diabetes, stroke, and other 

chronic diseases. More than 70 percent of CDC’s budget supports State and local 

health organizations and academic institutions. 

We support the President’s budget proposal to reduce chronic diseases through diabetes funding totaling $140 million and heart disease funding totaling $130 mil-
331 

lion. These expenditures will help reduce the heavy healthcare cost burden of these 

two diseases. 

We also ask that you maintain the fiscal year 2014 funding of $8 million (not the 

reduced level in the fiscal year 2015 President’s Request) for Hospitals Promoting 

Breastfeeding. According to the CDC, childhood obesity is an epidemic. One in five 

preschoolers in our country is overweight, and half of these are obese. A baby’s risk 

of becoming an overweight child is reduced with each month that the baby is 

breastfed. In the US, most babies start breastfeeding, but within the first week, half 

have already been given formula, and by 9 months, only 31 percent of babies are 

breastfeeding at all. Hospitals play a critical role in encouraging new moms to 

breastfeed. 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Funding 

The Academy supports the President’ budget of $1.48 billion for food safety. A robust food safety system and the continued implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act will help reduce food-borne illness that costs the U.S. healthcare system $88 billion annually. 

Again, thank you for reviewing these comments and please feel free to contact us 

for any additional information. 

[This statement was submitted by Mary Pat Raimondi MS, RD, Vice President, 

Strategic Policy and Partnerships Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF ACADEMYHEALTH

AcademyHealth is pleased to offer this testimony regarding funding for Federal 

agencies that support health services research and health data, including the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the National Center for Health 

Statistics (NCHS), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). AcademyHealth’s 

mission is to support research that leads to accessible, high value, high-quality 

healthcare; reduces disparities; and improves health. We represent the interests of 

more than 5,000 scientists and policy experts and 180 organizations that produce 

and use health services research to improve our Nation’s health and the performance of the healthcare and public health systems. For fiscal year 2015, we recommend funding levels of $375 million for AHRQ, $182 million for NCHS, and $32 

billion for NIH. 

The United States spent $2.8 trillion—17.2 percent of our economy—on healthcare 

in 2012. Finding new ways to get the most out of every healthcare dollar is critical 

to our Nation’s long-term fiscal health. Like any corporation making sure it is developing and providing high quality products, the Federal Government—as the Nation’s largest healthcare purchaser—has a responsibility to get the most value out 

of every taxpayer dollar it spends on Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and veterans’ and service members’ health. 

Health services research is our Nation’s R&D enterprise for health improvement. 

Just as medical research discovers cures for disease, health services research discovers cures for the health system (see Figure 1). This research diagnoses problems 

in healthcare and public health delivery and identifies solutions to improve outcomes for more people, at greater value. And while biomedical and clinical research 

discoveries can take years and even decades to reach patients, discoveries from 

health services research can be used now by patients, healthcare providers, public 

health professionals, hospitals, employers, and public and private payers to improve 

care today. 

Put plainly, health services research helps Americans get their money’s worth 

when it comes to healthcare. We need more of it, not less. Despite the positive impact health services research has had on the U.S. healthcare system, and the potential for future improvements in quality and value, the United States spends less 

than one cent of every healthcare dollar on this research; research that can help 

Americans spend their healthcare dollars more wisely and make more informed 

healthcare choices. 

AcademyHealth realizes the pressure Congress and the administration face to reduce the national debt. We respectfully ask that the subcommittee consider the 

value of health services research in achieving that goal, and to strengthen its capacity to address the pressing challenges America faces in providing access to highquality, efficient care. The following list summarizes AcademyHealth’s fiscal year 

2015 funding recommendations for agencies that support health services research 

and health data under the subcommittee’s jurisdiction. 
332 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

AHRQ is the only Federal research agency with the sole purpose of producing evidence to make healthcare safer; higher quality; more accessible, equitable, and affordable; and to ensure that the evidence is understood and used. AHRQ funds 

health services research and healthcare improvement programs in universities, 

medical centers, research institutions, hospitals, health clinics, and medical practices that are transforming people’s health in communities in every State around 

the Nation. The science funded by AHRQ provides consumers and their healthcare 

professionals with valuable evidence to make healthcare decisions. For example, 

medical societies use AHRQ-funded research to inform their recommendations for 

treatment of type 2 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis. These evidence-informed recommendations give physicians a foundation for describing what the best care looks 

like, so millions of patients living with these and other conditions may determine 

what the right care might be for them. 

AHRQ’s research also provides the basis for strategies that prevent medical errors, reduce hospital-acquired infections (HAI), and improve patient experiences and 

outcomes. For example, AHRQ’s evidence-based Comprehensive Unit-based Safety 

Program to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections (CUSP)—first applied on a 

large scale in 2003 across more than 100 ICUs across Michigan—saved more than 

1,500 lives and nearly $200 million in the program’s first 18 months. The protocols 

have since been expanded to hospitals in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and 

Puerto Rico to continue the national implementation of this approach for reducing 

HAIs. 

AcademyHealth joins the Friends of AHRQ—an alliance of health professional, research, consumer, and employer organizations that support the agency—in recommending a base discretionary funding level of $375 million for AHRQ in fiscal year 

2015. 

National Center for Health Statistics 

NCHS is the Nation’s principal health statistics agency. Housed within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it provides critical data on all aspects of our healthcare system through data cooperatives and surveys that serve as 

a gold standard for data collection around the world. AcademyHealth appreciates 

the subcommittee’s support of NCHS in recent years. Such efforts have allowed 

NCHS to reinstate data collection and quality control efforts, continue the collection 

of vital statistics, and modernize surveys to reflect changes in demography, geography, and health delivery. 

We join the Friends of NCHS—an alliance of health professional, research, consumer, industry, and employer organizations that support the agency—in recommending an overall funding level of $182 million for NCHS in fiscal year 2015. This 

funding level will support the agency’s core data collection activities, as well as new 

initiatives to enhance death data timeliness and security, restore survey expansions 

to better assess access to and utilization of healthcare services, and determine ‘‘what 

works’’ in the organization, financing, and delivery of public health services. 

National Institutes of Health 

NIH spends approximately $1 billion on health services research annually— 

roughly 3 percent of its entire budget—making it the largest Federal sponsor of 

health services research. We join the research community in seeking at least $32 

billion for NIH in fiscal year 2015. NIH has an important role in the Federal health 

services research continuum, and is well-positioned to ensure that discoveries from 

clinical trials are effectively translated into healthcare delivery. AcademyHealth 

supports efforts to help NIH foster greater coordination of its health services research investment among its institutes and across other Federal agencies to avoid 

duplication. 

AcademyHealth also recommends that the Clinical and Translational Science 

Awards (CTSA) through the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 

(NCATS) sustain investment in the full spectrum of translational research (T1-T4). 

The CTSA program enables innovative research teams to speed discovery and advance science aimed at improving our Nation’s health. The program encourages collaboration in solving complex health and research challenges and finding ways to 

turn their discoveries into practical solutions for patients. Finally, AcademyHealth 

supports continued investment by NIH and its many Institutes and Centers in dissemination and implementation research. This research helps us understand which 

approaches work to improve population health. 

In conclusion, the accomplishments of the field of health services research would 

not be possible without the leadership and support of this subcommittee. We hope 

the subcommittee gives strong consideration to our fiscal year 2015 funding rec-
333 

ommendations for the Federal agencies funding health services research and health 

data. If you have questions or comments about this testimony or wish to know more 

about health services research, please contact Dr. Lisa Simpson, President and CEO 

of AcademyHealth or lisa.simpson@academyhealth.org. 

FIGURE 1: THE HEALTH RESEARCH CONTINUUM 

These components of the health research continuum work in concert, and each plays an essential role— 

any one type of research on its own cannot effectively or appreciably improve health. Take heart disease as 

one example ... 

Basic research discovered the contributions of 

elevated blood pressure, 

elevated cholesterol, and 

tobacco use to heart disease. 

Clinical research determined which treatments 

were safe and effective 

to treat hypertension, 

hypercholesterolemia, tobacco addiction, and to 

prevent and treat heart 

disease, in general. 

Population-based research identified strategies to reduce the risks 

of heart disease in communities through nonmedical interventions, 

such as reduction of 

trans fats in food and 

tobacco control measures to reduce smoking. 

Health services research 

determined how to best 

deploy these discoveries 

to achieve the best 

health outcomes. This 

research helped identify 

who had the least access, what barriers existed, and how to mitigate them. This research 

also led to the development of quality measures that are now used 

to report on the quality 

of cardiac care. 

Source: AHRQ: 15 Years of Transforming Care and Improving Health, AcademyHealth, Jan. 2014. Available at: http://academyhealth.org/ 

files/AHRQReport2014.pdf. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Lisa Simpson, President & CEO, 

AcademyHealth.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AD HOC GROUP FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH

The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research is a coalition of patient and voluntary 

health groups, medical and scientific societies, academic and research organizations, 

and industry. We appreciate the opportunity to submit this statement in support of 

enhancing the Federal investment in biomedical, behavioral, social, and populationbased research conducted and supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 included a welcome and much needed increase for the NIH. However, this increase did not restore all of the funds cut 

by sequestration in fiscal year 2013 or the purchasing power NIH has lost over the 

past decade due to inflation. We hope fiscal year 2014 represents a first step toward 

restoring our Nation’s preeminence in medical research. 

The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research recommends that NIH receive at least 

$32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase in our 

Nation’s investment in medical research. The Ad Hoc Group also urges Congress 

and the Administration to work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and 

the continued cuts to medical research that squander invaluable scientific opportunities, discourage young scientists, threaten medical progress and continued improvements in our Nation’s health, and jeopardize our economic future. 

The Ad Hoc Group is deeply grateful to the Subcommittee for its long-standing 

and bipartisan leadership in support of NIH. We continue to believe that science 

and innovation are essential if we are to continue to improve our Nation’s health, 

sustain our leadership in medical research, and remain competitive in today’s global 

information and innovation-based economy. 

NIH: A Public-Private Partnership to Save Lives and Provide Hope 

The partnership between NIH and America’s scientists, medical schools, teaching 

hospitals, universities, and research institutions is a unique and highly-productive 

relationship, leveraging the full strength of our Nation’s research enterprise to foster discovery, improve our understanding of the underlying cause of disease, and develop the next generation of medical advancements. Approximately 84 percent of the 
334 

NIH’s budget goes to more than 300,000 research positions at over 2,500 universities and research institutions located in every state. 

The Federal Government has an irreplaceable role in supporting medical research. 

No other public, corporate or charitable entity is willing or able to provide the broad 

and sustained funding for the cutting edge research necessary to yield new innovations and technologies of the future. 

Research funded by NIH has contributed to nearly every medical treatment, diagnostic tool, and medical device developed in modern history, from a new treatment 

for cystic fibrosis to an awareness campaign that resulted in a dramatic decrease 

in the number of infants lost to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome to a new vaccine 

to prevent cervical cancer. We are all enjoying longer, healthier lives thanks to the 

Federal government’s wise investment in this lifesaving agency. Examples of recent 

clinical breakthroughs made by NIH-supported scientists include: 

—NIH-funded researchers have discovered a way to harness the body’s own immune system to fight cancer. The promising results in both adults and children 

with leukemia lead Science Magazine to name Cancer Immunotherapy as the 

2013 Breakthrough of the Year for all of science; 

—NIH scientists have developed new treatments for hepatitis C—the leading reason for liver transplants in the U.S.—that have shortened treatment times and 

produced cures in 85 to 95 percent of patients, even those with advanced disease; 

—NIH-funded researchers found that certain molecules in urine can provide an 

early sign of kidney transplant rejection, a test that allows doctors to act earlier 

to protect transplanted kidneys; 

—An NIH-supported clinical trial demonstrated that an intensive early behavioral 

intervention delivered before the age of 2 years can improve symptoms as well 

as normalize brain activity in some children with autism; and 

—NIH-funded scientists developed an innovative method to quickly identify antibiotics that can treat multidrug-resistant bacteria—and reveal how these bacteria-killing medications work. 

For patients and their families, NIH is the ‘‘National Institutes of Hope.’’ 

NIH is the world’s premier supporter of merit-reviewed, investigator-initiated 

basic research. This fundamental understanding of how disease works and insight 

into the cellular, molecular, and genetic processes underlying life itself, including 

the impact of social environment on these processes, underpin our ability to conquer 

devastating illnesses. The application of the results of basic research to the detection, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease is the ultimate goal of medical 

research. Ensuring a steady pipeline of basic research discoveries while also supporting the translational efforts absolutely necessary to bring the promise of this 

knowledge to fruition requires a sustained investment in NIH. 

The research supported by NIH drives not only medical progress but also local 

and national economic activity, creating skilled, high-paying jobs and fostering new 

products and industries. According to a report released by United for Medical Research, a coalition of scientific advocates, institutions and industries, in fiscal year 

2011, NIH-funded research supported an estimated 432,000 jobs all across the 

United States, enabled 13 states to experience job growth of more than 10,000 jobs, 

and generated more than $62 billion in new economic activity. 

Stagnant Funding Threatens Scientific Momentum 

Despite the increase provided in the current year, over the past decade NIH has 

lost more than 22 percent of its budget after inflation, significantly impacting the 

Nation’s ability to sustain the scientific momentum that has contributed so greatly 

to our Nation’s health and our economic vitality. The leadership and staff at NIH 

and its Institutes and Centers has engaged patient groups, scientific societies, and 

research institutions to identify emerging research opportunities and urgent health 

needs, and has worked resolutely to prioritize precious Federal dollars to those 

areas demonstrating the greatest promise. But a continued erosion of our national 

commitment to medical research threatens our ability to support a medical research 

enterprise that is capable of taking full advantage of existing and emerging scientific opportunities. 

Perhaps one of the greatest concerns is the obstacle these continued cuts will 

present to the next generation of scientists, who will see training funds slashed and 

the possibility of sustaining a career in research diminished. NIH plays a significant 

role in supporting the next generation of innovators, the young and talented scientists and physicians who will be responsible for the breakthroughs of tomorrow. 

The challenges of maintaining a cadre of physician-scientists to facilitate translation of basic research to human medicine, ensuring a biomedical workforce that 

reflects the racial and gender diversity of our citizenry, and maximizing our Nation’s 
335 

human capital to solve our most pressing health problems will only be addressed 

through continued support of NIH. 

NIH is Critical to U.S. Competitiveness 

Our country still has the most robust medical research capacity in the world, but 

that capacity simply cannot weather repeated blows such as persistent below-inflation funding levels and cuts of sequestration, which jeopardize our competitive edge 

in an increasingly innovation-based global marketplace. 

Other countries have recognized the critical role that biomedical science plays in 

innovation and economic growth and have significantly increased their investment 

in biomedical science. Between 1999 and 2009, Asia’s share (including China, India, 

Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand) of worldwide research and development (R&D) expenditures grew from 24 percent to 32 percent, 

while U.S. R&D expenditures declined from 38 percent to 31 percent. While the U.S. 

currently leads the world in R&D spending, China’s increasing investment in R&D 

is projected to close the gap and surpass the U.S. in total R&D spending by about 

2022. The European Commission also has recently urged its member Nations to increase their investment in research substantially, recommending budgets of 80 billion Euro (equivalent to $108 billion) from 2014 to 2020, a 40 percent increase over 

the previous 7-year period. 

This shift in funding raises the concern that talented medical researchers from 

all over the world, who once flocked to the U.S. for training and stayed to contribute 

to our innovation-driven economy, are now returning to better opportunities in their 

home countries. We cannot afford to lose that intellectual capacity, much less the 

jobs and industries fueled by medical research. The U.S. has been the global leader 

in medical research because of Congress’s bipartisan recognition of NIH’s critical 

role. To maintain our dominance, we must reaffirm this commitment to provide NIH 

the funds needed to maintain our competitive edge. 

NIH: An Answer to Challenging Times 

The Ad Hoc Group’s members recognize the tremendous challenges facing our Nation’s economy and acknowledge the difficult decisions that must be made to restore 

our country’s fiscal health. Nevertheless, we believe strongly that NIH is an essential part of the solution to the Nation’s economic restoration. Strengthening our 

commitment to medical research, through robust funding of the NIH, is a critical 

element in ensuring the health and well-being of the American people and our economy. 

Therefore, the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research recommends that NIH receive 

at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase 

in our Nation’s investment in medical research. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AIDS ALLIANCE FOR WOMEN, INFANTS, CHILDREN, 

YOUTH & FAMILIES

Dear Chairman Harkin Ranking Moran, and Members of the Subcommittee: AIDS 

Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & Families was founded in 1994 to 

help respond to the unique concerns of HIV-positive and at-risk women, infants, 

children, youth, and families. AIDS Alliance conducts policy research, education, 

and advocacy on a broad range of HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and research issues. 

We are pleased to offer written testimony for the record in opposition of the fiscal 

year 2015 budget proposal consolidating Ryan White Part D funding into Part C and 

in support of maintaining Part D of the Ryan White Program as part of the fiscal 

year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations measure. This testimony also has the support of the Elizabeth Glaser 

Pediatric AIDS Foundation. 

Ryan White Part D Funding Request 

Sufficient funding of the Ryan White Program is necessary to provide quality care 

for individuals living with HIV/AIDS. We thank the Subcommittee for its continuous 

support of Ryan White Part D Programs, providing $75 million to the program in 

fiscal year 2014. While the AIDS Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & 

Families understands that these are difficult economic times, we are requesting the 

Subcommittee to maintain its commitment to the Ryan White Part D program and 

restore its funding eliminated in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal 

and increase Ryan White Part D funding by $9.9 million in fiscal year 2015. 
336 

Ryan White Part D Background and History 

Over concerns with the increase in the number of pediatric AIDS cases, Congress first acted to address pediatric cases in 1987 by providing $5 million for the Pediatric AIDS Demonstration Projects in the fiscal year 1988 budget. Those demonstration projects became part of the Ryan White CARE Act of 1990 which today is 

known as Ryan White Part D and have served thousands of women, infants, children, youth and families. Since the program’s inception in 1988, Part D programs 

have been and continue to be the entry point into medical care for women and youth 

and, in many communities or regions, Part D programs are the only perinatal clinical service available to serve HIV-positive pregnant women and youth when payments for such services are unavailable from other sources. Ryan White Part D programs have been extremely effective in bringing the most vulnerable populations 

into and retained in care and is the lifeline for women, infants, children and youth 

living with HIV/AIDS. The Part D programs are instrumental in preventing motherto-child transmission of HIV and for ensuring that women, including HIV- positive 

pregnant women, HIV exposed infants, children and youth have access to quality 

HIV care. The program is built on a foundation of combining medical care and essential support services that are coordinated, comprehensive, and culturally and linguistically competent. This model of care addresses the healthcare needs of the most 

vulnerable populations living with HIV/AIDS in order to achieve optimal health outcomes. In 2012, Part D provided funding to 114 community-based organizations, academic medical centers and hospitals, federally qualified health centers, and health 

departments in 39 States and Puerto Rico. These federally, directly-funded grantees 

provide HIV primary care, specialty and subspecialty care, oral health services, 

treatment adherence monitoring and education services pertaining to opportunities 

to participate in HIV/AIDS-related clinical research. These grantees also provide 

support services which include case management (medical, non-medical, and familycentered); referrals for inpatient hospital services; treatment for substance use, and 

mental health services. Part D grantees also receive assistance from other parts of 

the Ryan White Program that help support HIV testing and linkage to care services; 

provide access to medication; additional medical care, such as dental services; and 

key support services, such as case management and transportation, which all are 

essential components of the highly effective Ryan White HIV care model. This model 

has continuously provided comprehensive quality healthcare delivery systems that 

have been responsive to women, infants, children, youth and families for two decades. 

A Response to Women, Infants, Children, and Youth 

The Ryan White Program has been enormously successful in meeting its mission 

to provide life-extending care and services. Yet, even though we have made significant progress in decreasing HIV-related morbidity and mortality, much work remains to be done. While accounting for less that 6 percent of Ryan White direct care 

dollars (minus ADAP and Part F), Ryan White Part D programs have been extremely effective in bringing our most vulnerable populations into care and developing medical care and support services especially designed to reach women, children, youth, and families. Part D funded programs played a leading role in reducing 

mother-to-child transmission of HIV-from as many as 2,000 babies born HIV positive in 1990 to roughly 200 cases in 2010 through aggressive efforts to reach out 

to pregnant women. Appropriate funding is critical to maintain and improve upon 

this success, as there are still approximately 8,000 HIV-positive women giving birth 

every year in the United States that need counseling, services and support to prevent pediatric HIV Infections. According to the CDC, youth account for 39 percent 

of all new HIV infections in the U.S. As of 2010, one in four new HIV infections 

occur among young people ages 13–24. Most new HIV infections in youth (about 70 

percent) occur in gay and bisexual males, most of whom are African Americans. Of 

the new HIV infections among youth, 2,100 are among young women; two-thirds of 

these are among young African American women. Ryan White Part D programs are 

the entry point into medical care for many HIV positive youth and leads the Nation’s effort in recruiting and retaining HIV positive youth to comprehensive medical 

care and support services. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, more than 37 percent of women receiving medical care in Ryan White Programs do so through Part D. Additionally, Part D provides medical and supportive 

services to a large number of women over 50 who are heading into their senior years 

as HIV survivors which is a testament to the high standard of care provided to Ryan 

White Part D programs. Support and care through the Ryan White Part D program 

was and continues to be funding of last resort for the most vulnerable women and 

children, who often have fallen through the cracks of other public health safety nets. 
337 

Full implementation of the Affordable Care Act with continuation of the Ryan White 

Program will dramatically improve health access and outcomes for many more 

women, infants, children, and youth living with HIV disease. 

Proposed Consolidation 

The medical and supportive services provided by Ryan White Part D are unique 

and are not currently being provided by other parts of the Ryan White Program, 

including Ryan White Part C. These services are uniquely tailored to address the 

needs of women, including HIV positive pregnant women, HIV exposed infants, children and youth living with HIV/AIDS. The proposed consolidation of Part D funding 

into Part C in the Federal budget would eliminate a strong safety net for our most 

vulnerable populations and weaken the systems of care Part D programs have created and invested in for more than 25 years. Furthermore, the loss of Part D funds 

in some community areas would profoundly impact access to comprehensive HIV 

care and treatment for women, infants, children and youth. Many of the population 

served by Part D will be lost or never enter into care. We will not make progress 

in ending HIV/AIDS in this country without supporting all of the Parts of Ryan 

White. 

Conclusion 

These are difficult economic times, and we recognize the considerable fiscal constraints Congress faces in allocating limited Federal dollars as well as the need to 

reduce administrative burdens associated with the overall operational aspects of 

Ryan White programs. However, it is unclear how the proposed consolidation of Part 

D funding into Part C of the program will be implemented to ensure the continuation of the delivery of life-saving HIV/AIDS care and treatment to the most vulnerable populations without destabilizing existing models of care created to address the 

unique needs of these populations. Without the Ryan White Part D program, many 

of these medically-underserved women, infants, children and youth would not receive the vital primary care and support services traditionally provided to them. 

The AIDS Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & Families respectfully 

requests that the Subcommittee consider this written testimony for the record as 

you develop your fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill. Thank you. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Ivy Turnbull, Deputy Executive Director, 

AIDS Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & Families.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AIDS INSTITUTE

Dear Chairman Harkin and Members of the Subcommittee: The AIDS Institute, 

a national public policy, research, advocacy, and education organization, is pleased 

to offer comments in support of critical HIV/AIDS and hepatitis programs as part 

of the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related 

Agencies appropriation measure. We thank you for supporting these programs over 

the years, and hope you will do your best to adequately fund them in the future 

in order to provide for and protect the health of many Americans. 

HIV/AIDS remains one of the world’s worst health pandemics. According to the 

CDC, in the U.S. over 636,000 people have died of AIDS and there are 50,000 new 

infections each year. A record 1.1 million people in the U.S. are living with HIV. 

Persons of minority races and ethnicities are disproportionately affected. African 

Americans, who make up just 12 percent of the population, account for 44 percent 

of new infections. HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects low income people; nearly 90 

percent of Ryan White Program clients have a household income of less than 200 

percent of the Federal Poverty Level. 

The U.S. government has played a leading role in fighting HIV/AIDS, both here 

and abroad. The vast majority of the discretionary programs supporting domestic 

HIV/AIDS efforts are funded through this Subcommittee. We are keenly aware of 

current budget constraints and competing interests for limited dollars, but programs 

that prevent and treat HIV are inherently in the Federal interest as they protect 

the public health against a highly infectious virus. If not adequately funded, there 

will certainly be increased infections, more deaths, and higher health costs. 

With the advent of antiretroviral medicines, HIV has turned from a near certain 

death sentence to a treatable chronic disease if people have access to consistent and 

affordable healthcare and medications. Through prevention, care and treatment, and 

research we now have the ability to actually end AIDS. In 2011, a ground-breaking 

clinical trial (HPTN 052)—named the scientific breakthrough of the year by Science 

magazine—found that HIV treatment not only saves the lives of people with HIV, 

but also reduces HIV transmission by more than 96 percent—proving that HIV 
338 

treatment is also HIV prevention. In order to realize these benefits, people with HIV 

must be diagnosed through testing, and linked to and retained in care and treatment. 

We also have a National HIV/AIDS Strategy that sets clear goals and priorities, 

and brings the Federal agencies addressing HIV together to ensure resources are 

well coordinated. Over the past 30 years we have made great progress in the fight 

against HIV/AIDS and are truly at a tipping point. However, without stable and 

adequate funding that progress is in jeopardy, as well as the lives of millions who 

are or will be infected. 

The Ryan White Program 

The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program provides some level of medical care, drug 

treatment, and support services to approximately 554,000 low-income, uninsured, 

and underinsured individuals with HIV/AIDS. With people living longer and continued new diagnoses, the demands on the program continue to grow and many needs 

remain unmet. According to the CDC, only 37 percent of people living with HIV in 

the U.S. are retained in HIV care, only 33 percent have been prescribed 

antiretroviral treatment, and only 25 percent are virally suppressed. We have a long 

way to go before we can realize the dream of an AIDS-free generation. With continued funding we can improve these numbers and health outcomes. 

The AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), one component of the Ryan White 

Program, provides States with funds to pay for medications for over 200,000 people. 

Over the last couple of years, as more infections were identified due to increased 

HIV testing and people lost their jobs and health insurance, demand on the program 

far outpaced its budget. This led to ADAP wait lists of 9,300 people. We are thankful that President Obama and Congress allocated additional funds, which when 

combined with assistance from pharmaceutical companies has virtually eliminated 

the wait list. With inadequate funding that could all change. 

We urge you to ensure that ADAP and the rest of the Ryan White Program receive adequate funding to keep up with the growing demand. According to NASTAD, 

enrollment in ADAP increased by 8 percent between fiscal year 2012 and fiscal year 

2013, and utilization reached its highest level ever. With this increased demand for 

medications comes a corresponding increase in medical care and support services 

provided by all other parts of the program. 

As the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is implemented, there will be expanded opportunities for healthcare coverage for some Ryan White clients. While it will result 

in some cost shifting for medications and primary care, it will never be a substitute 

for the Ryan White Program. Over 70 percent of Ryan White Program clients today 

have some sort of insurance coverage, mostly through traditional Medicaid and 

Medicare. Their coverage will not change with health reform; the Ryan White Program will be needed as it is today. The Medicaid expansion is a State option and 

not all States are moving forward with it at this time. As ACA is implemented, benefits will differ from State to State and there will be many gaps that will have to 

be filled by the Ryan White Program. Plans will not offer all of the comprehensive 

essential support services that the Program does, such as case management, transportation, and nutritional services, that are needed to ensure retention in medical 

care and adherence to drug treatment. This approach of coordinated, comprehensive, 

and culturally competent care leads to better health outcomes. Therefore, the Ryan 

White Program, while it may need to change in the future, must continue and must 

be adequately funded. 

The AIDS Institute urges the Committee to reject the President’s budget proposal 

to eliminate dedicated funding for Part D of the Ryan White Program and transfer 

it to Part C. Part D serves women, infants, children, and youth with HIV/AIDS and 

is a well-established system of care that has worked since 1988 in nearly eliminating perinatal infection and providing medical care and family-centered support 

that helps ensure these vulnerable populations remain in care and adherent to their 

medications. With youth, particularly black gay youth, being the only population experiencing an increase in HIV incidence, we cannot afford to dramatically alter the 

only Ryan White Program part dedicated to their care. While changes to the structure of the Ryan White Program might be needed in the future, it should not be 

done through the appropriations process and not without community input. 

CDC HIV Prevention 

As a Nation, we must do more to prevent new infections, but we only allocate 3 

percent of our HIV/AIDS spending towards prevention. All the care and treatments 

costs would be saved if we did not have the infections in the first place. Preventing 

just one infection would save $402,000 in future lifetime medical costs. Preventing 
339 

all the new 50,000 cases in just 1 year would translate into an astounding $20 billion saved in lifetime medical costs. 

With more people living with HIV than ever before, there are greater chances of 

HIV transmission. The CDC and its grantees have been doing their best with limited resources to keep the number of infections stable, but that is not good enough. 

It is focusing resources on those populations and communities most impacted by 

HIV and investing in those programs that will prevent the most number of infections. This includes young black gay men, who experienced a 38 percent increase 

in new infections from 2008–2010 and is a population which merits additional attention and resources 

With over 200,000 people living with HIV who are unaware of their infection, the 

CDC is also focused on increased testing programs. Testing people early and linking 

them to care and treatment is critical not only for their own health outcomes but 

also in preventing new infections. 

The CDC estimates that in 2010, 26 percent of all new HIV infections occurred 

among youth ages 13 to 24. Nearly 75 percent of those infections were among young 

gay men. Clearly, we must do a better job of educating the youth of our Nation, including gay youth, about HIV. Adequately funding the HIV Division of Adolescent 

and School Health (DASH) will help address this critical need. 

CDC Viral Hepatitis Prevention 

Given that more than 5.3 million people in the U.S. are living with hepatitis B 

and/or C and 65–75 percent of them are undiagnosed, funding for the Hepatitis Prevention Division must be increased. With a 25 percent mortality rate among affected 

baby boomers—those born between 1945 and 1965—and with prevalence rates two 

times higher than whites for African Americans in that birth cohort, we cannot afford to inadequately fund this program. The current amount of only $29 million is 

far too small to conduct testing, surveillance, and other hepatitis prevention and 

educational programs for the entire country. Currently there is no national surveillance system to track hepatitis infections and testing programs are inadequate; 

therefore the majority of the millions affected will never become aware of their disease until they present with liver cancer or cirrhosis. Increased funding for testing 

and surveillance could bring more people into care and treatment allowing them the 

chance to receive new and more effective treatments that actually can result in curing their hepatitis. 

HIV/AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

While we have made great strides in the area of HIV/AIDS, there is still a long 

way to go. Continued research at the NIH is necessary to learn more about the disease and to develop new treatments and prevention tools. Recent breakthroughs 

have provided functional cures in a few instances in infants and adults. Work also 

continues on vaccine research as scientists learn more about the disease, and combined with cure research it may be possible to see the end of AIDS if funding is 

maintained. 

Again, we thank you for your continued support of these programs critical to so 

many individuals and communities nationwide. We have made great progress, but 

we are still far from achieving our goal of an AIDS-free generation. We now have 

the tools, but we need continued leadership and the necessary resources to realize 

our goal. Thank you. 

[This statement was submitted by Carl E Schmid II, Deputy Executive Director, 

The AIDS Institute.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AIDS UNITED

I am Ronald Johnson, Vice President of Policy and Advocacy at AIDS United writing in reference to HIV funding at the Department of Health and Human Services, 

on behalf of the 32 organizational members of our Public Policy Committee and our 

over 90 programmatic directly funded organizational grantees all of whom are many 

of the leading AIDS Service Organizations across the Nation. AIDS United is a national organization that seeks to end the AIDS epidemic in the United States by 

combining private-sector fundraising, philanthropy, coalition building, public policy 

expertise, and advocacy—as well as a network of passionate local and State partners—to respond effectively and efficiently to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the communities most impacted by the epidemic. Through its unique Public/Private Partnerships, Public Policy Committee and targeted special grant-making initiatives, AIDS 

United and its partners reach over 300 grassroots organizations. These organizations provide HIV prevention, care, treatment, and support services to underserved 
340 

individuals and populations most impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic including 

communities of color, women and gay and bisexual men and men who have sex with 

men (MSM) as well as education and training to providers of treatment services. 

It is our request that you increase funding for the Department of Health and 

Human Services by $7.361 billion in fiscal year 2015. This request includes an increase of $931 million over fiscal year 2014 throughout the detailed request listed 

below. 

AIDS United understands the fiscal environment that the country is wrestling 

with right now is austere. However, we know that investment in prevention and retention in HIV care are critical in lowering the number of new infections in the domestic HIV epidemic. As competing budget priorities are weighed please keep in 

mind that HIV is 100 percent preventable, if we as a Nation muster the political 

will and funding to address domestic HIV on level that meets the needs of the epidemic. The increased funding for the domestic HIV/AIDS portfolio in fiscal year 

2015 will help reach the National HIV/AIDS Strategy (NHAS). We look forward to 

working with you and your Administration in the coming year on the fiscal year 

2015 budget. 

The Ryan White Program 

Early and reliable access to HIV care and treatment is cost effective and helps 

patients with HIV live healthy and productive lives. The needs of the Ryan White 

Program (RWP) continue to grow, even with the beginning of the implementation 

of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the integration of the RWP there may still 

be many needs unmet. In order to improve the continuum of care and progress toward an AIDS-free generation, continued, robust funding for all parts of the Ryan 

White Program in fiscal year 2015 will be necessary. The Ryan White Program 

works in conjunction with Medicaid, Medicare and now the Affordable Care Act, and 

as a result we believe more people living with HIV will be able to receive and remain in care and on treatment. 

It will take some time for enrollment to occur and assess the impact of the ACA 

on the Ryan White Program. In the meantime, we urge you to fund the Ryan White 

Program at a total of $2.44 billion in fiscal year 2015, an increase of $123 million 

over fiscal year 2014, distributed in the following manner: Part A: $687 million, Part 

B (Care): $428 million, Part B (ADAP): $943 million, Part C: $225 million, Part D: 

$85 million, Part F/AETC: $35 million, Part F/Dental $15 million. 

AIDS United disagrees with the President’s budget request and does not support 

the consolidation of Part D with Part C. We believe it should only be considered 

as part of a larger authorization process after key data questions about the value 

of consolidation are answered. 

HIV Prevention 

CDC HIV Prevention and Surveillance 

There still are 50,000 new infections annually and about 1 in 6 people living with 

HIV do not know they have the virus. Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex 

with men (MSM) account for 66 percent of all new HIV infections. Between 2008 

and 2010, infections among MSM increased by 12 percent, and among MSM aged 

13–24 years by 22 percent. Black and Latino MSM, and especially those who are 

young continue to be disproportionately affected. While we are making progress in 

decreasing new infections among women, black women accounted for 64 percent of 

women infected in 2010. Black and Hispanic women ages 13–24 accounted for 82 

percent of young women living with HIV in 2010 even though together they represent only about 30 percent of women these ages. 

Investing in HIV prevention today translates into less spending in the future on 

care and treatment. Most CDC funding is distributed to the primary implementers 

of prevention activities—State and local public health departments and community 

based organizations. Increased investments are critical to expand comprehensive 

prevention programs and to successfully reach individuals at highest risk for infection. Early detection of HIV, linkage and retention in care, and adherence to treatment will suppress individual and community viral loads. Adequate resources are 

necessary to carry out increased HIV testing programs, targeted interventions, public education campaigns, and surveillance activities needed to track new infections 

andCD4 and viral load reporting. 

For fiscal year 2015, we request an increase of $55 million over fiscal year 2014 

for a total of $812.7 million for the CDC Division of HIV prevention and surveillance 

activities. 
341 

Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH) 

One-third of all new HIV infections are among young people under the age of 29, 

the largest share of any age group. DASH is the only federally funded adolescent 

health program in our Nation’s schools, helping education agencies provide school 

districts and individual schools with the tools to implement high-quality, effective, 

and sustainable programs to reduce HIV and other STD infections in adolescents. 

Increased funding would help expand this vital infrastructure beyond the currently 

funded 36 State or local education agencies. 

We request that the CDC Division of Adolescent and School Health receive a total 

of $50 million, an increase of $21 million over fiscal year 2014 final funding. This 

request includes $3 million in evaluation transfer funds. 

CDC STD Prevention 

Given the strong link between HIV and other STDs, including high rates of coinfection among certain populations, an increased investment in STD programs is 

an essential component of HIV prevention. Investments in STD prevention and 

treatment further the National HIV/AIDS Strategy’s goal of reducing new infections. 

We request an increase of $54 million for a total of $211 million for the CDC’s 

Division of STD Prevention in fiscal year 2015. 

CDC Viral Hepatitis Prevention 

CDC estimates that up to 5.3 million people are living with hepatitis B (HBV) 

and/or hepatitis C (HCV) in the U.S., and as many as 75 percent are not aware of 

their infection. In 2010 alone, 35,000 Americans were newly infected with HBV and 

17,000 with HCV. It is estimated that 10 percent of people living with HIV are coinfected with hepatitis B and 25 percent are co-infected with hepatitis C. 

We request an increase of $31 million above the fiscal year 2014 level, for a total 

of $60 million for the CDC’s Division of Viral Hepatitis. 

Access to Sterile Syringes 

About 1 of 12 new infections (8.6 percent) of HIV in 2011 was related to injection 

drug use, a 28 percent decrease from 2008. One factor leading to this reduction has 

been syringe exchange programs. Numerous studies have shown syringe exchange 

programs can be an evidence-based and cost-effective means to lower HIV and hepatitis infections, reduce the use of illegal drugs and help connect people to medical 

treatment, including substance abuse treatment. In a May 2012 letter, the President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS also supported ending the Federal ban on syringe exchange and noted that doing so is supported by public health, HIV/AIDS, 

viral hepatitis and harm reduction communities as well. 

We urge you to add language to end the ban on the use of Federal funds for syringe exchange programs and to maintain language that allows the use of local 

funds for syringe exchange programs in the District of Columbia. 

Abstinence-only 

We also request that you eliminate the funding for failed abstinence-only-untilmarriage programs. 

HIV/AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

Research continues until better, more effective and affordable prevention and 

treatment regimens—and eventually a cure—are developed and universally available. For the U.S. to maintain its position as the global leader in HIV/AIDS research 

for the 33 million people globally of whom 1.1 million are Americans living with 

HIV, we must invest adequate resources in the NIH. NIH AIDS research has produced startling advances, including the HPTN 052 study of the prevention effects 

of treatment that was named Breakthrough of the Year by Science magazine, improved treatment programming and the first partially effective HIV vaccine, continued AIDS research funding is essential. 

In line with the Trans-NIH AIDS Research By-Pass Budget Estimate for fiscal 

year 2013, please include $3.6 billion for HIV research at the NIH, an increase of 

$610 million over fiscal year 2014. 

Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative 

HIV/AIDS continues to impact communities of color at an alarming rate. According to the CDC, African Americans, more than any other racial/ethnic group, continue to bear the greatest burden of HIV in the U.S. While blacks represent approximately 12 percent of the total population, they accounted for 44 percent of all new 

HIV infections in 2010. Hispanics represent approximately 16 percent of the total 

population, but accounted for 21 percent of all new HIV infections. In the Asian Pa-
342 

cific Islander, and Native American communities the numbers of HIV infection are 

just as startling. 

We request that the MAI be funded at $610 million in fiscal year 2015. We note 

that most of these funds are contained within the budgets of the programs described 

above. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ALZHEIMER’S ASSOCIATION

The Alzheimer’s Association appreciates the opportunity to comment on the fiscal 

year 2015 appropriations for Alzheimer’s disease research, education, outreach and 

support at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

Founded in 1980, the Alzheimer’s Association is the world’s leading voluntary 

health organization in Alzheimer’s care, support and research. Our mission is to 

eliminate Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the 

risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health. As the world’s largest nonprofit funder of Alzheimer’s research, the Association is committed to accelerating 

progress of new treatments, preventions and, ultimately, a cure. Through our funded projects and partnerships, we have been part of every major research advancement over the past 30 years. Likewise, the Association works to enhance care and 

provide support for all those affected by Alzheimer’s and reaches millions of people 

affected by Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. 

Alzheimer’s Impact on the American People and the Economy 

In addition to the human suffering caused by the disease, Alzheimer’s is creating 

an enormous strain on the healthcare system, families and the Federal budget. Alzheimer’s is a progressive brain disorder that damages and eventually destroys brain 

cells, leading to a loss of memory, thinking and other brain functions. Ultimately, 

Alzheimer’s is fatal. Currently, Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in 

the United States and the only one of the top ten without a means to prevent, cure 

or slow its progression. Over five million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, 

with 200,000 under the age of 65. 

A Federal commitment can lower costs and improve health outcomes for people 

living with Alzheimer’s today and in the future. By making Alzheimer’s a national 

priority, we can create the same successes that we have been able to achieve in 

other diseases that have been prioritized by the Federal Government. Leadership 

from the Federal Government has helped to lower the number of deaths from other 

major diseases like heart disease, HIV/AIDS, many cancers, heart disease and 

stroke. While those deaths have declined, deaths from Alzheimer’s have increased 

68 percent between 2000 and 2010. 

Alzheimer’s is the most expensive disease in America. In fact, an NIH-funded 

study in the New England Journal of Medicine confirmed that Alzheimer’s is the 

most costly disease in America, with costs set to skyrocket at unprecedented rates. 

If nothing is done, as many as 16 million Americans will have Alzheimer’s disease 

by 2050 and costs will exceed $1.2 trillion (not adjusted for inflation), creating an 

enormous strain on the healthcare system, families and the Federal budget. The expense involved in caring for those with Alzheimer’s is not just a long-term problem. 

As the current generation of baby boomers age, near-term costs for caring for those 

with Alzheimer’s will balloon, as Medicare and Medicaid will cover more than twothirds of the costs for their care. 

Due to these projected increases, the graying of America threatens the bankrupting of America. Caring for people with Alzheimer’s will cost all payers—Medicare, Medicaid, individuals, private insurance and HMOs—$20 trillion over the next 

40 years, enough to pay off the national debt and still send a $10,000 check to every 

man, woman and child in America. In 2014, America will spend an estimated $214 

billion in direct costs for those with Alzheimer’s, including $150 billion in costs to 

Medicare and Medicaid. Average per person Medicare costs for those with Alzheimer’s and other dementias are three times higher than those without these conditions. Average per senior Medicaid spending is 19 times higher. 

A primary reason for these costs is that Alzheimer’s makes treating other diseases 

more expensive, as most individuals with Alzheimer’s have one or more co-morbidity 

that complicate the management of the condition(s) and increase costs. For example, 

a senior with diabetes and Alzheimer’s costs Medicare 81 percent more than a senior who only has diabetes. Nearly 30 percent of people with Alzheimer’s or another 

dementia who have Medicare also have Medicaid coverage, compared with 11 percent of individuals without Alzheimer’s or dementia. Alzheimer’s disease is also ex-
343 

tremely prevalent in nursing homes, where 64 percent of Medicare residents live 

with the disease. 

With Alzheimer’s, it is not just those with the disease who suffer—it is also their 

caregivers and families. In 2013, 15.5 million family members and friends provided 

unpaid care valued at over $220 billion. Caring for a person with Alzheimer’s takes 

longer, lasts longer, is more personal and intrusive, and takes a heavy toll on the 

health of the caregivers themselves. More than 60 percent of Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers rate the emotional stress of caregiving as high or very high, with 

one-third reporting symptoms of depression. Caregiving may also have a negative 

impact on health, employment, income and family finances. Due to the physical and 

emotional toll of caregiving on their own health, Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers had $9.3 billion in additional health costs in 2013. 

Changing the Trajectory of Alzheimer’s 

Until recently, there was no Federal Government strategy to address this looming 

crisis. In 2010, thanks to bipartisan support in Congress, the National Alzheimer’s 

Project Act (NAPA) (Public Law 111–375) passed unanimously, requiring the creation of an annually-updated strategic National Alzheimer’s Plan (Plan) to help 

those with the disease and their families today and to change the trajectory of the 

disease for the future. The Plan is required to include an evaluation of all federallyfunded efforts in Alzheimer’s research, care and services—along with their outcomes. In addition, the Plan must outline priority actions to reduce the financial impact of Alzheimer’s on Federal programs and on families; improve health outcomes 

for all Americans living with Alzheimer’s; and improve the prevention, diagnosis, 

treatment, care, institutional-, home-, and community-based Alzheimer’s programs 

for individuals with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers. NAPA will allow Congress to 

assess whether the Nation is meeting the challenges of this disease for families, 

communities and the economy. Through its annual review process, NAPA has enabled, for the first time, Congress and the American people to answer this simple 

question: Did we make satisfactory progress this past year in the fight against Alzheimer’s? 

As mandated by NAPA, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in collaboration with the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care and Services, has 

developed the first-ever National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease in May of 

2012 and subsequently released the 2014 Update to the National Plan to Address 

Alzheimer’s Disease this past April. The Advisory Council, composed of both Federal 

members and expert non-Federal members, is an integral part of the planning process as it advises the Secretary in developing and evaluating the annual Plan, makes 

recommendations to the Secretary and Congress, and assists in coordinating the 

work of Federal agencies involved in Alzheimer’s research, care, and services. 

Having a plan with measurable outcomes is important. But unless there are resources to implement the plan and the will to abide by it, we cannot hope to make 

adequate progress. If we are going to succeed in the fight against Alzheimer’s, Congress must provide the resources the scientists need. Understanding this and following the recommendation of scientists at NIH, Congress passed the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act of 2014 (Public Law 113–76) which included a $100 million increase for Alzheimer’s research. These funds are a critically needed down payment 

for needed research and services for Alzheimer’s patients and their families. 

A disease-modifying or preventive therapy would not only save millions of lives 

but would save billions of dollars in healthcare costs. Specifically, if a treatment became available in 2015 that delayed onset of Alzheimer’s for 5 years (a treatment 

similar to anti-cholesterol drugs), savings would be seen almost immediately, with 

Medicare and Medicaid spending reduced by $42 billion in 2020. 

Today, despite the Federal investment in Alzheimer’s research, we are only just 

beginning to understand what causes the disease. Americans are growing increasingly concerned that we still lack effective treatments that will slow, stop, or cure 

the disease, and that the pace of progress in developing breakthrough discoveries 

is much too slow to significantly impact on this growing crisis. For every $26,500 

Medicare and Medicaid spends caring for individuals with Alzheimer’s, the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH) spends only $100 on Alzheimer’s research. Scientists fundamentally believe that we have the ideas, the technology and the will to develop 

new Alzheimer’s interventions, but that progress depends on a prioritized scientific 

agenda and on the resources necessary to carry out the scientific strategy for both 

discovery and translation for therapeutic development. 

For too many individuals with Alzheimer’s and their families, the system has 

failed them, and today we are unnecessarily losing the battle against this devastating disease. Despite the fact that an early and documented formal diagnosis 

allows individuals to participate in their own care planning, manage other chronic 
344 

conditions, participate in clinical trials, and ultimately alleviate the burden on 

themselves and their loved ones, as many as half of the more than five million 

Americans with Alzheimer’s have never received a formal diagnosis. Unless we create an effective, dementia-capable system that finds new solutions to providing high 

quality care, provides community support services and programs, and addresses Alzheimer’s health disparities, Alzheimer’s will overwhelm the healthcare system in the 

coming years. For example, people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias have more 

than three times as many hospital stays as other older people. Furthermore, one 

out of seven individuals with Alzheimer’s or another dementia lives alone and up 

to half do not have an identifiable caregiver. These individuals are more likely to 

need emergency medical services because of self-neglect or injury, and are found to 

be placed into nursing homes earlier, on average, than others with dementia. Ultimately, supporting individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and their families and caregivers requires giving them the tools they need to plan for the future and ensuring 

the best quality of life for individuals and families impacted by the disease. It is 

vital that we make the investments in Alzheimer’s that will fulfill the goals of the 

National Alzheimer’s Plan. The Alzheimer’s Association urges Congress to support 

an additional $200 million for research activities and priorities included in the National Alzheimer’s Plan required under Public Law 111–375. 

Additional Alzheimer’s programs 

National Alzheimer’s Call Center: The National Alzheimer’s Call Center, funded 

by the AoA, provides 24/7, year-round telephone support, crisis counseling, care consultation, and information and referral services in 140 languages for persons with 

Alzheimer’s, their family members and informal caregivers. Trained professional 

staff and master’s-level mental health professionals are available at all times. In the 

12 month period ending July 31, 2013, the Call Center handled over 300,000 calls 

through its national and local partners, and its online message board received over 

40,000 visits a month. Additionally, the Association provides a two-to-one match on 

the Federal dollars received for the call center. The Alzheimer’s Association urges 

Congress to support $1.3 million for the National Alzheimer’s Call Center. 

Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI): The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

(CDC) HBI program works to educate the public, the public health community and 

health professionals about Alzheimer’s as a public health issue. Although there are 

currently no treatments to delay or stop the deterioration of brain cells caused by 

Alzheimer’s, evidence suggests that preventing or controlling cardiovascular risk 

factors may benefit brain health. In light of the dramatic aging of the population, 

scientific advancements in risk behaviors, and the growing awareness of the significant health, social and economic burdens associated with cognitive decline, the Federal commitment to a public health response to this challenge is imperative. The 

fiscal year 2014 omnibus funding bill increased funding for HBI by $1.5 million in 

order to bolster caregiver surveillance. The Alzheimer’s Association urges Congress 

to support $3.3 million for the Healthy Brain Initiative. 

Alzheimer’s Disease Supportive Services Program (ADSSP): The ADSSP at the 

AoA supports family caregivers who provide countless hours of unpaid care, thereby 

enabling their family members with Alzheimer’s and dementia to continue living in 

the community. The program develops coordinated, responsive and innovative community-based support service systems for individuals and families affected by Alzheimer’s. The Alzheimer’s Association urges Congress to support $13.4 million for 

the Alzheimer’s Disease Supportive Services Program. 

Conclusion 

The Association appreciates the steadfast support of the Subcommittee and its 

priority setting activities. We look forward to continuing to work with Congress in 

order to address the Alzheimer’s crisis. We ask Congress to address Alzheimer’s 

with the same bipartisan collaboration demonstrated in the passage of the National 

Alzheimer’s Project Act (Public Law 111–375) and with a commitment equal to the 

scale of the crisis. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ALZHEIMER’S FOUNDATION OF AMERICA

On behalf of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA), a national nonprofit 

organization that unites more than 1,600 member organizations nationwide with the 

goal of providing optimal care and services to individuals confronting dementia, and 

to their caregivers and families, we are making the following appropriations requests for programs impacting Alzheimer’s disease caregiving services and research 

in the fiscal year 2015 budget. These Federal programs and support services are 
345 

vital to providing necessary care supports and promoting best practice tools to family caregivers, and advancing promising clinical research. 

Specifically, AFA makes the following appropriations requests for these specific 

agencies and programs: 

National Institutes of Health (NIH): 

Adequate investment in scientific research that could lead to new treatments and 

cures is critical in order to reduce long-term healthcare costs. We appreciated Congress’ efforts in the fiscal year 2014 budget which provided an additional $80 million 

for clinical research into Alzheimer’s disease. AFA urges the Committee to build on 

this modest increase and provide an additional $500 million for Alzheimer’s disease 

research and enhanced investments for caregiving supports and services in fiscal 

year 2015. Additional resources will fund effective pharmaceutical therapies to prevent, cure or slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, and provide the necessary 

seed money to implement and facilitate the ambitious and laudable goals of the ‘‘National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease.’’ 

AFA also urges the Committee to include $32 billion in total funding for NIH, as 

recommended by the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research and a bi-partisan group 

of Members of Congress including Reps. McKinley, Davis, Carson and King. Even 

if funding remains flat, NIH’s actual budget will still be effectively cut as spending 

will not be able to keep pace with biomedical inflation. 

—National Institute on Aging (NIA): Since NIA is the primary agency responsible 

for Alzheimer’s disease research, AFA urges the Committee to include a minimum 

budget appropriation of $1.7 billion, an increase of $500 million for NIA for fiscal 

year 2015. 

NIA leads the national scientific effort to understand the nature of aging in order 

to promote the health and well-being of older adults, whose numbers are projected 

to rise dramatically in the coming years due to increased life expectancy and the 

aging of the baby boom generation. 

This funding is essential to increase the NIA’s baseline to a level consistent with 

comparable research initiatives conducted under the auspices of NIH, and to support additional research into Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. This is particularly vital, as Alzheimer’s disease holds the infamous position of being the only 

one of the top ten leading causes of death with a rising death rate. 

Administration on Community Living (ACL) programs: 

AFA would like to single out the following programs within the ACL that are critical to individuals with Alzheimer’s disease and their caregivers: 

—National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP): NFCSP provides grants 

to States and territories, based on their share of the population aged 70 and over, 

to fund a range of supportive services that assist family and informal caregivers in 

caring for their loved ones at home for as long as possible, thus providing a more 

person-friendly and cost-effective approach than institutional care. Last year’s appropriation of $146 million cannot possibly keep up with the need for respite care 

as our population ages. AFA urges that $156 million be appropriated in fiscal year 

2015 to support this important program. 

—Lifespan Respite Care Program (LRCP): AFA urges the Committee to commit 

$10 million to LRCP in fiscal year 2015. LRCP provides competitive grants to State 

agencies working with Aging and Disability Resource Centers and non-profit State 

respite coalitions and organizations to make quality respite care available and accessible to family caregivers regardless of age or disability by establishing State 

Lifespan Respite Systems. 

—Alzheimer’s Disease Demonstration Grants (ADDG): Existing resources for the 

Alzheimer’s population and their caregivers are already tapped out, at a time when 

demand is continuing to rise in line with the skyrocketing incidence of this disease. 

AFA supports funding of $9 million for the ADDG program which fosters the development of innovative models of care for persons with Alzheimer’s disease and their 

caregivers and is designed to improve responsiveness of the home and community 

based care system to persons with dementia including underserved minority, rural 

and low-income persons. 

—Alzheimer’s Disease Initiative (ADI): AFA supports the President’s fiscal year 

2015 budget request of $12 million for this program that for services such as support for caregivers in the community, improving healthcare provider training, and 

raising public awareness. Research shows that education, counseling and other support for family caregivers can delay institutionalization of loved ones and improve 

a caregiver’s own physical and mental well-being—thus reducing costs to families 

and government. In addition, AFA supports an appropriation of $5 million for the 

Alzheimer’s Disease Communications Campaign. 
346 

Food and Drug Administration (FDA): 

AFA supports FDA funding in fiscal year 2015 that fully restores the agency’s 

base lost in the fiscal year 2013 sequester and provides for a modest additional 

funding above that level. Specifically, we are requesting budget authority appropriations of $2.78 billion for FDA, $223 million above fiscal year 2014 appropriated 

spending. 

FDA activities are necessary to ensure proper evaluation and testing of pharmaceutical treatments for Alzheimer’s disease before these drugs enter the market. In 

addition, with the science of this disease becoming more complex, FDA plays an increasingly important and often resource-intensive role in pharmaceutical innovation. 

AFA’s request is in line with the appropriations request being recommended by the 

Alliance for a Stronger FDA and the Coalition to Accelerate Cure/Treatments for 

Alzheimer’s Disease (ACT-AD). 

As we work toward meeting the goal of the historic ‘‘National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease’’ to prevent and effectively treat Alzheimer’s disease by 2025, adequate resources must be committed to meet the pending challenge. Taken together, 

these programs represent a lifeline to families who care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease and provide hope to Americans living with the disease and those 

who face it in the future that there will be funding for a cure. 

AFA thanks the Committee for the opportunity to present its recommendations 

and looks forward to working with you through the appropriations process. Please 

contact me or Eric Sokol, AFA’s vice president of public policy, at esokol@alzfdn.org 

if you have any questions or require further information. 

[This statement was submitted by Hon. Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., Chief Executive 

Officer, Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICA ACHIEVES

Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran: Results for America (RFA), an 

initiative of America Achieves, is pleased to present our recommendations for fiscal 

year 2015 to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Departments of Labor, 

Health and Human Services, and Education. 

The attached letter and table outline the evidence-based policies and programs 

RFA and our coalition partners are requesting from your Subcommittee for fiscal 

year 2015 to help improve outcomes for young people, their families, and communities. 

Over the last several years, all levels of government have taken critical steps to 

change the way taxpayer dollars are invested to ensure limited resources are driven 

toward high-impact solutions that get results. To significantly improve outcomes for 

young people, their families, and communities in the context of constrained resources and mounting demands, the Federal Government should identify and invest 

in ‘‘what works,’’ and be a catalyst for, and funder of, effective and innovative solutions that produce greater social impact. While public debate focuses on more or less 

resources, it is critical to identify how to get better results from existing resources. 

This approach has a strong history of bipartisan support. President George W. 

Bush’s Administration put a priority on improving the performance of Federal programs and encouraged more rigorous evaluations to assess their effectiveness. The 

Obama Administration has built on this effort by supporting an increasing number 

of evidence and evaluation-based policies and programs. Mayors and governors from 

both parties across the country are also increasingly using data and evidence to 

steer public dollars to more effectively address needs in their communities and 

States. 

I want to thank you for the positive steps you have taken over the last several 

years toward building a strong evidence-based, results-driven policy agenda and 

look forward to working with you in the months and years ahead. 

On March 13, 2014, the following 72 organizations sent a letter to Chairwoman 

Mikulski, Chairman Rogers, and Ranking Members Shelby and Lowey requesting 

bill and report language to invest Federal funds in what works. The letter and a 

summary of our recommendations for fiscal year 2015 for the House Appropriations 

Subcommittee on the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education follow: 

INVEST IN WHAT WORKS

Dear Chairwoman Mikulski, Chairman Rogers, Ranking Member Shelby, and 

Ranking Member Lowey: 
347 

We are writing to urge you to include the attached ‘‘Invest in What Works’’ provisions in the subcommittee appropriations bills and reports for the Departments of 

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, and the Departments of Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies for fiscal year 2015. 

America is facing enormous social and economic shifts, budget constraints at all 

levels of government, significant demographic changes, and an increasingly globally 

competitive, changing workforce. While the recently-enacted fiscal year 14 omnibus 

appropriations law includes an unprecedented commitment to evidence and evaluation, we must continue to focus on improving the ways in which Federal taxpayer 

dollars are spent in fiscal year 15 and beyond in order to be able to significantly 

improve outcomes for young people, their families, and communities. 

We thank you for the positive steps you have taken over the last several years 

toward building a strong evidence-based, results-driven policy agenda and encourage 

you to reaffirm your commitment to improving outcomes for all Americans by incorporating the attached ‘‘Invest in What Works’’ recommendations in the fiscal year 

2015 appropriations bills and committee reports. 

Thank you for your consideration of our requests. 

Sincerely, 

AdvancEd 

AIDS United 

Alliance College-Ready Public Schools 

Amos House (RI) 

Aspire Public Schools 

BELL 

Breakthrough Schools 

Brighton Center, Inc. (KY) 

Capital Impact Partners 

Center for Employment Opportunities 

Center for Research and Reform in 

Education, Johns 

Hopkins University 

Champlain Housing Trust (VT) 

Cincinnati Works 

Citizen Schools 

City First Homes and City First 

Enterprises (DC) 

City Year, Inc. 

CLUE (Comunidades Latinas Unidas En 

Servicio) (MN) 

CommonBond Communities (MN) 

Communities in Schools 

Community Action Duluth 

Community Training and Assistance 

Center (CTAC) 

Congreso de Latinos Unidos Inc. 

CSH 

Edna Martin Christian Center (IN) 

Education Northwest 

Emerge Community Development (MN) 

Family Resources Community Action 

(RI) 

Focus: HOPE (MI) 

Gestalt Community Schools 

Greater Southwest Development 

Corporation (IL) 

GreenLight Fund 

Home Start, Inc. (CA) 

Housing Leadership Council, Inc. (FL) 

IDEA Public Schools 

Jane Addams Resource Corporation (IL) 

KIPP 

Knowledge Alliance 

LISC 

Metropolitan Family Services (IL) 

Mile High United Way 

National Forum to Accelerate MiddleGrades Reform 

National Fund for Workforce Solutions 

New Profit Inc. 

North County Lifeline (CA) 

Operation ABLE (MI) 

Project for Pride in Living, Inc. (MN) 

Providence Housing Authority 

Reading Partners 

REDF 

Results for America 

Rocketship Education 

Rubicon Programs 

Safer Foundation (IL) 

Santa Maria Community Services (OH) 

SER-Jobs for Progress of the Texas Gulf 

Coast, Inc. 

SER Metro Detroit, Jobs for Progress, 

Inc. 

Southeast Community Services Inc. (IN) 

Southwest Solutions (MI) 

StriveTogether 

Success for All Foundation 

Teach For America 

Teach Plus 

The SEED Foundation 

Turnaround For Children 

United Way of Greater Cincinnati 

United Way for Southeastern Michigan 

Urban Alliance 

U.S. Soccer Foundation 

Venture Philanthropy Partners 

Volunteers of America Texas Inc. 

Year Up 

Youth Villages 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Workforce Innovation Fund—with up to $10,000,000 for Pay for Success initiatives ....... $60,000,000 

Agency-Wide Evaluation Set-Aside—1 percent of discretionary funds to be used by the 

Chief Evaluation Office for program evaluations ............................................................ ..............................
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RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015—Continued 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

Head Start Designation Renewal System—set-aside within the total provided for Head 

Start .................................................................................................................................. $25,000,000 

Mental Health Service Block Grant Program—at least 5 percent set-aside for evidencebased programs to address the needs of individuals with early serious mental illness .................................................................................................................................. ..............................

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

First in the World—with $20,000,000 set-aside for minority-serving institutions ............ $100,000,000 

Investing in Innovation (i3)—language directing the Department to provide continuation grants to certain current i3 grantees that are demonstrating strong interim 

outcomes but have not had sufficient time to achieve their program goals ................ $215,000,000 

Replication and Expansion of High Quality Charter Schools—set-aside within the total 

provided for the Charter School Program ........................................................................ $75,000,000 

Title II-A—Effective Teachers and Leaders—language requiring the Secretary to set 

aside 25 percent of ESEA Title II-A funds for competitive grants to States, high need 

local school districts, and national non-profit organizations, including 10 percent 

set-aside for the Supporting Effective Educator Development (SEED) program ............ ..............................

Titles I and II—language directing States to set-aside 1 percent of Title I and II funds, 

prior to distribution to local school districts (LSD), and to award these funds on a 

competitive basis to the 25 percent of LSD’s with the highest poverty levels through 

a tiered funding frame-work ............................................................................................ ..............................

IDEA Results-Driven Accountability Grants—set-aside to implement promising evidencebased reforms .................................................................................................................. $100,000,000 

Agency-Wide Evaluation Set-aside—1 percent of discretionary funds (not including Pell 

Grants) for program evaluations ..................................................................................... ..............................

Title II—Whole School Reform—language allowing local school districts to use School 

Improvement Grants to implement a whole-school reform strategy for a school using 

an evidence-based strategy that ensures whole-school reform is undertaken in partnership with a strategy developer offering a whole-school reform program that is 

based on at least a moderate level of evidence that the program will have a statistically significant effect on student outcomes as defined by the Department’s General Administrative Regulations ....................................................................................... ..............................

CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE 

Social Innovation Fund—including up to 20 percent set-aside for Pay for Success initiatives and language directing CNCS to (1) provide renewal grants to current SIF 

grantees that are demonstrating significant interim outcomes but have not had sufficient time to achieve their program goals and (2) permit current SIF grantees to be 

eligible to apply for additional SIF funds for projects not currently funded by SIF ...... $80,000,000 

GENERAL PROVISION 

Performance Partnership Pilot—language establishing up to 10 Performance Partnership Pilots to improve outcomes for disconnected youth ............................................... ..............................

[This statement was submitted by Michele Jolin, Managing Partner, America 

Achieves.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF FAMILY PHYSICIANS

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP), representing 110,600 family 

physicians and medical students nationwide, urges the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education to invest in our 

Nation’s primary care physician workforce in the fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill 

to promote the efficient, effective delivery of healthcare by providing these appropriations for the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality: 

—$71 million for Health Professions Primary Care Training and Enhancement 

authorized under Title VII, Section 747 of the Public Health Service Act 

(PHSA); 
349 

1Petterson, S, et al. Projecting U.S. Primary Care Physician Workforce Needs: 2010–2015. 

Ann Fam Med 2012; vol.10 no. 6:503–509. 2Phillips RL and Turner, BJ. The Next Phase of Title VII Funding for Training Primary Care 

Physicians for America’s Health Care Needs. Ann Fam Med 2012; vol.10 no. 2:163–168. 3 Rittenhouse DR, et al. Impact of Title VII training programs on community health center 

staffing and national health service corps participation. Ann Fam Med 2008; vol. 6 no. 5:397– 

405. 

—$10 million for Teaching Health Centers development grants (PHSA Title VII, 

§ 749A); —$4 million for Rural Physician Training Grants (PHSA Title VII, § 749B); 

—$100 million for the National Health Service Corps (PHSA § 338A, B, & I); 

—$375 million for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (PHSA 

§ 487(d)(3), SSA § 1142); and —$3 million for the National Health Care Workforce Commission (ACA § 5101). 

Founded in 1947, the AAFP is dedicated to preserving and promoting the science 

and art of family medicine and ensuring high-quality, cost-effective healthcare for 

patients of all ages. The AAFP appreciates the opportunity to comment on the fiscal 

year 2015 appropriations levels needed to achieve those important goals. 

HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (HRSA)

Our Nation faces a shortage of primary care physicians. The total number of office 

visits to primary care physicians is projected to increase from 462 million in 2008 

to 565 million in 2025 requiring nearly 52,000 additional primary care physicians 

by 2025.1 The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is the Federal 

agency charged with administering the health professions training programs authorized under Title VII of the Public Health Services Act and first enacted in 1963. 

We urge the Committee to restore funding for discretionary HRSA programs to the 

fiscal year 2010 level of $7.48 billion in the fiscal year 2015 bill. 

Title VII Health Professions Training Programs.—In the last 50 years, Congress 

has revised the Title VII authority in order to meet our Nation’s changing 

healthcare workforce needs. We now face burgeoning demand for family physicians 

and must work to increase their number in the United States. As the only medical 

specialty society devoted entirely to primary care, the AAFP is gravely concerned 

that a failure to provide adequate funding for the Title VII, Section 747 Primary 

Care Training and Enhancement (PCTE) program, will destabilize education and 

training support for family physicians. Between 1998 and 2008, in spite of persistent primary care physician shortages, family medicine lost 46 training programs 

and 390 residency positions, and general internal medicine lost nearly 900 positions.2 A study published in the Annals of Family Medicine on the impact of Title 

VII training programs found that physicians who work with the underserved in 

Community Health Centers and National Health Service Corps sites are more likely 

to have trained in Title VII-funded programs.3 Title VII primary care training 

grants are vital to departments of family medicine, general internal medicine, and 

general pediatrics; they strengthen curricula; and they offer incentives for training 

in underserved areas. In the coming years, medical services utilization is likely to 

rise given the increasing and aging population as well as the insured status of more 

people. These demographic trends will exacerbate family physician shortages. Although PCTE grants are important to family medicine, there has not been a competitive cycle for these grants since fiscal year 2010. The AAFP urges the Committee to increase the level of Federal funding for primary care training to at least 

$71 million in fiscal year 2015 to allow for a robust new grant cycle to support family medicine education and training in the new competencies required to meet the 

needs of patients of all ages. 

Teaching Health Centers.—The AAFP has long called for reforms to graduate 

medical education programs to encourage the training of primary care residents in 

non-hospital settings where most primary care is delivered. An excellent first step 

is the innovative Teaching Health Centers (THC) program authorized under Title 

VII, § 749A to increase primary care physician training capacity that HRSA administers. Federal financing of graduate medical education has led to training mainly 

in hospital inpatient settings even though most patient care is delivered outside of 

hospitals in ambulatory settings. The THC program provides resources to any qualified community based ambulatory care setting that operates a primary care residency. We believe that this program requires an investment of $10 million in fiscal 

year 2015 for planning grants. 

Rural Physician Workforce Needs.—HRSA’s Office of Rural Health focuses on 

rural health policy issues and administers rural grant programs. As the medical 

specialty most likely to enter rural practice, family physicians recognize the impor-
350 

4 Rabinowitz,HK, et al. Medical School Rural Programs: A Comparison With International 

Medical Graduates in Addressing State-Level Rural Family Physician and Primary Care Supply. 

Academic Medicine, Vol. 87, No. 4/April 2012. 

tance of dedicating appropriate resources to rural health needs. A recent study 

found that medical school rural programs have had a significant impact on rural 

family physician supply and called for wider adoption of that model to substantially 

increase access to care in rural areas compared to a greater reliance on international medical graduates or unfocused expansion of traditional medical schools.4

HRSA’s Rural Physician Training Grant program will help medical schools recruit 

students most likely to practice medicine in rural communities. This program will 

help provide rural-focused experience and increase the number of medical school 

graduates who practice in underserved rural communities. The AAFP recommends 

that the Committee provide $4 million for Rural Physician Training Grants in fiscal 

year 2015 as called for in the President’s budget request. 

Primary Care in Underserved Areas.—The National Health Service Corps (NHSC) 

recruits and places medical professionals in Health Professional Shortage Areas to 

meet the need for healthcare in rural and medically underserved areas. The NHSC 

offers scholarships or loan repayment as incentives for physicians to enter primary 

care and provide healthcare to Americans in Health Professional Shortage Areas. 

By addressing medical school debt burdens, the NHSC also helps to ensure wider 

access to medical education opportunities. The President’s budget request includes 

$810 million for the NHSC, of which $710 million is mandatory funding. If the 

NHSC is funded at the President’s requested level in fiscal year 2015, underserved 

patients will benefit from an NHSC field strength of more than 15,400 primary care 

clinicians compared to the fiscal year 2013 field strength of 8,899. The AAFP supports the President’s budget request for this important program and recommends 

that the Committee provide an appropriation of $100 million for the NHSC in fiscal 

year 2015 to supplement the authorized and requested mandatory funds. 

AGENCY FOR HEATLHCARE RESEARCH AND QUALITY (AHRQ)

AHRQ is the only Federal agency responsible for generating evidence to make 

healthcare safer; better; and more accessible, equitable and affordable. AHRQ provides the critical evidence reviews that the AAFP and other physician specialty societies use to produce clinical practice guidelines. These evidence-informed guidelines 

are important to family physicians as well as to patients and their families. AHRQ 

takes the results from the NIH whose research restricts subjects to limit the variables in clinical studies and brings the practical information to the practicing physicians who treat patients without those clinical restrictions. ARHQ supports critical 

primary care investigations through Practice-based Research Networks that examine practice transformation, patient quality and safety in non-hospital settings, 

multi-morbidity research, as well as mental and behavioral healthcare in communities and primary care practices. The AAFP asks that the Committee provide $375 

million in base discretionary funding for AHRQ in fiscal year 2015. 

NATIONAL HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE COMMISSION

Appointed on September 30, 2010, the 15-member National Health Care Workforce Commission was intended to serve as a resource with a broad array of expertise. The Commission was directed to analyze current workforce distribution and 

needs; evaluate healthcare education and training; identify barriers to improved coordination at the Federal, State, and local levels and recommend ways to address 

them; and encourage innovations. There is broad consensus about the waning availability of primary care physicians in the United States, but estimates of the severity 

of the regional and local shortages vary. The AAFP supports the work of the Commission to analyze primary care shortages and propose innovations to help produce 

the physicians that our Nation needs and will need in the future. We request that 

the Committee provide $4 million in fiscal year 2015 so that this important Commission can finally begin this important work. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), a non-profit professional organization 

of 62,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists, and pediatric 

surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety, and well-being of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults, appreciates the opportunity to submit this 

statement for the record in support of strong Federal investments in children’s 
351 

health in fiscal year 2015 and beyond. AAP urges all Members of Congress to put 

children first when considering short and long-term Federal spending decisions. 

AAP supports robust investment in programs that help ensure the health, safety 

and well-being of children, including $5 million for the Pediatric Subspecialty Loan 

Repayment Program at the Health Resource Services Administration (HRSA), $21 

million for the Emergency Medical Services for Children (HRSA), $139 million for 

the National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and $160 million for Polio Eradication 

and $49 million for the Measles program within CDC. 

Every adult was once a child. Many adult diseases have their origins in childhood. 

Early and continued investments in our children’s health are needed to prevent obesity, heart disease, substance use, and other chronic conditions that threaten America’s health and fiscal solvency. As clinicians we not only diagnose and treat our patients, we also promote preventive interventions to improve overall health. Likewise, 

as policymakers, you have an integral role in ensuring the health of future generations through adequate and sustained funding of vital Federal programs. 

Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment Program 

The United States’ supply of pediatric subspecialists is inadequate to meet children’s health needs. Many children must wait more than 3 months for an appointment with a pediatric subspecialist. Approximately 1 in 3 children must travel 40 

miles or more to receive care from a pediatrician certified in adolescent medicine, 

developmental behavioral pediatrics, neurodevelopment disabilities, pulmonology, 

emergency medicine, nephrology, rheumatology, and sports medicine. This problem 

is compounded by the fact that fewer medical residents are choosing careers in pediatric subspecialties, and the existing subspecialist workforce continues to age. There 

is also a significant disparity in the geographic distribution of pediatric subspecialists across the country, resulting in many underserved rural and urban areas. 

The Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment Program (PSLRP) seeks to expand 

children’s access to healthcare by creating a more robust pediatric work force. In 

the program, eligible participants must agree to practice full-time for not less than 

2 years in a pediatric medical specialty, surgical specialty, or a child or adolescent 

mental and behavioral subspecialty in a health professional shortage area or a 

medically underserved area. In return, the program will pay up to $35,000 in loan 

repayment for each year of service, for a maximum of 3 years. 

Fiscal year 2015 Request: $5 million; fiscal year 2014 Level: Not Funded. 

Emergency Medical Services for Children 

Established by Congress in 1984 and last reauthorized in 2010, the Emergency 

Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Program is the only Federal program that focuses specifically on improving the pediatric components of the emergency medical 

services (EMS) system. Currently celebrating its 30th year, the EMSC program has 

made landmark improvements to the emergency care delivered to children all across 

the Nation. EMSC aims to ensure that state of the art emergency medical care for 

the ill and injured child or adolescent is well integrated into an EMS system. Every 

State has received EMSC funds, which they have used to ensure that hospitals and 

ambulances are properly equipped to treat pediatric emergencies, to provide pediatric training to paramedics and first responders, and to improve the systems that 

allow for efficient, effective pediatric emergency medical care. 

Continued support for EMSC has allowed the program to maintain its existing activities, improve pediatric capacity and transport of pediatric patients, and address 

emerging issues such as pediatric emergency care readiness and pediatric emergency medical services in rural and remote areas. 

Fiscal year 2015 Request: $21 million; fiscal year 2014 Level: $20.1 million. 

National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities 

The National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities is a center 

within CDC that seeks to promote the health of babies, children, and adults and 

enhance the potential for full, productive living. According to the CDC, birth defects 

affect 1 in 33 babies and are a leading cause of infant death in the United States; 

the center has done tremendous work in the way of identifying the causes of birth 

defects and developmental disabilities, helping children to develop and reach their 

full potential. The center also conducts important research on fetal alcohol syndrome, infant health, autism, congenital heart defects, and other conditions like 

Tourette Syndrome, Fragile X, Spina Bifida and Hemophilia. NCBDDD has proven 

to be an asset to children and their families and supports extramural research in 

every State. 

Fiscal year 2015 Request: $139 million; fiscal year 2014 Level: $122.4 million. 
352 

Global Health at CDC 

The AAP calls on Congress to support and resource Health and Human Services 

to implement the recommendations of the National Vaccine Advisory Committee of 

the Global Immunizations Working Group on enhancing the work of the HHS National Vaccine Program in Global Immunizations. This includes support for HHS’ 

role in building international cooperation for the common goal of reducing the burden of vaccine-preventable diseases. HHS has unique and timely opportunities to 

eradicate polio, to reduce measles mortality, and to ensure that the routine immunization systems at the front lines of these efforts are maintained. The funding that 

Congress provides to CDC’s Global Immunization account is also necessary to act 

on the Advisory Committee’s recommendations that HHS enhance its ongoing efforts to strengthen global immunization systems, enhance global capacity for vaccine 

safety monitoring and post-marketing surveillance, build global immunization research and development capacity, and strengthen countries’ capacity for vaccine decisionmaking. 

Since 1988 a coordinated global immunization campaign has reduced the number 

of polio cases globally by more than 99 percent, saving more than 10 million children from paralysis and bringing the disease close to eradication. Expanded immunization has reduced the global mortality attributed to measles by 74 percent between 2000 and 2010. 

Polio fiscal year 2015 Request: $160 million; fiscal year 2014 Level: $146 million 

Measles fiscal year 2015 Request: $49 million; fiscal year 2014 Level: $42.2 million 

America’s children deserve better 

Twenty 2 percent of children in the United States now live in poverty—up from 

17 percent in 2007. Many children suffer from food insecurity, unstable housing, 

family dysfunction, abuse and neglect. Such adverse childhood experiences are 

linked with ‘‘toxic stress,’’ a biologic phenomenon associated with profound and irreversible changes in brain anatomy and chemistry that have been implicated in the 

development of health-threatening behaviors and medical complications later in life 

including drug use, obesity, and altered immune function. Adults affected by such 

adverse childhood experiences are more likely to have experienced school failure, 

gang membership, unemployment, violent crime, and incarceration. 

Healthier children, healthier future 

On behalf of the 75 million American children and their families that we serve 

and treat, the Nation’s pediatricians expect Congress to respond to mounting evidence that child health has life-long impacts and put children first during appropriations negotiations. Investing in children is not only the right thing to do for the 

long-term physical, mental, and emotional health of the population, but is imperative for the Nation’s long-term fiscal health as well. In addition to the programs we 

have specifically mentioned in this testimony, Federal support for children’s health 

programs, such as early brain and child development, parenting and health education, and preventive health services, will yield high returns for the American 

economy. Cuts to these areas in the short-term will blunt the possible long-term 

savings these programs could achieve. 

We fully recognize the Nation’s fiscal challenges and respect that difficult budgetary decisions must be made; however, we do not support funding decisions made 

at the expense of the health and welfare of children and families. Rather, a focus 

on the long-term needs of children and adolescents will ensure that the United 

States can compete in the modern, highly-educated global marketplace. Strong and 

sustained financial investments in children’s healthcare, research, and prevention 

programs will help keep our children healthy and pay dividends for years to come. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics looks forward to working with Members of 

Congress to prioritize the health of our Nation’s children in fiscal year 2015 and beyond. If we may be of further assistance please contact Pat Johnson at the AAP Department of Federal Affairs at 202–347–8600 or pjohnson@aap.org. Thank you for 

your consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by James, Perrin, MD, FAAP, President, American 

Academy of Pediatrics.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS

On behalf of the more than 95,000 clinically practicing physician assistants in the 

United States, the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) is pleased to 

submit comments on fiscal year 2015 appropriations for Physician Assistant (PA) 
353 

educational programs that are authorized through Title VII of the Public Health 

Service (PHS) Act. AAPA respectfully requests the Senate Appropriations Committee to approve funding at existing levels for the Title VII health professions education program—$280,000,000, with an allocation of 15 percent of the Primary Care 

Training and Enhancement program line for PA educational programs. 

Federal support for Title VII is authorized through section 747 of the PHS Act. 

It is the only continuing Federal funding available to PA educational programs. Unfortunately, in recent years, PA educational programs have received reduced support 

from Title VII funding, which is designed to educate PAs in primary care and to 

prepare PAs for practice in urban or rural medically underserved areas. 

This funding is essential to the development and training of the Nation’s health 

workforce, and is critical to providing continued access to health services in underserved and minority communities. It also encourages PAs to return to these environments with the greatest need after they have completed their educational preparation, being one of the best recruitment tools to date. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), 37 percent of PAs practice in medically underserved counties, including medically underserved areas and medically 

underserved populations. 

Additionally, Title VII funding has helped PA Programs expand clinical rotations 

in rural and underserved areas that have been in critically short supply and has 

enhanced primary care curriculum to better address the needs of disadvantaged 

populations. 

While the purview of the Title VII programs grant funding has expanded to include assisting returning combat veterans, funding for PA educational programs has 

been significantly reduced. Additional reductions to this budget will disadvantage 

new PA programs that need these funds to help with student recruitment, faculty 

development, and establishing clinical rotation cites. 

Diverse clinical rotation sites and recruitment programs are critical to PA education and are paramount to the Title VII primary care medicine program. A review 

of PA graduates from 1990—2009 demonstrated that PAs who have graduated from 

PA educational programs supported by Title VII are 67 percent more likely to be 

from underrepresented minority populations and 47 percent more likely to work in 

a rural health clinic than graduates of programs that were not supported by Title 

VII. We wish to thank the members of this subcommittee for your historical role 

in supporting funding for the health professions programs, and we hope that we can 

count on your support to augment funding to these important programs in fiscal 

year 2015. 

Overview of PA Education 

The existing 181 accredited PA educational programs are all located within 

schools of medicine or health sciences, universities, teaching hospitals, and the 

Armed Services. All PA educational programs are accredited by the Accreditation 

Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant. 

The typical PA program consists of 26 months of instruction, and the typical student has a bachelor’s degree and about 4 years of prior healthcare experience. The 

PA curriculum includes 400 hours of basic sciences and nearly 1,600 hours of clinical medicine. On average, students devote more than 2,000 hours, or 50 to 55 

weeks, to clinical education, divided between primary care medicine—family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology—and various specialties, including surgery and surgical specialties, internal medicine subspecialties, 

emergency medicine, and psychiatry. 

After graduating from an accredited PA program, PAs must pass a national certifying examination developed by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants and become licensed by the State to provide medical care.. To maintain certification, PAs must log 100 continuing medical education hours every 2 

years, and they must take a recertification exam every 10 years. 

PA Practice 

PAs are licensed health professionals who practice medicine as members of a 

healthcare team. PAs exercise autonomy in medical decisionmaking and provide a 

broad range of medical and therapeutic services to diverse populations in rural and 

urban settings. PAs perform physical examinations, diagnose and treat illnesses, 

order and interpret lab tests, assist in surgery, provide patient education and counseling, and make rounds in nursing homes and hospitals. PAs are nationally certified and State licensed to practice medicine and prescribe medication in all fifty 

States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 
354 

PAs in Primary Care 

An estimated 30,000 PAs (32 percent of the profession) work in primary care 

across the Nation—38.2 percent work in private practice (multi-and single specialty 

and solo practices); 23.3 percent in Family Medicine, 3.0 percent practice in community health centers, 3.3 percent practice in certified rural health clinics, and 2.7 percent work in a federally qualified health center. 

PAs are also one of three primary care providers who provide medical care 

through the National Health Service Corps (NHSC). The NHSC is an important 

Federal program with nearly 10,000 healthcare providers, like PAs, who benefit 

from the program’s loan-forgiveness and scholarship awards to those providers and 

students who commit 2 years to provide medical, dental, and mental healthcare in 

medically underserved areas. 

Additionally, PAs provide medical care in community health centers (CHCs), some 

as CHC medical directors. CHCs provide cost-effective healthcare throughout the 

country and serve as medical homes for millions in medically underserved areas. 

CHCs offer a wide variety of healthcare services through team-based care, providing 

high quality healthcare to CHC patients and significantly reducing medical expenses. 

Critical Role of the Title VII PHS Act Programs 

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an additional 31,000 healthcare providers are needed to alleviate existing professional 

shortages. This existing shortage, combined with faculty shortages across PA education, the need to build greater diversity among healthcare providers, and an increasingly aging healthcare workforce, creates challenges in growing the primary 

healthcare workforce. 

Title VII programs are the only Federal educational programs that are designed 

to address the supply and distribution imbalances in the health professions. Since 

the establishment of Medicare, the costs of physician residencies, nurse training, 

and some allied health professions training have been paid through Graduate Medical Education (GME) funding; however, GME has not been available to support PA 

education. More importantly, GME was not intended to generate a supply of providers who are willing to work in the Nation’s medically underserved communities— 

the purpose of Title VII. 

Furthermore, Title VII programs seek to recruit students who are from underserved minority and disadvantaged populations, which is a critical step towards reducing persistent health disparities among certain racial and ethnic U.S. populations. Research shows racial and ethnic health disparities cost the economy more 

than $230 billion in lost productivity and up to $1.24 trillion in indirect costs over 

3 years; and studies have found that health professionals from disadvantaged regions of the country are three to five times more likely to return to underserved 

areas to provide care which would help alleviate the current health disparity crisis 

in America. 

Support for educating PAs to practice in underserved communities is particularly 

important given the market demand for PAs. Title VII funding is a critical link in 

addressing the natural geographic mal-distribution of healthcare providers by exposing students to underserved sites during their training, where they frequently 

choose to practice following graduation. Currently, 36 percent of PAs met their first 

clinical employer through their clinical rotations. 

Supplementary Recommendations on fiscal year 2015 Funding 

AAPA urges members of the Appropriations Committee to consider the inter-dependency of all public health agencies and programs when determining funding for 

fiscal year 2015. For instance, while it is critical, now more than ever, to fund clinical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and to have an infrastructure at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that ensures a 

prompt response to an infectious disease outbreak or bioterrorist attack, the good 

work of both of these agencies will go unrealized if HRSA is inadequately funded. 

HRSA administers the ‘‘people’’ programs, such as Title VII, that bring the results 

of cutting edge research at NIH to patients through providers such as PAs who have 

been educated in Title VII-funded programs. Likewise, the CDC is heavily dependent upon an adequate supply of healthcare providers to be sure that disease outbreaks are reported, tracked, and contained. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the AAPA’s views on fiscal year 2015 

appropriations concerning HRSA’s Title VII Health Professions Program. 

[This statement was submitted by Sandy Harding, MSW, Senior Director, Federal 

Advocacy.] 
355 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ALLIANCE OF MUSEUMS

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the Subcommittee, 

my name is Don Wildman, and for six highly rated seasons, I’ve had the extreme 

honor of hosting a television show, Mysteries at the Museum (Thursday nights on 

the Travel Channel), which tells the stories behind artifacts in museum collections. 

My testimony today is presented on behalf of the American Alliance of Museums, 

the largest organization of museums and museum professionals in the world, and 

we are respectfully asking the Subcommittee to provide $38.6 million for the Office 

of Museum Services (OMS) at the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), 

its fully-authorized amount, in fiscal year 2015. 

Museums are among our Nation’s most popular, most trusted and most beloved 

institutions. There are approximately 850 million visits to American museums each 

year, more than the attendance for all major league sporting events and theme 

parks combined. Museums also spend over $2 billion on educational programming, 

and a total of $21 billion in their local economies. Clearly museums are economic 

engines and job creators. 

IMLS is the primary Federal agency that supports the museum field, and OMS 

awards grants to help museums digitize, enhance and preserve their collections; provide teacher training; and create innovative, cross-cultural and multi-disciplinary 

programs and exhibits for schools and the public. 

It’s no surprise that the appropriations bill that funds education supports this 

agency, because museums are indeed key education providers. They design exhibitions, educational programs, classroom kits, and online resources in coordination 

with State, local and common core curriculum standards in math, science, art, literacy, language arts, history, civics and government, economics and financial literacy, geography, and social studies. Museums also offer experiential learning opportunities, STEM education, mentoring, and job preparedness. 

Whatever education looks like in the future, one component will certainly be the 

development of a core set of skills: critical thinking; the ability to synthesize information; and the ability to innovate, to be creative and to collaborate. Museums are 

uniquely situated to help learners develop these core skills. 

In late 2010, legislation to reauthorize IMLS for 5 years was enacted (by voice 

vote in the House and by unanimous consent in the Senate). The bipartisan reauthorization included several provisions proposed by the museum field, including enhanced support for conservation and preservation, emergency preparedness and response and statewide capacity building. The reauthorization also specifically supports efforts at the State level to leverage museum resources, including statewide 

needs assessments and the development of State plans to improve and maximize 

museum services throughout the State. The bill (now Public Law 111–340) authorized $38.6 million for the IMLS Office of Museum Services to meet the growing demand for museum programs and services. The fiscal year 2014 appropriation of 

$30,131,000 represents a nearly 15 percent decrease from the fiscal year 2010 appropriation of $35,212,000. 

Grants are awarded in every State, but perhaps the best way to demonstrate the 

importance of the IMLS Office of Museum Services is to highlight just a few of the 

grants awarded in 2013 to museums in States represented by Subcommittee members: 

Public Programs and Energy Efficiency—Reiman Gardens, Iowa State University 

of Science and Technology (Ames, IA) was awarded $95,040 to develop a comprehensive landscape design, architectural, and engineering plan. Designs will address 

community programming needs, visitor experience, facilities and maintenance 

needs, and energy efficiency standards. 

Recognizing Excellence—The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library (Cedar 

Rapids, IA) received $5,000 and the 2013 National Medal for Museum and Library 

Service. When the worst disaster in State history destroyed entire areas of Cedar 

Rapids in 2008, the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library was instrumental 

in leading its devastated ethnic neighborhood in recovery, rebuilding, and revitalization. 

Youth Programs and Collections Care—The Kansas African American Museum 

(Wichita, KS) was awarded $149,950 to create a public history youth program in 

partnership with the University of Kansas Libraries, serving 60 youth and training 

25 volunteer docents annually. The museum is also using the grant to upgrade its 

collections management system and to address its most critical collections care and 

security needs. 

Environmental Science—The Calvert Marine Museum Society (Solomons, MD) 

was awarded $142,500 to develop and install an exhibit on the ecosystem of the Patuxent River and Chesapeake Bay. They are partnering with local schools and com-
356 

munity groups to facilitate lifelong learning of scientific concepts and environmental 

stewardship. 

Collections Care—The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (Birmingham, AL) was awarded $74,277 to safeguard its collections to ensure that they will be available 

for use by current and future students, the general public, researchers and staff. 

STEM Education—The University of Alabama/Alabama Museum of Natural His- tory (Tuscaloosa, AL) was awarded $99,998 to create the Discovery Learning Lab 

to give middle and high school-aged students access to ‘‘geek’’ mentors who will 

guide them in explorations of digital technologies not readily available at home or 

school in low-income areas. This program exposes teens to STEM disciplines, skills, 

activities, and software at the lab and in a cyberspace environment. 

Science and Ocean Literacy—The Seattle Aquarium (Seattle, WA) was awarded $103,821 to design, implement, and evaluate an aquarium classroom program. The 

museum will develop the program in cooperation with practicing scientists, emphasizing both the scientific process and content based on sea otter and ocean acidification research. The project will also produce materials to help interpret its findings 

both in the museum and in the larger community. 

Cultural Identity—The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experi- ence (Seattle, WA) was awarded $150,000 to produce a newly designed tour program 

that emphasizes community storytelling and audience engagement. The Chinatown 

International District is Seattle’s lowest-income neighborhood, and will benefit from 

increased museum attendance and enhanced community involvement. 

Recognizing Excellence—The Delta Blues Museums (Clarksdale, MS) was award- ed $5,000 and the 2013 National Medal for Museum and Library Service for its 

work celebrating and nurturing this American art form. Participants young and old, 

from diverse economic and ethnic backgrounds participate in the museum’s popular 

music classes while its travelling trunk exhibit inspires blues appreciation nationwide. 

3D Printing—The Art Institute of Chicago (Chicago, IL) was awarded $25,000 to 

reach audiences of all ages by using 3D printing technologies. The museum will 

evaluate the potential impact of this technology on engagement with museum collections, and will develop guidelines to be shared with other museums and educators. 

Collections Care—The Hermann-Grima and Gallier Historic Houses (New Orleans, LA) were awarded $22,830 to develop a plan to improve their interior environments to better conserve collections and the historical buildings. 

Professional Development—The Newport Art Museum and Art Association (New- port, RI) was awarded $24,028 for an initiative that orients high school students to 

cultural administration careers through classroom learning, site visits, and mentoring. The grant will allow the museum to expand the reach of this initiative and 

establish paid internships for students, helping them develop their interests and 

build valuable skills for the future. 

Mobile Science Classroom—The Discovery Center at Murfree Spring 

(Murfreesboro, TN) was awarded $103,849 to convert a school bus into a mobile 

science classroom for elementary school students. 

Digitization—The Country Music Hall of Fame (Nashville, TN) was awarded 

$150,000 for a digitization initiative to preserve and increase access to the museum’s unparalleled collection. 

Collections Care—The University Museum, University of Arkansas (Fayetteville, 

AR) was awarded $31,464 to improve its zoology collection and make it more accessible to researchers. 

I am aware that this subcommittee wants to ensure that its investments in Federal grant programs have measurable and significant impact. I believe that the 

grants listed above demonstrate the value of investing in museums as a means of 

investing in our communities. Further, it should be noted that each time a Federal 

grant is awarded, additional local and private funds are also leveraged. Two-thirds 

of IMLS grantees report that their Museums for America grant positioned the museum to receive additional private funding. 

Even the most ardent deficit hawks view the IMLS grant-making process as a 

model for the Nation. Each grant is selected through a rigorous, peer-reviewed process. And due to the large number of grant applications and the limited funds available, many highly-rated grant proposals go unfunded each year. 

—Only 28 percent of Museums for America/Conservation Project Support project 

proposals were funded; 

—Only 15 percent of National Leadership project proposals were funded; 

—Only 15 percent of Sparks Ignition Grants for Museums project proposals were 

funded; 

—Only 46 percent of Native American/Hawaiian Museum Services project proposals were funded; and 
357 

—Only 31 percent of African American History and Culture project proposals were 

funded. 

On a final and personal note, the interviews I conduct with museum professionals 

for my television show have confirmed for me what I’ve known since I was a kid— 

that museums are cool, really cool. If there’s one thing Americans young and old 

love, it’s a good story about America and that’s what museums have to offer. 

American museums do this job and they do it extremely well. They collect the stories by preserving and curating the objects—documents, inventions, clothing, paintings, sculptures and skeletons—which explain who we’ve been, who we are and how 

we survive. 

I was raised outside of Philadelphia. Without museums, I’d have never walked 

through the left ventricle of the super-sized heart in the Ben Franklin Institute. But 

for the Academy of Natural Sciences, I’d have never understood the difference between a stegosaurus and a triceratops. I wouldn’t have had that first encounter with 

Vincent van Gogh at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It’s impossible to imagine my 

childhood without museums or to imagine my adulthood. They’re our lifeline to the 

past—and an inspiration for the future. We hope you’ll support our cause, and provide at least $38.6 million in fiscal year 

2015 for the Office of Museum Services (OMS) at the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), its fully-authorized amount. 

[This statement was submitted by Don Wildman, Host, Travel Channel’s Mysteries at the Museum, American Alliance of Museums.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR DENTAL RESEARCH

On behalf of the 3,500 individual and 44 institutional members of the American 

Association for Dental Research (AADR), I am pleased to submit testimony describing AADR’s fiscal year 2015 requests, which include $32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and $425 million for the National Institute of Dental and 

Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). These funding recommendations represent the true 

needs of the research community while at the same time taking into consideration 

the continued tight budget climate dictated by the caps established by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. I want to emphasize the recent Federal austerity measures—sequestration, government shutdown and the continued uncertainty—had a 

significant impact on our members, universities and research supported via NIDCR. 

In actual dollars, NIDCR lost $23 million in funding in fiscal year 2013 and only 

$10 million was restored in fiscal year 2014. However, when adjusted for inflation, 

the NIDCR budget is 22 percent, or $75 million, less than it was in 2002, resulting 

in the lowest number of research grants awarded in 13 years. This creates an atmosphere that is very discouraging to new scientific investigators whose research 

proposals are good enough to be funded but were not because of the budget cuts. 

We are at risk of losing them and their promising research ideas—ideas that might 

lead to significant advances in dental, oral health and craniofacial health. 

The downward trend in lost purchasing power is particularly troubling because 

the improvements in oral health during the last half century are largely credited 

to research supported by NIDCR. It is therefore reasonable to assume that these 

declines in funding will slow or limit future breakthroughs. NIDCR is the largest 

institution in the world dedicated exclusively to research to improve dental, oral and 

craniofacial health. The health of the mouth and surrounding craniofacial (skull and 

face) structures is central to a person’s overall health and well-being. Left untreated, oral diseases and poor oral conditions go untreated, make it difficult to eat, 

drink, swallow, smile, talk and maintain proper nutrition. Scientists also have discovered important linkages between gum disease, or periodontal disease, and heart 

disease, stroke, diabetes and pancreatic cancer. 

In spite of these improvements, however, treating oral health conditions is costly 

with $110.9 billion in expenditures on dental services in 2012. While tooth decay 

and gum disease remain the most prevalent, complete tooth loss, oral cancer, and 

craniofacial congenital anomalies, like cleft lip and palate are also health and economic burdens to the American people. Moreover, oral health disparities exist for 

many racial and ethnic groups. By providing $425 million in fiscal year 2015, 

NIDCR, dental, oral and craniofacial researchers will be able to build upon the 

gains of the past decades, creating less invasive, cost effective and more efficient 

ways to improve oral health. Below are some examples highlighting the important 

work supported by NIDCR: 

—Point of Care Diagnostics: Salivary diagnostics are measures that draw and 

analyze saliva to test for conditions such as HIV, HPV, substance abuse, caries, 

periodontitis and oral cancer. Through the work and support of NIDCR over the 
358 

last decade, these diagnostics are showing great promise in screening for diabetes, heart disease, lung cancer, ovarian cancer and pancreatic cancer. Salivary 

diagnostics only require withdrawing saliva, unlike traditional methods that 

rely on withdrawing blood or on doing tissue biopsy. As a result, salivary 

diagnostics are less invasive. In addition, they are relatively inexpensive and 

have the potential of showing more immediate results which is particularly beneficial when results are urgently needed. 

—Periodontal Disease: Periodontal or gum disease is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the gum tissue and bone supporting the teeth. Approximately 

47.2 percent of Americans have mild, moderate or severe periodontitis. If left 

untreated, periodontal disease can lead to tooth loss. Research has shown that 

periodontal disease is associated with other chronic inflammatory diseases such 

as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. To date, the prevention of gum disease 

has been limited to successful oral hygiene and regular professional care. Recently, however, scientists reported the discovery of resolvins, a biologically active product that has the potential to protect against soft tissue and bone loss 

associated with gum disease. More research is needed to further intensify efforts to apply the novel biological approach to treating inflammatory diseases. 

—Dental Caries: Dental caries, or tooth decay, remains the most prevalent chronic 

disease in both children and adults resulting in a substantial economic and 

health burden to the American people. Although caries has significantly decreased for most Americans over the past four decades, disparities remain 

among some population groups. In addition, this downward trend has recently 

reversed for young children. More research is needed to enhance efforts to address dental caries. 

—HPV-Related Oral Cancer: This type of cancer is caused by the human 

papillomavirus (HPV). It is predicted that this cancer will be the most common 

HPV-related cancer by 2020. HPV-induced oral cancers among men are likely 

to exceed HPV-induced cervical cancers within the next 8 years. In fact, HPV 

is now causing more oral cancers than smoking. Identifying the presence of 

HPV in a mouth swab or a blood draw does not definitively indicate the impending presence of cancer. As a result, more research is needed for the early detection of HPV-related oral cancer, and for the development of therapies that 

would lead to the prevention of cancer progression. 

—Evidenced-Based Practice: NIDCR recently awarded a seven-year grant that 

consolidates its dental practice-based research network initiative into a unified 

nationally coordinated effort. The consolidated initiative, the National Dental 

Practice Based Research Network (NDPBRN) is headquartered at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry. A dental practice-based research network is an investigative union of practicing dentists and academic scientists. The network provides practitioners with an opportunity to propose or 

participate in research studies that address daily issues in oral healthcare. 

These studies help to expand the profession’s evidence base and further refine 

care. 

—Cleft Lip and/or Cleft Palate—Craniofacial anomalies such as cleft lip and/or 

cleft palate (CLP) are among the most common birth defects. Both genetic and 

environmental factors contribute to oral clefts. Cleft lip is an abnormality in 

which the lip does not completely form during fetal development and cleft palate occurs when the roof of the mouth does not fully close, leaving an opening 

that can extend into the nasal cavity. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) 

of cleft lip and/or cleft palate supported by NIDCR are providing important new 

leads about the role genetic factors and gene-environment interactions play in 

the development of these conditions. In addition, a DNA sequencing study is underway to identify less common genetic variants that influence the risk of developing cleft lip and/or cleft palate. NIDCR will continue to support the best 

science to understand craniofacial structures and anomalies more completely. 

Our members remain concerned that unless Congress fully reverses the erosion 

caused by sequestration our ability to attract the next generation of scientists will 

stall; our standing as a world leader in science will decline; and innovation necessary to push the boundaries of research will be stymied. Accordingly, I strongly 

urge you work in a bipartisan manner to prioritize funding for dental, oral and 

craniofacial research this year and undo sequestration permanently in fiscal year 

2016 and beyond. Future advances in healthcare depend on a sustained investment 

in basic research to identify the fundamental causes and mechanisms of disease, accelerate technological development and discovery, and ensure a robust pipeline of 

creative and skillful biomedical researchers. For these reasons, I implore you to 

work in a bipartisan manner and provide funding increases for NIH and NIDCR in 

fiscal year 2015. 
359 

In addition to the NIH, AADR members care deeply about the Title VII Health 

Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) programs training the dental health 

workforce; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Oral 

Health’s public health prevention efforts; data from the National Center for Health 

Statistics (NCHS) and the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality (AHRQ). 

Please support AADR’s funding recommendations for these agencies depicted in the 

chart below. 

[In millions of dollars] 

Agency Fiscal year 2012 

Fiscal year 2013 Fiscal year 2014 Fiscal year 

2015 PBR 

Fiscal year 

2015 AADR 

NIH ......................................................... 30,702 29,070 30,020 30,220 32,000 

NIDCR ..................................................... 410 .3 386 .8 397 .10 397 .13 425 .0 

NCATS .................................................... 574 .8 542 .1 633 .3 657 .5 657 .5 

AHRQ ...................................................... 405 .1 429 .4 364 334 375 

CDC, Oral Health ................................... 14 .6 13 .8 15 .8 15 .8 19 .0 

CDC, NCHS ............................................. 153 .8 153 .8 155 .3 155 .4 182 

HRSA, Title VII Oral Health .................... 32 .4 30 .7 32 32 32 .4 

[This statement was submitted by Timothy DeRouen, PhD, President, American 

Association for Dental Research.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES OF NURSING

As the national voice for baccalaureate and graduate nursing education, the 

American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) represents 750 schools of nursing that educate over 450,000 students and employ more than 17,000 full-time faculty members. Collectively, these institutions produce approximately half of our Nation’s Registered Nurses (RNs) and all nurse faculty, Advanced Practice Registered 

Nurses (APRNs), and nurse scientists. AACN requests that nursing education, research, and practice are strongly supported in fiscal year 2015 through an investment of $251 million for HRSA’s Nursing Workforce Development programs (authorized under Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. 296 et seq.]), $150 

million for the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) within NIH, and $20 

million in authorized funding for the Nurse-Managed Health Clinics (NMHCs) (Title 

III of the Public Health Service Act). These levels will ensure that our Nation’s 

nurses are prepared to care for the growing number of patients requiring a complex 

range of healthcare services. 

DEMAND FOR NURSING CARE

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) publication Employment Projections for 

2012–2022 anticipates significant growth in the nursing workforce from 2.71 million 

in 2012 to 3.24 million by 2022. This surge in demand translates to 526,800 nurses, 

or an increase of 19.4 percent. When considering the number of job openings for 

RNs due to the increasing demand for nursing care and replacements in an aging 

nursing workforce, more than one million nurses will be needed by 2022. In fact, 

according to the The U.S. Nursing Workforce: Trends in Supply and Education released by HRSA in 2013, over the next 10 to 15 years, the nearly 1 million RNs 

older than age 50—about one-third of the current workforce—will reach retirement 

age. The retirement decisions of these experienced RNs may be influenced by the 

pace of economic recovery and have the potential to create a serious deficit in the 

nursing pipeline. 

Moreover, the BLS projects a need for 47,600 additional Nurse Practitioners, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, and Certified Nurse-Midwives (or APRNs) to 

meet the call for more primary and acute care services, particularly due to the aging 

baby boomer population and increased access to health insurance coverage. The 

BLS’ Occupational Outlook Handbook reported that there will be a 31 percent increase in this sector of the workforce between 2012–2022. Investments are necessary 

to educate the RNs and APRNs who will provide the care that Americans need now 

and in the future. 
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TITLE VIII NURSING WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

For fifty years, the Nursing Workforce Development programs, authorized under 

Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act, have helped build the supply and distribution of qualified nurses to meet our Nation’s healthcare needs. Between fiscal 

year 2006 and 2012 alone, the Title VIII programs supported over 450,000 nurses 

and nursing students, as well as numerous academic nursing institutions and 

healthcare facilities. The programs bolster nursing education at all levels, from 

entry-level preparation through graduate study, and provide support to educate 

nurses for practice in rural and medically underserved communities. Today, the 

Title VIII programs are essential to ensuring that the demand for nursing care is 

met by supporting future practicing nurses and the faculty who educate them. 

However, faculty vacancies have repeatedly been cited as a fundamental obstacle 

to maximizing nursing school enrollment. According to the American Association of 

Colleges of Nursing’s 2013–2014 Enrollment and Graduations in Baccalaureate and 

Graduate Programs in Nursing survey, 78,089 qualified applications were turned 

away from nursing schools in 2013 alone. A primary barrier to accepting all qualified students at nursing colleges and universities continues to be a shortage of faculty. To counter this disparity, the Title VIII Nurse Faculty Loan Program aids in 

increasing nursing school enrollment capacity by supporting students pursuing 

graduate education, provided they serve as faculty for 4 years after graduation. 

The Title VIII programs also increase the number of practicing nurses entering 

the pipeline and the placement of these nurses into medically-underserved areas. 

AACN’s Title VIII Student Recipient Survey, which gathers information annually 

about Title VIII funding and outcomes related to nursing education and career trajectories, provides evidence on the effectiveness of these programs in recruiting more 

students to the nursing profession and, more importantly, practice in rural and underserved areas. Results of the 2013–2014 Title VIII Student Recipient Survey included responses from 850 students who noted that these programs played a critical 

role in funding their nursing education. The survey showed that for 67 percent of 

respondents, Title VIII funding impacted their decision to enter nursing school. 

Moreover, 76 percent of the students receiving Title VIII funding are able to attend 

school full-time through this Federal support. By facilitating full-time education, the 

Title VIII programs are helping to ensure that students enter the workforce without 

delay. In addition, personal testimony of several survey respondents revealed that 

many Title VIII recipients intend to practice in the community in which they were 

educated—a direct State investment. AACN respectfully requests $251 million for 

the Nursing Workforce Development programs authorized under Title VIII of the 

Public Health Service Act in fiscal year 2015. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NURSING RESEARCH: ADVANCING NURSING SCIENCE

The healthcare community is investigating methods to improve the delivery of 

high-quality care in a financially sustainable manner. As one of the 27 Institutes 

and Centers at the NIH, the NINR is dedicated to providing the healthcare workforce with evidence-based knowledge and the resources needed to accomplish this 

goal. Research conducted at NINR addresses disease prevention and health promotion efforts that improve quality of life and alleviate financial burden on individuals and the system. Specific areas targeted by NINR include chronic illness management, disease prevention, pain management, and care-giver support. Nursing research is a critical compliment to biomedical research as it investigates how to prevent disease and promote healthy living. Moreover, research funded at NINR helps 

to integrate biology and behavior as well as design new technology and tools. At a 

time when healthcare needs are changing, nursing care must be firmly grounded in 

nursing science. 

NINR also allocates a generous 6 percent of its overall budget to the education 

and training of nurse researchers, many of whom dually serve as nurse faculty within our Nation’s nursing schools. Increased investments must be made in the scientists that improve healthcare delivery through their groundbreaking discoveries. 

AACN respectfully requests $150 million for the NINR in fiscal year 2015. 

NURSE-MANAGED HEALTH CLINICS: EXPANDING ACCESS TO CARE

Managed by APRNs and staffed by an interdisciplinary health provider team, 

NMHCs provide necessary primary care services to medically-underserved communities and serve as critical access points to keep patients out of the emergency room, 

saving the healthcare system millions of dollars annually. NMHCs provide care to 

vulnerable populations in a host of regions of the country, including rural communities, Native American reservations, senior citizen centers, elementary schools, and 
361 

urban housing developments. These communities are the most susceptible to developing chronic illnesses that create heavy financial burdens on patients and the 

healthcare system. NMHCs aim to reduce disease and create healthier communities 

through improved patient education and health practices. 

Often associated with a school, college, university, department of nursing, federally qualified health center, or independent nonprofit healthcare agency, NMHCs 

also serve as clinical education training sites for students of nursing, medicine, 

physical therapy, social work, and ancillary healthcare services. Moreover, by serving as clinical training sites, NMHCs help foster interprofessional education and 

practice so that patients receive individualized care from an array of providers. According to AACN, the lack of clinical training sites is often pointed to as a top reason for turning away qualified applications in nursing programs. AACN respectfully 

requests $20 million for the Nurse-Managed Health Clinics in fiscal year 2015. 

AACN recognizes that the Subcommittee and Congress will need to make difficult 

decisions regarding appropriations for fiscal year 2015. AACN respectfully requests 

Congress to continue a strong investment in the health of our Nation by providing 

$251 million for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs, $150 million for the National Institute of Nursing Research, and $20 million for Nurse-Managed Health Clinics in fiscal year 2015. If you have any questions, or if AACN can 

be of assistance, please contact AACN’s Director of Government Affairs and Health 

Policy, Dr. Suzanne Miyamoto, at Smiyamoto@aacn.nche.edu. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES OF

OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE

The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) strongly 

supports restoring funding for discretionary Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) programs to the fiscal year 2010 level of $7.48 billion; funding of 

$520 million for HRSA’s Title VII and VIII programs under the Public Health Service Act; $10 million minimally for the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical 

Education (THCGME) Development Grants; sustainment of student scholarship and 

loan repayment programs; $4 million for the Rural Physician Training grants; $3 

million for the National Health Care Workforce Commission; $32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH); and $375 million in base discretionary funding, 

restoring the base to fiscal year 2011 levels for the Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality (AHRQ). 

AACOM represents the 30 accredited colleges of osteopathic medicine in the 

United States. These colleges are accredited to deliver instruction at 42 teaching locations in 28 States. In the 2013–2014 academic year these colleges are educating 

over 23,000 future physicians—more than 20 percent of U.S. medical students. Six 

of the colleges are publicly controlled; 24 are private institutions. 

The Title VII health professions education programs, authorized under the Public 

Health Service Act and administered through HRSA, support the training and education of health practitioners to enhance the supply, diversity, and distribution of 

the healthcare workforce, acting as an essential part of the healthcare safety net 

and filling the gaps in the supply of health professionals not met by traditional market forces. Title VII and Title VIII nurse education programs are the only Federal 

programs designed to train clinicians in interdisciplinary settings to meet the needs 

of special and underserved populations, as well as increase minority representation 

in the healthcare workforce. 

As demand for health professionals increase in the face of impending shortages 

combined with faculty shortages across health professions disciplines, racial and 

ethnic disparities in healthcare, a growing, aging population, and the anticipated demand for increased access to care, these needs strain an already fragile healthcare 

system. AACOM appreciates the investments that have been made in these programs, and we urge the Subcommittee to fund $520 million for the Title VII and 

VIII programs to include support for the following programs in order to include: the 

Primary Care Training and Enhancement (PCTE) Program, the Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP), the Centers of Excellence (COE), the Geriatric Education Centers (GECs) and the Area Health Education Centers (AHECs). We strongly oppose the Administration’s proposals to eliminate funding for AHECs and the 

HCOP. 

AACOM has serious concerns with the Administration’s budget request that 

would cut nearly $15 billion from Medicare graduate medical education (GME). Because GME funding is critical to addressing the existing physician workforce shortage and ensuring patient access to our Nation’s healthcare, AACOM believes that 

current GME funding should not be sacrificed and simply shifted to other healthcare 
362 

workforce programs of importance. Instead, additional investments in GME are critical to an already insufficiently-funded system. 

AACOM strongly supports the continuation of the THCGME Program, which provides funding to support primary care medical and dental residents training in community-based settings. THCs currently train more than 350 medical and dental residents and are providing more than 700,000 primary care visits in underserved rural 

and urban communities. This program will also provide long-term benefits. According to the HRSA, physicians who train in THCs are three times more likely to work 

in such centers and more than twice as likely to work in underserved areas as physicians who train in other settings. The THCGME Program’s 5-year authorization 

expires in fiscal year 2015, but the recruitment of new residents is being impacted 

now. We support an investment of $10 million in fiscal year 2015 for development 

grants minimally. 

Through scholarships and loan repayment, the National Health Service Corps 

(NHSC) supports the recruitment and retention of primary care clinicians to practice in underserved communities. Approximately 50 million Americans live in communities with a shortage of health professionals, lacking adequate access to primary 

care. The self-reported average medical education debt of graduates of colleges of 

osteopathic medicine who borrowed to attend medical school has increased by almost $85,000 in the last decade. Today, there are more than 23,000 students enrolled at osteopathic medical schools across the Nation. Recent graduates report 

graduating with an average medical education debt of $211,423. 

Today, there are nearly 8,900 NHSC members providing culturally competent care 

to more than 9.3 million people. Care is provided at 5,100 NHSC-approved 

healthcare sites in urban, rural, and frontier areas. In addition to Corps providers 

currently providing care, nearly 1,100 students, residents, and health providers receive scholarships or participate in the Student to Service Loan Repayment program 

to prepare to practice, which provides loan repayment assistance to medical students in their last year of education in return for their commitment to practice. 

AACOM appreciates the Administration’s continued investment in the NHSC and 

strongly supports the preservation of student scholarship and loan repayment programs. Furthermore, we encourage congressional authorizers and appropriators to 

work together before current mandatory funding for the NHSC expires at the end 

of fiscal year 2015. This critical funding works to address the primary care workforce shortage and advances innovative models of service. 

HRSA’s Rural Physician Training grants will help rural-focused training programs recruit and graduate students most likely to practice medicine in underserved rural communities. HRSA’s Office of Rural Health Policy analyzes potential 

effects of policy on residents of rural communities and administers grant programs 

designed to build healthcare capacity at both the local and State levels. Health professions workforce shortages are exacerbated in rural areas, where communities 

struggle to attract and keep well-trained providers. According to HRSA, approximately 65 percent of primary care health professional shortage areas are rural. 

AACOM supports the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request of $4 million for 

the Rural Physician Training grants. 

The National Health Care Workforce Commission was designed to develop and 

evaluate training activities to meet demand for healthcare workers. Without funding, the Commission cannot identify barriers that may create and exacerbate workforce shortages and improve coordination on the Federal, State, and local levels. 

Having this type of coordinating body in place is becoming more critical as more 

Americans have insurance coverage and as the population ages, requiring access to 

care. As the United States struggles to address healthcare provider shortages in certain specialties and in rural and underserved areas, the country lacks a defined policy to address these critical. For these reasons, AACOM recommends that $3 million 

be appropriated to fund the Commission so it can begin its important work. 

Research funded by the NIH leads to important medical discoveries regarding the 

causes, treatments, and cures for common and rare diseases, as well as disease prevention. These efforts improve our Nation’s health and save lives. To maintain a robust research agenda, further investment will be needed. AACOM recommends $32 

billion for the NIH. 

In today’s increasingly demanding and evolving medical curriculum, there is a 

critical need for more research geared toward evidence-based osteopathic medicine. 

AACOM believes that it is vitally important to maintain and increase funding for 

biomedical and clinical research in a variety of areas related to osteopathic principles and practice, including osteopathic manipulative medicine and comparative 

effectiveness. In this regard, AACOM encourages support for the NIH’s National 

Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) to continue fulfilling 

this essential research role. 
363 

1 After a highly competitive peer review process, which includes comprehensive review by panels of extramural scientists, NIH awards more than 80 percent of its ∼$30.1 billion budget to 

‘‘more than 300,000 researchers at more than 2,500 universities, medical schools, and other research institutions in every State and around the world.’’ About 10 percent of its budget supports the work of the approximately 6,000 scientists who work in NIH’s own laboratories. (http:// 

www.nih.gov/about/budget.htm). 2 AAI is concerned that a Federal policy limits government scientists’ ability to attend privately sponsored scientific meetings and conferences. (See http://www.hhs.gov/travel/policies/ 

2012lpolicylmanual.pdf AAI believes that ‘‘the rules have had an unintended and deleterious 

effect... [and] made government scientists feel cut off from the rest of the scientific community, wreaked havoc with their ability to fulfill professional commitments, and undermined the 

morale of some of the government’s finest minds.’’ Testimony (Amended) of Lauren G. Gross, 

J.D., on behalf of The American Association of Immunologists (AAI), Submitted to the Senate 

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for the Hearing Record of January 14, 

2014: ‘‘Examining Conference and Travel Spending Across the Federal Government’’ (http:// 

aai.org/PubliclAffairs/Docs/2014/AAIlTestimonyltolSenatelHSGACl01142014.pdf). 3The Biomedical Research and Development Price Index (BRDPI) ‘‘is developed each year for 

NIH by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department of Commerce. It reflects the increase in prices of the resources needed to conduct biomedical research, including personnel, 

services, supplies, and equipment. It indicates how much the NIH budget must change to maintain purchasing power.’’ Johnson, Judith A., ‘‘A History of NIH Funding: Fact Sheet,’’ Congressional Research Service, R43341, p. 2 (2014). 

AHRQ supports research to improve healthcare quality, reduce costs, advance patient safety, decrease medical errors, and broaden access to essential services. 

AHRQ plays an important role in producing the evidence base needed to improve 

our Nation’s health and healthcare. The incremental increases for AHRQ’s Patient 

Centered Health Research Program in recent years will help AHRQ generate more 

of this research and expand the infrastructure needed to increase capacity to 

produce this evidence; however, more investment is needed. AACOM recommends 

$375 million in base discretionary funding, restoring the base to fiscal year 2011 

levels for the AHRQ. This investment will preserve AHRQ’s current programs while 

helping to restore its critical healthcare safety, quality, and efficiency initiatives. 

AACOM is grateful for the opportunity to submit its views and looks forward to 

continuing to work with the Subcommittee on these important matters. 

[This statement was submitted by Stephen C. Shannon, D.O., M.P.H., President 

and Chief Executive Officer, American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF IMMUNOLOGISTS

The American Association of Immunologists (AAI), the world’s largest professional 

society of research scientists and physicians who study the immune system, respectfully submits this testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). AAI recommends an appropriation of at least $32 

billion for NIH for fiscal year 2015 to support important ongoing research, fund a 

reasonable number of outstanding new grant applications, and restore NIH funding 

to a level that can sustain a robust and dynamic biomedical research enterprise in 

the United States. 

NIH’S CRUCIAL ROLE IN ADVANCING BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH

NIH is essential to the advancement of biomedical research in the United States, 

where virtually all biomedical scientists rely on NIH leadership and funding.1 Academic scientists, many of whom conduct research while teaching the next generation 

of doctors and scientists, depend on NIH grants to support their research at universities, colleges and research institutions all around the country. NIH intramural scientists require funding to do their own research as well as collaborate with their 

private sector colleagues.2 And scientists employed by industry, who generally do 

not receive NIH grants or awards, depend on NIH-funded scientific discoveries to 

develop products that bring research to the bedside. A strong NIH budget, therefore, 

is essential to all sectors of the U.S. biomedical research enterprise, and has enabled 

NIH to remain the key international leader influencing biomedical research around 

the globe. 

NIH BUDGET WOES SLOW RESEARCH AND THREATEN U.S. PREEMINENCE

The slow growth of the NIH budget in recent years, exacerbated by the impact 

of biomedical research inflation,3 has significantly reduced NIH’s purchasing power, 

and in turn, the purchasing power of its grantees. According to the Congressional 

Research Service (CRS), ‘‘[i]n constant 2003 dollars, fiscal year 2014 funding is 22 
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4 Ibid. 

5 NIH should robustly fund and primarily rely on individual investigator-initiated research, 

in which researchers working in institutions across the Nation submit applications to, and following independent peer review, receive grants from, NIH. Biomedical innovation and discovery 

are less likely to be achieved through ‘‘top-down’’ science, in which the government specifies the 

type of research it wishes to fund. 6 Couzin-Frankel, Jennifer. ‘‘Cancer Immunotherapy.’’ Science 342.6165 (2013): 1432–433. 

7Wolchok, J. D. et al. ‘‘Nivolumab plus Ipilimumab in Advanced Melanoma.’’ N Engl J Med 

369.2 (2013): 122–33. 8Deborah, Persaud et al. ‘‘Absence of Detectable HIV–1 Viremia after Treatment Cessation 

in an Infant.’’ N Engl J Med 369 (2013): 1828–835. 9 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, March 3—6, 2014, Boston, MA 

(http://www. croi2014.org/) (See also http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/health/second-successraises-hope-for-a-way-to-rid-babies-of-hiv.html). 10 A clinical trial following 60 babies born infected with HIV and being treated with 

antiretroviral medication will begin soon. (See http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/health/secondsuccess-raises-hope-for-a-way-to-rid-babies-of-hiv.html) A second study found that adult HIV-infected patients who were treated with ART within 4 months of infection display significantly 

percent lower than the fiscal year 2003 level.’’ 4 How many avenues of research have 

not been followed because of this reduction? How many potential treatments and 

cures have been delayed or not discovered? These are questions that cannot be answered definitively, but we do know that NIH budget reductions have already 

caused real and lasting damage: the loss of grant funding, even among the most 

highly qualified scientists; the closure of labs; the termination or interruption of important research; and the emigration of talented scientists to other countries. And 

we do know that many scientists are spending too much time in a constant chase 

for funding, rather than conducting research and mentoring the Nation’s future researchers, inventors and innovators. These budget woes threaten America’s preeminence in advancing basic biomedical research, discovering urgently needed treatments and cures, and ‘‘growing’’ brilliant young scientists. 

RESEARCH ON THE IMMUNE SYSTEM: ESSENTIAL TO OUR HEALTH, CRUCIAL TO OUR

FUTURE

The immune system is the body’s primary defense against viruses, bacteria, and 

parasites that cause disease in millions of people every year. When the immune system is operating properly, it provides powerful protection against a wide variety of 

illnesses, including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and cardiovascular disease. The immune system can, however, perform poorly, leaving the body vulnerable to infections, including influenza, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and the common cold. 

It can also become overactive, damaging normal organs and tissues, and causing 

autoimmune diseases, such as allergy, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, lupus, 

multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and type 1 diabetes. Research scientists and 

clinicians are working to harness this powerful system to protect people and animals from infectious diseases, cancer, and many other illnesses, and to protect 

against natural or man-made infectious organisms (including plague, smallpox and 

anthrax) that could be used for bioterrorism.5

RECENT IMMUNOLOGICAL ADVANCES AND THEIR PROMISE FOR TOMORROW

1. Cancer Immunotherapies: Offering Hope of Conquering Cancer 

NIH-funded scientists recently identified inhibitory receptors which suppress immune cell activation. Blocking these receptors can allow the immune system to destroy tumor cells.6 Today, therapeutics targeted against inhibitory receptors like 

CTLA4 are undergoing rigorous clinical trials against a variety of cancers. The success rates for these therapies have been astounding and unprecedented: for example, 

rates of tumor regression in patients with metastatic melanoma have increased from 

∼10 percent to ∼50 percent.7 With this level of success, immunotherapy is one of the 

most exciting and promising areas of cancer treatment. 

2. Early Antiretroviral Therapy: Eliminating HIV, Ending AIDS? 

NIH-funded researchers have discovered that early administration of antiviral 

medication, known as anti-retroviral therapy (ART), can have lasting effects on an 

HIV-infected patient’s long-term prognosis. In one study,8 an infant born to an HIVinfected mother began receiving ART within hours of birth. The infant tested positive for HIV and continued treatment for 18 months. Despite the HIV diagnosis and 

subsequent discontinuation of ART, the child remained virus-free 1 year later. A 

second baby with a similar history also showed an absence of HIV.9 Together with 

several additional unconfirmed cases of babies ‘‘cured’’ of HIV infection, these findings offer hope to the ∼250,000 babies born each year infected with HIV.10
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improved response to treatment. [See Le, Tuan, et al. ‘‘Enhanced CD4∂ T-Cell Recovery with 

Earlier HIV–1 Antiretroviral Therapy.’’ N Engl J Med 368 (2013): 218–30]. 11Sorini, C., and M. Falcone. ‘‘Shaping the (auto)immune Response in the Gut: The Role of 

Intestinal Immune Regulation in the Prevention of Type 1 Diabetes.’’ Am J Clin Exp Immunol 

2.2 (2013): 156–71. 12 Infectious Diseases Society of America. ‘‘Fecal Transplant pill knocks out recurrent C. diff 

infection,’’ Science Daily (2013) (See http://www.cdc.gov/hai/organisms/cdiff/cdifflinfect.html). 13 Couzin-Frankel, Jennifer. ‘‘Cancer Immunotherapy.’’ Science 342.6165 (2013): 1432–433. 14McLellan, J. S. et al. ‘‘Structure of RSV Fusion Glycoprotein Trimer Bound to a Pre-fusion 

Specific Neutralizing Antibody.’’ Science 340.6136 (2013): 1113–117. 15McLellan, J. S. et al. ‘‘Structure-Based Design of a Fusion Glycoprotein Vaccine for Respiratory Syncytial Virus.’’ Science 342.6158 (2013): 592–98. 

3. Gut (Intestinal) Bacteria: The Microbiome Role in Autoimmune Disease 

NIH-funded research has shown that gut bacteria (the intestinal ‘‘microbiome’’), 

which aid in food digestion, may impact the development of autoimmune diseases, 

including rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and inflammatory 

bowel disorders.11 Current research is exploring changes in gut bacteria from diet, 

hormones, antibiotics, and infections, and the effect of gut bacteria based therapeutics [for example, the ingestion of healthy gut bacteria (probiotics) in yogurt]. 

One study involving fecal transplantation (which includes the transfer of intestinal 

bacteria from one person to another) has found that such transplantation in pill 

form is well tolerated and is 98–100 percent efficacious in curing infections with 

Clostridium difficile, a bacterium linked to ∼14,000 diarrheal deaths in the U.S. per 

year.12

4. RSV Vaccine: Saving Infants’ Lives 

Millions of infants are hospitalized and 160,000 children die each year each from 

pneumonia and other lung diseases caused by respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).13

Until recently, however, a vaccine for RSV has been elusive. In an important breakthrough, scientists at the NIH discovered antibodies—protective molecules produced 

by the immune system—that helped identify a key protein for use in vaccine development.14 The NIH scientists were then able to engineer this protein and demonstrate its ability to produce a strong protective immune response against RSV in 

animals.15 This molecule is expected to be ready soon for testing in humans. Importantly, the approach developed in this case can be applied to vaccine design for numerous other viruses, such as HIV, hepatitis C, dengue, and West Nile viruses, that 

have evaded the body’s protective immune responses, and will provide insight into 

how viruses evade the immune system. 

CONCLUSION

AAI thanks the members and staff of the subcommittee for their ongoing, strong 

bipartisan support for biomedical research, and recommends an appropriation of at 

least $32 billion for NIH for fiscal year 2015 to fund important ongoing research, 

strengthen the biomedical research enterprise, and ensure that the brightest scientists, trainees, and students are able to pursue careers in biomedical research in 

the United States. 

[This statement was submitted by Elizabeth J. Kovacs, Ph.D., American Association of Immunologists.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSE ANESTHETISTS

FISCAL YEAR 2015 APPROPRIATIONS REQUEST SUMMARY 

[Dollars in millions] 

Fiscal year 2013 

actual 

Fiscal year 2014 

enacted 

AANA fiscal year 2015 

request 

HHS/HRSA/BHPr Title 8 Advanced Education Nursing, 

Nurse Anesthetist Education Reserve.

$2.25 $2.25 $4 million for nurse 

anesthesia education 

Total for Advanced Education Nursing, from Title 8 ......... 59.4 61.581 83.925 million for advanced 

education nursing 

Title 8 HRSA BHPr Nursing Education Programs ............... 220.4 223.841 251 

About the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) 
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The AANA is the professional association for more than 47,000 CRNAs and student nurse anesthetists, representing over 90 percent of the nurse anesthetists in 

the United States. Today, CRNAs deliver approximately 34 million anesthetics to 

patients each year in the U.S. CRNA services include administering the anesthetic, 

monitoring the patient’s vital signs, staying with the patient throughout the surgery, and providing acute and chronic pain management services. CRNAs provide 

anesthesia for a wide variety of surgical cases and in some States are the sole anesthesia providers in almost 100 percent of rural hospitals, affording these medical facilities obstetrical, surgical, and trauma stabilization, and pain management capabilities. CRNAs work in every setting in which anesthesia is delivered, including 

hospital surgical suites and obstetrical delivery rooms, ambulatory surgical centers 

(ASCs), pain management units and the offices of dentists, podiatrists and plastic 

surgeons. 

Nurse anesthetists are experienced and highly trained anesthesia professionals 

whose record of patient safety is underscored by scientific research findings. The 

landmark Institute of Medicine report To Err is Human found in 2000 that anesthesia was 50 times safer then than in the 1980s. (Kohn L, Corrigan J, Donaldson 

M, ed. To Err is Human. Institute of Medicine, National Academy Press, Washington DC, 2000.) Though many studies have demonstrated the high quality of 

nurse anesthesia care, the results of a new study published in Health Affairs led 

researchers to recommend that costly and duplicative supervision requirements for 

CRNAs be eliminated. Examining Medicare records from 1999–2005, the study compared anesthesia outcomes in 14 States that opted-out of the Medicare physician supervision requirement for CRNAs with those that did not opt out. (To date, 17 

States have opted-out.) The researchers found that anesthesia has continued to grow 

more safe in opt-out and non-opt-out States alike. (Dulisse B, Cromwell J. No Harm 

Found When Nurse Anesthetists Work Without Supervision By Physicians. Health 

Aff. 2010;29(8):1469–1475.) 

CRNAs provide the lion’s share of anesthesia care required by our U.S. Armed 

Forces through active duty and the reserves, staffing ships, remote U.S. military 

bases, and forward surgical teams without physician anesthesiologist support. In addition, CRNAs predominate in rural and medically underserved areas, and where 

more Medicare patients live (Government Accountability Office. Medicare and private payment differences for anesthesia services. GAO–07–463, Washington DC, 

Jul. 27, 2007. http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO–07–463). 

Importance of and Request for HRSA Title 8 Nurse Anesthesia Education Funding Our profession’s chief request of the Subcommittee is for $4 million to be reserved for nurse anesthesia education and $83.925 million for advanced education nursing 

from the HRSA Title 8 program, out of a total Title 8 budget of $251 million. We 

request that the Report accompanying the fiscal year 2014 Labor-HHS-Education 

Appropriations bill include the following language: ‘‘Within the allocation, the Committee encourages HRSA to allocate funding at least at the fiscal year 2014 level 

for nurse anesthetist education.’’ This funding request is justified by the safety and 

value proposition of nurse anesthesia, and by anticipated growth in demand for 

CRNA services as baby boomers retire, become Medicare eligible, and require more 

healthcare services. In making this request, we associate ourselves with the request 

made by The Nursing Community with respect to Title 8 and the National Institute 

of Nursing Research (NINR) at the National Institutes of Health. 

The Title 8 program, on which we will focus our testimony, is strongly supported 

by members of this Subcommittee in the past, and is an effective means to help address nurse anesthesia workforce demand. In expectation for dramatic growth in the 

number of U.S. retirees and their healthcare needs, funding the advanced education 

nursing program at $83.925 million is necessary to meet the continuing demand for 

nursing faculty and other advanced education nursing services throughout the U.S.,. 

The program funds competitive grants that help enhance advanced nursing education and practice, and traineeships for individuals in advanced nursing education 

programs. It also targets resources toward increasing the number of providers in 

rural and underserved America and preparing providers at the master’s and doctoral levels, thus increasing the supply of clinicians eligible to serve as nursing faculty, a critical need. 

Demand remains high for CRNA workforce in clinical and educational settings. 

A 2007 AANA nurse anesthesia workforce study found a 12.6 percent CRNA vacancy rate in hospitals and a 12.5 percent faculty vacancy rate. The supply of clinical providers has increased in recent years, stimulated by increases in the number 

of CRNAs trained. From 2002–2012, the annual number of nurse anesthesia educational program graduates increased from 1,362 to 2,469, according to the Council 

on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA). The number of 
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accredited nurse anesthesia educational programs grew from 85 to 114. We anticipate increased demand for anesthesia services as the population ages, the number 

of clinical sites requiring anesthesia services grows, and a portion of the CRNA 

workforce retires. 

The capacity of our 114 nurse anesthesia educational programs to educate qualified applicants is limited by the number of faculty, the number and characteristics 

of clinical practice educational sites, and other factors—and they continue turning 

away hundreds of qualified applicants. A qualified applicant to a CRNA program is 

a bachelor’s educated registered nurse who has spent at least 1 year serving in an 

acute care healthcare practice environment. They are prepared in nurse anesthesia 

educational programs located all across the country, including Arkansas, California, 

Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Ohio, and Tennessee. To 

meet the nurse anesthesia workforce challenge, the capacity and number of CRNA 

schools must continue to grow and modernize with the latest advancements in simulation technology and distance learning consistent with improving educational 

quality and supplying demand for highly qualified providers. With the help of competitively awarded grants supported by Title 8 funding, the nurse anesthesia profession is making significant progress, but more is required. 

This progress is extremely cost-effective from the standpoint of Federal funding. 

Anesthesia can be provided by nurse anesthetists, physician anesthesiologists, or by 

CRNAs and anesthesiologists working together. Of these, the nurse anesthesia practice model is by far the most cost-effective, and ensures patient safety. (Hogan P 

et al. Cost effectiveness analysis of anesthesia providers. Nursing Economic$, Vol. 

28 No. 3, May–June 2010, p. 159 et seq.) Nurse anesthesia education represents a 

significant educational cost-benefit for competitively awarded Federal funding in 

support of CRNA educational programs. 

Support for Safe Injection Practices and the Alliance for Injection Safety 

As a leader in patient safety, the AANA has been playing a vigorous role in the 

development and projects of the Alliance for Injection Safety, intended to reduce and 

eventually eliminate the incidence of healthcare facility acquired infections. In the 

interest of promoting safe injection practice, and reducing the incidence of 

healthcare facility acquired infections, we associate ourselves with the AIS recommendation. 

Support Effective Implementation of Provider Non-Discrimination 

AANA applauds the Committee for including report language in its fiscal year 

2014 bill directing the Administration to implement the provision in a manner consistent with its intent, to promote competition, quality and choice in a way that supports access and controls costs. 

The AANA is firmly committed to supporting competition, access and choice within the healthcare delivery system and has been working to ensure effective implementation of the Federal provider nondiscrimination provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). This provision, which prohibits health plans 

from discriminating against qualified licensed healthcare professionals solely on the 

basis of their licensure, went into effect on January 1, 2014. 

Proper implementation of the ACA provider nondiscrimination provision is crucial 

because health plans today may discriminate against whole classes of healthcare 

professionals based solely on their licensure or certification, limiting or denying patient choice and access to beneficial, safe and cost-efficient healthcare professionals, 

impairing competition, patient access to care, and optimal healthcare delivery. For 

example, a commercial carrier in South Carolina stated in its policy manual that 

it will not reimburse CRNAs for monitored anesthesia care (MAC), but that it will 

pay anesthesiologists for these same services. Not only does such a policy impair patient access to care provided by CRNAs; it expressly impairs competition and choice 

and contributes to unjustifiably higher healthcare costs without improving quality 

or access to care. 

The AANA urges the committee to include the following report language with the 

House Appropriation, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies 

Subcommittee legislation. The Committee directs HHS to continue its work with the 

Departments of Labor and Treasury to implement the provider non discrimination 

law to reflect the original Congressional intent of the provision. 

[This statement was submitted by Dennis Bless, CRNA, MS, President, American 

Association of Nurse Anesthetists.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF NURSE PRACTITIONERS

On behalf of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), the largest 

full service professional organization representing the 189,000 nurse practitioners 
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across the country, we would like to submit the below noted funding requests for 

fiscal year 2015. Nurse Practitioners (NPs) have been providing primary, acute, and 

specialty healthcare to patients of all ages for nearly half a century. As you know, 

in addition to treating acute and chronic illnesses of patients coming to them for 

care, they emphasize health promotion and disease prevention in all their undertakings. This includes assessments, ordering, performing, supervising and interpreting diagnostic and laboratory tests, making diagnoses, initiating and managing 

treatment which includes prescribing medications as well as non-pharmacologic 

treatments, counselling and educating patients, their families and communities. 

They are the healthcare providers of choice for millions of patients; in fact last year 

they conducted over 900 million patient visits across the Nation. 

The vast majority of nurse practitioners throughout the United States are primary care providers. Eighty 8 percent are prepared to be primary care clinicians 

and nearly seventy percent are currently practicing in a primary care setting. As 

clinicians that blend clinical expertise in diagnosing and treating health conditions 

with an added emphasis on disease prevention and health promotion, NPs bring a 

comprehensive perspective to healthcare that enhances health and well-being among 

their patients. Given the demand for primary care providers, NPs are and will continue to fill a critical role in the American healthcare system. Likewise the need to 

create and fund more nurse managed clinics is critical. As the need for primary care 

services grows, funding such clinics becomes increasingly necessary. The need to 

adequately prepare nurse practitioners and facilitate the high quality outcomes of 

these clinics is clear. Equally clear is the need for funding assistance to nurse practitioner educational programs, students and nurse managed clinics. We are anxious 

to include among our ranks, students who would not be able to enter our programs 

without assistance as well as clinic sites that serve as clinical education sites and 

meet the unmet healthcare needs of a wide variety of populations throughout the 

country. Therefore we ask that at the very least the following funding be appropriated: 

For fiscal year 2015, AANP respectfully requests $251 million for the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Nursing Workforce Development programs (authorized under Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. 296 

et seq.]), $150 million for the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) within 

the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and $20 million in authorized funding for 

the Nurse-Managed Health Clinics (Title III of the Public Health Service Act). These 

investments made through the appropriation process will help to ensure that our 

Nation’s population receives high quality, cost effective healthcare. 

AANP would like to work closely with the committee on areas of common interest. 

We are happy to serve as a resource to the committee as you make decisions about 

these investments. We thank you for the opportunity to share our concerns with you 

and look forward to continuing to work with you and your staff on issues affecting 

our profession. Please contact AANP’s Federal Government Affairs department at: 

governmentaffairs@aanp.org should you have any questions or need further information. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN CONGRESS OF OBSTETRICIANS AND

GYNECOLOGISTS

The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), representing 

58,000 physicians and partners in women’s healthcare, is pleased to offer this statement to the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Labor, Health 

and Human Services, and Education. We thank Chairman Harkin, and the entire 

Subcommittee for the opportunity to provide comments on some of the most important programs to women’s health. 

Today, the U.S. lags behind many other Nations in healthy births. ACOG’s Making Obstetrics and Maternity Safer (MOMS) Initiative would help improve maternal 

and infant health through Federal research investments, including comprehensive 

data collection and surveillance, biomedical research, and translating research into 

evidence-based care for women and babies. We urge you to make funding of the following programs and agencies a top priority in fiscal year 2015. 

Data Collection and Surveillance at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

(CDC) 

In order to conduct robust research, uniform, accurate and comprehensive data 

and surveillance are critical. The National Center for Health Statistics is the Nation’s principal health statistics agency and collects State data from records like 

birth certificates that give us raw, vital statistics. Information from birth and death 
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certificates is key to gathering vital information about both mother and baby during 

pregnancy and labor and delivery. Uniform, accurate data collection depends on all 

States and territories using electronic birth and death records based on the 2003 

US-standard birth and death certificates, yet 4 States are still not using the electronic birth registries and 12 States are still not using the electronic death registries. 

States not using the standard records likely underreport maternal and infant 

deaths and complications from childbirth; causes of these deaths remain unknown. 

Previous appropriations have helped increase the number of States using electronic 

birth and death registries, but NCHS needs increased resources to help enroll the 

remaining States, and to improve the accuracy of birth and death data, including 

through linking data from Electronic Health Records to State vital records systems. 

For fiscal year 2015, ACOG requests $182 million for the National Center for Health 

Statistics, $5 million of which we urge you to designate to modernize the National 

Vitals Statistics System, helping States update their birth and death records systems. 

The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) at CDC extends beyond vital statistics and surveys new mothers on their experiences and attitudes 

during pregnancy, with questions on a range of topics, including what their insurance covered, whether they had stressful experiences during pregnancy, when they 

initiated prenatal care, and what kinds of questions their doctor covered during prenatal care visits. By identifying trends and patterns in maternal health, CDC researchers and State health departments are better able to identify behaviors and 

environmental and health conditions that may lead to preterm births. Only 40 

States use the PRAMS surveillance system today. ACOG requests adequate funding 

to expand PRAMS to all U.S. States and territories. 

Biomedical Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

Biomedical research is critically important to understanding the causes of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity, and developing effective interventions to 

lower the incidence of mortality and morbidity. The National Institute on Child 

Health and Human Development’s (NICHD’s) 2012 Scientific Vision identified the 

most promising research opportunities for the next decade. Goals include determining the complex causes of prematurity and developing evidence-based measures 

for its prevention within the next 10 years, understanding the long term health implications of assisted reproductive technology, and understanding the role of the placenta in fetal health outcomes. The placenta, one of the least studied human organs, 

is essential to the viability and proper growth of the fetus. NICHD’s Human Placenta Project will help discover the causes of placental failures, and ultimately ways 

to prevent failure and improve maternal and fetal birth outcomes. 

Another major issue that merits attention is that of clinical trials involving pregnant women. Pregnant women have historically been excluded from most research 

trials due to concern that trial participation could harm the fetus. Although there 

has been substantial progress in the inclusion of women in federally funded research, pregnant women are still excluded, even from research that would advance 

our knowledge of medical conditions and treatments in pregnancy. Mindful of the 

important considerations of clinical trials on pregnant women, we support establishment of a Federal work group to propose how clinical research might be done appropriately in this area. 

Adequate levels of research require a robust research workforce. The years of 

training combined with uncertainty in getting grant funding are huge disincentives 

for students considering a career in bio-medical research. This has resulted in a 

huge gap between the too-few women’s reproductive health researchers being 

trained and the immense need for research. We urge continued investments in the 

Women’s Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) Career Development program, Reproductive Scientist Development Program (RSDP), and the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) programs to address the 

shortfall of women’s reproductive health researchers. ACOG supports a minimum of 

$32 billion for NIH and $1.37 billion within that funding request for NICHD in fiscal year 2015. 

Public Health Programs at the Health Resources and Services Administration 

(HRSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): 

Projects at HRSA and CDC are integral to translating research findings into evidence-based practice changes in communities. Where NIH conducts research to identify causes of maternal and infant mortality and morbidity, CDC and HRSA help 

ensure those research findings lead to improved maternal and infant health outcomes. 
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Maternal Child Health Block Grant (HRSA): The Maternal Child Health Block 

Grant at HRSA is the only Federal program that exclusively focuses on improving 

the health of mothers and children. State and territorial health agencies and their 

partners use MCH Block Grant funds to reduce infant mortality, deliver services to 

children and youth with special healthcare needs, support comprehensive prenatal 

and postnatal care, screen newborns for genetic and hereditary health conditions, 

deliver childhood immunizations, and prevent childhood injuries. 

These early healthcare services help keep women and children healthy, eliminating the need for later costly care. Every $1 spent on preconception care for a 

woman with diabetes can save up to $5.19 by preventing costly complications. Over 

$90 million has been cut from the Block Grant since 2003. ACOG requests $639 million for the Block Grant in fiscal year 2015 to maintain its current level of services. 

Title X Family Planning Program (HRSA): Family planning and interconception 

care are essential to helping ensure healthy women and healthy pregnancies. The 

Title X Family Planning Program provides services to more than 5 million low income men and women who may not otherwise have access to these services. Title 

X clinics accounting for $3.4 billion in healthcare savings in 2008 alone. ACOG supports $327 million for Title X in fiscal year 2015 to sustain its level of services. 

Fetal Infant Mortality Review (HRSA): HRSA’s Healthy Start Program promotes 

community-based programs to reduce infant mortality and racial disparities. These 

programs are encouraged to use the Fetal and Infant Mortality Review (FIMR) 

which brings together ob-gyn experts and local health departments to address local 

issues contributing to infant mortality. Today, more than 220 local programs in 42 

States find FIMR a powerful tool to help reduce infant mortality and address issues 

related to preterm delivery. For over 20 years, ACOG has partnered with the Maternal and Child Health Bureau to sponsor the National FIMR Program. ACOG supports $0.5 million in fiscal year 2015 for HRSA to increase the number of Healthy 

Start programs that use FIMR. 

Maternal Health Initiative (HRSA): The Maternal Child Health Bureau launched 

the Maternal Health Initiative to foster the notion of ‘‘healthy moms make healthy 

babies.’’ As part of this effort, ACOG has convened the National Partnership on Maternal Safety to identify key factors to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality. 

ACOG requests at a minimum level funding for MCHB to advance this important 

work. 

Safe Motherhood, Maternity and Perinatal Collaboratives (CDC): The Safe Motherhood Initiative at CDC works with State health departments to collect information 

on pregnancy-related deaths, track preterm births, and improve maternal outcomes. 

Through Safe Motherhood, CDC funds State-based Maternity and Perinatal 

Collaboratives that improve birth outcomes by encouraging use of evidence-based 

care, including reducing early elective deliveries. Through the Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative, started in 2007 with funding from CDC, 21 OB teams in 25 hospitals have significantly decreased early non-medically necessary deliveries, in accordance with ACOG guidelines, reducing costly and dangerous pre-term births. 

Avalere estimated that reducing early elective can save from $2.4 million to $9 million a year. The PREEMIE Reauthorization Act, enacted in 2013, authorizes funding 

to increase the number of States receiving assistance for perinatal collaboratives. 

ACOG urges you to re-instate the pre-term birth sub-line as authorized by 

PREEMIE and provide an additional $16 million to Safe Motherhood to implement 

PREEMIE and help States expand or establish maternity perinatal care 

collaboratives. 

Again, we would like to thank the Committee for commitment to improving women’s health, and we urge you to fund programs we’ve identified in our MOMS Initiative in fiscal year 2015. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS

The American College of Physicians (ACP) is pleased to submit the following 

statement for the record on its priorities, as funded under the U.S. Department of 

Health & Human Services, for fiscal year 2015. ACP is the largest medical specialty 

organization and the second-largest physician group in the United States. ACP 

members include 137,000 internal medicine physicians (internists), related subspecialists, and medical students. Internal medicine physicians are specialists who 

apply scientific knowledge and clinical expertise to the diagnosis, treatment, and 

compassionate care of adults across the spectrum from health to complex illness. As 

the Subcommittee begins deliberations on appropriations for fiscal year 2015, ACP 

is urging funding for the following proven programs to receive appropriations from 

the Subcommittee: 
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—Title VII, Section 747, Primary Care Training and Enhancement, at no less than $71 million; —National Health Service Corps, $810 million in funding, including the $310 million in enhanced funding through the Community Health Centers Fund; —National Health Care Workforce Commission, $3 million; 

—Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, $375 million; and 

—Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Program Management for Market- places, $629 million. 

The United States is facing a growing shortage of physicians in key specialties, 

most notably in general internal medicine and family medicine—the specialties that 

provide primary care to most adult and adolescent patients. With enactment of the 

Affordable Care Act (ACA), we expect the demand for primary care services to increase with the addition of 25 million Americans receiving access to health insurance, including an additional 13 million under Medicaid/CHIP, once the law is fully 

implemented. With increased demand, current projections indicate there will be a 

shortage of over 45,000 primary care physicians by 2020, growing to a shortage of 

over 65,000 primary care physicians by 2025. (AAMC Center for Workforce Studies 

with the Lewin Group. The Impact of Health Care Reform on the Future Supply 

and Demand of Physicians Updated Projections Through 2025. June 2010. Accessed 

at: https://www.aamc.org/download/158076/data/updatedlprojectionslthroughl 2025.pdf). Without critical funding for vital workforce programs, this physician 

shortage will only grow worse. A strong primary care infrastructure is an essential 

part of any high-functioning healthcare system, with over 100 studies showing primary care is associated with better outcomes and lower costs of care (http:// 

www.acponline.org/advocacy/wherelwelstand/policy/primarylshortage.pdf). 

The health professions’ education programs, authorized under Title VII of the 

Public Health Service Act and administered through the Health Resources and 

Services Administration (HRSA), support the training and education of healthcare 

providers to enhance the supply, diversity, and distribution of the healthcare workforce, filling the gaps in the supply of health professionals not met by traditional 

market forces, and are critical in helping institutions and programs respond to the 

current and emerging challenges of ensuring that all Americans have access to appropriate and timely health services. Within the Title VII program, we urge the 

Subcommittee to fund the Section 747, Primary Care Training and Enhancement 

program at $71 million, in order to maintain and expand the pipeline for individuals 

training in primary care. The Section 747 program is the only source of Federal 

training dollars available for general internal medicine, general pediatrics, and family medicine. For example, general internists, who have long been at the frontline 

of patient care, have benefitted from Title VII training models emphasizing interdisciplinary training that have helped prepare them to work with other health professionals, such as physician assistants, patient educators, and psychologists. Without a substantial increase in funding, for the fourth year in a row, HRSA will not 

be able to carry out a competitive grant cycle for physician training; the Nation 

needs new initiatives supporting expanded training in multi-professional care, the 

patient-centered medical home, and other new competencies required in our developing health system. 

The College urges $810 million in funding for the National Health Service Corps 

(NHSC), as requested in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget; this amount includes the $310 million in enhanced funding the Health and Human Services Secretary has been given the authority to provide to the NHSC through the Community 

Health Centers Fund. Since the enactment of the ACA, the NHSC has awarded over 

$1 billion in scholarships and loan repayment to healthcare professionals to help expand the country’s primary care workforce and meet the healthcare needs of underserved communities across the country. With field strength of nearly 9,000 clinicians, NHSC members are providing culturally competent care to more than 10.4 

million people at nearly 14,000 NHSC-approved healthcare sites in urban, rural, 

and frontier areas. The increase in funds would expand NHSC field strength to 

15,000 and would serve the needs of more than 16 million patients, helping to address the health professionals’ workforce shortage and growing maldistribution. The 

programs under NHSC have proven to make an impact in meeting the healthcare 

needs of the underserved, and with increased appropriations, they can do more. 

We urge the Subcommittee to fully fund the National Health Care Workforce 

Commission, as authorized by the ACA, at $3 million. The Commission is authorized 

to review current and projected healthcare workforce supply and demand and make 

recommendations to Congress and the Administration regarding national healthcare 

workforce priorities, goals, and polices. Members of the Commission have been appointed, but have not begun work due to a lack of funding. The College believes the 

Nation needs a comprehensive workforce policy founded on sound research to deter-
372 

mine the Nation’s current and future needs for physicians by specialty and geographic areas; the work of the Commission is imperative to ensure Congress is creating the best policies for our Nation’s needs. 

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is the leading public 

health service agency focused on healthcare quality. AHRQ’s research provides the 

evidence-based information needed by consumers, clinicians, health plans, purchasers, and policymakers to make informed healthcare decisions. The College is 

dedicated to ensuring AHRQ’s vital role in improving the quality of our Nation’s 

health and recommends a budget of $375 million. This amount will allow AHRQ to 

help providers help patients by making evidence-informed decisions, fund research 

that serves as the evidence engine for much of the private sector’s work to keep patients safe, make the healthcare market place more efficient by providing quality 

measures to health professionals, and ultimately, help transform health and 

healthcare. 

Finally, ACP supports $629 million in funding for the Centers for Medicare and 

Medicaid Services, Program Management for Marketplaces as requested in the 

President’s fiscal year 2015 budget in order to carry out its duties as necessary. 

Such funding would allow the Federal Government to continue to administer the insurance marketplaces as authorized by the ACA if a State has declined to establish 

an exchange that meets Federal requirements. CMS now manages and operates 

some or all marketplace activities in over 30 States. If the Subcommittee decides 

to deny the requested funds, it will be much more difficult for the Federal Government to operate and manage a federally-facilitated exchange in those States, raising 

questions about where and how their residents would obtain and maintain coverage. 

It is ACP’s belief that all legal Americans—regardless of income level, health status, 

or geographic location—must have access to affordable health insurance. 

In conclusion, the College is keenly aware of the fiscal pressures facing the Subcommittee today, but strongly believes the United States must invest in these programs in order to achieve a high performance healthcare system and build capacity 

in our primary care workforce and public health system. The College greatly appreciates the support of the Subcommittee on these issues and looks forward to working 

with Congress as you begin to work on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations process. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE

The American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM) urges the Senate Labor, 

Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee to reaffirm its support for training preventive medicine physicians and 

other public health professionals by providing $10 million in fiscal year 2015 for preventive medicine residency training under the public health and preventive medicine line item in Title VII of the Public Health Service Act. We further respectfully 

request that funds allocated for ‘‘public health and preventive medicine’’ be separated into two distinct line items, with separation of funds for preventive medicine 

residency training from other funds allocated to the ‘‘public health and preventive 

medicine’’ line-item. In conjunction, ACPM also supports the recommendation of the 

Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition of $520 million in fiscal year 

2015 to support all health professions and nursing education and training programs 

authorized under Titles VII and VIII of the Public Health Service Act. 

In today’s healthcare environment, the tools and expertise provided by preventive 

medicine physicians play an integral role in ensuring effective functioning of our 

Nation’s public health system. These tools and skills include the ability to deliver 

evidence-based clinical preventive services, expertise in population-based health 

sciences, and knowledge of the social and behavioral determinants of health and disease. These are the tools employed by preventive medicine physicians who practice 

at the health system level where improving the health of populations, enhancing access to quality care, and reducing the costs of medical care are paramount. As the 

body of evidence supporting the effectiveness of clinical and population-based interventions continues to expand, so does the need for specialists trained in preventive 

medicine. 

Organizations across the spectrum have recognized the growing demand for preventive medicine professionals. The Institute of Medicine released a report in 2007 

calling for an expansion of preventive medicine training programs by an ‘‘additional 

400 residents per year,’’ and the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) recommends increased funding for preventive medicine residency 

training programs. Additionally, the Association of American Medical Colleges released statements in 2011 that stressed the importance of incorporating behavioral 

and social sciences in medical education as well as announcing changes to the Med-
373 

ical College Admission Test that would test applicants on their knowledge in these 

areas. Such measures strongly indicate increasing recognition of the need to take 

a broader view of health that goes beyond just clinical care—a view that is a unique 

focus and strength of preventive medicine residency training. 

In fact, preventive medicine is the only one of the 24 medical specialties recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties that requires and provides 

training in both clinical and population-based medicine. Preventive medicine residency training programs provide a blueprint on how to train our future physician 

workforce; physicians trained to zoom in on individual patient care needs and zoom 

out to the community and population level to identify and treat the social determinants of health. Preventive medicine physicians have the training and expertise 

to advance the population health outcomes that public and private payers are increasingly promoting to their providers. These physicians have a strong focus on 

quality care improvement and are at the forefront of efforts to integrate primary 

care and public health. 

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and 

health workforce experts, there are personnel shortages in many public health occupations, including epidemiologists, biostatisticians, and environmental health workers among others. According to the 2012 Physician Specialty Data Book released by 

the Association of American Medical Colleges, preventive medicine had one of the 

biggest decrease (-25 percent) in the number of first-year ACGME residents and fellows between 2005 and 2010. ACPM is deeply concerned about the shortage of preventive medicine-trained physicians and the ominous trend of even fewer training 

opportunities. This deficiency in physicians trained to carry out core public health 

activities will lead to major gaps in the expertise needed to deliver clinical prevention and community public health. The impact on the health of those populations 

served by HRSA may be profound. 

Despite being recognized as an underdeveloped national resource and in shortage 

for many years, physicians training in the specialty of Preventive Medicine are the 

only medical residents whose graduate medical education (GME) costs are not supported by Medicare, Medicaid or other third party insurers. Training occurs outside 

hospital-based settings and therefore is not financed by GME payments to hospitals. 

Both training programs and residency graduates are rapidly declining at a time of 

unprecedented national, State, and community need for properly trained physicians 

in public health and disaster preparedness, prevention-oriented practices, quality 

improvement, and patient safety. 

Currently, residency programs scramble to patch together funding packages for 

their residents. Limited stipend support has made it difficult for programs to attract 

and retain high-quality applicants. Support for faculty and tuition has been almost 

non-existent. Directors of residency programs note that they receive many inquiries 

about and applications for training in preventive medicine; however, training slots 

often are not available for those highly qualified physicians who are not directly 

sponsored by an outside agency or who do not have specific interests in areas for 

which limited stipends are available (such as research in cancer prevention). 

HRSA—as authorized in Title VII of the Public Health Service Act—is a critical 

funding source for several preventive medicine residency programs, as it represents 

the largest Federal funding source for these programs. HRSA funding ($3.8 million 

in fiscal year 2014) currently supports only 55 preventive medicine residents across 

8 residency training programs. An increase of roughly $6 million will allow HRSA 

to support nearly 120 new preventive medicine residents. 

Of note, the preventive medicine residency programs directly support the mission 

of the HRSA health professions programs by facilitating practice in underserved 

communities and promoting training opportunities for underrepresented minorities: 

—Thirty-five percent of HRSA-supported preventive medicine graduates practice 

in medically underserved communities, a rate of almost 3.5 times the average 

for all health professionals. These physicians are meeting a critical need in 

these underserved communities. 

—Nearly one in five preventive medicine residents funded through HRSA programs are under-represented minorities, which is almost twice the average of 

minority representation among all health professionals. 

—Fourteen percent of all preventive medicine residents are under-represented minorities, the largest proportion of any medical specialty. 

In addition to training under-represented minorities and generating physicians 

who work in medically underserved areas, preventive medicine residency programs 

equip our society with health professionals and public health leaders who possess 

the tools and skills needed in the fight against the chronic disease epidemic that 

is threatening the future of our Nation’s health and prosperity. Correcting the root 

causes of this critical problem of chronic diseases will require a multidisciplinary ap-
374 

proach that addresses issues of access to healthcare; social and environmental influences; and behavioral choices. ACPM applauds the initiation of programs such as 

the Community Transformation Grant that take this broad view of the determinants 

of chronic disease. However, any efforts to strengthen the public health infrastructure and transform our communities into places that encourage healthy choices 

must include measures to strengthen the existing training programs that help 

produce public health leaders. 

Many of the leaders of our Nation’s local and State health departments are 

trained in preventive medicine. Their unique combination of expertise in both medical knowledge and public health makes them ideal choices to head the fight against 

chronic disease as well as other threats to our Nation’s health. Their contributions 

are invaluable. Investing in the residency programs that provide physicians with the 

training and skills to take on these leadership positions is an essential part of keeping Americans healthy and productive. As such, the American College of Preventive 

Medicine urges the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related 

Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee to reaffirm its support for training preventive medicine physicians and other public health professionals by providing $10 million in fiscal year 2015 for preventive medicine residency training under the public 

health and preventive medicine line item in Title VII of the Public Health Service 

Act. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF RADIOLOGY

The American College of Radiology (ACR)—a professional organization serving 

more than 35,000 radiologists, radiation oncologists, interventional radiologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists—recommends increased funding 

for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in fiscal year 2015 appropriations legislation. Specifically, the ACR endorses the position of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical 

Research—a coalition of more than 300 patient and voluntary health groups, medical and scientific societies, academic and research organizations, and industry— 

that NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward 

a multi-year increase in our Nation’s investment in medical research. That recommended funding level is approximately $1.874 billion above the President’s Budget request for fiscal year 2015. Additionally, the ACR joins the Ad Hoc Group in 

urging Congress and the Administration to work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and the continued cuts to medical research that squander invaluable 

scientific opportunities, discourage young scientists, jeopardize our economic future, 

and threaten medical progress and continued improvements in our Nation’s health. 

The value of the NIH to American taxpayers is immeasurable, and there have 

been several recent examples of impactful science in the biomedical imaging domain 

that would not have been realized and translated swiftly into patient care without 

NIH support and involvement. For instance, the NIH National Cancer Institute’s 

(NCI) nearly decade-long National Lung Screening Trial—conducted by the American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN) and Lung Screening Study 

group—found that computed tomography (CT) screening of high risk patients could 

reduce deaths from lung cancer by 20 percent versus chest X-ray screening. Another 

NCI-supported success, the National CT Colonography Trial—also conducted by 

ACRIN—found that virtual colonoscopy was effective as a screening method for 

colorectal cancer thanks to its accuracy, safety, cost-effectiveness, and patient acceptability compared to more invasive and potentially intimidating screening options. The Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) now a member of the NRG 

Oncology Group in the new National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN), is the international leader in investigating the appropriateness of advanced technologies such 

as proton therapy and intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) in multi-center 

randomized trials examining the safety, effectiveness, and quality of life implications of these treatments. Additional ACRIN (now ECOG-ACRIN in the NCTN) and 

NRG activities under NCI’s purview promise to advance the areas of personalized 

early cancer detection, identify biomarkers to predict treatment effectiveness, reduce 

the rate of false-positive imaging examinations, and improve cancer screening outcomes. However, NCI’s funding of cooperative groups in the evolved National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) has been severely cut and the groups’ planned budgets 

are considerably below expectations. We urge Congress to restore the full funding 

approved by the NCI’s Board of Scientific Advisors for the organizations that 

transitioned from the cooperative group program into the new NCTN. 

Although smaller than NCI, the NIH National Institute of Biomedical Imaging 

and Bioengineering (NIBIB) has likewise been successful in advancing the science 

behind evolving biomedical imaging technologies and techniques. The ACR played 
375 

a key role in NIBIB’s creation through co-founding a coalition of likeminded organizations and working with Federal policymakers to successfully advance the establishing legislation in 2000. Since its inception, NIBIB has been particularly effective 

in supporting training initiatives, educational symposia, and international collaborations, as well as fostering future generations of biomedical imaging and bioengineering scientists via innovative initiatives and communications. 

Without significantly increased funding levels for NIH in fiscal year 2015 and beyond, America’s leadership in biomedical research will decline, scientists will be increasingly discouraged by the lack of funding opportunities, and innovative technologies and techniques (such as those supported through NCI and NIBIB) will not 

be appropriately researched and translated into patient care. Therefore, the ACR 

endorses the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research’s recommendation that NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as part of a multi-year increase, and 

that Congress and the Administration work together to decisively end sequestration. 

Thank you for your consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by Gloria R. Romanelli, JD, Senior Director of 

Legislative and Regulatory Relations, and Michael Peters, Director of Legislative 

and Regulatory Affairs.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN DENTAL EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

The American Dental Education Association (ADEA), on behalf of all 65 U.S. dental schools, 700 dental residency training programs, nearly 600 allied dental programs, as well as more than 12,000 faculty who educate and train the nearly 50,000 

students and residents attending these institutions, submits this statement for the 

record and for your consideration as you begin to prioritize fiscal year 2015 appropriation requests. ADEA urges you to protect the funding and fundamental structure of Federal programs that provide access to oral healthcare to millions of American, train the next generation of healthcare providers and fund cutting-edge dental 

and craniofacial research. 

At ADEA’s academic dental institutions, future practitioners and researchers are 

trained and significant dental safety-net care is provided. Services are provided 

through campus and offsite dental clinics where students and faculty provide oral 

healthcare to the uninsured and underserved populations. And, in light of the findings that good oral health is inextricably linked to good systemic health, the need 

to provide access to oral healthcare is critical. However, in order to provide these 

services, there must be adequate funding. 

We are asking the committee to help ADEA’s member institutions continue to provide care to all segments of the population by maintaining adequate funding for programs focused on access to oral healthcare, dental and craniofacial research, and 

training for oral healthcare providers. Specifically we request that you maintain and 

protect funding for Title VII of the Public Health Service Act; the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR); the Dental Health Improvement Act; Part F of the Ryan White 

HIV/AIDS Treatment and Modernization Act: the Dental Reimbursement Program 

and the Community-Based Dental Partnerships Program; and State-Based Oral 

Health Programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These 

programs enhance and sustain State oral health departments, fund public health 

programs proven to prevent oral disease, fund research to eradicate dental disease 

and detect certain cancers, and fund programs to develop an adequate workforce of 

dentists with advanced training to serve American citizens including the underserved, the elderly, and those suffering from chronic immune-compromised conditions and life-threatening diseases. 

We respectfully make the following requests: 

—$32 million for Oral Health Training Programs 

The dental programs in Title VII, Section 748 of the Public Health Service Act 

that provide training in general, pediatric, and public health dentistry and dental 

hygiene are critical. Support for these programs will help to ensure there will be 

an adequate oral healthcare workforce. The funding supports pre-doctoral oral 

health education and postdoctoral pediatric, general, and public health dentistry 

training. The investment that Title VII makes not only helps to educate dentists 

and dental hygienists, but also expands access to care for underserved communities. 

Additionally, Section 748 addresses the shortage of professors in dental schools 

with the dental faculty loan repayment program and faculty development courses 

for those who teach pediatric, general, or public health dentistry or dental hygiene. 

There are currently almost 200 open budgeted faculty positions in dental schools. 

These two programs provide schools with assistance in recruiting and retaining fac-
376 

ulty. ADEA is increasingly concerned that with projected restrained funding, the 

oral health research community will not be able to grow and that the pipeline of 

new researchers will be inadequate to the future need. 

Title VII Diversity and Student Aid programs play a critical role in helping to diversify the health profession’s student body and thereby the healthcare workforce. 

For the last several years, these programs have not received adequate funding to 

sustain the progress that is necessary to meet the challenges of an increasingly diverse U.S. population. ADEA is most concerned that the Administration did not request any funds for the Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP). This program 

provides a vital source of support for oral health professionals serving underserved 

and disadvantaged patients by providing a pipeline for such individuals from these 

populations to learn about careers in healthcare generally and dentistry specifically 

that is not available through other workforce programs. 

For example, a collaboration between the University of Connecticut’s Schools of 

Dental Medicine and Medicine have used HCOP grants to perform extensive outreach to colleges and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU); support 

30 week and 6 week summer science enrichment programs in middle schools; support several high school programs, including a Bridge to the Future Science Mentoring, support mini dental and medical programs, and in support of a Junior and 

Senior Doctors’ Academy program. And at the college level the two schools continue 

the Bridge to the Future Science Mentor program and conduct a 7 week Health Disparities Clinical Summer Research Fellowship program that explores an introduction to health disparities, cross cultural issues, principles of clinical medicine and 

skills for public health research and interventions, techniques for work with diverse 

populate and interventions, techniques for work with diverse populations. 

UCONN’s program is illustrative of programs that dental schools at the University of Iowa, Kansas University, University of Maryland-Baltimore, the University 

of South Alabama, Marquette University, the University of Michigan, and many 

others have sponsored. HRSA reports that the average grant is only $670,000 and 

reaches over 7,100 students from underserved and disadvantaged background. 

If policy makers are serious about reversing health disparities and providing opportunity for underrepresented minorities and economically disadvantaged individuals they will continue this program at current levels, if not expand it. 

Another vital program targeted at enhancing high quality culturally competent 

care in community-based interprofessional clinical training settings is the Area 

Health Education Centers (AHEC) program. Again the Administration’s has not requested any funds. The infrastructure development grants and point of service 

maintenance and expansion grants ensure that patients from underserved populations receive quality care in a technologically current setting and that health professionals receive training in treating such diverse populations. 

The reason given by HRSA in not requesting any appropriations for next fiscal 

year is short-sighted and counterproductive. HRSA states that funding priorities is 

being redirected to programs that directly increase the number of primary care 

health professionals. Increasing the number of providers without the adequate opportunities to treat underrepresented populations in their communities makes little 

clinical or cultural sense. This is the case especially if the policy goals remain to 

increase the number coming from those populations and practicing in rural and underserved areas. Exposure to the rewards and professional challenges of such care 

is a powerful enducement to accomplishing the goal. ADEA encourages the Committee, in the strongest possible terms, to continue funding the AHEC program. 

—$18 million for Part F of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment and Modernization Act: Dental Reimbursement Program (DRP) and the Community-Based 

Dental Partnerships Program 

Patients with compromised immune systems are more prone to oral infections like 

periodontal disease and tooth decay. By providing reimbursement to dental schools 

and schools of dental hygiene, the Dental Reimbursement Program (DRP) provides 

access to quality dental care for people living with HIV/AIDS while simultaneously 

providing educational and training opportunities to dental residents, dental students, and dental hygiene students who deliver the care. DRP is a cost-effective Federal/institutional partnership that provides partial reimbursement to academic dental institutions for costs incurred in providing dental care to people living with HIV/ 

AIDS. This program, in fiscal year 2013, only reimbursed dental schools for the unreimbursed costs at 23 percent of those costs, continuing the shift of the cost burden 

to the schools. This path is not sustainable to provide the necessary care. The increase requested would reimburse barely half of the dental school’s incurred costs 

of care. 

—$425 million for the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research 

(NIDCR) 
377 

Discoveries stemming from dental research have reduced the burden of oral diseases, led to better oral health for millions of Americans, and uncovered important 

associations between oral and systemic health. Dental researchers are poised to 

make breakthroughs that can result in dramatic progress in medicine and health, 

such as repairing natural form and function to faces destroyed by disease, accident, 

or war injuries; diagnosing systemic disease from saliva instead of blood samples 

(such as HIV, and certain types of cancer); and deciphering the complex interactions 

and causes of oral health disparities involving social, economic, cultural, environmental, racial, ethnic, and biological factors. Dental research is the underpinning of 

the profession of dentistry. With grants from NIDCR, dental researchers in academic dental institutions have built a base of scientific and clinical knowledge that 

has been used to enhance the quality of the Nation’s oral health and overall health. 

Also, dental scientists are putting science to work for the benefit of the healthcare 

system through translational research, comparative effectiveness research, health 

information technology, health research economics, and further research on health 

disparities. 

—$19 million for the Division of Oral Health at the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC) 

The CDC Division of Oral Health expands the coverage of effective prevention 

programs. The program increases the basic capacity of State oral health programs 

to accurately assess the needs of the State, organize and evaluate prevention programs, develop coalitions, address oral health in State health plans, and effectively 

allocate resources to the programs. This strong public health response is needed to 

meet the challenges of oral disease affecting children and vulnerable populations. 

The level of funds available in recent fiscal years are below the level needed to 

adequately sustain an appropriately staffed State dental program, provide a robust 

surveillance system to monitor and report disease, and support State efforts with 

other governmental, non-profit, and corporate partners. The current path of funding 

will continue to have a negative effect upon the overall health and preparedness of 

the Nation’s States and communities. 

Thank you for your consideration of these requests. ADEA looks forward to working with you to ensure the continuation of congressional support for these critical 

programs. Also, please feel free to use ADEA as a resource on any matter pertaining 

to academic dentistry under your purview. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN DENTAL HYGIENISTS’ ASSOCIATION

On behalf of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA), thank you for 

the opportunity to submit testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 appropriations. 

ADHA appreciates the Subcommittee’s past support of programs that seek to improve the oral health of Americans and to bolster the oral health workforce. Oral 

health is a part of total health and authorized oral healthcare programs require appropriations support in order to increase the accessibility of oral health services, 

particularly for the underserved. ADHA urges that the block on funding for Section 

340G–1 of the Public Health Service Act—a much needed dental workforce demonstration program—be lifted and that $1.25 million be appropriated. Lifting the 

block on this dental workforce grants program, officially titled the Alternative Dental Health Care Providers Demonstration Program, would send an important signal 

to States and to HRSA that innovation in dental workforce is a meritorious undertaking. Importantly, the authorizing language requires that the grants be conducted 

in compliance with State law and that they must increase access to dental 

healthcare in rural and other underserved communities. Further, the Institute of 

Medicine is required to provide a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the 

grants. 

Congress recognized the need to improve the oral healthcare delivery system 

when it authorized the Alternative Dental Health Care Provider Demonstration 

Grants, Section 340G–1 of the Public Health Service Act. The Alternative Dental 

Health Care Providers Demonstration Grants program is a Federal grant program 

that recognizes the need for innovations to be made in oral healthcare delivery to 

bring quality care to the underserved by pilot testing new models. The authorizing 

statute makes clear that pilots must ‘‘increase access to dental care services in rural 

and underserved communities’’ and comply with State licensing requirements. 

New dental providers are already authorized in Minnesota and are under consideration in a number of States, including Connecticut, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Vermont, and Washington State. Both the W.K. 

Kellogg Foundation and the PEW Charitable Trust Dental Campaign are investing 

in State efforts to increase oral healthcare access by adding new types of dental pro-
378 

viders to the dental team. Further, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission supported 

dental workforce expansion in December 2013, noting that ‘‘expanding the supply 

of dental therapists . . . is likely to increase the output of basic dental services, enhance competition, reduce costs and expand access to dental care.’’ The National 

Governors Association’s January 2014 issue brief on ‘‘The Role of Dental Hygienists 

in Providing Access to Oral Health Care’’ found that ‘‘innovative State programs are 

showing that increased use of dental hygienists can promote access to oral 

healthcare, particularly for underserved populations, including children’’ and that 

‘‘such access can reduce the incidence of serious tooth decay and other dental disease in vulnerable populations.’’ 

The fiscal year 2014 HHS funding bill included language designed to block funding for this important demonstration program. We seek your leadership in removing 

this unjustified prohibition on funding for the Alternative Dental Health Care Providers Demonstration Grants. Further, because the authorizing language required 

HRSA to begin the dental workforce grant program under Section 340G–1 within 

2 years of its 2010 enactment (i.e., by 2012) and to conclude it within 7 years of 

enactment (2017), language directing HRSA to move forward with Section 340G–1 

grants despite this timeline is needed. ADHA, along with more than 60 other oral 

healthcare organizations, advocated for funding of this important program. Without 

the appropriate supply, diversity and distribution of the oral health workforce, the 

current oral health access crisis will only be exacerbated. ADHA recommends funding at a level of $1.25 million for fiscal year 2015 to support these vital dental workforce demonstration projects. 

Additionally, ADHA joins the American Dental Association, the American Dental 

Education Association and others in the oral health community, in recommending 

$32 million for Title VII Program Grants to expand and educate the dental workforce; $19 million for oral health programming at CDC, and funding of $425 million 

for National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. 

ADHA urges funding of all authorized oral health programs and describes some 

of the key oral health programs below: 

Title VII Program Grants to Expand and Educate the Dental Workforce—Fund at 

a level of $32 million in fiscal year 2015 

A number of existing grant programs offered under Title VII support health professions education programs, students, and faculty. ADHA is pleased dental hygienists are recognized as primary care providers of oral health services and are included as eligible to apply for several of the grants offered under ‘‘General, Pediatric, and Public Health Dentistry.’’ With millions more Americans eligible for dental coverage in coming years, it is critical that the oral health workforce is bolstered. 

Dental and dental hygiene education programs currently struggle with significant 

shortages in faculty and there is a dearth of providers pursuing careers in public 

health dentistry and pediatric dentistry. Securing appropriations to expand the Title 

VII grant offerings to additional dental hygienists and dentists will provide much 

needed support to programs, faculty, and students in the future. 

Oral Health Programming within the Centers for Disease Control—Fund at a level 

of $19 million in fiscal year 2015 

ADHA joins with others in the dental community in urging $19 million for oral 

health programming within the Centers for Disease Control. This funding level will 

enable CDC to continue its vital work to control and prevent oral disease, including 

vital work in community water fluoridation. Federal grants will serve to facilitate 

improved oral health leadership at the State level, support the collection and synthesis of data regarding oral health coverage and access, promote the integrated delivery of oral health and other medical services, enable States to be innovative, and 

promote a data-driven approach to oral health programming. 

National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research—Fund at a level of $425 

million in fiscal year 2015 

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) cultivates 

oral health research that has led to a greater understanding of oral diseases and 

their treatments and the link between oral health and overall health. Research 

spurs innovation and efficiency, both of which are vital to improving access to oral 

healthcare services and improved oral status of Americans in the future. ADHA 

joins with others in the oral health community to support NIDCR funding at a level 

of $425 million in fiscal year 2015. 

ADHA is the largest national organization representing the professional interests 

of more than 150,000 licensed dental hygienists across the country. In order to become licensed as a dental hygienist, an individual must graduate from one of the 

Nation’s 335 accredited dental hygiene education programs and successfully com-
379 

plete a national written and a State or regional clinical examination. Dental hygienists are primary care providers of oral health services and are licensed in each of 

the 50 States. Hygienists are committed to improving the Nation’s oral health, a 

fundamental part of overall health and general well-being. In the past decade, the 

link between oral health and total health has become more apparent and the significant disparities in access to oral healthcare services have been well documented. At 

this time, when 130 million Americans struggle to obtain the oral healthcare required to remain healthy, Congress has a great opportunity to support oral health 

prevention, infrastructure and workforce efforts that will make care more accessible 

and cost-effective. 

Conclusion 

ADHA appreciates the difficult task appropriators face in prioritizing and funding 

the many meritorious programs and grants offered by the Federal Government. 

ADHA urges the Committee to lift the block on funding for Section 340G–1 of the 

PHSA, dental workforce demonstration grants. Lifting the block on funding for 

these dental workforce grants would be an important signal to States and to 

healthcare stakeholders that exploring new ways of bringing oral health services to 

the underserved is a meritorious expenditure of resources. In addition to the items 

listed, ADHA also supports full funding for community health centers, and urges 

HRSA be directed to further bolster the delivery of oral health services at community health centers, including the use of new types of dental providers. ADHA remains a committed partner in advocating for meaningful oral health programming 

that makes efficient use of the existing oral health workforce and delivers high quality, cost-effective care. 

[This statement was submitted by Denise Bowers, RDH, PHD, President, American Dental Hygienists’ Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR SUICIDE PREVENTION

Dear Chairman Harkin and Ranking Moran: As you begin work on the fiscal year 

2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill, the 

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) respectfully urges you to support investments in public health research by including $40 million for the National 

Institute of Mental Health to conduct suicide prevention and brain research including studies designed to reduce the risk of self-harm, suicide, and interpersonal violence; $25 million for the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVRDS) at the 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); $60.15 million for suicide prevention programs under the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (GLSMA) through the 

Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA); and $20 million for the Mental Health First Aid Program (MHFA). 

$40 Million in Funding for Suicide Prevention Research 

Suicide, already the 10th leading cause of death overall in the U.S., the 3rd leading cause of death among 15–24 year olds, and the 2nd leading cause of death 

among 24–34 year olds; continues to take more and more lives each year. In 2010 

(latest available data), suicide took the lives of more than 38,000 Americans, up 31 

percent from 2000. 

AFSP supports at a minimum a $40 million investment in suicide prevention research as recommended by Representative Ron Barber in H.R. 4075 (the Suicide 

Prevention Research Innovation Act or SPRINT Act) so we can obtain similar reductions in suicide mortality that have resulted from strategic investments in other 

major public health concerns. 

Full Funding of $25 Million for the National Violent Death Reporting System 

(NVDRS) 

The NVDRS collects in-depth information on the details of and circumstances surrounding each suicide, which goes beyond the basic information collected through 

the CDC’s National Vital Statistics Reports/Fatal Injury Report and implementing 

the NVDRS nationwide is essential to developing, informing and evaluating suicide 

prevention programs. 

Currently, the National Violent Death Reporting System collects surveillance data 

in only 18 States (Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, 

Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, 

Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin). The data collected 

helps inform policy makers on trends and characteristics of violent deaths within 
380 

specific communities so they can design appropriate prevention measures and evaluate ongoing efforts to curb violence. 

Included in the fiscal year 2014 omnibus appropriations bill was an additional 

$7.7 million (bringing the program total to $11.2 million) in funding to expand the 

program; however, AFSP requests the full $25 million be provided so the CDC 

would have the resources to scale up this effort to include all 50 States. Today, there 

exists no other data surveillance system that offers this benefit for such a modest 

investment. No other data collection or centralization effort carries the inherent 

value associated with NVDRS and, in fact, no other effort has the ability to directly 

inform and impact State and Federal suicide prevention activities. 

Funding of $60.15 Million for GLSMA Suicide Prevention Programs 

Since its creation in 2004, GLSMA has provided resources to communities and college campuses all across the country, and supported needed technical assistance to 

develop and disseminate effective strategies and promising practices related to 

youth suicide prevention. To date, the GLSMA has supported youth suicide prevention grants in 49 States, the District of Columbia and Guam, 48 Tribes or Tribal 

organizations, and 138 institutions of higher education. 

AFSP requests that the Committee approve $60.15 million for GLSMA programs 

in fiscal year 2015 to ensure a continuation of these critically important youth and 

college suicide prevention programs. 

Funding of $20 Million for Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) 

Sometimes, first aid isn’t a bandage, or CPR, or the Heimlich, or calling 911. 

Sometimes, first aid is you. While many Americans know how to administer first 

aid and seek medical help should they come across a person having a heart attack, 

few are trained to provide similar help to someone experiencing a mental health or 

substance abuse crisis. 

Mental Health First Aid is a public education program that helps people identify, 

understand, and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance abuse. The 

course teaches participants a 5-step action plan to reach out to a person in crisis 

and connect them with professional, peer, or other help. 

AFSP requests that $20 million be approved for MHFA training programs around 

the country that would train participants in recognizing the symptoms of common 

mental illnesses and addiction disorders, de-escalating crisis situations safely, and 

initiating timely referral to mental health and substance abuse resources available 

in the community. 
381 

Thank you for your time and consideration of these requests by the American 

Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Should you have any questions I can be reached 

at jmadigan@afsp.org. 

[This statement was submitted by John Madigan, Vice President, Public Policy.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: We submit this testimony on 

behalf of the American Geriatrics Society (AGS), a non-profit organization of over 

6,000 geriatrics healthcare professionals dedicated to improving the health, independence and quality of life of all older Americans. As the Subcommittee works on 

its fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill, we ask that you 

prioritize funding for the geriatrics education and training programs under Title VII 

and Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act and for research funding within the 

National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Aging. 

We ask that the subcommittee consider the following recommended funding levels 

for these programs in fiscal year 2015: —$39.7 million for Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs 

—$5.0 million for Title VIII Comprehensive Geriatric Education Nursing Program 

—An increase of $500 million for aging research within the National Institutes 

of Health 

While we recognize the fiscal challenges facing our Nation, sustained and enhanced Federal investments in these initiatives are essential to delivering higher 

quality, better coordinated and more cost effective care to our Nation’s seniors. We 

request that Congress provide the additional investments necessary to expand and 

enhance the geriatrics workforce, which is an integral component of the primary 

care workforce, and to foster groundbreaking medical research so that our Nation 

is prepared to meet the unique healthcare needs of the rapidly growing population 

of seniors. 

PROGRAMS TO TRAIN GERIATRICS HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS

Our Nation is facing a critical shortage of geriatrics faculty and healthcare professionals across disciplines. This trend must be reversed if we are to provide our seniors with the quality care they need and deserve. Care provided by geriatric 

healthcare professionals, who are trained to care for individuals who are the most 

complex and frail and who account for 80 percent of our Medicare expenditures, has 

been shown to reduce common and costly conditions that are often preventable with 

appropriate care, such as falls, polypharmacy, and delirium. 

Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs ($39.7 million) 

These programs support three initiatives: the Geriatric Academic Career Awards 

(GACAs), the Geriatric Education Center (GEC) program, and geriatric faculty fellowships. These are the only programs specifically designed to address the well-documented shortage of geriatrics healthcare professionals in the U.S. We ask the subcommittee to provide a fiscal year 2015 appropriation of $39.7 million for Title VII 

Geriatrics Health Professions Programs. 

Our funding request breaks down as follows: 

—Geriatric Academic Career Awards (GACAs) ($5.5 million) 

GACAs support the development of newly trained geriatric clinicians in academic 

medicine who are committed to teaching geriatrics in medical schools across the 

country. GACA recipients are required to provide training in clinical geriatrics, including the training of interdisciplinary teams of healthcare professionals. HRSA, 

through the Affordable Care Act, expanded the awards to other disciplines—a 

change long supported by AGS—and requests adequate funding to reflect this. In 

addition, new awardees are only selected every 5 years and we believe that these 

awards should be available annually in order to ensure that we have an adequate 

number of faculty available to provide training in the principles of geriatric medicine. Our budget request of $5.5 million would support GACA program awardees in 

their development as clinician educators. 

Program Accomplishments.—In Academic Year 2012–2013, the GACA program 

funded 62 full-time junior faculty. These awardees delivered over 1,100 different 

courses, workshops and other types of training activities to over 53,000 trainees 

across the health professions—the most common of which included medical school 

students, residents in internal medicine and residents in geriatrics. In addition, 

GACA awardees are highly encouraged to engage in professional development and 

scholarly activities during each academic year as a way of advancing the field of geriatrics. Results showed that the awardees conducted presentations about their own 
382 

research and other related topics at over 215 conferences at the local, State or national level and published a total of 108 peer-reviewed publications. —Geriatric Education Centers (GECs) ($20.0 million) 

GECs provide grants to support collaborative arrangements involving several 

health professions, schools and healthcare facilities to provide multidisciplinary 

training in geriatrics, including assessment, chronic disease syndromes, care planning, emergency preparedness, and cultural competence unique to older Americans. 

Our funding request of $20.0 million includes continued support for the core work 

of 45 GECs ($20.0). 

Program Accomplishments.—In Academic Year 2012–2013, the GECs supported 

various types of geriatrics-specific training for health professions students and faculty, as well as for current community-based providers—delivering over 1,650 different continuing education courses to over 94,000 trainees. This exceeded the program’s performance target by 58.5 percent. GEC grantees also partnered with over 

650 healthcare delivery sites across the country to provide clinical and experiential 

training, in areas such as nursing homes and chronic and acute disease hospitals, 

to over 25,000 trainees. It is estimated that 2 out of every 5 sites used by GEC 

grantees for the purposes of offering these types of training were primary care settings and/or were located in a medically underserved community. —Alzheimer ’s Disease Prevention, Education, and Outreach Program.—Funding 

for this program was included in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request and allows HRSA to expand efforts to provide interprofessional continuing education to healthcare practitioners on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias through the already existing GECs. We are requesting $5.3 

million to support this program. 

—Geriatric Training for Physicians, Dentists, Behavioral/Mental Health Professions ($8.9 million) 

This program is designed to train physicians, dentists, and behavioral and mental 

health professionals who choose to teach geriatric medicine, dentistry or psychiatry. 

The program provides fellows with exposure to older adult patients in various levels 

of wellness and functioning, and from a range of socioeconomic and racial/ethnic 

backgrounds. Our funding request of $8.9 million will support this important faculty 

development program. 

Program Accomplishments.—In Academic Year 2012–2013, a total of 64 physicians, psychiatrists, dentists, and psychologists, were supported through this program. These fellows received clinical training in over 200 different healthcare delivery sites across the country; the most common types of sites where fellows trained 

included Veteran’s Affairs hospitals and clinics, private hospitals, and academic centers. It is estimated that nearly half of the sites (49 percent) where GTPD fellows 

received clinical training were located in a medically underserved community. Additionally, results showed that GTPD fellows delivered over 275 courses, workshops 

and other training activities focused on topics including oral health, chronic disease 

management and geriatric medicine, among others. It is estimated that over 5,600 

trainees were trained as a result of these activities—the most common of which included medical school students, dental school students, residents in geriatrics and 

residents in geriatric psychiatry. 

Title VIII Comprehensive Geriatric Education Nursing Program ($5.0 million) 

The American healthcare delivery system for older adults will be further strengthened by Federal investments in Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs, specifically the comprehensive geriatric education grants, as nurses provide 

cost-effective, quality care. This program supports additional training for nurses 

who care for the elderly, development and dissemination of curricula relating to 

geriatric care, and training of faculty in geriatrics. It also provides continuing education for nurses practicing in geriatrics. Our funding request of $5.0 million includes funds to continue the training of nurses caring for older Americans. 

Program Accomplishments.—In Academic Year 2012–2013, the Comprehensive 

Geriatric Education Program (CGEP) supported numerous types of geriatric-related 

training programs and activities for health professions students and their faculty, 

as well as for community-based healthcare providers across the country. CGEP 

grantees offered over 150 different continuing education (CE) courses to over 11,600 

trainees across the health professions. In addition, 74 students received 

traineeships—the majority of which (81 percent) are pursuing a Masters Degree in 

Nursing to become Nurse Practitioners in the fields of Adult Gerontology or Acute 

Care in Adult Gerontology. 

Grantees of the CGEP also developed and implemented over 120 different geriatric-focused training activities to include new continuing education courses for current providers, as well as new academic courses and clinical rotations for health pro-
383 

fessions students, residents and fellows across the country focused on these issues. 

It is estimated that a total of 4,500 trainees were reached as a result of these activities. Lastly, CGEP grantees supported over 40 different faculty development activities and programs. It is estimated that over 300 faculty-level trainees were trained 

on emerging issues in the field of geriatrics (e.g., pain management among the elderly, advances in patient engagement, among others) as a result of these activities. 

RESEARCH FUNDING INITIATIVES—NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH/NATIONAL

INSTITUTE ON AGING

The institutes that make up the NIH, and in particular the NIA, lead a broad 

scientific effort to understand the nature of aging and to extend the healthy, active 

years of life. As a member of the Friends of the NIA, a broad-based coalition of 

aging, disease, research, and patient groups committed to the advancement of medical research that affects millions of older Americans, AGS urges an increase in NIH 

funding of $500 million to support aging research across all institutes. 

Considering what the Federal Government spends on the healthcare costs associated with age-related diseases, it makes sound economic sense to increase Federal 

resources for aging research. Chronic diseases associated with aging afflict 80 percent of the age 65∂ population and account for more than 75 percent of Medicare 

and other Federal health expenditures. Continued Federal investments in scientific 

research, including comparative effectiveness initiatives, will ensure that the NIH 

has the resources to succeed in its mission to establish research networks, assess 

clinical interventions and disseminate credible research findings to patients, providers and payers of healthcare. 

In closing, geriatrics is at a critical juncture, with our Nation facing an unprecedented increase in the number of older patients with complex health needs. Strong 

support such as yours will help ensure that every older American is able to receive 

high-quality healthcare. 

Thank you for your consideration. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION

Although great progress has been made in prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease, including stroke, there is no cure and CVD remains America’s No. 

1 killer, costing a projected $315 billion in medical expenses and lost productivity 

each year. Stroke, alone, is our No. 4 killer, costing an estimated $37 billion a year. 

Both remain major causes of disability. 

Nearly 84 million U.S. adults suffer from some form of CVD. It is projected that 

by the year 2030, more than 44 percent of U.S. adults will live with CVD at a cost 

exceeding $1 trillion annually. So, it is disturbing that CVD research, prevention 

and treatment remain disproportionately underfunded with no sustained and stable 

funding from the National Institutes of Health. NIH is key for the U.S. to mount 

an ongoing and effective crusade against these devastating diseases. 

We appreciate Congress’ and the Administration’s partial stay of sequestration. 

These cuts jeopardize the health of tens of millions of CVD sufferers and weaken 

our fragile economy and erode our global leadership in medical research. We challenge Congress to appropriate stable and sustained funding for CVD research, prevention and treatment. NIH funding is not only important for the health of our Nation, but also supports our economy through research-related employment opportunities it provides. 

FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS: INVESTING IN THE HEALTH OF OUR NATION

Research that could move us closer to a cure for heart disease and stroke goes 

unfunded. Congress must capitalize on 50 years of progress or our Nation will pay 

more in lives lost and healthcare costs. Our recommendations tackle the topics in 

a fiscally responsible way. 

Capitalize on Investment for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

AHA is disappointed Congress did not fully restore sequester cuts for NIH in Public Law 113–76. NIH funded studies help prevent and cure disease, revolutionize patient care, drive economic growth, advance innovation, and sustain U.S. leadership 

in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. NIH is the world’s leader of basic research— 

the starting point for all medical progress and an indispensable Federal Government role that the private sector cannot fill. The U.S. is in jeopardy of losing our 

competitive edge in scientific research. 

In addition to improving health, NIH creates a solid return on investment. In fiscal year 2012, NIH supported 400,000 U.S. jobs and produced nearly $60 billion in 
384 

new economic activity. Every $1 in NIH funding produced $2 in economic activity 

in 2007. Yet, for the past decade, the NIH’s budget has not kept pace with medical 

research inflation, resulting in more than a 20 percent loss in purchasing power. 

Such reductions, along with only a 50 percent restoration of sequester cuts, have 

occurred during a time of remarkable heightened scientific opportunity and when 

other countries have been increasing investment in science—some by double digits. 

These cutbacks have also demoralized early career investigators who, sadly, may 

leave and never return to research. We cannot afford to lose one of our Nation’s 

most valuable resources—an innovative biomedical research workforce. 

American Heart Association Advocates: We ask Congress to appropriate $32 billion for NIH to restore sequester cuts, provide for modest growth, and advance CVD 

research. 

Enhance Funding for NIH Heart and Stroke Research: A Proven and Wise Investment 

Declining death rates from CVD is directly related to NIH research, with scientists on the verge of discoveries that could lead to groundbreaking treatments and 

even cures. In addition to saving lives, NIH research is cost-effective. For example, 

the first NIH tPA drug trial resulted in a 10-year net $6.47 billion drop reduction 

in stroke healthcare costs. 

Cardiovascular Disease Research: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute 

(NHLBI) 

CVD death rates have greatly declined, with much of the reduction traced to research emanating from the NHLBI. Stable and sustained NHLBI funding is key to 

capitalize on investments that have led to major discoveries. For example, 10 percent of genetic changes leading to severe congenital heart disease are new and not 

passed down by a parent; people who maintained ideal health had better brain function in mid-life; digestive system bacteria may cause red meat to raise two chemicals linked to CVD; and post-traumatic stress disorder may be a heart disease risk 

factor. Sustained funding will allow robust implementation of priority CVD strategic 

plan initiatives. 

Stroke Research: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) 

An estimated 795,000 Americans will suffer a stroke this year and more than 

129,000 will die. Many of the 7 million survivors face grave physical and mental 

disabilities and emotional trauma. In addition to the physical and emotional toll, 

stroke costs an estimated $37 billion in medical expenses and lost productivity each 

year. Moreover, the future looks grim. A study projects that direct costs of stroke 

will triple between 2010 and 2030. 

Stable and sustained NINDS funding is needed to capitalize on investments, including one showing aggressive medical treatment is better than stents in preventing a second stroke, and to advance the BRAIN Initiative. More resources are 

required to facilitate the NIH Stroke Trials Network and other priorities in stroke 

prevention, treatment and recovery research. They include: hastening translation of 

preclinical animal models into clinical studies; preventing vascular cognitive damage; expediting comparative effectiveness research trials; developing imaging biomarkers; refining clot-busting treatments; achieving robust brain protection; targeting early stroke recovery; and using neural interface devices. 

American Heart Association Advocates: We recommend that NHLBI be funded at 

$3.2 billion and NINDS at $1.7 billion for fiscal year 2015. 

Increase Funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

Prevention is the best way to promote good health and reduce the costs of heart 

disease and stroke. Yet, proven prevention approaches are not implemented due to 

limited funds. We applaud Congress for providing in Public Law 113–76 the Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Research with a much needed boost. In addition 

to supporting research and evaluation and developing a surveillance system, the 

DHDSP administers Sodium Reduction Communities and the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry. DHDSP, with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 

Services, implements Million HeartsTM to prevent 1 million heart attacks and 

strokes by 2017. 

DHDSP runs WISEWOMAN, serving uninsured and under-insured, low-income 

women ages 40 to 64. It helps them from becoming heart disease and stroke statistics by offering preventive health services, referrals to local healthcare, and tailored 

lifestyle programs to promote lasting behavioral change. 

American Heart Association Advocates: We join with the CDC Coalition in asking 

for $7.8 billion for CDC’s program level. AHA requests $130.188 million for the 

DHDSP to sustain its participation in the State Public Health Actions to Prevent 
385 

and Control Diabetes, Heart Disease, Obesity and Associated Risk Factors and Promote School Health and $37 million for WISEWOMAN. We ask for $3 million for 

Million HeartsTM to better control blood pressure. 

Restore Funding for Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices (AED) Program 

About 90 percent of cardiac arrest victims die outside of a hospital. Yet, early CPR 

and use of an automated external defibrillator can more than double survival. Communities with full AED programs have survival rates near 40 percent. HRSA’s 

Rural and Community AED Program awards competitive grants to States to buy 

AEDs, tactically place them, and train lay rescuers and first responders in their use. 

Nearly 800 patients were saved from August 1, 2009 to July 31, 2010. But scarce 

resources let only 22 percent of approved applicants in 6 States receive funds in fiscal year 2013. 

American Heart Association Advocates: We ask for a fiscal year 2015 appropriation of $8.927 million to return this life-saving AED program to fiscal year 2005 levels when 47 States were funded. 

CONCLUSION

Cardiovascular disease, including stroke, still wreak a deadly, disabling and costly 

toll on Americans. Our recommendations for NIH, CDC and HRSA will save lives 

and slash escalating healthcare costs. We challenge Congress to carefully study our 

requests that signify a wise investment for our country and for the health and wellbeing of this and future generations. 

[This statement was submitted by Mariell Jessup, M.D., President, American 

Heart Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN HIGHER EDUCATION CONSORTIUM

This statement includes the fiscal year 2015 recommendations of the Nation’s 

Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), in two areas of the Department of Education: Office of Postsecondary Education and Office of Vocational Education. 

HIGHER EDUCATION ACT PROGRAMS

Strengthening Developing Institutions.—Titles III and V of the Higher Education 

Act support institutions that enroll large proportions of financially disadvantaged 

students and have low per-student expenditures. The TCUs, which by any definition 

are truly developing institutions, funded under Title III–A Sec. 316 are providing 

quality higher education opportunities to some of the most rural/isolated, impoverished, and historically underserved areas of the country. The goal of HEA–Titles III/ 

V programs is ‘‘to improve the academic quality, institutional management and fiscal stability of eligible institutions, in order to increase their self-sufficiency and 

strengthen their capacity to make a substantial contribution to the higher education 

resources of the Nation.’’ The TCU Title III–A program is specifically designed to 

address the critical, unmet needs of their American Indian students and communities, in order to effectively prepare them to succeed in a globally competitive workforce. Yet, in fiscal year 2011 this critical program was cut by over 11 percent, by 

another 4 percent in fiscal year 2012, and hit by sequestration—on the lowered 

baseline—in fiscal year 2013. Although sequestration was not imposed in fiscal year 

2014, the TCUs have not recovered from the earlier cuts to this vitally important 

program. The TCUs urge the Subcommittee to restore the discretionary funding for 

HEA Title III–A, Sec. 316 to $30,000,000 in fiscal year 2015. 

TRIO.—Retention and support services are vital to achieving the national goal of 

having the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020. TRIO programs, such as Student Support Services and Upward Bound, were created out of 

recognition that college access is not enough to ensure advancement and that multiple factors work to prevent the successful completion of postsecondary programs 

for many low-income and first-generation students and students with disabilities. 

Therefore, in addition to providing the maximum Pell Grant award level, it is critical that Congress also sustain student assistance programs, such as Student Support Services and Upward Bound so that low-income and minority students have the 

Federal support necessary to allow them to remain enrolled in and ultimately complete their higher education degrees. 

Pell Grants.—The importance of Pell Grants to TCU students cannot be overstated. Approximately, 80 percent of TCU students receive Pell Grants, primarily 

because student income levels are so low and they have far less access to other 
386 

sources of financial aid than students at State-funded and other mainstream institutions. Within the TCU system, Pell Grants are doing exactly what they were intended to do—they are serving the needs of the lowest income students by helping 

them gain access to quality higher education, an essential step toward becoming active, productive members of the workforce. However, the U.S. Department of Education has changed its regulations to limit Pell eligibility from 18 to 12 full-time semesters, without any consideration of those already in the process of earning a postsecondary degree. This change in policy has impeded some TCU students from completing a postsecondary degree, which is widely recognized as being critical for access to, and advancement in, today’s highly technical workforce. 

TCUs are open enrollment institutions. Recent placement tests administered at 

TCUs to first-time entering students indicated that 74 percent required remedial 

math, 54 percent required remedial reading, and 57 percent needed remedial writing. These results clearly illustrate just how serious this new Pell Grant eligibility 

limit is to the success of TCU students in completing a postsecondary degree. Students requiring remediation can use as much as a full year of eligibility enhancing 

their math, and or reading/writing skills, thereby hampering their future postsecondary degree plans. A prior national goal was to provide access to quality higher 

education opportunities for all students regardless of economic means, at which 

TCUs have been extremely successful. While the new national goal intends to 

produce graduates with postsecondary degrees by 2020, this change in policy does 

not advance that objective. On the contrary, the new regulations will cause many 

low-income students to once again abandon their dream of a postsecondary degree, 

as they will simply not have the means to continue to pursue it. The goal of a welltrained technically savvy workforce will be greatly compromised. This new policy 

evokes the adage ‘‘penny wise—pound foolish.’’ The TCUs urge the Subcommittee 

to continue to fund this essential program at the highest possible level, and to direct 

the Secretary of Education to implement a process to waive the very restrictive 12 

semester Pell Grant eligibility for TCU students. 

PERKINS CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Tribally-Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions.—Section 117 

of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act provides a competitively 

awarded grant opportunity for tribally chartered and controlled career and technical 

institutions. AIHEC requests $8,200,000 to fund grants under Sec. 117 of the Perkins Act. 

Native American Career and Technical Education Program (NACTEP).—NACTEP 

(Sec. 116) reserves 1.25 percent of appropriated funding to support American Indian 

career and technical programs. The TCUs strongly urge the Subcommittee to continue to support NACTEP, which is vital to the continuation of career and technical 

education programs offered at TCUs that provide job training and certifications to 

remote reservation communities. 

AMERICAN INDIAN ADULT AND BASIC EDUCATION (OFFICE OF VOCATIONAL AND ADULT

EDUCATION)

This program supports adult basic education programs for American Indians offered by State and local education agencies, Indian tribes, agencies, and TCUs. Despite the absence of dedicated funding, TCUs must find a way, often using already 

insufficient institutional operating funds, to continue to provide adult basic education classes for those American Indians that the present K–12 Indian education 

system has failed. Before many individuals can even begin the course work needed 

to learn a productive skill, they first must earn a GED or, in some cases, even learn 

to read. The new GED exam, which was instituted in January 2014, has a much 

stronger focus on mathematics. As noted earlier, placement tests for TCU entering 

students reveal a tremendous need for math remediation. Additionally, the new 

GED test is fully computerized. While younger GED seekers may be well versed and 

comfortable with computer-based testing, older and poorer citizens may not be. 

These factors indicate a further and growing need for adult basic educational programs and GED preparation on Indian reservations. TCUs must have sufficient and 

stable funding to continue to provide these essential activities and to ensure their 

communities residents have the same chances to succeed as others throughout the 

country have. TCUs request that the Subcommittee direct that $8,000,000 of the 

funds appropriated annually for the Adult Education State Grants be made available to make competitive awards to TCUs to help meet the growing demand for 

adult basic education and remediation program services on their respective Reservations. 
387 

FURTHER JUSTIFICATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 APPROPRIATIONS REQUESTS FOR TCUS

Tribal colleges and our students are already being disproportionately impacted by 

ongoing efforts to reduce the Federal budget deficit and control Federal spending. 

The fiscal year 2011 Continuing Resolution eliminated all of the Department of 

Housing and Urban Development’s Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) communitybased programs, including a critically needed TCU–HUD facilities program. TCUs 

were able to maximize leveraging potential, often securing even greater non-Federal 

funding to construct and equip Head Start and early childhood centers; student and 

community computer laboratories and public libraries; and student and faculty 

housing in rural and remote communities where few and sometimes none of these 

facilities existed. Important STEM programs, administered by the National Science 

Foundation and NASA were cut, and for the first time since the NSF program was 

established in fiscal year 2001, no new TCU–STEM awards were made in fiscal year 

2011. While NSF–TCUP grants resumed in fiscal year 2012, a year of grant opportunity was lost. TCUs Additionally, TCUs and their students suffer the realities of 

cuts to programs such as GEAR–UP, TRIO, SEOG, and as noted earlier, are seriously impacted by the new highly restrictive Pell Grant eligibility criteria more profoundly than mainstream institutions of higher education, which can realize economies of scale due to large endowments, alternative funding sources, including the 

ability to charge higher tuition rates and enroll more financially stable students, 

and access to affluent alumni. The loss of opportunities that cuts to DoEd, HUD, 

NSF, and NASA programs represent to TCUs, and to other MSIs, is magnified by 

cuts to workforce development programs within the Department of Labor, nursing 

and allied health professions tuition forgiveness and scholarship programs operated 

by the Department of Health and Human Services, and an important TCU-based 

nutrition education program planned by USDA. Combined, these cuts strike at the 

most economically disadvantaged and health-challenged Americans. 

We respectfully request that the Members of the Subcommittee continue the Federal investment in the Nation’s Tribal Colleges and Universities and full consideration of our fiscal year 2015 appropriations needs and recommendations. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN PHYSIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

The American Physiological Society (APS) thanks the subcommittee for its ongoing support of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Research carried out by the 

NIH contributes to our understanding of health and disease, which allows all Americans to look forward to a healthier future. The APS urges you to make every effort 

to provide the NIH with a net funding level of $32 billion in fiscal year 2015. This 

is necessary to prevent further erosion of research capacity. 

Federal investment in research is critically important because breakthroughs in 

basic and translational research are the foundation for new drugs and therapies 

that help patients, fuel our economy, and provide jobs. The Federal Government is 

the primary funding source for discovery research through competitive grants 

awarded by the NIH. Although the private sector partners with academic researchers to develop research findings into new treatments, industry relies upon federally 

funded research to identify where innovation opportunities can be found. This system of public-private partnership has been critical to U.S. leadership in the biomedical sciences. However, this position of leadership is at risk as other nations, 

including China, increase their investments in research and development while the 

United States investment has lagged in recent years. 

Federal research dollars also have a significant impact at the local level: Approximately 85 percent of the NIH budget is awarded throughout the country to researchers who use grant funds to pay research and administrative staff, purchase 

supplies and equipment, and cover other costs associated with their research. 

NIH funds outstanding science 

As a result of improved healthcare, Americans in the 21st century are living 

longer and healthier lives than ever before. However, chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, respiratory illnesses, Alzheimer’s and cancer continue 

to inflict a heavy burden in the United States and around the world. As the U.S. 

population ages, the prevalence and cost of these diseases will increase exponentially. The NIH invests heavily in basic research to understand the physiological 

mechanisms at work in health and disease. This knowledge is crucial to the development of safe and effective interventions and prevention strategies. 

Exciting new initiatives are underway at the NIH to advance science, including 

the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (‘‘BRAIN’’) initiative and the Big Data 2 Knowledge project (BD2K). The BRAIN initiative will 
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1http://www.asbmb.org/asbmbtoday/201403/PresidentsMessage/ 

bring together researchers from diverse disciplines to tackle major gaps in current 

knowledge about the brain and brain diseases. BD2K will explore ways to capitalize 

on the immense volume of data being created by biomedical scientists, ultimately 

enhancing the work of the entire community by providing new tools and resources 

to make better use of that data. These important projects require significant resources, and at a time of constrained budgets, that will further diminish funding 

for investigator-initiated grants. The NIH system of allowing investigators to develop and propose ideas which are then evaluated by their peers and selected for 

funding based on their merit has fostered a research enterprise that is second to 

none. Increasing the NIH budget to $32 billion would provide funding for large 

projects as described above, while also providing resources for individual scientists 

to pursue creative new avenues of research. 

NIH nurtures the biomedical research enterprise 

In addition to supporting research, the NIH must also address workforce issues 

to ensure that our Nation’s researchers are ready to meet the challenges they will 

face in the future. The pressures placed on the biomedical research enterprise after 

years of sub-inflationary budget increases were severely compounded by sequestration cuts in fiscal year 2013. One analysis showed that NIH supported approximately 1000 fewer investigators in fiscal year 2013 as a result of its declining budget.1 Researchers who lose their funding face an uncertain future as there are few 

options to sustain their research without Federal grants. Losing Federal support 

puts at risk the investment that it took to build those programs over many years. 

It also means that talented individuals working in those labs will have to look elsewhere for increasingly scarce jobs. As a result of stagnant funding for NIH, scientists at all stages of their careers struggle to maintain their research programs. 

Scientists in the early stages of their careers face a particular set of challenges 

as they work to establish themselves during a time of dwindling resources. To address some of these problems, the NIH is continuing its commitment to fund new 

investigators at approximately the same rate as established investigators. The NIH 

is also developing three new efforts to ensure a diverse and sustainable future biomedical workforce. The National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) and the 

Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) initiative are complementary 

programs that will develop innovative new mentorship programs to engage individuals from diverse backgrounds and help them prepare to succeed in biomedical research careers. The Coordination and Evaluation Center (CEC) will play a role in 

coordinating and assessing NRMN and BUILD, providing program-wide goals and 

tools to assess progress. These efforts are critical to helping young scientists launch 

their careers. However, to sustain a talented workforce the NIH needs predictable 

and sustainable budget growth. If the current funding crisis is not resolved, the continued loss of senior researchers will begin to erode the pool of experienced mentors 

for early career scientists on which the BUILD and NRMN programs rely. 

The NIH also uses the Institutional Development Award (IDeA) Program to 

broaden the geographic distribution of NIH funds by providing support to researchers and institutions in areas that have not previously received significant NIH funding. IDeA builds research capacity and improves competitiveness in those States by 

developing shared resources, infrastructure and expertise. Networks established 

through this program expand research opportunities for students and faculty at predominantly undergraduate institutions and enhance the level of science and technology knowledge of the workforce in IDeA States. The program currently serves institutions and researchers in 23 States and Puerto Rico. The APS believes this program is an important way to broaden participation in the scientific workforce. 

The APS appreciates the support of the committee in continuing the Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA) program at the NIH. This program was slated 

for elimination last year under the proposed consolidation of science education programs across Federal agencies. The SEPA program fosters important connections 

between biomedical researchers and K–12 students and teachers, providing an opportunity for students at the earliest levels to learn about STEM careers. No other 

Federal STEM program addresses biomedicine or provides this kind of outreach concerning what NIH does to promote the health of our citizens. Thus, SEPA programs 

promote health literacy among young individuals, who will increasingly be expected 

to manage their own healthcare. Many of the programs sponsored by SEPA, including those at the APS, disproportionately reach underrepresented and disadvantaged 

students. The APS believes that the SEPA program helps establish the groundwork 

to address issues of workforce diversity and health literacy. 
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2www.faseb.org/fundingreport 

The APS is a professional society dedicated to fostering research and education 

as well as the dissemination of scientific knowledge concerning how the organs and 

systems of the body work. The Society was founded in 1887 and now has more than 

10,000 member physiologists. APS members conduct NIH-supported research at colleges, universities, medical schools, and other public and private research institutions across the U.S. 

The APS joins the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 

(FASEB) in urging that NIH be provided with no less than $32 billion in fiscal year 

2014.2

[This statement was submitted by Kim E. Barrett, Ph.D., President, American 

Physiological Society.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the U.S.: its membership includes 

nearly 130,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. APA 

works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological 

knowledge to benefit society and improve people’s lives. Many programs in the 

Labor-HHS-Education bill impact science, education, and the populations served by 

clinical psychologists. 

National Institutes of Health.—The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 increase for NIH did not give back all of the funds cut by sequestration in fiscal year 

2013 nor did it restore the purchasing power lost over the past decade. As a member 

of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, APA recommends that NIH receive at 

least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase 

in our Nation’s investment in health research. APA also urges Congress and the Administration to work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and the continued 

cuts to health research that squander invaluable scientific opportunities, discourage 

young scientists, threaten or slow improvements in our Nation’s health, and jeopardize our economic future. 

Psychological scientists are supported by research grants or training programs in 

almost all of NIH’s 27 institutes and centers. They are working with animal models 

or human participants to improve diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease 

and autism, to understand the mechanisms underlying adoption of healthy behaviors, and to help prevent transmission of HIV and unhealthy behaviors such as substance abuse. Behavioral research is critical to NIH’s mission: approximately 40 percent of premature mortality in the U.S. is due to behaviors such as smoking, sedentary lifestyle, and alcohol and other drug consumption. APA encourages continued 

support for OppNet, the trans-institute initiative funded through the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research that has led to some $90 million in funding 

of basic research through fiscal year 2013 on critical issues such as sleep, stress, 

and multisensory perception. As NICHD develops initiatives to understand and prevent harmful and costly preterm births, APA encourages that institute to enhance 

research on psychological factors that may contribute. 

There remains a disturbing paucity of scientific evidence about the effects of sporadic vs. regular use of marijuana, alcohol, nicotine and other substances on the developing brain. A large-scale, prospective study that (a) includes brain imaging and 

(b) begins in late childhood (prior to substance exposure) and continues into early 

adulthood is urgently needed. Now is the time to begin an in-depth and definitive 

longitudinal study to document the short- and long-term effects of substance use 

and, in particular, the impact on young brains to inform future drug policy decisions. By tracking brain development and various life outcomes alongside behavioral 

data on substance use, the study would also illuminate the developmental effects 

of individual substances as well as substance interactions, as well as better establish the relationship between substance use and other mental disorders (e.g., does 

substance use predispose adolescent users to mental illness; do subclinical or 

premorbid symptoms of mental illness lead to substance use; or are associations due 

to a shared vulnerability?). APA urges the NIH to conduct such a study as part of 

the Collaborative Research on Addictions at NIH (CRAN initiative) to comprehensively document the biological and behavioral effects of substance use on the developing brain by conducting a longitudinal naturalistic study monitoring a nationally 

representative sample of 10,000 healthy 10-year-old children over the course of 10 

years. 
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.—As a member of the CDC Coalition, 

APA supports at least $7.8 billion for core programs in fiscal year 2015. Rather than 

relying on the Prevention Fund and other transfers, APA urges the committee to 

restore CDC’s budget authority. As a member of the Friends of NCHS, APA recommends a program level of $182 million for the National Center on Health Statistics. APA strongly supports the President’s request for increased funding for the National Injury Prevention and Control Center, including $10 million research into the 

causes and prevention of gun violence, to allow the CDC to carry out the critical 

research agenda developed last year by the Institute of Medicine and the National 

Research Council, and for $23.57 million for the National Violent Death Reporting 

System, to allow for its expansion to all 50 States and DC. APA is pleased that the 

Committee provided an increase in funding for the Prevention Research Centers 

program in fiscal year 2014, and urges that funding be restored for the program to 

at least $28 million in fiscal year 2015, consistent with the fiscal year 2011 funding 

level, to support research essential to the focus on prevention. APA supports the 

President’s request of $360.7 million for surveillance, research and programs to support HIV prevention in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, an increase of $4.3 

million above fiscal year 2014. Additional resources should be directed toward behavioral and social science research that optimizes outcomes along the HIV care 

continuum; implementation science to enhance linkage and retention in care; research on adherence to treatment; developing and scaling up interventions for most 

the impacted persons living with HIV/AIDS; development, adaptation and implementation of innovative strategies to address stigma and discrimination; and research into structural and environmental factors that drive the HIV epidemic. 

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.—APA strongly supports: 

—The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) program. APA recommends increased support for the Network’s efforts on behalf of the recovery 

of children, families, and communities affected by physical and sexual abuse, 

school and community violence, natural disasters, sudden death of a loved one, 

war’s impact on military families, and other trauma. 

—Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act programs—Campus Suicide Prevention, State 

and Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention and the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. These effective national programs help meet the mental and behavioral 

health needs of youth and young adults through access to prevention, education, 

and outreach services to reduce suicide risk in these populations. First authorized in 2004, the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act has supported youth suicide 

prevention grants in 49 States, 48 Tribes or Tribal organizations, and 138 institutions of higher education. 

—Minority Fellowship Program. APA remains concerned that while minorities 

represent 30 percent of the population and are projected to increase to 40 percent by 2025, only 23 percent of recent doctorates in psychology, social work and 

nursing were awarded to minorities. We encourage the Committee to support 

the Administration’s $5 million increase for the MFP as requested in the fiscal 

year 2015 budget proposal. The increase reflects the need to continually grow 

the pool of culturally competent mental health professionals. 

—Mental Health Care Provider Education in HIV/AIDS Program, in CMHS. Continuing education for mental health providers in these crucial clinical issues remains a high priority. APA urges Congress to maintain level funding in CMHS 

for the training of psychologists, social workers, and psychiatrists in mental 

health and psychosocial issues related to HIV/AIDS. 

—SAMHSA-funded programs providing vital substance abuse and mental health 

services to people with HIV/AIDS. 

—SAMHSA’s Safe Schools/Healthy Students program that expands access to mental and behavioral health services in schools and reduces violence through prevention and early intervention supports. 

Health Resources and Services Administration.—APA recommends funding SSA 

Section 512 regarding services to individuals with a postpartum condition. 

Postpartum Depression (PPD) is one of the most common and frequently 

undiagnosed conditions associated with childbirth. In the U.S. approximately one in 

five women suffers from PPD each year. While PPD is a widespread problem, under 

the current USPSTF guidelines, depression screening is available as an Essential 

Health Benefit to all non-pregnant adults, yet excludes the vulnerable population 

of pregnant women. APA supports funding for this as-yet unfunded provision that 

supports PPD research and treatment and the incorporation of screening and linkages to behavioral health treatment for families affected by this condition. APA encourages the Committee to support incorporation of PPD screening into the Title V 

programs administered by HRSA as well as Healthy Start. APA also encourages the 
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Committee to urge the Secretary to prioritize the issue of PPD by raising awareness, 

expanding research, and establishing grants for the operation and coordination of 

cost-effective services to afflicted women and their families. 

APA recommends continued investments in the mental and behavioral health 

workforce, including $6.9 million for the Graduate Psychology Education program 

to increase the number of health service psychologists trained to provide services 

to high-need and high-demand underserved populations in both urban and rural 

communities. This program supports the training of doctoral psychology students, 

interns and postdoctoral residents with other health professionals while they provide supervised mental and behavioral health services to underserved and vulnerable populations, including: children, older adults, veterans and their families, individuals with chronic illnesses, and victims of abuse and trauma. In 2010–2011 

alone, the GPE program supported the training of 620 graduate psychology students 

and provided mental and behavioral health services to over 46,000 underserved persons. APA encourages HRSA to maintain a strong emphasis on serving rural veteran populations and their families. There is a growing need for highly trained mental and behavioral health professionals to deliver evidence-based services to the rapidly aging population. APA encourages HRSA to reinstate the geropsychology component, and help integrate health service psychology trainees at federally Qualified 

Health Centers. 

HHS programs on aging.—Given that approximately 20–25 percent of older adults 

have a mental or behavioral health problem, and older white males (age 85 and 

over) currently have the highest rates of suicide of any group in the U.S. APA supports an expanded effort to address the mental and behavioral health needs of older 

adults including implementation of the mental and behavioral health provisions in 

the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2006, grants to States for the delivery of 

mental health screening, and treatment services for older individuals and programs 

to increase public awareness and reduce the stigma associated with mental disorders in older individuals. 

APA also recommends continued support of the HHS’s Lifespan Respite Program. 

Respite care can provide family caregivers with relief necessary to maintain their 

own health, bolster family stability and well-being, and avoid or delay more costly 

nursing home or foster care placements. 

Department of Education.—APA supports strengthening our Federal investment 

in gifted and talented education and encourages Congress to fund the Javits Gifted 

and Talented Education Program in fiscal year 2015, funded last year at $5 million. 

And, as a member of the Friends of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), APA 

supports $202.3 million for IES’s research, development and dissemination portfolio, 

consistent with the Administration’s 2013 and 2014 requests. This would support 

critical investments to provide evidence-based information on effective educational 

practices to parents, teachers and schools, and new research to fill gaps in knowledge. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony for the record in support of 

critical program areas funded by the Labor-Health and Human Services-Education 

appropriations bill. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION

The American Public Health Association is a diverse community of public health 

professionals who champion the health of all people and communities. We are 

pleased to submit our request to fund the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at $7.8 billion and the Health Resources and Services Administration at $7.48 

billion in fiscal year 2015. We urge you to take our recommendations to restore 

funding to at least fiscal year 2010 levels into consideration as you move forward 

with writing the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

APHA believes Congress should support CDC as an agency, not just the individual programs that it funds. Given the challenges and burdens of chronic disease 

and disability, public health emergencies, new and reemerging infectious diseases 

and other unmet public health needs, we urge a funding level of $7.8 billion for 

CDC’s programs in fiscal year 2015. We appreciate some of the important new investments in President Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal; however, under 

the president’s proposal, CDC’s total budget would be cut by nearly $243 million 

compared to fiscal year 2014. CDC’s budget authority under the president’s budget 

is lower than fiscal year 2003 levels. State and local health departments continue 

to operate on tight budgets and with a smaller workforce, losing more than 50,000 
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public health jobs since 2008. These cuts will reduce the ability of CDC and its State 

and local grantees to investigate and respond to public health emergencies, ensure 

adequate immunization rates and track environmental hazards. 

By translating research findings into effective intervention efforts, CDC is a critical source of funding for many of our State and local programs that aim to improve 

the health of communities. Perhaps more importantly, Federal funding through 

CDC provides the foundation for our State and local public health departments, supporting a trained workforce, laboratory capacity and public health education communications systems. It is notable that more than 70 percent of CDC’s budget supports 

public health and prevention activities by State and local health organizations and 

agencies, national public health partners and academic institutions. 

CDC also serves as the command center for our Nation’s public health defense 

system against emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. With the potential 

onset of a worldwide influenza pandemic and the many other natural and manmade threats that exist in the modern world, CDC has become the Nation’s—and 

the world’s—expert resource and response center, coordinating communications and 

action and serving as the laboratory reference center. States and communities rely 

on CDC for accurate information and direction in a crisis or outbreak. 

CDC serves as the lead agency for bioterrorism and other public health emergency 

preparedness and response programs and must receive sustained support for its preparedness programs in order for our Nation to meet future challenges. Given the 

challenges of terrorism and disaster preparedness, and our many unmet public 

health needs and missed prevention opportunities we urge you to provide adequate 

funding for State and local capacity grants. Unfortunately, this is not a threat that 

is going away. 

CDC plays a significant role in addressing chronic diseases such as heart disease, 

stroke, cancer, diabetes and arthritis that continue to be the leading causes of death 

and disability in the United States. These diseases, many of which are preventable, 

are also among the most costly to our health system. CDC’s National Center for 

Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion provides critical funding for 

State programs to prevent chronic disease, conducts surveillance to collect data on 

disease prevalence and monitor intervention efforts and translates scientific findings 

into public health practice in our communities. 

CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health is essential to protecting the 

health and well being of the public by helping to control asthma, protect from 

threats associated with climate change and reduce exposure to lead and other hazards. We urge the subcommittee to provide adequate funding for NCEH which has 

been significantly cut in recent years. 

Health Resources and Services Administration 

HRSA operates programs in every State and U.S. territory and is a national leader in improving the health of Americans through the delivery of quality health services and supporting a well prepared workforce. The agency serves the health needs 

of people who are medically vulnerable, low-income and geographically isolated. The 

Nation faces a shortage of health professionals and continues to experience an ever 

growing, aging and increasingly diverse population, alongside health professionals 

that are nearing retirement age. We are deeply concerned that since fiscal year 

2010, HRSA’s discretionary budget authority has been cut by 19 percent in nominal 

dollars and 25 percent when adjusted for inflation. Funding for HRSA is far too low 

and keeping austerity measures in place will threaten the agency’s ability to address the present and growing health needs of the U.S. To respond to the needs of 

our Nation, APHA recommends restoring funding to the fiscal year 2010 level of 

$7.48 billion for discretionary HRSA programs in fiscal year 2015. 

HRSA programs have a strong history of providing quality care to keep people 

healthy and improve health equity for those living outside of the economic and medical mainstream. HRSA has contributed to the decrease in infant mortality rate, a 

widely used indicator of the Nation’s health, which is now at an all-time low. Most 

recently, preliminary data indicates that the infant mortality rate for black infants 

has decreased, resulting in a narrowing of the gap that exists between racial groups. 

HIV/AIDS programs administered by HRSA provide access to regular care and ensure adherence to antiretroviral treatment for people living with HIV, which reduces 

HIV transmission by 96 percent and greatly contributes to the prevention of new 

HIV infections. A committed investment from Congress is required to continue 

achieving the health improvements HRSA has made and to pave the way for new 

achievements. 

Our recommendation is based on the need to continue improving the health of 

Americans by supporting critical HRSA programs, including: 
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—Health Professions supports the education and training of a broad range of 

health professionals. With a focus on primary care and training in interdisciplinary, community-based settings, these are the only Federal programs focused 

on filling the gaps in the supply of health professionals, as well as improving 

the distribution and diversity of the workforce so health professionals are wellequipped to care for the growing and changing population. 

—Primary Care supports 9,200 health sites in every State and U.S. territory, improving access to care for more than 21 million patients in geographically isolated and economically distressed communities. Close to half of these health 

centers serve rural populations. In addition, health centers target populations 

with special needs, including migrant and seasonal farm workers, homeless individuals and families and those living in public housing. 

—Maternal and Child Health including the Title V Maternal and Child Health 

Block Grant, Healthy Start and others support initiatives designed to promote 

optimal health, reduce disparities, combat infant mortality, prevent chronic conditions and improve access to quality healthcare for more than 43 million 

women and children, including children with special healthcare needs. 

—HIV/AIDS provides assistance to States and communities most severely affected 

by HIV/AIDS. The programs deliver comprehensive care, prescription drug assistance and support services for about half of the total population—1.1 million 

people—living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S. Additionally, the programs provide 

education and training for health professionals treating people with HIV/AIDS 

and work toward addressing the disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS on racial 

and ethnic minorities. 

—Family Planning Title X services ensure access to a broad range of reproductive, 

sexual and related preventive healthcare for over 5 million poor and low-income 

women, men and adolescents at nearly 4,400 health centers nationwide. This 

program helps improve maternal and child health outcomes and promotes 

healthy families. 

—Rural Health improves access to care for the nearly 50 million people living in 

rural areas that experience a persistent shortage of healthcare services. These 

programs are designed to support community-based disease prevention and 

health promotion projects, help rural hospitals and clinics implement new technologies and strategies and build health system capacity in rural and frontier 

areas. 

Conclusion 

In closing, we emphasize that the public health system requires stronger financial 

investments at every stage. This funding makes up less than 1 percent of Federal 

spending and continued austerity measures that cut funding for public health and 

prevention programs will not balance our budget and will only lead to increased 

costs to our healthcare system. Successes in biomedical research must be translated 

into tangible prevention opportunities, screening programs, lifestyle and behavior 

changes and other population-based interventions that are effective and available 

for everyone. Without a robust and sustained investment in our public health agencies, we will fail to meet the mounting health challenges facing our Nation. 

[This statement was submitted by Georges Benjamin, MD, Executive Director 

American Public Health Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MICROBIOLOGY

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the largest single life science Society with over 39,000 members, wishes to submit a statement in support of increased 

funding in the fiscal year 2015 budget for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As the Nation’s health protection Agency, the CDC’s programs are 

critical to preventing disease and injury. The CDC conducts scientific investigations, 

develops public health guidelines and provides information and expertise in response to threats against public health in the United States and worldwide. 

The ASM urges Congress to approve the requested budget of $445.3 million for 

the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (EZID), an overall increase of $54.9 million over fiscal year 2104. The EZID budget includes an increase of $31 million for Core Infectious Diseases. A funding level of $30 million is 

included for Advanced Molecular Detection (AMD), year 2 of the 5 year initiative 

to enhance CDC’s microbiology and bioinformatics capabilities to detect and respond 

to infectious disease outbreaks. The AMD initiative will improve pathogen identification and detection; adapt new diagnostics to meet evolving public health needs; 

help States meet future reference testing needs in a coordinated manner; implement 
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enhanced, sustainable and integrated laboratory information systems; and develop 

prediction modeling and early recognition tools. Advances in biotechnology and computing must be part of CDC efforts against the threat of infectious diseases. Because 

of the need for better molecular sequencing tools and bioinformatics, last year CDC 

proposed the AMD initiative, integrating cutting edge laboratory and computer tools 

to enhance infectious disease prevention and control. A 2013 pilot study tracking a 

Listeria outbreak demonstrated that AMD technologies and methods could detect 

outbreaks sooner, halting disease faster. The study used whole genome sequencing 

with diagnostic testing for the first time to help clarify which patients’ illnesses 

were related to a listeriosis outbreak linked to contaminated cheese. Listeria ranks 

third as a cause of death from foodborne pathogens in the United States and sickens 

about 1,600 people each year. The EZID budget includes a $10 million increase for CDC’s Food Safety program. 

This increase is essential to enhance national surveillance outbreak detection and 

response and food safety prevention efforts. It will help modernize PulseNet and 

apply advanced DNA technology and expand sites for FoodCORE to improve outbreak detection and response. It will improve foodborne disease tracking, detection 

and response through the Integrated Food Safety Center of Excellence. Food safety 

is one of CDC’s foremost strategic goals and heavily reliant upon state of the art 

surveillance. Last year, the CDC published first ever estimates of which food types 

were causing foodborne illnesses in the United States. These attribution estimates 

guide regulators, industry and consumers toward more precise and effective measures to prevent food contamination. In June, a new CDC report identified the key 

demographic groups most affected by Listeria bacteria infections. During 2009— 

2011, twelve Listeria outbreaks sickened people in 38 States. CDC partnerships 

with other public health agencies clearly extend the CDC’s ability to prevent disease. For example, data from the Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network 

(FoodNet) are the source for CDC’s most recent annual food safety report, which 

showed that 2012 rates of infection for two foodborne pathogens (Campylobacter and 

Vibrio) had increased significantly when compared to 2006—2008, while rates of 

most others have not changed during the same period. FoodNet involves CDC, ten 

State health departments, the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug 

Administration. 

The ASM strongly supports the fiscal year 2015 EZID budget request of $30 million for the Antibiotic Resistance (AR) Strategy, which will speed up outbreak detection through regional labs, support development of new antibiotics and diagnostics 

and improve infection prevention and antibiotic prescribing. With a $30 million annual funding for 5 years, the AR initiative could achieve reductions in many infections, including C. difficile, carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), 

Multidrug Resistant (MDR) Pseudomosas, Invasive Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and MDR Salmonella. 

CDC efforts have intensified against microbial pathogens that have evolved resistance against known drug therapies. In September, a landmark CDC report warned 

that antimicrobial resistant infections infect more than two million people in the 

United States every year, causing at least 23,000 deaths. CDC ranked AR threats 

into three categories: urgent, serious and concerning. Infections classified as urgent 

include CRE, drug resistant gonorrhea and Clostridium difficile, a diarrheal infection that causes about 250,000 U.S. hospitalizations and at least 14,000 deaths annually. Last year, CDC data showed more patients at hospitals and long term care 

facilities are being diagnosed with CRE infections; other AR reports are equally 

alarming. 

In November, CDC joined with the American Academy of Pediatrics to slow AR 

expansion with new guidelines, ‘‘Principles of Judicious Antibiotic Prescribing for 

Bacterial Upper Respiratory Tract Infections in Pediatrics.’’ Every year, up to 10 

million children in the United States risk side effects from antibiotic prescriptions 

unlikely to help their respiratory symptoms. Many of these infections are caused by 

viruses not treatable by antibiotics. Antibiotic use is the single most important factor in antibiotic resistance, with up to 50 percent of prescriptions unnecessary or 

prescribed inappropriately. Studies estimate that AR adds $20 billion in excess direct health costs, with additional costs to Society for lost productivity as high as $35 

billion a year. 

CDC guidelines that include science based prevention protocols can be very effective, for example, the ongoing battle against healthcare acquired infections (HAIs). 

About 1 in every 20 hospitalized patients develops an infection caused by receiving 

medical care. Many of these are drug resistant (e.g., three quarters of Staphylococcus aureus infections in hospital ICUs are methicillin resistant MRSA). CDC 

aggressively promotes use of prevention protocols in all facilities in the United 

States. In 2013, CDC found that bloodstream infections in patients with central IV 
395 

lines had decreased by over 40 percent and surgical site infections by 20 percent 

since 2008 and that following CDC protocols could cut dialysis related bloodstream 

infections in half. Another CDC coauthored report last fall concluded that there 

were an estimated 30,800 fewer invasive MRSA infections in 2011 compared with 

2005. More than 12,000 healthcare facilities now track HAI infections using CDC’s 

National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). 

Surveillance and Response 

CDC depends upon extensive surveillance networks and unique rapid response 

mobilization. Sustaining these CDC capabilities is critical to detect health threats, 

halt outbreaks and prevent illness and injury. Familiar threats like hepatitis and 

HIV/AIDS continue to affect lives. Public health institutions also are repeatedly 

challenged by emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), unexpected and often dangerous. 

CDC regularly confronts new threats, including the following EIDs in the past year: 

—CDC scientists traced the newly discovered Heartland virus that infected two 

men from Missouri to lone star ticks in the region, adding another tick borne 

disease to those the CDC monitors. 

—NCEZID helped identify a novel poxvirus (the same genus as smallpox) afflicting shepherds in the Republic of Georgia and is developing new diagnostic tests. 

—International travel advisories released by CDC address threats posed by the 

new coronavirus MERS-CoV, first reported by Saudi Arabia in 2012. CDC is 

working with health departments, hospitals and other partners to prepare for 

possible cases in the United States. 

—CDC is monitoring new reports of the mosquito borne chikungunya virus among 

residents of St. Martin in the Caribbean, the first time the disease has been 

detected among non-travelers in the Western Hemisphere. 

In 2013, CDC updated new surveillance results on several infectious diseases with 

serious healthcare and economic consequences in the United States: 

—Each year there are about 19 to 21 million cases of norovirus illness, about 570 

to 800 people die, and many thousands more are hospitalized or visit emergency 

rooms and outpatient clinics. Another CDC study found that the contagious 

stomach virus is now the leading cause of acute gastroenteritis among children 

less than 5 years of age who seek medical care. It caused nearly one million 

U.S. pediatric visits in 2009—2010. 

—About 300,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease each year in the United 

States, making it the most commonly reported tick borne illness. The early estimate is based on findings from three ongoing CDC studies. It suggests that the 

total number is roughly 10 times higher than the number reported to CDC by 

healthcare providers. 

—Valley Fever, a fungal respiratory infection, dramatically increased in several 

southwestern States, from 2,265 in 1998 to more than 22,000 in 2011. CDC is 

investigating whether the increase is related to changes in weather, rising populations or changes in the way the disease is detected and reported to the 

States or CDC. 

Each year, CDC gives financial support to all 50 State health departments, six 

local departments, and eight territories or affiliates. Since 2010, CDC has provided 

funds to 57 State, local and territorial health departments to increase the use of 

electronic lab reporting (ELR). About 10,400 labs send reportable data to health 

agencies but many do not report electronically. 

Global Health 

With globalization of our food supply and frequent travel to and from the United 

States, health security threats can come from anywhere. CDC’s Center for Global 

Health and Office of Infectious Diseases oversee Agency efforts to prevent, detect 

and respond to outbreaks in other countries. There are more than 1,600 CDC employees located in over 60 countries. At present, only 1 in 5 countries can rapidly 

detect, respond to or prevent global health threats caused by emerging infections. 

Improvements overseas, such as strengthening surveillance and lab systems or 

training investigators, make both the United States and the rest of the world more 

secure against infectious disease. 

In January, CDC reported results from pilot projects in Uganda and Vietnam to 

improve disease detection and response capabilities. Work in Uganda modernized diagnostic testing, developed real time information systems for faster outbreak response and improved emergency operations procedures. It focused on three priority 

diseases, drug resistant tuberculosis, cholera and viral hemorrhagic fever caused by 

Ebola virus. The Vietnam project trained Vietnamese health officials in advanced 

PCR techniques to detect H7N9 influenza, enterovirus 71 and respiratory viruses. 
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The ASM strongly urges Congress to increase CDC’s budget in fiscal year 2015 

to the highest level possible and approve funding increases for infectious diseases. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MICROBIOLOGY

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the largest single life science Society with over 39,000 members, wishes to submit the following comments and recommendations for the record on the fiscal year 2015 budget for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The ASM commends Congress for passage of the fiscal year 

2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill which represents a step in the right direction although funding for NIH remains too low in view of the gaps in our knowledge of 

disease and the abundance of scientific opportunities that cannot be pursued because of lack of funding. The ASM recommends that NIH receive at least $32 billion 

in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase in the Nation’s 

investment in medical research. 

The ASM is very concerned about the future of biomedical research in the United 

States. NIH support for basic research is critical to health and security, job creation 

and growing the U.S. economy. In fiscal year 2013, the success rate for NIH research grant applicants fell to an historic low 16.8 percent. The average size of research project grants (RPGs) decreased to the lowest ever since 1999. During last 

year’s sequestration, there were reports of delayed research projects, enforced layoffs 

of technical staff and waning innovation. Such stagnation undercuts biomedical research progress in the United States at a time when the opportunities are great and 

other Nations are growing their investment in basic and translational biomedical research. 

NIH is the primary supporter of biomedical research in the Nation. In 2012 alone, 

NIH funding supported more than 402,000 jobs and $57.8 billion in new economic 

activity nationwide. Among NIH’s investments are those in the rapidly advancing 

field of genomics. A recent report from the nonprofit United for Medical Research 

(UMR) spotlighted the economics of Federal investment in the human genome 

project, which has generated $965 billion in economic impact, more than 53,000 direct genomics related jobs and $293 billion in personal income. 

Current trends in the Nation’s R&D investments clearly do not bode well for future innovation and global competition. Federal R&D expenditures declined by 16.3 

percent between fiscal years 2010 and 2013, while China’s investment jumped more 

than 400 percent over the past decade. Since 2001, the U.S. share of global R&D 

performed has decreased from 37 percent to 30 percent. The Science Coalition Report in 2013 highlighted the importance of federally funded university research in 

creating new companies and R&D jobs. The report profiles R&D companies 

launched by relatively small Federal investment in university research, including 

NIH grants funding rapid pathogen detection technologies, vaccine development and 

advances in food and water safety. 

Several UMR reports from last year underscore how NIH supported research can 

propel private sector growth and innovation. U.S. biotech companies catalyzed by 

NIH funding illustrate the productive collaborations among NIH, university research scientists and the private sector. These companies are reshaping lucrative 

R&D sectors like gene sequencing and therapeutics for human disease, taking basic 

research to the marketplace. NIH support is responsible for several of Science magazine’s top ten 2013 discoveries, all expected to return huge dividends, including the 

‘‘breakthrough of the year’’ cancer immunotherapy, the new gene editing CRISPR 

technique and the astoundingly important human microbiome project. 

Also included was the first use of structural biology techniques to custom design 

a powerful immunogen with vaccine potential, in this case against respiratory 

syncytial virus (RSV). Worldwide, about 64 million cases of RSV infection occur each 

year, responsible for 160,000 deaths, making it the most common cause of severe 

respiratory illness in infants and young children. There is no approved vaccine, but 

the team led by NIAID Vaccine Research Center identified 3–D structures of attachment sites on the virus surface and potent antibodies against those sites, offering 

new tools to develop new or improved vaccines. 

NIH investments build the scientific foundation for the Nation’s valuable biomedical R&D sector, which employs 7 million and exports $90 billion in goods and 

services. In 2013, all three recipients of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 

and all three winners of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry had at some point received 

NIH funding (for a total of 144 NIH supported Nobel laureates). Four NIH funded 

scientists also won prestigious 2013 Lasker Foundation awards. 

As the Nation’s largest funder of biomedical research, NIH leads the Nation’s efforts to discover new cures, preventions and therapies for difficult disease challenges 
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by funding intramural and extramural projects to combat infectious diseases that 

kill millions of people worldwide. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 

Diseases (NIAID) and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) 

contribute to new, paradigm shifting technologies like high throughput genomic sequencing, as well as new multidisciplinary research approaches like systems biology. 

NIAID funded scientists have discovered therapies, vaccines, diagnostic tests and 

other biomedical tools that improve human health. Lifesaving examples are vaccines 

for rabies, meningitis, whooping cough, hepatitis A and B, chickenpox and pneumococcal pneumonia. Developing new influenza vaccines is a high priority for NIAID, 

which has supported a health provider consortium for clinical trials since the 1960s. 

The NIAID Vaccine Research Center’s influenza research has produced multiple 

promising advances like a DNA vaccine against H5N1 avian influenza and it helped 

establish the Southeast Asia Influenza Clinical Research Network to address global 

influenza threats. Ongoing NIAID research is making progress toward the highly 

significant goal of a universal influenza vaccine that would confer decades long protection from any flu virus strain. 

In February, NIAID reported on its latest contributions in the battle to halt antimicrobial resistance (AR) spreading among pathogens, which is creating ever more 

dangerous diseases like multidrug resistant gonorrhea and extensively drug resistant tuberculosis. Each year, there are 2 million drug resistant infections and 23,000 

deaths in the United States. Annual costs are an estimated $20 billion in added 

healthcare and $35 billion in lost productivity. NIAID leads U.S. research against 

drug resistant pathogens, making major investments in basic, translational and 

clinical research. Results include advances in prevention, diagnosis and treatment 

of AR infections, as well as greater support for new drug discovery. The agency has 

helped support R&D of at least 25 percent of the antibiotics currently in clinical 

testing. Basic AR research funded by NIAID is detailing the ways that pathogens 

evade host defenses, to identify new therapeutic and diagnostic targets. Using the 

latest in technological tools, NIAID supported researchers are developing novel 

diagnostics platforms for more rapid and accurate detection of emerging AR infections. NIAID’s expansive AR portfolio also includes vaccine development against increasingly common AR threats like drug resistant staph and gonorrhea bacteria. 

One of NIAID’s greatest challenges for the 21st century is developing defenses 

against familiar enemies, the world’s three greatest microbial killers, HIV/AIDS, 

malaria and tuberculosis. Recent research advances include the following: 

—A novel compound, from a new class of potential antimalarial drugs, appears 

effective against multiple life stages of the malaria causing Plasmodium parasite. Most antimalarials only target the parasite as it grows in the host’s bloodstream, giving the parasite more chances to spread and acquire drug resistance. 

—After designing nanoparticles loaded with copies of mutated HIV selected via 

computerized screening, scientists have activated host immune cells to produce 

VRC01 neutralizing antibodies. The approach offers a new tool to potentially reverse engineer neutralizing antibodies against HIV and other viruses. 

—Using a systems biology approach, scientists have identified interactions among 

genetic regulators in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the bacterium that 

causes tuberculosis (TB). The results help explain how Mtb lies latent for long 

periods in otherwise healthy people, then becomes active and transmissible TB. 

About one third of the world’s population is infected, making Mtb switches between different stages crucial to public health. 

Research strategies clearly rely upon previous scientific successes. Ever shifting 

influenza viruses and steady evolution of AR pathogens illustrate how any effort 

must build upon the past, respond to the present and plan for the future. New microbial threats emerge as old threats persist, the recent spread of dengue fever, detection of influenza H7N9 last year and the newly emerging coronavirus caused 

Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). First identified in 2012, MERS-CoV infection has been implicated in 181 cases (as of February 4) and 79 deaths. With high 

mortality and no treatments, the disease’s spread from the Middle East to Europe 

has health officials concerned. NIAID funded researchers now have reported some 

laboratory success using potential MERS-CoV therapy that combines two licensed 

antiviral drugs routinely used to treat diseases such as hepatitis C. 

At NIGMS, microbial genetics and cell/molecular biology are principal research 

emphases, recognition that microbiology not only provides insights to human health 

and biology in general, but also stimulates innovation in U.S. biotechnology. Each 

year, NIGMS awards more than 4,500 research grants and supports one fourth 

(∼4,000) of the NIH supported technical trainees. 

NIGMS funded research has generated high value technologies like PCR, high 

throughput DNA sequencing, and the human genome project. The latest exciting 

biotech tool to emerge is CRISPR technology (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short 
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Palindromic Repeats, DNA loci in bacterial genomes), innovation that evolved from 

basic research in both phage biology and advanced computing genomics. With huge 

potential for improved genome editing essential to the biotech industry, today the 

CRISPR system is increasingly used in gene cutting and other customized gene targeting. 

Without sustained NIH funding in diverse fields like microbiology, ASM strongly 

believes there will be fewer new discoveries and innovation in the United States. 

We urge Congress to build on bipartisan efforts to replace the random cuts of sequestration that have been devastating to basic research in the United States and 

to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health. Increased investment will 

enable the scientific progress that is needed to improve the health, security and economic growth of the country. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR NUTRITION

Dear Chairwoman Mikulski and Ranking Member Shelby: Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 appropriations. The American Society for Nutrition (ASN) respectfully requests $32 billion dollars for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and $182 million dollars for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Health Statistics (CDC/ NCHS) in 

Fiscal Year 2015. ASN is dedicated to bringing together the world’s top researchers 

to advance our knowledge and application of nutrition, and has more than 5,000 

members working throughout academia, clinical practice, government, and industry. 

National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

The NIH is the Nation’s premier sponsor of biomedical research and is the agency 

responsible for conducting and supporting 86 percent of federally-funded basic and 

clinical nutrition research. Although nutrition and obesity research makes up less 

than eight percent of the NIH budget, some of the most promising nutrition-related 

research discoveries have been made possible by NIH support. NIH nutrition-related 

discoveries have impacted the way clinicians prevent and treat heart disease, cancer, diabetes and other chronic diseases. For example, U.S. death rates from heart 

disease and stroke have decreased by more than 60 percent, and the proportion of 

older adults with chronic disabilities has dropped by one-third. With additional support for NIH, additional breakthroughs and discoveries to improve the health of all 

Americans will be made possible. 

Investment in biomedical research generates new knowledge, improved health, 

and leads to innovation and long-term economic growth. A decade of flat-funding, 

followed by sequestration cuts, has taken a significant toll on NIH’s ability to support research. Such economic stagnation is disruptive to training, careers, longrange projects and ultimately to progress. Increasing the NIH budget to $32 billion 

dollars would fully restore the funding that was lost to sequestration and support 

at least 600 additional competing research project grants. As a first step toward sustainable growth, ASN recommends a minimum of $32 billion dollars for NIH in fiscal year 2015. NIH needs sustainable and predictable budget growth in order to fulfill the full potential of biomedical research, including nutrition research, and to improve the health of all Americans. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics 

(CDC NCHS) 

The National Center for Health Statistics, housed within the Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention, is the Nation’s principal health statistics agency. ASN recommends a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $182 million dollars for NCHS, consistent with the President’s budget request, to help ensure uninterrupted collection 

of vital health and nutrition statistics, and help cover the costs needed for technology and information security maintenance and upgrades that are necessary to replace aging survey infrastructure. More than half of NCHS’s budget is supported 

through the evaluation tap. Therefore, ASN does not support efforts to eliminate the 

evaluation tap—in part or in full—unless a viable alternative funding mechanism 

is put in place to continue these important functions. 

The NCHS provides critical data on all aspects of our health care system, and it 

is responsible for monitoring the Nation’s health and nutrition status through surveys such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), 

that serve as a gold standard for data collection around the world. Nutrition and 

health data, largely collected through NHANES, are essential for tracking the nutrition, health and well-being of the American population, and are especially important 

for observing nutritional and health trends in our Nation’s children. 
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Nutrition monitoring conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research 

Service is a unique and critically important surveillance function in which dietary 

intake, nutritional status, and health status are evaluated in a rigorous and standardized manner. Nutrition monitoring is an inherently governmental function and 

findings are essential for multiple government agencies, as well as the public and 

private sector. Nutrition monitoring is essential to track what Americans are eating, 

inform nutrition and dietary guidance policy, evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of nutrition assistance programs, and study nutrition-related disease outcomes. Funds are needed to ensure the continuation of this critical surveillance of 

the Nation’s nutritional status and the many benefits it provides. 

Through learning both what Americans eat and how their diets directly affect 

their health, the NCHS is able to monitor the prevalence of obesity and other chronic diseases in the U.S. and track the performance of preventive interventions, as 

well as assess ‘nutrients of concern’ such as calcium, which are consumed in inadequate amounts by many subsets of our population. Data such as these are critical 

to guide policy development in the area of health and nutrition, including food safety, food labeling, food assistance, military rations and dietary guidance. For example, NHANES data are used to determine funding levels for programs such as the 

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Women, Infants, and 

Children (WIC) clinics, which provide nourishment to low-income women and children. 

To continue support for the agency and its important mission, ASN recommends 

an FY 2015 funding level of $162 million for NCHS. Sustained funding for NCHS 

can help to ensure uninterrupted collection of vital health and nutrition statistics, 

and will help to cover the costs needed for technology and information security upgrades that are necessary to replace aging survey infrastructure. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the National Institutes of Health and the CDC/National Center for 

Health Statistics. Please contact John E. Courtney, Ph.D., Executive Officer, if ASN 

may provide further assistance. 

[This statement was submitted by Gordon M. Jensen, M.D., Ph.D., 2013–2014 

ident, American Society for Nutrition.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR PHARMACOLOGY & 

EXPERIMENTAL THERAPEUTICS

The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) 

is pleased to submit written testimony in support of the National Institutes of 

Health (NIH) fiscal year 2015 budget. ASPET recommends a fiscal year 2015 NIH 

budget of at least $32 billion. 

Sustained growth for the NIH should be an urgent national priority. Congress 

showed bipartisan support for the agency in fiscal year 2014 as evidenced by the 

$1 billion increase above the fiscal year 2013 sequestered level. While this 3.5 percent increase helps put NIH on the path to more sustainable funding levels, it does 

not begin to make up for a lost decade of funding. Adjusting for inflation, the fiscal 

year 2013 budget for the NIH is less than it was in 2003. For NIH to meet its vital 

role in improving public health, stimulating our economy, and improving global competitiveness it is critical that the agency continue to receive steady and sustainable 

increases. 

Additionally, if funding for the next 10 years is similar to that of the past decade, 

the Nation will lose a generation of young scientists. Increasingly, these individuals, 

seeing no prospects for careers in biomedical research, will leave the research enterprise or look for employment in foreign countries. Not only are jobs increasingly limited in the academic sector, but industry too is under stress. The ‘‘brain drain’’ of 

young scientific talent jeopardizes the Nation’s leadership in biomedical research. A 

survey of ASPET’s own graduate students and post-doctoral researchers indicates 

that 45 percent of post-doctoral trainees and 25 percent of graduate students say 

they are no longer considering a career in biomedical research due to the restrictive 

funding environment; 50 percent of graduate students and 29 percent of post-doctoral trainees say they are willing to consider leaving the United States to pursue 

a career in biomedical research. 

A $32 billion budget for the NIH in fiscal year 2015 is a start to help restore 

NIH’s biomedical research capacity. Currently, the NIH only can fund one in six 

grant applications, the lowest rate in the agency’s history. Furthermore, the number 

of research project grants funded by NIH has declined every year since 2004. 
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A budget of at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 will help the agency manage 

its research portfolio more effectively without having to withhold funding for existing grants to researchers throughout the country. Only through steady, sustained 

and predictable funding increases can NIH continue to fund the highest quality biomedical research to help improve the health of all Americans and continue to make 

significant economic impact in many communities across the country. 

There is no substitute for a steady, sustained Federal investment in biomedical 

research. Industry, venture capital, and private philanthropy can supplement research but cannot replace the investment in basic, fundamental biomedical research 

provided by NIH. Neither the private sector nor industry will be able to fill a void 

for NIH funded basic biomedical research. Much of industry support is applied research that builds upon the discoveries generated from NIH-funded projects. The 

majority of the investment in basic biomedical research that NIH provides is broad 

and long-term providing a continuous development platform for industry, which 

would not typically invest in research that may be of higher risk and require several 

years to fully mature. In addition to this long term view, NIH also has mechanisms 

in place to rapidly build upon key technologies and discoveries that have the ability 

to have significant impact on the health and well being of our citizens. 

Many of the basic science initiatives supported by NIH have led to totally unexpected discoveries and insight that have transformed our mechanistic understanding 

of and our ability to treat a wide range of diseases 

Diminished Support for NIH will Negatively Impact Human Health 

Continued diminishment of funding and loss of purchasing power will mean a loss 

of scientific opportunities to discover new therapeutic targets. Without a steady, sustained Federal investment in fundamental biomedical research, scientific progress 

will be slower and potentially helpful therapies or cures will not be developed. For 

example, more research is needed on Parkinson’s disease to help identify the causes 

of the disease and help develop better therapies; discovery of gene variations in agerelated macular degeneration could result in new screening tests and preventive 

therapies; more basic research is needed to focus on new molecular targets to improve treatment for Alzheimer’s disease; and diminished support for NIH will prevent new and ongoing investigations into rare diseases that the Food and Drug Administration estimates almost 90 percent are serious or life-threatening. 

Historically, our past investment in basic biological research has led to many innovative medicines. The National Research Council reported that of the 21 drugs 

with the highest therapeutic impact, only five were developed without input from 

the public sector. The significant past investment in the NIH has provided major 

gains in our knowledge of the human genome, resulting in the promise of 

pharmacogenomics and a reduction in adverse drug reactions that currently represent a major worldwide health concern. Several completed human genome sequence analyses have pinpointed disease-causing variants that have led to improved 

therapy and cures but further advances and improvements in technology will be delayed or obstructed with diminished NIH funding. 

Investing in NIH Helps America Compete Economically 

A $32 billion budget in fiscal year 2015 will also help the NIH train the next generation of scientists and provide a platform for broader workforce development that 

is so critical to our Nation’s growth. Many individuals trained in the sciences 

through NIH support become educators in high schools and colleges. These individuals also enter into other aspects of technology development and evaluation in public and private sectors to further enrich the community and accelerate economic development. 

This investment will help to create jobs and promote economic growth. A stagnating NIH budget will mean forfeiting future discoveries and jobs to other countries. 

The U.S. share of global research and development investment from 1999–2009 

is now only 31 percent, a decline of 18 percent. In contrast, other nations continue 

to invest aggressively in science. China has grown its science portfolio with annual 

increases to the research and development budget averaging over 23 percent annually since 2000, including a 26 percent increase in 2012. Russia plans to increase 

support for research by 65 percent over the next 5 years. The European Union, despite great economic distress among its member nations, has proposed to increase 

spending on research and innovation by 45 percent between 2014 and 2020. 

NIH research funding catalyzes private sector growth. More than 83 percent of 

NIH funding is awarded to over 3,000 universities, medical schools, teaching hospitals and other research institutions in every State. One national study by an economic consulting firm found that Federal (and State) funded research at the Na-
401 

tion’s medical schools and hospitals supported almost 300,000 jobs and added nearly 

$45 billion to the U.S. economy. NIH funding also provides the most significant scientific innovations of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. 

Conclusion 

ASPET appreciates the many competing and important spending decisions the 

Subcommittee must make. However, the NIH’s contribution to the Nation’s economic and physical well being should make it one of the Nation’s top priorities. 

With enhanced and sustained funding, NIH can begin to reverse its decline and help 

meet its potential to address many of the more promising scientific opportunities 

that currently challenge medicine. A budget of at least $32 billion in fiscal year 

2015 will allow the agency to begin moving forward to full program capacity, exploiting more scientific opportunities for investigation, and increasing investigator’s 

chances of discoveries that prevent, diagnose and treat disease. NIH should be restored to its role as a national treasure, one that attracts and retains the best and 

brightest to biomedical research and provides hope to millions of individuals afflicted with illness and disease. 

ASPET is a 5,100 member professional society whose members conduct basic, 

translational, and clinical pharmacological research within the academic, industrial 

and government sectors. Our members discover and develop new medicines and 

therapeutic agents that fight existing and emerging diseases, as well as increase our 

knowledge regarding how therapeutics affects humans. 

[This statement was submitted by James S. Bernstein, Director, Government and 

Public Affairs, American Society for Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CLINICAL ONCOLOGY

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the world’s leading professional organization representing nearly 35,000 physicians and other professionals 

who treat people with cancer, appreciates this opportunity to provide the following 

recommendations for fiscal year 2015 (fiscal year 2015) funding: 

—National Institutes of Health (NIH): $32 billion 

—National Cancer Institute (NCI): $5.26 billion 

ASCO’s members set the standard for cancer care world–wide and lead the way 

in carrying out translational and clinical research aimed at improving the screening, 

prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. ASCO advocates for policies that provide access to high–quality care for all patients with cancer. ASCO’s efforts are also 

directed toward supporting oncology clinical and translational research that is critical to improving the lives of our citizens and that can inform cancer services for 

people worldwide. 

Cancer’s Growing Footprint and the Importance of Federal Cancer Research 

According to ASCO’s State of Cancer Care in America report (http://www.asco.org/ 

practice–research/cancer–care–america) released earlier this year, cancer will surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in the United States (US) over the 

next 16 years. While cancer deaths in the US are declining for all populations, the 

number of new cancer cases is expected to increase nearly 45 percent by 2030, from 

1.6 million cases to 2.3 million cases annually. The leading overall risk factor for 

cancer is aging and these numbers reflect overall progress in healthcare, enabling 

more Americans to live longer. 

While we have made great strides in cancer treatment, now is not the time to cut 

back as cancer impacts more and more Americans. We now have more cancer survivors alive today than at any point in our history and understand more about the 

diseases that make up cancer than ever before. This is largely because of Federal 

investment in cancer research, but we will not be able to harness the opportunities 

this new knowledge provides without further investment. Adjusting for inflation, 

funding for the NIH is down 23 percent since 2003. In addition, the NCI has become 

a smaller share of NIH’s total budget. If NCI was funded as the same percentage 

of overall NIH spending that it was in 2003, it would mean an additional $350 million for cancer research. 

ASCO thanks the subcommittee for its past commitment to cancer research 

through the appropriations process and appreciates the unique effort made by the 

subcommittee in this challenging budget environment. We recognize the challenging 

environment, but caution that the current path of investment in cancer research 

will be devastating to attempts to find future cures. ASCO calls on this subcommittee to renew the commitment to clinical cancer research—without which our 

basic science findings would never help improve the lives of patients. 
402 

While we appreciate the bipartisan efforts that led to a brief reprieve from sequester in fiscal year 2015, the lasting effects of these draconian cuts, exacerbated by 

years of stagnant funding, will be felt for decades to come if the trend is not reversed. ASCO released a survey (http://www.asco.org/press–center/asco–survey–underscores–%E2%80%9Cdevastating%E2%80%9D–impact–stagnant–funding–cancer– 

research) of its members in September 2013 that showed the profound impact of sequester on the U.S. cancer research enterprise. 

A large majority, 75 percent, of survey respondents, reported that the current 

Federal funding situation is having a direct impact on their ability to conduct cancer 

research, in many cases triggering ‘‘devastating’’ changes. Delayed clinical trials, the 

elimination of research staff positions, and the halting or slowing of promising research that could lead to new therapies for cancer were cited as specific results of 

stagnant funding. 

In order to stop these devastating trends and capitalize on forward progress, the 

NIH and the NCI must have sustained and predictable increases in funding. While 

private industry is a strong partner in cancer research, they do not conduct the 

broad scope of clinical research that is important to cancer patients. In contrast, the 

NCI conducts the high risk, high reward research that leads to practice–changing 

advancements that industry is often unwilling to undertake—such as pediatric applications, direct comparisons of approved drugs, and providing drugs in combination with or prior to radiation or surgical treatments. Progress in fighting cancer 

would be faster, more efficient, and more sustainable if funding were steady and 

sustained. 

Our prior investments established the global leadership of American cancer research and care. Without maintenance of those investments, our global leadership 

and the benefits it offers everyday Americans in both health and economically are 

profoundly threatened. 

Clinical Trials and Translational Research 

NIH–funded translational research and clinical trials have significantly improved 

the standard of care in many diseases. At the same time, they also have demonstrated more cost–effective treatment options for many common cancers. Unfortunately, these trials are at risk, due to funding concerns that slow the launch and 

completion of trials. Of great concern is the deterioration of NCI support for federally funded trials that take place in virtually every community in which cancer providers treat patients. On March 1, 2014, the NCI launched the reorganized National 

Clinical Trials Network (NCTN). The program currently involves over 3,000 institutions and community–based investigators in the US and provides approximately 

17,000 patients with access to promising new treatments each year, at a $243 million annual cost to taxpayers. Due to funding constraints, the number of patients 

enrolled in clinical trials has fallen from a peak of almost 30,000 patients in 2009 

to a planned enrollment of only 12,000 adults in the current fiscal year and some 

trials may be forced to close early potentially depriving patients of access to life– 

prolonging treatments. Please note that without patient accrual to clinical trials, 

there can be no changes in routine care, practice, and outcomes. This is where 

science becomes practice changing for patients in America. 

We understand that March 1 also marked the end of funding for the NCI Community Clinical Oncology Program (CCOP). NCI is transforming this program into the 

NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP). NCI is currently reviewing 

NCORP applications and does not expect to issue notices of award until September 

2014. In the meantime, CCOP sites have ongoing ethical obligations to active trial 

participants to continue clinical trial procedures and required follow–up. At present, 

community practice sites are expected to do so without any transition in funding. 

These community sites are crucial to making cutting edge cancer care available to 

patients in the communities where they live. Without any assurance of sustained 

funding, some community sites will no longer be able to offer clinical trials to patients. 

Clinical trials supported by Federal funding have led to important breakthroughs 

in cancer care that touch every American family and often these are in areas that 

industry has no incentive to pursue. Typically, the trial concepts are proposed directly by clinician investigators who hypothesize ways to improve treatments for 

their patients and want to test those hypotheses through rigorously designed prospective clinical trials. Just as the NIH RO1 and R21 grant mechanisms inspire researcher creativity and innovation, the NCTN and NCORP programs are important 

in fostering research initiatives directly from clinician investigators who see firsthand the importance of answering questions vital to their patients. Publicly funded 

clinical trials involve establishing comparative effectiveness, examining promising 

regimens, optimizing multimodality treatments, developing therapies for rare can-
403 

cers, and studying prevention and survivorship strategies. These research goals may 

run parallel to those of commercial sponsors, but publicly funded trials are designed 

to benefit patients—not intended to achieve regulatory approval or shareholder interest. Many of these trials are at risk due to funding constraints and the pace of 

further progress, especially against the most common cancers in America, will slow. 

For example, at the present time there is no publically funded breast cancer adjuvant treatment trial available in the US. 

ASCO’s Clinical Cancer Advances report (http://www.cancerprogress.net/clinical– 

cancer–advances–2013) provides annual recognition of the major advances in patient 

treatments and care. The 2013 report details 76 research advances, 27 of which received NIH funding, in diseases impacting an estimated 1.6 million patients last 

year alone. Its top areas of progress include: using genomics to make treatment decisions for individual patients, discovering new cancer subtypes specifically associated with potential new therapies, tackling treatment resistant forms of cancer 

through precision medicine approaches, enhancing the ability of patients’ own immune systems to fight cancer, and implementing new cancer screening paradigms 

to reduce disparities. 

To maintain global American scientific leadership, ASCO urges a substantial increase in funding for the National Clinical Trials Network and NCI Community Oncology Research Program, as well as transition funding for CCOP sites until NCORP 

launches. ASCO is very concerned that the Federal funding situation is causing NCI 

to propose capping patient participation in clinical trials in order to stretch an ever– 

shrinking funding pot. NCI acknowledges that current payments are inadequate to 

cover the costs of conducting trials because they have not increased over nearly a 

decade. Making the needed increases at the expense of new scientific opportunities, 

however, is short–sighted and has long–term negative implications. The Institute of 

Medicine (IOM) recognized this in its 2010 report, A National Cancer Clinical Trials 

System for the 21st Century: Reinvigorating the NCI Cooperative Group Program. 

The IOM pointed to the notable achievements of Cooperative Group trials that have 

dramatically improved the outcomes of today’s cancer patients and recognized that 

increases in funding should accompany the changes that the NCI and Cooperative 

Groups have already implemented to increase the efficiency of their operations and 

to keep pace with scientific opportunity. An increase in NCI funding would enable 

the Institute to maintain or increase the number of accruals to trials at the same 

time as it increases payments to cover the cost of conducting the research. 

Threat to America’s Global Leadership 

While the United States is slowing its investment in medical research, countries 

around the globe are making significant increases to theirs. Russia is increasing 

basic research funding by 65 percent, European investments are increasing by 40 

percent over 7 years, South Korea has pledged a 50 percent increase, and China announced a 26 percent boost in basic research funding in 2012. These investments 

result not only in additional research in these countries, but are attracting the best 

and brightest American–trained scientists to work abroad. The long–term consequences are easy to predict. If scientific progress is achieved elsewhere, Americans 

will be asked to import new treatments including drugs, intellectual property, and 

products. 

The previously referenced ASCO survey also revealed the disturbing finding that 

many young investigators are leaving the field altogether due to lack of funding. 

This too is a predictable effect of funding limits. With more than 35 percent of survey participants reporting having to lay off skilled staff, many appear to be questioning the viability of a career in research and raising serious concerns about the 

ultimate impact of budget cuts on patient care and outcomes. 

Declining Federal funding for clinical trials, coupled with the rising costs of increasingly complex studies, will severely harm the nation’s clinical research enterprise by limiting opportunities for innovation and demoralizing young clinical investigators. As opportunities to develop and lead trials diminish and institutional pressures to generate research funding and clinical revenue continue to grow, young investigators may leave the field of research, or choose to pursue research opportunities in other countries. Not only does this threaten our progress against cancer, but 

it also diminishes the overall scientific workforce in America. 

In addition, clinical trials are increasingly being conducted overseas, due to the 

costs and regulatory complexities of conducting trials in the US. This denies your 

constituents the opportunity to participate, either as a patient receiving the most 

promising potential treatment or as a physician or research nurse conducting the 

clinical trial. Congress should demonstrate a continued commitment to ensure biomedical research is federally funded. 
404 

Because of the incredible scientific opportunities facing us and the current threats 

to this opportunity, ASCO urges the NIH and NCI to focus more of its resources 

in the area of clinical trials and translational research. 

ASCO again thanks the Subcommittee for its continued support of cancer patients 

in the US through funding for the NIH and the NCI. We look forward to working 

with all members of the subcommittee to advance US cancer research. 

[This statement was submitted by Clifford A. Hudis, MD, FACP, President, American Society of Clinical Oncology.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEMATOLOGY

The American Society of Hematology (ASH) thanks the Subcommittee for the opportunity to submit written testimony on the fiscal year 2015 Departments of Labor, 

Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill. 

ASH represents more than 15,000 clinicians and scientists committed to the study 

and treatment of blood and blood-related diseases. These diseases encompass malignant disorders such as leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma; life-threatening conditions, including thrombosis and bleeding disorders; and congenital diseases such as 

sickle cell anemia, thalassemia, and hemophilia. In addition, hematologists have 

been pioneers in the fields of bone marrow transplantation, stem cell biology and 

regenerative medicine, gene- and immunotherapy, and the development of many 

drugs for the prevention and treatment of heart attacks and strokes. 

Funding for Hematology Research: An Investment in the Nation’s Health 

Over the past 60 years, American biomedical research has led the world in probing the nature of human disease. This research has led to new medical treatments, 

saved innumerable lives, reduced human suffering, and spawned entire new industries. This research would not have been possible without support from the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH). 

Funding for hematology research has been an important component of this investment in the Nation’s health. Most of the research that produced cures and treatments for hematologic diseases has been funded by the NIH. The study of blood and 

its disorders is a trans-NIH issue involving many institutes at the NIH, including 

the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases 

(NIDDK), and the National Institute on Aging (NIA). 

With the advances gained through an increasingly sophisticated understanding of 

how the blood system functions, hematologists have changed the face of medicine 

through their dedication to improving the lives of patients. As a result, children are 

routinely cured of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL); more than 90 percent of patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) are cured with a drug derived from 

vitamin A; older patients suffering from previously lethal chronic myeloid leukemia 

(CML) are now effectively treated with well-tolerated pills; and patients with multiple myeloma are treated with new classes of drugs. 

Additionally, as NIH Director Francis Collins recently noted in his testimony to 

the Subcommittee, researchers are ‘‘aiming to harness the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.’’ One such method, known as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) 

cell engineering, extracts T cells (naturally occurring immune cells) from the blood 

of a cancer patients and modifies the cells to produce special proteins on their surface. With these new engineered features, the T cells are injected back into the patient, now primed to seek and destroy cancer cells. Preliminary studies have found 

that this process may generate responses in as many as two-thirds of cases in which 

all other treatment options have failed. Further, because the cells are derived from 

the patient, there is an inherently lower risk of toxicity because the cells are less 

likely to attack the host tissue than cells introduced from a foreign body. Promising 

results in patients with leukemia prompted Science magazine to name this its 2013 

‘‘Breakthrough of the Year.’’ 

Hematology advances also help patients with other types of cancers, heart disease, and stroke. Even modest investments in hematology research have yielded 

large dividends for other disciplines. Basic research on blood has aided physicians 

who treat patients with heart disease, strokes, end-stage renal disease, cancer, and 

AIDS. Blood thinners effectively treat or prevent blood clots, pulmonary embolism, 

and strokes. Death rates from heart attacks are reduced by new forms of 

anticoagulation drugs. 
405 

Sequestration Threatens Scientific Momentum 

ASH is particularly concerned about the impact of continued cuts on biomedical 

research supported by the NIH. NIH’s ability to continue current research capacity 

and encourage promising new areas of science is, and will be, significantly limited. 

At a time when we should be investing more in research to save lives, research 

funding remains in serious jeopardy. Trials to find new therapies and cures for millions of Americans with blood cancers, bleeding disorders, clotting problems, and genetic diseases are just a few of the important projects that could be delayed unless 

NIH continues to receive predictable and sustained funding. 

Additionally, perhaps one of the greatest concerns is the obstacle these continued 

cuts will present to the next generation of scientists, who will see training funds 

slashed and the possibility of sustaining a career in research diminished. The Society is especially concerned about the number of scientists who have abandoned research careers; continued cuts will exacerbate this exodus, forcing researchers to 

abandon potentially life-enhancing research. 

Fiscal year 2015 NIH Funding Request 

ASH appreciates the welcome and much needed funding increase for the NIH that 

Congress provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014. However, this increase did not give back all of the funds cut by sequestration in fiscal year 2013 

nor did it restore the purchasing power lost over the past decade. ASH supports the 

Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research recommendation that NIH receive at least $32 

billion in fiscal year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase in our Nation’s investment in medical research. ASH also urges Congress and the Administration to work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and the continued cuts 

to medical research that squander invaluable scientific opportunities, discourage 

young scientists, threaten medical progress and continued improvements in our Nation’s health, and jeopardize our economic future. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Public Health Response for Blood 

Disorders 

The Society also recognizes the important role of the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC) in preventing and controlling clotting, bleeding, and other 

hematologic disorders. Blood disorders—such as sickle cell disease, anemia, blood 

clots, and hemophilia—are a serious public health problem and affect millions of 

people each year in the United States, cutting across the boundaries of age, race, 

sex, and socioeconomic status. Men, women, and children of all backgrounds live 

with the complications associated with these conditions, many of which are painful 

and potentially life-threatening. 

CDC is uniquely positioned to reduce the public health burden resulting from 

blood disorders by contributing to a better understanding of these conditions and 

their complications; ensuring that prevention programs are developed, implemented, 

and evaluated; ensuring that information is accessible to consumers and healthcare 

providers; and encouraging action to improve the quality of life for people living 

with or affected by these conditions. The Society is concerned that the Division of 

Blood Disorders was cut by nearly $6 million in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 

of 2014 and the President’s Budget for fiscal year 2015 did not restore this funding. 

ASH respectfully requests that the Division of Blood Disorders be funded in fiscal 

year 2015 at $19 million to assure that the programs funded by the Division for Hemophilia, Thalassemia, Sickle Cell Disease, and DVT/PE can be maintained. This 

funding will allow CDC to improve health outcomes and limit complications to those 

who are risk or currently have blood disorders, by promoting a comprehensive care 

model; identifying and evaluating effective prevention strategies; and increasing 

public and healthcare provider awareness of bleeding and clotting disorders such as 

such as hemophilia and thrombosis, and hemoglobinopathies, including sickle cell 

disease and thalassemia. 

Thank you again for the opportunity to submit testimony. Please contact Tracy 

Roades, ASH Legislative Advocacy Manager, at troades@hematology.org, if you have 

any questions or need further information concerning hematology research or ASH’s 

fiscal year 2015 funding request. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NEPHROLOGY

The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) is the world’s largest kidney health 

professional organization in the world, representing 15,000 physicians, other 

healthcare providers, and scientists, and committed to advancing research, prevention, and treatment options for the more than 20 million adults, children, and ado-
406 

lescents with kidney disease in the United States today. The society requests at 

least $2.066 billion for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney 

Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The society also requests an additional $150 million/year over 10 years for kidney research above current funding for NIDDK. 

ASN believes these are crucial and necessary investments for preventing illness 

and maintaining fiscal responsibility. Investing in research to slow the progression 

of kidney disease and identify new therapies will save Medicare spending for the 

End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Program in the long run. 

In 1972, Congress made a commitment to treat all Americans with kidney failure 

through the Medicare ESRD Program—the only health entitlement program that 

provides coverage regardless of age or disability. Today, ESRD patients account for 

less than 1 percent of the Medicare population but 7 percent of the Medicare budget. 

Meanwhile, at approximately $650 million per year, total Federal funding for kidney 

research is equivalent to less than 1 percent of the nearly $77 billion Medicare 

spends annually for the care of patients with kidney disease. 

Given that the Medicare ESRD Program is unique in that it covers treatment for 

all patients with kidney failure regardless of age or disability, preventing kidney 

disease and improving therapy—starting with innovative research at NIDDK— 

would yield significant savings to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. 

The vast majority of Federal research leading to advances in the care and treatment of patients with kidney disease is funded by NIDDK. Examples of critical discoveries arising from NIDDK-funded research are numerous. 

For instance, investigative studies supported by NIDDK led to a groundbreaking 

discovery that helps explain racial and ethnic disparities that increase risks for kidney disease, which can lead to earlier detection and treatment. The finding that African Americans with two variants of the APOL1 gene are likely to progress to kidney failure faster than other ethnicities paves the way for future research to unlock 

better preventive therapies and gene-based cures. 

Recent findings from NIDDK’s Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) Study 

led to the discovery that the progression of kidney disease is associated with less 

efficient pumping of blood by the heart. Further research exploring the mechanisms 

for this development could lead to new interventions that could slow down the progression of kidney disease. 

Scientists supported by NIDDK have pursued cutting-edge basic, clinical, and 

translational research. While ASN fully understands the difficult economic environment, the society firmly believes that funding NIDDK is a sound investment to create jobs, support the next generation of investigators, and ultimately provide quality 

care that is less expensive in order to improve the public health of Americans. 

Medical research is a major force in the economic health of communities nationwide: every dollar invested in medical research generates $2.60 in economic activity. 

America must continue to capitalize on previous investments to drive research 

progress, train the next generation of scientists, create new jobs, promote economic 

growth, and maintain leadership in the global innovation economy—particularly as 

other countries increase their investments in scientific research. Most important, a 

failure to maintain and strengthen NIDDK’s ability to support the groundbreaking 

work of researchers across the country carries a palpable human toll, denying hope 

to the millions of patients awaiting the possibility of a healthier tomorrow. 

ASN urges Congress to uphold its longstanding legacy of bipartisan support for 

biomedical research. Should you have any questions or wish to discuss NIDDK or 

kidney research in more detail, please contact ASN Manager of Policy and Government Affairs Rachel Meyer at (202) 640–4659 or rmeyer@asn-online.org. 

ABOUT ASN

The American Society of Nephrology (ASN) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt 

organization that leads the fight against kidney disease by educating the society’s 

15,000 physicians, scientists, and other healthcare professionals, sharing new 

knowledge, advancing research, and advocating the highest quality care for patients. 

For more information, visit ASN’s website at www.asn-online.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PLANT BIOLOGISTS

On behalf of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB), we would like to 

thank the Subcommittee for its support of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

ASPB and its members strongly believe that sustained investments in scientific research will be a critical step toward economic recovery and job creation in our Nation. ASPB supports the maximum fiscal year 2015 appropriation for NIH and asks 
407 

that the Subcommittee Members encourage increased support for plant-related research within the agency; 25 percent of our medicines originate from discoveries related to plant natural products, and such research has contributed in innumerable 

ways to improving the lives and health of Americans and people throughout the 

world. 

ASPB is an organization of some 4,500 professional plant biology researchers, educators, students, and postdoctoral scientists with members across the Nation and 

throughout the world. A strong voice for the global plant science community, our 

mission—achieved through work in the realms of research, education, and public 

policy—is to promote the growth and development of plant biology, to encourage and 

communicate research in plant biology, and to promote the interests and growth of 

plant scientists in general. 

Plant Biology Research and America’s Future 

Among many other functions, plants form much of the base of the food chain upon 

which all life depends. Importantly, plant research is also helping make many fundamental contributions in the area of human health, including that of a sustainable 

supply and discovery of plant-derived pharmaceuticals, nutriceuticals, and alternative medicines. Plant research also contributes to the continued, sustainable, development of better and more nutritious foods and the understanding of basic biological principles that underpin improvements in the health and nutrition of all 

Americans. 

Plant Biology and the National Institutes of Health 

Plant science and many of our ASPB member research activities have enormous 

positive impacts on the NIH mission to pursue ‘‘fundamental knowledge about the 

nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to extend healthy life and reduce the burdens of illness and disability.’’ In general, plant 

research aims to improve the overall human condition—be it food, nutrition, medicine or agriculture—and the benefits of plant science research readily extend across 

disciplines. In fact, plants are often the ideal model systems to advance our ‘‘fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems’’ as they provide 

the context of multi-cellularity while affording ease of genetic manipulation, a lesser 

regulatory burden, and maintenance requirements that are less expensive than 

those required for the use of animal systems. 

Many fundamental biological components and mechanisms (e.g., cell division, viral 

and bacterial invasion, polar growth, DNA methylation and repair, innate immunity 

signaling and circadian rhythms) are shared by both plants and animals. For example, a process known as RNA interference, which has potential application in the 

treatment of human disease, was first discovered in plants. Subsequent research 

eventually led to two American scientists, Andrew Fire and Craig Mello, earning the 

2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. More recently scientists engineered a 

class of proteins called TALENs capable of precisely editing genomes to potentially 

correct mutations that lead to disease. That these therapeutic proteins are derived 

from others initially discovered in a plant pathogen exemplifies the application of 

plant biology research to improving human health. These important discoveries 

again reflect the fact that some of the most important biological discoveries applicable to human physiology and medicine can find their origins in plant-related research endeavors. 

Health and Nutrition—Plant biology research is also central to the application of 

basic knowledge to ‘‘extend healthy life and reduce the burdens of illness and disability.’’ Without good nutrition, there cannot be good health. Indeed, a World 

Health Organization study on childhood nutrition in developing countries concluded 

that over 50 percent of child deaths under the age of five could be attributed to malnutrition’s effects in weakening the immune system and exacerbating common illnesses such as respiratory infections and diarrhea. Strikingly, most of these deaths 

were not linked to severe malnutrition, but chronic nutritional deficiencies brought 

about by overreliance on single crops for primary staples. Plant researchers are 

working today to address the root cause of this problem by balancing the nutritional 

content of major crop plants to provide the full range of essential micronutrients in 

plant-based diets. 

By contrast to developing countries, obesity, cardiac disease, and cancer take a 

striking toll in the developed world. Research to improve and optimize concentrations of plant compounds known to have, for example, anti-carcinogenic properties, 

will hopefully help in reducing disease incidence rates. Ongoing development of crop 

varieties with tailored nutraceutical content is an important contribution that plant 

biologists can and are making toward realizing the long-awaited goal of personalized 

medicine, especially for preventative medicine. 
408 

Drug Discovery—Plants are also fundamentally important as sources of both extant drugs and drug discovery leads. In fact, 60 percent of anti-cancer drugs in use 

within the last decade are of natural product origin—plants being a significant 

source. An excellent example of the importance of plant-based pharmaceuticals is 

the anti-cancer drug taxol, which was discovered as an anti-carcinogenic compound 

from the bark of the Pacific yew tree through collaborative work involving scientists 

at the NIH National Cancer Institute and plant natural product chemists. Taxol is 

just one example of the many plant compounds that will continue to provide a fruitful source of new drug leads. 

While the pharmaceutical industry has largely neglected natural products-based 

drug discovery in recent years, research support from NIH offers yet another paradigm. Multidisciplinary teams of plant biologists, bioinformaticians, and synthetic 

biologists are being assembled to develop new tools and methods for natural products discovery and creation of new pharmaceuticals. We appreciate NIH’s current 

investment into understanding the biosynthesis of natural products through 

transcriptomics and metabolomics of medicinal plants. The recently released 

‘‘Genomes to Natural Products’’ funding opportunity is also to be applauded as a potential avenue for new plant-related medicinal research, and we strongly encourage 

the continuation of these types of investments and other plant-related initiatives 

which can help further achievement of the NIH mission. 

Conclusion 

Although NIH does recognize that plants serve many important roles, the boundaries of plant-related research are expansive and integrate seamlessly and synergistically with many different disciplines that are also highly relevant to NIH. As 

such, ASPB asks the Subcommittee to provide the maximum appropriation and direction to NIH to support additional plant research in order to continue to pioneer 

new discoveries and new methods with applicability and relevance in biomedical research. 

Thank you for your consideration of ASPB’s testimony. For more information 

about ASPB, please see www.aspb.org. 

[This statement was submitted by Tyrone C. Spady, Ph.D., Director of Legislative 

and Public Affairs American Society of Plant Biologists.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICAN THORACIC SOCIETY

SUMMARY: FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS 

[In millions of dollars] 

Amount 

National Institutes of Health ....................................................................................................................................... 32,000 

National Heart, Lung & Blood Institute .............................................................................................................. 3,214 

National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Disease ............................................................................................. 4,701 

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences ........................................................................................ 717.7 

Fogarty International Center ............................................................................................................................... 72.7 

National Institute of Nursing Research .............................................................................................................. 151 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ............................................................................................................... 7,800 

National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health ......................................................................................... 292.3 

Asthma Programs ................................................................................................................................................ 28 

Div. of Tuberculosis Elimination ......................................................................................................................... 243 

Office on Smoking and Health ........................................................................................................................... 250 

National Sleep Awareness Roundtable (NSART) ................................................................................................. 1 

The ATS’s 15,000 members help prevent and fight respiratory disease through research, education, patient care and advocacy. 

LUNG DISEASE IN AMERICA

Diseases of breathing constitute the third leading cause of death in the U.S., responsible for one of every seven deaths. Diseases affecting the respiratory (breathing) system include chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, tuberculosis, influenza, sleep disordered breathing, pediatric lung disorders, occupational lung disease, asthma, and critical illness. 
409 

National Institutes of Health 

The NIH is the world’s leader in groundbreaking biomedical health research into 

the prevention, treatment and cure of diseases such as lung cancer, COPD and tuberculosis. But due to eroded funding, the success rate for NIH research grants has 

plummeted to below 13 percent, which means that more than 85 percent of meritorious research is not being funded. The implementation of budget sequestration 

in fiscal year 2013 cut NIH by an additional $1.5 billion, which resulted in the 

elimination of at least 1,000 grant opportunities and cuts of up to 10 percent for 

continuing grants. These cuts will result in the halting of vital research into diseases affecting millions around the world. We ask the subcommittee to provide $32 

billion in funding for the NIH in fiscal year 2015. 

Despite the rising lung disease burden, lung disease research is underfunded. In 

fiscal year 2012, lung disease research represented just 23.2 percent of the National 

Heart Lung and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) budget. Although lung disease is the 

third leading cause of death in the U.S., research funding for the disease is a small 

fraction of the money invested for the other three leading causes of death. In order 

to stem the devastating effects of lung disease, research funding must continue to 

grow. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

In order to ensure that health promotion and chronic disease prevention are given 

top priority in Federal funding, the ATS supports a funding level for the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that enables it to carry out its prevention 

mission, and ensure a translation of new research into effective State and local public health programs. We ask that the CDC budget be adjusted to reflect increased 

needs in chronic disease prevention, infectious disease control, including TB control 

and occupational safety and health research and training. The ATS recommends a 

funding level of $7.8 billion for the CDC in fiscal year 2015. 

CHRONIC OBSTUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE

COPD is the third leading cause of death in the United States and the third leading cause of death worldwide, yet the disease remains relatively unknown to most 

Americans. CDC estimates that 12 million patients have COPD; an additional 12 

million Americans are unaware that they have this life threatening disease. In 

2010, the estimated economic cost of lung disease in the U.S. was $186 billion, including $117 billion in direct health expenditures and $69 billion in indirect morbidity and mortality costs. 

The NHLBI is developing a national action plan on COPD, in coordination with 

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to expand COPD surveillance, development of public health interventions and research on the disease and 

increase public awareness of the disease and we urge Congress to support it. We 

also urge CDC to include COPD-based questions to future CDC health surveys, including the National Health and Nutrition Evaluation Survey (NHANES) and the 

National Health Information Survey (NHIS). 

TOBACCO CONTROL

Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., responsible for one in five deaths annually. The ATS is pleased that the Department of 

Health and Human Services has made tobacco use prevention a key priority. The 

CDC’s Office of Smoking and Health coordinates public health efforts to reduce tobacco use. In order to significantly reduce tobacco use within 5 years, as recommended by the subcommittee in fiscal year 2010, the ATS recommends a total 

funding level of $250 million for the Office of Smoking and Health in fiscal year 

2015. 

ASTHMA

Asthma is a significant public health problem in the United States. Approximately 

25 million Americans currently have asthma. In 2010, 3,388 Americans died as a 

result of asthma exacerbations. Asthma is the third leading cause of hospitalization 

among children under the age of 15 and is a leading cause of school absences from 

chronic disease. The disease costs our healthcare system over $50.1 billion per year. 

African Americans have the highest asthma prevalence of any racial/ethnic group 

and the age-adjusted death rate for asthma in this population is three times the 

rate in whites. A study published in the American Journal of Respiratory Critical 

Care in 2012 found that for every dollar invested in asthma interventions, there was 

a $36 benefit. We ask that the subcommittee’s appropriations request for fiscal year 
410 

2015 that funding for CDC’s National Asthma Control Program be maintained at 

a funding level of at least $28 million. 

SLEEP

Several research studies demonstrate that sleep-disordered breathing and sleeprelated illnesses affect an estimated 50–70 million Americans. The public health impact of sleep illnesses and sleep disordered breathing is still being determined, but 

is known to include increased mortality, traffic accidents, cardiovascular disease, 

obesity, mental health disorders, and other sleep-related comorbidities. The ATS 

recommends a funding level of $1 million in fiscal year 15 to support activities related to sleep and sleep disorders at the CDC, including for the National Sleep 

Awareness Roundtable (NSART), surveillance activities, and public educational activities. The ATS also recommends an increase of funding for research on sleep disorders at the Nation Center for Sleep Disordered Research (NCSDR) at the NHLBI. 

TUBERCULOSIS

Tuberculosis (TB) is the second leading global infectious disease killer, claiming 

1.3 million lives each year. In the U.S., every State reports cases of TB annually. 

Drug-resistant TB poses a particular challenge to domestic TB control due to the 

high costs of treatment and intensive healthcare resources required. Treatment 

costs for multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB range from $100,000 to $300,000. The global 

TB pandemic and spread of drug resistant TB present a persistent public health 

threat to the U.S. 

The Comprehensive Tuberculosis Elimination Act (CTEA, Public Law 110–392), 

enacted in 2008, reauthorized programs at CDC with the goal of putting the U.S. 

back on the path to eliminating TB. The ATS, recommends a funding level of $243 

million in fiscal year 2015 for CDC’s Division of TB Elimination, as authorized 

under the CTEA, and encourages the NIH to expand efforts to develop new tools 

to reduce the rising global TB burden. 

PEDIATRIC LUNG DISEASE

The ATS is pleased to report that infant death rates for various lung diseases 

have declined for the past 10 years. In 2009, of the 10 leading causes of infant mortality, 4 were lung diseases or had a lung disease component. Many of the precursors of adult respiratory disease start in childhood. Many children with respiratory 

illness grow into adults with COPD. It is estimated that 7.1 million children suffer 

from asthma. While some children appear to outgrow their asthma when they reach 

adulthood, 75 percent will require life-long treatment and monitoring of their condition. The ATS encourages the NHLBI to continue with its research efforts to study 

lung development and pediatric lung diseases. 

CRITICAL ILLNESS

The burden associated with the provision of care to critically ill patients is enormous, and is anticipated to increase significantly as the population ages. Approximately 200,000 people in the United States require hospitalization in an intensive 

care unit because they develop a form of pulmonary disease called Acute Lung Injury. Despite the best available treatments, 75,000 of these individuals die each year 

from this disease. This is the approximately the same number of deaths each year 

due to breast cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer combined. Investigation into 

diagnosis, treatment and outcomes in critically ill patients should be a priority, and 

the NIH should be encouraged and funded to coordinate investigation in this area 

in order to meet this growing national imperative. 

FOGARTY INTERNATIONAL CENTER

The Fogarty International Center (FIC) provides training grants to U.S. universities to teach AIDS treatment and research techniques to international physicians 

and researchers. Because of the link between AIDS and TB infection, FIC has created supplemental TB training grants for these institutions to train international 

health professionals in TB treatment and research. The ATS recommends Congress 

provide $72.8 million for FIC in fiscal year 2015, to allow expansion of the TB training grant program from a supplemental grant to an open competition grant. 

RESEARCHING AND PREVENTING OCCUPATIONAL LUNG DISEASE

As Congress considers funding priorities for fiscal year 2015, the ATS urges the 

subcommittee to provide at least level funding for the National Institute for Occupa-
411 

tional Safety and Health (NIOSH). NIOSH, within the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC), is the primary Federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related illness and 

injury. 

The ATS appreciates the opportunity to submit this statement to the subcommittee. 

[This statement was submitted by Thomas Ferkol, MD, President, American Thoracic Society.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE AMERICANS FOR NURSING SHORTAGE RELIEF

The organizations of the ANSR Alliance greatly appreciate the opportunity to submit written testimony recommending $251 million in fiscal year 2015 for the Title 

VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and $20 million for the Nurse Managed Health Clinics 

as authorized under Title III of the Public Health Service Act. We represent a diverse cross-section of healthcare and other related organizations, healthcare providers, and supporters of nursing issues (http://www.ansralliance.org/Members.html) 

that have united to address the national nursing shortage. ANSR stands ready to 

work with Congress to advance programs and policy that will ensure our Nation has 

a sufficient and adequately prepared nursing workforce to provide quality care to 

all well into the 21st century. 

The Nursing Shortage 

Nursing is the largest healthcare profession in the United States and work in a 

variety of settings, including primary care, public health, long-term care, surgical 

care facilities, schools, and hospitals. In the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Employment Projections for 2012–2022, the total employment of registered nurses 

(RNs) and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) will increase by 574,400 

jobs. With upcoming RN retirements in the mix, the Nation will need to produce 

1.13 million new RNs by 2022 to fill those jobs. Because of the retirements, the projected number of RNs needed to fully staff healthcare facilities is virtually double 

the number of increased jobs due to expanded demand from new patients coupled 

with the aging baby boomer population wanting healthcare services. More new RNs 

are graduating from nursing programs than had been observed in the early 2000’s 

but not sufficient numbers to make up the difference over the long-term. The Title 

VIII Nursing Workforce Education Programs will help fill these vacancies by supporting training programs designed to meet these healthcare needs. 

The Title VIII Nursing Workforce and Education programs provide training for 

entry-level and advanced degree nurses to improve the access to, and the quality 

of, healthcare in underserved areas. These programs provide the largest source of 

Federal funding for nursing education, providing loans, scholarships, traineeships, 

and programmatic support that, between fiscal year 2005 and 2010, supported over 

400,000 nurses and nursing students as well as numerous academic nursing institutions and healthcare facilities. 

The Desperate Need for Nurse Faculty 

Nursing vacancies exist throughout the entire healthcare system, including longterm care, home care and public health. Government estimates indicate that this 

situation only promises to worsen due to an insufficient supply of individuals matriculating in nursing schools, an aging existing workforce, and the inadequate 

availability of nursing faculty to educate and train the next generation of nurses. 

At the exact same time that the nursing shortage is expected to worsen, the baby 

boom generation is aging and the number of individuals with serious, life-threatening, and chronic conditions requiring nursing care will increase. 

Each year, nursing schools turn away tens of thousands of qualified applications 

at all degree levels due to an insufficient number of faculty, clinical sites, classroom 

space, clinical preceptors, and budget constraints. Securing and retaining adequate 

numbers of faculty is essential to ensure that all individuals interested in—and 

qualified for—nursing school can matriculate in the year that they are accepted. 

ANSR supports the need for sustained attention on the efficacy and performance 

of existing and proposed programs to improve nursing practices and strengthen the 

nursing workforce. The support of research and evaluation studies that test models 

of nursing practice and workforce development is integral to advancing healthcare 

for all in America. Investments in research and evaluation studies have a direct effect on the caliber of nursing care. Our collective goal of improving the quality of 

patient care, reducing costs, and efficiently delivering appropriate healthcare to 
412 

those in need is served best by aggressive nursing research and performance and 

impact evaluation at the program level. 

The Nursing Supply Impacts the Nation’s Health and Economic Safety 

The demand for primary care services in the US is expected to increase over the 

next few years, particularly with the aging and growth of the population. One study 

projects that by the year 2019, the demand for primary care in the United States 

will increase by between 15 million and 25 million visits per year. HRSA estimates 

that more than 35.2 million people living within the 5,870 Health Professional 

Shortage Areas nationwide do not currently receive adequate primary care services. 

Research suggests that nurses and other health professionals are trained to and already do deliver many primary care services and may therefore be able to help increase access to primary care, particularly in underserved areas. 

ANSR applauds the subcommittee’s bipartisan efforts to recognize that a strong 

nursing workforce is essential to a health policy that provides high-value care for 

every dollar invested in capacity building for a 21st century nurse workforce. For 

50 years, the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs have responded 

to the Nation’s evolving workforce needs by providing education and training opportunities to nurses. These programs are the only Federal programs focused on filling 

gaps in the supply of nurses not met by traditional market forces, as well as producing a workforce prepared to care for the Nation’s increasingly diverse and aging 

population. Numerous studies have demonstrated that the Title VIII programs graduate more minority and disadvantaged students more likely to serve in community 

health centers as well as rural and underserved areas. In a difficult economy, the 

Title VIII Nursing Workforce Education Programs help schools offer scholarships 

and affordable loans to nursing students, making such educational opportunities 

available to aspiring nurses of all backgrounds. By guiding job seekers to high-demand nursing jobs, the programs fulfill both their individual career goals and a 

community’s health needs. 

Summary 

HRSA’s Title VIII Nursing Workforce Education programs contribute to a sufficient nursing workforce to meet the demands of a highly diverse and aging population is an essential component to improving the health status of the Nation and 

reducing healthcare costs. While the ANSR Alliance understands the immense fiscal 

pressures facing the Nation, we respectfully urge support for $251 million in funding for Nursing Workforce Development Programs under Title VIII of the Public 

Health Service Act at HRSA and $20 million for the Nurse Managed Health Clinics 

under Title III of the Public Health Service Act in fiscal year 2015. We look forward 

to working with the Subcommittee to prioritize the Title VIII programs in fiscal year 

2015 and the future. 

ANSR ALLIANCE CO-CHAIRS

Christine Murphy, ANSR Alliance CoChair 

Senior Public Policy Specialist 

National League for Nursing 

Wade Delk, ANSR Alliance Co-Chair 

Government Affairs Director 

American Society for Pain Management 

Nursing & International Nurses 

Society on Addictions 

LIST OF ANSR MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS: 

Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses 

American Academy of Ambulatory Care 

Nursing 

American Academy of Nurse 

Practitioners 

American Academy of Nursing 

American Association of Nurse 

Anesthetists 

American Association of Nurse 

Assessment Coordination 

American Association of Occupational 

Health Nurses 

American College of Nurse-Midwives 

American Organization of Nurse 

Executives 

American Society for Pain Management 

Nursing 

American Society of PeriAnesthesia 

Nurses 

American Society of Plastic Surgical 

Nurses 

Association for Radiologic & Imaging 

Nursing 

Association of Pediatric Hematology/ 

Oncology Nurses 

Association of State and Territorial 

Directors of Nursing 

Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric 

& Neonatal Nurses 

Citizen Advocacy Center 

Dermatology Nurses’ Association 

Developmental Disabilities Nurses 

Association 

Emergency Nurses Association 
413 

Infusion Nurses Society 

International Association of Forensic 

Nurses 

International Nurses Society on 

Addictions 

International Society of Nurses in 

Genetics, Inc. 

Legislative Coalition of Virginia Nurses 

National Association of Clinical Nurse 

Specialists 

National Association of Hispanic Nurses 

National Association of Neonatal Nurses 

National Association of Neonatal Nurse 

Practitioners 

National Association of Nurse Massage 

Therapists 

National Association of Nurse 

Practitioners in Women’s Health 

National Association of Orthopedic 

Nurses 

National Association of Registered Nurse 

First Assistants 

National Association of School Nurses 

National Black Nurses Association 

National Council of State Boards of 

Nursing 

National Council of Women’s 

Organizations 

National Gerontological Nursing 

Association 

National League for Nursing 

National Nursing Centers Consortium 

National Nursing Staff Development 

Organization 

National Organization for Associate 

Degree Nursing 

National Student Nurses’ Association, 

Inc. 

Nurses Organization of Veterans Affairs 

Pediatric Endocrinology Nursing Society 

Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses 

Association 

RN First Assistants Policy & Advocacy 

Coalition 

Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and 

Associates, Inc. 

Society of Pediatric Nurses 

Society of Trauma Nurses 

Women’s Research & Education Institute 

Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses 

Society 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ANIMAL PROTECTION OF NEW MEXICO AND ANIMAL

PROTECTION VOTERS

On behalf of the board, staff, members and supporters of Animal Protection of 

New Mexico (APNM) and Animal Protection Voters (APV), we sincerely appreciate 

the opportunity to provide testimony on our top NIH funding priority for the House 

Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations 

Subcommittee in fiscal year 2015. 

CAPACITY FOR FEDERALLY-OWNED CHIMPANZEES RETIRED BY THE NATIONAL

INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

APNM and APV request NIH be given authority to use $5 million of funds appropriated in this and subsequent appropriations bills for extramural construction and 

renovation within the National Chimpanzee Sanctuary System. 

In 2013, NIH announced their plan to retire hundreds of government owned chimpanzees to sanctuary. This decision followed years of scientific review that determined chimpanzees are not necessary for research to advance human health along 

with broad public outcry over the ethics of holding chimpanzees in labs. Additional 

sanctuary construction is needed to enable NIH to move forward with their plan to 

retire the vast majority of government owned chimpanzees. Even taking into account upfront construction expenditures, the sooner the construction is completed 

and the chimpanzees are moved to sanctuary, the more the government will save 

over the lifetimes of the chimpanzees—which can be 60 years or more. 

Detailed information on the request follows. 

Background information 

In June of 2010, the National Institutes of Health proposed a plan to move 202 

aging, sick chimpanzees from a facility New Mexico where they had not been used 

for invasive research for years to a laboratory in Texas for further research. Intense 

public scrutiny over the animal cruelty issues and taxpayer waste of this plan was 

bolstered by involvement from New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Dr. Jane 

Goodall, and many more. In December 2010 U.S. Senators Tom Udall, Tom Harkin, 

and Jeff Bingaman requested an independent study from the National Academy of 

Sciences on whether chimpanzees are necessary as invasive research subjects. 

The December 2011 Institute of Medicine study found that chimpanzees are not 

necessary for the vast majority of research and noted the serious ethical objections 

raised by keeping chimps in research labs. Immediately following the announcement 

of the IOM study results, NIH accepted the findings and assembled a panel of experts to advise them on the best way to implement the IOM findings. NIH accepted 
414 

nearly all of the expert panel’s recommendations in their final decision. In June of 

2013, the National Institutes of Health announced their plan to retire all but 50 

government-owned chimpanzees to sanctuary, significantly curtail the use of chimps 

in NIH funded studies and not to revitalize breeding of chimpanzees for research. 

NIH had already begun the transfer of the 110 government owned chimpanzees 

at the New Iberia Research Center in Louisiana to Chimp Haven (the National 

Chimpanzee Sanctuary), also located in Louisiana. This transfer is on schedule to 

be completed by the end of fiscal year 2014. At that point, approximately 350 government-owned chimpanzees will remain in laboratories—300 of whom are slated 

for retirement to sanctuary per NIH’s plan. 

In late November of 2013, the President signed into law amendments to the 

Chimpanzee Health Improvement Maintenance and Protection (CHIMP Act) which 

continued funding for the care, maintenance and transportation of federally owned 

chimpanzees over the next 5 years. These amendments have enabled NIH to provide 

funds for basic care for chimpanzees the agency already approved into sanctuary 

and also set the stage for NIH to move forward with their plan to retire hundreds 

more chimpanzees. 

Costs in laboratories vs. sanctuary 

Accredited sanctuaries provide the highest welfare standards for chimps at a 

lower cost to taxpayers than housing chimpanzees in research laboratories (see attached chart). It is estimated that transferring the 300 government-owned chimpanzees who are slated for retirement from the laboratories where they are currently housed to the national sanctuary will save taxpayers $1.7 million to $2.7 million per year in care and maintenance costs. 

Construction to house more chimpanzees in sanctuary will require an upfront expenditure. However, due to the lower per diem cost in sanctuary, retiring chimpanzees to sanctuary will still yield a significant savings to taxpayers. The sooner 

construction is completed and the chimpanzees are moved to sanctuary, the more 

the taxpayers will save. 

We respectfully request the subcommittee to consider the following language for inclusion in the appropriations bill: 

Of the funds appropriated to NIH, $5,000,000 shall be for grants or contracts for 

construction, renovation, or repair of the sanctuary system established by Section 

404K of the Public Health Service Act. 

Estimated Costs Related to Care and Maintenance of Government Owned Chimpanzees: 

Government Owned Chimpanzees in Research Facilities and Research Reserve Facilities 

Facility Number of 

chimpanzees 

NIH cost, 

$M/year 

NIH cost, 

$/chimpanzee/day 

New Iberia Research Center .............................................. 1,2 59 3 1 .01 4 46.7 

Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research 2147 3 2 .44 45.4 

Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, 

DVR grant ...................................................................... 2 16 2 0 .4 68.8 

Southwest National Primate Research Center, U42 

grant 5 ............................................................................ 2 22 3 0 .65 80.9 

Alamogordo Primate Facility .............................................. 2 162 2 3 .60 61.3 

Totals ........................................................................ 406 8 .10 Average: 54.7 

Government Owned Chimpanzees in Sanctuary 

Facility Number of 

chimpanzees 

NIH cost, 

$M/year 

NIH cost, 

$/animal/day, 

Chimp Haven ........................................................................... 6 118–153 7 1.7 30–39 

1 The remaining 59 chimpanzees at New Iberia Research Center are scheduled to be moved to Chimp Haven by the end of fiscal year 2014 2 Based on information available on NIH website regarding chimpanzee maintenance costs for fiscal year 2014 

3 Based on data available in NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools (RePORT) for fiscal year 2014 

4 Figure expected to increase significantly as chimpanzees move to Chimp Haven and funds are spread over fewer chimpanzees 

5 In addition to this grant, NIH also supports an additional 91 chimpanzees at the facility. These chimpanzees are owned by the laboratory 

and are not under the control of NIH. 6 Fifty chimpanzees from New Iberia Research Center were transferred to Chimp Haven during this contract year. 

7 Unlike the other facilities, Chimp Haven has a cost reimbursement contract in which they are reimbursed for costs incurred. This number 

represents actual costs billed to NIH over the most recently completed contract year (06/30/2012—06/29/2013) 
415 

We appreciate the opportunity to share this testimony with the Labor, Health and 

Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal year 

2015. We hope the Committee will be able to accommodate this request. Thank you 

for your consideration. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN CANCER INSTITUTES

The Association of American Cancer Institutes (AACI), representing 93 of the Nation’s premier academic and free-standing cancer centers, appreciates the opportunity to submit this statement for consideration by the subcommittee. AACI submits this request for the Department of Health and Human Services budget for the 

National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the amount of $32 billion for fiscal year 2015. 

AACI thanks Congress for its long-standing commitment to ensuring quality care 

for cancer patients, as well as for providing researchers with the resources that they 

need to develop better cancer treatments and, ultimately, to find cures for this deadly disease. The partnership between the Federal Government and our Nation’s cancer centers is mutually beneficial, and cancer centers continue to make strides in 

biomedical research thanks to a partnership with the Federal Government. Without 

such support, research projects with the potential to discover breakthrough therapies would not be possible. 

The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes $30.2 billion for the NIH, an increase of $200 million (0.7 percent) over the fiscal year 2014 level. This amount includes $4.931 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a $7.5 million increase 

over fiscal year 2014 (0.2 percent). Though we appreciate the president’s support, 

NIH and NCI continue to endure a lag in funding. The fiscal year 2015 proposal 

falls far short of the inflation rate of 2.9 percent, a figure that NIH projected last 

year for the Biomedical Research and Development Price Index (BRDPI) for fiscal 

year 2015. AACI joins with our colleagues in the biomedical research community in 

recommending that the subcommittee recognize NIH as a critical national priority 

by providing at least $32 billion in funding in the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill, including an equivalent percentage increase in funding 

for NCI. This funding level represents the minimum investment necessary to avoid 

further loss of promising research. 

CANCER CENTERS MUST BE SUPPORTED IN ORDER TO MOVE RESEARCH FORWARD

America’s standing in research and scientific discovery is threatened with each 

dollar slashed from the NIH budget. The budgetary pain in fiscal year 2014 has 

been less intense than in recent years but still remains for cancer centers striving 

both to keep gifted scientists at their institutions and to resume halted research 

projects due to sequestration. For some labs, recovery is nowhere in sight. Many 

have closed their doors, while some scientists have taken early retirement or simply 

left the field. Even some well-established labs claim they will never recover from 

the damage caused by sequestration. 

With cancer centers challenged to provide infrastructure resources necessary to 

support researchers, the failure to keep pace with the biomedical inflation rate will 

limit AACI members’ ability to provide well-functioning shared resources to investigators who depend on them to complete their research. For most academic cancer 

centers, the majority of NCI grant funds are used to sustain shared resources that 

are essential to basic, translational, clinical and population cancer research, or to 

provide matching dollars which allow departments to recruit new cancer researchers 

to a university and support them until they receive their first grants. Center infrastructure is expensive and it is not clear where cancer centers would acquire alternative funding if NCI grants for these efforts continue to dwindle. 

AACI cancer centers are at the forefront of the national effort to eradicate cancer. 

The cancer centers that AACI represents house more than 20,000 scientific, clinical 

and public health investigators who work collaboratively to translate promising research findings into new approaches to prevent and treat cancer. Making progress 

against cancer is complex and time-intensive. However, the pace of discovery and 

translation of novel basic research to new therapies could be quickened if researchers could count on an appropriate and predictable investment in Federal cancer 

funding. As research costs and patient need increase, cancer centers continue to be 

highly dependent on Federal cancer center grants. 

CANCER CENTERS ARE PIONEERS IN RESEARCH

The negative effects of diminished biomedical research funding reach beyond the 

lab as AACI cancer center directors have vocalized their concerns. The impact of flat 
416 

funding to the NIH continues to disturb advances in biomedical research and is of 

paramount concern to cancer center leaders. 

While AACI President Michelle M. Le Beau, PhD, director of the University of 

Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center, applauded the president’s budget proposal, 

she asked that Congress build upon that budget. Dr. Le Beau has said that at a 

time when cancer centers continue to address the losses sustained due to budget sequestration, research institutions rely on robust aid from their partnership with the 

Federal Government. She said, ‘‘Cancer centers have served as pioneers in biomedical research, improving patient care and gaining a deeper understanding of the 

molecular basis of cancer through research. Advances in science are within reach, 

but without sufficient funding at the NIH and ultimately, the NCI, such progress 

in research will move at a slower pace.’’ 

Speaking at a meeting of the AACI Government Relations Forum in Houston, TX, 

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center president Ronald DePinho, MD, 

echoed Dr. Le Beau’s concerns. Dr. DePinho underscored the need for increased Federal funding for cancer research, noting that cancer incidence in the U.S. is projected to increase 45 percent between today and 2030. Dr. DePinho has acknowledged that the major solutions for patients will come from scientific innovations that 

will lead to transformation in cancer prevention, early detection and definitive 

cures. He said that academic medical centers are the engines for such discoveries. 

Dr. DePinho stressed that it is ‘‘critical that we vigorously support these national 

treasures to deal with the onslaught of people who will need cancer services.’’ 

University of New Mexico Cancer Center researchers, physicians, and staff work 

tirelessly to provide vital patient care and breakthrough cancer technology to a richly diverse and widely dispersed population. Cancer center director and CEO Cheryl 

Lynn Willman, MD is dedicated to ensuring all patients who enter UNM Cancer 

Center receive unsurpassed care, yet she is troubled by worries that not everyone 

in New Mexico has the ability and means to seek care at the NCI-designated center. 

While Willman and her team at UNM Cancer Center devote their time, effort, and 

hard work to bringing the most advanced cancer treatments available to the public, 

providing all potential patients with access to care is not achieved without high 

costs. Without sustained and stable NIH funding UNM Cancer Center and other 

centers across the country will struggle to uphold their devoted mission in cancer 

care and research to the people of New Mexico. 

Robert S. DiPaola, MD, director of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, knows 

the strides that can be made within cancer research due to increased NIH funding. 

Recently, Rutgers was awarded a competitive grant by the NCI to support their precision experimental therapeutics endeavor. Dr. DiPaola was proud to announce their 

collaboration with investigators from the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer 

Center as well as with a network of cancer centers. Though Dr. DiPaola and his 

team are grateful for the NCI funding that has made this work possible, they are 

increasingly aware that without adequate increases to NIH funding, the future of 

cancer research collaboration could suffer. He asserted that, ‘‘Ensuring that NIH acquires an increase at least relative to the inflation rate of 2.9 percent will help to 

keep the progress we are making in cancer research nationwide moving in the right 

direction.’’ 

Samir N. Khleif, MD, director of GRU Cancer Center at Georgia Regents University, testified before the appropriations subcommittee on March 25, noting that decades of sustained strong investment in NIH and NCI have sparked remarkable 

progress in cancer research and treatment. Dr. Khleif asked for increased funding 

at the NIH and the NCI in order to ‘‘keep our best and brightest minds focused on 

developing the biomedical research breakthroughs that save lives.’’ He requested 

that support for NIH not falter in order for the U.S. to maintain its global edge in 

scientific discovery and innovation and maintain its progress in reducing the burden 

of cancer and other diseases. 

AACI President-Elect George Weiner, MD, director of the Holden Comprehensive 

Cancer Center at the University of Iowa, agreed with Dr. Khleif’s testimony. Dr. 

Weiner’s greatest concern stems from the decrease in funding for the NIH and the 

NCI and the impact reduced Federal funding will have on young scientists and he 

has blogged about scientific and budgetary concerns. Dr. Weiner fears young scientists might not chose to conduct their research in the U.S. in the future, instead 

opting to go overseas as U.S. support for innovation has been flat or dropped and 

other countries begin to make progress. Dr. Weiner knows that the U.S. remains 

the world leader in biomedical research, but feels that ‘‘ongoing success will be dependent on outstanding physicians and scientists, born here and abroad, having the 

collaborative culture, resources and infrastructure needed to accelerate progress toward our shared mission of reducing the burden of cancer.’’ Dr. Weiner stated that 

providing these tools will have a positive impact on our Nation’s ability to care for 
417 

1 American Cancer Society. Facts and Figures, 2014. http://www.cancer.org/research/ 

cancerfactsstatistics/cancerfactsfigures2014/. 2 American Cancer Society. Facts and Figures. 

3 Cancer Trends Progress Report—2011/2012 Update, National Cancer Institute, NIH, DHHS, 

Bethesda, MD, August 2012, http://progressreport.cancer.gov. 4 American Cancer Society. Facts and Figures. 

patients, our ability to conduct research, and our economy. Dr. Weiner stressed the 

need to continue to emphasize the importance of investing in innovation through 

education and research. He maintained that a commitment to investing in the NIH 

and the NCI is vital to the successes achieved through science. 

CANCER RESEARCH IS IMPROVING AMERICA’S HEALTH

The broad portfolio of research supported by NIH and NCI is essential for improving our basic understanding of diseases and has paid off considerably in terms of 

improving Americans’ health. The 5-year relative survival rate for all cancers diagnosed between 2002 and 2008 is 68 percent, up from 49 percent in 1975–1977. In 

addition, cancer death rates have dropped 11.4 percent among women and 19.2 percent among men over the past 15 years.1 The improvement in survival reflects both 

progress in diagnosing certain cancers at an earlier stage and better treatment. 

Despite that success, cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the 

U.S., with almost 1,600 deaths per day. More than 1.6 million new cancer cases will 

be discovered in 2014 and over 580,000 cancer deaths are expected.2 NCI estimates 

that 41 percent of individuals born today will receive a cancer diagnosis at some 

point in their lifetime.3

CONCLUSION

NIH estimates that the overall costs of cancer in 2008 were $201.5 billion: $77.4 

billion for direct medical costs (total of all health expenditures) and $124 billion for 

indirect mortality costs (cost of lost productivity due to premature death).4 The cost 

of cancer continues to rise, but the investment in cancer research will one day eliminate such economic burdens on Americans and the cancer center researchers who 

work tirelessly to find a cure for this deadly disease. Failure to keep pace with the 

biomedical rate of inflation will only hinder our Nation’s cancer center researchers 

from grasping future knowledge that will aid in the prevention, detection and treatment of cancer. 

As Congress makes difficult appropriations decisions for fiscal year 2015 and beyond, AACI asks that it recall that the Nation’s financial support of NIH and NCI 

has paid dividends by introducing innovative therapies for cancers that years ago 

cut short far too many American lives. The future of scientific discovery in cancer 

research is in the hands of the scientists whose research is conducted in labs across 

the country. NIH’s full support of NCI-designated centers and their programs remains a top priority for our Nation’s research institutions and we ask that Congress 

aid our Nation’s cancer centers in their goal to eradicate cancer. 

[This statement was submitted by Barbara Duffy Stewart, MPH, Executive Director, Association of American Cancer Institutes.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN MEDICAL COLLEGES

The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) is a not-for-profit association representing all 141 accredited U.S. and 17 accredited Canadian medical 

schools; nearly 400 major teaching hospitals and health systems; and nearly 90 academic and scientific societies. Through these institutions and organizations, the 

AAMC represents 128,000 faculty members, 75,000 medical students, and 110,000 

resident physicians. The AAMC requests the following for Federal priorities essential in assisting medical schools and teaching hospitals to fulfill their missions of 

education, research, and patient care: at least $32 billion for the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH); $375 million for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

(AHRQ); $520 million for the Title VII and VIII health professions workforce programs the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)’s Bureau of 

Health Professions; and student aid through the Department of Education and 

HRSA’s National Health Service Corps. The AAMC appreciates the Subcommittee’s 

longstanding, bipartisan efforts to strengthen these programs. 

National Institutes of Health—Congress’s long-standing bipartisan support for 

medical research through the NIH has created a scientific enterprise that is the 

envy of the world and has contributed greatly to improving the health and well- 
418 

being of all Americans. The foundation of scientific knowledge built through NIHfunded research drives medical innovation that improves health through new and 

better diagnostics, improved prevention strategies, and more effective treatments. 

Nearly 84 percent of NIH research funding is awarded to more than 2,500 research institutions in every state. At least half of this funding supports life-saving 

research at America’s medical schools and teaching hospitals, where scientists, clinicians, fellows, residents, medical students, and trainees work side-by-side to improve the lives of Americans through research. This successful partnership between 

the Federal Government and academic medicine not only lays the foundation for improved health and quality of life, it also strengthens the Nation’s long-term economy. 

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 included a welcome and much needed increase for NIH. However, this increase did not restore the funding cut from 

sequestration in fiscal year 2013 or the purchasing power lost over the past decade. 

The AAMC hopes fiscal year 2014 represents a first step toward restoring our Nation’s preeminence in medical research. The AAMC supports the Ad Hoc Group for 

Medical Research recommendation that NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal 

year 2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase in our Nation’s investment 

in medical research. The AAMC also urges Congress and the Administration to 

work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and the continued cuts to medical 

research that squander invaluable scientific opportunities, discourage young scientists, threaten medical progress and continued improvements in our Nation’s 

health, and jeopardize our economic future. 

The AAMC thanks the Subcommittee for its efforts to retain the limit on salaries 

that can be drawn from NIH extramural awards at Executive Level II of the Federal 

Executive Pay Scale. Medical schools’ and teaching hospitals’ discretionary funds 

from clinical revenues and other sources have become increasingly constrained and 

less available to invest in research. If institutions and departments divert funds to 

compensate for a reduction in the salary limit, they have less funding for critical 

activities such as bridge funding to investigators between grants and start-up packages to young investigators to launch their research programs. A lower salary cap 

also will disproportionately affect physician investigators, who will be forced to 

make up salaries from clinical revenues, thus leaving less time for research. This 

may serve as a deterrent to their recruitment into research careers. The AAMC 

urges the Subcommittee to continue its efforts to retain the limit at Executive Level 

II. 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality—Complementing the medical research supported by NIH, AHRQ sponsors health services research designed to improve the quality of healthcare, decrease healthcare costs, and provide access to essential healthcare services by translating research into measurable improvements 

in the healthcare system. The AAMC firmly believes in the value of health services 

research as the Nation continues to strive to provide high-quality, evidence-based, 

efficient, and cost-effective healthcare to all of its citizens. The AAMC joins the 

Friends of AHRQ in recommending $375 million in base discretionary funding for 

the agency in fiscal year 2015. 

As the only Federal agency with the sole purpose of generating evidence to make 

healthcare safer; higher quality; and more accessible, equitable, and affordable, 

AHRQ also works to ensure such evidence is available across the continuum of 

healthcare stakeholders, from patients to payers to providers. These research findings will better guide and enhance consumer and clinical decisionmaking, provide 

improved healthcare services, and promote efficiency in the organization of public 

and private systems of healthcare delivery. 

Health Professions Funding—HRSA’s Title VII health professions and Title VIII 

nursing education programs are the only Federal programs designed to improve the 

supply, distribution, and diversity of the Nation’s primary care workforce. Through 

loans, loan guarantees, and scholarships to students, and grants and contracts to 

academic institutions and non-profit organizations, the Title VII and Title VIII programs fill the gaps in the supply of health professionals not met by traditional market forces. 

Titles VII and VIII are structured to allow grantees to test educational innovations, respond to changing delivery systems and models of care, and address timely 

topics in their communities. By assessing the needs of the communities they serve 

and emphasizing interprofessional education and training, Title VII and VIII programs bring together knowledge and skills across disciplines to provide effective, efficient and coordinated care. Further, numerous studies demonstrate that the programs graduate more minority and disadvantaged students and prepare providers 

that are more likely to serve in Community Health Centers (CHC) and the National 

Health Service Corps (NHSC). 
419 

The AAMC joins the Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition (HPNEC) in recommending $520 million for these important workforce programs in 

fiscal year 2015. This funding level is necessary to ensure continuation of all Title 

VII and Title VIII programs while also supporting promising initiatives such as the 

Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment program, the Clinical Training in Interprofessional Practice program, the Rural Physician Training Grants, and other efforts to bolster the workforce. 

The AAMC strongly objects to the Administration’s proposal to eliminate the Area 

Health Education Centers (AHEC), which, in 2012 alone, trained more than 20,000 

health professions students in community-based settings, and the Health Careers 

Opportunity Program (HCOP), which research shows has helped students from disadvantaged backgrounds achieve higher grade point averages and matriculate into 

health professions programs. Continued support for these and the full spectrum of 

Title VII and programs is essential to prepare our next generation of medical professionals to adapt to the evolving healthcare needs of the changing population. 

In addition to funding for Title VII and Title VIII, HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions also supports the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education 

(CHGME) program. This program provides critical Federal graduate medical education support for children’s hospitals to prepare the future primary care and specialty care workforce for our Nation’s children. At a time when the Nation faces a 

critical physician shortage, the AAMC has serious concerns about the proposed 

elimination of the CHGME program in the president’s budget. We strongly support 

full funding for the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education program at 

$300 million in fiscal year 2015. 

Student Aid and the National Health Service Corps (NHSC)—The AAMC urges 

the committee to sustain student loan and repayment programs for graduate and 

professional students at the Department of Education. The average graduating debt 

of medical students is currently $175,000, and typical repayment can range from 

$326,000 to $492,000. 

The AAMC urges Congress to reauthorize the National Health Service Corps 

(NHSC) Fund, created under the Affordable Care Act (ACA, Public Law 111–142 

and Public Law 111–152) and set to expire at the end of fiscal year 2015. In the 

absence of continued mandatory funding, the committee must address the NHSC 

funding shortfall in the already strained Labor-HHS spending bill. To date, the 

steady, sustained, and certain growth established by this mandatory funding for the 

NHSC has resulted in program expansion and innovative pilots such as the Student 

to Service (S2S) Loan Repayment Program that incentivizes fourth-year medical 

students to practice primary care in underserved areas after residency training. 

Once again, the AAMC appreciates the opportunity to submit this statement for 

the record and looks forward to working with the Subcommittee as it prepares its 

fiscal year 2015 spending bill. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF INDEPENDENT RESEARCH INSTITUTES

The Association of Independent Research Institutes (AIRI) thanks the Subcommittee for its long-standing and bipartisan leadership in support of the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH). We continue to believe that science and innovation are 

essential if we are to continue to improve our Nation’s health, sustain our leadership in medical research, and remain competitive in today’s global information and 

innovation-based economy. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 included a 

welcome and much needed increase for NIH. However, this increase did not give 

back all of the funds cut by sequestration in fiscal year 2013 nor did it restore the 

purchasing power NIH has lost over the past decade. We hope fiscal year 2014 represents a first step toward restoring our Nation’s preeminence in medical research. 

AIRI recommends that NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 as the 

next step toward a multi-year increase in our Nation’s investment in medical research. 

AIRI is a national organization of more than 80 independent, non-profit research 

institutes that perform basic and clinical research in the biological and behavioral 

sciences. AIRI institutes vary in size, with budgets ranging from a few million to 

hundreds of millions of dollars. In addition, each AIRI member institution is governed by its own independent Board of Directors, which allows our members to focus 

on discovery-based research while remaining structurally nimble and capable of adjusting their research programs to emerging areas of inquiry. Researchers at independent research institutes consistently exceed the success rates of the overall NIH 

grantee pool, and they receive about 10 percent of NIH’s peer-reviewed, competitively-awarded extramural grants. 
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The partnership between NIH and America’s scientists, research institutions, universities, and medical schools is a unique and highly-productive relationship, 

leveraging the full strength of our Nation’s research enterprise to foster discovery, 

improve our understanding of the underlying cause of disease, and develop the next 

generation of medical advancements that deliver more treatments and cures to patients. Not only is NIH research essential to advancing health, it also plays a key 

economic role in communities nationwide. Approximately 84 percent of the NIH’s 

budget goes to more than 300,000 research positions at over 2,500 universities and 

research institutions located in every State. 

The Federal Government has an irreplaceable role in supporting medical research. 

No other public, corporate or charitable entity is willing or able to provide the broad 

and sustained funding for the cutting edge research necessary to yield new innovations and technologies of the future. NIH supports long-term competitiveness for 

American workers, forming one of the key foundations for U.S. industries like biotechnology, medical device and pharmaceutical development, and more. Unfortunately, continued erosion of the national commitment to medical research threatens 

our ability to support a medical research enterprise that is capable of taking full 

advantage of existing and emerging scientific opportunities. 

The NIH model for conducting biomedical research, which involves supporting scientists at universities, medical centers, and independent research institutes, provides an effective approach to making fundamental discoveries in the laboratory 

that can be translated into medical advances that save lives. AIRI member institutions are private, stand-alone research centers that set their sights on the vast frontiers of medical science. AIRI institutes are specifically focused on pursuing knowledge around the biology and behavior of living systems and applying that knowledge 

to improve human health and reduce the burdens of illness and disability. Additionally, AIRI member institutes have championed (and very frequently are called upon 

to lead) technologies and research centers to collaborate on biological research for 

all diseases. Using shared resources—specifically, advanced technology platforms or 

‘‘cores,’’—as well as genomics, next-generation sequencing, electron and light microscopy, high-throughput compound screening, bioinformatics, imaging, and other technologies, AIRI researchers advance therapeutics development and drug discovery. 

AIRI member institutes are especially vulnerable to reductions in the NIH budget, 

as they do not have other reliable sources of revenue to make up the shortfall. In 

addition to concerns over funding, AIRI member institutes oppose legislative provisions—such as directives to reduce the salary limit for extramural researchers— 

which would harm the integrity of the research enterprise and disproportionately 

affect independent research institutes. Such prescriptive policies hinder AIRI members’ research missions and their ability to recruit and retain talented researchers. 

AIRI also does not support legislative language limiting the flexibility of NIH to determine how to most effectively manage its resources while funding the best scientific ideas. 

AIRI member institutes’ flexibility and research-only missions provide an environment particularly conducive to creativity and innovation. Independent research institutes possess a unique versatility and culture that encourages them to share expertise, information, and equipment across research institutions, as well as neighboring universities. These collaborative activities help minimize bureaucracy and increase efficiency, allowing for fruitful partnerships in a variety of disciplines and industries. Also, unlike institutes of higher education, AIRI member institutes focus 

primarily on scientific inquiry and discovery, allowing them to respond quickly to 

the research needs of the country. 

AIRI members are located in 25 States, including many smaller or less-populated 

States that do not have major academic research institutions. In many of these regions, independent research institutes are major employers and local economic engines, and they exemplify the positive impact of investing in research and science. 

The biomedical research community depends upon a knowledgeable, skilled, and 

diverse workforce to address current and future critical health research questions. 

While the primary function of AIRI member institutions is research, most are highly 

involved in training the next generation of biomedical researchers, ensuring that a 

pipeline of promising scientists is prepared to make significant and potentially 

transformative discoveries in a variety of areas. AIRI supports policies that promote 

the ability of the United States to maintain a competitive edge in biomedical 

science. The NIH initiatives focusing on career development and recruitment of a 

diverse scientific workforce are important to innovation in biomedical research and 

public health. 

AIRI thanks the Subcommittee for its important work dedicated to ensuring the 

health of the Nation, and we appreciate this opportunity to urge the Subcommittee 

to provide $32 billion for NIH in the fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill. AIRI also 
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urges Congress and the Administration to work in a bipartisan manner to end sequestration and the continued cuts to medical research that squander valuable scientific opportunities, discourage young scientists, threaten medical progress and 

continued improvements in our Nation’s health, and jeopardize our economic future. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS IN

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY

On behalf of the Association of University Programs in Occupational Health and 

Safety (AUPOHS), an organization representing the 18 multidisciplinary, university-based Education and Research Centers (ERCs) and the ten Agricultural Centers 

for Disease and Injury Research, Education, and Prevention funded by the National 

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), we respectfully request that 

the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations bill include 

level funding of $27 million for the Education and Research Centers and $24 million 

for the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AFF) Program within the NIOSH budget. 

NIOSH is the Federal agency responsible for supporting education, training, and 

research for the prevention of work-related injuries and illnesses in the United 

States. The ERCs are regional resources for parties involved with occupational 

health and safety—industry, labor, government, academia, and the public. Collectively, the ERCs provide training and research resources to every Public Health Region in the United States. ERCs contribute to national efforts to reduce losses associated with work-related illnesses and injuries by offering: 

—Prevention Research: Developing the basic knowledge and associated technologies to prevent work-related illnesses and injuries. 

—Professional Training: ERCs support 86 graduate degree programs in Occupational Medicine, Occupational Health Nursing, Safety Engineering, Industrial 

Hygiene, and other related fields to provide qualified professionals in essential 

disciplines. 

—Research Training: Preparing doctoral-trained scientists who will respond to future research challenges and who will prepare the next generation of occupational health and safety professionals. 

—Continuing Education: Short courses designed to enhance professional skills 

and maintain professional certification for those who are currently practicing in 

occupational health and safety disciplines. These courses are delivered throughout the regions of the 18 ERCs, as well as through distance learning technologies. 

—Regional Outreach: Responding to specific requests from local employers and 

workers on issues related to occupational health and safety. 

Occupational injury and illness represent a striking burden on America’s health 

and well-being. Despite significant improvements in workplace safety and health 

over the last several decades, each year nearly 1.2 million workers are injured seriously enough to require time off work and, daily, an average of 11,000 U.S. workers 

sustain disabling injuries on the job, 13 workers die from an injury suffered at work, 

and 146 workers die from work-related diseases. This burden costs industry and 

citizens an estimated $4 billion per week—$250 billion dollars per year. This is an 

especially tragic situation because work-related fatalities, injuries and illnesses are 

preventable with effective, professionally directed, health and safety programs. 

The rapidly changing workplace continues to present new health risks to American workers that need to be addressed through occupational safety and health research. For example, between 2000 and 2015, the number of workers 55 years and 

older will increase 72 percent to over 31 million. Work related injury and fatality 

rates increase at age 45, with rates for workers 65 years and older nearly three 

times greater than younger workers. In addition to changing demographics, the 

rapid development of new technologies (e.g., nanotechnology) poses many unanswered questions with regard to workplace health and safety that require urgent 

attention. 

The heightened awareness of terrorist threats, and the increased responsibilities 

of first responders and other homeland security professionals, illustrates the need 

for strengthened workplace health and safety in the ongoing war on terror. The 

NIOSH ERCs play a crucial role in preparing occupational safety and health professionals to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities to terrorist attacks and to increase 

readiness to respond to biological, chemical, or radiological attacks. In addition, occupational health and safety professionals have worked for several years with emergency response teams to minimize disaster losses. For example, NIOSH took a lead 

role in protecting the safety of 9/11 emergency responders in New York City and 

Virginia, with ERC-trained professionals applying their technical expertise to meet 
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immediate protective needs and to implement evidence-based programs to safeguard 

the health of clean-up workers. 

Additionally, NIOSH is now administering grants to provide health screening of 

World Trade Center responders. We need manpower to address these challenges and 

it is the NIOSH ERCs that train the professionals who fill key positions in health 

and safety programs, regionally and around the Nation. And because ERCs provide 

multi-disciplinary training, ERC graduates protect workers in virtually every walk 

of life. Despite the success of the ERCs in training such qualified professionals, the 

country continues to have ongoing manpower shortages. 

The Agricultural Safety and Health Centers program was established by Congress 

in 1990 (Public Law 101–517) in response to evidence that agricultural workers 

were suffering substantially higher rates of occupational injury and illness than 

other U.S. workers. 

Today the NIOSH Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing (AFF) Initiative includes 

nine regional Centers for Agricultural Disease and Injury Research, Education, and 

Prevention and one national center to address children’s farm safety and health. 

The AFF program is the only substantive Federal effort to meet the obligation to 

ensure safe working conditions for workers in this most vital production sector. 

While agriculture, forestry, and fishing constitute one of the largest industry sectors 

in the U.S. (DOL 2011), most AFF operations are themselves small: nearly 78 percent employ fewer than 10 workers, and most rely on family members and/or immigrants, part-time, contract and seasonal labor. Thus, many AFF workers are excluded from labor protections, including many of those enforced by OSHA. 

In 2012 the AFF sector had a work-related fatality rate of 22 per 100,000 workers, 

the highest of any sector in the Nation. More than 1 in 100 AFF workers incur 

nonfatal injuries resulting in lost work days each year. These reported figures do 

not even include men, women, and youths on farms with fewer than 11 full-time 

employees. In addition to the harm to individual men, women, and families, these 

deaths and injuries inflict serious economic losses including medical costs and lost 

capital, productivity, and earnings. The life-saving, cost-effective work of the NIOSH 

AFF program is not replicated by any other agency: 

—State and Federal OSHA personnel rely on NIOSH research in the development 

of evidence-based standards for protecting agricultural workers and would not 

be able to fulfill their mission without the NIOSH AFF program. 

—While committed to the well-being of farmers, the USDA has little expertise in 

the medical or public health sciences. USDA no longer funds, as it did historically, land grant university-based farm safety specialists. 

—Staff members of USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture interact 

with NIOSH occupational safety and health research experts to keep abreast of 

cutting-edge research and new directions in this area. 

NIOSH Agricultural Center activities include: 

—AFF research has shown that the use of rollover protective structures (ROPS 

or rollbars) and seatbelts on tractors can prevent 99 percent of overturn-related 

deaths. A New York program has increased the installation of ROPS by 10-fold 

and recorded over 140 close calls with no injuries among farmers who had installed ROPS. 99 percent of program participants said they would recommend 

the program to other farmers. 

—Working in partnership with producers and farm owners, the NIOSH AFF Centers have developed evidence-based solutions for reducing exposure to pesticides 

and other farm chemicals among farmers, farm workers and their children. 

—Commercial Fishing had a reported annual fatality rate 58 times higher than 

the rate for all U.S. workers in 2009. Research has shown that knowledge of 

maritime navigation rules and emergency preparedness means survival. A 

NIOSH AFF-funded team produced an interactive navigation training CD in 

three languages, demonstrated the effectiveness of refresher survival drill instruction, and assisted the US Coast Guard’s revision of regulations requiring 

commercial fishing vessel captains complete navigation training. 

—The Centers have partnered with producers, employers, the Federal migrant 

health program, physicians, nurses, and Internet Technology specialists to educate farmers, employers, and healthcare providers about the best way to treat 

and prevent agricultural injury and illness. 

—In 2010, the logging industry had a reported fatality rate of 91.9 deaths per 

100,000 workers (preliminary data), a rate more than 25 times higher than that 

of all US workers. NIOSH AFF Centers, including the Southeast and the Northwest, are uniquely positioned to ensure the safety of our Nation’s 86,000 workers in forestry & logging. 
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Thank you for the opportunity to present testimony on behalf of the many individuals committed to working to improve the safety and well being of others in our 

communities. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF ZOOS AND AQUARIUMS

Thank you Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran for allowing me to submit testimony on behalf of the Nation’s 213 U.S. accredited zoos and aquariums. 

Specifically, I want to express my support for the inclusion of $38.6 million for the 

Institute of Museum and Library Services’ (IMLS) Office of Museum Services in the 

fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill. 

Founded in 1924, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) is a nonprofit 

501c(3) organization dedicated to the advancement of zoos and aquariums in the 

areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation. Accredited zoos and aquariums annually see more than 182 million visitors, collectively generate more than 

$21 billion in annual economic activity, and support more than 204,000 jobs across 

the country. Over the last 5 years, AZA-accredited institutions supported more than 

4,000 field conservation and research projects with $160,000,000 annually in more 

than 100 countries. In the last 10 years, accredited zoos and aquariums formally 

trained more than 400,000 teachers, supporting science curricula with effective 

teaching materials and hands-on opportunities. School field trips annually connect 

more than 12,000,000 students with the natural world. 

Aquariums and zoological parks are defined by the ‘‘Museum and Library Services 

Act of 2003’’ (Public Law 108–81) as museums. The Office of Museum Services 

awards grants to museums to support them as institutions of learning and exploration, and keepers of cultural, historical, and scientific heritages. Grants are 

awarded in several areas including educational programming, professional development, and collections management, among others. 

The Nation’s accredited zoos and aquariums, even while facing budget limitations, 

are thriving during these uncertain economic times. As valued members of local 

communities, zoos and aquariums offer a variety of programs ranging from unique 

educational opportunities for schoolchildren to conservation initiatives that benefit 

both local and global species. The competitive grants offered by the IMLS Office of 

Museum Services ensure that many of these programs, which otherwise may not 

exist because of insufficient funds, positively impact local communities and many 

varieties of species. 

For example, with a 2013 Museums for America—Collections Stewardship grant 

the Toledo Zoo will obtain new life support systems for an interactive visitor touch 

tank containing invertebrates and another holding sharks and stingrays. The exhibits provide multi-sensory experiences that connect people with animals, while the 

systems ensure the animals are properly cared for. Through its 2012 Museums for 

American grant, the Birmingham Zoo supported its Africa Zoo School program, 

which is serving 1,200 students over 2 years. Partnering with Birmingham City 

School, seventh-grade students from low-performing schools attend a week-long ‘‘Zoo 

School’’ session, where they learn about the crisis of the elephant species’ survival 

in Africa, the cultures of people in Africa, and the scientific and engineering research involved in sustaining these populations. Finally, a 2011 Museums for America grant enabled The National Aquarium in Baltimore to create a more robust volunteer program by developing and testing new techniques to attract, train, engage, 

and retain a new generation of more diverse volunteers. 

Unfortunately, current funding has allowed IMLS to fund only a small fraction 

of all highly-rated grant applications. Despite this funding shortfall, zoo and aquarium attendance has increased and the educational services zoos and aquariums provide to schools and communities are in greater demand than ever. Zoos and aquariums are essential partners at the Federal, State, and local levels in providing education and cultural opportunities that adults and children may otherwise never 

enjoy. 

As museums, zoos and aquariums share the same mission of preserving the 

world’s great treasures, educating the public about them, and contributing to the 

Nation’s economic and cultural vitality. Therefore, I strongly encourage you to include $38.6 million for the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ Office of Museum Services in the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill. 

Thank you. 

[This statement was submitted by Jim Maddy, President and CEO, Association 

of Zoos and Aquariums.] 
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PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE BRAIN INJURY ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran, thank you for the opportunity to 

submit this written testimony with regard to the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill. This testimony is on behalf of the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA), our network of State affiliates, and hundreds of local chapters and support groups from across the country. 

In the civilian population alone every year, more than 2.5 million people sustain 

brain injuries from falls, car crashes, assaults and contact sports. Males are more 

likely than females to sustain brain injuries. Children, teens and seniors are at 

greatest risk. 

Increasing numbers of service members returning from the conflicts in Iraq and 

Afghanistan with TBI and their families are seeking resources for information to 

better understand TBI and to obtain vital support services to facilitate successful 

reintegration into their communities. 

Since 1997, Congress has provided minimal funding through the Health Resources 

and Services Administration (HRSA) Federal TBI Program to assist States in developing services and systems to help individuals with brain injuries and their families 

who have a broad range of service and support needs. . Similarly, Congress has appropriated funds to HRSA for grants to State Protection and Advocacy Systems to 

assist individuals with TBI in accessing services through education, legal and advocacy remedies, but the program is woefully underfunded. Rehabilitation, community 

support and long-term care systems are still developing in many States, while 

stretched to capacity in others. Additional numbers of individuals with TBI as the 

result of war-related injuries only adds more stress to these inadequately funded 

systems. 

BIAA respectfully urges you to provide States with the resources they need to address both the civilian and military populations that look to them for much needed 

support in order to live and work in their communities. 

With broader regard to all of the programs authorized through the TBI Act, BIAA 

specifically requests: 

—$10 million (+ $4 million) for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

TBI Registries and Surveillance, Brain Injury Acute Care Guidelines, Prevention and National Public Education/Awareness 

—$12 million (+ $1 million) for the Health Resources and Services Administration 

(HRSA) Federal TBI State Grant Program 

—$4 million (+ $1 million) for the HRSA Federal TBI Protection & Advocacy 

(P&A) Systems Grant Program 

CDC—National Injury Center—The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

National Injury Center is responsible for assessing the incidence and prevalence of 

TBI in the United States. The CDC estimates that 2.5 million TBIs occur each year 

and 5.3 million Americans live with a life-long disability as a result of TBI. The TBI 

Act as amended in 2008 requires the CDC to coordinate with the Departments of 

Defense and Veterans Affairs to include the number of TBIs occurring in the military. This coordination will likely increase CDC’s estimate of the number of Americans sustaining TBI and living with the consequences. 

CDC also funds States for TBI registries, creates and disseminates public and professional educational materials, for families, caregivers and medical personnel, and 

has recently collaborated with the National Football League and National Hockey 

League to improve awareness of the incidence of concussion in sports. CDC plays 

a leading role in helping standardize evidence based guidelines for the management 

of TBI and $1 million of this request would go to fund CDC’s work in this area. 

HRSA TBI State Grant Program—The TBI Act authorizes HRSA to award grants 

to (1) States, American Indian Consortia and territories to improve access to service 

delivery and to (2) State Protection and Advocacy (P&A) Systems to expand advocacy services to include individuals with traumatic brain injury. Since 1997, the 

HRSA Federal TBI State Grant Program has supported State efforts to address the 

needs of persons with brain injury and their families and to expand and improve 

services to underserved and unserved populations including children and youth; veterans and returning troops; and individuals with co-occurring conditions 

In fiscal year 2009, HRSA reduced the number of State grant awards to 21, in 

order to increase each monetary award from $118,000 to $250,000. This means that 

many States that had participated in the program in prior years have now been 

forced to close down their operations, leaving many individuals with brain injury 

and their families unable to access needed care and supports. 

Increasing the program to $8 million will provide funding necessary to sustain the 

grants for the 21 States currently receiving funding along with the three additional 

States added this year and to ensure funding for four additional States. Steady in-
425 

creases over 5 years for this program will provide for each State including the District of Columbia and the American Indian Consortium and territories to sustain 

and expand State service delivery; and to expand the use of the grant funds to pay 

for such services as Information & Referral (I&R), systems coordination and other 

necessary services and supports identified by the State. 

HRSA TBI P&A Program—Similarly, the HRSA TBI P&A Program currently provides funding to all State P&A systems for purposes of protecting the legal and 

human rights of individuals with TBI. State P&As provide a wide range of activities 

including training in self-advocacy, outreach, information & referral and legal assistance to people residing in nursing homes, to returning military seeking veterans 

benefits, and students who need educational services. 

Effective Protection and Advocacy services for people with traumatic brain injury 

is needed to help reduce government expenditures and increase productivity, independence and community integration. However, advocates must possess specialized 

skills, and their work is often time-intensive. A $4 million appropriation would ensure that each P&A can move towards providing a significant PATBI program with 

appropriate staff time and expertise. 

NIDRR TBI Model Systems of Care—Funding for the TBI Model Systems in the 

Department of Education is urgently needed to ensure that the Nation’s valuable 

TBI research capacity is not diminished, and to maintain and build upon the 16 TBI 

Model Systems research centers around the country. 

The TBI Model Systems of Care program represents an already existing vital national network of expertise and research in the field of TBI, and weakening this program would have resounding effects on both military and civilian populations. The 

TBI Model Systems are the only source of non-proprietary longitudinal data on what 

happens to people with brain injury. They are a key source of evidence-based medicine, and serve as a ‘‘proving ground’’ for future researchers. 

In order to make this program more comprehensive, Congress should provide $13 

million (+ $1.5 million) in fiscal year 2015 for NIDRR’s TBI Model Systems of Care 

program, in order to add two new Collaborative Research Projects. In addition, 

given the national importance of this research program, the TBI Model Systems of 

Care should receive ‘‘line-item’’ status within the broader NIDRR budget. 

We ask that you consider favorably these requests for the CDC, the HRSA Federal TBI Program, and the NIDRR TBI Model Systems Program to further data collection, increase public awareness, improve medical care, assist States in coordinating services, protect the rights of persons with TBI, and bolster vital research. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF PSYCHIATRIC

TECHNICIANS

INTRODUCTION

On behalf of approximately 14,000 California Licensed Psychiatric Technicians 

representing the Nation’s ‘‘gold standard’’ in direct-care nursing services for people 

with developmental disabilities and mental illnesses, I am writing to respectfully request that the Subcommittee, Committee and Congress as a whole end the practice 

of using Federal funds to downsize and close federally regulated and accredited 

homes for Americans with developmental disabilities. 

INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES CAUGHT IN A FEDERAL WEB OF IRONIES

In recent years, the national demand for developmental centers’ closure has come 

perhaps most strongly—and, perhaps, most surprisingly—from the Federal Government: the very Federal Government which requires developmental centers to meet 

its own regulatory standards. 

To be federally certified through the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 

Services, State developmental centers must meet eight major criteria on management, client protections, facility staffing, active treatment, client behavior and facility practices, healthcare services, physical environment and dietetic services. To 

meet all of these major criteria, developmental centers must comply with 378 specific Federal standards and elements. Failure to comply with any one of these hundreds of requirements or to swiftly correct any deficiencies means the loss of Federal 

certification as well as Federal Medicaid funding. 

But in an interesting twist, other Federal funds go to support the efforts of the 

Protection and Advocacy system. Created by Congress, this federally mandated system acts as a legally based advocacy provider for people with developmental disabilities and other mental and physical disabilities throughout the Nation. Each State 
426 

has a P&A branch to investigate allegations of discrimination, abuse or other concerns affecting Americans with disabilities, wherever they reside. 

The P&A system and other Federal laws arose as responses to widespread concerns of neglect and abuse at an unlicensed New York developmental center called 

Willowbrook State School more than 40 years ago. The system and laws are the 

bases for the regulations that today’s developmental centers must follow to achieve 

and continue Federal accreditation. However, nothing in this system or laws require 

the closure of developmental centers. In the case of the Federal law which creates 

P&As—the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (often 

called the ‘‘DD Act’’)—P&As’ board charge is to ‘‘protect and advocate’’ for people 

with disabilities regardless of where they reside. In the DD Act’s legislative history, 

Congress expressly cautioned against interpreting the act as mandating closures: 

‘‘The goals expressed in this act to promote the greatest possible integration and 

independence for some individuals with developmental disabilities may not be read 

as a Federal policy supporting the closure of residential institutions... .’’ This Congressional intent is reinforced in the act itself, where individuals and their families, 

and no one else, are named as the ‘‘primary decisionmakers’’ regarding services (including residential supports) and policies. 

U.S. SUPREME COURT SUPPORTS RESIDENTIAL CHOICE

To add to the paradox, another Federal group—none other than the U.S. Supreme 

Court—made key points in its touchstone 1999 Olmstead ruling: 

‘‘We emphasize that nothing in the [Americans with Disabilities Act] or its implementing regulations condone termination of institutional settings for persons unable 

to handle or benefit from community settings...Nor is there any Federal requirement 

that community-based treatment be imposed on patients who do not desire it.’’ 

The overall tragic irony of this Kafkaesque situation is not lost on those advocating for loved ones to have the choice of living in federally regulated and certified 

facilities. Adding to the personal and emotional toll of advocating to keep their loved 

ones’ developmental-center homes open, family members must use their own personal funds to fight the deep pockets of federally funded P&A and DOJ attorneys 

seeking center closures that families and residents often do not wish. Federal funds 

are being used by one Federal agency to sue another Federal agency for the purpose 

of evicting our Nation’s most vulnerable people from their homes. In addition to 

wasting taxpayer dollars, it defies common sense and human decency. 

WHAT DOES ‘MOST INTEGRATED’ MEAN?

Those taking aim at developmental centers, in the Federal Government or elsewhere, feel that the centers are not the most integrated settings possible for those 

with developmental disabilities. But the ADA defines ‘‘most integrated setting’’ to 

be ‘‘a setting that enables individuals with disabilities to interact with non-disabled 

persons to the fullest extent possible [emphasis added].’’ 

Families with loved ones in developmental centers who wish to continue their 

services strongly disagree with any interpretation that their family members are, 

in any way, restricted. They feel that the many on-site services offered at a developmental center provide the most integrated environments possible, allowing their 

loved ones live securely and to meet their fullest potentials. 

Professional developmental-center staff also echo families’ concerns about how 

many group homes and placements with less safety and oversight and fewer programs can be less ‘‘restrictive.’’ Developmental centers are required by Federal and 

State regulations to have dozens and dozens of federally regulated state-of-the-art 

therapeutic and rehabilitative programs in place, right there on grounds as well as 

in the broader community; but somehow a developmental center is always painted 

as ‘‘less integrated’’ and ‘‘more restrictive’’ than a house on a busy street with a 

postage-stamp yard, occasional visits by licensed staff, few or no programs and infrequent and pre-announced visits by State regulators. 

California’s Licensed Psychiatric Technicians are not ‘‘‘anti-‘‘community’’’—in fact, 

we actively advocate for group-home placements when it is in the clients’ best interests and is what they and their families wish. However, when taken as a whole, 

how is having more space, more programs both on and off the center campus, higher 

regulatory standards and a whole community of professionals there to help Americans enjoy the healthiest, happiest and most active life possible necessarily ‘‘more 

restrictive?’’ 

END THE PARADOX: STOP FUNDING RESTRICTIONS ON FEDERAL CHOICES

On behalf of CAPT and its dedicated professional membership, I wish to respectfully request that the Subcommittee and Congress as a whole end the use of Federal 
427 

appropriations to discourage, downsize and close federally regulated developmental 

centers (‘‘ICF/DDs and ICF/MRs’’) throughout the country. It is the legal and moral 

choice and right for people with developmental disabilities and their loved ones to 

make decisions on their individual residential, service and support needs, and the 

choice of federally regulated developmental centers and related congregate settings 

should remain an option for them. Our Federal Government should not play a role 

in restricting or eliminating any viable, recognized and desired option for Americans 

with developmental disabilities. 

[This statement was submitted by Juan Nolasco, PT, State President, California 

Association of Psychiatric Technicians.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF STATE HOSPITAL PARENT

COUNCILS FOR THE RETARDED

Dear Chairman Harkin and Members of the Subcommittee: The California Association of State Hospital Parent Councils for the Retarded (CASHPCR) represents 

the families, friends, and advocates of loved ones living at Porterville Developmental 

Center and Fairview Developmental Center. 

As President of CASHPCR, a healthcare professional, and the sister of someone 

with a developmental disability, I am writing to urge the Senate Appropriations 

Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education and Related Agencies to prohibit the use of Federal HHS appropriations in support of deinstitutionalization activities which evict, without regard to individual choice, eligible individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) from their HHS-licensed and funded 

homes. 

The ability of our family members and others with developmental disabilities to 

achieve their full potential is greatly dependent upon the services and supports that 

they receive, including housing, medical care, and developmental programs. The 

homes licensed and funded by HHS are an important option for many individuals— 

in some cases, the only option. 

VOR, a national nonprofit organization advocating for high quality care and 

human rights for all people with I/DD, has submitted written testimony for the 

record with this same request. 

I support VOR’s testimony and request. 

[This statement was submitted by Theresa DeBell, R.N., California Association of 

State Hospital Parent Councils for the Retarded.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

COALITION

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Coalition is a nonpartisan 

coalition of more than 140 organizations committed to strengthening our Nation’s 

prevention programs. We represent millions of public health workers, clinicians, researchers, educators and citizens served by CDC programs. 

We believe Congress should support CDC as an agency, not just the individual 

programs that it funds. Given the challenges and burdens of chronic disease and 

disability, public health emergencies, new and reemerging infectious diseases and 

other unmet public health needs, we urge a funding level of $7.8 billion for CDC’s 

programs in fiscal year 2015. We appreciate some of the important new investments 

in President Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal including those for prescription drug overdose prevention, antimicrobial resistance and global health security; 

however, under the president’s proposal, CDC’s budget would be cut by nearly $243 

million compared to fiscal year 2014. CDC’s budget authority under the president’s 

budget is lower than fiscal year 2003 levels. State and local health departments continue to operate on tight budgets and with a smaller workforce, losing more than 

50,000 public health jobs since 2008. These cuts will reduce the ability of CDC and 

its State and local grantees to investigate and respond to public health emergencies, 

ensure adequate immunization rates and track environmental hazards. 

CDC is a key source of funding and technical assistance for State and local programs that aim to improve the health of communities. CDC funding provides the 

foundation for State and local public health departments, supporting a trained 

workforce, laboratory capacity and public health education communications systems. 

CDC serves as the command center for our Nation’s public health defense system, 

conducting surveillance and detection of emerging and reemerging infectious diseases. With the potential onset of a worldwide influenza pandemic, in addition to 

the many other natural and man-made threats that exist in the modern world, CDC 
428 

is the Nation’s expert resource and response center, coordinating communications 

and action and serving as the laboratory reference center for identifying, testing and 

characterizing potential agents of biological, chemical and radiological terrorism, 

emerging infectious diseases and other public health emergencies. CDC serves as 

the lead agency for bioterrorism and public health emergency preparedness and 

must receive sustained support for its preparedness programs to meet future challenges. We urge you to provide adequate funding for CDC’s emergency preparedness 

and response activities. 

Heart disease is the Nation’s No. 1 killer. In 2010, over 597,000 people in the U.S. 

died from heart disease, accounting for nearly 25 percent of all U.S. deaths. More 

males than females died of heart disease in 2010, while more females than males 

died of stroke that year. Stroke is the fourth leading cause of death and is a leading 

cause of disability. In 2010, more than 129,000 people died of stroke, accounting for 

about one of every 19 deaths. CDC’s Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Program, 

WISEWOMAN, and the Million Hearts program work to improve cardiovascular 

health. 

Cancer is the second most common cause of death in the U.S. More than1.6 million new cancer cases and 585,720 deaths from cancer are expected in 2014. In 2009 

the overall cost for cancer in the U.S. was more than $216.6 billion: $86.6 billion 

for direct medical costs, $130 billion for indirect mortality costs. CDC’s National 

Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program helps millions of low-income, 

uninsured and medically underserved women gain access to lifesaving breast and 

cervical cancer screenings and provides a gateway to treatment upon diagnosis. 

CDC also funds grants to all 50 States to develop comprehensive cancer control 

plans, bringing together a broad partnership of public and private stakeholders to 

set joint priorities and implement specific cancer prevention and control activities 

customized to address each State’s particular needs. 

An estimated 443,000 people die prematurely every year due to tobacco use. 

CDC’s Office of Smoking and Health funds important programs and campaigns to 

prevent tobacco addiction and to help those who want to quit. We must continue 

to support these vital programs to reduce the enormous health and economic costs 

of tobacco use in the U.S. 

Of the 25.8 million Americans who have diabetes, nearly 7 million cases are 

undiagnosed. In 2010, about 1.9 million people aged 20 years or older were newly 

diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, nontraumatic lower-limb amputations, and new cases of blindness among adults in the U.S. 

The total direct and indirect costs associated with diabetes were $245 billion in 

2012. The Division of Diabetes Translation funds critical diabetes prevention, surveillance and control programs. 

Obesity prevalence in the U.S. remains high. While the obesity rates among children between the ages of 2–5 have significantly decreased over the past decade, 

more than one-third of adults are obese and 17 percent of children are obese. Obesity, diet and inactivity are cross-cutting risk factors that contribute significantly to 

heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes. CDC funds programs to encourage the 

consumption of fruits and vegetables, encourage sufficient exercise and develop 

other habits of healthy nutrition and physical activity. 

Arthritis is the most common cause of disability in the U.S., striking more than 

52 million Americans of all ages, races and ethnicities. CDC’s Arthritis Program 

plays a critical role in addressing this growing public health crisis and working to 

improve the quality of life for individuals affected by arthritis. 

CDC provides national leadership in helping control the HIV epidemic by working 

with community, State, national, and international partners in surveillance, research, prevention and evaluation activities. CDC estimates that about 1.1 million 

Americans are living with HIV, 16 percent of who are undiagnosed. The number of 

people living with HIV is increasing as new drug therapies are keeping HIV-infected 

persons healthy longer and dramatically reducing the death rate. Prevention of HIV 

transmission is the best defense against the AIDS epidemic that has already killed 

more than 636,000 in the U.S. and is devastating populations around the globe. 

The U.S. has the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases in the industrialized world. Nearly 20 million new infections occur each year. CDC estimates that 

STDs, including HIV, cost the U.S. healthcare system almost $16 billion annually. 

An adequate investment in CDC’s STD prevention programs could save millions in 

annual healthcare costs in the future. 

The National Center for Health Statistics collects data on chronic disease prevalence, health disparities, emergency room use, teen pregnancy, infant mortality and 

causes of death. The health data collected through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Youth Risk Behavior Survey, Youth Tobacco Survey, National 

Vital Statistics System, and National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey are 
429 

an essential part of the Nation’s statistical and public health infrastructure and 

must be adequately funded. 

CDC oversees immunization programs for children, adolescents and adults, and 

is a global partner in the ongoing effort to eradicate polio worldwide. Influenza vaccination levels remain low for adults. Levels are substantially lower for pneumococcal vaccination among adults as well, with significant racial and ethnic disparities in vaccination levels persisting among the elderly. Childhood immunizations 

provide one of the best returns on investment of any public health program. For 

every dollar spent on childhood vaccines to prevent thirteen diseases, $10.20 is 

saved in direct and indirect costs. An estimated 20 million cases of disease and 

42,000 deaths are prevented each year through timely immunization. 

Injuries are the leading causes of death for people ages 1–44. Unintentional injuries and violence, such as older adult falls, prescription drug overdose, child maltreatment and sexual violence, account for approximately 29 percent of emergency 

department visits each year. Annually, injury and violence cost the U.S. approximately $406 billion in direct and indirect medical costs. The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control works to prevent injuries and minimize their consequences by researching the problem, identifying the risk and protective factors, 

developing and testing interventions and ensuring widespread adoption of proven 

prevention strategies. 

Birth defects affect one in 33 babies and are a leading cause of infant death in 

the U.S. Children with birth defects who survive often experience lifelong physical 

and mental disabilities. Over 500,000 children are diagnosed with a developmental 

disability and more than 50 million people in the U.S. currently live with a disability. The National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities conducts important programs to prevent birth defects and developmental disabilities 

and promote the health of people living with disabilities and blood disorders. 

The National Center for Environmental Health works to protect public health by 

helping to control asthma, protecting from threats associated with natural disasters 

and climate change and reducing exposure to lead and other environmental hazards. 

To ensure it can carry out these vital programs, we ask you to support and restore 

adequate funding for NCEH. 

In order to meet the many ongoing public health challenges outlined above, we 

urge you to support our fiscal year 2015 request of $7.8 billion for CDC’s programs. 

[This statement was submitted by Donald Hoppert, Director, Government Relations, American Public Health Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CHILDREN’S ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH NETWORK

The Children’s Environmental Health Network (CEHN or the Network) is pleased 

to have this opportunity to submit testimony on fiscal year 2015 appropriations for 

the following programs and activities that safeguard the health and future of all of 

our children: 

—Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ($7.8 billion), especially the National Center for Environmental Health ($181.1 million) and its programs, including: 

—Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program ($29 million) 

—National Asthma Control Program ($28 million) 

—National Environmental Public Health Tracking Program ($40 million) 

—National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) ($717.7 million), 

especially the Children’s Environmental Health Research Centers ($33 million) 

—Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSUs) ($2 million) 

The Children’s Environmental Health Network (CEHN) was created more than 20 

years ago by concerned pediatricians and researchers with a goal of protecting the 

developing child from environmental health hazards and to promote a healthy environment. 

Today’s children are facing the distressing possibility that they may be the first 

generation to see a shorter life expectancy than their parents due to poor health. 

Key contributors to this trend are the modern pediatric epidemics of obesity, asthma, learning disabilities, and autism. For all of these conditions, the child’s environment plays a role in causing, contributing to or mitigating these chronic conditions. 
430 

1Trasande, Liu Y. ‘‘Reducing The Staggering Costs Of Environmental Disease In Children, 

Estimated At $76.6 Billion In 2008, Health Affairs. No. (2011): doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2010.1239. 

The estimated costs of environmental disease in children (such as lead poisoning, 

childhood cancer, and asthma) were $76.6 billion in 2008.1

Investments in programs that protect and promote children’s health will be repaid 

by healthier children with brighter futures. 

Additionally, protecting our children—those born as well as those yet to be born— 

from environmental hazards is truly a national security issue. When we protect children from harmful chemicals in their environment, we help to assure that they will 

reach their full potential. We have a responsibility to our Nation’s children, and to 

the Nation that they will someday lead, to provide them with a healthy environment. American competitiveness depends on having healthy, educated children who 

grow up to be healthy productive adults. Thus it is vital that the Federal programs 

and activities that protect children from environmental hazards receive adequate resources. We strongly urge the Committee to support and expand children’s environmental health programs. Key programs in your jurisdiction deserving your support 

include: 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

As the Nation’s leader in public health promotion and disease prevention, the 

CDC should receive top priority in Federal funding. CDC continues to be faced with 

unprecedented challenges and responsibilities. CEHN applauds your support for 

CDC in past years and urges you to support a funding level of $7.8 billion for CDC’s 

core programs in fiscal year 2015. 

The National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) is particularly important 

in protecting the environmental health of young children. Current research is uncovering the extensive role that environment plays in human health and development. 

As a result, NCEH partners with public health agencies and a wide range of other 

organizations to bring their expertise and support to an expanding scope of environmental-human health challenges. NCEH’s programs are key national assets. Yet in 

recent years, NCEH funding has been drastically cut. We urge the Subcommittee 

to at least restore NCEH to its fiscal year 2010 funding level of $181.1 million. 

We were deeply concerned with the fiscal year 2012 gutting of the Healthy Homes 

and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program and we commend you for the substantial 

increase the program received in fiscal year 2014. This program helps to prevent 

lead poisoning and helps children who have already been exposed to lead. Much 

more needs to be done just to return it to fiscal year 2011 levels. Millions of American children remain at risk of lead poisoning and need this program, which supports effective local and State efforts. As evidence increasingly demonstrates no safe 

level of lead exposure for children, this funding is all the more essential. We join 

with the National Safe and Healthy Housing Coalition to urge a funding level of 

$29 million in fiscal year 2015. 

NCEH’s National Asthma Control Program not only has greatly increased data 

collection about this rampant epidemic but it also encourages States to use evidence-based approaches to reduce costs and improve outcomes for people living with 

asthma. Asthma is an epidemic in the U.S., affecting 10 percent of our Nation’s children. We urge the Committee to fund this vital program at $28 million in fiscal year 

2015. 

Public health officials need integrated health and environmental data so that they 

can protect the public’s health. The CDC’s National Environmental Public Health 

Tracking Program helps to track environmental hazards and the diseases they may 

cause and to coordinate and integrate local, State and Federal health agencies’ collection of critical health and environmental data. Participation in the tracking network development will decline under further cuts and erase the progress we have 

made across the country to better link data with public health action. 

National Institute of Environmental Health Science (NIEHS) 

NIEHS is the leading institute conducting research to understand how the environment influences human health. Unlike other NIH Institutes focused on one disease or one body system, NIEHS is charged with all diseases, all human health and 

body systems, as they are affected by the environment—a vital and monumental 

charge. NIEHS plays a critical role in our efforts to understand how to protect children, whether it is identifying and understanding the immediate impact of chemical 

substances or understanding childhood exposures that may not affect health until 

decades later. CEHN recommends that $717.7 million be provided for NIEHS’ fiscal 

year 2015 budget. 
431 

Children’s Environmental Health Research Centers of Excellence 

The Children’s Environmental Health & Disease Prevention Research Centers, 

jointly funded by the NIEHS and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

and located at research institutions across the Nation, play a vital role in providing 

the scientific basis for protecting children from environmental hazards. With their 

modest budgets, these centers are generating invaluable research. For example, 

these centers conducted the recent research that found links between prenatal exposures to either a common air pollutant or a common pesticide to lower IQs and poorer working memory at age 7. 

Several Centers have established longitudinal cohorts, which in some cases are 

more than 10 years old. The ability to look for linkages between exposures and 

health outcomes in infants, toddlers, and, now, adolescents, is vital. If these cohorts 

are disbanded due to funding cuts, at best it will take years and untold resources 

before it is possible to replicate them. Few if any longitudinal cohort studies on adolescents, puberty and environmental exposures exist. The Network is concerned that 

inadequate funding may result in the loss of these valuable cohorts. We urge the 

Subcommittee to support these centers at $33 million in fiscal year 2015. 

Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units 

Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSUs) form a valuable resource network for parents and clinicians around the Nation. They are funded jointly by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the EPA 

with a very modest budget. PEHSU professionals provide medical consultation to 

healthcare professionals from individual cases of exposure to advice regarding largescale community issues. PEHSUs also provide information and resources to school, 

child care, health and medical, and community groups and help inform policymakers 

by providing data and background on local or regional environmental health issues 

and implications for specific populations or areas. We urge the Subcommittee to 

fully fund ATSDR’s portion of this program in fiscal year 2015. 

In conclusion, our Nation’s future will depend upon its future leaders. Protecting 

children from harmful chemicals in their environment will result in healthier children with brighter futures, an outcome we can all support. Thank you for the opportunity to testify. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION

The Children’s Hospital Association advances child health through innovation in 

the quality, cost and delivery of care. Representing more than 220 children’s hospitals, the Association is the voice of children’s hospitals nationally. As institutions 

dedicated to protecting and advancing the health of America’s children, we thank 

the Subcommittee for its longstanding bipartisan support of the Children’s Hospital 

Graduate Medical Education program (CHGME). 

CHGME is an essential investment in our children’s healthcare—in promoting 

prevention and primary care, expanding healthcare for vulnerable and underserved 

children, and ensuring access to care for all children. The Children’s Hospitals Association urges the Subcommittee to protect this important program and provide $300 

million in funding for CHGME in fiscal year 2015. 

The CHGME program protects children’s access to high-quality medical care by 

providing independent children’s hospitals with funding to support the training of 

pediatric providers, much as Medicare supports training in adult teaching hospitals. 

CHGME funding has had a tremendous impact, enabling children’s hospitals to increase their overall training by more than 45 percent since the program began in 

1999. In addition, the CHGME program has accounted for more than 74 percent of 

the growth in the number of new pediatric subspecialists being trained nationwide. 

Today, the 55 hospitals that receive CHGME, less than 1 percent of all hospitals, 

train over 6,000 residents annually, and 49 percent of all pediatric residents in the 

country, including 45 percent of general pediatricians and 51 percent of pediatric 

specialists. CHGME benefits all children, supporting the training of doctors who go 

on to care for children living in every State—in cities, rural communities, suburbs 

and everywhere in between. Furthermore, CHGME is an example of a well-functioning public-private partnership; each of the participating children’s hospitals invests significant resources into the success of their training programs along with the 

Federal dollars they receive. 

Since the program’s beginning, CHGME has enjoyed strong, bipartisan support in 

Congress, under both Republican and Democratic leadership. Congress created 

CHGME because it recognized that the absence of dedicated GME support for independent children’s teaching hospitals created gaps in the training of pediatric pro-
432 

viders, which potentially threatened access to care for children. At that time, independent children’s hospitals were effectively left out of Federal GME support provided through Medicare because children’s hospitals treat children and not the elderly, and received less than 0.5 percent of the GME support of other teaching hospitals. 

CHGME has helped close the gap, but support for training of pediatric providers 

in children’s hospitals still lags significantly behind Medicare support for graduate 

medical education. Analysis commissioned by the Children’s Hospitals Association 

shows that in 2014 CHGME provides children’s hospitals, on a per-resident basis, 

about 45 percent of the support Medicare provides to adult teaching hospitals. 

Continued funding is essential to maintaining the gains that have been achieved 

under CHGME and strengthening the pediatric workforce pipeline. While much has 

been achieved, much remains to be done, as serious shortages persist in many pediatric specialties. The shortages affect children and their families’ ability to receive 

timely, appropriate care, including surgery. Children’s hospital clinics use a twoweek benchmark when scheduling non-emergency appointments, but certain pediatric specialties experiencing physician shortages have wait times of 14.5 weeks or 

more, far exceeding the two-week standard. 

Unfortunately, funding for the CHGME program has been significantly reduced 

in recent years, from $317.5 million in fiscal year 2010 to $265 million in 2014, a 

17 percent reduction. These cuts hurt the ability of children’s hospitals to train 

enough pediatricians and pediatric specialists to keep up with growing demand at 

local, State and national levels. 

Furthermore, there are no adequate substitutes for CHGME. Other potential 

sources of support, such as Medicaid GME or competitive grants, are not available 

to many children’s hospitals and cannot come close to supporting training on the 

scale necessary to meet workforce needs. Failing to adequately support CHGME 

would take us back to the same flawed system that was not meeting the needs of 

America’s children. 

The White House’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes eliminating funding for 

CHGME and incorporating support for training at children’s hospitals into a new 

competitive grant program under the Health Resources and Services Administration 

(the program would have to be created by Congress), funded from Medicare trust 

fund dollars, with $100 million set aside specifically for children’s hospitals in fiscal 

year 2015 and fiscal year 2016. While we recognize that the White House includes 

funding for training in children’s hospitals in the budget, the administration’s proposal continues to underfund pediatric training. Furthermore, children’s hospitals 

have strong concerns that replacing the current system with competitive grants that 

are limited in duration puts at risk the gains that have been made for children’s 

health under CHGME. Children’s hospitals welcome the idea of engaging with the 

administration and Congress on ways to strengthen the pediatric workforce for the 

future. In the present, however, financial support for GME in children’s hospitals 

needs to be uninterrupted and undiminished. 

We recognize that the current budget climate is extraordinarily challenging and 

that Congress has a responsibility to carefully consider the Nation’s spending priorities. However, now is not the time to take a step backwards in pediatric medicine. 

The CHGME program is critical to protecting gains in pediatric health and ensuring 

access to care for children nationwide. 

We respectfully request that the Subcommittee continue its history of bipartisan 

support for the CHGME program and include $300 million in funding in the fiscal 

year 2015 Labor-HHS appropriations bill for this vital program. 

The Children’s Hospital Association, and the children and families we serve, 

thank you for your past support for this critical program and your leadership in protecting children’s health. 

The Children’s Hospital Association advances child health through innovation in 

the quality, cost and delivery of care. Representing more than 220 children’s hospitals, the Association is the voice of children’s hospitals nationally. The Association 

champions public policies that enable hospitals to better serve children and is the 

premier resource for pediatric data and analytics, driving improved clinical and 

operational performance of member hospitals. Formed in 2011, Children’s Hospital 

Association brings together the strengths and talents of three organizations: Child 

Health Corporation of America (CHCA), National Association of Children’s Hospitals 

and Related Institutions (NACHRI) and National Association of Children’s Hospitals 

(N.A.C.H.). The Children’s Hospital Association has offices in Washington, DC, and 

Overland Park, KS. 
433 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE COALITION FOR CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL

SCIENCE

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the priorities of the clinical and translational 

research community as you work to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and 

Human Services Appropriations Bill. The community would like to thank you for 

your past support of the full spectrum of medical research. 

ABOUT THE COALITION FOR CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE

Coalition for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS) is the unified voice of the 

clinical and translational science research community. CCTS is a nationwide, grassroots network of dedicated individuals who work together to educate Congress and 

the Administration about the value and importance of Federal clinical and 

translational research and research training and career development activities. 

CCTS’s goals are to ensure that the full spectrum of medical research is adequately 

funded, the next generation of researchers is well-prepared, and the regulatory and 

public policy environment facilitates ongoing expansion and advancement of the 

field of clinical and translational science. 

Association for Clinical and Translational Science (ACTS) 

ACTS supports investigations that continually improve team science, integrating 

multiple disciplines across the full translational science spectrum: from population 

based and policy research, through patient oriented and human subject clinical research, to basic discovery. Our goal is to improve the efficiency with which health 

needs inform research and new therapies reach the public. 

ACTS is the academic home for the disciplines of research education, training, 

and career development for the full spectrum of translational scientists. Through 

meetings, publications, and collaborative efforts, ACTS will provide a forum for 

members to develop, implement, and evaluate the impact of research education programs. 

ACTS provides a strong voice to advocate for translational science, clinical research, patient oriented research, and research education support. We will engage 

at the local, State, and Federal levels and coordinate efforts with other professional 

organizations. 

ACTS will promote investigations and dissemination of effective models for mentoring future generations of translational scientists. Through collaborative efforts, 

ACTS will provide a forum for members to share studies, promote best practices, 

and optimize professional relationships among trainees and mentors. 

The Clinical Research Forum (CRF) 

CRF was formed in 1996 to discuss unique and complex challenges to clinical research in academic health centers. Over the past decade, it has convened leaders 

in clinical research annually and has provided a forum for discussing common issues 

and interests in the full spectrum of research. Through its activities, the Forum has 

enabled sharing of best clinical practices and increasingly has played a national advocacy role in support of the boarder interests and needs of clinical research. 

Governed by a Board of Directors constituted of clinical researchers from thirteen 

member institutions, CRF has grown to sixty members from academia, industry, 

and volunteer health organizations. CRF engages leaders in the clinical research enterprise including leaders from government, foundations, other not-for-profit organizations, and industry in addressing the challenges and opportunities facing the clinical research enterprise. 

Parallel with our widening focus upon the broad needs of the entire national clinical research enterprise, CRF is committed to working in those areas where it is 

uniquely positioned to have a significant impact. Collaboration with other organizations with similar goals and synergizing with their efforts strengthens all approaches to the issues facing clinical research. 

SEQUESTRATION

Thank you for providing sequestration relief in fiscal year 2014 and fiscal year 

2015. 

Federal medical research programs form the cornerstone of our Nation’s biotech 

sector. In addition to undermining active and emerging research projects, across the 

board funding cuts create widespread disruption. Due to a number of factors, this 

disruption compounds significant challenges facing the clinical and translational research training and career development pipeline. 
434 

Recent years of near-level funding have curtailed NIH’s ability to issue funding 

opportunities. As a result, the pay line at NIH has decreased substantially while 

the average age of an investigator receiving their first award has increased significantly. This dynamic creates a strong disincentive for young people to pursue a career in this field. Prior to sequestration, NIH would often discuss the decline in 

young investigators entering the research training and career development pipeline. 

Beyond public health, our country needs to ensure that we are adequately preparing the next generation of medical investigators for reasons related to both the 

economy and national security. Last year, China announced a $300 billion 5-year 

investment in medical research; this amount is double the current NIH budget over 

the same period of time. With strong competition from foreign countries, we run the 

risk of a researcher brain-drain from the U.S. to other Nations. Scientific breakthroughs and innovation will continue, but our loss in this area will mean gains for 

other Nations. Foreign economies will benefit from the significant return-on-investment that occurs through robust support of research. 

Sequestration has the potential to severely exacerbate an already difficult task of 

recruiting and training the next generation of scientific investigators. In order to ensure that the U.S. maintains a strong research training and career development 

pipeline, please eliminate the threat of sequestration and further support key activities. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

This Nation has a proud history as a global leader in medical research and biotechnology. This leadership has provided our country with cutting-edge patient care, 

high-quality jobs, and meaningful economic growth. The Milliken Institute recently 

calculated that every dollar invested in NIH returns about a $1.70 in economic output in the short term and as much as $3.20 long-term. Crucially, through a robust 

external research program, NIH resources flow out to the States where the benefit 

of the funding infusion is felt on the local level. 

NIH’s impact on public health has been profound. Conditions once considered a 

death-sentence can now be managed, survival rates for patients with life-threatening diseases have increased dramatically, and additional innovative therapies and 

diagnostic tools come to market each year. NIH has been successful, but much more 

can be done. Please provide NIH with at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 so ongoing research projects can be adequately supported and new research activities can 

be initiated. 

Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) 

NIH’s CTSA Program, which is housed within the National Center for Advancing 

Translational Sciences (NCATS), is transforming the efficiency and effectiveness of 

clinical and translational research. Since its establishment with 13 centers, the 

CTSA program has expanded to 62 medical research institutions located across the 

country. These centers are linked together and work in concert to improve human 

health by energizing the research and training environment to innovate and enhance the quality of clinical and translational research. 

Last year, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a review of the CTSA program. The report entitled, The CTSA Program at NIH: Opportunities for Advancing 

Clinical and Translational Research, spoke favorably of the CTSA effort and made 

the following recommendations to improve the program: 

(1) Strengthen NCATS leadership of the CTSA program, (2) reconfigure and 

streamline the CTSA Consortium, (3) build on the strengths of individual CTSAs 

across the spectrum of clinical and translational research, (4) formalize and standardize evaluation processes for individual CTSAs and the CTSA Program, (5) advance innovation in education and training programs, (6) ensure community engagement in all phases of research, (7) strengthen clinical and translational research relevant to child health. 

CCTS supports the recommendations of the IOM report and the organization is 

hopeful these changes will be implemented quickly. Further, when the CTSA program was authorized, Congress indicated that the consortium would be considered 

fully-funded when it received an annual appropriation of $750 million. For fiscal 

year 2015, as part of an overall funding increase for NIH, please provide CTSAs 

with at least $500 million to ensure the program can continue to grow and advance. 

Additionally, we hope you will continue working over the coming years to provide 

CTSAs with $750 million to fully fund the program and establish a robust home for 

clinical and translational research. 
435 

Additional Programs 

In recent years, Congress and NIH have made important investments to support 

the full spectrum of medical research. Key clinical and translational research programs at NIH include Research Centers at Minority Institutions (RCMI), Institutional Development Awards (IDeA), and the new Accelerating Medicine Partnership 

(AMP). Supporting the full spectrum of medical research encourages outcomes-oriented investigation where breakthroughs in basic science are translated to new diagnostic tools and treatments that improve health and lower healthcare expenses. 

In recognition of the future of the overall field of medical research, most individual 

NIH Institutes and Centers now provide some level of support for translational and 

clinical research activities. 

In order to ensure that clinical and translational research programs at NIH have adequate support to facilitate ongoing growth, please provide $32 billion for NIH in 

fiscal year 2015 with proportional increases for individual Institutes, Centers, and 

Offices. 

FEDERAL RESEARCH TRAINING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

As we discussed previously, the future of our Nation’s biomedical research enterprise relies heavily on the maintenance and continued recruitment of promising 

young investigators. The ‘‘T’’ and ‘‘K’’ series awards at NIH and AHRQ provide 

much-needed support for the career development of young investigators. As clinical 

and translational medicine takes on increasing importance, there is a great need to 

grow these programs. Career development grants are crucial to the recruitment of 

promising young investigators, as well as to the continuing education of established 

investigators. Reduced commitment to the K and T awards would have a devastating impact on our pool of highly trained clinical researchers. CCTS urges you 

to support the ongoing commitment to research training through adequate funding 

for T and K series awards and a meaningful fiscal year 2015 funding increase for 

AHRQ. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views and recommendations of the 

clinical and translational research and research training and career development 

community. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE COALITION FOR USHER SYNDROME RESEARCH

My name is Mark Dunning from the State of Massachusetts. As Chairman of the 

Coalition for Usher Syndrome Research, I am here on behalf of the Usher syndrome 

community to respectfully request this committee encourage NIH to prioritize research that will eventually expand treatment options for individuals suffering from 

the severe hearing and vision loss related to Usher syndrome. We also respectfully 

request that the committee direct NIH to move expeditiously to direct additional resources to respond to any deficiencies in the funding level or the manner in which 

various ICs coordinate on common goals and objectives related to Usher syndrome. 

Usher syndrome is the leading cause of deaf-blindness. In the United States, it 

is estimated that about 45,000 people have this rare genetic disorder. My fifteen 

year old daughter Bella is one of them. She has Usher syndrome type 1b. She was 

born profoundly deaf and now she is losing her vision to retinitis pigmentosa. She 

also suffers from the severe balance issues common in her type of Usher syndrome. 

Imagine yourself as a fifteen year old girl. Adulthood stands before you. You 

dream of getting your driver’s license, of the freedom it provides, of the limits it removes. We live in a small town. There is no public transportation. A car is the only 

way to get to work, to visit friends, to shop for food. But Bella’s vision is too poor 

for driving. How will she survive? 

Or imagine yourself as a sophomore in high school. You dream of college, of the 

freedom it provides, of the limitless career opportunities. Only hard work and desire 

stand between you and your dreams. Unless, like Bella, you have Usher syndrome. 

Then you also face the barriers of access to information. You cannot hear the professor or see the board as well as your peers. You work many times harder to get 

the same grades. And some trades are closed to you before you start. Can you be 

an architect if you are losing your vision? Can you be a salesperson if you have no 

hearing? Can you dare to dream of an unfettered future? Is the American dream 

available to you if you have Usher syndrome? 

My daughter is an asset to this country. She is kind and empathetic. She puts 

all others before herself. She is hard working and fearless. She has been honored 

with a John F. Kennedy award for leadership and a StayClassy award for philanthropy. She is the type of fifteen year old we should be grooming as a future leader 

in the country. 
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1Wittenborn, John S. & Rein, David B. ‘‘Cost of Vision Problems: The Economic Burden of 

Vision Loss and Eye Disorders in the United States.’’ NORC at the University of Chicago. Prepared for Prevent Blindness America, Chicago, IL. June 11, 2013. 

http://costofvision.preventblindness.org. 

But Bella has Usher syndrome. She was born profoundly deaf and she is going 

blind. She will fight it every step of the way, but without increased Federal funding, 

she will eventually lose. And when Bella loses, we all lose. Kids like Bella are our 

future. Unless they have Usher syndrome. Then they are not, and we are all the 

worse for it. 

People with Usher syndrome share the same range of intelligence and work ethic 

as any other slice of America. Yet they suffer from an 82 percent unemployment 

rate. People with Usher syndrome are born with the same emotional strength as 

any other American. Yet they have a suicide rate that is 21⁄2 times greater than the 

general population. People with Usher syndrome not only have the capacity to contribute to America’s future, they thirst for it. They want to be active members of 

society. Yet our country spends an estimated $139 billion annually in direct and indirect costs for people with eye disorders and vision loss.1 That doesn’t even include 

the costs associated with hearing impairment. 

In my role as the Chairman of the Coalition for Usher Syndrome Research, I have 

spoken with or met hundreds of people who are determined, focused, and working 

everyday to help themselves, their loved one, or in some cases complete strangers, 

figure out how to treat this syndrome. Usher genes are complex, long protein cells 

which require significant investment in research if we are ever to find a cure or 

treatment. We can’t do it alone. 

Through the Coalition, we have brought the Usher community and researchers together by: 

—Establishing a registry of individuals with Usher syndrome which is available 

for research or clinical trials at no cost. Our registry currently has families from 

each of the 50 States and 29 countries. 

—Sponsoring an International Symposium on Usher Syndrome at the Harvard 

Medical School in July 2014 to develop a roadmap for future research projects 

to bring us closer to viable clinical trials. 

—Sponsoring annual family conferences, webinars and monthly conferences that 

provide information and support to all of those living with Usher. 

With this in place, we have begun bringing brilliant researchers together who are 

working on developing treatments every day. Researchers like those in Oregon and 

Pennsylvania who are working on gene therapy treatments, one of which began clinical trials last year. Researchers in Louisiana, who have been able to rescue the 

hearing in mice with Usher syndrome using a drug therapy that holds promise for 

rescuing vision as well. Researchers in Iowa, California, Nebraska, Massachusetts, 

Florida, Texas, and many other States, who are collaborating with each other and 

with families through the Coalition to advance all kinds of Usher syndrome research. 

But still this is not enough. We cannot help any of the tens of thousands who 

have Usher, or countless others that will be born in the future with this devastating 

genetic disorder without Federal support. There are dozens of different mutations 

that cause Usher syndrome, and the pace of research is slowed dramatically by the 

lack of researchers and funding. The infrastructure is there to find treatments, but 

the significant financial support is not. We are asking you to supply this last critical 

resource to help us find a cure. 

When you review the report on categorical spending by the NIH, Usher syndrome 

is not even listed. Rare diseases with similar incident rates average around $50 million annually. These investments have resulted in significant discoveries for these 

diseases and there is reason to believe that we can see these same results or better 

for Usher syndrome. We do not ask that the committee throw dollars at the problem. Only that they ensure the appropriate funding is available. The researchers are 

there, waiting to discover what now is just a dream. All we are asking for is a 

chance; a chance for deaf children and adults who are going blind, a chance to see. 

With your help, my daughter and others like her can once again dare to dream. 

I will leave you with the words of America’s most famous deaf-blind person, Helen 

Keller. ‘‘Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.’’ Only together can 

we find a way to end deaf-blindness. I thank you on behalf of all those with Usher 

syndrome, their families, and most importantly to me, my daughter Bella. 

[This statement was submitted by Mark Dunning, Chairman, Coalition for Usher 

Syndrome Research.] 
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PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE COALITION OF NORTHEASTERN GOVERNORS

The Coalition of Northeastern Governors (CONEG) is pleased to share with the 

Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies its views regarding the fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the Low-Income 

Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). 

The CONEG Governors appreciate the Subcommittee’s long-standing support for 

this vital program, and recognize the difficult fiscal decisions that face the Subcommittee. In recognition of the on-going challenges that the most vulnerable lowincome households in our region face in heating their homes, the Governors urge 

the Subcommittee to fund the LIHEAP core block program in fiscal year 2015 at 

the authorized level of $5.1 billion but not less than $4.7 billion. In addition, the 

Governors request sufficient contingency funds to address unforeseen energy emergencies such as prolonged severe weather or price spikes in home heating fuels. 

Adequate, predictable and timely Federal funding is essential for LIHEAP to provide a vital lifeline to those households struggling to afford the basic necessity of 

home energy. The Governors urge the Subcommittee to provide these funds in a 

manner consistent with the LIHEAP statutory objective: ‘‘to assist low-income 

households, particularly those with the lowest incomes that pay a high proportion 

of household income for home energy, primarily in meeting their immediate home 

energy needs.’’ 

LIHEAP funds are targeted to those households with the greatest energy burden. 

Most LIHEAP assistance is targeted to households whose income is less than 150 

percent of the Federal poverty level, which for a two-person household is $23,595 

in 2014. However the majority of LIHEAP recipients have incomes far below that 

level. Many of these households live on fixed incomes and are not likely to benefit 

from improvements in the job market and the national economy. More than ninety 

percent of LIHEAP households have at least one vulnerable member—the elderly 

or disabled and young children—for whom temperature extremes could have serious 

health and safety consequences. Approximately 20 percent of LIHEAP households 

contain at least one member who is a military veteran. 

Low-income households across the Nation spend a disproportionate amount of 

their income on home energy, often over three times more than non-low-income 

households. The AARP estimates low-income senior households (age 65 and older) 

heating with fuel oil will spend almost 20 percent of household income on heating 

costs, while all other households heating with fuel oil will spend roughly 5 percent 

of their income to heat their homes. In the colder climates of the Northeast, the average household typically uses 800 gallons of heating oil per winter. At EIA’s projected average cost of $3.83 per gallon, an elderly LIHEAP recipient whose primary 

income is a Social Security check would need to spend almost 3 months of income 

to heat her home this winter. Many seniors will spend more than one-third of their 

monthly income just to get the minimum 100-gallon delivery of heating oil. 

The energy burden faced by low-income households is particularly acute in the 

Northeast. This region experiences some of the Nation’s highest home heating bills 

due to a combination of the extended winter heating season and heating fuel expenditures that typically exceed national averages. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the average consumer expenditures for heating fuels 

in the Northeast have consistently and significantly exceeded similar expenditures 

in all other regions regardless of the type of fuel used—natural gas, heating oil, propane, or electricity. 

Low-income households in the Northeast experience another aspect of ‘‘energy 

burden’’. More than any other region of the country, Northeast households are dependent upon delivered fuels—heating oil, propane and kerosene. The 30 percent of 

Northeast households that rely upon delivered fuels account for approximately 80 

percent of the homes nationwide that use home heating oil. These heating fuels are 

also the most expensive and volatile in price. The EIA estimates that households 

using heating oil can expect to pay $2,243 to keep warm this winter. The EIA also 

finds that households using delivered fuels see any change in wholesale prices reflected in their energy bills almost immediately, unlike natural gas and electricity 

retail customers. These ‘‘delivered fuel’’ households experience another vulnerability 

compared to natural gas and electricity customers. Low-income households that use 

delivered fuels are less likely to have the option of payment plans, access to utility 

assistance programs, and the protection of utility service shut-off moratoria during 

the heating season. If LIHEAP funds are not available to these households, the fuel 

delivery truck simply does not come. 

The Northeast has some of the country’s oldest homes and coldest climates. Reducing home energy costs presents unique challenges to northeast states. State 

LIHEAP programs, often working with their Weatherization Assistance Programs, 
438 

help low-income households take steps to reduce their energy use and lower their 

energy bills. Unlike the Federal weatherization program, LIHEAP funds can be 

used to provide repair or replace inefficient, unsafe and non-working home heating 

systems—improvements that enhance the safety and reduce the energy use of lowincome households. 

Even with these programs to reduce energy use, many of the lowest income families that benefit from LIHEAP have limited options to reduce their energy bills. 

Some older homes, especially older manufactured homes, have structural issues that 

make them ineligible for weatherization assistance. Throughout the region, many 

LIHEAP households have limited ability to switch to more energy efficient heating 

systems due to the lack of adequate resources for the upfront costs and the lack of 

access to less expensive heating fuels. For example, natural gas may provide a less 

expensive energy source to heat homes, but conversion is neither simple nor affordable for low-income households. The New England Fuel Institute estimates that converting a complete home heating system from oil to natural gas can cost as much 

as $10,000. In addition, homes in rural and metropolitan areas throughout the 

Northeast are not served by natural gas infrastructure. 

State LIHEAP programs continue to seek innovative and efficient ways to ‘‘do 

more with less’’ and stretch scarce LIHEAP dollars to ensure that meaningful assistance can be provided to those households with the greatest needs. For example, 

LIHEAP funds are frequently leveraged by utility assistance programs for low-income households. States in the Northeast have worked with utilities to develop payment plans to reduce arrearages and lessen the prospect of utility shut-offs after the 

heating season ends. They have negotiated with fuel dealers to receive discounts on 

deliverable fuels, and have entered into agreements to purchase fuel in the summer 

when prices are lowest. LIHEAP is one of the most efficiently run programs with 

low overhead costs. Even after taking significant cost-cutting steps, States have had 

to take actions such as tightening program eligibility, closing the program early, and 

reducing benefit levels. 

In summary, the CONEG Governors appreciate the Subcommittee’s continued 

support for LIHEAP, and urge you to fund the core block grant at the authorized 

level of $5.1 billion, but not less than $4.7 billion, and sufficient contingency funds 

to address unforeseen energy emergencies. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE COLLEGE ON PROBLEMS OF DRUG DEPENDENCE

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity 

to submit testimony to the Subcommittee in support of the National Institute on 

Drug Abuse. The College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD), a membership 

organization with over 1000 members, has been in existence since 1929. It is the 

longest standing group in the United States addressing problems of drug dependence and abuse. The organization serves as an interface among governmental, industrial and academic communities maintaining liaisons with regulatory and research agencies as well as educational, treatment, and prevention facilities in the 

drug abuse field. CPDD also often works in collaboration with the World Health Organization. 

Recognizing that so many health research issues are inter-related, we request 

that the subcommittee provide at least $32 billion for the National Institutes of 

Health (NIH) and within that amount a proportionate increase for the National Institute on Drug Abuse, in your Fiscal 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. We also respectfully request the inclusion of the following NIDA specific report language. 

Marijuana Research. Efforts to legalize or ‘‘medicalize’’ marijuana continue across 

the United States. The Committee understands that research from different areas 

of science is converging on the fact that regular marijuana use by young people can 

have a long-lasting negative impact on the structure and function of their brains, 

resulting in lower educational achievement, reduced IQ, etc. Research clearly demonstrates that marijuana has the potential to cause problems in daily life or make 

a person’s existing problems worse. NIDA is encouraged to continue to fund research on preventing and treating marijuana abuse and addiction, and the possible 

health and policy implications of proposals to implement ‘‘medical marijuana’’ or 

marijuana legalization programs across the U.S. 

Opiate Abuse and Addiction. The Committee is concerned about the continued crisis of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. In particular, the June 2011 IOM report 

on pain indicates that abuse and misuse of prescription opioid drugs resulted in an 

annual estimated cost to the Nation of $72,500,000,000. Further, the Committee is 

very concerned with the potential rise in heroin abuse and addiction as a result of 
439 

successful efforts to combat the prescription drug side of this issue. The Committee 

urges NIDA to 1) continue funding research on medications to alleviate pain, including the development of pain medications with reduced abuse liability; 2) as appropriate, work with private companies to fund innovative research into such medications; and 3) report on what we know regarding the transition from opiate analgesics to heroin abuse and addiction within affected populations. 

Medications Development. The Committee recognizes that next-generation pharmaceuticals will surely take advantage of new technologies. In the context of NIDA 

funding, chief among these are NIDA’s current approaches to develop viable 

immunotherapeutic or biologic (e.g., bioengineered enzymes) approaches for treating 

addiction. The goal of this active area of research is the development of safe and 

effective vaccines or antibodies that target specific drugs, like nicotine, cocaine, and 

heroin, or drug combinations. The Committee is excited by this approach—if successful, immunotherapies, alone or in combination with other medications, behavioral treatments, or enzymatic approaches, stand to revolutionize how we treat, and, 

maybe even someday, prevent addiction. The Committee looks forward to hearing 

more about work in this area. 

Nurturing Talent and Innovation in Research. The Committee commends NIDA 

for its continued support of innovative research on drug addiction and related health 

problems such as pain and HIV/AIDS, and the Institute’s effort to be at the forefront of training the next generation of innovative researchers. The 6 year-old 

Avant-Garde award is a good example of a program that stimulates high-impact research that could lead to groundbreaking opportunities for the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS in drug abusers. The Committee understands that NIDA is now 

crafting a new kind of award, which would blend NIH’s Pioneer and New Innovator 

award mechanisms. This new opportunity, called ‘‘AVENIR’’ awards, is designed to 

attract creative young investigators into HIV/drug abuse public health research. The 

Committee strongly supports this effort, and asks the Institute to report on its 

progress in future appropriations and related requests. 

Research to Assist Military Personnel, Veterans, and Their Families. The Committee recognizes the significant health challenges, including substance abuse and 

addiction, faced by military personnel, veterans, and their families. Many of these 

individuals need help confronting war-related problems including traumatic brain 

injury, PTSD, depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances, and substance abuse and addiction. The Committee commends NIDA for its successful efforts to coordinate and 

support research with the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, 

and other NIH Institutes focusing on these populations, and strongly urges NIDA 

to continue work in this area. 

Raising Awareness and Engaging the Medical Community in Drug Abuse and Addiction Prevention and Treatment. The Committee is very pleased with NIDAMed, 

an initiative designed to reach out to physicians, physicians in training, and other 

healthcare professionals. The Committee urges the Institute to continue its focus on 

activities to provide physicians and other medical professionals with the tools and 

skills needed to incorporate drug abuse screening and treatment into their clinical 

practices. 

Drug abuse is costly to Americans; it ruins lives, while tearing at the fabric of 

our society and taking a huge financial toll on our resources. Beyond the unacceptably high rates of morbidity and mortality, drug abuse is often implicated in family 

disintegration, loss of employment, failure in school, domestic violence, child abuse, 

and other crimes. Placing dollar figures on the problem; smoking, alcohol and illegal 

drug use results in an exorbitant economic cost on our Nation, estimated at over 

$600 billion annually. We know that many of these problems can be prevented entirely, and that the longer we can delay initiation of any use, the more successfully 

we mitigate future morbidity, mortality and economic burdens. 

Over the past three decades, NIDA-supported research has revolutionized our understanding of addiction as a chronic, often-relapsing brain disease —this new 

knowledge has helped to correctly situate drug addiction as a serious public health 

issue that demands strategic solutions. By supporting research that reveals how 

drugs affect the brain and behavior and how multiple factors influence drug abuse 

and its consequences, scholars supported by NIDA continue to advance effective 

strategies to prevent people from ever using drugs and to treat them when they cannot stop. 

NIDA supports a comprehensive research portfolio that spans the continuum of 

basic neuroscience, behavior and genetics research through medications development and applied health services research and epidemiology. While supporting research on the positive effects of evidence-based prevention and treatment approaches, NIDA also recognizes the need to keep pace with emerging problems. We 

have seen encouraging trends—significant declines in a wide array of youth drug 
440 

use—over the past several years that we think are due, at least in part, to NIDA’s 

public education and awareness efforts. However, areas of significant concern include the recent increase in lethalities due to heroine, as well as the continued 

abuse of prescription opioids and the recent increase in designer drugs availability 

and their deleterious effects. The need to increase our knowledge about the effects 

of marijuana is most important now that decisions are being made about its approval for medical use and/or its legalization. We support NIDA in its efforts to find 

successful approaches to these difficult problems. 

The Nation’s previous investment in scientific research to further understand the 

effects of abused drugs on the body has increased our ability to prevent and treat 

addiction. As with other diseases, much more needs be done to improve prevention 

and treatment of these dangerous and costly diseases. Our knowledge of how drugs 

work in the brain, their health consequences, how to treat people already addicted, 

and what constitutes effective prevention strategies has increased dramatically due 

to support of this research. However, since the number of individuals continuing to 

be affected is still rising, we need to continue the work until this disease is both 

prevented and eliminated from society. 

We understand that the fiscal year 2015 budget cycle will involve setting priorities and accepting compromise, however, in the current climate we believe a focus 

on substance abuse and addiction, which according to the World Health Organization account for nearly 20 percent of disabilities among 15–44 year olds, deserves 

to be prioritized accordingly. We look forward to working with you to make this a 

reality. Thank you for your support for the National Institute on Drug Abuse. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CONSORTIUM OF SOCIAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATIONS

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, the Consortium of Social 

Science Associations (COSSA) appreciates and welcomes the opportunity to comment on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the National Institutes of Health 

(NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). COSSA joins the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research in recommending that NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 

2015 as the next step toward a multi-year increase in our Nation’s investment in 

medical research. As a member of the CDC Coalition, COSSA requests $7.8 billion 

in funding for the CDC in fiscal year 2015. We join the Friends of AHRQ in requesting a funding level of $375 million for AHRQ in fiscal year 2015. 

COSSA is an advocacy group for the social and behavioral sciences supported by 

more than 100 professional associations, scientific societies, universities and research centers. It serves as a bridge between the academic research and Washington 

policy-making community. Our organizations are appreciative of the Subcommittee’s 

and the Congress’ continued support of NIH, CDC, and AHRQ. Strong, sustained 

funding for these agencies is essential to the national priorities of better health and 

economic revitalization. 

NIH BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH

As this Committee knows, the NIH mission is to support scientifically rigorous, 

peer/merit-reviewed, investigator-initiated research, including basic and applied behavioral and social science research in fulfilling its mission: ‘‘Science in pursuit of 

fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life and reduce illness and 

disability.’’ 

The fundamental understanding of how disease works, including the impact of social environment on these disease processes, underpins our ability to conquer devastating illnesses. Perhaps the grandest challenge we face is to understand the 

brain, behavior, and society— from responding to short-term pleasures to self-destructive behavior, such as addiction, to lifestyle factors that determine the quality 

of life, infant mortality rate and longevity. And while Americans have achieved very 

high levels of health over the past century and are healthier than people in many 

other Nations, according to the 2013 National Academies’ (NAS) report, U.S. Health 

in International Perspective: Shorter Lives, Poorer Health, ‘‘a growing body of research suggests that the health of the U.S. population is not keeping pace with the 

health of people in other economically advanced, high-income countries.’’ 

Nearly 125 million Americans are living with one or more chronic conditions, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, arthritis, asthma, mental illness and Alzheimer’s disease. At the same time, healthcare spending in the United 

States is being driven up by the aging of the U.S. population and the rapid rise in 

chronic diseases, many of which are caused or exacerbated by behavioral factors— 
441 

including, obesity, caused by sedentary behavior and poor diet, and addictions resulting from health problems caused by tobacco and other drug use. As the NAS report notes, ‘‘the United States is losing ground in the control of diseases, injuries, 

and other sources of morbidity.’’ 

The behavioral and social sciences regularly make important contributions to the 

well-being of this Nation. Due in large part to the behavioral and social science research sponsored by the NIH, we are now aware of the enormous role behavior 

plays in our health. At a time when genetic control over disease is tantalizingly 

close but not yet possible, knowledge of the behavioral influences on health is a crucial component in the Nation’s battles against the leading causes of morbidity and 

mortality: obesity, heart disease, cancer, AIDS, diabetes, age-related illnesses, accidents, substance abuse, and mental illness. 

As a result of the strong Congressional commitment to the NIH in years past, our 

knowledge of the social and behavioral factors surrounding chronic disease health 

outcomes is steadily increasing. The NIH’s behavioral and social science portfolio 

has emphasized the development of effective and sustainable interventions and prevention programs targeting those very illnesses that are the greatest threats to our 

health, but the work is just beginning. This includes NIH’s support of economic research, specifically, research on the linkages between socioeconomic status and 

health outcomes in the elderly and achievement and health outcomes in children. 

This research has been an integral part of the interdisciplinary science NIH has historically supported. Accordingly, the agency’s investment has yielded key data, 

methodologies and substantive insights on some of the most important and pressing 

issues facing the U.S. For example, NIH-funded surveys such as the Health and Retirement Survey, the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), parts of the National 

Longitudinal Survey of Labor Market Experiences, and surveys on international 

aging and retirement provide data necessary to monitor and detect changes in important socioeconomic trends in health. This in turn allows NIH to support research 

that will provide the greatest return on its investment when it comes to the health 

of our citizens. 

CDC BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH

As the country’s leading health protection and surveillance agency, the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) works with State, local, and international 

partners to protect Americans from infectious diseases; prevent the leading causes 

of disease, disability, and death; protect Americans from natural and bioterrorism 

threats; monitor health and ensure laboratory excellence; keep Americans safe from 

environmental and work-related hazard; and ensure global disease protection. 

Social and behavioral science research plays a crucial role in helping the CDC 

carry out its mission. Scientists in fields ranging from psychology, sociology, anthropology, and geography to health communications, social work, and demography work 

in every CDC Center to design, analyze, and evaluate behavioral surveillance systems, public health interventions, and health promotion and communication programs using a variety of both quantitative and qualitative methods. These scientists 

play a key role in the CDC’s surveillance and monitoring efforts, which collect and 

analyze data to better target public health prevention efforts. Another vital contribution of the social and behavioral sciences to CDC activities is in identifying and 

understanding health disparities. Finally, the social and behavioral sciences play an 

important role in the evaluation of CDC programs, helping policymakers make informed, evidence-based decisions on how to prioritize in a resource-scarce environment. 

The CDC is also the home of the Nation’s principal health statistics agency, the 

National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). NCHS collects data on chronic disease prevalence, healthcare disparities, emergency room use, teen pregnancy, infant 

mortality, causes of death and rates of insurance, to name a few. It provides critical 

data on all aspects of our healthcare system through data cooperatives and surveys 

that serve as the gold standard for data collection around the world. Data from 

NCHS surveys like the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), the National 

Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) are used by agencies across the Federal Government, State 

and local governments, public health officials, Federal policymakers, and demographers, epidemiologists, health services researchers, and other scientists. 

AHRQ HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH

AHRQ’s sole purpose is to improve healthcare in America. Just as biomedical research helps us find cures for disease, the health services research AHRQ supports 

helps find ways to cure our healthcare system—improving its quality, safety, and 
442 

efficiency for the benefit of patients. AHRQ’s research identifies what works and 

what doesn’t in healthcare to improve patient care and provide policymakers and 

other healthcare leaders with the information needed to make critical healthcare decisions. 

AHRQ helps providers help patients. AHRQ’s research generates valuable evidence to help providers help patients make the right healthcare decisions for themselves and their loved ones. The science funded by AHRQ ensures patients receive 

high quality, appropriate care every time they walk through the hospital, clinic, and 

medical office doors. AHRQ’s research provides the basis for protocols that prevent 

medical errors and reduce healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), and improve patient experiences and outcomes. AHRQ helps healthcare providers—from private 

practice physicians to large hospital systems—understand how to deliver the best 

care most efficiently. The breadth of evidence available from AHRQ empowers 

healthcare providers to understand not just how they compare to their peers, but 

also how to improve their performance to be more competitive. 

COSSA expects this testimony to be only the beginning of an ongoing conversation 

between the Subcommittee and stakeholders on the fiscal year 2015 funding needs 

of these agencies. 

We would be pleased to provide any additional information. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the subcommittee, thank you for 

allowing me to submit this testimony on behalf of America’s public media service— 

public television and public radio—on-air, online and in the community. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) requests level funding of $445 million for fiscal year 2017 and $27.3 million for the Department of Education’s Ready To Learn 

program in fiscal year 2015. 

Forty-six years after passage of the Public Broadcasting Act, this uniquely American public-private partnership is keeping its promise to the American people by 

providing a safe place where children can learn on-air and online; providing highquality educational content for teachers in the classroom and children schooled at 

home; providing reliable and trusted news and information; and providing emergency alert services. Either by looking at each station individually or public media 

as a whole, this public-private partnership is making a big difference in the lives 

of individuals and communities. 

Today we are a system that comprises more than 1,400 locally owned and locally 

operated public radio and television stations serving rural and urban communities 

throughout the country. More than 98 percent of the American people turn to American public media for high quality content that educates, informs, inspires and entertains. Public media’s commitment to early and lifelong learning, available to all 

citizens, helps strengthen our civil society and our democracy. Our trusted, noncommercial services available for free to all Americans is especially important to 

those living in rural communities where the local public media station is sometimes 

the only source of broadcast news, information and educational programming. 

I understand that this committee is faced with the challenging task of allocating 

scarce Federal resources to a number of organizations, all doing worthy and important work. The financial support for the public broadcasting system that is derived 

from the Federal appropriation is the essential investment keeping public media 

free and commercial free for all Americans. Former President Ronald Reagan said, 

‘‘Government should provide the spark and the private sector should do the rest.’’ 

And what stations do, with the spark of Federal dollars that amounts to approximately 10 to 15 percent of a stations’ budget, results in a uniquely entrepreneurial 

and American public media system with a track record of proven benefits delivered 

through stations to the American people. 

The Federal investment through CPB is the foundation on which the entire system is built. These critical funds leverage vital investments from other sources. Undermining this foundation would put the entire structure in jeopardy. While private 

donations and existing funding sources can help defray considerable costs for the 

much-honored programs of public television and radio—nonFederal funding represents five of every six dollars invested annually in public broadcasting—the Federal investment is indispensable to sustaining the operations of public broadcasting 

stations, the public service mission they pursue, local community-based accountability, and the universal service to which the Public Broadcasting Act aspires. 

Further, it is this initial investment in public media that keeps it commercial free 

and available to all Americans for free. However, smaller stations serving rural, mi-
443 

nority and other underserved communities are hard pressed to raise six times the 

Federal appropriation, which can represent as much as 40 percent of their budget. 

Public media’s contribution to education—from early childhood through adult 

learning—is well documented. We are America’s largest classroom, with proven content available to all children, including those who cannot afford preschool. Our content is repeatedly regarded as ‘‘most trusted’’ by parents, caregivers and teachers. 

CPB’s work with the Department of Education’s Ready To Learn program is an 

excellent example of how public media brings together high-quality educational content with on-the-ground work in local communities. We also invest in research that 

demonstrates and promotes the effectiveness of this content in formal and informal 

educational settings. 

We talk a lot about content that matters and engagement that counts, further defining public media from commercial media. An example of this is CPB’s ‘‘American 

Graduate: Let’s Make it Happen’’ Initiative, which tells the story behind the statistic of one million American young people failing to graduate every year from high 

school. Our stations told the stories and communities throughout the country responded. More than 75 public media stations located in 33 States with at-risk communities are working with more than 1000 national and community-based partners 

to bring together diverse stakeholders and community organizations; filling gaps in 

information, resources and solutions; sharing best practices for teacher training and 

student engagement; creating local programming around the dropout issue unique 

to their communities, and leveraging digital media and technology to engage students in an effort to keep them on the path to graduation. Those numbers are now 

declining because what our stations do, counts. But American Graduate is just one 

example of how public media stations are using their spectrum for the public good. 

Building on our education commitment, CPB recently announced that it will expand on these successful models to bring meaningful impact and change to more 

communities at risk. Through the recently created $20 million American Graduate/ 

PBS KIDS Fund, CPB and PBS will invest in the development of new tools to help 

parents better prepare their children ages 2–8 for educational success, to support 

teacher development, and to engage middle and high school youth to improve learning. 

Public media is utilizing today’s technology to provide content of value to millions 

of citizens who trust us to deliver content that matters and is relevant to their lives 

today. CPB strategically focuses investments through the lens of what we refer to 

as the ‘‘Three D’s’’ —Digital, Diversity and Dialogue. This refers to support for innovation on digital platforms, extending public media’s reach and service over multiple 

platforms; content that is for, by and about Americans of all backgrounds; and services that foster dialogue between the American people and the public service media 

organizations that serve them.CPB funding enables stations to provide content of 

consequence and to keep faith with the visions of political, educational, philanthropic and community leaders who have seen in public broadcasting the potential 

to strengthen our nation by promoting lifelong learning and an informed citizenry. 

As the steward of these important taxpayer dollars, CPB ensures that 95 cents 

of every dollar received goes to support local stations and the programs and services 

they offer to their communities; no more than five cents of every dollar goes to the 

administration of funding programs and overhead. 

The Public Broadcasting Act ensures diversity in this programming by requiring 

CPB to fund independent and minority producers. CPB fulfills this obligation, in 

part, by funding the Independent Television Service, the five Minority Consortia entities in television (African American, Latino, Asian American, Native American and 

Pacific Islander), several public radio consortia (Latino Public Radio Consortia, African American Public Radio Stations, and Native Public Media) and numerous minority public radio stations. In addition, CPB, through its Diversity and Innovation 

fund, makes direct investments in the development of diverse primetime and children’s broadcast programs as well as innovative digital content. 

As newspapers across the country have scaled back their operations, public media 

has stepped into the void. Local stations have been working to fill the gap with creative ventures and partnerships, such as our seven multimedia local journalism centers (LJCs) that are providing their communities with much-needed local, regional 

and statewide coverage. 

For an investment of approximately $1.35 per American per year, public media 

stations are able to train teachers and help educate America’s children; provide indepth journalism that informs citizens about issues in their neighborhoods, their 

country, and around the globe; make the arts accessible to all Americans; and provide emergency alert services for their communities. 

CPB’s fiscal year 2017 request of $445 million balances the fiscal reality facing 

our nation with our statutory mandate to provide a valuable and trusted service to 
444 

all Americans. Today, the challenges we face are more complex than ever and require new levels of thinking, innovation, and collaboration. Community organizations often work in isolation, shouldering the burden of solving societal problems. 

But public media is the essential link, uniquely poised to add real value. CPB’s fiscal year 2017 request will allow stations to enhance their role as a trusted source 

of information and as a convener, help communities understand issues, and mobilize 

them toward positive, sustainable outcomes. 

Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, this is only part of the story 

of our public media system in America. Public media is a national treasure that is 

available and accessible to all Americans. Every day public media works to strengthen and advance our civil society. I thank you for allowing me to submit this testimony and urge you to consider our request for funding. 

[This statement was submitted by Patricia Harrison, President and CEO, Corporation for Public Broadcasting.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF COUNCIL OF ACADEMIC FAMILY MEDICINE

We urge the Committee to appropriate at least $71 million for the health professions program, Primary Care Training and Enhancement, authorized under Title 

VII, Section 747 of the Public Health Service Act, under the jurisdiction of the 

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA.) In addition, we recommend 

the Committee fund the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) at no 

less than $375 million in base discretionary funding to support research vital to primary care. 

The member organizations of the Council of Academic Family Medicine (CAFM) 

are pleased to submit testimony on behalf of programs under the jurisdiction of the 

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The programs we support in our testimony are ones that deliver an investment in our Nation’s workforce and health infrastructure. They are a down payment on a U.S. healthcare system with a foundation of primary care that will produce better health outcomes and reduce the ever 

rising costs of healthcare. We understand that hard decisions must be made in these 

difficult fiscal times, but even in this climate, we hope the Committee will recognize 

that the production of a robust primary care workforce for the future is a necessary 

investment that cannot wait and will ultimately produce long term savings. 

Primary Care Training and Enhancement 

The Primary Care Training and Enhancement Program (Title VII, Section 747 of 

the Public Health Service Act) has a long history of providing indispensable funding 

for the training of primary care physicians. With each successive reauthorization, 

Congress has modified the Title VII health professions programs to address relevant 

workforce needs. The most recent authorization directs the Health Resources and 

Services Administration (HRSA) to prioritize training in the new competencies relevant to providing care in the patient-centered medical home model. It also calls for 

the development of infrastructure within primary care departments for the improvement of clinical care and research critical to primary care delivery, as well as innovations in team management of chronic disease, integrated models of care, and 

transitioning between healthcare settings. Departments of family medicine and family medicine residency programs often rely on Title VII, Section 747, grants to help 

develop curricula and research training methods for transforming practice delivery. 

There has not been a competitive cycle for these grants since fiscal year 2010. 

There are currently over 200 grants, completing their cycle in fiscal year 2014 who 

will be eligible to apply in fiscal year 2015, as well as numerous other potential applicants who did not receive funding in fiscal year 2010. The current funding level 

(approximately $36.9 million) is not enough to allow for the pent up demand. More 

importantly, the vital work of these grants to help reform primary care education 

and the health delivery system needs to be prioritized. 

As implementation of the Affordable Care Act proceeds with increasing numbers 

of insured persons, the Nation will need new initiatives relating to increased training in inter-professional care, the patient-centered medical home, and other new 

competencies required in our developing health system. Such initiatives will be impossible to implement without a competitive grant cycle with enough funding to 

allow for a robust result of new grants. Now is the time to ensure that critical funding for the Primary Care Training and Enhancement program takes place. Title VII 

has a profound impact on States across the country and is vital to the continued 

development of a workforce designed to care for the most vulnerable populations 
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and meet the needs of the 21st century. We cannot allow the primary care pipeline 

to dry up. 

Below are some examples of how these grants have made lasting contributions: 

‘‘With funding from a Title VII Medical Student Education grant, we were able 

to expand our existing medical student family medicine clerkship clinic to include 

students from pharmacy, nursing, occupational and physical therapy, and law, who 

see patients together under the supervision of faculty from all disciplines. This has 

allowed us to create one of the few truly interprofessional clinical experiences.’’ 

Joshua Freeman, MD, Chair, Department of Family Medicine, University of Kansas 

School of Medicine 

‘‘Our AAU HRSA Title VII Grant has allowed us to transform the education of 

medical students and residents at Brown University around the patient centered 

medical home, including new curricula and rotations, as well as the facilitation work 

to transform 10 family medicine teaching practices. In addition, we have run 3 national ‘‘think tanks’’ to discuss practical and theoretical issues related to models for 

practice transformation, PCMH evaluation, and the Adolescent PCMH. This grant 

has had huge impact and the work could not have been done without it. Jeffrey 

Borkan, MD, PhD, Chair, Department of Family Medicine, Brown University 

‘‘Previous grants included starting a resident continuity clinic at an FQHC, and 

preparation for rural training (rural continuity clinic, curriculum, rural mentoring 

program, rural medicine interest group). More distant grants help set up rural 

training sites for medical students and residents in 1975 and 1980, both of which 

are still providing that important function. Steven C. Zweig, MD, MSPH, Chair, Department of Family Medicine, University of Missouri’’ 

‘‘We have used HRSA funding to transform our curriculum and our Family Medicine Center using the principles of PCMH. We have partnered with a local income 

based elderly housing complex to provide clinical services on-site. We have 

partnered with a community senior center to provide on-site instruction to elderly 

community dwelling individuals. We have added instruction in quality and safety 

throughout the residency and using the PDSA cycle we improve care in asthma, 

asthma, and hypertension as well as our preventive care. As a consequence we have 

put ourselves in a position to become NCQA Level 3 certified by December 31.’’ In 

addition, we were able to partner with the local FQHCs and create a longitudinal 

patient care track in the first 2 years of medical school. Beginning October of the 

first year, the students are placed in a primary care (and most in an underserved) 

site on an ongoing, monthly basis. They are given the skills to be a member of the 

care team and participate in all aspects of patient care.’’ Allen Perkins, MD, Professor and Chair, Department of Family Medicine, University of South Alabama College of Medicine 

‘‘Title VII funding has allowed our residency site to implement an interprofessional team-based care curriculum as part of our patient-centered medical home 

transformation. Residents work with nurses, social workers, nurse midwives, community health workers, nutritionists and certified diabetes educators and learn 

about optimal team communication and care for their patients through participation 

in several group visit programs (centering pregnancy, well baby visits and diabetes 

group visits). Their learning is also supplemented by a longitudinal video feedback 

to improve doctor-patient communication, which includes 360 degree feedback and 

preceptor training.’’ Michelle Roett, MD, MPH, FAAFP, Residency Program Director, Georgetown University-Providence Hospital FMR, in Colmar Manor, MD 

Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) 

Two years ago, we were disappointed to see the subcommittee eliminate funding 

for AHRQ in its draft bill. We understand that in our current budgetary climate it 

is important to leverage research funding in the most effective ways possible. However, the majority of research funding supports research of one specific disease, 

organ system, cellular, or chemical process—not for primary care. This is in spite 

of the fact that the overall health of a population is directly linked to the strength 

of its primary healthcare system. Primary care research includes: translating 

science into the practice of medicine and caring for patients, understanding how to 

better organize healthcare to meet patient and population needs, evaluating innovations to provide the best healthcare to patients, and engaging patients, communities, and practices to improve health. AHRQ is uniquely positioned to support this 

sort of best practice research and to help advance its dissemination to improve primary care nationwide. 

There are six areas that we believe AHRQ excels at—and that are not available 

elsewhere in the biomedical research infrastructure: primary care research through 

Practice-based Research Networks (PBRNs), practice transformation, patient quality 
446 

and safety in non-hospital settings, multi-morbidity research, mental and behavioral 

health provision in communities and primary care practices, and training future primary care investigators. Critical to the successful engagement and development of 

primary care research is the constraint of not having an adequate cadre of welltrained researchers. We believe there is a need to deliberately promote this training 

as a way to aid in the development of all the areas we have emphasized. AHRQ 

has researcher training mechanisms in place, which we believe are important, and 

need to be expanded. 

Some examples from the field regarding the utility of AHRQ-funded grants: 

‘‘Three AHRQ grants supported the development of patient centered personal 

health records in 2007, 2009, and 2010, and studied whether these tools increased 

prevention. In our studies we found increases in important tests like colon and 

breast cancer screening as well as immunizations, blood pressure and cholesterol 

control. In addition, we were able to leave the functionality in place—permanently— 

for 191 doctors and now 60,000 patients. One result is that the practices are now 

using the AHRQ created portal as their sole patient portal and abandoned the commercial portal that did not work as well.’’ Alex Krist, M.D., M.P.H., Virginia Commonwealth University 

‘‘The AHRQ-sponsored series of grants on Multiple Chronic Condition research 

were transformative for that field. They also sponsored regular meetings among 

grantees and established the Multiple Chronic Conditions Research Network, which 

has fostered many collaborations between researchers with shared expertise.’’ Elizabeth A. Bayliss, MD, MSPH, Kaiser Permanente Colorado 

‘‘Our AHRQ grant to study the transformation of medical practices into patientcentered medical homes allowed us to develop a good partnership with the Minnesota Dept. of Health and Dept. of Human Services to evaluate a State experiment 

certifying primary care practices as medical homes. That partnership facilitated access to information and practices and helped us learn many lessons about this 

transformation and its impacts. These lessons were then provided to those MN departments and to the practices that were becoming medical homes, with the purpose 

of improving quality, cost, and access.’’ Leif I. Solberg, MD, Director for Care Improvement Research, HealthPartners Institute for Education and Research, Bloomington, MN 

Research related to the most common acute, chronic, and comorbid conditions that 

primary care clinicians treat is lacking. AHRQ supports research to improve 

healthcare quality, reduce costs, advance patient safety, decrease medical errors, 

and broaden access to essential services. This research is essential to create a robust 

primary care system for our Nation—one that delivers higher quality of care and 

better health while reducing the rising cost of care. Despite this need, little is 

known about how patients can best decide how and when to seek care, how to introduce and disseminate new discoveries into real life practice, and how to maximize 

appropriate care. This type of research requires sufficient funding for AHRQ, so it 

can help researchers address the problems confronting our health system today. 

We recommend the Committee fund AHRQ at a base, discretionary level of at least $375 million for fiscal year 2015. 

[This statement was submitted by Grant Hoekzema, MD, Chair, Council of Academic Family Medicine.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL ON SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION

On behalf of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), I am pleased to offer 

this written testimony to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health 

and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies for inclusion in the official 

Committee record. I will focus my testimony on the importance of fostering a skilled, 

sustainable, and diverse social work workforce to meet the healthcare needs of the 

nation through professional education, training, and financial support programs for 

social workers at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Education (ED). 

CSWE is a nonprofit national association representing more than 2,500 individual 

members and more than 700 master’s and baccalaureate programs of professional 

social work education. Founded in 1952, this partnership of educational and professional institutions, social welfare agencies, and private citizens houses the sole accrediting body for social work education in the United States. Social work education 

prepares students for leadership and professional interdisciplinary practice with individuals, families, groups, and communities in a wide array of service sectors, including health, mental health, adult and juvenile justice, PK–12 education, child 
447 

1 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2012. Occupational Outlook Handbook: Social Workers, 

http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/print.pl/oco/ocos060.htm. Retrieved March 21, 2014. 

welfare, aging, and others. Social work practice is facilitated by a longstanding tradition of collaborative relationships working with health professions colleagues including direct care workers, families, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and others yielding a result that empowers individuals to be healthy, productive, contributing members of their communities. Social workers recognize that social determinants of 

health are a critical component in meeting the health needs of certain populations, 

and social work education and practice follow this framework. As Federal agencies 

look to reduce cost and improve quality, social workers can help lead in this area. 

Recruitment and retention in social work continues to be a serious challenge that 

threatens the workforce’s ability to meet societal needs. The U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics estimates that employment for social workers is expected to grow faster 

than the average for all occupations through 2022, particularly for social workers 

specializing in the aging population and working in rural areas. In addition, the 

need for social workers specializing in mental health and substance use is expected 

to grow by 23 percent over the 2012–2022 decade.1

CSWE understands the difficult funding decisions Congress is faced with. In these 

challenging times, it is my hope that the Committee will prioritize funding for 

health professions training in fiscal year (FY) 2015 to help to ensure that the nation 

continues to foster a sustainable, skilled, and culturally competent workforce that 

will be able to keep up with the increasing demand for social work services and 

meet the unique healthcare needs of diverse communities. 

HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (HRSA)

TITLE VII AND TITLE VIII HEALTH PROFESSIONS PROGRAMS

CSWE urges the Committee to provide $520 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

health professions education programs authorized under Titles VII and VIII of the 

Public Health Service Act and administered through HRSA, which is equal to the 

fiscal year 2012 enacted level. HRSA’s Title VII and Title VIII health professions 

programs represent Federal programs designed to train healthcare providers in an 

interdisciplinary way to meet the healthcare needs of all Americans, including the 

underserved and those with special needs. These programs also serve to increase 

minority representation in the healthcare workforce through targeted programs that 

improve the quality, diversity, and geographic distribution of the health professions 

workforce. The Title VII and Title VIII programs provide loans, loan guarantees and 

scholarships to students, and grants to institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations to help build and maintain a robust healthcare workforce. Social 

workers and social work students are eligible for funding from the suite of Title VII 

health professions programs. 

The Title VII and Title VIII programs were reauthorized in 2010, which helped 

to improve the efficiency of the programs as well as enhance efforts to recruit and 

retain health professionals in underserved communities. Recognizing the severe 

shortages of mental and behavioral health providers within the healthcare workforce, a new Title VII program was authorized in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111–148). The Mental and Behavioral Health Education 

and Training Grants program provides grants to institutions of higher education 

(schools of social work and other mental health professions) for faculty and student 

recruitment and professional education and training. The program received firsttime funding of $10 million in the final fiscal year 2012 appropriations bill. The 

President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request would continue to support the program 

at HRSA and also through a partnership with the Substance Abuse and Mental 

Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to expand the mental health workforce 

by almost 3,500 professionals focused on transition-age youth (16–25). CSWE urges 

the Committee to maintain funding at HRSA for this critically important program 

at the highest level possible in fiscal year 2015 and include schools of social work 

as eligible entities. CSWE supports the proposed expansion of the program but encourages the committee to be inclusive of non-youth populations needing mental and 

behavioral health services and not to reduce the scope of the original intent of the 

program through the expansion. 
448 

2 According to SAMHSA, minorities make up over one-fourth of the population, but less than 

20 percent of behavioral health providers come from ethnic minority communities. Retrieved 

from SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program, http://www.samhsa.gov/minorityfellowship/. 3 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services. (2001). Mental Health: Culture, Race, 

and Ethnicity—A Supplement to Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General. Retrieved 

from http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth/cre/sma-01-3613.pdf. 

SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (SAMHSA)

MINORITY FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

CSWE urges the Committee to appropriate the highest level possible for the Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) in fiscal year 2015. The goal of the SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) is to achieve greater numbers of minority doctoral 

students preparing for leadership roles in the mental health and substance use 

fields.2 CSWE is one of six grantees of this critical program and administers funds 

to exceptional minority doctoral social work students. Other grantees include national organizations representing nursing, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and 

family therapy, and professional counselors. SAMHSA makes grants to these six organizations, who in turn recruit minority doctoral students into the program from 

the six distinct professions. CSWE administers the funds to qualified doctoral students and helps facilitate mentoring and networking throughout the duration of the 

fellowship as well as facilitates an alumni group to help continue to engage former 

fellows long after their formal fellowship has ended. 

Since its inception in 1974, the MFP has helped support doctoral-level professional education for over 1,000 ethnic minority social workers, psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, and family and marriage therapists. Still, the program continues to struggle to keep up with the demands facing these health professions. Severe shortages of mental health professionals often arise in underserved 

areas due to the difficulty of recruitment and retention in the public sector. Nowhere are these shortages more prevalent than within Tribal communities, where 

mental illness and substance use go largely untreated and incidences of suicide continue to increase. Studies have shown that ethnic minority mental health professionals practice in underserved areas at a higher rate than non-minorities. Furthermore, a direct positive relationship exists between the numbers of ethnic minority 

mental health professionals and the utilization of needed services by ethnic minorities.3 The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request includes $10 million for MFP 

activities. CSWE urges the committee to support this request, including at least 

$5.4 million for MFP core activities. 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

STUDENT AID PROGRAMS

CSWE supports full funding to keep the maximum Pell Grant at $5,830 in fiscal 

year 2015. While Congress is understandably focused on identifying a solution that 

will place the Pell Grant program on solid ground in regards to its fiscal future, we 

urge you to remember that these grants help to ensure that all students, regardless 

of their economic situation, can achieve higher education. Moreover, as described 

above with regard to the SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program, one goal of social 

work education is recruiting students from diverse backgrounds (which includes racial, economic, religious, and other forms of diversity) with the hope that they will 

return to serve diverse communities once they have completed their education. In 

many cases, this includes encouraging social workers to return to their own communities and apply the skills they have acquired through their social work education 

to individuals, groups, or families in need. Without support such as Pell Grants, 

many low-income individuals would not be able to access higher education, and in 

turn, would not acquire skills needed to best serve in the communities that would 

most benefit from their service. 

The Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) program provides 

graduate traineeships in critical fields of study. Currently, social work is not defined 

as an area of national need for this program; however it was recognized by Congress 

as an area of national need in the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008. We 

encourage ED to recognize the importance of including social work in the GAANN 

program in future years. Inclusion of social work would help to significantly enhance 

graduate education in social work, which is critically needed in the country’s efforts 

to foster a sustainable health professions workforce. CSWE urges the Subcommittee 

to provide $31 million for the GAANN Program and include social as an area of national need. 
449 

CSWE supports efforts at ED to help students with high debt loads serve in low 

paying positions. The Income-Based Repayment (IBR) program and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs in particular help students graduating from social 

work programs who wish to serve in high-needs communities, often at a low salary 

level. CSWE urges the Subcommittee to support loan repayment programs without 

a cap on repayment support at ED. 

Thank you for the opportunity to express these views. Please do not hesitate to 

call on the Council on Social Work Education should you have any questions or require additional information. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Darla Spence Coffey, President, Council on 

Social Work Education.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CROHN’S AND COLITIS FOUNDATION OF AMERICA

SUMMARY OF FISCAL YEAR 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS

—$32 Billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at an increase of $1 billion over fiscal year 2014. Increase funding for the National Cancer Institute 

(NCI), the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases 

(NIDDK) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) 

by 12 percent. 

—Continued focus on Digestive Disease Research and Education At NIH, including Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and Colorectal Cancer. 

—$6,860,000 For the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) IBD 

Epidemiology Activities. 

—$50 Million For the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) 

Colorectal Cancerscreening and Prevention Program. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony to the Subcommittee. CCFA 

has remained committed to its mission of finding a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis and improving the quality of life of children and adults affected by 

these diseases for over 46 years. Impacting an estimated 1.4 million Americans, 30 

percent of whom are diagnosed in their childhood years, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) are chronic disorders of the gastrointestinal tract which cause abdominal pain, fever, and intestinal bleeding. IBD represents a major cause of morbidity 

from digestive illness and has a devastating impact on both patients and their families. 

The social and economic impact of digestive disease is enormous and difficult to 

grasp. Digestive disorders afflict approximately 65 million Americans. This results 

in 50 million visits to physicians, over 10 million hospitalizations, collectively 230 

million days of restricted activity. The total cost associated with digestive diseases 

has been conservatively estimated at $60 billion a year. 

The CCFA would like to thank the subcommittee for its past support of digestive 

disease research and prevention programs at the National Institutes of Health 

(NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Specifically the CCFA recommends: 

—$32 billion for the NIH. 

—$2.16 billion for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney 

Disease (NIDDK). 

We at the CCFA respectfully request that any increase for NIH does not come 

at the expense of 

other Public Health Service agencies. With the competing and the challenging 

budgetary constraints the Subcommittee currently operates under, the CCFA would 

like to highlight the research being accomplished by NIDDK which warrants the increase for NIH. 

INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE

In the United States today about one million people suffer from Crohn’s disease 

and ulcerative colitis, collectively known as IBD. These are serious diseases that affect the gastrointestinal tract causing bleeding, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever. 

Complications arising from IBD can include anemia, ulcers of the skin, eye disease, 

colon cancer, liver disease, arthritis, and osteoporosis. The cause of IBD is still unknown, but research has led to great breakthroughs in therapy. 

In recent years researchers have made significant progress in the fight against 

IBD. The CCFA encourages the subcommittee to continue its support of IBD re-
450 

search at NIDDK and NIAID at a level commensurate with the overall increase for 

each institute. The DDNC would like to applaud the NIDDK for its strong commitment to IBD research through the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Research 

Consortium. The CCFA urges the Consortium to continue its work in IBD research. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION IBD EPIDEMIOLOGY

CDC, in collaboration with a nationwide, geographically diverse network of large 

managed healthcare delivery systems, has led an epidemiological study of IBD to 

understand IBD incidence, prevalence, demographics, and healthcare utilization. 

The group, comprised of investigators at the Massachusetts General Hospital in 

Boston, Rhode Island Hospital, the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, and 

CDC, has piloted the Ocean State Crohn’s and Colitis Registry (OSCAR), which includes both pediatric and adult patients. Since 2008, the OSCAR investigators have 

recruited 22 private-practice groups and hospital based physicians in Rhode Island 

and are that enrolling newly diagnosed patients into the registry. This study found 

an average annual incidence rate of 8.4 per 100,000 people for Crohn’s disease and 

12.4 per 100,000 for Ulcerative Colitis; published in Inflammatory Bowel Disease 

Journal, April 2007. 

—Over the course of the initial 3-year epidemiologic collaboration, CDC laboratory 

scientists and epidemiologists worked to improve detection tools and epidemiologic methods to study the role of infections (infectious disease epidemiology) in 

pediatric IBD, collaborating with extramural researchers who were funded by 

a National Institutes of Health (NIH) research award. 

—Since 2006, CDC epidemiologists have been working in conjunction with the 

Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of American and a large health maintenance organization to better understand the natural history of IBD and factors that predict the course of disease. 

The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America encourages the CDC to continue 

to support a nationwide IBD surveillance and epidemiological program in fiscal year 

2014. 

COLORECTAL CANCER PREVENTION

Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer for both men and 

woman in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. 

Colorectal cancer affects men and women equally. 

The CCFA recommends a funding level of $50 million for the CDC’s Colorectal 

Cancer Screening and Prevention Program. This important program supports enhanced colorectal screening and public awareness activities throughout the United 

States. The DDNC also supports the continued development of the CDC-supported 

National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, which provides a forum among organizations concerned with colorectal cancer to develop and implement consistent prevention, screening, and awareness strategies. 

CONCLUSION

The CCFA understands the challenging budgetary constraints and times we live 

in that this Subcommittee is operating under, yet we hope you will carefully consider the tremendous benefits to be gained by supporting a strong research and education program at NIH and CDC. Millions of Americans are pinning their hopes for 

a better life, or even life itself, on digestive disease research conducted through the 

National Institutes of Health. Mr. Chairman, on behalf of our patients, we appreciate your consideration of our view. We look forward to working with you and your 

staff. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION

On behalf of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) and the 30,000 people with cystic fibrosis (CF) in the United States, we submit the following testimony to the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies on our funding requests for fiscal year 2015. 

The Foundation requests the highest possible funding level for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), particularly the National Center for Advancing Translational 

Sciences (NCATS) and programs under its jurisdiction, including the Cures Acceleration Network (CAN) and the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA). 
451 

Collaboration and Innovation: The Future of Drug Development 

NIH uses appropriated funds wisely and effectively by supporting programs that 

promote efficiency and innovation in drug discovery and encouraging collaboration 

across sectors. Many of these effective, collaborative ventures aim to translate basic 

research into promising potential treatments, speeding the discovery of therapies for 

those with serious illnesses like cystic fibrosis. We urge you to ensure that these 

critical programs are sufficiently funded and receive the support they need. For 

those with rare genetic diseases like CF, treatments and cures cannot wait. 

As an example of the NIH’s cooperative, innovative approach, in February the 

agency announced the establishment of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership 

(AMP), a joint venture between NIH, pharmaceutical companies, and several nonprofit organizations to characterize biomarkers and distinguish biological targets 

that are most likely to respond to new therapies. The AMP will begin with three 

to five year pilot projects in Alzheimer’s disease, type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. 

Through this cross-sector partnership, NIH and industry partners share expertise, 

resources, and data in order to speed the development of treatments. Furthermore, 

industry partners have agreed to make AMP data and analyses available to the biomedical community for use in future study. 

Drug development is risky, expensive, and time-consuming, and there is a 95 percent failure rate for drug candidates. This kind of cross-sector partnership aims to 

reduce the time, cost, and risk of drug development by sharing resources so diseases 

can be analyzed in ways that drug companies have not been able to do on their own. 

Importantly, industry will fund one-half of the $230 million budget while NIH will 

provide the other half. The Federal money used for this project acts as seed money, 

a jumping off point for private sector investment in drug discovery for serious diseases. This type of cooperative approach saves taxpayer funds in the long run and 

can save lives. 

While AMP is not administered by the National Center for Advancing 

Translational Sciences (NCATS), this NIH center spearheads similarly innovative 

programs that encourage collaboration, improve the process by which diagnostics 

and therapeutics are developed, and improve the efficiency of the translation of 

basic scientific discoveries into new therapies. 

For example, the Cures Acceleration Network (CAN), a program under the umbrella of NCATS, funds a variety of initiatives designed to address scientific and 

technical challenges that hinder transitional research. For instance, CAN provides 

funding for the Tissue Chip for Drug Screening Initiative, a joint project with the 

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to develop 3-D human tissue chips. These chips, composed of diverse human cells and tissues, mimic how drugs interact with the human body. If 

successful, these chips could make drug safety and efficacy assessments possible at 

an earlier stage in drug development, enabling investigators to concentrate on the 

most promising new drugs. 

Unfortunately, CAN has been chronically underfunded. Since its inception as part 

of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010, it has been funded at 

approximately $10 million per year for fiscal years 2012, 2013, and 2014. We urge 

the Committee to provide at least the funding level requested in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget—$29.8 million. CAN needs additional funding for projects that 

will help move new treatments to patients. 

Similarly, the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program in the 

NCATS Division of Clinical Innovation demonstrates NCATS’ innovative, collaborative approach. This program supports a national consortium of more than 60 medical research institutions that work together on research. Its goals are to accelerate 

the process of translating laboratory discoveries into treatments for patients, train 

a new generation of researchers, and engage communities in clinical research efforts. 

Institutional CTSA awards provide academic homes for translational sciences and 

support research resources needed by local and national research communities to 

improve the quality and efficiency of all phases of translational research. They also 

support the training of clinical and translational scientists and the development of 

all disciplines needed for a robust translational research workforce. 

CTSA funds have the potential to be used in new ways. For example, CTSA’s academic homes can serve as a platform for sharing patient registry data. As the CF 

Foundation has seen with its Therapeutics Development Network of clinical trial 

sites, the sharing of patient registry information, including demographics and health 

outcomes, among sites is integral to conducting CF research. This strategy could be 

beneficial in the wider disease community. 
452 

A Culture of Collaboration: The Cystic Fibrosis Model 

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has long been engaged in partnerships with industry and supports a collaborative network of care centers and clinical trial sites. 

As such, CFF knows firsthand that this type of cooperation can lead to the targeted 

treatments that change the face of many life-threatening diseases. 

Because drug research and development is a lengthy, expensive and risky process, 

CFF pioneered a successful ‘‘venture philanthropy’’ business model to drive drug development for this rare disease. By collaborating with pharmaceutical companies 

and providing financial, scientific, and clinical support in order to ‘‘de-risk’’ the development process, CFF speeds development of much-needed treatments. 

Through its venture philanthropy model, the Foundation is able to invest in promising CF research and a robust pipeline of potential therapies that target the disease from every angle. Nearly every CF drug available today was made possible because of the Foundation’s support and ongoing work with researchers and the pharmaceutical industry to find a cure. 

In January 2012, the Food and Drug Administration approved Kalydeco, a 

groundbreaking cystic fibrosis drug developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals in partnership with the CF Foundation. This targeted drug is the first to address the underlying genetic cause of cystic fibrosis in a subset of the CF population. 

Kalydeco was approved in only 3 months, one of the fastest approvals in the 

FDA’s history. According to Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., Commissioner of the FDA, 

‘‘The unique and mutually beneficial partnership that led to the approval of 

Kalydeco serves as a great model for what companies and patient groups can 

achieve if they collaborate on drug development.’’ 

Throughout Kalydeco’s review, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and renowned CF 

experts worked closely with Vertex Pharmaceuticals and the FDA, providing valuable insight on specific issues related to CF, clinical research on CF treatments, and 

other issues related to the product and its review. We believe that this collaborative 

process contributed to a more efficient evaluation, and is a testament to what can 

be achieved when stakeholders collaborate across sectors on critical drugs for patients. 

Akin to AMP, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation also recognizes the profound importance of data sharing, which is a critical way to enable efficient drug development. 

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics Development Network (TDN) of clinical trial centers has accumulated data from over 40 cystic fibrosis studies in the 

last 15 years. This data resides in a repository specifically meant to facilitate sharing among our research community. 

* * * 

As the Committee determines its funding levels for fiscal year 2015, we request 

your attention to the critical nature of NIH’s work and the innovation it supports, 

and urge robust funding for this important agency. The CF Foundation stands ready 

to work with the Committee, NIH, and Congressional leaders on the challenges 

ahead. Thank you for your consideration. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE DIGESTIVE DISEASE NATIONAL COALITION

SUMMARY OF FISCAL YEAR 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS

—$32 Billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at an increase of $1 billion over fiscal year 2014. Increase funding for the National Cancer Institute 

(NCI), the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases 

(NIDDK) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) 

by 12 percent. 

—Continue focus on Digestive Disease Research and Education at NIH, Including 

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Hepatitis and other Liver Diseases, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Colorectal Cancer, Endoscopic Research, Pancreatic Cancer, and Celiac Disease. 

—$50 Million for the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Hepatitis Prevention and Control Activities. 

—$50 Million for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) 

Colorectal Cancerscreening and Prevention Program. 

Chairman Harkin, thank you for the opportunity to again submit testimony to the 

Subcommittee. Founded in 1978, the Digestive Disease National Coalition (DDNC) 
453 

is a voluntary health organization comprised of 35 professional societies and patient 

organizations concerned with the many diseases of the digestive tract. The DDNC 

promotes a strong Federal investment in digestive disease research, patient care, 

disease prevention, and public awareness. The DDNC is a broad coalition of groups 

representing disorders such as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), Hepatitis and 

other liver diseases, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Pancreatic Cancer, Ulcers, Pediatric and Adult Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease, Colorectal Cancer, and Celiac 

Disease. 

The social and economic impact of digestive disease is enormous and difficult to 

grasp. Digestive disorders afflict approximately 65 million Americans. This results 

in 50 million visits to physicians, over 10 million hospitalizations, collectively 230 

million days of restricted activity. The total cost associated with digestive diseases 

has been conservatively estimated at $60 billion a year. 

The DDNC would like to thank the Subcommittee for its past support of digestive 

disease research and prevention programs at the National Institutes of Health 

(NIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Specifically the DDNC recommends: 

—32 billion for the NIH. 

—$2.16 billion for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney 

Disease (NIDDK). 

We at the DDNC respectfully request that any increase for NIH does not come 

at the expense of 

other Public Health Service agencies. With the competing and the challenging 

budgetary constraints the Subcommittee currently operates under, the DDNC would 

like to highlight the research being accomplished by NIDDK which warrants the increase for NIH. 

INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE

In the United States today about one million people suffer from Crohn’s disease 

and ulcerative colitis, collectively known as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). 

These are serious diseases that affect the gastrointestinal tract causing bleeding, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever. Complications arising from IBD can include anemia, ulcers of the skin, eye disease, colon cancer, liver disease, arthritis, and 

osteoporosis. The cause of IBD is still unknown, but research has led to great breakthroughs in therapy. 

In recent years researchers have made significant progress in the fight against 

IBD. The DDNC encourages the subcommittee to continue its support of IBD research at NIDDK and NIAID at a level commensurate with the overall increase for 

each institute. The DDNC would like to applaud the NIDDK for its strong commitment to IBD research through the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Research 

Consortium. The DDNC urges the Consortium to continue its work in IBD research. 

Therefore the DDNC and its member organization the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America encourage the CDC to continue to support a nationwide IBD surveillance and epidemiological program in fiscal year 2015. 

VIRAL HEPATITIS: A LOOMING THREAT TO HEALTH

The DDNC applauds all the work NIH and CDC have accomplished over the past 

year in the areas of hepatitis and liver disease. The DDNC urges that funding be 

focused on expanding the capability of State health departments, particularly to enhance resources available to the hepatitis State coordinators. The DDNC also urges 

that CDC increase the number of cooperative agreements with coalition partners to 

develop and distribute health education, communication, and training materials 

about prevention, diagnosis and medical management for viral hepatitis. 

The DDNC supports $50 million for the CDC’s Hepatitis Prevention and Control 

activities. The hepatitis division at CDC supports the hepatitis C prevention strategy and other cooperative nationwide activities aimed at prevention and awareness 

of hepatitis A, B, and C. The DDNC also urges the CDC’s leadership and support 

for the National Viral Hepatitis Roundtable to establish a comprehensive approach 

among all stakeholders for viral hepatitis prevention, education, strategic coordination, and advocacy. 

COLORECTAL CANCER PREVENTION

Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer for both men and 

woman in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths. 

Colorectal cancer affects men and women equally. 

The DDNC recommends a funding level of $50 million for the CDC’s Colorectal 

Cancer Screening and Prevention Program. This important program supports en-
454 

hanced colorectal screening and public awareness activities throughout the United 

States. The DDNC also supports the continued development of the CDC-supported 

National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, which provides a forum among organizations concerned with colorectal cancer to develop and implement consistent prevention, screening, and awareness strategies. 

PANCREATIC CANCER

In 2013, an estimated 33,730 people in the United States will be found to have 

pancreatic cancer and approximately 32,300 died from the disease. Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in men and women. Only l out of 4 

patients will live 1 year after the cancer is found and only l out of 25 will survive 

five or more years. 

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has established a Pancreatic Cancer Progress 

Review Group charged with developing a detailed research agenda for the disease. 

The DDNC encourages the Subcommittee to provide an increase for pancreatic cancer research at a level commensurate with the overall percentage increase for NCI 

and NIDDK. 

IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME (IBS)

IBS is a disorder that affects an estimated 35 million Americans. The medical 

community has been slow in recognizing IBS as a legitimate disease and the burden 

of illness associated with it. Patients often see several doctors before they are given 

an accurate diagnosis. Once a diagnosis of IBS is made, medical treatment is limited 

because the medical community still does not understand the pathophysiology of the 

underlying conditions. 

Living with IBS is a challenge, patients face a life of learning to manage a chronic 

illness that is accompanied by pain and unrelenting gastrointestinal symptoms. Trying to learn how to manage the symptoms is not easy. There is a loss of spontaneity 

when symptoms may intrude at any time. IBS is an unpredictable disease. A patient 

can wake up in the morning feeling fine and within a short time encounter abdominal cramping to the point of being doubled over in pain and unable to function. 

The DDNC recommends that NIDDK increase its research portfolio on Functional 

Gastrointestinal Disorders and Motility Disorders. 

CONCLUSION

The DDNC understands the challenging budgetary constraints and times we live 

in that this Subcommittee is operating under, yet we hope you will carefully consider the tremendous benefits to be gained by supporting a strong research and education program at NIH and CDC. Millions of Americans are pinning their hopes for 

a better life, or even life itself, on digestive disease research conducted through the 

National Institutes of Health. Mr. Chairman, on behalf of the millions of digestive 

disease sufferers, we appreciate your consideration of the views of the Digestive Disease National Coalition. We look forward to working with you and your staff. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF DYSTONIA MEDICAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015

—$32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and proportional increases across its institutes and centers. 

—Continue to support the Dystonia Coalition Within the Rare Disease Clinical 

Research Network (RDCRN) coordinated by the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) in the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 

(NCATS). 

—Expand Dystonia Research supported by NIH through the National Institute on 

Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the National Institute on Deafness 

and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) and the National Eye Institute 

(NEI). 

Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder characterized by involuntary muscle 

spasms that cause the body to twist, repetitively jerk, and sustain postural deformities. Focal dystonia affects specific parts of the body, while generalized dystonia affects multiple parts of the body at the same time. Some forms of dystonia are genetic but dystonia can also be caused by injury or illness. Although dystonia is a 
455 

chronic and progressive disease, it does not impact cognition, intelligence, or shorten 

a person’s life span. Conservative estimates indicate that between 300,000 and 

500,000 individuals suffer from some form of dystonia in North America alone. 

Dystonia does not discriminate, affecting all demographic groups. There is no known 

cure for dystonia and treatment options remain limited. 

Although little is known regarding the causes and onset of dystonia, two therapies 

have been developed that have demonstrated a great benefit to patients and have 

been particularly useful for controlling patient symptoms. Botulinum toxin (e.g., 

Botox, Xeomin, Disport and Myobloc) injections and deep brain stimulation have 

shown varying degrees of success alleviating dystonia symptoms. Until a cure is discovered, the development of management therapies such as these remains vital, and 

more research is needed to fully understand the onset and progression of the disease 

in order to better treat patients. 

DYSTONIA RESEARCH AT THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH (NIH)

Currently, dystonia research at NIH is supported by the National Institute of 

Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the National Institute on Deafness and 

Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), the National Eye Institute (NEI), and 

the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) within the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). 

ORDR coordinates the Rare Disease Clinical Research Network (RDCRN) which 

provides support for studies on the natural history, epidemiology, diagnosis, and 

treatment of rare diseases. RDCRN includes the Dystonia Coalition, a partnership 

between researchers, patients, and patient advocacy groups to advance the pace of 

clinical research on cervical dystonia, blepharospasm, spasmodic dysphonia, 

craniofacial dystonia, and limb dystonia. The Dystonia Coalition has made tremendous progress in preparing the patient community for clinical trials as well as funding promising studies that hold great hope for advancing our understanding and capacity to treat primary focal dystonias. DAN urges the subcommittee to continue its 

support for the Dystonia Coalition, part of the Rare Disease Clinical Research Network coordinated by ORDR within NCATS. 

The majority of dystonia research at NIH is supported by NINDS. NINDS has utilized a number of funding mechanisms in recent years to study the causes and 

mechanisms of dystonia. These grants cover a wide range of research including the 

genetics and genomics of dystonia, the development of animal models of primary 

and secondary dystonia, molecular and cellular studies in inherited forms of 

dystonia, epidemiology studies, and brain imaging. DAN urges the subcommittee to 

support NINDS in conducting and expanding critical research on dystonia. 

NIDCD and NEI also support research on dystonia. NIDCD has funded many 

studies on brainstem systems and their role in spasmodic dysphonia, or laryngeal 

dystonia. Spasmodic dysphonia is a form of focal dystonia which involves involuntary spasms of the vocal cords causing interruptions of speech and affecting voice 

quality. NEI focuses some of its resources on the study of blepharospasm. 

Blepharospasm is an abnormal, involuntary blinking of the eyelids which can render 

a patient legally blind due to a patient’s inability to open their eyelids. DAN encourages partnerships between NINDS, NIDCD and NEI to further dystonia research. 

In summary, DAN recommends the following for fiscal year 2015: 

—$32 billion for NIH and a proportional increase for its Institutes and Centers 

—Support for the Dystonia Coalition within the Rare Diseases Clinical Research 

Network coordinated by ORDR within NCATS 

—Expansion of the dystonia research portfolio at NIH through NINDS, NIDCD, 

NEI, and ORDR 

THE DYSTONIA ADVOCACY NETWORK

The Dystonia Medical Research Foundation submits these comments on behalf of 

the Dystonia Advocacy Network (DAN), a collaborative network of five patient organizations: the Benign Essential Blepharospasm Research Foundation, the Dystonia 

Medical Research Foundation, the National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association, the 

National Spasmodic Torticollis Association, and ST/Dystonia, Inc. DAN advocates 

for all persons affected by dystonia and supports a legislative agenda that meets the 

needs of the dystonia community. 

DMRF was founded in 1976. Since its inception, the goals of DMRF have remained to advance research for more effective treatments of dystonia and ultimately 

find a cure; to promote awareness and education; and support the needs and well 

being of affected individuals and their families. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the dystonia community, 

we look forward to providing any additional information. 
456 

[This statement was submitted by Janet Hieshetter, Executive Director, Dystonia 

Medical Research Foundation.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ELDER JUSTICE COALITION

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran: On behalf of the Elder Justice Coalition, a bipartisan 3000 member organization, we thank you for the opportunity to 

testify in support of the Department of Health and Human Services’ proposed Elder 

Justice Initiative in the amount of $25 million. 

Our topic has been and must always be a bipartisan issue: preventing elder 

abuse, neglect and exploitation. We ask this Subcommittee to provide the necessary 

funding in a bipartisan fashion as part of the solution to the real national disgrace 

of elder abuse. 

There are more than six million victims of elder abuse; roughly one of every ten 

persons over 60. Victims of elder financial abuse lose an estimated $2.9 billion a 

year which can include entire life savings. Other data points to a 16 percent increase in reported cases. However, a New York State study said for every elder 

abuse case known to agencies, twenty-four were unknown. 

The $25 million requested in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget for an Elder 

Justice Initiative which if approved by Congress would be the first direct appropriation for the bipartisan Elder Justice Act sponsored in the Senate by Senators 

Breaux, Hatch and Baucus. 

The funding request includes: 

—$13.8 million for Adult Protective Services, including an APS National Data 

System and Technical Assistance and national demonstration grants to both enhance APS data systems and development of program standards as well as an 

full evaluation of APS practices. 

—$11.2 million for research including elder abuse screening and to establish a 

better knowledge base about elder abuse, neglect and exploitation. 

Data collection is important. The lack of good data has hurt the elder abuse field 

and our ability to target efforts to prevent abuse. Data often drives dollars. For 

elder abuse to compete effectively for resources, we must have a good system to collect and analyze data. This appropriation will also help assess the most likely perpetrators and victims and direct resources to those most vulnerable. 

We support the development of APS program standards. Interventions for victims 

of elder abuse are far more complicated than for younger victims of abuse and family violence. To be effective, APS programs must have consistency and quality on 

a national basis. Elder abuse is happening in all States and districts and in some 

cases an older person can be victimized in more than one State. 

This initial investment of $25 million means existing Federal resources could be 

used more efficiently while also responding to elder abuse with a systematic approach. This and slowing future victimization is a solid return on investment. 

Why else is this an investment? According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, 

the direct medical costs associated with elder abuse now exceed $5 billion. Victims 

often end up having to turn to other Federal programs, especially Medicare and 

Medicaid, and for financial abuse victims they may require other assistance including income support. Some of this can clearly be avoided and savings achieved for 

these programs if we make this investment today. 

Elder abuse victims are household names like Mickey Rooney or the late Brooke 

Astor. We testify for them today but also for those who are not household names. 

The voices we don’t hear are the ones who need a voice that you can listen to today. 

We say that elder justice is a bipartisan issue. Leaders have included Senator 

Hatch, Representative King, as well as former Senator Lincoln and Representative 

Emanuel to name a few. Again on a bipartisan basis this Congress reauthorized the 

Violence Against Women Act. The reality is that elder abuse is also a women’s issue. 

The average victim is an older woman living alone between 75 and 80 at a time 

when the Census reports that almost 50 percent of all women over 75 now live 

alone—another reason to act now to get resources into elder abuse prevention. 

If one in ten seniors in your State were victims of crime, you would likely respond 

by seeking more support for law enforcement as first responders in the fight against 

crime. Elder abuse hits one out of every ten seniors. Let us give needed support to 

Adult Protective Services who are the first responders for elder abuse. 

Our Coalition also supports funding the Social Services Block Grant the only 

funding source for Adult Protective Services today at the level proposed in the President’s budget. 

Just as 40 years ago when witnesses came to this Subcommittee seeking initial 

funding for the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 we come today 
457 

**The positions of the Eldercare Workforce Alliance reflect a consensus of 75 percent or more 

of its members. This testimony reflects the consensus of the Alliance and does not necessarily 

represent the position of individual Alliance member organizations. 

The Eldercare Workforce Alliance is a project of The Advocacy Fund. 

asking for this initial $25 million for elder justice. What is common? A victim of 

child abuse, like a victim of elder abuse, is never the same. The role of government 

should always be to help the vulnerable of all ages. Elder justice warrants considerably more than the requested $25 million. The 

Elder Justice Act also includes increased support for long term care ombudsmen assisting nursing home residents and funding forensic centers important to the prosecution of abusers. Since these are not included, please view the $25 million as a 

floor to build on, not a ceiling. We look forward to working with you on ensuring 

that this first time appropriations for elder justice provides us with the best possible 

value and positive outcomes. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ELDERCARE WORKFORCE ALLIANCE

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Moran, and Members of the Subcommittee: We 

are writing on behalf of the Eldercare Workforce Alliance (EWA), which is comprised of 30 national organizations united to address the immediate and future 

workforce crisis in caring for an aging America. As the Subcommittee begins consideration of funding for programs in fiscal year 2015, the Alliance** urges you to provide adequate funding for programs designed to increase the number of healthcare 

professionals prepared to care for America’s growing senior population and to support family caregivers in the essential role they play in this regard. 

Today’s healthcare workforce is inadequate to meet the special needs of older 

Americans, many of whom have multiple chronic physical and mental health conditions and cognitive impairments. It is estimated that an additional 3.5 million 

trained healthcare workers will be needed by 2030 just to maintain the current level 

of access and quality. Without a national commitment to expand training and educational opportunities, the workforce will be even more constrained in its ability to 

care for the growth in the elderly population as the baby boom generation ages. Reflecting this urgency, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has 

identified ‘‘enhancing geriatric/elder care training and expertise’’ as one of its top 

five priorities. 

Of equal importance is supporting the legions of family caregivers who annually 

provide billions of hours of uncompensated care that allows older adults to remain 

in their homes and communities. The estimated economic value of family caregivers’ 

unpaid care was approximately $450 billion in 2009. 

The number of Americans over age 65 is expected to reach 70 million by 2030, 

representing a 71 percent increase from today’s 41 million older adults. That is why 

Title VII and Title VIII geriatrics programs and Administration for Community Living (ACL) programs that support family caregivers are so critical to ensure that 

there is a skilled eldercare workforce and knowledgeable, well-supported family 

caregivers available to meet the complex and unique needs of older adults. We hope you will support a total of $44.7 million in funding for geriatrics pro- grams in Title VII and Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act, $172.9 million 

in funding for programs administered by the Administration on Aging that support 

the vital role of family caregivers in providing care for older adults, and $3 million 

to convene a White House Conference on Aging. Specifically, we recommend the following levels: —$39.7 million for Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions Programs; 

—$5 million for Title VIII Comprehensive Geriatric Education Programs; 

—$172.9 million for Family Caregiver Support Programs; and 

—$3 million for a White House Conference on Aging. 

Geriatrics health profession training programs are integral to ensuring that 

America’s healthcare workforce is prepared to care for the Nation’s rapidly expanding population of older adults. In light of current fiscal constraints, EWA specifically requests $44.7 million in 

funding for the following programs administered through the Health Resources and 

Services Administration (HRSA) under Title VII and VIII of the Public Health Service Act. In the 2012–2013 Academic Year, these geriatrics and gerontology programs 

provided training to more than 200,000 individuals. 

Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions: Appropriations Request: $39.7 Million 

Title VII Geriatrics Health Professions programs are the only Federal programs 

that seek to increase the number of faculty with geriatrics expertise in a variety 
458 

of disciplines. These programs offer critically important training for the healthcare 

workforce overall to improve the quality of care for America’s elders. —Geriatric Academic Career Awards (GACA).—The goal of this program is to promote the development of academic clinician educators in geriatrics. Program Accomplishments: In the In the Academic Year 2012–2013, the GACA program 

funded 62 full-time junior faculty. These awardees delivered over 1,100 interprofessional continuing education courses specific to geriatric-related topics to 

over 53,000 students and providers. Additionally, they presented on research 

and other topics at 215 local, State and national conference and published 108 

peer-reviewed publications. HRSA, through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), expanded the awards to be available to more disciplines. EWA strongly supports 

this expansion and requests adequate funding to reflect this change. Currently, 

new awardees are selected only every 5 years. To meet the need for clinician 

educators in all disciplines, EWA believes that awards should be made available 

to clinical educators annually in order to develop an adequate number of faculty 

that can provide geriatric instruction and training. EWA’s fiscal year 2015 request of $5.5 million will support GAC Awardees in their development as clinician educators. —Geriatric Education Centers (GEC).—The goal of Geriatric Education Centers is 

to provide high quality interprofessional geriatric education and training to current members of the health professions workforce, including geriatrics specialists and non-specialists. Program Accomplishments: In Academic Year 2012– 

2013, the 45 GEC grantees developed and provided over 1,650 different continuing education and clinical training offerings to more than 135,000 health 

professionals, students, faculty, and practitioners, significantly exceeding the 

program’s performance target. Three quarters of the continuing education offerings were interprofessional in focus. Of the sites that offered clinical training 

sessions, 2 out of every 5 of these sites were in a medically underserved community and/or Health Professional Shortage Area. The GECs provide much needed 

education and training. Our funding request of $20 million includes support for 

the core work of these 45 GECs. 

—Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention, Education, and Outreach Program (GECs).— 

These funds, included in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request, allow 

HRSA to expand efforts to provide interprofessional continuing education to 

healthcare practitioners on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, utilizing 

the already existing Geriatric Education Centers (GECs). EWA Requests $5.3 

million. 

—Geriatric Training Program for Physicians, Dentists, (GTPD) and Behavioral 

and Mental Health Professions.—The goal of the GTPD program is to increase 

the number and quality of clinical faculty with geriatrics and cultural competence, including retraining mid-career faculty in geriatrics. Program Accomplishments: In Academic Year 2012–2013, a total of 64 physicians-including 

psychiatrists-, dentists, and psychologists, were supported through this fellowship program. Fellows delivered over 275 courses to 5,600 trainees. This program supports training additional faculty in medicine, dentistry, and behavioral 

and mental health so that they have the expertise, skills, and knowledge to 

teach geriatrics and gerontology to the next generation of health professionals 

in their disciplines. EWA’s funding request of $8.9 million will support this important faculty development program. 

Title VIII Geriatrics Nursing Workforce Development Programs: Appropriations Request: $5 million 

Title VIII programs, administered by the HRSA, are the primary source of Federal funding for advanced education nursing, workforce diversity, nursing faculty 

loan programs, nurse education, practice and retention, comprehensive geriatric 

education, loan repayment, and scholarship. 

—Comprehensive Geriatric Education Program.—The goal of this program is to 

provide quality geriatric education and training to individuals caring for the elderly. Program Accomplishments: In Academic Year 2012–2013, a total of 18 

00Comprehensive Geriatric Education Program (CGEP) grantees provided a variety of services, including over 150 different continuing education courses to 

over 11,600 trainees. This program supports additional training for nurses who 

care for the elderly; development and dissemination of curricula relating to geriatric care; training of faculty in geriatrics; and continuing education for nurses 

practicing in geriatrics. 

—Traineeships for Advanced Practice Nurses.—Through the ACA, the Comprehensive Geriatric Education Program was expanded to include advanced practice 

nurses who are pursuing long-term care, geropsychiatric nursing, or other nurs-
459 

ing areas that specialize in care of older adults. In Academic Year 2012–2013, 

a total of 74 grantees were awarded traineeships. One in every 4 grantee is considered an underrepresented minority in their prospective profession. EWA’s 

funding request of $5 million will support the education and training of individuals who provide geriatric care. 

Administration for Community Living Family Caregiver Support and White House Conference on Aging: Appropriations Request: $175.9 million 

These programs support caregivers, elders, and people with disabilities by providing critical respite care and other support services for family caregivers, training 

and recruitment of care workers and volunteers, information and outreach, counseling, and other supplemental services. —Family Caregiver Support Services.—This program provides a range of support 

services to approximately 700,000 family and informal caregivers annually in 

States, including counseling, respite care, training, and assistance with locating 

services that help family caregivers in caring for their loved ones at home for 

as long as possible. EWA requests $154.5 million. —Native American Caregiver Support.—This program provides a range of services 

to Native American caregivers, including information and outreach, access assistance, individual counseling, support groups and training, respite care and 

other supplemental services. EWA requests $6.4 million. —Alzheimer’s Disease Support Services:.—One critical focus of this program is to 

support the family caregivers who provide countless hours of unpaid care, thereby enabling their family members with dementia to continue living in the community. Funds go towards evidence-based interventions and expand the dementia-capable home and community-based services, enabling older adults to remain in the community for as long as possible. EWA requests $9.5 million. —Lifespan Respite Care.—This program funds grants to improve the quality of 

and access to respite care for family caregivers of children or adults of any age 

with special needs. EWA requests $2.5 million. —White House Conference on Aging.—As recommended by the bi-partisan Commission on Long-Term Care, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request includes $3 million for the convening of a decennial White House Conference on 

Aging to bring together stakeholders and consumers from across the country to 

discuss the range of aging issues they face. EWA requests $3 million. 

On behalf of the members of the Eldercare Workforce Alliance, we commend you 

on your past support for geriatrics workforce programs and ask that you join us in 

supporting the eldercare workforce at this critical time—for all older Americans deserve quality care, now and in the future. Thank you for your consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by Nancy Lundebjerg, MPA, and Miche ́le Saunders, DMD, MS, MPH, Alliance Co-Convener.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE EMERGENCY NURSES ASSOCIATION

The Emergency Nurses Association (ENA), with more than 40,000 members 

worldwide, is the only professional nursing association dedicated to defining the future of emergency nursing and emergency care through advocacy, expertise, innovation, and leadership. Founded in 1970, ENA develops and disseminates education 

and practice standards and guidelines, and affords consultation to both private and 

public entities regarding emergency nurses and their practice. ENA has a great interest in the work of the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Subcommittee and especially its efforts to improve the quality of emergency care for patients in the United States. 

For fiscal year 2015, ENA respectfully requests $28 million for Trauma and Emer- gency Care Programs (HHS; ASPR/HRSA), $251 million for Nursing Workforce Development programs (HHS; HRSA), $21.116 million for the Emergency Medical 

Services for Children program (HHS; HRSA), $30.1 million to fund poison control 

centers (HHS; HRSA), $150 million for the National Institute of Nursing Research 

(HHS; NIH), and $8.927 million for Rural Health—Access to Emergency Devices 

(HHS; HRSA). 

TRAUMA AND EMERGENCY CARE PROGRAMS

Trauma is the leading cause of death for persons younger than 44 and the fourthleading cause of death for all ages. In States with an established trauma system, 

patients are 20 percent more likely to survive a traumatic injury. Victims of traumatic injury treated at a Level I trauma center are 25 percent more likely to survive 

than those treated at a general hospital. 
460 

Our trauma and emergency medical systems are designed to transport seriously 

injured individuals to trauma centers quickly. However, due to a lack of financial 

resources, 45 million Americans do not have access to a major trauma center within 

the ‘‘golden hour’’ following an injury when chances of survival are highest. 

Trauma and emergency care programs, which are authorized under the Public 

Health Service Act, provide much-needed money to the States to develop and enhance of trauma systems. These programs are critical to the efficient delivery of 

services through trauma centers, as well as to the development of regionalized systems of trauma and emergency care that ensure timely access for injured patients 

to appropriate facilities. This modest investment can yield substantial returns in 

terms of cost efficiencies and, most importantly, saved lives. Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $28 million in fiscal year 2015 for trauma 

and emergency care programs. 

NURSING WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

The nursing profession faces significant challenges to ensure that there will be an 

adequate number of qualified nurses to meet the growing healthcare needs of Americans. It is estimated that 80 million Baby Boomers turned 65 last year. This growing elderly population will seek healthcare services in a multitude of settings and 

the care they depend upon will require a highly educated and skilled nursing workforce. A 2014 projection from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2013–2014 Employment Outlook Handbook anticipates that the number of practicing RNs will 

grow 19 percent by 2022. 

The aging of the Baby Boom generation will deplete the nursing ranks as well. 

During the next 10 to 15 years, approximately one-third of the current nurse workforce will reach retirement age. The retirement of these experienced nurses has the 

potential to create a serious deficit in the nursing pipeline. At the same time, our 

colleges cannot keep up with the demand for new nurses. According to the American 

Association of Colleges of Nursing’s (AACN) 2013–2014 Enrollment and Graduations 

in Baccalaureate and Graduate Programs in Nursing survey, 78,089 qualified applications were turned away from nursing schools in 2013 alone. 

Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs address these factors and 

help support the training of qualified nurses. They not only enhance nursing education at all levels, from entry-level to graduate study, but they also support nursing schools that educate nurses for practice in rural and medically underserved communities. Another important part of Title VIII is the Faculty Loan Program which 

is critical to alleviating the large shortage in nursing faculty. Overall, more than 

80,000 nurses and nursing students were trained and educated last year with the 

help of Title VIII nursing workforce development programs. Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $251 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

Nursing Workforce Development programs authorized under Title VIII of the Public 

Health Service Act. 

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FOR CHILDREN

The Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) program is the only Federal program that focuses specifically on improving the pediatric components of the 

emergency medical services (EMS) system. EMSC aims to ensure state-of-the-art 

emergency medical care for ill and injured children or adolescents; that pediatric 

services are well integrated into an EMS system backed by optimal resources; and 

that the entire spectrum of emergency services is provided to children and adolescents no matter where they live, attend school, or travel. 

The Federal investment in the EMSC program produces a wide array of benefits 

to children’s health through EMSC State Partnership Grants, EMSC Targeted Issue 

Grants, the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network, and the National 

EMSC Data Analysis Resource Center. 

Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $21.116 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

EMSC program. 

POISON CONTROL CENTERS

Poisoning is the second most common form of unintentional death in the United 

States. In 2009, 31,768 deaths nationwide were attributed to unintentional poisoning. Children are especially vulnerable to injury by poisoning and each day 300 

children are treated for poisoning in emergency departments across the country and 

two die. 

The Nation’s 56 poison control centers handle 3.4 million calls each year, including approximately 680,000 calls from nurses and doctors who rely on poison centers 

for an immediate assessment and expert advice on poisoning cases. 
461 

Not only are America’s network of poison centers invaluable for treating victims 

of poisonings, but the work of the centers also results in substantial savings to our 

healthcare system. About 90 percent of people who call with poison emergencies are 

treated at home and do not have to visit an emergency department. In more severe 

poisoning cases, the expertise provided by poison control centers can decrease the 

length of hospital stays. It has been estimated that every dollar spent on America’s 

poison control centers saves $13.39 in healthcare costs and lost productivity. The 

positive impact to the Federal budget is also significant. A 2012 study by the Lewin 

Group found that poison control centers resulted in $313.5 million in savings to 

Medicare and $390.2 million in savings to Medicaid. 

Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $30.1 million in fiscal year 2015 for poison 

control centers 

THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NURSING RESEARCH (NINR)

As one of the 27 Institutes and Centers at the NIH, NINR funds research that 

lays the groundwork for evidence-based nursing practice. NINR’s mission is to promote and improve the health of individuals, families, communities, and populations. 

The Institute supports and conducts clinical and basic research on health and illness to build the scientific foundation for clinical practice, prevent disease and disability, manage and eliminate symptoms caused by illness, and improve palliative 

and end-of-life care. 

NINR nurse-scientists examine ways to improve care models to deliver safe, highquality, and cost-effective health services to the Nation. Our country must look toward prevention as a way of reducing healthcare expenditures and improving outcomes. The work of NINR is an important part of this effort. 

Moreover, NINR helps to provide needed faculty to support the education of future generations of nurses. Training programs at NINR develop future nurse-researchers, many of whom also serve as faculty in our Nation’s nursing schools. 

Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $150 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

NINR. 

RURAL AND COMMUNITY ACCESS TO EMERGENCY DEVICES PROGRAM

Fewer than 10 percent of people who suffer a cardiac arrest outside of a hospital 

setting survive. According to a 2011 study published in the New England Journal 

of Medicine, immediate CPR and prompt defibrillation using an automated external 

defibrillator (AED) can more than double a patient’s chance of survival. 

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)’s Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices Program saves lives of patients with cardiac arrest. Between August 1, 2008, and July 31, 2010, nearly 800 cardiac arrest victims 

were reportedly saved through this program. Funding for this initiative is used to 

buy AEDs, locate them in public places where cardiac arrests are more likely to 

happen, and instruct lay rescuers and first responders in their use. Between March 

1, 2010, and Feb. 28, 2011, 3,928 AEDs were placed and 28,776 people were trained 

in their use. 

Therefore, ENA respectfully requests $8.927 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices Program. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ENDOCRINE SOCIETY

The Endocrine Society is pleased to submit the following testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 Federal appropriations for biomedical research, with an emphasis on 

appropriations for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Endocrine Society 

is the world’s largest and most active professional organization of endocrinologists 

representing more than 17,000 members worldwide. Our organization is dedicated 

to promoting excellence in research, education, and clinical practice in the field of 

endocrinology. The Society’s membership includes thousands of basic and clinical 

scientists who receive Federal support from the NIH to fund endocrine-related research on topics such as diabetes, cancer, fertility, aging, obesity and bone disease. 

The Society’s membership also includes clinicians who depend on new scientific advances to better treat and cure their patients’ diseases. As a result of Federal investment in endocrine research, individuals with diabetes have made dramatic improvements in managing their disease, and the obesity rate for children age 2 to 
462 

1 Casagrande et al., ‘‘The Prevalence of Meeting A1C, Blood Pressure, and LDL Goals Among 

People With Diabetes, 1988–2010.’’ Diabetes Care, Aug 36;8 (2013) 2271–9. 2Sabrina Tavernise, ‘‘Obesity Rate for Young Children Plummets 43 percent in a Decade.’’ 

The New York Times. Feb 25, 2014. 3 ‘‘2013 Research Highlights’’. December 23, 2013. http://www.nih.gov/researchmatters/ 

january2014/researchmatters2013recap.htm Accessed March 23, 2013. 4Mathur et al., ‘‘Methane and hydrogen positivity on breath test is associated with greater 

body mass index and body fat.’’ J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 98;4 (2013) 698–702. 5 Cawley and Meyerhoefer. ‘‘The medical care costs of obesity: an instrumental variables approach.’’ J Health Econ. 31;(2012) 219–30. 6Wohl et al., ‘‘Vitamin D status is associated with functional limitations and functional decline in older individuals.’’ J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 98;9 (2013) 1483–90. 7 Ruige et al., ‘‘Beneficial and Adverse Effects of Testosterone on the Cardiovascular System 

in Men.’’ J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 98;11 (2013) 4300–10. 8Salley Rockey, ‘‘fiscal year 2013 By The Numbers: Research Applications, Funding, and 

Awards,’’ Rock Talk, January 10, 2014. http://nexus.od.nih.gov/all/2014/01/10/fy2013-by-the-numbers/Accessed March 20, 2014. 9 Jeremy Berg ‘‘The impact of the sequester: 1,000 fewer funded investigators.’’ ASBMB Today. 

March (2014). https://www.asbmb.org/asbmbtoday/201403/PresidentsMessage/Accessed March 

20, 2014. 10 Everett Ehrlich ‘‘Engine Stalled: Sequestration’s Impact on NIH and the Biomedical Research Enterprise.’’ United for Medical Research. (2012). 

5 years old has dropped 43 percent.1,2 The Endocrine Society recommends that the 

NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 2015. This funding recommendation 

represents the minimum investment necessary to avoid further erosion of national 

research priorities and global preeminence, while allowing the NIH’s budget to keep 

pace with biomedical inflation. 

Sustained investment by the United States Federal government in biomedical research has dramatically advanced the health and improved the lives of the American people. The United States’ NIH-supported scientists represent the vanguard of 

researchers making fundamental biological discoveries and developing applied 

therapies that advance our understanding of, and ability to treat human disease. 

In the past year NIH funded scientists have made fundamental insights into how 

mild traumatic brain injury causes brain damage; identified potential drug targets 

for Parkinson’s disease; and identified a safe and protective candidate malaria vaccine.3 In the field of endocrinology, NIH-funded researchers have made remarkable 

contributions in areas of critical national interest, for example: 

—Endocrinologists have made insightful discoveries describing newly understood 

contributors to body weight and obesity.4 Obesity is a growing national concern, 

with related medical costs in the United States as high as $190 billion in 2005 

alone.5

—Endocrinologists have discovered that higher vitamin D levels are associated 

with increased mobility and physical function in older individuals. As the population of the United States increasingly lives longer, this research has the potential to dramatically improve the quality of life for Americans.6

—Endocrinologists are also at the leading edge of research on testosterone therapy and maintaining appropriate levels of sex hormones. For instance, 

endocrinologists are investigating links between testosterone levels and heart 

disease in men.7

These discoveries represent but a fraction of the contributions made by 

endocrinologists and other NIH funded scientists in the past year. The foundation 

for these research products are the NIH research grants that support the basic and 

clinical research done by scientists. Since 2004, the number of NIH research grants 

to scientists in the United States has been declining. Consequently, the likelihood 

of a scientist with a highly-regarded grant application successfully being awarded 

a grant has dropped from 31.5 percent in 2000 to an historic low of 16.8 percent 

in 2013.8 This means that experienced scientists are increasingly spending time 

writing grant applications instead of applying their expertise to productive research. 

Additionally, younger scientists struggle to find a job in the United States that 

makes use of the unique skills generated during graduate training. 

The lack of sustained government support compounded by austerity measures 

such as sequestration has created an environment that is leading to a ‘‘brain drain’’ 

as brilliant scientists pursue other careers or leave the United States to develop 

impactful research products elsewhere. In 2013, the number of NIH supported scientists declined significantly, with nearly 1,000 NIH scientists dropping out of the 

workforce.9 NIH scientists run labs that support high-quality jobs and education 

while generating breakthrough innovations. In 2011, the NIH directly or indirectly 

supported over 432,000 jobs across the country.10 As a result of sequestration, 
463 

11 ‘‘NIH State Information Factsheets.’’ http://www.faseb.org/Policy-and-Government-Affairs/ 

Advocacy-on-Capitol-Hill/Advocacy-Resources-for-Scientists/NIH-State-Information-Factsheets.aspx. Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. Accessed March 19, 

2014. 12Teresa K. Woodruff ‘‘Budget Woes and Research.’’ The New York Times. September 10, 

2013. 13Sequester Profiles: How Vast Budget Cuts to NIH are Plaguing U.S. Research Labs. United 

for Medical Research. http://www.unitedformedicalresearch.com/advocacylreports/sequestrationprofiles/Accessed March 20, 2014. 14 ‘‘Budget Cuts in 2013 Reduced Biomedical Research’’ Federation of American Societies 

for Experimental Biology. http://www.faseb.org/pdfviewer.aspx?loadthis=http%3A%2F%2F 

www.faseb.org%2FPortals%2F2%2FPDFs%2Fopa%2F2014%2F1.21.14%2520NIH%2520Funding 

%2520Cuts%25202-pager.pdf Accessed March 19, 2014. 15 Atkinson et al., ‘‘Leadership in Decline, Assessing U.S. International Competitiveness in 

Biomedical Research.’’ The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation and United for 

Medical Research. May 2012. 16Woodruff et al., ‘‘’Leaning in’ to Support Sex Differences in Basic Science and Clinical Research.’’ Endocrinology. 155;4 (2014) 1181–3 17Kim et al., ‘‘Sex Bias in Trials and Treatment Must End.’’ Nature. 465;7299 (2010) 688– 

9. 

States such as Georgia and Connecticut lost $62 million and $32 million respectively.11

We may never be able to quantify the opportunities we have missed to improve 

the health and economic status of the United States due to persistent underinvestment in research. We do know however, that when ‘‘laboratories lose financing, they 

lose people, ideas, innovations and patient treatments.’’ 12 Based on the personal stories of researchers who have been forced to curtail research programs, we know that 

research programs to understand how genetics can influence heart disease, develop 

therapeutic treatments for Parkinson’s disease, and evaluate the effect of metal contaminants on reproductive health; among many others, are delayed or terminated.13

As the world’s largest source of funding for medical research, the NIH is vitally 

important to the United States’ global preeminence in research. However, this global preeminence is being tested due to flat funding that has reduced the inflationadjusted budget of the NIH to a level that is nearly 22 percent below the NIH budget in fiscal year 2003.14 As a consequence of this underinvestment, the United 

States’ global share of pharmaceutical industry output has declined, our global 

share of biopharmaceutical patents has declined, and our trade balance in pharmaceutical products is worsening.15 While the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 and omnibus appropriations bill have provided some much needed additional resources, overall levels of funding remain well below the $32 billion required for adequate, sustainable growth in biomedical research. 

We live during an age of tremendous scientific opportunity that can only be realized through Federal funding of biomedical research. Researchers are only beginning to harness the power of big data to solve complicated problems. Innovative new 

experiments and clinical research hold promise to solve some of the United States’ 

greatest medical challenges and discover new ways to improve our quality of life. 

Government support is critical to these opportunities, and we encourage the Appropriations Committee to actively support promising and innovative research. 

As the Appropriations Committee considers funding for the NIH, the Endocrine 

Society also asks the Committee to encourage the NIH to look at ways to increase 

data reporting to address gaps in gender and sex differences in research. Sex differences need to be acknowledged as a critical biological variable.16 In addition to 

including more women in clinical research, the Endocrine Society believes sex differences should be c as part of the design of all basic biological studies and clinical 

research. If the NIH required researchers to consider sex differences in grant applications when appropriate, and incorporate data on sex as a biological variable in 

animal and human studies, more appropriate conclusions could be drawn from basic 

research, and clinical research would provide more representative data on safety 

and efficacy of drugs.17

The Endocrine Society remains deeply concerned about the future of biomedical 

research in the United States without sustained support from the Federal government. Flat funding in recent years, combined with the impact of sequestration, 

threaten the Nation’s scientific enterprise and make adequate fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the NIH increasingly important. The Society strongly supports increased Federal funding for biomedical research in order to provide the additional 

resources needed to enable American scientists to address scientific opportunities 

and maintain the country’s status as the preeminent research engine. The Endocrine Society therefore asks that the NIH receive at least $32 billion in fiscal year 

2015. 
464 

1 CDC DVBD factsheet: http://www.cdc.gov/ncezid/dvbd/pdf/dvbdlfactsheet.pdf. 2Tauxe, GM, et al. Targeting a dual detector of skin and CO2 to modify mosquito host seeking. Cell (2013). 3Marques, A, et al. Xenodiagnosis to detect Borrelia burgdorferi infection: A first-in-human 

study. Clinical Infectious Diseases (2014). 

[This statement was submitted by Teresa K. Woodruff, PhD, President, The Endocrine Society.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA

The Entomological Society of America (ESA) respectfully submits this statement 

for the official record in support of funding for insect-borne disease research at the 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). ESA requests a robust fiscal year 2015 appropriation for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including 

increased funding for insect-borne disease research at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). The Society also supports increased investment in the core infectious diseases budget and the global health budget within the 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in order to fund scientific activities related to vector-borne diseases. 

Advances in the biological sciences, including the field of entomology, help to address some of our most pressing societal needs related to environmental and human 

health. Certain species of insects carry, spread, and transmit an array of infectious 

diseases that threaten populations across the globe, including those in the United 

States as well as U.S. military personnel undertaking missions abroad. Insect-borne 

diseases can present an especially challenging health problem; few vaccines have 

been developed against them, and insects are often difficult to control and can develop resistance to insecticides. The risk of emerging infectious diseases grows as 

global travel becomes easier and environmental factors continue to change. For example, West Nile virus, which is transmitted by mosquitoes and was not present 

in the U.S. before 1999, infected 5,674 Americans in 2012.1 Entomological research 

to understand the biological relationship between insect vectors and the infectious 

diseases they carry—such as dengue, malaria, West Nile virus, and Lyme disease— 

can significantly contribute to our ability to monitor and predict outbreaks, prevent 

disease spread and transmission, and more reliably diagnose and treat infection. 

Given the important role that insect vectors play in impacting human health, ESA 

urges the subcommittee to support vector-borne disease research programs that incorporate the entomological sciences as part of a comprehensive approach to addressing infectious diseases. 

NIH, the Nation’s premier medical research agency, advances human health by 

funding research on basic human biology and disease and the development of prevention and treatment strategies. In fiscal year 2012, about 84 percent of NIH funding was competitively awarded to scientists at approximately 2,500 universities, 

medical schools, and other research institutions across the Nation. As one of NIH’s 

27 institutes and centers, NIAID conducts and supports fundamental and applied 

research related to the understanding, prevention, and treatment of infectious, 

immunologic, and allergic diseases. One example of NIAID-funded research on infectious diseases is a recent study examining the mechanism by which certain species 

of mosquitoes known to transmit dengue and malaria are attracted to humans. The 

scientists discovered that specific types of nerve cells in the insects act as sensitive 

detectors of human odors. With this knowledge, the researchers were able to identify safe and natural chemical compounds with the potential to neutralize or overwhelm the specific insect nerve cells, a discovery that could have implications for 

the control of mosquitoes and their associated diseases.2 In another recent study 

supported by NIAID, researchers determined that live, disease-free ticks can be 

used as a safe tool for testing for the presence of Lyme disease bacteria in patients 

who have completed antibiotic therapy.3 To ensure funding for future 

groundbreaking projects like these, ESA requests increased funding for NIAID and 

encourages the committee to support insect-borne disease research at NIH. 

CDC, serving as the Nation’s health protection agency, conducts science and provides health information to prevent and respond to infectious diseases and other 

global health threats, whether naturally arising or related to bioterrorism. Within 

the core infectious diseases budget of CDC, the Division of Vector-Borne Diseases 

(DVBD) seeks to protect our Nation from the threat of viruses and bacteria transmitted primarily by mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas. DVBD’s mission is carried out by 

a staff of experts in several scientific disciplines, including entomology. For example, 

among the activities supported by DVBD are the ArboNET surveillance system for 
465 

mosquito-borne diseases and the TickNET system for tick-borne diseases. ArboNET 

is a nationwide network that monitors West Nile virus and other diseases through 

activities such as the collection and testing of mosquitoes, and TickNET is a partnership between 16 States to track tick-borne-diseases like Lyme disease and test 

preventions. Furthermore, a component of CDC’s global health budget supports activities on parasitic diseases and malaria; this includes the maintenance of a global 

reference insectary that houses colonies of mosquitoes from around the world to be 

used by the agency for studies on malaria transmission. Given the important contributions of CDC, ESA requests that the committee provide increased support for 

CDC programs addressing vector-borne diseases and malaria. 

ESA, headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland, is the largest organization in the 

world serving the professional and scientific needs of entomologists and individuals 

in related disciplines. Founded in 1889, ESA has nearly 7,000 members affiliated 

with educational institutions, health agencies, private industry, and government. 

Members are researchers, teachers, extension service personnel, administrators, 

marketing representatives, research technicians, consultants, students, pest management professionals, and hobbyists. 

Thank you for the opportunity to offer the Entomological Society of America’s support for HHS research programs. 

[This statement was submitted by Frank G. Zalom, PhD, President, Entomological 

Society of America.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF FAMILIES & FRIENDS OF CARE FACILITY RESIDENTS

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, Members of the Subcommittee: 

Thank you for this opportunity to provide information to the Senate Appropriations 

Subcommittee on Labor, Health & Human Services Education & Related Agencies. 

This is a letter-request that the Subcommittee cease funding Federal programs 

which use public funds to achieve public policies of deinstitutionalization of persons 

identified as benefiting from congregate (institutional) care, typically those with severe forms of cognitive-developmental disabilities. 

I am the mother and co-guardian of an adult son, aged 45, who from birth has 

lived with the effects of severe brain injuries. John is a large, mobile and nonverbal 

man with pica behavior who functions on the mental level of a young toddler. Our 

son has slight or little awareness of danger and his direct care is beyond our family’s capacities. For many years John’s safe home has been a state-operated congregate care program, an intermediate care facility for persons with intellectual disabilities (formerly known as a medical diagnosis of mental retardation). The future 

viability of John’s home is in jeopardy due to the undermining work of federally 

funded entities and programs in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Justice/Civil Rights Division. 

I represent as public affairs chairman Families and Friends of Care Facility Residents (FF/CFR), Arkansas’ statewide parent-guardian association. FF/CFR is an allvolunteer organization; we employ no lobbyist; we receive no public funds. 

I have reviewed the testimonies of Department of Health and Human Services 

representatives presented before this subcommittee for the past several years. 

DHHS did not disclose that the Department is engaged in a social experiment to 

dismantle the States’ residential safety net programs for persons who have been adjudicated incompetent and that the Department is using public funds to support organizations which lobby decision-makers to deinstitutionalize persons who are without self-preservation skills, who cannot assist in their own care and who cannot 

communicate their hurts and needs or who can do so only in limited ways. 

The following are examples of how government dollars are spent in the wrong way 

by the Department of Health and Human Services: 

(1) National Council on Disability (NCD), an independent Federal agency engaged 

in disability policy recommendations. 

On Tuesday, October 23, 2012, the National Council on Disability (NCD) released 

its policy project—‘‘Deinstitutionalization: Unfinished Business.’’ The press release 

read: ‘‘NCD Launches Toolkit to Speed Closure of State-Run Institutions.’’ Although 

NCD is a Federal agency, it has no congressional oversight and is not accountable 

for its actions, except as Congress may provide. Prior to releasing its deinstitutionalization policy recommendations and documents, there were no public hearings 

or Notice to those most affected. There was no public in-put process. Arkansas’ 

statewide parent-guardian association, FF–CFR, is comprised of volunteer advocates 

who work in behalf of the vulnerable people who live and receive services at our 

State’s five human development centers (HDCs). Arkansas’ five HDCs provide 24/ 
466 

7 care for 950 individuals. Over 64 percent of the residents function in the profound 

range of cognitive ability. We object to use of a Federal agency/Federal funds to promote public policies which are harmful. We object to empowerment of Federal agencies to formulate public policies in camera without public hearings and without the 

easy involvement of those most affected. NCD inappropriately collaborates with others in promoting its national de-institutionalization agenda out of the public eye. 

REQUEST: Public funds should not be used to support National Council on Disability and its extreme agendas. Please discontinue its funding. 

(2) Programs funded under Public Law 106 402, Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act). The DD Act funds three discretionary programs which operate in every State: (1) State Councils on Developmental Disabilities, (2) Protection & Advocacy Systems for Developmental Disabilities 

(P&As) and (3) University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. 

The DD Act also funds a fourth program, Projects of National Significance. The 

four DD Act programs are administered by DHHS/Adm. on Community Living/ 

Adm. on Intellectual-Developmental Disabilities 

Through litigation, lobbying and other strategies, DD Act programs and their national organizations have used and are using public funds to achieve forced-deinstitutionalization of individuals with profound cognitive-developmental disabilities 

from their congregate care homes and the closures of Medicaid-certified public facilities for these individuals with profound disabilities. The DD Act programs’ administrative office (Adm-IDD) has embraced an extreme agenda and is not responsive to 

the complaints and concerns of families, friends and legal guardians of individuals 

with disabilities who require close 24/7 care. 

The DD Act was last re-authorized in 2000; its current authorization ended in 

2007. At the last reauthorization, there was no public hearing and no opportunity 

to object to the ways in which grantees (State Councils on DD, Protection & Advocacy (P&A) systems and University Centers on DD) were collaborating with each 

other and with others for use of Federal appropriations to undermine and close congregate care programs for those persons with the most severe forms of developmental disabilities. There have been no hearings on reauthorization of the DD Act 

where families might participate and provide information about and objections to 

the programs’ activities. The Arkansas DD Act P&A system has: (1) joined with Arc 

in a Federal lawsuit to close all Arkansas human development centers (HDCs), (2) 

brought 3 Federal lawsuits in succession seeking to change our AR HDC admission 

and discharge policies naming HDC residents as plaintiffs without notice or consent 

of their legal guardians (in two of the cases the AR P&A sought class certification 

with no opportunity for residents to opt out of the class); (3) filed a complaint with 

Civil Rights Division-U.S. Dept. of Justice regarding care at our HDCs without consulting families of HDC residents and cheered in the media when DOJ brought a 

systems-change lawsuit against all HDCs; (4) testified against AR HDC funding before State legislative panels; (5) organized a public rally calling on the AR Governor 

to close one of our HDCs; (6) denigrated congregate care and AR HDC programs in 

the media during a Federal trial, USA v. State of AR (Conway HDC); (7) provided 

erroneous information to AR policy makers regarding cost of care and the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Olmstead v. L. C. (119 S. Ct. 2176); and (8) sent financial 

support to its Washington D.C.-based national organization, National Disability 

Rights Network (NDRN), an organization with no oversight which lobbies the Administration, Congress and CMS, collaborating with other organizations in campaigns to shift Medicaid funding from congregate care programs for persons with 

life-long cognitive and other developmental disabilities. Most recently (January & 

February, 2014), the Arkansas DD Act P&A in testimony before a legislative panel 

and in a letter to members of the State legislature worked against funding for capital improvements at our State’s five human development centers. Families with 

whom I correspond in other States report that DD Act programs have used grant 

funds to fund other organizations to plan and lobby for the closure of State-operated 

congregate care programs for individuals with cognitive-developmental disabilities. 

In November and December, 2012 , the national organizations for two DD Act programs (Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) and protection and 

advocacy (National Disability Rights Network—NDRN) led the work of lobbying to 

prevent the mark-up of H.R. 2032 in the U.S. House Judiciary Committee. Had 2032 

passed, some egregious protection and advocacy activities employing litigation as a 

tactic to undermine and close congregate care centers might have been addressed 

and prohibited. 

REQUEST: Public funds should not be used to support the DD Act Programs’ extreme agendas of deinstitutionalization. Please discontinue funding the groups’ 

harmful deinstitutionalization work. 
467 

(3) DHHS Financial incentive grants—Money Follows the Person (MFP), Balance Incentive Payment Plan (BIP), Community First Choice Option (CFCO) 

Through generous financial incentive demonstration grants (Money Follows the 

Person, Balance Incentive Plan, Community First Choice Option), CMS is promoting 

thoughtless policies of de-institutionalization for persons with developmental disabilities by funding generous incentive grants for one needed program (home and community based waiver care) but not another needed program (licensed safety-net congregate care facilities). The majority of persons with cognitive-developmental disabilities can and are being served through States’ home and community based 

wavier programs. There is no ‘‘institutional bias’’ in our State of Arkansas for persons with developmental disabilities: 74.2 percent of Medicaid dollars are spent on 

home and community based waiver programs. Over 4,000 individuals with developmental disabilities are served in Arkansas’ community-based waiver programs 

versus approximately 950 residents in the State’s public safety-net institutions for 

people with developmental disabilities. For clinically complex cases and for people 

with profound cognitive-and other severe forms of developmental disabilities requiring 24/7 supervision whose needs cannot be successfully met at home, or whose families can no longer provide their care, the option of institutional programs such as 

Arkansas’ Human Development Centers (HDCs) is life-saving. HDCs are cost-efficient and they also provide a proven safe model of long term care. When all costs 

are taken into account, there are no cost savings to shift from institutional care to 

community care for this vulnerable population. Persons with little or no awareness 

of danger who cannot or who cannot adequately communicate their hurts and needs 

will be at greater risk of abuse, exploitation and death when they are forced from 

their safe congregate care homes. The testimony of Secretary HHS Kathleen 

Sebelius before House Committee on Appropriations (April 25, 2013, ‘‘Protecting 

Vulnerable Populations’’) does not comport with our family’s experiences with the 

outcomes of DHS/CMS financial incentive grants and other DHHS de-institutionalization programs. The push by CMS to entice States through financial rewards to 

shift from providing care for persons in specialized residential programs does not 

comport with realities in the field of long-term care. The American Medical Association (AMA) has designated persons with intellectual—developmental disabilities 

(formerly termed mental retardation) as a medically underserved population. The 

AMA Policy (CMS Rep. 3–1–11) ‘‘encourages support for healthcare facilities whose 

primary mission is to meet the healthcare needs of persons with profound developmental disabilities.’’ The National Crime Victimization Survey (Feb. 2014) found 

that ‘‘Individuals with disabilities encountered violent crime at nearly three times 

the rate of those in the general population . . . . . Those with cognitive disabilities 

had the highest rate of victimization and about half of violent crime victims with 

disabilities had multiple conditions.’’ 

The use by CMS of public funds—through financial incentive grants—to reward 

States when they shift Medicaid long-term care funding from institutional care programs to community programs which generally have less oversight and accountability is misguided and dangerous. Families of individuals who require close care 

had little or no opportunity to review, comment and object that CMS incentive 

grants favor one needed program over another critically needed program. The extension of Federal funding for Money Follows the Person (MFP) grants and Community 

First Choice Option (CFCO) are optional programs offered to the States in the voluminous Affordable Care Act, inserted without adequate review, without debate, and 

without adequate notice to families most affected. Extension of MFP, BIP, and 

CFCO were created by DHHS out of the public eye with inadequate opportunity for 

the public to review, comment or object. 

DHHS is too far removed from the realities which families understand and which 

are based on their years of experiences with their disabled family members. 

REQUEST: Public funds should not be used to promote DHHS policies of deinstitutionalization. Please address the unfair, unsafe CMS de-institutionalization incentive grants. 

SUMMARY

Policy decisions which destroyed the Nation’s safety net programs for persons 

with mental illness are now understood to be disastrous and ill-conceived for a small 

but significant percent of persons living with severe, chronic mental illness. 

Please resist funding DHHS programs and policies which promote harmful deinstitutionalization of persons with severest forms of developmental disabilities. My 

son and his peers cannot appear before committees, engage in protests or advocate 

for their health and safety. Please use your powerful authority to direct DHHS to 

cease its partisan use of public funds to achieve deinstitutionalization. 
468 

[This statement was submitted by Carole L. Sherman, Arkansas’ statewide parent-guardian association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE FEDERATION OF AMERICAN SOCIETIES FOR

EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY

The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) respect- fully requests a minimum of $32 billion in fiscal year 2015 for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) within the Department of Health and Human Services. Increasing the NIH budget to $32 billion would support vital initiatives to train the 

next generation of scientists, and fund at least 600 additional competing research 

grants. 

FASEB, a federation of 26 scientific societies, represents more than 115,000 life 

scientists and engineers, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. Our mission is to advance health and welfare by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences. 

NIH has produced an outstanding legacy of discoveries that have generated new 

knowledge, improved health, and saved lives. Many of these advances arose from 

investigations designed to explain basic molecular, cellular, and biological mechanisms. In addition, research supported by NIH led to innovative technologies and 

created entirely new global industries resulting in economic growth and new, hightech jobs. 

As a result of our prior investment in NIH, we have reduced the death toll of 

many diseases and reduced the disability and suffering from many others. For example, U.S. death rates from heart disease and stroke have decreased by more than 

60 percent in the last 50 years, the rate of acute hepatitis B has been reduced by 

80 percent since the 1980’s, and the proportion of older people with chronic disabilities has dropped by one-third over the last quarter century. Research funded by 

NIH helped develop new treatments that have significantly reduced the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus from mother to child and provided insights into traumatic brain injury. In addition, with the completion of the Human 

Genome Project and subsequent technological advances in rapidly sequencing DNA, 

scientists have been able to identify genes that are responsible for more than half 

of the 7,000 rare diseases known to affect humans and evaluate the genetic composition of various cancers with the hopes of pinpointing the most effective therapy for 

each individual patient. 

NIH-supported research is continuing to produce the insights that are needed for 

tomorrow’s improvements in health and clinical care. Recent discoveries include: 

—Advances in Treating Melanoma: Years of basic research supported by NIH 

have provided insights into biological changes that occur in the development of 

cancer, including the observation that a protein called b-Raf appears in a mutated form in more than 50 percent of melanomas, the most aggressive form of 

skin cancer. Studies showing that this protein plays a critical role in melanoma 

led pharmaceutical companies to develop drugs to inhibit mutant b-Raf. These 

drugs can s improve quality of life and prolong survival in the majority of patients with advanced melanoma who harbor b-Raf mutations. Since most of 

these patients eventually relapse and die from their disease, studies are underway to understand why melanomas become resistant to treatment. It is hoped 

that this will lead to new treatments that can overcome or bypass resistance, 

with the goal of achieving long-term remissions and cures. 

—Developing Structure-Based Vaccines: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is responsible for nearly 7 percent of deaths of infants under 12 months of age. It 

also causes death and disability in the elderly. NIH-funded research has illuminated many aspects of RSV infection and pathogenesis, yet an effective vaccine 

has remained elusive. Recently, investigators made a breakthrough by determining the three-dimensional structure of an RSV protein required for cell 

entry. This structural information was then used to design a stabilized vaccine 

antigen that elicited high titers of protective antibodies in mice and non-human 

primates. In the next few years, this promising vaccine candidate will be tested 

in clinical trials, and it is hoped that this structure-based approach to vaccine 

design will be successful for other viruses, such as HIV–1. 

—Testing New Anti-Inflammatory Drugs: In the 1990’s, NIH supported a few academic researchers to study molecules called glycans for their function in inflammation, the process the body uses to fight infection. In 2013, these studies came 

to fruition with the first tests of a new, glycan-based anti-inflammatory drug. 

In an initial test to fight inflammation during the painful crises that occur in 

sickle cell disease, both children and adult patients who got this treatment had 
469 

1 Collins, F. (2013, December 24). Investing in the Nation’s Health at NIH. Washington Post. 

shorter disease crises, spent less time in the hospital, and needed fewer narcotics for pain relief. This new drug that will benefit tens of thousands of people 

in the U.S. each year could never have been developed without NIH’s investment in exploratory basic research. 

—Harnessing the Immune System to Fight Cancer: Science magazine named cancer immunotherapy—using the immune system to attack tumors—the 2013 

Breakthrough of the Year. The early work that led to the development of 

immunotherapy was made possible by NIH-funded research on many basic biological processes, including the biology of T cells, a family of cells that are critical to the immune system. Researchers discovered that when a certain receptor 

on the outside of T cells is activated, cells cannot mount an effective immune 

response. They then reasoned that if an antibody blocked the activation of this 

receptor, T cells could be induced to attack tumor cells. Ongoing clinical trials 

testing antibody immunotherapies in individuals found that tumors shrunk by 

almost 50 percent in 31 percent of those with melanoma and 29 percent in those 

with kidney cancer. 

Further Progress Depends on Sustained Investment 

Research supported by NIH advances our understanding of the nature of living 

systems and enables us to apply that knowledge to the improvement of human 

health. In a recent op-ed in The Washington Post, NIH Director Francis S. Collins, 

MD, PhD, wrote, ‘‘Biomedical research is at a critical juncture—a moment of exceptional opportunities that demand exceptional attention if their promise is to be fully 

realized.’’ 1 But without continued support for basic biomedical research, Dr. Collins 

fears that we will miss out on new discoveries that will give us the next generation 

of cures and therapies for such conditions as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s 

disease, as well as a universal vaccine to protect adults and children against all flu 

strains without needing an annual shot. 

While the opportunities to increase our understanding of diseases and develop 

new therapies are unprecedented, a decade of flat-funding—followed by $1.55 billion 

in sequestration cuts in fiscal year 2013—have taken a significant toll on NIH’s ability to support research. In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the fiscal year 

2013 budget for NIH was the lowest in thirteen years. The number of competing 

R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated 

research, awarded each year fell by 34 percent between 2003 and 2013. The current 

situation is decimating the ranks of our scientific workforce, causing productive scientists to seek alternative careers and discouraging talented trainees from pursuing 

jobs in academic research. It surrenders our future leadership in medical research. 

As a first step toward a multi-year program of sustainable growth, FASEB recommends a minimum of $32 billion for NIH in fiscal year 2015. Thank you for the 

opportunity to offer FASEB’s fiscal year 2015 funding recommendation for NIH. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHERYL FELAK

Dear Committee Members: Thank you very much for the opportunity to submit 

personal and professional testimony to this committee. 

I am writing as a healthcare professional with an abundance of experience working with clients and family members who experience life with developmental disabilities. I am also the parent of a young man who has profound developmental disabilities due to a rare genetic condition which is similar to pediatric Alzheimer’s. 

I would like you to be aware that many of the advocacy agencies in this country 

(The Arc and it’s many State and local chapters), Developmental Disability Councils 

and affiliates, all who receive Federal funds for advocacy, are forgetting that our 

citizens with developmental disabilities live on a continuum and have a large variation in support needs. 

It is shameful that these so-called advocacy groups forget about those with the 

most profound needs, misinterpret the 1999 U.S. Supreme Court Olmstead decision 

on choice and community, and force their opinions regarding these issues discriminatory practices. 

It is a fact that people need communities—yet why are these so called advocacy 

groups allowed to determine what ‘‘community’’ is for those with developmental disabilities. Rather than allowing choice and opportunities, they are restricting choice 

and opportunities to this group of people. This is discrimination. 

I am not aware of any other population which has ‘‘community’’ defined for them, 

which has funds for housing, medical care, education, vocational support tied to the 
470 

artificial definition of ‘‘community’’ which is made up for people with developmental 

disabilities. 

I believe it is time to go back and really read the Olmstead Decision—not just 

take for granted what is heard because what is heard is not what the decision 

States. We need to honor this decision and stop discriminating against our most vulnerable citizens. 

Thank you very much. 

[This statement was submitted by Cheryl Felak, RN, BSN, Because We Care— 

Beyond Inclusion.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE FRIENDS OF THE HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES

ADMINISTRATION

The Friends of HRSA is a non-partisan coalition of more than 170 national organizations representing millions of public health and healthcare professionals, academicians and consumers invested in HRSA’s mission to improve health and achieve 

health equity. For fiscal year 2015, we recommend restoring HRSA’s discretionary 

budget authority to the fiscal year 2010 level of $7.48 billion. We are deeply concerned that since fiscal year 2010, HRSA’s discretionary budget authority has been 

cut by 19 percent in nominal dollars and 25 percent when adjusted for inflation. 

Funding for HRSA is far too low and keeping austerity measures in place will 

threaten the agency’s ability to address the present and growing health needs of the 

U.S. Of additional concern, cuts will be compounded by the fact that multiple mandatory programs are set to expire at the end of fiscal year 2015. In the absence of 

continued mandatory funding for the National Health Service Corps Fund and Community Health Center Fund, the committee will be faced with addressing these 

shortfalls in the following Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill. 

The Nation faces a shortage of health professionals and continues to experience 

an ever growing, aging and increasingly diverse population, alongside health professionals that are nearing retirement age. Additionally, national estimates of workforce shortages are often masked by significant distributional disparities—particularly in rural and certain inner-city populations that experience greater shortages. 

By restoring funding to HRSA, the agency will be able to more effectively fill the 

primary and preventive care gaps for people living outside of the medical and economic mainstream through supporting a well prepared workforce and high-quality 

health services. 

HRSA operates programs in every State and U.S. territory and is a national leader in improving the health of Americans. HRSA programs have reduced AIDS-related deaths through providing drug treatment regimens for people living with HIV 

and have the potential to prevent the spread of HIV by 96 percent by ensuring that 

people living with HIV have access to regular care and adhere to their antiretroviral 

medications. Less than 10 percent of people who experience a cardiac arrest outside 

of a hospital setting survive. HRSA provides rural communities with training and 

access to emergency devices which can more than double a patient’s chance of survival. HRSA has contributed to the decrease in infant mortality rate, a widely used 

indicator of the Nation’s health, which is now at an all-time low. Most recently, preliminary data indicates that the infant mortality rate for black infants has decreased, resulting in a narrowing of the gap that exists between racial groups. 

Now is the time to make a strong investment in a robust workforce and to improve access to care to continue achieving the health improvements HRSA has made 

and to pave the way for new achievements. The Nation only stands to benefit from 

a healthier population through a thriving workforce and reduced healthcare costs. 

Our recommendation is based on the need to continue improving the health of 

Americans by supporting critical HRSA programs including: 

—Health professions programs support the education and training of primary care 

physicians, nurses, oral health professionals, optometrists, physician assistants, 

nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, public health personnel, mental 

and behavioral health professionals, pharmacists and other allied health providers. With a focus on primary care and training in interdisciplinary, community-based settings, these are the only Federal programs focused on filling the 

gaps in the supply of health professionals, as well as improving the distribution 

and diversity of the workforce so health professionals are well-equipped to care 

for the Nation’s growing, aging and increasingly diverse population. Additionally, HRSA provides interdisciplinary training to health professionals to accurately screen, diagnose and treat children with autism and other developmental 

disabilities. 
471 

—Primary care programs support nearly 9,200 service delivery sites in every 

State and territory, improving access to preventive and primary care to more 

than 21 million patients in geographically isolated and economically distressed 

communities. Close to half of the health centers serve rural populations. The 

health centers coordinate a full spectrum of health services including medical, 

dental, behavioral and social services—often delivering the range of services in 

one location. In addition, health centers target populations with special needs, 

including agricultural workers, homeless individuals and families and those living in public housing. Following health insurance reform in Massachusetts, 

health centers experienced a substantial increase in newly-insured patients. We 

expect the same will be true nationally, as health insurance expands to millions 

of Americans who were previously uninsured. Health centers and other programs administered by HRSA will remain vital sources of care for patients and 

continue to reduce costs to the health system. 

—Maternal and child health programs, including the Title V Maternal and Child 

Health Block Grant, Healthy Start and others, support initiatives designed to 

promote optimal health, reduce disparities, combat infant mortality, prevent 

chronic conditions and improve access to quality healthcare for 43 million 

women and children. MCH programs help assure that nearly all babies born in 

the U.S. are screened for a range of serious genetic or metabolic diseases and 

that a community-based system of family centered services is available for coordinated long-term follow up for babies with a positive screen and for all children with special healthcare needs. 

—HIV/AIDS programs provide the largest source of Federal discretionary funding 

assistance to States and communities most severely affected by HIV/AIDS. The 

Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program delivers comprehensive care, prescription drug 

assistance and support services for more than half a million low-income people 

impacted by HIV/AIDS, which accounts for about half of the total population living with the disease in the U.S. Additionally, the programs provide education 

and training for health professionals treating people with HIV/AIDS and work 

toward addressing the disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS on racial and ethnic minorities. 

—Family planning Title X services ensure access to a broad range of reproductive, 

sexual and related preventive healthcare for over 5 million poor and low-income 

women, men and adolescents at nearly 4,400 health centers nationwide. 

Healthcare services include patient education and counseling, cervical and 

breast cancer screening, sexually transmitted disease prevention education, 

testing and referral, as well as pregnancy diagnosis and counseling. This program helps improve maternal and child health outcomes and promotes healthy 

families. Often, Title X service sites provide the only continuing source of 

healthcare and education for many individuals. 

—Rural health programs improve access to care for the nearly 50 million people 

living in rural areas that experience a persistent shortage of healthcare services. The Office of Rural Health Policy serves as the Nation’s primary voice for 

programs and research on rural health issues. Rural Health Outreach and Network Development Grants, Rural Health Research Centers, Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices Program and other programs are designed to 

support community-based disease prevention and health promotion projects, 

help rural hospitals and clinics implement new technologies and strategies and 

build health system capacity in rural and frontier areas. 

—Special programs include the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, the National Marrow Donor Program, the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program and National Cord Blood Inventory. These programs maintain and facilitate organ marrow and cord blood donation, transplantation and 

research, along with efforts to promote awareness and increase organ donation 

rates. Special programs also include the Poison Control Program, the Nation’s 

primary defense against injury and death from poisoning. For every dollar spent 

on the poison center system, $13.39 is saved in medical costs and lost productivity, totaling more than $1.8 billion every year in savings. 

While the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 and Consolidated Appropriations Act of 

2014 provided modest and temporary relief from sequestration, austerity measures 

remain firmly in place, which pose serious threats for the viability of HRSA’s important programs and compromise the agency’s ability to address our Nation’s health 

needs. We urge you to consider HRSA’s central role in strengthening the Nation’s 

health and advise you to adopt our fiscal year 2015 request of $7.48 billion for 

HRSA’s discretionary budget authority. Thank you for the opportunity to submit our 

recommendation to the subcommittee. 
472 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CHILD HEALTH

AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

My name is Kate Ryan. I currently serve as Co-Chair of the Friends of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). On behalf of the 

Friends, I urge the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations 

Subcommittee to support at least $32 billion for the NIH, including $1.37 billion for 

NICHD for fiscal year 2015. Our coalition includes over 100 organizations representing scientists, physicians, healthcare providers, patients and parents concerned with the health and welfare of women, children, families, and people with 

disabilities. We are pleased to support the extraordinary work of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). 

Since its establishment in 1963, NICHD has achieved great success in meeting 

the objectives of its broad biomedical and behavioral research mission, which includes research on child development before and after birth; maternal, child, and 

family health; learning and language development; women’s health and reproductive 

biology; population issues; and medical rehabilitation. With sufficient resources, 

NICHD could build upon the promising initiatives described in this testimony and 

produce new insights into human development and solutions to health and developmental problems throughout the world, including for women, children and families 

in your districts. Scientific breakthroughs supported by NICHD serve to prevent and 

treat many of the Nation’s most devastating health problems including infant mortality and low birthweight, birth defects, intellectual and developmental disabilities, 

and the reproductive and gynecologic health of women throughout their lifespan, 

among others. Some of these research areas are described below. 

Preterm Birth.—NICHD supports a comprehensive research program to study the 

causes of preterm birth and prevention strategies and treatment regimens. Pre-term 

birth costs our Nation $26 billion annually and is a leading cause of infant mortality 

and intellectual and physical disabilities. Continued prioritization of extramural 

preterm birth prevention research, the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network, the 

Neonatal Research Network and intramural research program related to prematurity are necessary to further this work. Resources also should be available to 

support transdisiplinary science as recommended in NICHD’s Scientific Vision to 

study and identify the complex causes of preterm birth. 

NICHD supports research on the causes of preterm birth with the goal of discovering effective ways to prevent it. In the U.S., the rate of preterm birth is approximately 12 percent, one of the highest rates in all industrialized countries, resulting 

in neonatal death, infant mortality and severe neurological disability, including cerebral palsy, mental retardation, and visual/auditory problems. Preterm birth also 

significantly impacts families emotionally and financially. Although research has 

identified some factors that influence preterm birth (e.g., multiple gestation, infections, diabetes, high blood pressure), it cannot be fully explained by physical health. 

There is growing evidence of the role of psychological factors such as pregnancy-related anxiety and stress, behavioral issues such as substance abuse, and sociological 

issues such as cultural disparities. Thus, support is needed for research on the complex interaction of factors including psychological, behavioral, social, and environmental factors in addition to genetic and biological influences, with the ultimate 

goal of developing efficacious interventions to decrease this country’s epidemic of babies being born far too soon. 

National Children’s Study (NCS).—The NCS is the largest and most comprehensive study of children’s health and development ever planned in the United States. 

The Friends of NICHD thank the Committee for its’ longstanding support of the 

NCS. The Friends look forward to roll-out of the main study that includes a sciencebased design and recruitment strategy. When fully implemented, this study will inform the work of scientists in universities and research organizations, helping them 

identify precursors to disease and to develop new strategies for prevention and 

treatment. Identifying the root causes of many childhood diseases and conditions, 

including preterm birth, developmental delay, asthma, obesity, heart disease, injury 

and diabetes, will reduce healthcare costs and improve the health of children. NCS 

also provides an opportunity to collect data on social and behavioral aspects of child 

and adolescent health, such as important information on the sexual and reproductive health of adolescents 

Contraceptive Research and Development.—NICHD’s Contraceptive Discovery and 

Development Branch supports basic, applied and clinical research on contraceptive 

methods, including mechanisms of action, the effects of contraceptive hormones and 

drugs, and optimal formulations of contraceptive agents. Through its investment in 

contraceptive evaluation research, NICHD plays a key leadership role in ensuring 

acceptability and effective use of existing products in various settings and popu-
473 

lations and in addressing behavioral issues related to fertility and contraceptive use. 

Specific opportunities and research priorities in the area of contraceptive evaluation 

include evaluation of the safety and effectiveness of hormonal contraceptive options 

for women who are overweight or obese. The Institute’s investment in contraceptive 

research and development is critical for producing new contraceptive modalities that 

are more effective, affordable, acceptable, and easier to deliver, by, for example, offering couples options with fewer side-effects and addressing women’s other concerns about contraceptive use. Specific opportunities and research priorities in the 

area of contraceptive research and development include the need for non-hormonal 

contraception, pericoital contraception, and multipurpose prevention technologies 

that would prevent both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. 

Reproductive Sciences.—Through its investment in reproductive science, NICHD 

conducts research to improve women’s health by developing innovative medical 

therapies and technologies and improving existing treatment options for gynecological conditions affecting overall health and fertility. The Institute’s reproductive 

science research makes a vital contribution to women’s health by focusing on serious 

conditions that have been overlooked and underfunded, despite the fact that they 

impact many women. Future work could focus on infertility research into the need 

for treatments for disorders such as endometriosis, polycystic ovarian syndrome 

(PCOS) and uterine fibroids which can prevent couples from achieving desired pregnancies. 

Pelvic Floor Disorders Network (PFDN).—Female pelvic floor disorders (PFD) represent an under-appreciated but major public health burden with high prevalence, 

impaired quality of life and substantial economic costs affecting approximately 25 

percent of American women. The PFDN is conducting research to improve treatment 

of these extremely painful gynecological conditions. Current research is aimed at improving female urinary incontinence outcome measures and ensuring high quality 

patient-centered outcomes. 

Development of the Research Workforce.—Adequate levels of research require a robust research workforce. The years of training combined with uncertainty in getting 

grant funding are huge disincentives for students considering a career in bio-medical research. This has resulted in a huge gap between the too-few women’s reproductive health researchers being trained and the immense need for research. 

NICHD’s Women’s Reproductive Health Research (WRHR) Program and Reproductive Scientist Development Program (RSDP), both aimed at obstetrician-gynecologists to further their education and experience in basic, translational, and clinical research, provide training grants to hundreds of researchers and provide new 

insight into a host of diseases, such as ovarian cancer. Continued investment in 

these training programs is critical to helping ensure future scientific advances in 

women’s health research. 

Population Research.—The NICHD Population Dynamics branch supports a diverse portfolio of scientific research and research training programs, exploring the 

social, economic and health-related impacts of population change on families, children, and communities. The branch is well respected for investing wisely in the development of longitudinal, representative surveys, providing scientists with reliable 

data that can be used to examine the influence of early life course events on longterm health and achievement outcomes in particular. As an example, in 2012, 

NICHD-supported demographers using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics survey found that growing up in poor neighborhoods throughout the entire 

childhood life course can have a devastating effect on educational attainment. In another study, using data from the National Study of Adolescent Health, researchers 

found that women who are overweight or obese years during the transition from 

adolescence to adulthood are more likely to later deliver babies with a higher birth 

weight, putting the next generation at a higher risk of obesity-related health outcomes. 

Sex Differences in Research.—The Friends encourages NICHD to look at ways to 

increase data reporting to address gaps in gender and sex differences in research. 

Sex differences need to be acknowledged as a critical biological variable. In addition 

to including more women in clinical research, we believe sex differences should be 

included as part of the design of all basic biological studies and clinical research. 

If the researchers were to consider sex differences in the design of basic science 

studies, and incorporate data on sex as a biological variable in animal and human 

studies, more appropriate conclusions could be drawn from basic research, and clinical research would provide more representative data on safety and efficacy of drug. 

Clinical Trials in Pregnant Women.—Pregnant women have historically been excluded from most research trials due to concern that trial participation could harm 

the fetus. Although there has been substantial progress in the inclusion of women 

in federally funded research, pregnant women are still excluded, even from research 
474 

that would advance our knowledge of medical conditions and treatments in pregnancy. Mindful of the important considerations of clinical trials on pregnant women, 

we support establishment of a Federal work group to propose how clinical research 

might be done appropriately in this area. 

Data on Pediatric Enrollment in NIH Trials.—NIH policy mandates the inclusion 

of women, minorities, and children in clinical trials whenever appropriate. While 

NIH collects enrollment data on sex/gender and race, it does not collect enrollment 

data broken down by age. We urge NIH, with leadership from NICHD, to improve 

data collection and reporting on pediatric enrollment sufficient to determine if children are appropriately represented in trials with relevance to child health. 

Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act (BPCA).—NICHD funds meaningful research into pediatric pharmacology through the BPCA program. This program provides for the study of drug products that are important to children but have been 

inadequately studied in pediatric populations. We urge continued funding and support for this important research, as well as for training the next generation of pediatric clinical investigators. 

Brain Development.—Research on learning disabilities—neurological disorders 

that can make it difficult to acquire certain academic and social skills—shows that 

they can be prevented through effective evidence-based programs in school and that 

when children improve their reading and math skills, brain function normalizes. 

Rehabilitation Science.—The National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research 

(NCMRR) currently resides within NICHD, yet there is a strong need for elevating 

the stature of NCMRR. We recommend moving the NCMRR to an independent Institute or Center reporting directly to the NIH Director, or to establish a new Office 

of Rehabilitation Research within the Office of the NIH Director. Implementation 

of this structural recommendation would require a statutory change. Elevation of 

NCMRR has been viewed from the start as a critical step in achieving sufficient critical mass to coordinate rehabilitation science across all the Independent Centers at 

NIH that conduct and support research directly addressing or related to rehabilitation science. 

These research efforts have made significant contributions to the well-being of all 

Americans, but there is still much to discover. We support the NICHD’s recently released Scientific Vision and urge you to support NICHD at funding levels that meet 

current needs for addressing health issues across the lifespan. Thank you for your 

consideration and we look forward to working with you on these critical issues. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DENTAL AND

CRANIOFACIAL RESEARCH

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee, the members of the Friends of the National Institute of Dental and 

Craniofacial Research (FNIDCR), a leading broad-based consortium of individuals, 

academic institutions, patient advocate groups, dental societies, and corporations, 

that understands the importance of dental, oral and craniofacial health to our society, are requesting fiscal year 2015 funding under section 301 and Title IV of the 

Public Health Service Act for the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) to be appropriated at a recommended level of 1.33 percent of the 

National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) total fiscal year 2015 funding level. 

The fiscal year 2014 level enacted by the omnibus bill is $398.65 million for 

NIDCR. After transfers, NIDCR’s total amount for obligation in fiscal year 2014 is 

$397.10 million. President Barack Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal for 

NIDCR, $397.13, is at best stagnate if compared to total obligations, and at worse, 

a decrease of $1,519,000 if compared to the level Congress appropriated in the fiscal 

year 2014 omnibus bill. The end result is ongoing diminished grant opportunities 

that will only discourage young and talented researchers. Also, stagnated funding 

means NIDCR will not be able to keep up with the increasing rate of medical inflation. 

Background 

From 1998 to 2011, NIDCR’s percentage of total NIH funding decreased from 1.53 

percent to 1.33 percent, its lowest percentage, amid a period when NIH’s budget 

doubled. Save for a slight bump in 2012, this percentage remains at 1.33 percent. 

The Friends of NIDCR has been working to reverse this troublesome trend—and return NIDCR research to a percentage of total NIH funding that is more appropriate 

and proper. For fiscal year 2014, NIDCR’s percentage of total NIH funding is 1.33 

percent. 
475 

—If Congress enacts the president’s fiscal year 2015 budget figures for NIH and 

NIDCR, then NIDCR’s percentage of total NIH funding would be at an all-time 

low, 1.31 percent. 

The Friends of NIDCR would welcome the opportunity to work with members of 

this Subcommittee to ensure NIDCR funding realizes a percentage of total NIH 

funding that is appropriate, yet realistic. The research performed by NIDCR justifies this approach. This is why the Friends of NIDCR recommends a modest increase in NIDCR’s percentage of total NIH funding for fiscal year 2015 of 1.33 percent based upon the president’s fiscal year 2015 budget request. This is also a consistent recommendation based upon the level enacted by Congress for fiscal year 

2014. 

NIDCR: A Renown Leader in Research 

For 66 years, NIDCR has been the leading sponsor of research and research training in biomedical and behavioral sciences. Its mission is to ‘‘improve oral, dental and 

craniofacial health through research, research training, and the dissemination of 

health information.’’ 

NIDCR meets its mission by: 

—Performing and supporting basic and clinical research; 

—Conducting and funding research training and career development programs to 

ensure an adequate number of talented, well-prepared and diverse investigators 

is sustained; 

—Coordinating and assisting relevant research and research-related activities 

among all sectors of the research community; and 

—Promoting the timely transfer of knowledge gained from research and its implications for health to the public, health professionals, researchers, and policymakers. 

In addition, NIDCR’s Gold Standard Peer Review System ensures that taxpayers’ 

dollars are being utilized in a wise, effective and productive manner. 

NIDCR Research Benefits All Americans 

Proper Federal funding of NIDCR will transform the future of medical and dental 

practice to the benefit of our society and ease the burden on our Nation’s healthcare 

system. Examples of where NIDCR research has and will benefit society are: 

Tooth Decay: Fluorides and sealants have cut the rate of the number of American 

adults, aged 45 and older, who are without teeth by more than half since the 1950s. 

Government investment in oral health research saved Americans $3 for every $1 invested. 

Oral Cancer Detection: Oral cancer affects 38,000 Americans each year and approximately 22 Americans die each day from it. Survival rates are among the lowest 

of all the major cancers. It is difficult to detect and hard to predict its outcome. 

However, if detected in early stages, the 5-year survival rate is 83 percent. NIDCRsupported research has yielded initial success with developing new diagnostic techniques that can lead to early detection and life-saving interventions. For example, 

oral cancer is the first cancer to have its biomarkers mapped using Salivary 

Diagnostics and the presence of these biomarkers resulted in an early diagnosis of 

oral cancer 93 percent of the time. Furthermore, as a testament to scientific discoveries, oral researchers have confirmed that oral cancer (traditionally thought of as 

being driven by extensive use of tobacco and alcohol) possesses a strong and growing 

link to Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). HPV is now the cause of more oral cancers 

than smoking. NIDCR supports research aimed to gain a clearer take on HPV-related oral cancers, including their incidence, risk factors, natural history and biology. 

Craniofacial Biology. Scientists are defining the genetics that underlie the formation of the head and skull, and researchers are identifying the key areas for 

craniofacial malformations. For example, NIDCR-supported research has detected 

proteins associated with craniosynostosis, which is the premature fusion of a baby’s 

skull bones that causes asymmetric skull growth. NIDCR believes this research 

could provide the foundation for the development of early detection methods and 

more effective treatments. 

Genome-wide Association Studies. NIDCR supports the first genome-wide association studies (‘‘GWAS’’) of cleft lip and/or palate and dental caries. The studies offer 

significant potential for understanding the molecular and genetic basis of cleft lip 

and/or palate and dental caries with the goal of improving the ability to predict and 

manage them by providing the first comprehensive compilation of the biological instructions required to construct the middle region of the human face and to define 

the genetics that create its developmental disorders, according to NIDCR. The dental caries GWAS revealed areas of the genome that make an individual more likely 
476 

1 ‘‘More than Half of Americans Doubt U.S. Global Leadership in 2020,’’ Research!America 

press release, March 14, 2012, http://www.researchamerica.org/release —14march12—poll. 2 2 Ibid. 

to develop decay. Moreover, NIDCR researchers have identified six areas of the genome that may put a person at risk for moderate or severe periodontal disease and 

patients afflicted with Sjo ̈gren’s Syndrome and TMJD can benefit from this program. 

Moreover, NIDCR research benefits millions of Americans with: 

—Periodontal Disease, 

—Chronic Dry Mouth, 

—Chronic Facial and Oral Pain, such as TMJD, and 

—Bone and Cartilage Regeneration. 

How NIDCR Research Makes a Difference 

Because Friends of NIDCR is a broad-based coalition of members, we are able to 

share first-hand perspectives from across the spectrum of the oral health community. 

The TMJ Association: 

During the past decade, NIDCR-funded research directed toward 

Temporomandibular Disorders has been a ‘‘game changer.’’ Previously thought to be 

a condition about teeth and jaws, research has demonstrated that this is a complex 

condition mediated by genes, sex, age, and epigenetics. We now also know that for 

many, TMD is a chronic pain condition and that in addition these patients also 

present with other comorbid pain conditions that co-occur more than by chance. 

These findings have truly revolutionized the way that these conditions are researched and will ultimately be treated. It is important to note that the National 

Institutes of Health are the only sources of funding of TM Disorders in the United 

States. We rely on their resources to improve the healthcare and quality of life for 

the 35 million TMJ patients in this country. Our hope is in science and the NIH, 

through its Institutes such as NIDCR, provides us with that hope. 

Ostrow School of Dentistry of the University of Southern California: 

NIDCR funding is essential to the success of several areas of research at USC 

that directly impact millions of people in the U.S. and worldwide. First, thanks to 

the NIDCR, we have made progress in understanding cleft lip and palate, 

craniosynostosis, and other birth defects of the craniofacial region. According to the 

CDC, the lifetime cost of treating the children born each year in the U.S. with cleft 

lip or palate is $697 million. Every day, our researchers come closer to better treatments and preventive measures to help reduce this cost and improve quality of life. 

Moreover, we are working to leverage the dramatic potential of stem cells to regenerate bone and other tissues that may be lost due to birth defects, trauma, or disease. The NIDCR also funds our efforts to prevent dental caries, which is a major 

global health concern affecting 92 percent of American adults. Finally, the NIDCR 

supports our community outreach program in California’s diverse population, 

through which we are investigating how to improve oral health for everyone in 

America. 

Research Drives the Economy, Innovates 

Despite the fact 54 percent of Americans thought Federal spending for medical 

and health research should be exempt from across-the-board cuts outlined in the 

Budget Control Act of 2011 1, the ramifications of sequestration still linger. However, Friends of NIDCR maintains that investment in medical research powers our 

innovation economy and provides life-saving treatments and cures. For example, a 

typical NIH grant supports the salaries of about seven high-tech jobs. Moreover, 

cuts or stagnate funding will only set the U.S. back at a time when other countries 

are rapidly increasing investment in research. Eighty-five percent of likely voters 

are concerned about the impact of a decreased Federal investment in research, including the possibility of scientists leaving their profession or moving abroad to 

countries with a stronger investment in research.2 NIDCR-funded grants contribute 

to our Nation’s economy and keep scientists from looking abroad for work. fiscal 

year 2013 NIDCR-funded grants had a presence in 120 congressional districts (often 

multiple awards for a congressional district) in 43 States and territories. This 

equates to 75 percent of NIDCR-funded research being distributed to grantees at 

universities, dental schools, and medical schools, primarily in the U.S. Therefore, a 

significant portion of NIDCR-funded research occurs away from the NIH campus. 

However, this nationwide NIDCR presence will surely decline with decreased investment in research. 
477 

3 ‘‘America Speaks,’’ Poll Data Summary Volume 13, Research!America, http:// 

www.researchamerica.org/uploads/AmericaSpeaksV13.pdf. 

Health Disparities Research Program 

Finally, through the NIDCR Health Disparities Research Program, a difference is 

being made in meeting the health needs of our Nation’s low-income, underserved, 

and high-risk populations. Sadly, this need was made apparent with the tragic passing of 12-year-old Deamonte Driver who died from a tooth infection in 2007. As a 

result of the program, tailored interventions to prevent dental caries and oral cancer 

are being tested in community settings such as urban public housing, community 

health centers, rural Project Head Start centers, low-income senior housing facilities, and primary medical care offices. 

RECOMMENDATION

Eighty-five percent of Americans are concerned about stagnate funding for medical research.3 Proper funding of medical and health research is essential to the 

overall health and well-being of our fellow Americans. We firmly contend that medical discoveries and advances from NIDCR funding lead to improvements in dental 

practices and change the scope of public health policies across the Nation. Whether 

it is detecting a clear link between bacteria in the mouth and heart disease—or discovering early stages of oral cancer—or searching for breakthroughs to help combat 

facial and oral pain—we all benefit when we make NIDCR a priority. Therefore, 

based upon the merits of the research conducted by NIDCR, and its demonstrated 

benefits to the lives of countless Americans, we respectfully request the Subcommittee to fund NIDCR at 1.33 percent of NIH’s funding level, so that it can realize the full potential of its worthy mission and sustain its beneficial scientific research. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present our written testimony before the Subcommittee. 

[This statement was submitted by Christian Stohler, D.D.S., DrMedDent, President, Friends of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE FRIENDS OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG

ABUSE

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity 

to submit testimony to the Subcommittee in support of the National Institute on 

Drug Abuse (NIDA). The Friends of the National Institute on Drug Abuse is a coalition of over 150 scientific and professional societies, patient groups, and other organizations committed to preventing and treating substance use disorders as well as 

understanding their causes through the research agenda of the National Institute 

on Drug Abuse (NIDA). 

We are pleased to provide testimony in support of the work carried out by scholars around the country whose work is supported by NIDA. Recognizing that so 

many health research issues are inter–related, we request that the subcommittee 

provide at least $32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and within 

that amount a proportionate increase for the National Institute on Drug Abuse, in 

your Fiscal 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. We also respectfully request the inclusion of the following 

NIDA specific report language. 

Marijuana Research. Efforts to legalize or ‘‘medicalize’’ marijuana continue across 

the United States. The Committee understands that research from different areas 

of science is converging on the fact that regular marijuana use by young people can 

have a long–lasting negative impact on the structure and function of their brains, 

resulting in lower educational achievement, reduced IQ, etc. Research clearly demonstrates that marijuana has the potential to cause problems in daily life or make 

a person’s existing problems worse. NIDA is encouraged to continue to fund research on preventing and treating marijuana abuse and addiction, and the possible 

health and policy implications of proposals to implement ‘‘medical marijuana’’ or 

marijuana legalization programs across the U.S. 

Opiate Abuse and Addiction. The Committee is concerned about the continued crisis of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. In particular, the June 2011 IOM report 

on pain indicates that abuse and misuse of prescription opioid drugs resulted in an 

annual estimated cost to the nation of $72,500,000,000. Further, the Committee is 

very concerned with the potential rise in heroin abuse and addiction as a result of 

successful efforts to combat the prescription drug side of this issue. The Committee 
478 

urges NIDA to 1) continue funding research on medications to alleviate pain, including the development of pain medications with reduced abuse liability; 2) as appropriate, work with private companies to fund innovative research into such medications; and 3) report on what we know regarding the transition from opiate analgesics to heroin abuse and addiction within affected populations. 

Medications Development. The Committee recognizes that next–generation pharmaceuticals will surely take advantage of new technologies. In the context of NIDA 

funding, chief among these are NIDA’s current approaches to develop viable 

immunotherapeutic or biologic (e.g., bioengineered enzymes) approaches for treating 

addiction. The goal of this active area of research is the development of safe and 

effective vaccines or antibodies that target specific drugs, like nicotine, cocaine, and 

heroin, or drug combinations. The Committee is excited by this approach—if successful, immunotherapies, alone or in combination with other medications, behavioral treatments, or enzymatic approaches, stand to revolutionize how we treat, and, 

maybe even someday, prevent addiction. The Committee looks forward to hearing 

more about work in this area. 

Nurturing Talent and Innovation in Research. The Committee commends NIDA 

for its continued support of innovative research on drug addiction and related health 

problems such as pain and HIV/AIDS, and the Institute’s effort to be at the forefront of training the next generation of innovative researchers. The 6 year–old 

Avant–Garde award is a good example of a program that stimulates high–impact 

research that could lead to groundbreaking opportunities for the prevention and 

treatment of HIV/AIDS in drug abusers. The Committee understands that NIDA is 

now crafting a new kind of award, which would blend NIH’s Pioneer and New Innovator award mechanisms. This new opportunity, called ‘‘AVENIR’’ awards, is designed to attract creative young investigators into HIV/drug abuse public health research. The Committee strongly supports this effort, and asks the Institute to report 

on its progress in future appropriations and related requests. 

Research to Assist Military Personnel, Veterans, and Their Families. The Committee recognizes the significant health challenges, including substance abuse and 

addiction, faced by military personnel, veterans, and their families. Many of these 

individuals need help confronting war–related problems including traumatic brain 

injury, PTSD, depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances, and substance abuse and addiction. The Committee commends NIDA for its successful efforts to coordinate and 

support research with the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense, 

and other NIH Institutes focusing on these populations, and strongly urges NIDA 

to continue work in this area. 

Raising Awareness and Engaging the Medical Community in Drug Abuse and Addiction Prevention and Treatment. The Committee is very pleased with NIDAMed, 

an initiative designed to reach out to physicians, physicians in training, and other 

healthcare professionals. The Committee urges the Institute to continue its focus on 

activities to provide physicians and other medical professionals with the tools and 

skills needed to incorporate drug abuse screening and treatment into their clinical 

practices. 

Drug abuse is costly to Americans; it ruins lives, while tearing at the fabric of 

our society and taking a huge financial toll on our resources. Beyond the unacceptably high rates of morbidity and mortality, drug abuse is often implicated in family 

disintegration, loss of employment, failure in school, domestic violence, child abuse, 

and other crimes. Placing dollar figures on the problem; smoking, alcohol and illegal 

drug use results in an exorbitant economic cost on our nation, estimated at over 

$600 billion annually. We know that many of these problems can be prevented entirely, and that the longer we can delay initiation of any use, the more successfully 

we mitigate future morbidity, mortality and economic burdens. 

Over the past three decades, NIDA–supported research has revolutionized our understanding of addiction as a chronic, often–relapsing brain disease —this new 

knowledge has helped to correctly situate drug addiction as a serious public health 

issue that demands strategic solutions. By supporting research that reveals how 

drugs affect the brain and behavior and how multiple factors influence drug abuse 

and its consequences, scholars supported by NIDA continue to advance effective 

strategies to prevent people from ever using drugs and to treat them when they cannot stop. 

NIDA supports a comprehensive research portfolio that spans the continuum of 

basic neuroscience, behavior and genetics research through medications development and applied health services research and epidemiology. While supporting research on the positive effects of evidence–based prevention and treatment approaches, NIDA also recognizes the need to keep pace with emerging problems. We 

have seen encouraging trends—significant declines in a wide array of youth drug 

use—over the past several years that we think are due, at least in part, to NIDA’s 
479 

1Flanigan KM, et al. Genetic characterization of a large, historically significant Utah kindred 

with facioscapulohumeral dystrophy. Neuromuscul Disorders 2001;11:525—529. 2Mostacciuolo ML, et al. Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: epidemiologicaland molecular study in a north-east Italian population sample. Clinical Genetics 2009;75:550—555. 

public education and awareness efforts. However, areas of significant concern include the recent increase in lethalities due to heroine, as well as the continued 

abuse of prescription opioids and the recent increase in designer drugs availability 

and their deleterious effects. The need to increase our knowledge about the effects 

of marijuana is most important now that decisions are being made about its approval for medical use and/or its legalization. We support NIDA in its efforts to find 

successful approaches to these difficult problems. 

The Nation’s previous investment in scientific research to further understand the 

effects of abused drugs on the body has increased our ability to prevent and treat 

addiction. As with other diseases, much more needs be done to improve prevention 

and treatment of these dangerous and costly diseases. Our knowledge of how drugs 

work in the brain, their health consequences, how to treat people already addicted, 

and what constitutes effective prevention strategies has increased dramatically due 

to support of this research. However, since the number of individuals continuing to 

be affected is still rising, we need to continue the work until this disease is both 

prevented and eliminated from society. 

We understand that the fiscal year 2015 budget cycle will involve setting priorities and accepting compromise, however, in the current climate we believe a focus 

on substance abuse and addiction, which according to the World Health Organization account for nearly 20 percent of disabilities among 15–44 year olds, deserves 

to be prioritized accordingly. We look forward to working with you to make this a 

reality. Thank you for your support for the National Institute on Drug Abuse. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE FSH SOCIETY, INC. 

Honorable Chairwoman Mikulski and Ranking Member Harkin, thank you for the 

opportunity to submit this testimony. Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy 

(FSHD), is one of the most common adult muscular dystrophies with a prevalence 

of 1:15,000—1:20,000.1,2 For a half-million men, women, and children worldwide 

the major consequence of inheriting this genetic form of muscular dystrophy is a 

lifelong progressive loss of all skeletal muscles. FSHD is a crippling and life shortening disease. No one is immune. It is both genetically and spontaneously transmitted to children. It can affect multiple generations and entire families. 

With FSHD there is a loss of muscle strength that ranges between one and 4 percent a year during a lifetime. In terms of functional impairment, 20 percent of 

FSHD-affected individuals over age fifty will require the use of a wheelchair. FSHD 

also has very specific non-muscular manifestations; hearing-loss, restrictive lung 

disease, supraventricular arrhythmias (rare), and retinal vasculopathy. 95 percent 

of individuals with FSHD have the FSHD1 (FSHD1A OMIM: 158900) genetic variation—caused by the contraction of DNA macrosatellite repeat units, termed D4Z4 

repeats, on chromosome 4, leading to the release of transcriptional repression of a 

retrogene (DUX4) believed to be associated with the cause of disease. Of the 5 percent of FSHD individuals remaining, 80 percent of those are the FSHD2 (FSHD1B 

OMIM: 158901) genetic variation—caused by mutations in the SMCHD1 gene on 

chromosome 18 that helps to maintain the structure of the D4Z4 repeats on the long 

arm of chromosome 4. 

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the principal source of funding of research on FSHD currently at the $5 million level. For nearly two decades, this Committee has supported the incremental growth in funding for FSHD research. I am 

pleased to report that this modest investment has produced huge scientific returns. 

1. Congress has made a major difference in muscular dystrophy. I have testified 

many times before Congress, nearly fifty. When I first testified, we did not know 

the mechanism of this disease. Now we do. When I first testified, we assumed that 

FSHD was a rare form of muscular dystrophy. Now we understand it to be one of 

the most prevalent forms of muscle disease, if not the most prevalent muscle disease 

based on new ways of evaluating the disease clinically within families. Congress is 

responsible for this success, through its sustaining support of the NIH and the enactment of the Muscular Dystrophy CARE Act. We are aware that MD Care Act 

does not set the amount of spending on FSHD or the other dystrophies at the NIH 

and we recognize that funding levels are determined in the appropriations process 

and the numbers of grant applications received and funded by the NIH on FSHD. 

Even though it is a technically separate legislative process, the reauthorization of 
480 

3Lemmers, RJ, et al, A Unifying Genetic Model for Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy 

Science 24 September 2010: Vol. 329 no. 5999 pp. 1650–1653. 4Kolata, G., Reanimated ‘Junk’ DNA Is Found to Cause Disease. New York Times, Science. 

Published online: August 19, 2010 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/20/science/20gene.html. 5Snider, L., Geng, L.N., Lemmers, R.J., Kyba, M., Ware, C.B., Nelson, A.M., Tawil, R., 

Filippova, G.N., van der Maarel, S.M., Tapscott, S.J., and Miller, D.G. (2010). 

Facioscapulohumeral dystrophy: incomplete suppression of a retrotransposed gene. PLoS Genet. 

6, e1001181. 6Geng et al., DUX4 Activates Germline Genes, Retroelements, and Immune Mediators: Implications for Facioscapulohumeral Dystrophy, Developmental Cell (2012), doi:10.1016/ 

j.devcel.2011.11.013. 7 Jones TI, et al, Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy family studies of DUX4 expression: 

evidence for disease modifiers and a quantitative model of pathogenesis. Hum Mol Genet. 2012 

Oct 15;21(20):4419-30. Epub 2012 Jul 13. 8Lemmers, RJ, et al, Digenic inheritance of an SMCHD1 mutation and an FSHD-permissive 

D4Z4 allele causes facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy type 2. Nat Genet. 2012 

Dec;44(12):1370-4. doi: 10.1038/ng.2454. Epub 2012 Nov 11. 

the MD Care Act does raise the visibility of all the muscular dystrophies which can 

be of help in the appropriations process—and we thank you for your support of the 

MD Care Act. Further, we recognize and feel at this time in FSHD research that 

there are additional efforts and pathways that Congress can request and the NIH 

can enact to increase the amount of research funding on FSHD in the NIH portfolio 

that neither increases the NIH budget required nor takes money from another area 

of research. 

2. Quantum leaps in our understanding of FSHD have occurred in past three and 

a half years. The past three and a half years have seen remarkable contributions 

made by researchers funded by NIH. 

—On August 19, 2010, American and Dutch researchers published a paper which 

dramatically expanded our understanding of the mechanism of FSHD.3 A front 

page story in the New York Times quoted the NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins 

saying, ‘‘If we were thinking of a collection of the genome’s greatest hits, this 

would go on the list.’’ 4

—Two months later, another paper was published that made a second critical advance in determining the cause of FSHD.5 The research shows that FSHD is 

caused by the inefficient suppression of a gene that may be normally expressed 

only in early development. 

—On January 17, 2012, an international team of researchers based out of Seattle 

discovered a stabilized form of a normally suppressed gene called DUX4 required to develop chromosome 4 linked FSHD.6

—Six months later, another high profile paper produced by a Senator Paul A. 

Wellstone Cooperative Research Center of the NIH, used sufficiently ‘‘powered’’ 

large collections of genetically matched FSHD cell lines generated by the NIH 

center that are both unique in scope and shared with all researchers worldwide, 

to improve on the Seattle group’s finding by postulating that DUX4-fl expression is necessary but not sufficient by itself for FSHD muscle pathology.7 This 

work was also supported by a NIH cooperative research center grant mandated 

by MD CARE Act. 

—On July 13, 2012, a team of researchers from the, United States, Netherlands 

and France identified mutations in a gene causing 80 percent of another form 

of FSHD. This paper furthers our understanding of the molecular 

pathophysiology of FSHD. This work too was supported in part by a program 

project grant from NIH.8

—In 2013 and continuing into 2014, papers have been published clearly documenting functional impairment in FSHD, clinical and genetic features of hearing loss FSHD, restrictive lung disease and respiratory insufficiency, Coats syndrome and vision loss in FSHD, high-throughput screening that identify inhibitors of DUX4-induced myoblast toxicity, better definition of epigenetic features 

of FSHD, Pain and FSHD, MRI/MRS studies, biomarkers for FSHD, the demonstration that although the transcription of the toxic protein DUX4 occurs in 

only a limited number of nuclei, the resulting protein diffuses into nearby nuclei 

within the myotubes, thus spreading aberrant gene expression throughout a 

muscle, to name a few. 

Many of these researchers have started their efforts in FSHD with seed funding 

from the FSH Society and have received continued support from the FSH Society, 

the NIH, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association and other partners. 

3. Remarkable progress in FSHD research and the need to keep moving forward. 

Last October, nearly 100 researchers from around the world gathered under the direction of Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, David Housman, PhD, 

Chair of the FSH Society’s Scientific Advisory Board, at the David H. Koch Center 
481 

9 2013 FSH Society FSHD International Research Consortium, held October 22–23, 2013 cosponsored by DHHS NIH NICHD University of Massachusetts School of Medicine Senator Paul 

D. Wellstone MD CRC for FSHD. To read the expanded summary and recommendations of the 

group see: http://www.fshsociety.org/pages/sciConsortium.html. 

for Integrative Cancer Research on the campus of M.I.T. for the annual FSH Society 

International Research Consortium meeting; there was a palpable feeling of FSHD 

research having ‘‘arrived’’ in the big time. The general discussion of day two covered 

four major areas. With respect to the first area, called DUX4, the unanimous conclusion of the general discussion was that over-expression of the toxic transcription factor DUX4 is at the root of FSHD1 and FSHD2 and that DUX4 expression is necessary but not always sufficient to cause FSHD. Research should focus on upstream 

and downstream molecular pathways and mechanisms as they form the most plausible intervention targets. The group also discussed needs and priorities in three additional areas: disease models, intervention, clinical studies and trial readiness. The 

priorities stated for 2014, at the October 21–22, 2013, FSH Society FSHD IRC meetings are as follows: 9

—The DUX4 interactome 

—Understanding DUX4 manifestation and variation 

—Additional genetic heterogeneity; non-FSHD1 and FSHD2 

—Disease models 

—Well documented natural history with reliable endpoints; modulating mechanisms/genes 

—Increasing data depth of patient databases with extensive (follow-up) clinical 

data 

—Prepare for clinical trials: reliable and meaningful outcome measures; with access to discreet patient populations and disease mechanism of action classes. 

—Therapy; proof-of-principle experiments 

—Focus on translational research; from clinic to bench and back 

—Understanding pathophysiology of FSHD: connection to DUX4, heterogeneity, 

asymmetry, role of inflammation; infiltrates and etiology 

Given the recent developments, there is a need to ramp up the preclinical enterprise and build/organize infrastructure needed to conduct clinical trials. Our immediate priorities should be to confirm the new hypotheses and targets. We need to 

be prepared for this new era in the science of FSHD. Many leading experts are now 

turning to work on FSHD not only because it is one of the most complicated and 

challenging problems seen in science, but because it represents the potential for 

great discoveries, insights into stem cells, transcriptional processes, new ways of 

thinking about disease of epigenetic etiology, and for treating diseases. 

4. NIH Funding for Muscular Dystrophy. Mr. Chairman, these major advances in 

scientific understanding and epidemiological surveillance are not free. They come at 

a cost. Since Congress passed the MD CARE Act, research funding at NIH for muscular dystrophy has increased 4-fold. While FSHD research funding has increased 

12-fold during this period, the level of funding is still anemic and, for FSHD, has 

been astonishingly flat for the past 6 years. 
482 

[Dollars in millions] 

Fiscal Year 

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 e 2015 e 

All MD ...................................................................................... 39 .1 38 .7 39 .5 39 .9 47 .2 56 83 86 75 75 76 78 78 FSHD ........................................................................................ 1 .5 2 .2 2 .0 1 .7 3 3 5 6 6 5 5 6 6 FSHD (percent total MD) ......................................................... 4 6 5 4 5 5 6 7 8 7 7 8 8 

FSHD Research Dollars (in millions) and FSHD as a Percentage of Total NIH Muscular Dystrophy Funding. Sources: NIH/OD Budget Office and NIH OCPL and NIH RCDC RePORT (e = estimate). 
483 

Despite the great success of the past three and a half years in the science of 

FSHD brought about by Congress we are concerned that under the current funding 

environment that new research projects will not be funded or existing programs will 

not be renewed. We have conveyed to the NIH leadership at the Office of the Director, NIAMS, NINDS, NICHD, NHLBI and the Executive Secretary of the MDCC our 

grave concern that FSHD research is way too under-represented in the NIH portfolio and needs a proactive effort on the part of NIH. 

Alan E. Guttmacher, MD., Director, NICHD and chair of the Muscular Dystrophy 

Coordinating Committee (MDCC) recently wrote to me in response to a letter I sent 

to NIH Director, Dr. Francis Collins asking for a significant improvement in the 

overall level of funding for FSHD, that though ‘‘it is notable that NIH funding for 

all forms of muscular dystrophy has nearly doubled since the 2006 NIH Action Plan 

on Muscular Dystrophy was released. [and] Since this has been a period of relatively 

flat funding for NIH, increased funding for anyone area speaks to the excellent quality of the research applications received during that time, and this is true of FSHD 

research applications where funding has almost tripled. We believe that the 2006 

Action Plan was instrumental in improving coordination among the Institutes and 

Centers at NIH that support research on the muscular dystrophies, so that scarce 

resources are well-spent. We plan to revise the Action Plan this year, with a meeting in July to discuss what research opportunities have emerged; the goal is to ask 

the MDCC to approve the revised plan at its Fall 2014 meeting.’’ While we wholeheartedly agree with these statements and we are instrumental and involved in the 

MD CARE Act and most appreciative of all of NIH’s efforts and Congress’ work in 

this area—we do not however agree on the plus one order of magnitude (x10) of difference between muscular dystrophy funding and FSHD funding. While all muscular dystrophy increased from $39.9 million to $78 million; FSHD increased from 

$1.7 million to $6 million. The economy of scale is so different in particular for 

FSHD, being equally devastating and burdensome as the disease receiving the most 

funding in this category, and though it functions in the exact same U.S. Federal research infrastructure. NIH needs to redress the imbalance of funding in the muscular dystrophy portfolio by fostering opportunities for multidisciplinary research on 

FSHD, a common and complex form of dystrophy, commensurate with its prevalence 

and disease burden. The future action plan should address this issue head-on. 

We request for fiscal year 2015, a tripling of the NIH FSHD research portfolio to $18 million or a level of approximately 20 percent of the total muscular dystrophy 

funding at NIH. This will allow an expansion of basic research awards, expansion 

of post-doctoral and clinical training fellowships, dedicated centers to design and 

conduct clinical trials on FSHD and more U.S. DHHS NIH Senator Paul D. 

Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers. 

Agency: National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

Account: National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases 

(NIAMS), and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), 

and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National, Institute of Child Health and Human 

Development (NICHD) 

Fiscal year 2015 Report Language: The Committee encourages the NIH to foster 

opportunities for multidisciplinary research on facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), a common and complex form of muscular dystrophy, commensurate 

with its prevalence and disease burden. The Committee hopes such advances will 

be utilized to help advance treatments and access to therapies for this grave disease. 

We are aware of the great pressures on the Federal budget, but NIH can easily 

help increase its portfolio on FSHD given the breakneck speed of discovery in 

FSHD. These are easy ways for NIH to convey to researchers that it has a revised 

plan and an interest in funding research in FSHD. There are no quotas on peerreviewed research above pay line at the NIH, and NIH can help by issuing written 

announcements that efforts invested in writing FSHD grant applications will be met 

with interest. This is the time to fully and expeditiously exploit the advances for 

which the American taxpayer has paid. Thank you for this opportunity to testify before your committee. 

[This statement was submitted by Daniel Paul Perez, President & CEO, FSH Society.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE GBS/CIDP FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the priorities of the community of individuals 

impacted by Guillain-Barre ́ Syndrome (GBS), Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating 
484 

Polyneuropathy (CIDP), and related conditions as you work to craft the fiscal year 

2015 Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill. 

ABOUT GBS AND CIDP

Guillain-Barre ́ Syndrome 

GBS is an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves outside the brain and 

spinal cord. It’s also known as Acute Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy 

and Landry’s Ascending Paralysis. 

The cause of GBS is unknown. We do know that about 50 percent of cases occur 

shortly after a microbial infection (viral or bacterial), some as simple and common 

as the flu or food poisoning. Some theories suggest an autoimmune trigger, in which 

the patient’s defense system of antibodies and white blood cells are called into action against the body, damaging myelin (nerve covering or insulation), leading to 

numbness and weakness. 

GBS in its early stages is unpredictable, so except in very mild cases, most newly 

diagnosed patients are hospitalized. Usually, a new case of GBS is admitted to ICU 

(Intensive Care) to monitor breathing and other body functions until the disease is 

stabilized. Plasma exchange (a blood ‘‘cleansing’’ procedure) and high dose intravenous immune globulins are often helpful to shorten the course of GBS. The acute 

phase of GBS typically varies in length from a few days to months, with over 90 

percent of patients moving into the rehabilitative phase within four weeks. Patient 

care involves the coordinated efforts of a team such as a neurologist, physiatrist (rehabilitation physician), internist, family physician, physical therapist, occupational 

therapist, social worker, nurse, and psychologist or psychiatrist. Some patients require speech therapy if speech muscles have been affected. 

Recovery may occur over 6 months to 2 years or longer. A particularly frustrating 

consequence of GBS is long-term recurrences of fatigue and/or exhaustion as well 

as abnormal sensations including pain and muscle aches. These can be aggravated 

by ‘normal’ activity and can be alleviated by pacing activity and rest. 

Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy 

CIDP is a rare disorder of the peripheral nerves characterized by gradually increasing weakness of the legs and, to a lesser extent, the arms. 

It is the gradual onset as well as the chronic nature of CIDP that differentiates 

it from GBS. Fortunately, CIDP is even rarer than GBS. The incidence of new cases 

is estimated to be between 1.5 and 3.6 in a million people (compare to GBS: 1–2 

in 100,000). 

Like GBS, CIDP is caused by damage to the covering of the nerves, called myelin. 

It can start at any age and in both genders. Weakness occurs over two or more 

months. 

Unlike GBS, CIDP is not self-limiting (with an end to the acute phase). Left untreated, 30 percent of CIDP patients will progress to wheelchair dependence. Early 

recognition and treatment can avoid a significant amount of disability. 

Post-treatment life depends on whether the disease was caught early enough to 

benefit from treatment options. Patients respond in various ways. The gradual onset 

of CIDP can delay diagnosis by several months or even years, resulting in significant nerve damage that may take several courses of treatment before benefits are 

seen. The chronic nature of CIDP differentiates long-term care from GBS patients. 

Adjustments inside the home may need to be made to facilitate a return to normal 

life. 

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The Foundation’s vision is that every person afflicted with GBS, CIDP, or variants 

has convenient access to early and accurate diagnosis, appropriate and affordable 

treatments, and dependable support services. 

The Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life for individuals and families across America affected by GBS, CIDP, and their variants by: 

—Providing a network for all patients, their caregivers and families so that GBS 

or CIDP patients can depend on the Foundation for support, and reliable upto-date information. 

—Providing public and professional educational programs worldwide designed to 

heighten awareness and improve the understanding and treatment of GBS, 

CIDP and variants. 

—Expanding the Foundation’s role in sponsoring research and engaging in patient 

advocacy. 
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SEQUESTRATION

We have heard from the medical research community that sequestration and deficit reduction activities have created serious issues for Federal funding opportunities 

and the career development pipeline. In order to ensure that research into GBS, 

CIDP, and related disorders can continue to move forward, and, more importantly, 

to ensure that our country is adequately preparing the next generation of young investigators, we urge you to avert, mitigate, or otherwise eliminate the specter of sequestration. While the Foundation has anecdotal accounts of the harms of sequestration, the Federated American Societies for Experimental Biology has reported: 

—In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the NIH budget in fiscal year 2013 was $6 billion (22.4 percent) less than it was in fiscal year 2003. 

—The number of competing research project grants (RPGs) awarded by NIH has 

also fallen sharply since fiscal year 2003. In fiscal year 2013, NIH made 8,283 

RPG awards, which is 2,110 (20.3 percent) fewer than in fiscal year 2003. 

—Awards for R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated research, suffered even greater losses. The number awarded fell 

by 2,528 (34 percent) between fiscal year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 

The pay line for some NIH funding mechanisms has fallen from 18 percent to 10 

percent while the average age for a researcher to receive their first NIH-funded 

grant has climbed to 42. These are strong disincentives to choosing a career as a 

medical researcher. Our scaling-back is occurring at a time when many foreign 

countries are investing heavily in their biotechnology sectors. China alone plans to 

dedicate $300 million to medical research over the next 5 years; this amount is double the current NIH budget over the same period of time. Scientific breakthroughs 

will continue, but America may not benefit from the return-on-investment of a robust biotechnology sector. For the purposes of economic and national security, as 

well as public health, the Foundation asks that you work with your colleagues to 

eliminate sequestration and recommit to supporting this Nation’s biomedical research enterprise. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CIDP is a progressive condition with serious health impacts. Patients can end up 

almost completely paralyzed and on a ventilator. The key to limiting serious health 

impacts is an early and accurate diagnosis. The time it takes for a CIDP patient 

to begin therapy is linked to the length of therapy and the seriousness of the health 

impacts. An early diagnosis can mean the difference between a 3 month or 18 

month hospital stay, or no hospitalization at all. For the Federal healthcare system, 

there is an economic incentive to ensure early and accurate diagnosis as longer hospitalizations equate to higher costs. 

CDC and NCCDPHP have resources that could be brought to bear to improve 

public awareness and recognition of CIDP and related conditions. In order to initiate 

new, potentially cost-saving programs, CDC requires meaningful funding increases 

to support crucial activities. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH hosts a modest research portfolio focused on GBS, CIDP, and related conditions. This research has led to important scientific breakthroughs and is well positioned to vastly improve our understanding of the mechanism behind these conditions. In fact, NINDS, NIAID, and the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) 

housed within NCATS have expressed interest in hosting a State-of-the-Science 

Conference on autoimmune peripheral neuropathies. This conference would allow intramural and extramural researchers to develop a roadmap that would lead research into these conditions into the next decade. While such a conference would 

not require additional appropriations, the Foundation urges you to provide NIH 

with meaningful funding increases to facilitate growth in the GBS, CIDP, and related conditions research portfolio. 

Thank you for your time and your consideration of the community’s requests. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GIRL SCOUTS OF THE USA 

As the preeminent leadership development organization for girls, Girl Scouts of 

the USA (Girl Scouts) serves over two million girls each year, ages 5 to 17, from 

every corner of the United States and its territories, with value placed on diversity 

and inclusiveness. We also serve nearly 17,000 American girls living outside of the 

United States in over 90 countries. Through our 112 councils and USA Girl Scouts 

Overseas, and more than 800,000 dedicated volunteers, we continue to deliver the 
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Girl Scout Leadership Experience (GSLE)—the world’s most comprehensive and 

best program for girls’ leadership development. 

BUILDING GIRLS LEADERSHIP

Girl Scout experiences through GSLE are, as much as possible, girl-led and encourage hands-on and cooperative learning. Our framework specifies 15 outcomes— 

behaviors, attitudes, skills and values—that develop girls of courage, confidence and 

character. We provide significant financial assistance to vulnerable girls who cannot 

afford to pay to belong to Girl Scouts. In many communities, Girl Scouts is the single most visible and viable positive choice for these girls as opposed to negative behavior. Girl Scouts plays a major role in helping girls find their voice in a positive 

and productive way. 

Women today are well educated but still underrepresented in high-paying positions and positions of leadership, facing societal barriers to leading and achieving 

success in everything from technology and science to business and industry. With 

this in mind, we need a bold policy shift so that girls are able to achieve their full 

leadership potential now and later in life, as women. Girl Scouts is eager to work 

with policymakers to create opportunities and environments that foster girls’ leadership development. 

PENSION RELIEF

Under Department of Labor, General Provisions, Girl Scouts respectfully requests 

the insertion of the following language as our highest priority request: 

SEC.—ELECTION NOT TO BE TREATED AS AN ELIGIBLE CHARITY PLAN.—A plan 

sponsor of an eligible charity plan (as defined in subsection (d) of section 104 of the 

Pension Protection Act of 2006) may elect, effective for the first plan year beginning 

after December 31, 2013, to have section 104 of such Act not apply to such plan. 

In the case of such an election, solely for plan years beginning after December 31, 

2013, section 430(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and section 303(c) of the 

Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 shall apply as if such sections 

had applied to the first two plan years beginning after December 31, 2009, and as 

if the plan sponsor had elected to apply section 430(c)(2)(D)(iii) of such Code and 

section 303(c)(2)(D)(iii) of such Act with respect to those two plan years. 

The proposed language, which would only affected eligible charities and thus 

should not have an associated cost, would modify the rule established by section 

202(b) of the Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension 

Relief Act of 2010, Public Law 111–192. The effect of the proposed language is similar in effect to section 2 of H.R. 4915, as passed by the Senate in December of 2010, 

which also allowed a plan sponsor of an eligible charity plan not to have section 104 

of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 apply. 

Girl Scouts organization, on behalf of the millions of girls we serve, respectfully 

requests this technical fix. The language simply says that as of 2014, we, and all 

similarly structured charities, be permitted to elect in to the Pension Protection Act 

funding rules, which are the Federal pension rules applicable to corporate America. 

In addition to our request pertaining to pension relief, the following are the key policy priority areas where we can offer research and programmatic success stories: 

STEM EDUCATION

As the preeminent organization for girls and a leader on informal STEM education, Girl Scouts is committed to ensuring that every girl has the opportunity to 

explore and build an interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. 

The strength of our Nation depends on increasing girls’ involvement in STEM, to 

develop critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration skills that are important 

throughout life. 

In 2012, the Girl Scout Research Institute released Generation STEM: What Girls 

Say about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, which found girls are interested in STEM and aspire to STEM careers, but need further exposure and education about what STEM careers can offer and how STEM can help girls make a 

difference in the world. 

Among some of Generation STEM’s other findings: 

—74 percent of teen girls are interested in the field of STEM and STEM subjects. 

Girls like the process of learning, asking questions, and problem solving. 

—Girls who are interested in STEM are significantly better students, have higher 

confidence in their abilities, and higher academic goals. 

—But while 81 percent say they are interested in pursuing STEM careers, only 

13 percent say it’s their first choice. About half of all girls feel that STEM isn’t 
487 

1 Back to School Survey Shows Americans Want Personal Finance Taught in the Classroom, 

Visa, July 20, 2010. 

a typical career path for girls. 57 percent of girls say that if they went into a 

STEM career, they’d have to work harder than a man just to be taken seriously. 

—African American and Hispanic girls have high interest in STEM, high confidence and work ethic, but say they have fewer supports and less STEM exposure than Caucasian girls. 

Research shows that girl-only settings not only provide a sense of belonging, but 

are more effective environments for personal development, including learning new 

skills and building self-confidence. In emotionally and physically safe environments, 

like those provided by Girl Scouts, girls partner with positive role models in a range 

of activities not limited by gender stereotypes. Girl Scout programs also emphasize 

partnerships, public education campaigns, mentorship programs, career exploration, 

traditional badges, and innovative new programming. 

—As Congress considers consolidations and a redesign of existing Federal STEM 

programs, we urge you to invest more of a focus on engaging and motivating 

girls in STEM, in particular girls in underrepresented minorities and at younger ages before their interest wanes in middle school. Strategies include introducing girls to diverse role models and mentors; promoting proven techniques 

for engaging girls in STEM including, single-gender learning; and, hands-on 

and experiential learning opportunities in after-school or out-of-school environments. 

FINANCIAL LITERACY

The world’s current economic challenges have made financial literacy skills matter now more than ever. Girl Scouts offers a financial literacy program at every 

grade level from K–12. Through our Girl Scout financial education programming, 

girls learn to handle money and the basics of budgeting, banking, saving, using 

credit and planning for retirement and even practicing philanthropy. 

Additionally, the Girl Scout Cookie Program is often girls’ first introduction to business planning and entrepreneurship. The $790 million Girl Scout Cookie Program is the largest girl-led business in the country. 

While lack of financial literacy is a growing concern, relatively little research has 

been conducted on how girls think about and experience money and finances. To address this gap, the Girl Scout Research Institute recently conducted a study, Having 

It All: Girls and Financial Literacy, with girls and their parents. It found girls need 

and want financial literacy skills to help them achieve their dreams, with 90 percent 

saying it is important for them to learn how to manage money; however, just 12 

percent of girls surveyed feel very confident about making financial decisions. 

—To be successful and sustainable, financial education must begin early, continue 

throughout elementary and secondary education, and be relevant. And although 

93 percent of the public believes all high school students should be required to 

take a class in financial education, only four States have made a semester-long 

course in financial literacy a graduation requirement.1 In addition to providing 

teachers with training and materials, we believe policy support for after-school 

and community-based programs is critical if girls are to learn money-management skills and have real-world financial literacy experiences that will serve 

them throughout their lives. 

HEALTHY LIVING—BULLYING AND RELATIONAL AGGRESSION

As exemplified through our program experience and research, Girl Scouts understands the complex issue of healthy living and what motivates youth—especially 

girls—to adopt healthy lifestyles. Improving youths’ physical health and emotional 

well-being are not mutually exclusive. Youth, especially girls, experience them in an 

interrelated fashion. Girls place the same or even greater emphasis on social and 

emotional health as physical health. 

The Girl Scout Research Institute’s original research report, Feeling Safe: What 

Girls Say, found that nearly half (46 percent) of girls define safety as not having 

their feelings hurt, and approximately one-third of all girls worry about being 

teased, bullied, threatened, or having their feelings hurt when spending time with 

peers, participating in groups, and trying new things. Our report, The New Normal? 

What Girls Say About Healthy Living, tells us that a girl’s relationships with her 

peers are critical components of her health and safety. 

Our BFF (Be a Friend First) curriculum is focused on middle-school girls and designed to easily integrates into existing health or character education classes, or can 

even serve as an after-school program in the community. 
488 

—As the Department of Education has proposed a safe schools initiative that includes a positive school climate focus, Girl Scouts supports this kind of effort 

that embraces a holistic definition of health that addresses both the physical 

health and emotional wellness of youth. National youth serving organizations 

such as Girl Scouts, should be seen as vital partners for schools in developing 

relevant solutions such as policies to address relational aggression and evaluating and implementing programs that prevent relational aggression and build 

healthy relationships. 

CLOSING

We look forward to being a partner with Congress as you make difficult funding 

decisions in the areas of supporting healthy living, improving financial education of 

our youth, and building a pipeline of girls and underrepresented minorities in 

STEM careers. Thank you, and please consider us a resource in these areas. 

[This statement was submitted by Anna Maria Cha ́vez, Girl Scouts of the USA.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF GLOBAL HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES COALITION

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the Committee, 

thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We appreciate your leadership in promoting 

the importance of international development, in particular global health. We hope 

that your support will continue. I am submitting this testimony on behalf of the 

Global Health Technologies Coalition (GHTC), a group of nearly 30 nonprofit organizations working together to promote policies that advance research and development 

(R&D) of new global health innovations—including new vaccines, drugs, diagnostics, 

microbicides, and other tools—to combat global health diseases. The GHTC’s members strongly believe that to meet the global health needs of tomorrow, it is critical 

to invest in research today so that the most effective health solutions are available 

when we need them. My testimony reflects the needs expressed by our member organizations which work with a wide variety of partners to develop new and more 

effective life-saving technologies for the world’s most pressing health issues. We 

strongly urge the Committee to continue its established support for global health 

R&D by 1) sustaining and supporting U.S. investment in global health research and 

product development and fully funding the NIH at a level of at least $32 billion, 

and providing robust funding for the CDC, with $464 million for the CDC Center 

for Global Health and $445 million for the CDC Center for Emerging Zoonotic and 

Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), 2) requiring leaders at the NIH, CDC, the Food and 

Drug Administration (FDA), and the Secretariat of the U.S. Department of Health 

and Human Services to join leaders of other U.S. agencies to develop a cross-U.S. 

government global health R&D strategy to ensure that U.S. investments in global 

health research are efficient, coordinated, and streamlined, and 3) removing the 

clinical trial phase restriction from the legal language dictating the activities of the 

National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). 

Critical need for new global health tools 

Our Nation’s investments have made historic strides in promoting better health 

around the world: nearly ten million people living with HIV/AIDS now have access 

to life-saving medicines; new, cost-effective tools help us diagnose diseases quicker 

and more efficiently than ever before; and innovative new vaccines are making significant dents in childhood mortality. While we must increase access to these and 

other proven, existing health tools to tackle global health problems, it is just as critical that we continue to invest in developing the next generation of tools to stamp 

out disease and address current and emerging threats. For instance, newer, more 

robust, and easier to use antiretroviral drugs—particularly for infants and young 

children—are needed to treat and prevent HIV, and even an AIDS vaccine that is 

50 percent effective has the potential to prevent one million HIV infections every 

year. Drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) is on the rise globally, including in the United 

States, however the only vaccine on the market is insufficient at 90 years old, and 

most therapies available today are more than 50 years old, extremely toxic, and too 

expensive. New tools are also urgently needed to address fatal neglected tropical 

diseases (NTDs) such as sleeping sickness, for which diagnostic tools are inadequate 

and the few drugs available are toxic or difficult to use. There are many very promising technology candidates in the R&D pipeline to address these and other health 

issues; however, these tools will never be available if the support needed to continue 

R&D is not supported and sustained. 
489 

Research and U.S. global health efforts 

The United States is at the forefront of innovation in global health technologies. 

The U.S. government is involved in 200 of the 365 global health products currently 

in the pipeline, with the NIH and CDC involved in much of this research. 

NIH 

The NIH has helped make the United States a leader in research globally. Dr. 

Francis Collins, director of the NIH, has named global health as one of the agency’s 

five top priorities, and recent NIH global health research activities helped lead to 

the development of the first-ever microbicide gel effective in preventing HIV/AIDS 

and the development of new tools to combat neglected diseases, including vaccines 

for dengue fever and trachoma, as well as new drugs to treat malaria and TB. 

Under the purview of the NIH, NCATS was established to accelerate new treatments and cures for diseases. NCATS has the potential to play a much needed role 

in global health research, but we remain concerned about the legislative mandate 

limiting NCATS in their clinical trial work. NCATS is the only NIH center to be 

limited by a legislative mandate in its clinical trial work. There is no risk of NCATS 

duplicating the global health activities of private industry as this sector does not 

typically target neglected diseases due to small commercial markets. We hope you 

will consider removing this statutory barrier. We must not lose traction on the investments made in global health at NIH. Robust investment is needed to ensure 

that new global health tools are available to address current and future health challenges. 

CDC 

The CDC also plays a critical role in global health and contributes to valuable 

surveillance and health research systems—strengthening programs that ensure the 

sustainability of global health R&D. The work of its scientists has led to major advancements against devastating diseases, including the eradication of smallpox and 

early identification of the disease that became known as AIDS. Within the CDC, the 

efforts of the Center for Global Health and NCEZID are critical to protecting lives 

and must be continued. Ongoing investments in the development of new vaccines, 

drugs, microbicides and other tools have the potential to greatly accelerate efforts 

to combat HIV/AIDS, TB, malaria, diarrheal disease, pneumonia, and other less well 

known diseases such as leishmaniasis, dengue fever, schistomiasis, hookworm, 

sleeping sickness, and Chagas disease, as well as help prevent maternal and reproductive health challenges. 

Leveraging the private sector for innovation 

The NIH, CDC, and other U.S. agencies involved in global health R&D regularly 

collaborate with the private sector in developing, manufacturing, and introducing 

important technologies such as those described above through public-private partnerships, including product development partnerships. These partnerships leverage 

public-sector expertise in developing new tools, partnering with academia, large 

pharmaceutical companies, the biotechnology industry, and governments in developing countries to drive greater development of products for neglected diseases in 

which private industries have not historically invested. This unique model has generated 42 new global health products and has enormous potential for continued success if robustly supported. NIH Director Francis Collins has stated that such partnership is key to the development of therapies and health tools based on NIH-funded research. 

Innovation as a smart economic choice 

Global health R&D brings life-saving tools to those who need them most. However, the benefits these efforts bring are much broader than preventing and treating 

disease. Global health R&D is also a smart economic investment in the United 

States, where it drives job creation, spurs business activity, and benefits academic 

institutions. Biomedical research, including global health, is a $100 billion enterprise in the United States. Sixty-four cents out of every U.S. dollar invested in global health R&D goes directly to U.S.-based researchers. In a time of global financial 

uncertainty, it is important that the United States support industries, such as global health R&D, which build the economy at home and abroad. 

An investment made today can help save significant money in the future. The re- cently released meningitis A vaccine, MenAfriVac, is on course to save nearly $570 

million in healthcare costs over the next decade. In addition, new therapies to treat 

drug-resistant TB have the potential to reduce the price of TB treatment by 90 percent and cut health system costs significantly. The United States has made smart 

investments in research in the past that have resulted in lifesaving breakthroughs 

for global health diseases, as well as important advances in diseases endemic to the 
490 

United States. We must now build on those investments to turn those discoveries 

into new vaccines, drugs, tests, and other tools. 

Recommendations 

In this time of fiscal constraint, support for global health research that improves 

the lives of people around the world—while at the same time creating jobs and spurring economic growth at home—should unquestionably be among the Nation’s highest priorities. In keeping with this value, the GHTC respectfully requests that the 

Committee do the following: 1) sustain and support U.S. investments in global 

health research and product development and fully fund the NIH at a level of at 

least $32 billion, and provide robust funding for the CDC, with $464 million for the 

CDC Center for Global Health and $445 million for the NCEZID, 2) require leaders 

at the NIH, CDC, the FDA and the Office of Global Affairs to collaborate with the 

U.S. Agency for International Development, the State Department, the Department 

of Defense, and Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator to develop a cross-U.S. 

government global health R&D strategy to ensure that U.S. investments in global 

health research are efficient, coordinated, and streamlined, and 3) remove current 

statutory and legislative barriers limiting NCATS’ clinical trial mandate and require 

NCATS to develop and report on a plan to include initiatives targeted at neglected 

diseases and global health conditions. As a leader in science and technology, the 

United States has the ability to capitalize upon our strengths to help reduce illness 

and death and ultimately eliminate disabling and fatal diseases for people worldwide, contributing to a healthier world and a more stable global economy. Sustained 

investments in global health research to develop new drugs, vaccines, tests, and 

other health tools—combined with better access to existing methods to prevent and 

treat disease—present the United States with an opportunity to dramatically alter 

the course of global health while building political and economic security across the 

globe. On behalf of the members of the GHTC, I would like to extend my gratitude 

to the Committee for the opportunity to submit written testimony for the record. 

[This statement was submitted by Kaitlin Christenson, Coalition Director, Global 

Health Technologies Coalition.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS EASTER SEALS, INC. 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: Thank you for the opportunity 

to speak on behalf of Easter Seals about our Federal funding priorities for fiscal 

year 2015. Easter Seals is a national nonprofit organization that provides essential 

community-based services to individuals with disabilities, older adults, veterans and 

other underserved populations to help them live, learn, work and contribute to their 

communities. Easter Seals’ top priorities are in the people we serve like Arlena, 

Ben, Elijah and Donald whose lives have been impacted or could be through Federal 

investments made by this subcommittee. Easter Seals respectfully asks that you 

consider these stories and the critical programs these individuals as the subcommittee develops its fiscal year 2015 bill. Specifically Easter Seals requests that 

the Senior Community Service Employment Program be funded at $434,371,000 for 

fiscal year 2015, the Homeless Veterans’ Reintegration Program be funded at 

$50,000,000 for fiscal year 2015, the Early Intervention Grants for Infants and Families be funded at $458,498,000 for fiscal year 2015, and the Department of Education Transition Model System be funded at $15,000,000 for 2015. 

Meet Arlena: Arlena is an older worker who is contributing to her New Jersey 

community as a full-time security supervisor at a major airport. Her success may 

have seemed out-of-reach less than 2 years earlier when the 55-year-old single 

mother faced dual challenges. Arlena had lost her temporary job and was out of 

work for about a year when Hurricane Sandy hit and further complicated matters. 

She lost her home and all of her belonging in the 2012 storm, which left her homeless. She was forced to move in with her daughter’s family. Eventually her daughter 

moved and gave her the apartment. However, with no job she fell behind in her rent 

and utilities. She turned to Easter Seals for help after hearing about the Senior 

Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) through a friend. The Department of Labor program supports employment of older workers by providing parttime, paid community service positions and work-based training for unemployed, 

low-income individuals, age 55 and older. Through the Federal program, Easter 

Seals connected Arlena to supportive services to help her maintain an apartment, 

boosted her computer skills and matched her with on-the-job training at three different community locations. After 9 months in the program, she applied for and secured an entry level security position. Based on her previous work history, Arlena 

was promoted to a supervisory position. SCSEP helped to provide Arlena the tools 
491 

and opportunities she needed to prove she could bounce back from adversity and 

contribute again to her community. Easter Seals asks that the subcommittee supports a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $434,371,000 for SCSEP, the same level the 

program received in fiscal year 2014. 

Meet Ben: Ben was almost among the one million children under age 5 with disabilities who go undiagnosed every year. Ben’s mom felt uneasy about her son’s language progress when he was 18 months. But her doctor attributed the speech delays 

to being raised in a bilingual household. After the birth of Ben’s brother 6 months 

later, Ben’s mom became more concerned about Ben’s development, this time related 

to his behavior. ‘‘I knew that Ben needed help.’’ So she reached out to her State’s 

Birth to Three program—which is funded through Part C of the Individuals with 

Disabilities Education Act—and soon Ben was receiving needed speech and occupational services from Easter Seals and was diagnosed with a form of autism called 

PDD-NOS. Within 6 months of receiving early invention services, Ben was able to 

communicate in sentences. Now 4 years old, he continues to work hard and is making enormous progress. As a result of these early intervention investments, Ben continues to reach major milestones which will fundamentally change his life and allow 

him to fully participate in his community. Easter Seals asks that you increase funding by $20 million for the Part C Early Intervention grants to $458,498,000 in fiscal 

year 2015 so more children like Ben can access the services and supports they need 

when they need them to succeed. 

Meet Elijah: Elijah achieved academic success most parents dream for their children. He was high school class valedictorian and a college honors student with a 

Master’s Degree. However, his transition into the workplace has been challenging. 

He can’t find a job. Elijah lives with Asperger’s syndrome and, in fact, benefited 

from early intervention services through Easter Seals when he was a child. However, Elijah has struggled during this adult transition, particularly in job interviews 

where the repetitive nature of Asperger’s syndrome makes it challenging for him to 

stay succinct and on track. Elijah is not alone. The Government Accountability Office (GAO-12-594) found that students with disabilities face ‘‘several longstanding 

challenges’’ during their transition from high school into postsecondary education or 

the workforce. Among the challenges the GAO cited was accessing services, such as 

transportation education and travel instruction. The U.S. Department of Education 

has proposed in its fiscal year 2015 budget to test a coordinated model of transition 

planning, services, and supports through a new Transition Model System (TMS). 

The goal of TMS is to help address the many challenges faced by youth with disabilities like Elijah. Easter Seals asks that the subcommittee to fully support the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 funding request of $15,000,000 for the Transition 

Model System and asks that you include report language to strengthen the connection and importance of transportation education and travel instruction within TMS 

to increase and improve postsecondary outcomes for students with disabilities. 

Meet Donald: Donald was a proud veteran of the Air National Guard but—at age 

48—he found himself unemployed for more than 5 years and living on the street. 

Despite the national push to end homelessness among veterans, far too many men 

and women who served our Nation like Donald did are among the ranks of America’s homeless. Donald was connected to Easter Seals, who utilized the holistic, supportive services care coordination model used in the Department of Labor’s Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program (HVRP) to help get Donald back on his feet. 

Easter Seals connected Donald to transitional housing, provided him with a monthly 

bus pass so he could easily attend required meetings and trainings, and linked him 

to the local U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs medical center for other services. 

Donald also received individualized training and assistance in creating a resume 

and cover letter and in updating his job search, networking and interview skills. 

Based on his strengths and employment background, Easter Seals assisted Donald 

in a series of temporary jobs through staffing agencies, one of which turned into a 

full time permanent job, with benefits, at a local manufacturing company. Donald 

cited ‘‘networking skills, online job search assistance, resume update, housing stabilization, reliable transportation, and encouragement’’ as key Easter Seals HVRP 

services that helped him get employed again. HVRP is the only Federal nationwide 

program focusing exclusively on the employment of veterans who are homeless. The 

program works, in large part, due to the holistic, person-centered care coordination 

model that Easter Seals has used for several decades in helping individuals with 

disabilities achieve their dreams. Easter Seals asks that the subcommittee supports 

the authorized level of $50,000,000 for HVRP in fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you for the opportunity to share with you Easter Seals’ appropriations priorities for the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and 

Related Agencies appropriations bill. We hope that you consider these programs and 

the thousands of people with disabilities, veterans and older adults who are fully 
492 

participating and contributing to their communities as a result of these early Federal investments that continue to pay dividends. Thank you again for your time and 

consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by Katy Beh Neas, Senior Vice President, Government Relations Easter Seals, Inc.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HARM REDUCTION COALITION

We are requesting $5 million for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration at the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, and $5 million for the 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the office of Unintentional Injury 

Prevention, to address the opioid overdose epidemic. 

The opioid overdose epidemic has reached crisis proportions in recent years. The 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that in 2010, opioids—including 

both prescription painkillers and heroin—were responsible for nearly 20,000 overdose deaths. While prescription painkillers continue to account for the majority of 

opioid overdoses, deaths from heroin overdose increased by 45 percent between 2006 

and 2010, fueling concerns in several parts of the country that progress in reducing 

prescription painkiller misuse is being offset by a dramatic rise in heroin use and 

its attendant social and health consequences, including addiction, hepatitis C, and 

overdose. For example, in Kentucky, a State on the forefront of comprehensive approaches to the prescription drug overdose epidemic, the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center recently reported that while overall drug overdose deaths 

have leveled off from 2011 to 2012 after a decade of dramatic increases, promising 

declines in the number of prescription painkiller deaths have been accompanied by 

a 207 percent increase in heroin-related overdose deaths from 2011 to 2012. 

For these reasons, Harm Reduction Coalition believes that as efforts continue to 

mount a comprehensive response to prescription painkiller overdoses, it is necessary 

to incorporate the intertwined rise in heroin misuse and adopt a broader strategic 

framework to address all opioids. An opioid epidemic framework would maintain 

and intensify the array of activities such as those aimed at opioid prescribing practices and monitoring programs, safe disposal, patient and public education, regulatory and enforcement actions, and expansion of effective addiction treatment and 

recovery services. At the same time, the broader opioid epidemic framework recognizes the vital need for additional public health interventions and opportunities, including the role of expanded access to naloxone, alongside heightened attention to 

the risks of hepatitis C and other blood-borne viruses transmissible through injection drug use. 

Naloxone is a generic medication which acts as an opioid antagonist, blocking the 

effects of opioids such as painkillers or heroin and capable of reviving individuals 

from opioid overdoses. A substantial body of research and practice has demonstrated 

that naloxone is safe and effective in the hands of laypersons; in the words of Dr. 

Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, ‘‘several experimental overdose education and naloxone distribution (OEND) programs have issued 

naloxone directly to opioid users and their friends or loved ones, or other potential 

bystanders, along with brief training in how to use these emergency kits. Such programs have been shown to be an effective, as well as cost-effective, way of saving 

lives.’’ 

Dr. Volkow cites data published by CDC showing that through 2010, overdose 

education and naloxone distribution programs reported preventing over 10,000 

opioid overdose deaths across the country. As of this month, eighteen States have 

passed legislation to facilitate broader access and utilization of naloxone, ranging 

from Kentucky to Connecticut, Ohio to California; Georgia passed naloxone legislation on March 18th , which now awaits the governor’s signature. These overdose 

education and naloxone distribution programs vary in setting and scope. In North 

Carolina, Project Lazarus trains physicians to co-prescribe naloxone to pain patients 

receiving opioids. In Massachusetts, support groups for parents with children struggling with opioid dependence are trained and provided with naloxone. In Rhode Island, naloxone is provided through pharmacies. In Kentucky, some of the strongest 

advocates for naloxone have been the addiction recovery community. In New York, 

my organization has provided naloxone training to dozens of drug treatment programs, syringe exchange programs, shelters, and law enforcement agencies. In other 

parts of the country, overdose education and naloxone distribution programs are 

launching in emergency departments, jails, and Veterans Administration Medical 

Centers. 

These programs are gaining increased Federal attention; in the last month, the 

Attorney General echoed the Office of National Drug Control Policy in calling upon 
493 

first responders and law enforcement officers to be trained and equipped with 

naloxone. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality highlighted the Massachusetts overdose education and naloxone distribution program and featured accompanying quality tools, including an overdose and naloxone program manual from the 

Harm Reduction Coalition. Last year, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released an opioid overdose toolkit featuring 

naloxone. NIDA and FDA have worked to support and facilitate the development of 

new, consumer-friendly formulations of naloxone. The Ohio Department of Health’s 

Violence and Injury Prevention Program has used a portion of its CDC injury prevention funding to expand Project DAWN, an overdose education and naloxone distribution program, to additional counties. 

The President’s fiscal year 2015 budget requests $26 million to prevent prescription drug overdose, of which $16 million would expand CDC’s Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program grants to States, with an expected $10 million directed to 

prescription drug overdose activities, and $10 million to SAMHSA would fund State 

planning grants to develop prevention strategies for prescription drug abuse. The 

Harm Reduction Coalition supports these proposals, and believes that these resources would be valuable in establishing a foundation to reverse the prescription 

drug overdose epidemic. We also believe that additional emergency funding is necessary to stem the tide of opioid overdose from both prescription opioids and, increasingly, heroin. Within the context of a comprehensive approach to the opioid epidemic, including expanding access to addiction treatment and recovery, the Harm 

Reduction Coalition views the rapid expansion and scale up of overdose education 

and naloxone distribution programs as an urgent and underfunded priority to save 

lives. 

To that end, we request that $5 million be provided to CDC Injury Prevention and 

Control to support opioid overdose fatality prevention efforts within State and local 

health departments and community-based organizations to strengthen their ability 

to deliver overdose recognition and intervention training and education, and expand 

access to rescue medications and other evidence-based strategies. We also request 

that $5 million be provided to SAMHSA’s Center for Substance Abuse Treatment 

to support community-based opioid overdose fatality prevention efforts, with a focus 

on those initiatives that provide overdose recognition and intervention training and 

education, access to rescue medications, and facilitate linkage to treatment and recovery services. 

Across the country, emerging overdose education and naloxone distribution programs rely on limited funding to meet a growing need. The availability of targeted 

Federal funds through both the public health and addiction treatment and recovery 

communities would hasten the expansion of these programs to meet growing need 

and demand. 

In the battle against opioid overdose, there is much to be done, and no time to 

lose. We need a twofold approach of long-range efforts to address the underlying 

causes and factors which led to the initial rise in prescription opioid misuse, coupled 

with immediate actions to avert additional deaths and tragedies in the short-term. 

As a person who has lost friends and loved ones to opioid overdose, and listened 

to the stories of grieving parents who only wish someone had told them about 

naloxone before it was too late for their children, I respectfully ask for your consideration of our requests. 

If you have any questions, or would like more information or data on naloxone, 

please feel free to contact: Daniel Raymond, Harm Reduction Coalition. Thank you 

for your attention and consideration. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS AND NURSING EDUCATION

COALITION

The members of the Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition 

(HPNEC) are pleased to submit this statement for the record recommending $520 

million in fiscal year 2015 for the health professions education programs authorized 

under Titles VII and VIII of the Public Health Service Act and administered 

through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). 

HPNEC is an alliance of national organizations dedicated to ensuring the 

healthcare workforce is trained to meet the needs of the country’s growing, aging, 

and diverse population. Titles VII and VIII are the only federally-funded programs 

that seek to improve the supply, distribution, and diversity of the health professions 

workforce, with a focus on primary care and interdisciplinary training. By providing 

educational and training opportunities to aspiring and practicing health profes-
494 

sionals, the programs also play a critical role in helping the workforce adapt to meet 

the Nation’s changing healthcare needs. 

Titles VII and VIII are structured to allow grantees to test educational innovations, respond to changing delivery systems and models of care, and address timely 

topics in their communities. By assessing the needs of the communities they serve, 

Titles VII and VIII are well positioned to fill gaps in the workforce and increase 

access to care for all populations. Further, the programs emphasize interprofessional 

education and training, bringing together knowledge and skills across disciplines to 

provide effective, efficient and coordinated care. 

While HPNEC recognizes the Subcommittee faces difficult decisions in a constrained budget environment, a continued commitment to programs supporting 

healthcare workforce development should remain a high priority. The Nation faces 

a shortage of health professionals, which will be exacerbated by the addition of millions of Americans to the healthcare system. Failure to fully fund the Title VII and 

Title VIII programs would jeopardize activities to fill these vacancies and to prepare 

the next generation of health professionals. 

The Title VII and Title VIII programs can be considered in seven general categories: 

—The Primary Care Medicine and Oral Health Training programs support education and training of primary care professionals to improve access and quality 

of healthcare in underserved areas. Two-thirds of Americans interact with a primary care provider every year. Over one-third of primary care providers trained 

through these programs work in underserved areas, compared to 10 percent of 

those trained in other traditional programs. The General Pediatrics, General Internal Medicine, and Family Medicine programs provide critical funding for primary care physician training in community-based settings and support a range 

of initiatives, including medical student and residency training, faculty development, and the development of academic administrative units. The Rural Physician Training Grants focus on increasing the number of medical school graduates practicing in rural communities. The primary care cluster also provides 

grants for Physician Assistant programs to encourage and prepare students for 

primary care practice in rural and urban Health Professional Shortage Areas. 

The General Dentistry, Pediatric Dentistry, Dental Public Health, and Dental 

Hygiene programs provide grants to dental schools, dental hygiene schools, and 

hospitals to create or expand primary care dental training. 

—Because much of the Nation’s healthcare is delivered in remote areas, the Interdisciplinary, Community-Based Linkages cluster supports community-based 

training of health professionals. These programs are designed to encourage 

health professionals to return to such settings after completing their training 

and to encourage collaboration between two or more disciplines. The Clinical 

Training in Interprofessional Practice program supports interdisciplinary training opportunities that prepare providers to deliver coordinated, efficient, and 

high-quality care. The Area Health Education Centers (AHECs) offer clinical 

training opportunities to health professions and nursing students in rural and 

other underserved communities by extending the resources of academic health 

centers to these areas. AHECs improve health by leading the Nation in the recruitment, training, and retention of a diverse health workforce for underserved 

communities. By leveraging State and local matching funds to form networks 

of health-related institutions, AHECs also provide education services to students, faculty, and practitioners. The Geriatric Health Professions programs, including the Geriatric Academic Career Award program and Geriatric Education 

Centers, are all designed to bolster the number and quality of healthcare providers caring for the rapidly growing number of older adults and to expand geriatrics training to all healthcare professionals. For example, the programs provide interprofessional education and training on Alzheimer’s disease and related 

dementias. The Graduate Psychology Education (GPE) program is the Nation’s 

only Federal program dedicated solely to the education and training of doctorallevel psychologists. GPE supports the interprofessional training of doctoral-level 

psychology students in providing supervised mental and behavioral health services to underserved populations (i.e. older adults, children, chronically ill, and 

victims of abuse and trauma, including returning military personnel and their 

families) in rural and urban communities. The Mental and Behavioral Health 

Education and Training Grant Program supports the training of psychologists, 

social workers, and child and adolescent professionals. These programs together 

work to close the gap in access to quality mental and behavioral healthcare 

services by increasing the number of qualified mental health clinicians. 

—The Minority and Disadvantaged Health Professionals Training cluster helps 

improve healthcare access in underserved areas and the representation of mi-
495 

nority and disadvantaged individuals in the health professions. Diversifying the 

healthcare workforce is a central focus of the programs, making them a key 

player in mitigating racial, ethnic, and socio-economic health disparities. Further, the programs emphasize cultural competency for all health professionals, 

an important role as the Nation’s population is growing and becoming increasingly diverse. Minority Centers of Excellence support increased research on minority health, establish educational pipelines, and provide clinical experiences 

in community-based health facilities. The Health Careers Opportunity Program 

helps to improve the development of a competitive applicant pool through partnerships with local educational and community organizations and extends the 

healthcareers pipeline to the K–12 level. The Faculty Loan Repayment and Faculty Fellowship programs provide incentives for schools to recruit underrepresented minority faculty. The Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students supports students from disadvantaged backgrounds who are eligible and enrolled 

as full-time health professions students. 

—The Health Professions Workforce Information and Analysis program provides 

grants to institutions to collect and analyze data to advise future decisionmaking on the health professions and nursing programs. The Health Professions Research and Health Professions Data programs have developed valuable, 

policy-relevant studies on the distribution and training of health professionals. 

The National Center for Workforce Analysis performs research and analysis on 

health workforce issues, including supply and demand, to help inform both public and private decisionmaking. 

—The Public Health Workforce Development programs help increase the number 

of individuals trained in public health, identify the causes of health problems, 

and respond to such issues as managed care, new disease strains, food supply, 

and bioterrorism. The Public Health Traineeships and Public Health Training 

Centers seek to alleviate the critical shortage of public health professionals by 

providing up-to-date training for current and future public health workers, particularly in underserved areas. Preventive Medicine Residencies, which do not 

receive funding through Medicare GME, provide training in the only medical 

specialty that teaches both clinical and population medicine to improve community health. This cluster also includes a focus on loan repayment as an incentive 

for health professionals to practice in disciplines and settings experiencing 

shortages. The Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment Program offers loan repayment for pediatric medical subspecialists, pediatric surgical specialists, and 

child and adolescent mental and behavioral health specialists, in exchange for 

service in underserved areas. 

—The Nursing Workforce Development programs under Title VIII provide support 

for nursing students across the entire education spectrum improve the access 

to, and quality of, healthcare in underserved areas. These programs provide the 

largest source of Federal funding for nursing education, providing loans, scholarships, traineeships, and programmatic support that, between fiscal year 2006 

and 2012, supported over 450,000 nurses and nursing students as well as numerous academic nursing institutions and healthcare facilities. Each year, nursing schools turn away tens of thousands of qualified applications at all degree 

levels due to an insufficient number of faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, 

clinical preceptors, and budget constraints. At the same time, the need for nursing services and licensed, registered nurses is expected to increase significantly 

over the next 20 years. The Advanced Education Nursing program awards 

grants to train a variety of nurses with advanced education, including clinical 

nurse specialists, nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, nurse anesthetists, public health nurses, nurse educators, and nurse administrators. Workforce Diversity grants support opportunities for nursing education for students 

from disadvantaged backgrounds through scholarships, stipends, and retention 

activities. Nurse Education, Practice, and Retention grants help schools of nursing, academic health centers, nurse-managed health centers, State and local 

governments, and other healthcare facilities to develop programs that provide 

nursing education, promote best practices, and enhance nurse retention. The 

Loan Repayment and Scholarship Program repays up to 85 percent of nursing 

student loans and offers full-time and part-time nursing students the opportunity to apply for scholarship funds in exchange for 2 years of practice in a 

designated nursing shortage area. The Comprehensive Geriatric Education 

grants are used to train nursing professionals who will provide direct care to 

older Americans, develop and disseminate geriatric curricula, train faculty 

members, and provide continuing education. The Nurse Faculty Loan program 

provides a student loan fund administered by schools of nursing to increase the 

number of qualified nurse faculty. 
496 

1Kitahata, Gange, Abraham, et al. Effect of early versus deferred antiretroviral therapy for 

HIV on survival. New Engl J Med 2009;360:1815–26. 2 Cohen, Myron S., et al. Prevention of HIV–1 Infection with Early Antiretroviral Therapy. 

2011 New England Journal of Medicine 493–505: V365, no 6, http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/ 

10.1056/NEJMoa11052. 3 CDC Fact Sheet, February, 2014, accessed online at: http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/risk/racialethnic/ 

aa/facts/index.html. 

—The loan programs under Student Financial Assistance support financially disadvantaged health professions students. The NURSE Corps supports undergraduate and graduate nursing students with a preference for those with the 

greatest financial need. The Primary Care Loan (PCL) program provides loans 

in return for dedicated service in primary care. The Health Professional Student 

Loan (HPSL) program provides loans for financially needy health professions 

students based on institutional determination. These programs are funded out 

of each institution’s revolving fund and do not receive Federal appropriations. 

The Loans for Disadvantaged Students program provides grants to institutions 

to make loans to disadvantaged students. 

Title VII and Title VIII programs guide individuals to high-demand health professions jobs, helping individuals reach their goals and communities fill their health 

needs. Further, numerous studies demonstrate that the Title VII and Title VIII programs graduate more minority and disadvantaged students and prepare providers 

that are more likely to serve in Community Health Centers (CHC) and the National 

Health Service Corps (NHSC). 

The multi-year nature of health professions education and training, coupled with 

provider shortages across many disciplines and in many communities, necessitate a 

strong, continued, and reliable commitment to the Title VII and Title VIII programs. 

While HPNEC members understand the budget limitations facing the Sub- committee, we respectfully urge support for $520 million for the Title VII and VIII 

programs. We look forward to working with the Subcommittee to prioritize the 

health professions programs in fiscal year 2015 and into the future. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HIV MEDICINE ASSOCIATION

The HIV Medicine Association (HIVMA) of the Infectious Diseases Society of 

America (IDSA) represents more than 5,000 physicians, scientists and other 

healthcare professionals who practice on the frontline of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. 

Our members provide medical care and treatment to people with HIV/AIDS in the 

U.S. and globally, lead HIV prevention programs and conduct research that has led 

to the development of effective HIV prevention and treatment options. We urge you 

to invest in the medical research supported by the National Institutes of Health and 

sustain and grow funding for the Ryan White Program at the Health Resources and 

Services and Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

(CDC) HIV and STD prevention programs. 

Early access to effective HIV treatment helps patients with HIV live healthy and 

productive lives and is cost effective.1 Treatment not only saves the lives of individuals with HIV but has critical benefits to public health in that it reduces risk of 

transmitting HIV to near zero.2 However, despite our remarkable progress in HIV 

prevention, diagnosis and treatment, HIV/AIDS remains a serious epidemic in the 

United States with a record 1.1 million people living with HIV and an estimated 

50,000 new infections occurring annually. In our country, HIV infection disproportionately impacts racial and ethnic minority communities and low income people 

who depend on public services for their life-saving healthcare and treatment. The 

rate of new HIV infection in African Americans is 8 times that of whites based on 

population size.3 Globally there are more than 35.3 million people living with HIV, 

the great majority of them in Sub-Saharan Africa. We are beginning to see improvements thanks in large part to U.S. investments in programs like PEPFAR: HIV 

prevalence has leveled to about 0.8 percent, the number of deaths have declined by 

30 percent since 2005 and new infections have declined by 33 percent since 2001. 

Still there are 2.3 million new infections each year—more than 6,300 each day. 

The funding requests in our testimony largely reflect the consensus of the Federal 

AIDS Policy Partnership (FAPP), a coalition of HIV organizations from across the 

country, and are estimated to be the amounts necessary to mount an effective response to the domestic HIV epidemic and meet the need in communities across the 

country. 

National Institutes of Health (NIH)—Office of AIDS Research (OAR): HIVMA 

strongly supports an fiscal year 2015 funding level of at least $32 billion for the 

NIH, including at least $3.2 billion for the NIH Office of AIDS Research. This level 
497 

4 Based on data from Gilman BH, Green, JC. Understanding the variation in costs among HIV 

primary care providers. AIDS Care.2008:20;1050–6. 

of funding is vital to sustain the pace of research that will improve the health and 

quality of life for millions of men, women and children in the U.S. and in the developing world. Years of flat funding for biomedical research has eroded our capacity 

to sustain our Nation’s historic worldwide leadership in HIV/AIDS research and innovation, and is discouraging cultivation of the next generation of scientists. 

Our past investment in comprehensive HIV/AIDS research paid off enormously in 

dramatic gains that resulted in reductions in mortality from AIDS of nearly 80 percent in the U.S. and in other countries where treatment is available. This research 

also helped reduce the mother to child HIV transmission rate from 25 percent to 

less than 1 percent in the U.S. and to very low levels in other countries where treatment is available. 

Strong, sustained NIH funding is a critical national priority that will foster better 

health, economic revitalization and help realize the goals of the National HIV/AIDS 

Strategy. Sustained increases in funding are also essential to train the next generation of scientists and prepare them to make tomorrow’s HIV discoveries. Congress 

should ensure the Nation does not delay vital HIV/AIDS research progress. 

HIV/AIDS Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration: We 

strongly urge you to increase funding for the Ryan White Program by $123.2 million 

in fiscal year 2015. For Ryan White Part C programs in fiscal year 2015, we urge 

an allocation of at least $225.1 million, or a $24 million increase over the fiscal year 

2014 level for Part C. The comprehensive HIV care model or ‘‘medical home’’ that 

is supported by the Ryan White Program has been highly successful at achieving 

positive clinical outcomes with a complex patient population. The annual healthcare 

costs for HIV patients who are not able to achieve viral suppression (often due to 

delayed diagnosis and care) are nearly 2.5 times that of healthier HIV patients.4

The HIV medical clinics funded through Part C have been struggling to meet the 

increased demand for patients making an increase in funding critical to prevent additional staffing, laboratory and service cuts. At a bare minimum, we strongly urge 

you to support an increase of $24 million over fiscal year 2014 appropriated funding 

for Ryan White Part C. 

While HIVMA welcomes the $4 million increase for Part C programs proposed in 

the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget, we are concerned about the proposal to consolidate Ryan White Part D funding into Part C. Our specific concerns include: 

—Part D funding supports effective HIV care and treatment services for vulnerable populations, including women and adolescents. With adolescents accounting for 39 percent of new HIV infections in the U.S., it is critical to target resources effectively. 

—A loss of a Part D program could reduce the community’s access to HIV care 

and treatment as programs are forced to compete or consolidate with Part C 

clinics. 

—Since most Ryan White medical clinics receive funding from multiple parts of 

the Ryan White Program, reduction of funding to one part can have damaging 

and unintended consequences to the overall services provided. 

While the ACA provides important new healthcare coverage options for many patients, most health insurers fail to support the comprehensive care and treatment 

necessary for many patients to manage HIV infection. High cost sharing, benefit 

gaps and limited state uptake of the Medicaid expansion necessitate a vital and ongoing role for the Ryan White Program. 

Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for HIV/AIDS, 

Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP): HIVMA strongly urges total 

fiscal year 2015 funding of $1.319 billion for the CDC’s NCHHSTP, an increase of 

$198.2 million over the fiscal year 2014 level, including increases of: $55.1 million 

for HIV prevention and surveillance, $16.4 million for viral hepatitis and $57.4 million for tuberculosis prevention. We also support a funding level of at least $464.3 

million for CDC’s global health programs, which includes resources for the agency’s 

essential role in implementing PEPFAR programs in developing Nations. We are especially concerned about flat funding of CDC’s global HIV programs, and request 

an increase of at least $3.3 million to that line item for a total of $132 million. 

Policy Riders—Remove the Harmful Ban on Federal Funding for Syringe Exchange Programs: HIVMA strongly urges re-instatement in fiscal year 2015 report 

language of policy previously enacted into law in fiscal year 2010 and fiscal year 

2011 allowing Federal funding to be used for syringe exchange programs. Such action will support local control by letting local communities make their own decisions 

about how best to prevent new HIV and viral hepatitis infections. We cannot afford 
498 

to forego any of the scientifically proven tools in the HIV prevention tool box if we 

are going to end AIDS in the U.S. and around the globe. 

Conclusion: Historically, our Nation has made significant strides in responding to 

the HIV pandemic here at home and around the world, but years of flat funding 

is now causing us to lose ground, as funding priorities have shifted away from public health and research programs. We must seize the opportunity to limit the toll 

of this deadly infectious disease on our planet, to save the lives of millions who are 

infected or at risk of infection here in the U.S. and around the globe, and to realize 

the vision of an AIDS-free generation. 

[This statement was submitted by Jeanne Keruly, MS, CRNP, Johns Hopkins 

University, HIV Medicine Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE

HUMANE SOCIETY LEGISLATIVE FUND

On behalf of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and the Humane 

Society Legislative Fund (HSLF), we appreciate the opportunity to provide testimony on our top NIH funding priorities for the Senate Labor, Health and Human 

Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee in fiscal 

year 2015. 

CAPACITY AT THE NATIONAL CHIMPANZEE SANCTUARY FOR FEDERALLY OWNED

CHIMPANZEES RETIRED BY THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

The HSUS and HSLF request NIH be given authority to use $5 million of funds 

appropriated in this and subsequent appropriations bills for extramural construction 

and renovation within the National Chimpanzee Sanctuary System. In 2013, NIH 

announced their plan to retire hundreds of government owned chimpanzees to sanctuary. This decision followed years of scientific review which determined chimpanzees are not necessary for research. Additional sanctuary construction is needed 

to enable NIH to move forward with their plan to retire the vast majority of government owned chimpanzees to sanctuary. Even with upfront construction expenditures, transferring government owned chimpanzees from laboratories to sanctuaries 

will save significant taxpayer funds over the lifetimes of the chimpanzees due to the 

lower cost of sanctuary care. 

Further basis of our request can be found below. 

Background information 

In June of 2013, the National Institutes of Health announced their plan to retire 

all but 50 government-owned chimpanzees to sanctuary, significantly curtail the use 

of chimpanzees in NIH funded studies and not to revitalize breeding of chimpanzees 

for research. These decisions resulted from an Institute of Medicine study in 2011 

which found that chimpanzees are not necessary for the vast majority of research. 

Immediately following the announcement of the IOM study results, NIH accepted 

the findings and assembled a panel of experts to advise them on the best way to 

implement the IOM findings. NIH ultimately accepted nearly all of the expert panel’s recommendations in their final decision. 

Prior to announcing their plan, NIH had already begun the transfer of the 110 

government owned chimpanzees at the New Iberia Research Center in Louisiana to 

Chimp Haven (the National Chimpanzee Sanctuary), also located in Louisiana. The 

transfer is expected to be completed by the end of fiscal year 2014. At that point, 

approximately 350 government-owned chimpanzees will remain in laboratories—300 

of whom will be slated for retirement to sanctuary per NIH’s plan. 

In late November of 2013, the President signed into law amendments to the 

Chimpanzee Health Improvement Maintenance and Protection (CHIMP Act) which 

provided continued funding for the care, maintenance and transportation of federally owned chimpanzees over the next 5 years. These amendments have enabled 

NIH to use their funding judiciously by continuing to support chimpanzees in sanctuary and also set the stage for NIH to move forward with their plan to retire hundreds more chimpanzees. 

Costs in laboratories vs. sanctuary 

Accredited sanctuaries provide the highest welfare standards for chimps at a 

lower cost to taxpayers than housing chimpanzees in barren labs (see chart below). 

It is estimated that transferring the 300 government-owned chimpanzees who are 

slated for retirement from the laboratories where they are currently housed to the 

national sanctuary would save taxpayers anywhere from $1.7 million to $2.7 million 

per year in care and maintenance costs. 
499 

Construction to house more chimpanzees in sanctuary will require an upfront expenditure. However, due to the lower per diem cost in sanctuary, retiring chimpanzees to sanctuary will still yield a significant savings to taxpayers over the long 

term. The sooner the construction is completed and the chimpanzees are moved to 

sanctuary, the more the government will save over the lifetimes of the chimpanzees—which can be up to 60 years. 

Estimated Costs Related to Care and Maintenance of Government Owned Chimpanzees: 

Facility Number of 

chimpanzees 

NIH cost, 

millions in 

dollars/year 

NIH cost, 

$/chimpanzee/ 

day 

Government Owned Chimpanzees in Research Facilities and Research Reserve 

Facilities 

New Iberia Research Center ......................................................................... 1 2 59 3 1.01 4 46.7 

Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research ............................ 2 147 3 2.44 45.4 

Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research, DVR grant ......... 2 16 2 0.4 68.8 

Southwest National Primate Research Center, U42 grant 5 ........................ 2 22 3 0.65 80.9 

Alamogordo Primate Facility ......................................................................... 2 162 2 3.60 61.3 

Totals ................................................................................................... 406 8.10 6 54.7 

1 The remaining 59 chimpanzees at New Iberia Research Center are scheduled to be moved to Chimp Haven by the end of fiscal year 2014 2 Based on information available on NIH website regarding chimpanzee maintenance costs for fiscal year 2014 

3 Based on data available in NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools (RePORT) for fiscal year 2014 

4 Figure expected to increase significantly as chimpanzees move to Chimp Haven and funds are spread over fewer chimpanzees 

5 In addition to this grant, NIH also supports an additional 91 chimpanzees at the facility. These chimpanzees are owned by the laboratory 

and are not under the control of NIH. 6 Average total. 

Facility Number of 

chimpanzees 

NIH cost, 

millions in 

dollar/year 

NIH cost, 

$/animal/day 

Government Owned Chimpanzees in Sanctuary 

Chimp Haven ................................................................................................ 6 118–153 7 1.7 30–39 

6 Fifty chimpanzees from New Iberia Research Center were transferred to Chimp Haven during this contract year. 

7 Unlike the other facilities, Chimp Haven has a cost reimbursement contract in which they are reimbursed for costs incurred. This number represents actual costs billed to NIH over the most recently completed contract year (06/30/2012—06/29/2013) 

We respectfully request the subcommittee to consider the following language for 

inclusion in the appropriations bill: 

Of the funds appropriated to NIH, $5,000,000 shall be for grants or contracts for construction, renovation, or repair of the sanctuary system established by Section 

404K of the Public Health Service Act. 

We appreciate the opportunity to share our views for the Labor, Health and 

Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal year 

2015. We hope the Committee will be able to accommodate this request. Thank you 

for your consideration. 

HIGH THROUGHPUT SCREENING, TOXICITY PATHWAY PROFILING, AND BIOLOGICAL

INTERPRETATION OF FINDINGS

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH—OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

In 2008, NIH, NIEHS and EPA signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate with each other to identify and/or develop high throughput screening assays that investigate ‘‘toxicity pathways’’ that contribute to a variety of adverse 

health outcomes (e.g., from acute oral toxicity to long-term effects like cancer). In 

addition, the MOU recognized the necessity for these Federal research organizations 

to work with ‘‘acknowledged experts in different disciplines in the international scientific community.’’ Much progress has been made, including FDA joining the MOU, 

but there is still a significant amount of research, development and translational 

science needed to bring this vision forward to where it can be used with confidence 

for safety determinations by regulatory programs in the government and product 

stewardship programs in the private sector. In particular, there is a growing need 

to support research to develop the key science-based interpretation tools which will 

accelerate using 21st century approaches for predictive risk analysis. We believe the 

Office of the Director at NIH can play a leadership role for the entire US government by funding both extramural and intramural research. 

We respectfully request the following committee report language as a placeholder, 

which is supported by The HSUS, HSLF, and the American Chemistry Council. 
500 

NIH Director 

The Committee supports NIH’s leadership role in modernizing the approach for 

evaluating the safety of pharmaceuticals and chemicals based on the incorporation 

of advanced molecular biological and computational methods that envisions a move 

away from animal tests. NIH has indicated that development of this science is critical to several of its priorities, from personalized medicine to tackling specific diseases such as cancer and diabetes and including critical initiatives such as BRAIN 

and the National Center for Advancing Translational Science. The Committee encourages NIH to continue to expand both its intramural and extramural support for 

the use of human biology-based experimental and computational approaches in 

health research to further define human biology, disease pathways, and toxicity and 

to develop tools for their integration into clinical strategies and safety determination 

paradigms. Extramural and intramural funding should be made available for the 

development and evaluation of the relevance and reliability of human biology-based 

and pathway approaches and prediction tools to assure readiness and utility for regulatory and clinical applications, including pilot studies of pathway-based risk assessments. The Committee requests an update on current activities, a plan for future activities, and the fiscal year 2015 funding level for this area of research in 

the fiscal year 2016 congressional budget justification. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE INFECTIOUS DISEASES SOCIETY OF AMERICA’S

On behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), I am pleased to 

provide testimony in support of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 

(HHS) components that work to prevent, detect and treat infectious diseases (ID). 

IDSA represents more than 10,000 ID physicians and scientists devoted to patient 

care, prevention, public health, education, and research. As communicated to the 

full Senate Appropriations Committee through testimony for the record in advance 

of its April 29th hearing ‘‘Driving Innovation through Federal Investments,’’ IDSA 

recommends increased fiscal year 2015 Federal investments in public health and 

biomedical research to save lives, contain healthcare costs, and promote economic 

growth. More specifically, IDSA encourages the Subcommittee to provide a program 

level of $7.8 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as 

well as $32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). IDSA is particularly 

supportive of the proposed CDC Detect and Protect Against Antibiotic Resistance 

Initiative and requests that it be fully funded at $30 million. We ask that the Subcommittee also advance fiscal year 2015 appropriations that reflect the national security and public health significance of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). All of these investments are a necessary part of a 

Federal strategy to decrease the incidence and fatality of infectious diseases in our 

population. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

The ID community’s partnership with the CDC has never been more necessary, 

as we work to address the public health crisis of rising antibiotic resistance while 

continuing efforts in other important areas such as increasing immunization rates 

and slowing the spread of HIV. 

Last fall, CDC issued a report, Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States, 

2013 that for the first time ranked and detailed the threats posed by antibiotic resistant microbes. Conservative estimates reveal that more than two million Americans suffer antibiotic resistant infections each year, which result in approximately 

23,000 deaths. The actual numbers are likely far higher, as our surveillance and 

data collection capabilities cannot yet capture the full disease burden. These infections due to antibiotic resistant microbes cost tens of billions of dollars to the U.S. 

healthcare system annually, and the problem is worsening. The CDC recommended 

actions in four core areas to address the problem, including prevention, tracking, antibiotic stewardship, and development of new antibiotics and rapid diagnostics. The 

CDC has proposed fiscal year 2015 activities in each of these areas. 

National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID) 

The NCEZID plays a leading role in CDC efforts to address antibiotic resistance. 

As such, we ask that it be provided at least the $445 million requested by the Administration, including at least $30 million for the Detect and Protect Against Antibiotic Resistance Initiative. This initiative, which is supported by many stakeholders 

in the health community, would establish regional prevention collaboratives to implement best practices for antibiotic use and infection prevention, create a detection 

network of five regional labs to speed up identification of the most concerning 
501 

threats, improve antibiotic stewardship, and develop an isolate library that will help 

facilitate the development of desperately needed new antibiotics and diagnostics. 

The initiative directly addresses the recommended actions from the CDC 2013 report. The CDC projects that over 5 years the initiative will lead to a 50 percent reduction in health-care associated Clostridium difficile (C. diff), 50 percent decline in 

health-care associated carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), 30 percent 

decline in invasive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), 30 percent 

decline in health-care associated drug-resistant Pseudomonas sp., and 25 percent reduction in drug-resistant Salmonella infections. These bacteria claim thousands of 

lives annually. CRE, for one, have become resistant to all or nearly all currently 

available antibiotics. Further, nearly 50 percent of those who develop bloodstream 

infections from CRE die. 

IDSA and numerous other stakeholders support the proposed $14 million increase 

for the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), which would increase the 

number of healthcare facilities reporting antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance 

data and would develop and evaluate new infection prevention strategies. 

IDSA thanks Congress for funding the Advanced Molecular Detection (AMD) initiative in fiscal year 2014 and recommends that at least $30 million be allocated 

for it in fiscal year 2015. AMD strengthens CDC’s molecular sequencing tools and 

bioinformatics capacity to more rapidly and accurately detect infectious diseases and 

resistance. 

A recent World Health Organization report on antimicrobial resistance reiterates 

that we are in the midst of a public health crisis that is impacting all regions of 

the world and requires immediate action on the part of governments and society. 

IDSA applauds the Administration for launching a Global Health Security Agenda, 

which would strengthen the capacity of nations to prevent, detect and slow the 

spread of infectious diseases across borders, simultaneously reducing threats to the 

United States. We ask that you provide the initiative with funding allocated in the 

fiscal year 2015 PBR. 

National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) 

We know that vaccines are among the most cost-effective clinical preventative 

services. However, according to the February 2014 CDC Morbidity and Mortality 

Weekly Report (MMWR), adult immunization rates remain low for most routinely 

recommended vaccines and considerably short of Healthy People 2020 targets. Each 

year in the United States, more than 40,000 adults die from illnesses that are preventable through vaccination. 

IDSA opposes the $51 million program level reduction to the CDC Immunization 

Grant Program (Section 317) contained in the PBR. Although the Affordable Care 

Act requires insurers to cover immunizations, this alone will not guarantee access 

or utilization. The Section 317 funds are critical to help providers obtain and store 

vaccines; establish and maintain vaccine registries; as well as to educate providers 

and the public about vaccine recommendations, effectiveness and safety; and promote universal vaccination of healthcare workers. 

CDC plays a critical role in seasonal and pandemic influenza preparedness and 

response, including conducting important surveillance activities that better inform 

response efforts and providing public communications regarding influenza prevention and treatment. Lack of sufficient funding for these efforts could lead to an increased incidence and severity of influenza, as well as increased hospitalization 

costs and mortality. In the long term, continuously funded efforts will be more costeffective than the periodic emergency supplemental funding approach that historically has been used to fund such efforts. IDSA supports the proposed fiscal year 

2015 increase of $15 million for these efforts. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) 

Within NIH, we believe that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) should be funded at least at the $4.58 billion requested by the Administration in the fiscal year 2014 PBR. Nearly flat-funding NIAID limits investment in new research and serves as a disincentive for young people to pursue ID 

research careers so critical to the discovery of new therapies, new diagnostic approaches, and new preventive strategies. 

The NIAID recently began funding a new clinical trials network focused on antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. With sufficient funding, the new research network/infrastructure will conduct critical studies to address antibiotic resistance as 

well as begin to answer questions that will help fill the nearly empty antibiotic R&D 

pipeline. Severe economic disincentives have caused a mass exodus of private com-
502 

panies from the antibiotics market, making federally funded research in this area 

more critical than ever. An IDSA report issued in April 2013 identified only seven 

new drugs in development for the treatment of infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacilli (GNB). The Transatlantic Task Force on Antimicrobial 

Resistance (TATFAR) also recently issued a report, which identified the broken 

pipeline of new antibacterial drugs as a key obstacle in dealing with resistance. The 

TATFAR report highlighted NIAID support of clinical research aimed at filling gaps 

in drug R&D and lowering the associated economic risk to industry. We applaud 

NIAID’s initiative in launching the new network. However, IDSA recommends increased investment in this area. 

A recent IDSA report, Better Tests, Better Care: Improved Diagnostics for Infectious Diseases, highlighted the need for advancements in diagnostic tools to address 

bacterial, viral and fungal infections and recommends strengthened NIAID funding 

for this priority. Faster, more accurate diagnostics lead to better treatments and improved patient outcomes. In addition, new diagnostics are needed to identify patients with highly contagious illnesses so that containment and prevention measures 

can be undertaken. Diagnostics can improve physicians’ ability to discern which infections need antibiotics, and thereby help reduce the unnecessary use of antibiotics 

that drives the development of antibiotic resistance. 

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE (ASPR)

Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) 

ASPR plays a key leadership role in coordinating Federal efforts to sufficiently 

protect the Nation from biothreats, pandemics and emerging infections. IDSA recommends increased funding for BARDA, which has been flat-funded for several 

years. Additional investment in medical countermeasure development is critical to 

prepare for both intentional attacks and naturally emerging infections. BARDA is 

a critical source of funding for public-private collaborations for antibiotic, diagnostic 

and vaccine R&D. 

We ask that the Subcommittee move forward with a sense of urgency to bolster 

Federal initiatives aimed at dealing with issues such as antimicrobial resistance, 

antibiotics and rapid diagnostics R&D, adult immunizations, and biodefense. The 

appropriation of sufficient fiscal year 2015 resources to address ID issues is a necessary complement to efforts that are currently underway within the Senate and 

House authorizing committees. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit this statement on behalf of the Nation’s 

ID physicians and scientists. Please forward any questions to Jonathan Nurse. 

[This statement was submitted by Jonathan Nurse, Director, Government Relations, Public Policy and Government Relations, Infectious Diseases Society of America.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR FUNCTIONAL

GASTROINTESTINAL DISORDERS

—$32 Billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at an increase of $1 billion over fiscal year 2012. Increase funding for the National Cancer Institute 

(NCI), The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases 

(NIDDK) and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) 

by 12 percent. 

—Continue focus on Digestive Disease Research and Education at NIH, Including), Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Fecal Incontinence Gastroesophageal 

Reflux Disease (Gerd) Gastroparesis, and Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome (CVS). 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders (IFFGD) regarding the importance of 

functional gastrointestinal and motility disorders (FGIMD) research. Established in 

1991, IFFGD is a patient-driven nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting individuals affected by FGMIDs, and providing education and support for patients, 

healthcare providers, and the public. IFFGD also works to advance critical research 

on FGIMDs in order to develop better treatment options and to eventually find 

cures. IFFGD has worked closely with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on 

many priorities, and I served on the National Commission on Digestive Diseases 

(NCDD), which released a long-range plan in 2009, entitled Opportunities and Challenges in Digestive Diseases Research: Recommendations of the National Commission on Digestive Diseases. 
503 

The need for increased research, more effective and efficient treatments, and the 

hope for discovering a cure for FGIMDs are close to my heart. My own experiences 

of suffering from FGIMDs motivated me to establish IFFGD, and I was shocked to 

discover that despite the high prevalence of FGIMDs among all demographic groups, 

such a lack of research existed. This translates into a dearth of diagnostic tools, 

treatments, and patient supports. Even more shocking is the lack of awareness 

among the medical community and the public, leading to significant delays in diagnosis, frequent misdiagnosis, and inappropriate treatments including unnecessary 

surgery. Most FGIMDs have no cure and limited treatment options, so patients face 

a lifetime of chronic disease management. The costs associated with these diseases 

range from $25–$30 billion annually; economic costs are also reflected in work absenteeism and lost productivity. 

IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME

IBS affects 30 to 45 million Americans, conservatively at least 1 out of every 10 

people. It is a chronic disease that causes abdominal pain and discomfort associated 

with a change in bowel pattern, such as diarrhea and/or constipation. As a ‘‘functional disorder,’’ IBS affects the way the muscles and nerves work, but the bowel 

does not appear to be damaged on medical tests. Without a diagnostic test, IBS 

often goes undiagnosed or misdiagnosed for years. Even after IBS is identified, 

treatment options are limited and vary from patient to patient. Due to persistent 

pain and bowel unpredictability, individuals may distance themselves from social 

events and work. Stigma surrounding bowel habits may act as barrier to treatment, 

as patients are not comfortable discussing their symptoms with doctors. Many people also dismiss their symptoms or attempt to self-medicate with over-the-counter 

medications. Outreach to physicians and the general public remain critical to overcome these barriers to treatment and assist patients. 

FECAL INCONTINENCE

At least 12 million Americans suffer from fecal incontinence. Incontinence crosses 

all age groups, but is more common among women and the elderly of both sexes. 

Often it is associated with neurological diseases, cancer treatments, spinal cord injuries, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, prostate cancer, colon cancer, and uterine cancer. 

Causes of fecal incontinence include: damage to the anal sphincter muscles, damage 

to the nerves of the anal sphincter muscles or the rectum, loss of storage capacity 

in the rectum, diarrhea, or pelvic floor dysfunction. People may feel ashamed or humiliated, and most attempt to hide the problem for as long as possible. Some don’t 

want to leave the house in fear they might have an accident in public; they withdraw from friends and family, and often limit work or education efforts. Incontinence in the elderly is the primary reason for nursing home admissions, an already 

significant social and economic burden in our aging population. In 2002, IFFGD 

sponsored a consensus conference entitled, Advancing the Treatment of Fecal and 

Urinary Incontinence Through Research: Trial Design, Outcome Measures, and Research Priorities. IFFGD also collaborated with NIH on the NIH State-of-theScience Conference on the Prevention of Fecal and Urinary Incontinence in Adults 

in 2007. 

NIDDK recently launched a Bowel Control Awareness Campaign (BCAC) that 

provides resources for healthcare providers, information about clinical trials, and advice for individuals suffering from bowel control issues. The BCAC is an important 

step in reaching out to patients, and we encourage continued support for this campaign. Further research on fecal incontinence is critical to improve patient quality 

of life and implement the research goals of the NCDD. 

GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX DISEASE

GERD is a common disorder which results from the back-flow of stomach contents 

into the esophagus. GERD is often accompanied by chronic heartburn and acid regurgitation, but sometimes the presence of GERD is only revealed when dangerous 

complications become evident. There are treatment options available, but they are 

not always effective and may lead to serious side effects. Gastroesophageal reflux 

(GER) affects as many as one-third of all full term infants born in America each 

year and even more premature infants. GER results from immature upper gastrointestinal motor development. Up to 8 percent of children and adolescents will have 

GER or GERD due to lower esophageal sphincter dysfunction and may require longterm treatment. 
504 

GASTROPARESIS

Gastroparesis, or delayed gastric emptying, refers to a stomach that empties slowly. Gastroparesis is characterized by symptoms from the delayed emptying of food, 

namely: bloating, nausea, vomiting, or feeling full after eating only a small amount 

of food. Gastroparesis can occur as a result of several conditions, and is present in 

30 percent to 50 percent of patients with diabetes mellitus. A person with diabetic 

gastroparesis may have episodes of high and low blood sugar levels due to the unpredictable emptying of food from the stomach, leading to diabetic complications. 

Other causes of gastroparesis include Parkinson’s disease and some medications. In 

many patients the cause cannot be found and the disorder is termed idiopathic 

gastroparesis. 

CYCLIC VOMITING SYNDROME

CVS is a disorder with recurrent episodes of severe nausea and vomiting interspersed with symptom free periods. The periods of intense, persistent nausea and 

vomiting, accompanied by abdominal pain, prostration, and lethargy, last hours to 

days. Previously thought to occur primarily in pediatric populations, it is increasingly understood that this crippling syndrome can occur in many age groups, including adults. CVS patients often go for years without correct diagnosis. CVS leads to 

significant time lost from school and from work, as well as substantial medical morbidity. The cause of CVS is not known. Research is needed to help identify at-risk 

individuals and develop more effective treatment strategies. 

SUPPORT FOR CRITICAL RESEARCH

IFFGD urges Congress to fund the NIH at level of $32 billion for fiscal year 2015. 

Strengthening and preserving our Nation’s biomedical research enterprise fosters 

economic growth and supports innovations that enhance the health and well-being 

of the Nation. Concurrent with overall NIH funding, IFFGD supports the growth 

of research activities on FGIMDs to strengthen the medical knowledge base and improve treatment, particularly through the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Such support would expedite the implementation of recommendations from the NCDD. It is also vital for NIDDK to work with 

the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to expand 

its research on the impact FGIMDs have on pediatric populations. Following years 

of near level-funding, research has been negatively impacted across all NIH Institutes and Centers. Without additional funding, medical researchers run the risk of 

losing promising research opportunities that could benefit patients. 

We applaud the recent establishment of the National Center for Advancing 

Translational Sciences (NCATS) at NIH. Initiatives like the Cures Acceleration Network are critical to overhauling the translational research process and overcoming 

the challenges that plague treatment development. In addition, new efforts like taking the lead on drug repurposement hold the potential to speed new treatment to 

patients. We ask that you support NCATS and provide adequate resources for the 

Center in fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present these views on behalf of the FGIMD 

community. 

[This statement was submitted by Nancy J. Norton, President and Co-Founder, 

International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE INTERSTATE MINING COMPACT COMMISSION

We are writing in opposition to the fiscal year 2015 Budget Request for the Mine 

Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), which is part of the U.S. Department 

of Labor. In particular, we urge the Subcommittee to reject MSHA’s proposed defunding of the Assistance to States grant program pursuant to Section 503(a) of the 

Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977. Until fiscal year 2013, MSHA’s budget request 

for state grants was approximately $9 million, which approached the statutorily authorized level of $10 million, but still did not fully consider inflationary and programmatic increases being experienced by the states. In fiscal year 2015, based on 

a realignment of priorities, MSHA has once again chosen to zero out funding for 

state assistance grants as it did in fiscal year 2014. We urge the Subcommittee to 

restore funding to the statutorily authorized level of $10 million for state grants so 

that states are able to fully and effectively carry out their responsibilities under Sections 502 and 503 of the Act, including the training of our Nation’s miners. 
505 

The Interstate Mining Compact Commission is a multi-state governmental organization that represents the natural resource, environmental protection and mine 

safety and health interests of its 26 member states. The states are represented by 

their Governors who serve as Commissioners. 

IMCC is greatly appreciative of actions by Congress in January of this year as 

part of the Omnibus Appropriation bill for fiscal year 2014 to reject MSHA’s proposed elimination of funding for the state grants program and to restore funding 

at the fiscal year 2012 level of $8.4 million. Given that action and the clear message 

it sent about the importance of state mine safety programs, we had hoped the Administration would respond accordingly and include funding for these programs in 

its fiscal year 2015 proposed budget. Clearly, this did not happen and as such we 

appeal to your Subcommittee to once again restore funding for these vital miner 

health and safety programs. 

It should be kept in mind that, whereas MSHA over the years has narrowly interpreted Assistance to States grants as meaning ‘‘training grants’’ only, Section 503 

was structured to be much broader in scope and to stand as a separate and distinct 

part of the overall mine safety and health program. In the Conference Report that 

accompanied passage of the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, the 

conference committee noted that both the House and Senate bills provided for ‘‘Federal assistance to coal-producing States in developing and enforcing effective health 

and safety laws and regulations applicable to mines in the States and to promote 

Federal-State coordination and cooperation in improving health and safety conditions in the Nation’s coal mines.’’ (H.Conf. Report 91–761). The 1977 Amendments 

to the Mine Safety and Health Act expanded these assistance grants to both coal 

and metal/non-metal mines and increased the authorization for annual appropriations to $10 million. The training of miners was only one part of the obligation envisioned by Congress. 

With respect to the training component of our mine safety programs, IMCC’s 

member states are concerned that without full, stable funding of the State Grants 

Program, the federally required training for miners employed throughout the U.S. 

will greatly suffer. States have struggled to maintain efficient and effective miner 

training programs in spite of increased numbers of trainees and the incremental 

costs associated therewith. The situation has been further complicated by new statutory, regulatory and policy requirements that have grown out of the various reports 

and recommendations attending the Upper Big Branch investigation. In spite of all 

this, MSHA has chosen to eliminate funding completely for this critical component 

of its statutory obligations. In addition to state training programs, these assistance 

grants also support state mine rescue training programs, mine rescue competitions, 

EMT training, miner certifications, accident investigations and reporting, review 

and approval of company safety plans, and, for those states that operate more comprehensive mine safety and health programs (such as PA, WV, VA, OH, IL, AL, KY 

and OK), program administrative costs such as supplies, staff training, and travel. 

We can provide a breakdown of these costs at the Committee’s request. 

In MSHA’s budget justification document (at page 70), the agency states that: 

‘‘Training plays a critical role in preventing deaths, injuries, and illnesses on the 

job. By providing effective training, miners are able to recognize possible hazards 

and understand which procedures are safe to follow. MSHA will continue to increase 

visibility and emphasize on [sic] training, recognizing its critical role in reducing the 

number of injuries and fatalities in the mining community.’’ We are mystified about 

how MSHA intends to accomplish these stated objectives without the training and 

other programs that are provided by the states pursuant to the grants they receive 

from MSHA—as has been the case since the enactment of the Mine Safety and 

Health Act in 1969. 

By way of an explanation for the drastic cut to state grants, MSHA states on page 

72 of its budget justification document: ‘‘To meet the demand of the agency’s higher 

priority enforcement activities, MSHA will defund the program and shift the responsibility for training back to mine operators. Mine operators will be required to develop their own programs or contract these services. MSHA is transitioning to an 

updated training model, and will develop more of its own training curricula, exercises, and materials to assist mine operators with providing a complete training program to their employees. Consistent with existing statutory requirements, mine operators are required to ensure that employees have access to complete training programs.’’ 

While this idea of shifting training responsibilities and costs entirely to mine operators may have merit in limited cases, we are uncertain about the ability of the 

mining industry (especially small operators and contractors) to accommodate these 

new costs and suspect that any realignment of training responsibilities from the 

states to the industry will take considerable time and planning. Furthermore, our 
506 

experience over the past 35 years has demonstrated that the states are often in the 

best position to design and offer this training in a way that insures that the goals 

and objectives of Sections 502 and 503 of the Mine Safety and Health Act are adequately met. There is clear and tangible evidence of training programs offered by 

mine operators (or contractors on their behalf) falling well below what would be considered a minimum standard for these types of programs. Furthermore, there have 

never been any suggestions or allegations that the states are not already providing 

the necessary ‘‘training curricula, exercises and materials to assist mine operators 

with providing a complete training program’’. MSHA appears to be playing the 

‘‘training card’’ in its budget justification to duplicate the excellent work that has 

already been undertaken by the states in this area solely to increase funding for 

MSHA staff. 

There have been limited, and not particularly productive, discussions between 

MSHA and the states about the impacts this proposal will have on state training 

programs and other components of state mine safety and health programs, including 

any sort of transition away from how we are currently doing business. To propose 

such a dramatic shift without first working out the details with the states is inappropriate and a denigration of the role the states have played in protecting our Nation’s miners. Furthermore, to expect such a drastic change to occur within a single 

fiscal year is unrealistic and will only result in confusion and potential negative impacts to the availability and quality of miner training and the overall health and 

safety of miners. 

MSHA notes in its budget justification document that the State Grants Program 

trained 132,000 miners in 48 states and the Navajo Nation in fiscal year 2013, a 

year in which state grants were cut by 66 percent. While MSHA does not admit to 

what the elimination of this funding will mean for miner training, we believe the 

consequences could be debilitating. Examples of the direct impacts being reported 

by just some of the IMCC member states as a result of MSHA’s decision follow. 

More expanded information from each state is appended to this statement and we 

request that it be included in the record. The most recent accounting of the number 

of miners trained by the states (and whose training could be jeopardized by funding 

cuts) based on fiscal year 2012 reporting for coal and metal/nonmetal is as follows: 

—Kentucky: Trained or tested over 25,000 people. 

—Louisiana: 1,000 miners trained. 

—Alaska: 2,343 miners trained. 

—New Mexico: 2,265 miners trained. 

—Oklahoma: 5,000 miners trained. 

—Pennsylvania: 7,000 miners trained. 

—Ohio: 8,443 miners trained (including for mine rescue). 

—Colorado: 4,229 miners trained. 

—Arkansas: 2,000 miners trained. 

—Nevada: 2,700 miners trained. 

—North Carolina: 6,000—8,000 miners trained. 

—Maryland: 776 miners and contractors trained. 

—Arizona: 3,056 miners trained. 

—Virginia: 5,455 miners trained. 

Interestingly, while MSHA is proposing to eliminate funding for state training 

grants, it is proposing to increase funding by $2,800,000 and 18 FTEs for its Educational and Policy Development budget activity. This money will allegedly be used 

to transition from state grants to a ‘‘new training model’’ which will include new 

training curricula, materials and online courses, as well as monitoring operator 

training plans and instructors. From our perspective, this reflects an acknowledgement on MSHA’s part that the transition to a totally industry-lead training initiative will likely be fraught with difficulties. However, heavy-handed Federal oversight is not the solution to an effective training program. We have seen this type 

of approach fail in the past and assert that the training programs operated by the 

states have resulted in a higher level of success, as indicated by the significantly 

reduced rates of injuries and fatalities over the past several years. Congress has 

clearly understood this dynamic as well, appropriating the necessary moneys needed 

to preserve and enhance state training programs. It should also be kept in mind 

that effective training programs operated by the states, especially for small operators, are the first and best method to reduce accidents, injuries and fatalities in 

mines. On the other hand, enforcement often comes too late to be effective, and by 

its very nature is not preventative. We are hopeful that Congress will once again 

recognize these operational realities in fiscal year 2015 and turn back MSHA’s efforts to undercut these valuable programs. 

While we can appreciate MSHA’s desire to realign its resources to focus on inspection and enforcement, one of the most effective ways to insure miner health and 
507 

safety in the first place is through comprehensive and excellent training. The states 

have been in the forefront of providing this training for over 35 years and are best 

positioned to continue that work into the future. Furthermore, the Federal government’s relatively modest investment of money in supporting the states to handle 

this training has paid huge dividends in protecting lives and preventing injuries. 

The states are also able to provide these services more effectively and at a cost well 

below what it would cost MSHA to do so. 

As you consider our request to reject MSHA’s proposed cut and instead to increase 

MSHA’s budget for state assistance grants, please keep in mind that the states play 

a particularly critical role in providing special assistance to small mine operators 

(those coal mine operators who employ 50 or fewer miners or 20 or fewer miners 

in the metal/nonmetal area) in meeting their required training needs. This has been 

a particular focus in those states where metal/non-metal mining operations predominate. These are often small business operators who cannot afford to offer the comprehensive training that is required under Section 502 of the Mine Safety and 

Health Act. The states also provide specialized training to the Spanish-speaking 

communities in the western United States. 

The ‘‘yo-yo’’ effect of inconsistent funding for state assistance grants is having a 

debilitating effect on the way we do business. To run effective, meaningful programs, states need continuous, stable, reliable and sustainable funding from year 

to year. We greatly appreciate your efforts to make that happen. We also appreciate 

the opportunity to submit our views on MSHA’s fiscal year 2015 budget request. 

Please contact us for additional information or to answer any questions you may 

have. 

State Reports re Impacts from De-Funding of Assistance to States Grants Program 

In preparation for IMCC’s presentation of this statement to the House and Senate 

Appropriations Committees, IMCC asked the states three questions, noted below. 

Responses from each of the reporting states are indicated. 

What do you anticipate the impacts to your state will be from the elimination of 

grant funding, including the number of miners who may not be trained? 

—Kentucky: These cuts will have a devastating effect on our program. Kentucky 

trains over 20,000 miners yearly. The money we get from MSHA pays our instructors’ salaries. 

—Louisiana: In Louisiana, the state training is performed through the Louisiana 

Technical Community College system. If the grant is eliminated, their mine 

safety training program would be completely eliminated, closing its doors on 

Sept 30, 2013, and laying off both of its employees. The program trains at least 

1,000 miners each year (886 miners from Oct 1, 2012 to present). 

—Alaska: Eliminating MSHA training funding potentially impacts each of the 

16,400 employees and thousands of owner/operators and contractors working in 

Alaska’s mining industry as of January 2013. Up to 2,600 students are MSHA 

trained and certified each year by the University of Alaska Mine and Petroleum 

Training Service (‘‘MAPTS’’). MAPTS is the MSHA training grant recipient in 

Alaska. MAPTS staff have pointed out that a loss of MSHA training grant funds 

will have a disparate impact on small mines located in more remote areas of 

Alaska. 

—New Mexico: In prior years the State of New Mexico, through New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, received $147,000 from MSHA that was used 

to train miners in NM to meet the regulatory requirements of 30 CFR Parts 

46 and 48 which are mandated training requirements for miners. We train over 

2,000 miners in NM yearly. Most of these miners are employed at small business operations in our state that cannot afford trainers at their small operations. In addition we provide Spanish language training to 200–300 miners 

yearly and are the only service available to Spanish-speaking miners in the 

State. 

—Oklahoma: The Oklahoma Miner Training Institute (OMTI) is funded in part 

with the state grant. Utilizing the funding provided, OMTI trains 5,000 miners 

annually in a variety of courses, such as New Miner and Annual Refresher, in 

accordance with 30 CFR Parts 46 and 48. Without the fully funded support that 

the state grant provides, the mining community in Oklahoma will be impacted. 

—Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania trains approximately 7,000 miners and contractors 

in the Anthracite, Bituminous and Industrial Minerals mines and facilities of 

the Commonwealth. This training is provided at no cost to the mining community by in-house staff, Pennsylvania State University and Schuylkill Vo-Tech. 

We also provide a mine rescue program for small coal and industrial minerals 

mines to comply with Federal mine rescue requirements and required EMT 
508 

training through Indiana University of PA at no cost to mine operators. Although a majority of large operators provide training for their employees to 

meet Federal requirements, small mine and facility operators and contractors 

rely on the MSHA grant for their training needs. Pennsylvania also relies on 

the MSHA grant to fund other aspects of our mine safety program. These include staff training, health and safety conferences, mine rescue contests, safety 

equipment, mine rescue supplies, and travel related to these functions. 

—Ohio: After reviewing our total surface training numbers for the year 2012, it 

would appear that 1,369 trainees would not have been trained if not for receiving funding from the States Grant program. 

—Colorado: The impact of the elimination of the MSHA training grant to the miners of Colorado and our training program will be acute. We trained 5,742 in fiscal year 11 and 4,316 in fiscal year 12. This includes, coal, metal, non-metal 

and contractors who serve the industry. The reduction would be 2,800—3,700 

miners not trained, including many that receive training in Spanish. The reduction would be salaries and operating costs for two trainers. (The program has 

5 FTE total). 

—Arkansas: While it is difficult for a service provider to estimate the total impact 

on our state from the elimination of grant funding, we can address how it will 

impact our ability to provide the mandatory training to the miners and contractors who have utilized our services for years. While the Arkansas MSHA State 

Training Program has been proactive in trying to maintain the program and 

continuing to provide effective training to those requesting our service, it has 

become increasingly difficult to recover the cost for salaries, state match and 

travel for the sufficient number of staff needed to meet the demand, as well as 

the costs for maintaining training equipment and supplies. We have already 

eliminated one part-time position and raised our training fees, but feel confident 

that if we have to raise them again to generate the revenue needed to sustain 

the program, it will become a financial hardship on the small mining operations 

and contractors who are our primary clients. At the current rate, without raising fees, it is likely we would have to eliminate another part-time position, 

therefore decreasing our ability to provide the mandatory training to our clients 

requesting the service. Also, grant funds have been used for our staff to attend 

national and state MSHA conferences and training events. This would have to 

be completely eliminated. The Arkansas MSHA State Training Program trains 

an average of 2,000 individual miners and contractors each year. We have been 

providing new miner, annual refresher, and first aid training. 

—North Carolina: If State Grant funding is eliminated, we would be reducing our 

staff of 6 to a staff of 2 based on our state appropriations and the fact we would 

not be awarded any additional appropriations. I would estimate there would be 

6,000 miners we would not be able to provide training for based on previous 

number of miners and contractors trained. We average training at around 8,000 

miners per year. This would be a devastating burden on the small operators 

who rely on us to assist them with their safety and health programs. Not only 

will they have to pay a significant amount of money for future training but the 

quality of training will certainly be a concern. There are many private instructors who do not provide effective, quality training. The mining industry is experiencing the lowest incident rates ever, lowest amount of accidents, and a record 

low number of fatalities and we feel quality, effective training plays a major role 

with accident prevention. 

—Maryland: The elimination of the MSHA training grant will be the elimination 

of the training program in Maryland. Small operators and contractors will have 

no training. While the national and international companies have their own 

training programs they still rely on the state to provide training to contractors 

and often attend statewide forums sponsored by the State Program. 

—Virginia: Eliminating the MSHA state training funds would negatively affect 

the quality of mine safety training in Virginia and the quantity of assistance 

the DM and the DMM provide to small operators and their work force. In particular, the DM’s Small Mine Safety Service (which is dedicated to assisting the 

small mine operators) would be adversely impacted. 

Small operators and contractors would be immediately affected through any reduction in the state’s ability to provide mine safety training. Loss of funding would 

also impact ongoing training opportunities for our training staff, and the development of site-specific training materials, as well as purchase of supplemental training materials, now being offered to mine operators. 
509 

To what extent will the mining in your state be able to ‘‘develop their own programs 

or contract these services’’? How long do you anticipate this would take? 

—Kentucky: The majority of our mines involve small mines and have no trainers. 

The small mines send their employees to our Office of Mine Safety and Licensing to receive quality training free of charge. These miners will have to pay a 

private instructor and in turn receive inadequate training and in some cases 

will receive no training at all. We’ve seen many problems in the past with some 

private instructors not conducting adequate training and they have been reported to the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission for sanctions. 

—Louisiana: In the absence of our state training program, the mining industry 

would have to return to ‘‘fending for themselves’’ to train its miners, resulting 

in an increased cost to industry and possibly lower quality of training for individual miners. 

—Alaska: The majority of mines in Alaska are small operations with less than 

10 employees that do not have the resources or capabilities to develop and 

maintain their own training and certification systems. It is uncertain how long 

it may take to develop programs or contract MSHA training services. At this 

point, there are no MSHA training providers other than MAPTS consistently 

available for small mines in Alaska. 

—Oklahoma: The training OMTI provides serves all of the mining industry, in 

particular the smaller mining operations. Without the training courses offered, 

the smaller mine sites are most susceptible to see increased costs and lack of 

fully trained miners as required in 30 CFR Parts 46 and 48. 

—Pennsylvania: Without the MSHA funding, small operators will have to either 

conduct their own training or use training contractors. Penn State University 

and Schuylkill Vo-Tech have established a reputation and trust with the operators with a no fee option. If the operators wish to continue this arrangement, 

a significant cost per student must be absorbed by the operators. The quality 

of training provided by the PA Bureau of Mine Safety, Pennsylvania State University, Schuylkill Vo-Tech and Indiana University of PA is very high and loss 

of this program will have a negative impact on miner safety. It will also impact 

Pennsylvania’s ability to maintain its world class mine safety program and ability to support program functions identified above. One example: Federal law requires all mine rescue teams to attend at least two competitions each year, with 

the states supporting this requirement by holding and supporting these contests. With state budgets shrinking, the ability to support these contests without Federal funding is in jeopardy. 

—Ohio: From past experience, the larger mining companies could deal with developing their own programs and could contract out these services if needed. The 

smaller companies and contract miners would be the ones who either would be 

left out, or would struggle with maintaining their training programs. As far as 

the time it would take for these companies and contractors to assume total responsibility for complying with MSHA’s training law standards, it would take 

a considerable amount of time. 

—Colorado: The reduction in support of mine training particularly affects the medium and small operators who make up 95 percent of the mining operations in 

Colorado. This severely reduces the affect we can all have on preventing accidents and injuries BEFORE they become a major incident. Unfortunately, this 

will leave many operators with few resources for safety and health and result 

in an increase in MSHA enforcement inspection time, citations, and most unfortunately, a likely increase in injury and accident rates in our state. 

—Arkansas: Since the Arkansas MSHA State Training Program places emphasis 

on assisting small mining operations and contractors, we are aware that most 

of these companies are neither staffed nor equipped to provide effective training; whereas, the State Grant staff has multiple years of combined training experience. Small companies are at a distinct disadvantage in the area of providing their own training. 

—North Carolina: Many small operators will not have the resources to develop 

their own programs adequately. Many of them would not know how to develop 

lesson plans, outlines, and have the time or resources to prepare a training program. They would have to contract their training out to consultants. Mine safety training was geared to be site-specific and company-specific which is how we 

prepare for our classes for mining operations. Consultants will use a ‘‘canned 

program’’ and there are quality control concerns with a canned program. We 

know of operators who also rely on on-line training and the miners do not like 

it because there is no interaction or discussion taking place with on-line training. In terms of how long it will take for an operator to implement its own safety and health training program—probably at least a year or longer. 
510 

—Maryland: There is no ability for the small operators, many of whom don’t even 

know they need the training until the state advises them, or contractors to provide safety training. Our most frequent calls are from contractors looking to bid 

work but who have limited safety training and generally do not know where to 

go to obtain it. 

—Virginia: Many larger mining companies already have the infrastructure to 

meet these obligations and do. The true impact of MSHA’s decision to eliminate 

this program will again, fall on the small operators, who have for years depended on the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy (DMME) to assist 

them in meeting their training obligations required by state and Federal regulations. Most small operators will rely on contractors to provide the required 

training. As a consequence the quality of training may suffer. 

—New Mexico: If the New Mexico grants program is not available to our small 

businesses in our Part 46 (sand and gravel or aggregate) industries, the quality 

of annual refresher and new miner training would suffer. I believe the alternative will be that a crusher foreman or pit foreman will be assigned to provide 

the training. This individual will likely have little training experience and even 

less interest in providing the training. 

What other unanticipated consequences from the elimination of state grant funding 

might there be, particularly with respect to miner safety and health? 

—Kentucky: In our opinion the miners will be the ones to suffer most. They will 

have to pay for the classes, they will not get adequate training, and the end 

result will be an increase in mine fatalities. 

—Louisiana: It strikes us as particularly unfortunate that MSHA would choose 

this route of cost savings given that many fatalities are found to have insufficient training as a root cause. 

—Alaska: Eliminating training funding is expected to lead to an increase in mining accidents and creates an artificial need for increased enforcement on mine 

sites. Reduced MSHA-supported training will damage the evolution of safety 

culture improvements in the mining industry. Focusing solely on enforcement 

is likely to further deteriorate individual attitudes toward MSHA and voluntary 

compliance with MSHA requirements. 

—New Mexico: The Mine Act of 1977 was very specific in Sections 502 and 503 

regarding the requirement to train miners and to fund state programs to meet 

the requirements of the Act. We are a small organization that uses our funding 

wisely to provide low cost training services to small business and non-English 

speaking miners in our state. We believe this to be an efficient use of these 

funds to educate our miners, thereby providing good paying jobs in a safer environment. 

—Pennsylvania: There is no question that cutting the State Grant Program goes 

against the intent of Congress, but more important it will have a negative impact on the health and safety of our Nation’s miners. Every MSHA accident investigation report highlights the need for quality training to eliminate and reduce accidents. Not funding the State Grant Program at the maximum amount 

($10,000,000) is misguided and wrong and will impact our ability to see that 

all workers go home to their families at the end of each work shift. 

—Ohio: For smaller mines and with the contract miners, their safety training 

would suffer, thus causing a potential increase in mining accidents and serious 

injuries. 

—Colorado: Like other states, we maintain a unique and trusting relationship 

with our mine operators and contractors through regular contact, assistance 

(such as safety audits, etc.) and education and training. We can quickly access 

and update our mining community regarding the wide range of regulatory requirements, technological improvements in mine safety and sharing of mine 

health and safety resources. The state program is the gold standard for providing effective and innovative mine health and safety training and training 

mine employees and contractors to effectively train their own employees. 

—Arkansas: We believe we will see accidents trend upward. The training provided 

by the Arkansas MSHA State Training Program has proven to have an impact 

on reduction in accidents; the statistics reveal that the companies who utilize 

the State services for their training needs have fewer accidents than the companies who have chosen to go another route to obtain their training. Also, company training might not be comprehensive in certain areas, such as miners’ 

statutory rights, including the right to be provided a safe working environment 

and the right to refuse to perform unsafe tasks. The State Training program 

provides comprehensive training that supports accident prevention by focusing 

on eliminating unsafe practices and conditions that contribute to accidents. 
511 

State training reinforces miner knowledge of safe work behavior and encourages 

safe work practices, as well as increasing their knowledge in identifying an unsafe work environment as detailed in the Code of Federal Regulations. In addition to training, the State Training staff receives constant e-mails and phone 

calls regarding safety and health issues. Many of the companies and/or individuals the State Grants staff have worked with over the years are not comfortable 

going directly to Federal MSHA with questions or concerns; whereas, the State 

has developed a cooperative relationship that has proven mutually beneficial. 

—North Carolina: Impacts would include not being available to provide special 

emphasis projects such as mock drills, mine safety and health law seminars, annual mine safety and health state conferences, explosives safety courses, and 

not being able to properly prepare training programs geared to site-specific 

needs of mining operations. Training plan assistance will not be provided. Fatalities, accidents, and incident rates will be on the rise because of ineffective 

training. 

—Maryland: Impacts would be to lessen the awareness and importance of safety 

in day to day work situations. Small operators often perform multiple tasks and 

may not take time to think through a situation such as electrical disconnects 

on conveyors or repair of faulty wiring. In addition, the state program goes beyond MSHA and provides CPR training and warning signs of heat stroke, fatigue and other health related issues. Also, individual contractors may not get 

other safety training as required at a small operation. 

—Virginia: Our most valuable resource, the miner, will be affected the most due 

to the lack of effective training. Statistics show that, without the proper training, the potential for mining accidents and serious injury does increase significantly. An increase in unsafe acts and conditions, especially at smaller mining 

operations and with independent contractors, could certainly result in more accidents and injuries to miners and workers. 

The increase in unsafe acts and conditions could also increase enforcement action 

by MSHA and the resulting financial burden could potentially drive many small operators out of business. 

—New Mexico: Our number one priority will be to try to continue the training 

of our states miners using our State funds. This means that we will be unable 

to fulfill certain functions that we have addressed in the past. These include 

helping with mine rescue competitions, completing all of our regulatory responsibilities and ensuring interaction with operators on issues such as compliance 

assistance. 

ADDENDUM FROM VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF MINES, MINERALS AND ENERGY

Our State (Virginia) supports the statement submitted today by the Interstate 

Mining Compact Commission, of which we are a member, concerning the fiscal year 

2015 proposed budget for the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) 

which urges Congress to appropriate $10 million for State assistance grants pursuant to Section 503 of the Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977. 

This addendum was submitted by Bradley C. (Butch) Lambert, Deputy Director, 

Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. 

[This statement was submitted by Gregory E. Conrad, Executive Director, Interstate Mining Compact Commission.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE INTERSTITIAL CYSTITIS ASSOCIATION

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015

—$660,00 for the IC education and Awareness Program at the Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention (CDC). 

—$7.8 billion for CDC. 

—$32 billion for the National institutes of Health (NIH) and Proportional Increases Across All Institutes and Centers. 

—Support for NIH Research on IC, including the Multidisciplinary Approach to 

the Study of Chronic Pelvic Pain (MAPP) Research Network. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the Interstitial Cystitis Association (ICA) regarding interstitial cystitis (IC) public awareness and research. 

ICA was founded in 1984 and is the only nonprofit organization dedicated to im-
512 

proving the lives of those affected by IC. The Association provides an important avenue for advocacy, research, and education. Since its founding, ICA has acted as a 

voice for those living with IC, enabling support groups and empowering patients. 

ICA advocates for the expansion of the IC knowledge-base and the development of 

new treatments. ICA also works to educate patients, healthcare providers, and the 

public at large about IC. 

IC is a condition that consists of recurring pelvic pain, pressure, or discomfort in 

the bladder and pelvic region. It is often associated with urinary frequency and urgency. This condition may also be referred to as painful bladder syndrome (PBS), 

bladder pain syndrome (BPS), and chronic pelvic pain (CPP). It is estimated that 

as many as 12 million Americans have IC symptoms. Approximately two-thirds of 

these patients are women, though this condition does severely impact the lives of 

as many as 4 million men. IC has been seen in children and many adults with IC 

report having experienced urinary problems during childhood. However, little is 

known about IC in children, and information on statistics, diagnostic tools and 

treatments specific to children with IC are limited. 

The exact cause of IC is unknown and there are few treatment options available. 

There is no diagnostic test for IC and diagnosis is made only after excluding other 

urinary/bladder conditions. It is not uncommon for patients to experience one or 

more years delay between the onset of symptoms and a diagnosis of IC. This is exacerbated when healthcare providers are not properly educated about IC. 

The effects of IC are pervasive and insidious, damaging work life, psychological 

well-being, personal relationships, and general health. The impact of IC on quality 

of life is equally as severe as rheumatoid arthritis and end-stage renal disease. 

Health-related quality of life in women with IC is worse than in women with endometriosis, vulvodynia, and overactive bladder. IC patients have significantly more 

sleep dysfunction, and higher rates of depression, anxiety, and sexual dysfunction. 

Some studies suggest that certain conditions occur more commonly in people with 

IC than in the general population. These conditions include allergies, irritable bowel 

syndrome, endometriosis, vulvodynia, fibromyalgia, and migraine headaches. Chronic fatigue syndrome, pelvic floor dysfunction, and Sjogren’s syndrome have also been 

reported. 

IC PUBLIC AWARENESS AND EDUCATION THROUGH CDC

The IC Education and Awareness Program at CDC is critical to improving public 

and provider awareness of this devastating disease, reducing the time to diagnosis 

for patients, and disseminating information on pain management and IC treatment 

options. 

The IC program has utilized opportunities with charitable organizations to leverage funds and maximize public outreach. Such outreach includes public service announcements in major markets and the Internet, as well as a billboard campaign 

along major highways across the country. The IC program has also made information on IC available to patients and the public though videos, booklets, publications, 

presentations, educational kits, websites, self-management tools, webinars, blogs, 

and social media communities such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. For 

healthcare providers, this program has included the development of a continuing 

medical education module, targeted mailings, and exhibits at national medical conferences. 

The CDC IC Education and Awareness Program also provides patient support 

that empowers patients to self-advocate for their care. Many physicians are hesitant 

to treat IC patients because of the time it takes to treat the condition and the lack 

of answers available. Further, IC patients may try numerous potential therapies, including alternative and complementary medicine, before finding an approach that 

works for them. For this reason, it is especially critical for the IC program to provide patients with information about what they can do to manage this painful condition and lead a normal life. 

ICA recommends a specific appropriation of $660,000 in fiscal year 2015 for the 

CDC IC Education and Awareness Program. ICA also recommends an appropriation 

of $7.8 billion for CDC, as well as continued support for the National Center for 

Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion which administers the IC program. 

IC RESEARCH THROUGH THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) maintains a robust research portfolio on 

IC with the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases 

(NIDDK) serving as the primary Institute for IC research. Research currently underway holds great promise to improving our understanding of IC and developing 
513 

better treatments and a cure. The NIDDK Multidisciplinary Approach to the Study 

of Chronic Pelvic Pain (MAPP) Research Network studies the underlying causes of 

chronic urological pain syndromes. The MAPP Study is now in its second phase and 

researchers hope to utilize gathered data on patient experiences with IC to identify 

different phenotypes of the disease. Phenotype information will ultimately allow 

physicians to prescribe treatments with more specificity. Research on chronic pain 

that is significant to the community is also supported by the National Institute of 

Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) as well as the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). Additionally, the NIH investigatorinitiated research portfolio continues to be an important mechanism for IC researchers to create new avenues for interdisciplinary research. 

ICA also supports the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences 

(NCATS), including the Cures Acceleration Network (CAN). Initiatives like CAN are 

critical to overhauling the translational research process and overcoming the research ‘‘valley of death’’ that currently plagues treatment development. In addition, 

drug repurposement and other efforts led by NCATS hold the potential to speed access to new treatment for patients. ICA encourages support for NCATS and the provision of adequate resources for the Center in fiscal year 2015. 

ICA recommends a funding level of $32 billion for NIH in fiscal year 2015. ICA 

also recommends continued support the MAPP Study administered by NIDDK. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the interstitial cystitis community. 

[This statement was submitted by Lee Claassen, Executive Director, Interstitial 

Cystitis Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE JAMESTOWN S’KLALLAM TRIBE

On behalf of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, I would like to thank you for this 

opportunity to submit this written testimony on fiscal year 2015 Appropriations for 

the Department of Health and Human Services. The Federal budget for Tribal 

health programs and services should reflect the U.S. Government’s commitment to 

honor and uphold its Treaty and Trust obligations to American Indians and Alaska 

Natives. When Tribal Governments are empowered through Self-Governance with 

the flexibility and resources to provide quality healthcare to their citizens, these investments hold tremendous promise for not only Tribal communities but for the 

communities that surround them. 

The Jamestown Family Health and Dental Clinics have demonstrated a real return on the Federal investment and reflect the tremendous potential Tribes have 

to not only reduce healthcare costs but to increase prevention and treatment services for their Tribal citizens. 

TRIBAL SPECIFIC HEALTH APPROPRIATION PRIORITIES

—Restore Sequestered Amounts/Exempt Indian Programs from Budget Reductions 

—Fully Fund Contract Support Costs—Separate Mandatory Appropriation 

—Budget Equity for Tribal Governments/Programs Accessible to Small Tribes 

—Medicare/Medicaid Reimbursement 

—Provide $30 Million for Part A Grants for Native Americans in the Older Americans Act—Title VI 

—Fund SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Tribal Prevention Grant Program at $50 

million—make sure programs are accessible to small Tribes 

NATIONAL HEALTH APPROPRIATION PRIORITIES

—Definition of Indian 

—Fully Fund the Implementation of ACA Inclusive of the IHCIA 

—Self-Governance Promotes Efficiency and the Effective Use of Federal Funds 

(Title VI of the ISDEAA 

REGIONAL/NATIONAL HEALTH APPROPRIATION PRIORITIES

Our Budget Request endorses the requests of The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, the Indian Health Service Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee and the National Congress of American Indians and the National Indian Health Board. 
514 

TRIBAL SPECIFIC PRIORITIES

Restore Sequestered Amounts/Exempt Indian Programs from Budget Reductions 

Despite the Federal trust obligation and the well documented and profound needs 

of Indian country, Tribal programs were subjected to sequestration and forced 

spending reductions. These budgetary reductions were devastating to our community and will drastically impede primary healthcare and disease prevention services 

for our Tribal citizens for years to come. Tribes should be afforded the same exemption from funding reductions that are in place for programs serving our Nations populations with the highest need, such as, Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, the 

Children’s Health Insurance Program and the Veteran’s Administration. 

Fully Fund Contract Support Costs (CSC) as Required by Law 

Adequate Contract Support Cost (CSC) funding assures that Tribes, under the authority of their Self-Governance compacts, have the resources necessary to administer and deliver the highest quality healthcare services to their members without 

sacrificing program services and funding. We urge you to consider turning CSC into 

a separate mandatory appropriation so that legally enforceable contractual obligations are not being funded at the expense of programmatic needs. 

Budget Equity for Tribal Governments/Programs Accessible to Small Tribes 

Budget inequity compromises our ability to adequately manage our health programs and services that we are providing on behalf of the Federal Government. 

When Tribes receive an equitable level of resources, we can address the physical, 

spiritual and mental well-being of our Tribal communities in a culturally appropriate manner. There are often inconsistencies in how formulas are calculated and 

funding is distributed for Tribal health programs. In addition, Grant opportunities 

often contain criteria and processes that give States and other interest groups preferential opportunities for awards. Small Tribes, such as ours, are often further disadvantaged when it comes to securing these opportunities. It is critical that Tribes 

receive equitable resources and equitable access to funding opportunities that allow 

Tribes to continue to address Tribally-determined levels of health and wellness for 

our communities. Grants provided through the Administration for Children and 

Families (ACF) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are critically important to our Tribe and we urge you to provide 

both equitable funding and opportunities for all Tribes within the confines of these 

programs. 

Medicare/Medicaid Reimbursement 

Federal funding for Medicaid/Medicare expansion is intended to reduce health disparities in our Tribal communities. Historic and persistent underfunding of the Indian healthcare system has limited the ability of Tribes to provide adequate health 

services that could prevent or reduce chronic health conditions in Native people. As 

a result, American Indians/Alaska Natives have a significantly worse health status 

compared to the rest of the Nation. 

Because we do not receive full Federal funding to address our unmet healthcare 

needs, Jamestown has been forced to use innovative approaches in order to provide 

better healthcare services to our Tribal citizens. Over 50 percent of our healthcare 

funding is Medicaid and Medicare and we use the revenue that is generated from 

these programs to provide essential health services to our Tribal citizens and their 

families. Any changes to the way we receive Medicare and Medicaid funding would 

negatively impact our ability to provide basic healthcare to our Tribal community 

and the surrounding non-Indian community. Our innovative approach to providing 

healthcare services is an effective and efficient use of the Federal investment. It allows us to leverage the Federal dollar to provide better health services to more of 

our Tribal citizens, reducing future healthcare costs by lessening the need for expensive chronic and emergency care. 

$30 Million—Part A Grants to Native Americans under Title VI of the Older Americans Act 

Programs under Title VI of the Older Americans Act are the primary funding vehicle for the provision of nutrition and other ancillary services to our Tribal Elders. 

Reducing isolation through community and cultural activities and ensuring our Elders receive proper nutrition and healthcare is a priority for our Tribe. Without the 

capacity to provide support services to our elders, our cultural traditions, and our 

language is at risk of being lost. 

The Jamestown S’Klallam Elders Meal Delivery Program has been around for 

more than 20 years. The Older Americans Act provides much needed funds to keep 

this program working for our community. Jamestown has used Federal funds to pre-
515 

pare and deliver well-balanced nutritional meals to our Elders that incorporate traditional foods, such as, elk and fish and use vegetables grown in our community garden. All of our elders are also given fresh fruit. These services are provided to all 

elders of Native heritage, and their spouses, within our service area. 

$50 Million—Behavioral Health Tribal Prevention Program 

American Indians and Alaska Natives have disproportionately higher rates of 

death related to alcohol and substance abuse and suicide. If funded, the Behavioral 

Health Tribal Prevention Grant will allow Tribes to provide behavioral health services that address substance abuse and suicide prevention and promote overall mental and emotional health. If funded, this would be the only grant program that is 

exclusively available for Tribes. 

NATIONAL HEALTH PRIORITIES

Definition of Indian 

The Administrations current interpretation of ‘‘Indian’’ in the Affordable Care Act 

(ACA) prevents certain IHS eligible persons from access to certain healthcare and 

services available to American Indians and Alaska Natives under the law. A technical amendment that uses the Center for Medicare and Medicaid definition of Indian will align the eligibility regulations and create consistency among all the Administrative agencies which will provide full access to healthcare for all American 

Indians and Alaska Natives. 

Fully Fund the Implementation of ACA Inclusive of the IHCIA 

The permanent reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act 

(IHCIA) within the ACA is the most significant advancement in Federal health policy for Tribes in decades. The purpose of the IHCIA is to promote healthcare parity 

for Indian Tribes by addressing deficiencies in health status and resources within 

the Indian health system. Funding for the IHCIA is a top budget priority. Although 

the IHCIA provides the authority and, with it, the opportunity to provide essential 

healthcare to Tribal citizens, it did not provide the necessary funds to the IHS to 

carry out these new statutory obligations. 

There are twenty three unfunded provisions in the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (IHCIA). Many of the provisions that remain unfunded would strengthen 

the Tribal healthcare workforce, provide greater access to behavioral health and 

support innovative initiatives for healthcare delivery to Tribal citizens. Funding 

these provisions is a necessary precursor to increase Tribal capacity, infrastructure 

and most importantly access to healthcare services. Significant Federal investment 

is needed to achieve a fully funded Indian Health Service and now is the time to 

act on opportunities made possible in the newly expanded authorities granted under 

the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. Given the unique mission of the IHS as 

a direct healthcare provider fulfilling a Federal trust responsibility, fully funding 

and implementing the ACA and IHCIA will elevate the health status and decrease 

the health disparities experienced by American Indians and Alaska Natives. 

Self-Governance—An Efficient and Effective Use of Federal Funds (Title VI of the 

ISDEAA) 

Self-Governance is the most successful policy in the history of Tribal—Federal relations and it inspires efficient and effective government spending. Through SelfGovernance, Tribes are empowered, as sovereign nations, to exercise self-determination and to design facilities, manage programs and funds, and provide services that 

are responsive to the needs of our communities and Tribal citizens. Tribes participating in Self-Governance have become successful in the business of healthcare and 

perform several key roles, serving as, governments, employers, healthcare providers 

and patients. 

Self-Governance Tribes have made every attempt to be innovative to operate successful health programs given the budget constraints and cuts Tribal programs have 

incurred the past two decades. For more than a decade we have made every effort 

to expand Self-Governance to other programs and our efforts to seek expansion of 

the program will continue until we achieve our goal. We request that this Committee recognizes the success of Self-Governance and encourage HHS to work with 

Tribes to make the most efficient and effective use of Federal appropriations to fund 

Tribal programs. 

Conclusion 

Thank you for the opportunity to provide this important testimony. We respectfully request that these Budget Priorities be included in the Appropriations for the 

fiscal year 2015 Tribal Health Programs Budget. 
516 

1 In the interest of disclosure, please be aware that I am the New York State Coordinator for 

VOR, a national organization that advocates for high quality care and human rights for people 

with intellectual and developmental disabilities. I am submitting this statement solely on my 

own behalf, and not as a representative of VOR, to share my family’s story and my personal 

views with you. 2 As CMS notes, Federal law and regulations continue to use the term ‘‘mentally retarded’’ 

and therefore CMS uses it in this formal description of these kinds of facilities; CMS otherwise 

prefers the term ‘‘individuals with intellectual disability.’’ 

[This statement was submitted by Hon. W. Ron Allen, Tribal Chairman/CEO, 

Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF MICHAEL KLURFELD

Members of the subcommittee, my name is Michael Klurfeld, and I am testifying 

to protect my twin sister, Jessica, and others like her who require active treatment 

in campus-based or other settings meeting the Federal standards for Intermediate 

Care Facilities for the Mentally Retarded (‘‘ICF/MR’’).1

Jessica has autism, intellectual disability, and a rare genetic disorder called Cornelia de Lange Syndrome. Not long after our thirteenth birthday, Jessica began having severe behavioral challenges, including physical aggression. For lack of an appropriate residential school in New York State, our school district sent her to outof-State nonpublic residential schools—first in Pennsylvania and then in New 

Hampshire. Though her education funding ended, she remains at the New Hampshire program awaiting repatriation by the New York State Office for People with 

Developmental Disabilities to an appropriate adult residential program in New 

York. 

In Jessica’s case, an appropriate placement is a campus-based ICF/MR—she is legally entitled to this as a Medicaid recipient. As explained by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid on the attached page from their website, ICF/MR is a benefit said 

to be offered by all States as an alternative to home and community-based services 

(‘‘HCBS’’) for individuals at the ICF/MR level of care—individuals in need of and 

receiving ‘‘active treatment.’’ 2 ‘‘Active treatment’’ is the key concept here: defined as 

‘‘a continuous, aggressive and consistent implementation of a program of specialized 

and generic training, treatment, and health or related services, directed toward 

helping the enrollee function with as much self-determination and independence as 

possible.’’ As CMS points out, ‘‘many ICF/MR residents work in the community, with 

supports, or participate in vocational or other activities outside of the residence, and 

engage in community interests of their choice.’’ ICF/MR services are provided only 

in licensed and certified residential facilities, providing quality control to protect the 

residents and financial controls over the expenditure of public funds—‘‘There are 

few resources similar to an ICF/MR under any payment source.’’ 

Although ‘‘States may not limit access to ICF/MR service, or make it subject to 

waiting lists, as they may for HCBS,’’ in reality access is drastically limited and, 

as a practical matter, virtually unavailable in many States. The States’ failure to 

provide these mandated services, in violation of the right of Medicaid recipients to 

choose ICF/MR over community-based waiver services, has been erroneously justified with the notion that deinstitutionalization is required by the Supreme Court’s 

1999 Olmstead decision—a gross misstatement of the holding in this important case. 

Far from requiring the closing of all institutions, or the denial of legally required 

ICF/MR services to those like Jessica who qualify for and require them, the Supreme Court in Olmstead said that ‘‘each disabled person is entitled to treatment 

in the most integrated setting possible for that person—recognizing on a case-bycase basis, that setting may be an institution’’ [emphasis added]. 

Ironically, HHS brandishes Olmstead as a tool to force people with Intellectual 

and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) to live in what they call ‘‘integrated settings,’’ 

often disregarding both the peoples’ needs and choices. In a Kafkaesque fashion, 

HHS often brings lawsuits against institutions that it funds—beyond belittling the 

needs and choices of people with I/DD, these egregious lawsuits waste Federal funds 

because, essentially, HHS is suing itself. 

So for the reasons above and for reasons I will explain further, I ask the Senate 

to adopt the following language regarding HHS appropriations: 

No funds appropriated for any Department of Health and Human Services program shall be expended to promote any law or policy that limits the choices of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (or, if an individual has a 

legal representative, the legal representative), seeking living arrangements they believe are most suitable to their needs and wishes. 
517 

First and foremost, HHS’ fallaciously named ‘‘Olmstead enforcement’’ goes against 

much of what the Supreme Court said in its ruling while ignoring the circumstances 

of the case. The plaintiffs in Olmstead were two women who ‘‘alleged that defendants-petitioners, Georgia healthcare officials, failed to afford them minimally adequate care and freedom from undue restraint, in violation of their rights under the 

Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.’’ 

The Supreme Court found that the women’s rights had in fact been violated, but 

not solely because they were in an institutional setting: 

We emphasize that nothing in the Americans with Disabilities Act or its implementing regulations condones termination of institutional settings for persons unable to handle or benefit from community settings . . . Nor is there any Federal 

requirement that community-based treatment be imposed on patients who do not 

desire it.’’ 

HHS seems to have largely ignored this language, for if they hadn’t, Olmstead enforcement would be entirely different. Olmstead enforcement, properly implemented, 

would be limited to helping people like the plaintiffs in that case who were institutionalized against their wills without due process. But instead, HHS spends taxpayer money in attempts to shut down the facilities to which my sister and people 

like her are legally entitled under the law, which they have chosen (as is their 

right), and which HHS itself funds. Nothing in Olmstead requires—or even authorizes—HHS to deprive Medicaid recipients with I/DD from choosing to receive the 

‘‘active treatment’’ to which they are entitled in the ‘‘institutional’’ setting of an ICF/ 

MR, and HHS should not be allowed to appropriate funds in its efforts to deny these 

recipients their choice. 

And that’s really the crux of the issue: HHS appropriation of funds in support of 

deinstitutionalization activities belittles and disregards my sister’s choice of living 

situation. My sister and people like her, whether by their own choice or through 

their legal guardians (in Jessica’s case my mother), are entitled to live in the setting 

they choose and that best meets their needs. HHS would never try to prohibit a 

group of non-disabled people from living on a campus together. My sister’s disability 

should not change this. 

If HHS is allowed to continue its campaign, it will continue to threaten both my 

sister’s right to the treatment to which she is legally entitled, as well as her access 

to a living situation which she chooses and which meets her needs. In a world where 

HHS completes its ‘‘Olmstead enforcement,’’ there will be no more campus-based 

settings, and Jessica will have to live in a group home where she may nominally 

be ‘‘in the community’’ but not a part of it in any meaningful sense. Because she 

becomes anxious when in close proximity to others, she would isolate herself in her 

bedroom and rarely venture out. Because of her aggressive behaviors, any interactions with neighbors or others outside the group home setting would be rare to 

nonexistent. Her life would be that of Mrs. Rochester from Jane Eyre, which is no 

life at all. 

Thank you for your time and consideration in this manner. 

The below text comes from CMS’ website: 

Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Mental Retardation (ICF/MR) 

Intermediate Care Facilities for individuals with Mental Retardation (ICF/MR) is 

an optional Medicaid benefit that enables States to provide comprehensive and individualized healthcare and rehabilitation services to individuals to promote their 

functional status and independence. Although it is an optional benefit, all States 

offer it, if only as an alternative to home and community-based services waivers for 

individuals at the ICF/MR level of care. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Federal law and regulations use the term ‘‘intermediate 

care facilities for the mentally retarded’’. CMS prefers to use the accepted term ‘‘individuals with intellectual disability’’ (ID) instead of ‘‘mental retardation.’’ However, 

as ICF/MR is the abbreviation currently used in all Federal requirements, that acronym will be used here. 

Eligibility for ICF/MR Benefit 

ICF/MR is available only for individuals in need of, and receiving, active treatment (AT) services. AT refers to aggressive, consistent implementation of a program 

of specialized and generic training, treatment and health services. AT does not include services to maintain generally independent clients who are able to function 

with little supervision and who do not require a continuous program of habilitation 

services. States may not limit access to ICF/MR service, or make it subject to waiting lists, as they may for HCBS. Therefore in some cases ICF/MR services may be 

more immediately available than other long term care options. Many individuals 
518 

who require this level of service have already established disability status and Medicaid eligibility. 

State Variation 

Need for ICF/MR is specifically defined by States, all of whom have established 

ICF/MR level of care criteria. State level of care requirements must provide access 

to individuals who meet the coverage criteria defined in Federal law and regulation. 

In addition to level of care for AT, the need for AT must arise from ID or a related 

condition. The definition of related condition is primarily functional, rather than diagnostic, but the underlying cause must have been manifested before age 22 and 

be likely to continue indefinitely. States vary in practical application of the concept 

of related condition. In some States individuals applying for ICF/MR residence may 

be eligible for Medicaid under higher eligibility limits used for residents of an institution. 

Services Included in the ICF/MR Benefit 

ICFs/MR provides active treatment (AT), a continuous, aggressive, and consistent 

implementation of a program of specialized and generic training, treatment, and 

health or related services, directed toward helping the enrollee function with as 

much self-determination and independence as possible. ICF/MR is the most comprehensive benefit in Medicaid. 

Federal rules provide for a wide scope of required services and facility requirements for administering services. All services including healthcare services and nutrition are part of the AT, which is based on an evaluation and individualized program plan (IPP) by an interdisciplinary team. Facility requirements include staffing, 

governing body and management, client protections, client behavior and physical environment, which are specified in the survey and certification process. 

Day Programs 

Many ICF/MR residents work in the community, with supports, or participate in 

vocational or other activities outside of the residence, and engage in community interests of their choice. These activities are collectively often referred to as day programs. The ICF/MR is responsible for all activities, including day programs, because 

the concept of AT is that all aspects of support and service to the individual are 

coordinated towards specific individualized goals in the IPP. 

Where ICF/MR Services are Provided 

Medicaid coverage of ICF/MR services is available only in a residential facility licensed and certified by the State survey agency as an ICF/MR. Medicaid ICF/MR 

services are available only when other payment options are unavailable and the individual is eligible for Medicaid. There are few resources similar to an ICF/MR, 

under any payment source. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE KNI PARENT GUARDIAN GROUP

Dear Senate Appropriations Sub-committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony. It is with a heavy heart that I submit outside witness testimony 

today, respectfully requesting your full consideration of the effects of pervasive Intermediate Care Facility (institutional—ICF/ID) closure activities. 

Numerous federally funded agencies under the Department of Health and Human 

Services (HHS) are pursuing an idealistic agenda that puts the weakest members 

of our society into harm’s way, while ignoring significant deficiencies in the home 

and community based service system (HCBS). 

I am calling on this Sub-committee to PROHIBIT the use of Federal HHS appropriations supporting deinstitutionalization activities which evict without cause, and 

without regard to individual choice, people with the most profound intellectual and 

developmental disabilities (I/DD) from HHS-licensed ICF homes. 

COMMUNITY DEFICIENCIES

—Stagnant Direct Support Staff wages, high turnover rates, staff rationing, and 

inadequate professional oversight of scattered homes are affecting quality of 

care for those served in HCBS waiver systems. The most helpless on the disability spectrum are particularly affected by these systemic deficiencies. 

—Diminishing incentive to retain quality staff is reflected in the pervasive, stagnant wage crisis, while re-imbursement rates have not changed significantly for 

over a decade. As a result, the profoundly disabled often do not get to choose 

who cares for them, even if they somehow could indicate with whom they would 
519 

like to live. This reality flies in the face of idealism—pushing ‘‘community for 

all.’’ 

—There is no adequate system in place which represents persons adjudicated incompetent, who have no or extremely limited self-advocacy skills, particularly 

to express abusive acts committed against them in poorly supervised community 

homes with rationed staff and limited professional oversight. 

As the Guardian of a profoundly disabled young man, I have navigated and utilized a broad array of community services for over 15 years. My final recourse after 

exhausting every option, was to place my loved one at the Kansas Neurological Institute (KNI), because no one in the HCBS system was able to handle him. 

Since his placement at KNI our grandson has been very well cared for, being restored to a place of stability unparalleled in the community. We have tried without 

success, to reintegrate him into community as unfortunately, more than a a few 

community providers have refused to serve him. 

Facilities like KNI are the safety net for those whom the community is not suitable or has failed to keep safe, yet these havens are under attack nation-wide. A 

number of HHS funded programs are displacing our most vulnerable without regard 

to clarifications in the Supreme Court Olmstead ruling, which highlights individual 

choice, need and safety. 

Groups including the ARC, National Council on Disabilities, State DD Councils, 

Universities for Excellence, and State Protection & Advocacy have ignored mounting 

evidence of abhorrent community outcomes for the most helpless within the disability spectrum. These federally funded entities appear to collaborate and push the 

extreme agenda of forced closure of all State ‘‘institutions’’. This radical agenda fails 

to recognize community capacity issues and an increasing number of documented 

tragedies occurring within the community system. 

Why are these agencies pushing to close facilities where compassionate staff care 

for our weakest, forcing our most vulnerable into questionable environments? 

How is ‘‘justice’’ served when the most helpless are placed in community settings, 

suffering neglect and death after a few months time at the hands of poorly trained 

staff who have little or no professional oversight? 

‘‘Is it ever right to handcuff and over-medicate someone with disabilities, just so 

you can ‘handle’ them?’’ This question was presented to the National Council on Disabilities in December by a guardian whose brother had been de-institutionalized, 

and subsequently bounced around to unsuccessful community placements. 

HCBS tragedies are happening to such a degree that your colleague, Senator Chris 

Murphy has called for a nation-wide investigation. 

Parents and guardians are speaking out for those who cannot speak for themselves, many of whom had experienced failed community placements, yet these parents are vilified as obstacles to ‘‘systems change.’’ 

Do current HCBS deficiencies and tragic outcomes for the weakest reflect sound policy? 

There is a compelling need for both community-based and congregate care settings. States need to operate a range of services to meet the diverse requirements 

of persons with disabilities as clarified within the Supreme Court Olmstead ruling: 

OLMSTEAD

‘‘We emphasize that nothing in the ADA or its implementing regulations condones 

termination of institutional settings for persons unable to handle or benefit from 

community settings...Nor is there any Federal requirement that community-based 

treatment be imposed on patients who do not desire it.’’ Id. at 601–602. 

A plurality of Justices noted: 

‘‘[N]o placement outside the institution may ever be appropriate . . . ‘Some individuals, whether mentally retarded or mentally ill, are not prepared at particular 

times-perhaps in the short run, perhaps in the long run-for the risks and exposure 

of the less protective environment of community settings’ for these persons, ‘institutional settings are needed and must remain available’’’ (quoting Amicus Curiae Brief 

for the American Psychiatric Association, et al). 

Justice Kennedy noted in his concurring opinion, ‘‘It would be unreasonable, it 

would be a tragic event, then, were the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 

(ADA) to be interpreted so that States had some incentive, for fear of litigation to 

drive those in need of medical care and treatment out of appropriate care and into 

settings with too little assistance and supervision.’’ Id. at 610. 

The real civil rights issue is the disregard for those who have been forced from 

safe environments by pervasive deinstitutionalization, without addressing the 

mounting capacity issues. As a Nation, we have neglected to ensure supports nec-
520 

1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/nbccedp/about.htm, 

accessed 5/21/14. 2Levy AR, Bruen BK, Ku L. Health Care Reform and Women’s Insurance Coverage for Breast 

and Cervical Cancer Screening. Prev Chronic Dis 2012;9:120069. 3Levy AR, Bruen BK, Ku L. Health Care Reform and Women’s Insurance Coverage for Breast 

and Cervical Cancer Screening. Prev Chronic Dis 2012;9:120069. 4 ACS Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Facts and Figures 2013-http://www.cancer.org/ 

acs/groups/content/@epidemiologysurveilance/documents/document/acspc-037535.pdf. 5 Cost of Breast Cancer Treatment in Medicaid- Med Care. 2011 Jan;49(1):89-95. doi: 10.1097/ 

MLR.0b013e3181f81c32. 

essary for success, including adequately paid support staff and solid accountability 

parameters, while pursuing an over-reaching push of ‘‘Community for all.’’ 

Until the community Direct Support Staff wage issue is honestly solved, the deficient abuse reporting system remedied, and systemic assurances providing adequate 

oversight for the most defenseless living in scattered homes across our States, we 

have no true, successful inclusion for the profoundly disabled who cannot speak or 

defend themselves. 

On behalf of ‘‘the least of these,’’ our most vulnerable, I provide comment today, 

and ask the Committee to take compassionate actions on their behalf. 

[This statement was submitted by Joan Kelley, Legal Guardian; Vice-president, 

KNI Parent Guardian Group.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF SUSAN G. KOMEN

On behalf of Susan G. Komen®, I appreciate the opportunity to submit written 

testimony regarding the need for increased Federal funding for breast cancer early 

detection programs and cancer research. Specifically, we call on you to increase 

funding for the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program 

(NBCCEDP), funded through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 

to $275 million and for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to $32 billion in fiscal year 2015, including $5.26 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI). 

Komen is the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and 

advocates fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all, and energize science to find the cures. With our network of local Affiliates across the U.S. 

and the 2.9 million breast cancer survivors we represent, we have long considered 

ourselves key partners with the Federal Government in the fight against breast cancer. Since 1983, we have invested more than $2.5 billion for breast cancer research 

and life-saving community programs across the country. 

While I recognize the difficult task in balancing competing budget priorities in the 

current fiscal climate, the only way to eradicate breast cancer is through a renewed 

investment and commitment to discovering and delivering the cures and improved 

access to affordable, quality and timely breast health screening and treatment services. 

National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program 

We call on Congress to increase funding for the National Breast and Cervical 

Cancer Early Detection Program (NBCCEDP), funded through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to $275 million in fiscal year 2015. 

NBCCEDP is a State-Federal partnership that provides lifesaving, free or low-cost 

breast and cervical cancer screenings, diagnostic services, and follow-up services to 

low-income, uninsured and underinsured women who do not qualify for Medicaid. 

Since its inception in 1991, NBCCEDP has provided over 11 million screening 

exams to more than 4.5 million women, detecting more than 62,000 breast cancers, 

3,400 cervical cancers and 163,000 premalignant cervical lesions.1 Despite the critical services this program provides, at current funding levels, NBCCEDP can still 

only serve less than one-fifth to one-third of those who are projected to be eligible 

after the implementation of health reform for the program.2

While the Affordable Care Act increases access to mammography coverage for 

many women, it is estimated that, in 2014, 4.5 million women will remain uninsured and eligible for the program.3 This assumes that all States will implement 

all the provisions of the ACA and expands Medicaid. For these women, NBCCEDP 

continues to fill a critical gap in the healthcare delivery system, providing access 

to annual breast and cervical cancer screenings that can lead to easy detection and 

effective treatment for breast cancer.4 Without NBCCEDP, many uninsured women 

could be forced to delay or forego screenings, leading to later stage diagnoses, which 

are deadlier and more costly to treat. In fact, breast cancer can be up to five times 

more expensive to treat when it has spread to other parts of the body.5
521 

6Levy AR, Bruen BK, Ku L. Health Care Reform and Women’s Insurance Coverage for Breast 

and Cervical Cancer Screening. Prev Chronic Dis 2012;9:120069. 7 Research!America (www.researchamerica.org). 

8 National Cancer Institute (www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/cancer-advances-in-focus/ 

breast). 

Many women with health insurance still face substantial barriers to obtaining 

health services, including of lack of health literacy, geographic isolation and limited 

language proficiency. Among these harder to reach populations, NBCCEDP fills a 

critical gap by providing outreach and navigation services, which can improve 

healthcare access and increase breast cancer screening rates.6

It is clear that there will still be unmet need; millions of low-income and uninsured women will still lack access to services. We believe the CDC can build on the 

20∂ year investments made through the NBCCEDP and leverage the extensive capacity and infrastructure the program has built with the clinical care system to increase screening on a population level. 

CDC can also work with various healthcare systems (FQHCs, Medicaid, provider 

networks, etc.), to increase widespread participation in screening by expanding key 

public health roles such as public education and outreach; provision of screening 

services and care coordination; quality assurance, surveillance and monitoring; and 

strategies to enable more organized systems of care. 

In 2014, CDC would like to begin transitioning the program by enabling grantees 

to expand public health roles that can increase population level screening rates, 

while still being able to provide limited screening services to the most vulnerable. 

Increasing current funding levels is critical to ensure that the CDC can raise 

awareness, provide lifesaving cancer screenings to women, and continue to reach 

those who will remain vulnerable and without access. 

National Institutes of Health 

We urge you to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to 

$32 billion in fiscal year 2015, including $5.26 billion for the National Cancer Institute (NCI), in order to restore funding to inflation-adjusted, pre-sequestration levels. 

Cancer is an expensive disease—the most costly to our Nation in terms of direct 

medical costs and lost productivity due to premature deaths and disability—making 

research which will accelerate cures and improve treatment a sound investment. 

Federal funding must keep pace with biomedical inflation as we stand on the 

threshold of life-saving discoveries in the biomedical sciences. 

This investment in research will not only protect Americans against disease and 

illness, but will serve as one of our Nation’s primary paths to innovation, global 

competitiveness, and economic growth. As other nations aggressively invest in research and development, the U.S. is losing ground. We stand to lose the young scientists, high quality jobs, industries and private-sector capital that have made 

America a global leader.7 Studies show each dollar in NIH funding generates more 

than twice as much in new business activity, and NIH grants and contracts created 

and supported more than 400,000 jobs across the country in 2013. 

Our Nation’s investment in biomedical research has helped drive progress against 

cancer, furthered our understanding of disease mechanisms and spurred the translation of scientific discoveries into new and better ways to prevent, detect, diagnose, 

and treat cancer. It is important to highlight some of the important advances, which 

have revolutionized the way in which breast cancer patients are screened, diagnosed 

and treated. These investments have also positively impacted survival rates beyond 

5 years. 

It is now established that routine mammographic screening is an accepted standard for the early detection of breast cancer. The results of eight randomized trials, 

the NIH–ACS Breast Cancer Detection Demonstration Projects, and other research 

studies showed that mammographic screening can reduce the mortality from breast 

cancer. In the treatment of breast cancer, lumpectomy followed by local radiation 

has replaced mastectomy as the preferred surgical approach for treating early-stage 

breast cancer. The approaches to treatment, by learning critical differences among 

the types of breast cancer, with chemotherapy and hormonal therapies have allowed 

patients different options and more personalized treatment plans. Tamoxifen and 

another SERM, raloxifene, have been approved by the FDA as treatments to reduce 

the risk of breast cancer in women who have an increased risk of developing the 

disease.8

Finally, several breast cancer susceptibility genes have now been identified, including BRCA1, BRCA2, TP53, and PTEN/MMAC1. Approximately 60 percent of 

women with an inherited mutation in BRCA1 or BRCA2 will develop breast cancer 

sometime during their lives, compared with about 12 percent of women in the gen-
522 

9 National Cancer Institute (www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/cancer-advances-in-focus/ 

breast). 10 AACR Cancer Progress Report 2013 (http://cancerprogressreport.org/2013/Documents/ 

2013lAACRlCPRlFINAL.pdf). 11One Voice Against Cancer (www.ovaconline.org). 

eral population. Women with inherited BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations also have 

an increased risk of ovarian cancer.9 This knowledge can help patients make more 

informed decisions about their risks and potential treatment options. We are poised 

to apply this new knowledge to make significant strides in saving lives. 

As a Nation, we are facing a crisis in cancer care. As the population ages, the 

number of new cancer cases in the United States is projected to increase by as much 

as 42 percent, 2.3 million new cases annually, by 2025.10

Despite these staggering statistics, cancer research funding at the NCI as a share 

of the NIH budget has declined. In the late 1990s, NCI’s budget made up nearly 

19 percent of the NIH budget. Today, NCI accounts for approximately 16 percent. 

In real dollars, this decline means that NCI’s funding has been reduced by $680 million below what it would have received in fiscal year 2014 if its share of NIH’s total 

budget had been maintained.11 It is imperative that our Nation’s investment in cancer research remains a priority, and that funding for NIH increases. 

On behalf of the many Americans who are suffering with cancer, I ask that you 

consider our requests for increased support for the NBCCEDP and the NIH in fiscal 

year 2015. Susan G. Komen stands ready to serve as a national resource for Congress and for all Americans on breast health issues. 

[This statement was submitted by Judith A. Salerno, MD, MS, President and 

Chief Executive Officer, Susan G. Komen.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE LENDERS COALITION FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH

CENTERS

The Lenders Coalition for Community Health Centers (LCCHC) is pleased to provide the following written testimony related to proposed fiscal year 2015 HRSA 

funding for federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) funded under Section 330 

of the Public Health Services Act. This testimony includes recommendations to assist the Administration and Congress in developing policies that will help meet a 

near universal goal—expanding community health centers in an affordable and sustainable manner to meet the healthcare needs of millions of families in underserved 

communities throughout the United States. 

LCCHC is a coalition of community development financial institutions (CDFIs) 

and related entities whose main goal is to advocate for resources and policies that 

will strengthen health centers’ access to capital and CDFIs’ ability to finance health 

center growth. The CDFIs that form the LCCHC are all currently undertaking 

health center lending. They have made loans totaling more than $1.4 billion to develop primary care capacity that gives more than 3 million patients access to primary care every year. 

The LCCHC has been on record in support of increased—and continued—operational funding support for health centers. Our institutions sent a letter to the 

President advocating the full operational increase in mandatory funds from the 

Health Centers Fund in fiscal year 2015, and underscored the need to sustain and 

grow that investment over the next 5 years to ensure the financial stability of our 

client FQHCs moving forward. 

We note that the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes utilizing $800 million in health center funding for one-time capital grants. We believe that to the extent any new funding for capital projects is included in this year’s final appropriation, HHS should encourage awardees to use these scarce dollars to leverage other 

sources of capital—both grants and loans from the public and private sector—to 

maximize their impact on health center growth. Given that $800 million represents 

less than 10 percent of the estimated $10 billion of capital funding that will be needed in order to meet the goal of serving 35 million patients in FQHCs by the end 

of 2018, developing policies that promote the availability of multiple public and private sources of capital will be critical to health centers’ successful growth. By incorporating incentives to encourage leveraging into the HHS review process of any potential capital grant funding for those FQHCs that can raise other sources of capital 

and/or afford to take on some reasonable amount of debt, HHS will be able to support a much larger number of FQHCs around the country. 

We also recognize that capital from the Health Centers Fund—even if it is leveraged—is not a complete solution to address the capital needs of FQHCs. We strongly 
523 

encourage the consideration of robust Federal credit enhancement programs targeting FQHCs expansion, which would leverage much greater levels of private sector financing for FQHCs.. Programs such as these are available and have been used 

to considerable success for a number of vital sectors, including small businesses 

(SBA), rural and agricultural enterprises (USDA), charter schools (ED) housing and 

hospitals (HUD). 

We wish to be clear that we reject policies encouraging FQHCs to pursue leverage 

irresponsibly. Over-leverage is a real risk in any sector; where it involves the development of critical health infrastructure and the use of public funds, it simply must 

be prevented. Indeed, as community lenders, our mission is aligned with our borrowers, and we have a stake in their sustainability and success. 

Attached, please find a brief that highlights the benefits of leveraging HHS capital dollars. The arguments in this brief assume that FQHCs work with responsible 

lenders, develop financially and operationally sustainable expansion projects, and 

assume a level of debt that supports their expansion without negatively impacting 

their current operations or financial stability. Based on our collective experience in 

the FQHC sector itself, as well as across a broad range of other capital needs within 

low income communities (e.g., affordable housing, healthy food financing, and school 

financing), we are confident that the Administration and Congress can maintain 

policies that enable these conditions. 

WHY LEVERAGING OF HRSA CAPITAL GRANTS IS ESSENTIAL TO THE FUTURE OF

FEDERALLY QUALIFIED HEALTH CENTERS (FQHCS)

HRSA has set, and the health center field has embraced, the goal of expanding 

health centers to meet the stated goal of serving 35 million patients by the end of 

2018 (from approximately 22 million today). Based on an estimate from Capital 

Link, more than $10 billion in additional capital will need to flow into FQHC facility 

development and expansion to meet this target. 

If public funding alone will not suffice to meet the FQHC field’s collective expansion goal, the only feasible alternative is instead to ensure that limited public funds 

be deployed strategically to bring private sector capital to bear. Such an approach 

can stretch scarce Federal resources, attract more lenders into the market, lower 

borrowing costs, and incentivize FQHCs to develop projects with greater impact on 

patients than would be possible otherwise. 

The Lack of a Clear, Unambiguous Signal that Leverage is Integral to HRSA’s Future Plans for FQHCs Causes Inefficiencies in FQHC Financing to Persist 

Capital Grant Funding Rounds that Fail to Incentivize Leverage Disrupt the Existing FQHC Pipeline and Distort Project Sizing.—Today, FQHCs often work with 

CDFIs and other lenders across the country to generate a pipeline with hundreds 

of viable FQHC expansion projects in varying stages of development. When HRSA 

announces a capital grant round (or even the possibility of a capital grant round) 

that holds out the promise of a one-stop, debt-free financing strategy, that pipeline 

largely freezes, as FQHCs understandably put development plans on hold in the 

hope of avoiding the need to borrow money at all. 

Unfortunately, that hope is often in vain, given the reality that demand far outstrips the funding available, leading to lengthy grant application and review processes and many unfunded projects. Additionally, FQHCs size their projects to the 

HRSA grant maximum rather than to the size that best serves the healthcare needs 

of the community and that CDFIs or other responsible lenders will underwrite. The 

result is delays or cancellation of FQHC expansion projects that could have served 

hundreds of thousands of patients. 

Thoughtful Incentives to Promote Leverage would Enable HRSA to Magnify the Impact of its Capital Grants and Supplement its Own Oversight of FQHCs with 

Private Sector Underwriting 

Leverage is a ‘Force Multiplier’ for Limited HRSA Capital Grants.—Simply put, 

a given level of Federal operating and capital funding can yield dramatically increased FQHC expansion if it unlocks access to private sector capital. When FQHCs 

are required to supplement Federal grant funding with outside capital, they are 

more likely to develop projects that are scaled to the needs of the community rather 

than to the size of the grant award, offering the opportunity for greater impact on 

the community’s health. 

To offer an instructive experience in another sector, in fiscal year 2014, Congress 

enacted the Administration’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD), providing 

public housing authorities new flexibilities to leverage their annual public housing 

operating and capital grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to rehab or redevelop up to 60,000 units of public housing. Notably, 
524 

no ‘new’ money was appropriated—i.e., the operating and capital fund allocations 

that the local agencies received remained the same (well below their annual operating costs and accumulated capital backlog). To date, applications submitted to 

HUD under this ‘no cost’ leveraging strategy have proposed to bring to bear in excess of $6 billion in private and other public sector capital to the rehab and redevelopment of public housing units previously assisted exclusively by Federal funds. 

If Congress appropriates capital funding for health centers in fiscal year 2015, 

HRSA should draw from the experience of the affordable housing field, and other 

sectors, in the effort to deploy leverage strategically in service of health center capital expansion goals. Health centers have, for the moment, the further good fortune 

of being ‘ahead of the curve,’ relative to the field’s funding levels and capital needs 

(the public housing field, for example, embraced policy reforms like RAD only after 

years of underfunding and a capital backlog in excess of $27 billion). 

Leverage Leads to Superior ‘Front End’ Underwriting and Faster Project Development.—When an FQHC uses debt financing for a project, the project goes through 

a rigorous review by the lender (or lenders) as part of the underwriting process, creating a higher likelihood for successful development of the project. Scrutiny of the 

experience and capacity of the project’s development team ensures that the right 

pieces are in place for construction that is on time and within budget. Furthermore, 

the lenders’ scrutiny of underlying financials and staffing plans and testing of revenue projections can lead to an FQHC making constructive modifications to its 

plans. To be clear, this is not a substitute for the conscientious and diligent oversight conducted by HRSA staff on behalf of the taxpayer, but rather a useful supplement to their efforts by project development experts whose livelihood depends on 

having their loans paid back. 

Leverage Builds in ‘Early Warning’ Systems that Prevent FQHC Project Failure.— 

Experience across capital financing sectors, including affordable housing (e.g., three 

decades of experience with the Low Income Housing Tax Credit), has demonstrated 

that private sector oversight of project operations is a useful supplement to the scrutiny of dedicated, competent but often overextended public servants, Lenders, as 

part of their loan servicing and monitoring, keep a monthly watch on every borrower, enabling them to see financial problems early on, before they have grown 

more expensive and difficult to fix. When lenders provide financing to FQHCs, they 

are responsible for ensuring regular loan repayments. Borrowers are required to 

submit regular financial statements showing cash flow, accounts payables and receivables, and other indicators of financial health. If the borrower misses loan payments or shows other signs of financial distress, a CDFI can work with borrowers 

to develop solutions that will bring a health center back to financial stability. When 

necessary, this assistance may involve working with other stakeholders, including 

foundations, State Medicaid agencies, or HRSA to make sure a community is not 

deprived of vital primary care capacity. 

Leverage Creates Financial, Community and Political Partners in Ensuring Health 

Center Sustainability.—Critically, the involvement of other stakeholders in FQHC 

health—from philanthropy to CDFIs to banks and private sector investors—is not 

limited to the all-hands-on-deck project workouts described above. When FQHCs are 

required to assemble matching or contributing funds for a project, they seek funding 

assistance from a range of other public and private sources, including grants and 

loans. The act of assembling these funds generates community ‘‘buy-in’’ and support 

for a proposed project, which ultimately contributes to its success by aligning community priorities and resources toward a common end. 

Indeed, the broadening of the constituency of stakeholders with ‘skin in the game’ 

when it comes to both individual FQHCs and the field more broadly, is essential 

to FQHCs’ long-term sustainability: it creates a bulwark against appropriations risk 

while simultaneously helping to ensure that FQHCs remain viable and competitive 

in the rapidly evolving field of primary care provision to low income neighborhoods 

and populations. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE LOCAL INITIATIVES SUPPORT CORPORATION

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and Distinguished Members of the 

Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies: Thank you for the opportunity to offer written testimony on the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 Budget Request for the Department 

of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. The 

Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) views this hearing as a positive step 

toward understanding the importance of early childhood development and securing 

critically needed investments to ensure that all children, especially low-income chil-
525 

1 Jack P. Shonkoff and Deborah A. Phillips, Editors, From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The 

Science of Early Childhood Development, National Research Council Institute of Medicine, National Academy Press, Washington, DC 20000 

dren, are given a strong start and enter kindergarten ready to learn. As you consider ways that Congress can help children get an early start on the pathway to 

success, we encourage you to recognize the critical role that early childhood facilities 

play in preparing young children for achievement in school and in life, and urge you 

to ensure that Federal policies adequately finance the acquisition, construction, and 

improvement of these spaces. 

ABOUT LISC

Established in 1979, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a national nonprofit with Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) designation, dedicated to helping community residents transform distressed neighborhoods into healthy places of choice and opportunity—good places to work, do business and raise children. LISC mobilizes corporate, government and philanthropic 

support to provide local community development organizations with loans, grants 

and equity investments; local, statewide and national policy support; and technical 

and management assistance. 

LISC has local offices in 30 cities and partners with more than 50 organizations 

serving rural communities throughout the country. We focus our activities across 

five strategic community revitalization goals: 

—Expanding Investment in Housing and Other Real Estate 

—Increasing Family Income and Wealth 

—Stimulating Economic Development 

—Improving Access to Quality Education, and 

—Supporting Healthy Environments and Lifestyles. 

For more than three decades, LISC has developed programs and raised investment capital to help local groups revive their neighborhoods. Because we recognize 

the link between human opportunity and social and economic vitality, we have 

spent the last 17 years working to bring high quality early care and education settings to low-income neighborhoods where children enter the world at high risk for 

negative outcomes. Through our signature early childhood program, the Community 

Investment Collaborative for Kids (CICK), LISC has invested $48 million in planning and developing 184 new facilities serving 20,000 children in more than 65 lowincome urban and rural neighborhoods across the country. 

OVERVIEW

Early childhood is a critical development period. Research shows that a complex 

interplay between genetics and environment profoundly influences how children 

grow physically, socially, and emotionally. Investments in high quality early childhood programs can help promote healthy development and strong communities. 

Those active in community revitalization believe without question, that early care 

and education programs are essential parts of every neighborhood—they prepare 

young children for success in school and life, support working parents, and improve 

family well-being. 

Regrettably, many families—particularly those who are low-income or in rural 

areas—lack access to the stable, high-quality early childhood centers that parents 

need to maintain gainful employment and children need to grow and thrive. Additionally, while there is appropriate focus on the need for high quality curriculum 

and qualified teachers, the physical environment is an essential feature that is often 

forgotten. 

In this testimony, we highlight the important role that physical environments 

play in supporting the quality of early learning programs and healthy early childhood development and encourage Congress to address the need for comprehensive 

early childhood facility policies. 

BACKGROUND

Early Childhood is a Critical Development Period 

Decades of research has shown that early life experiences are extremely important 

to the social, emotional, and academic development of children.1 Positive experiences 

promote healthy brain development and behavior, while negative experiences undermine development—and, in severe circumstances, permanently impair a child’s 
526 

2 National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. ‘‘Excessive Stress Disrupts the Architecture of the Developing Brain. Working Paper No. 3’’ (2005) http://www.developingchild.net/pubs/ 

wp/StresslDisruptslArchitecturelDevelopinglBrain.pdf. (Accessed June 17, 2009). 3http://www.readynation.org/uploads//20130919lReadyNationVitalLinksLowResEndnotes.pdf, 

Schweinhart, L. J., Montie, J., Xiang, Z., Barnett, W. S., Belfield, C. R., & Nores, M. (2005). 

Lifetime Effects: The High/Scope Perry Preschool Study Through Age 40. Ypsilanti, MI: High/ 

Scope Press. And Reynolds, A. J., Temple, J. A., Robertson, D. L., & Mann, E. A. (2002). Age 

21 Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Title I Chicago Child-Parent Centers. Madison, WI: Institute for 

Research on Poverty. And FPG Child Development Center. (1999). Early Learning, Later Success: The Abecedarian Study. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina. 4Tony Proscio, Carl Sussman & Amy Gillman, Authors, Child Care Facilities: Quality by Design, (2004). http://www.lisc.org/content/publications/detail/815 . 5http://www.lisc.org/docs/publications/2007 lnieerlcicklfacilitieslbrief.pdf 

nervous and immune system, stunting healthy growth.2 High quality early care and 

education is widely regarded as the single most effective intervention to promote 

healthy development and close the academic achievement gap for low-income children at-risk for poor social and economic outcomes.3 The data are clear: the quality 

of one’s early childhood experiences profoundly influence that person’s future life 

trajectory. 

The Quality of Early Childhood Facilities Matters 

While many factors contribute to program quality, the physical environment is an 

essential feature that is often overlooked. The link between the quality of buildings 

and the quality of programs tends to be only vaguely understood and largely undocumented among child care providers. Despite this inclination, evidence about the 

connection between space and effectiveness has been found even when physical 

space is not the focal point of the research undertaken. A study conducted at the 

School for Young Children (SYC), a distinguished preschool program housed at St. 

Joseph College in West Hartford, Connecticut, provides a compelling example.4

Every State has a minimum adult-child ratio for licensed centers, in large part 

because attention from nurturing adults is a prime indicator of quality in child care 

programs. SYC is a highly regarded preschool program with a more than ample 

staffing ratio; the program is largely viewed as meeting if not exceeding minimum 

quality standards. Yet, when a research team set out to monitor enrolled children’s 

contact with adults during free play time they found shocking results: Only 3 percent of the children’s time was spent engaged in meaningful interactions with a 

teacher. 

While the SYC executive director was digesting the researchers’ negative findings 

in order to develop a workable solution, her organization moved to new accommodations. A routine follow-up test in the new space immediately showed a strikingly 

higher result. Teacher-child interactions increased to 22 percent. There had been no 

change in the management, staff, or program, only the physical space. The new 

space, which Bye had taken pains to design, was considerably roomier and there 

were bathrooms, telephones, storage space, and other logistical necessities in each 

classroom. Adults no longer had to leave the room to escort children to the bathroom, retrieve or store supplies, or take a phone call. Fewer distractions and interruptions for adults naturally meant more time for children. 

Both children and staff benefited from the new space configuration. The more generous square footage allowed staff to configure each classroom into well-defined 

areas for different activities. Children were no longer crowded together into inadequate space and distracted by one another, so they ran into conflicts less often, and 

had better play experiences—making their interactions with adults and other children more constructive. Teachers were able to use their time in a more effective and 

rewarding way, resulting in higher morale and lower staff turnover for. Overall, the 

effect of the new space on the content of the program was considerable and measurable—even when not a single change had been made in the program itself. 

Space matters: a facility’s layout, size, materials and design features can improve 

program quality and contribute positively to child development while a poorly adapted and overcrowded environment undermines it.5 Bathrooms adjacent to classrooms, 

accessible cubbies, and child-sized sinks, counters, furnishings and fixtures increase 

children’s autonomy and competence while decreasing the demands on teachers. 

Early learning centers with ample classrooms divided into well-configured activity 

areas support uninterrupted self-directed pay and exploration. The physical configuration of early care and education spaces directly affect adult/child interaction and 

influence how children grow and learn. 

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) acknowledges the importance of a quality environment in the following statement: ‘‘The 

physical environment sets the stage and creates the context for everything that hap-
527 

6http://www.naeyc.org/store/node/402 

pens in any setting—a classroom, a play yard, a multipurpose room. A high-quality 

environment welcomes children; engages children in a variety of activities; provides 

space for individual, small-group, and large-group activities; and generally supports 

the program’s philosophy and goals. Ultimately, the physical environment must convey values and messages about who is welcomed, what is important, and what the 

beliefs are about how children learn.’’ 6

What Facilities Experts Know 

Although physical spaces play an important role in promoting program quality 

and healthy development, it is rare to find high quality facilities designed to meet 

the unique needs of very young children, especially in low-income communities. 

Early childhood specialists have long maintained that the physical environments 

where learning takes place—and where young children spend the majority of their 

waking hours—significantly influence the quality of early care and education programs. 

Facilities experts and those proficient in financing the design, acquisition, construction, and improvement of early care and education spaces concur and largely 

agree that: 

—Well-designed facilities enhance child development and program quality; 

—An adequate supply of facilities is needed to support rapidly increasing preschool education programs; 

—The quality and location of the facilities can encourage enrollment and parent 

involvement; 

—Facilities can help promote a positive workplace in an industry challenged to 

retain experienced teachers; 

—Child care program income, especially in low-income communities, is typically 

not sufficient to cover the full cost of delivering quality early education services 

and doesn’t allow for the added cost of constructing or improving appropriate 

facilities; and 

—Few centers have the experience or personnel to handle the complexities of real 

estate development tasks and require specialized technical assistance to address 

their facilities needs. 

Early Childhood Facilities Financing Challenges 

Despite what is known about the importance of the spaces where learning takes 

place, there is no dedicated source of capital to help early care and education programs develop well-designed facilities suitable for our youngest learners. Programs 

serving low-income communities are highly dependent on public operating revenues 

that don’t cover the cost of purchasing or renovating an appropriate facility. Without 

a consistent and effective financing system or capital subsidies, providers are left 

to pursue piecemeal approaches, cobbling together small donations and grants from 

a variety of sources. This prevents the early childhood field from addressing its 

physical facility needs and creating the kind of environments that support high 

quality programs. 

Historically, private financial institutions have not made significant infrastructure 

investments in early care and education—particularly in economically distressed 

areas. Few mainstream banks, credit unions, and lending institutions are willing to 

finance early childhood facility projects, which tend to require relatively small, complex loans often characterized by uncertain future funding for repayment through 

government operating subsidies. The projects generally have little to no equity, and 

limited collateral value. In addition, private banks typically don’t employ staff with 

specialized knowledge of the child care sector, consequently they are unable to understand the needs of child care or preschool centers and assist program directors 

lacking experience with real estate development and financing. 

Certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) working in market niches that are underserved by traditional financial entities are among the 

small number of organizations who have made investments in early childhood physical spaces. They have a proven track record in economically challenged regions and 

are experienced with providing a unique range of financial products and services 

that spur private investment in their target markets. Unfortunately, given the limited funding available to CDFIs to carry out their comprehensive mission, demand 

for early childhood facilities capital far outstrips supply. 

RECOMMENDATIONS

As Congress considers ways to help children get an early start on the pathway 

to success, we urge you to: 
528 

1. Recognize the critical role that early childhood facilities play in preparing 

young children for achievement in school and in life. 

Congress has the power to influence and support State and local early childhood priorities. We believe that conversations about early care and education 

should always acknowledge the significant impact of early childhood physical 

settings on early learning. 

2. Ensure that Federal policies adequately finance the acquisition, construction, and improvement of early care and education spaces. 

Currently, there is no dedicated source of funding for the acquisition, construction, and improvement of early care and education spaces. Additionally, 

the economic instability of the past 5 years has resulted in very little investment in early childhood physical infrastructure. Capital must be available in 

order for early care and education providers to create high quality physical 

spaces that promote early learning. We are encouraged by the national dialogue 

on the importance of investments in early childhood development, and request 

that you create the supportive policy, regulatory, and funding environment that 

is needed to enable the early care and education field to meet its physical capital needs. 

CONCLUSION

As investments are made to increase access to preschool and child care, attention 

must be paid to the physical environment where many young children spend the 

majority of their waking hours. Without support for facilities, programs will locate 

in the least expensive and most readily available spaces—makeshift, donated, or 

surplus space such as basements and storefronts or outdated classrooms for older 

students that have not been adapted for our youngest children and fall far short 

of standards to support high quality programs. 

We look forward to continuing conversations with you and your staff. Our organization serves on the Executive Committee of the National Children’s Facilities Network (NCFN), a coalition of like-minded nonprofit financial and technical assistance 

intermediaries involved in planning, developing, and financing facilities for low-income child care and early education programs. Both LISC and NCFN would welcome an opportunity to serve as a resource. 

Thank you again for your leadership. 

[This statement was submitted by Matthew Josephs, Senior Vice President, Policy, and Amy Gillman, Senior Program Director, Community Investment Collaborative For Kids.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE MARCH OF DIMES FOUNDATION

MARCH OF DIMES: FISCAL YEAR 2015 FEDERAL FUNDING PRIORITIES 

[Dollars in thousands] 

Program Fiscal year 2015 

request 

National Institutes of Health (Total) ............................................................................................................. 32,000,000 

National Institute of Child Health and Development .................................................................................... 1,370,000 

National Human Genome Research Institute ................................................................................................ 536,967 

National Institute on Minority Health and Disparities .................................................................................. 289,426 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Total) ...................................................................................... 7,800,000 

National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities .............................................................. 139,000 

Birth Defects Research and Surveillance .................................................................................................... 22,300 

Folic Acid Campaign .................................................................................................................................... 2,800 

Immunizations ................................................................................................................................................ 720,000 

Polio Eradication ............................................................................................................................................ 146,000 

Safe Motherhood Initiative ............................................................................................................................. 46,000 

Preterm Birth ................................................................................................................................................ 2,000 

National Center for Health Statistics ............................................................................................................ 182,000 

Health Resources and Services Administration (Total) ................................................................................. 7,480,000 

Title V, Maternal and Child Health Block Grant ........................................................................................... 639,000 

SPRANS- Infant Mortality and Preterm Birth ............................................................................................... 3,000 

Heritable Disorders ......................................................................................................................................... 18,000 

Universal Newborn Hearing ............................................................................................................................ 18,660 

Healthy Start .................................................................................................................................................. 103,532 

Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education ........................................................................................ 300,000 
529 

MARCH OF DIMES: FISCAL YEAR 2015 FEDERAL FUNDING PRIORITIES—Continued 

[Dollars in thousands] 

Program Fiscal year 2015 

request 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (Total) .................................................................................... 375,000 

The three million volunteers and 1,200 staff members of the March of Dimes 

Foundation appreciate the opportunity to submit Federal funding recommendations 

for fiscal year 2015. The March of Dimes is a unique partnership of scientists, clinicians, parents, members of the business community and other volunteers affiliated 

with chapters in every State, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The March 

of Dimes recommends the following funding levels for programs and initiatives that 

are essential investments in maternal and child health. 

PRETERM BIRTH

Preterm birth is a serious health problem that costs the United States more than 

$26 billion annually. Employers, private insurers and individuals bear approximately half of the cost of healthcare for these infants, and another 40 percent is 

paid by Medicaid. One in nine infants in the U.S. is born preterm. Prematurity is 

the leading cause of newborn mortality and the second leading cause of infant mortality. Among those who survive, one in five faces health problems that persist for 

life such as cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, chronic lung disease, and deafness. For the past 6 years preterm birth rates have declined, resulting in 176,000 

fewer babies being born preterm and saving more than $9 billion. The March of 

Dimes believes a key factor behind this continued decline was Congress’ passage of 

the 2006 PREEMIE Act (Public Law 109–450), which brought the first-ever national 

focus to prematurity prevention and generated a public-private agenda to spur innovative research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention (CDC) and advanced evidence-based interventions to prevent preterm birth. In 2013 Congress passed the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act 

(Public Law 113–55), which renews our Nation’s commitment to giving every baby 

a healthy start. The March of Dimes’ fiscal year 2015 funding requests regarding 

preterm birth are based on continuing to enhance public and private investment 

into understanding the causes of preterm birth and promoting known interventions. 

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development 

(NICHD) 

The March of Dimes recommends at least $32 billion for the National Institutes 

of Health and $1,370 billion for the NICHD in fiscal year 2015. This funding will 

allow NICHD to sustain its preterm birth-related research through extramural 

grants, Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units, the Neonatal Research Network and the intramural research program. This funding would also allow for NICHD to continue 

investments in transdisciplinary research to identify the causes of preterm birth, as 

recommended in the Director’s 2012 Scientific Vision for the next decade, the Institute of Medicine 2006 report on preterm birth, and the 2008 Surgeon General’s Conference on the Prevention of Preterm Birth. The March of Dimes fully supports 

NICHD’s pursuit of transdisiplinary science, which facilitates the exchange of scientific ideas and leads to novel approaches to understanding complex health issues 

and their prevention. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—Preterm Birth 

The mission of the CDC’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and 

Health Promotion’s Safe Motherhood Initiative is to promote optimal reproductive 

and infant health. The March of Dimes recommends funding of $46 million for the 

Safe Motherhood program and re-instatement of the preterm birth sub-line at $2 

million, as reauthorized in the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act, to reflect current 

preterm birth research within the CDC. 

The CDC funds state-based Perinatal Quality Collaboratives, networks of hospitals, healthcare providers, State health departments, consumer groups, and others 

that advance evidence-based clinical practices and processes. These networks collect 

data in real time on healthcare practices and outcomes and provide immediate feedback for quality improvement. For example, the New York State Obstetrical and 

Neonatal Quality Collaborative reduced deliveries without indication from 25 percent in 2010 to 7–8 percent in 2012. Reducing elective deliveries before 39 weeks 

gestation is a proven way to lower preterm birth and improve infant outcomes. 
530 

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)—Preterm Birth 

The March of Dimes recommends the Subcommittee specify $3 million within the 

Title V Special Projects of Regional and National Significance account be used to 

support current preterm birth and infant mortality initiatives, as authorized in the 

PREEMIE Act, and to support the expansion of its initiatives nationwide. The 

PREEMIE Reauthorization Act renewed preterm birth-related demonstration 

projects, which are aimed at improving education, treatment and outcomes for babies born preterm. This funding will support HRSA’s Collaborative Improvement & 

Innovation Network (COIIN) to Reduce Infant Mortality, which assists State agencies focusing on a range of interventions proven to reduce preterm birth and improve maternal and child health. 

BIRTH DEFECTS

According to the CDC, an estimated 120,000 infants in the U.S. are born with 

major structural birth defects each year. Birth defects are the leading cause of infant mortality and the causes of more than 70 percent are unknown. Federal investments are sorely needed to support research to discover the causes of all birth defects and for the development of effective interventions to prevent them or reduce 

their prevalence. 

CDC—National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) 

For fiscal year 2015, the March of Dimes recommends funding of $139 million for 

NCBDDD. We also request the Subcommittee provide at least $22.3 million to support birth defects research and surveillance and $2.8 million to support folic acid 

education. Birth defects research and surveillance activities have been severely curtailed due to funding reductions which means a slowed pace to research identifying 

causes of birth defects and decreased ability to track birth defects and connect families to services. Specifically, two Centers for Birth Defects Research and Prevention 

have been eliminated. Specific expertise from the previously funded Centers in 

Texas and Utah (medications used during pregnancy, environmental exposures of 

concern, maternal infections, and birth defects risk among Hispanics) is no longer 

contributing to the study and 25 percent fewer families are participating in CDC 

birth defects research. Birth defects surveillance programs funded by NCBDDD 

have gone from 28 in 2004 to 14 in 2013, with a 40 percent (800,000) reduction in 

the number of live births monitored by States. 

NEWBORN SCREENING

Newborn screening is a vital public health activity designed to identify genetic, 

metabolic, hormonal and functional disorders in newborns. Screening detects conditions in newborns that, if left untreated, can cause disability, developmental delays, 

intellectual disabilities, serious illnesses or even death. If diagnosed early, many of 

these disorders can be managed successfully. The March of Dimes urges the Subcommittee to provide $18 million for HRSA’s heritable disorders program, which 

plays a critical role in assisting States in the adoption of additional screenings, enhancing provider and consumer education, and ensuring coordinated follow-up care. 

Also funded by this program is the work of the Advisory Committee on Heritable 

Disorders in Newborns and Children, which provides States with a Recommended 

Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP) to ensure that every infant is screened for conditions having a known treatment. The RUSP has helped bring about comprehensive 

newborn screening in every State. In 2007, only 10 States and DC required infants 

to be screened for the recommended disorders; today, 42 States and DC require 

screening of at least 29 of the 31 treatable conditions. 

CLOSING

The Foundation’s volunteers and staff in every State, the District of Columbia and 

Puerto Rico look forward to working with Members of this Subcommittee to secure 

the resources needed to improve the health of the Nation’s mothers, infants and 

children. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE MARFAN FOUNDATION

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the priorities of the heritable connective tissue 

disorders community as you work to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and 

Human Services Appropriations Bill. 
531 

ABOUT MARFAN SYNDROME AND HERITABLE CONNECTIVE TISSUE DISORDERS

Marfan Syndrome 

Marfan syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the body’s connective tissue. 

Connective tissue holds all the body’s cells, organs and tissue together. It also plays 

an important role in helping the body grow and develop properly. 

Connective tissue is made up of proteins. The protein that plays a role in Marfan 

syndrome is called fibrillin-1. Marfan syndrome is caused by a defect (or mutation) 

in the gene that tells the body how to make fibrillin-1. This mutation results in an 

increase in a protein called transforming growth factor beta, or TGF-β. The increase 

in TGF-β causes problems in connective tissues throughout the body, which in turn 

creates the features and medical problems associated with Marfan syndrome and 

some related disorders. 

Because connective tissue is found throughout the body, Marfan syndrome can affect many different parts of the body, as well. Features of the disorder are most 

often found in the heart, blood vessels, bones, joints, and eyes. Some Marfan features—for example, aortic enlargement (expansion of the main blood vessel that carries blood away from the heart to the rest of the body)—can be life-threatening. The 

lungs, skin and nervous system may also be affected. Marfan syndrome does not affect intelligence. 

Related Conditions 

There are disorders related to Marfan syndrome that can cause people to struggle 

with some of the same or similar physical problems. Some examples are Loeys-Dietz 

syndrome, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and Familial Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm and 

Dissection. 

Disorders related to Marfan syndrome can also cut lives short, particularly when 

they go unchecked, and they can deeply affect the quality of life of the individuals 

and families who must cope with them. Just like people with Marfan syndrome, 

those affected by related disorders need early and accurate diagnosis to ensure they 

receive proper care and treatment. 

Many of these disorders are genetic conditions that, like Marfan syndrome, cause 

the aorta (the main blood vessel that carries blood from the heart to the rest of the 

body) to enlarge, a problem that requires medicine and regular monitoring to determine appropriate treatment. Other features that may overlap with Marfan syndrome include those involving the heart, bones, joints and eyes. Related connective 

tissue disorders include: 

—Loeys-Dietz Syndrome 

—Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome 

—Familial Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm and Dissection 

—Mass Phenotype 

—Ectopia Lentis Syndrome 

—Beals Syndrome 

—Bicuspid Aortic Valve 

—Stickler Syndrome 

—Shprintzen-Goldberg Syndrome 

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The Marfan Foundation creates a brighter future for everyone affected by Marfan 

syndrome and related disorders. 

—We pursue the most innovative research and make sure that it receives proper 

funding. 

—We create an informed public and educated patient community to increase early 

diagnosis and ensure life-saving treatment. 

—We provide relentless support to families, caregivers, and healthcare providers. 

We will not rest until we’ve achieved victory—a world in which everyone with 

Marfan syndrome or a related disorder receives a proper diagnosis, gets the necessary treatment, and lives a long and full life. 

ONE FAMILY’S STORY

Hector Roman was 36 years old when he died on June 25, 2012, of an aortic dissection caused by Marfan syndrome. He was never diagnosed with Marfan syndrome—despite being treated by several medical specialists for myriad health 

issues—and he did not know he was a risk of a sudden early death. He was in pain 

for days and didn’t rush to the hospital because he was frustrated with the lack of 

help he was getting with his health concerns. He had no idea this delay would be 
532 

deadly. After a few days in pain, he went into shock and a friend call 911. He died 

3 days later during his third surgery. 

Now, his partner, Teresita Mompeller, of Phoenix, AZ, is raising their three 

boys—Jovan,5, Joel, 3, and Justus, 2—alone. After Hector died, Teresita learned 

about Marfan syndrome. Most alarming to her was that affected people have a 50 

percent chance of passing it to their offspring. She had her sons checked immediately. Joel and Justus have been diagnosed with Marfan syndrome and already 

have aortic enlargement. While their condition is the same as their dad; their prognosis is better. The boys can live a normal life span because they have the diagnosis 

and are being monitored. They can avoid a fatal situation because they know. 

Teresita, who has a Facebook page called ‘‘Do You Know Marfan?’’ (and a parallel 

page in Spanish) recently wrote: ‘‘Thanks to the work of The Marfan Foundation, 

I know that my boys have a greater chance of living a long life. I know first-hand 

what it is to be a mother with many questions and concerns about a rare disorder 

that nobody seemed to know anything about. The Marfan Foundation has guided 

me through all of my concerns. They have given me all the support and information 

needed to advocate for my children [so they receive] proper treatment. The Foundation has given me and thousands of other people, the peace of mind that they are 

working hard to better the lives of those affected.’’ 

SEQUESTRATION

We have heard from the medical research community that sequestration and deficit reduction activities have created serious issues for Federal funding opportunities 

and the career development pipeline. In order to ensure that research into heritable 

connective tissue disorders can continue to move forward, and, more importantly, 

to ensure that our country is adequately preparing the next generation of young investigators, we urge you to avert, mitigate, or otherwise eliminate the specter of sequestration. While the Foundation has anecdotal accounts of the harms of sequestration, the Federated American Societies for Experimental Biology has reported: 

—In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the NIH budget in fiscal year 2013 

was $6 billion (22.4 percent) less than it was in fiscal year 2003. 

—The number of competing research project grants (RPGs) awarded by NIH has 

also fallen sharply since fiscal year 2003. In fiscal year 2013, NIH made 8,283 

RPG awards, which is 2,110 (20.3 percent) fewer than in fiscal year 2003. 

—Awards for R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated research, suffered even greater losses. The number awarded fell 

by 2,528 (34 percent) between fiscal year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 

The pay line for some NIH funding mechanisms has fallen from 18 percent to 10 

percent while the average age for a researcher to receive their first NIH-funded 

grant has climbed to 42. These are strong disincentives to choosing a career as a 

medical researcher. Our scaling-back is occurring at a time when many foreign 

countries are investing heavily in their biotechnology sectors. China alone plans to 

dedicate $300 million to medical research over the next 5 years; this amount is double the current NIH budget over the same period of time. Scientific breakthroughs 

will continue, but America may not benefit from the return-on-investment of a robust biotechnology sector. For the purposes of economic and national security, as 

well as public health, the Foundation asks that you work with your colleagues to 

eliminate sequestration and recommit to supporting this Nation’s biomedical research enterprise. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

People with Marfan syndrome are born with it, but features of the disorder are 

not always present right away. Some people have a lot of Marfan features at birth 

or as young children—including serious conditions like aortic enlargement. Others 

have fewer features when they are young and don’t develop aortic enlargement or 

other signs of Marfan syndrome until they are adults. Some features of Marfan syndrome, like those affecting the heart and blood vessels, bones or joints, can get 

worse over time. 

This makes it very important for people with Marfan syndrome and related disorders to receive accurate, early diagnosis and treatment. Without it, they can be 

at risk for potentially life-threatening complications. The earlier some treatments 

are started, the better the outcomes are likely to be. 

Knowing the signs of Marfan syndrome can save lives. Our community of experts 

estimates that nearly half the people who have Marfan syndrome don’t know it. 

CDC and NCBDDD have critical programs that can help improve awareness and 

recognition of warning signs, which can save lives. Some of these programs including CDC’s Million Hearts Campaign and NCBDDD’s newborn screening activities. 
533 

Meaningful funding increases will allow CDC and NCBDDD to expand their successful awareness efforts to include additional conditions. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH has worked closely with the Foundation to investigate the mechanisms of 

these conditions. In recent decades, this research has yielded significant scientific 

breakthroughs that have the potential to improve the lives of affected individuals. 

In order to ensure that the heritable connective tissue disorders research portfolios 

can continue to expand and advance, NIH requires meaningful funding increases to 

invest in emerging and promising activities. 

NHLBI 

The Marfan Foundation anxiously await the results of this first-ever multicenter 

clinical trial for our patient population conducted by the National Heart, Lung and 

Blood Institute’s Pediatric Heart Network (PHN). After 4 years of recruitment and 

3 years of follow-up evaluations, the results are expected to be released in November 

2014 at the American Heart Association Meeting. 604 Marfan syndrome patients 

(age 6 months to 25 years) are enrolled in the study. Patients are randomized onto 

either losartan or atenolol (a beta blocker that is the current standard of care for 

Marfan patients with an enlarged aortic root). The Marfan Foundation thanks both 

NHLBI and NIAMS for their dedicated support and careful execution of this trial. 

NEI 

Ectopia lentis, dislocation of the lens, occurs in up to 60 percent of patients with 

Marfan syndrome. The central positioning of the lens depends on the zonule of Zinn, 

a fibrous structure which has fibrillin-1 as a major component. NEI-supported investigators are studying the protein interactions of fibrillin-1 in health and disease in 

the zonule of Zinn to understand the disease mechanisms that cause ectopia lentis. 

It is hoped that this research will provide therapeutic insights to better treat this 

complication of Marfan syndrome. 

NIAMS 

NIAMS continues to support the Consortium for Translational Research in 

Marfan Syndrome, which is investigating the disease process in MFS. These studies, 

building on previous advances, are aimed at identifying new biological targets for 

therapy, as well as predictive biomarkers of vascular and skeletal manifestations, 

which are the major causes of mortality and morbidity in MFS. 

ORDR 

The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences houses ORDR and 

leads other important activities. In addition to the Rare Disease Clinical Research 

Consortia, translational treatment development programs hold promise for the heritable connective tissue disorders community. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF MARY A. VITALE, GUARDIAN/SIBLING/ADVOCATE

Dear Committee Members: The opportunity to submit personal testimony to this 

committee is much appreciated. As 2015 appropriation requests are being considered, this submission of testimony is a request for a review of the misuse of Federal 

funds by the Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies that promote forced deinstitutionalization of persons with severe and profound intellectual disabilities. 

I have been an active guardian for 35 years for my 61 year old brother who has 

severe intellectual disabilities, behavior challenges, and ongoing medical concerns. 

He has never been able to walk or talk. He has only partial use of one of his arms. 

He needs maximum assistance for all his needs. Despite his many disabilities, he 

is a happy man. His care at his intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ICF/IID) home is successful, stable, sustainable, consistent, comprehensive, and cost-effective. 

HHS agencies, such as State Planning Councils and State Protection and Advocacy Services, are misusing Federal funds to promote the closing of ICF/IID homes 

like where my brother lives, despite the objections of legal guardians. 

The Supreme Court 1999 Olmstead ruling states: ‘‘It would be unreasonable, it 

would be a tragic event, then, were the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 

(ADA) to be interpreted so that States had some incentive, for fear of litigation to 

drive those in need of medical care and treatment out of appropriate care and into 

settings with too little assistance and supervision.’’ 

To the great dismay of families, this ‘‘tragic event’’ is exactly what is happening 

across the United States by the misuse of HHS funding. 
534 

1 2011 Older Americans Act State Program Reports. U.S. Department of Health and Human 

Services, Administration on Aging. March 2013. http://www.agid.acl.gov/. 

Appropriate, cost-effective care for those with the severest disabilities is available 

in ICF/IID homes, and yet they are aggressively targeted for closure, flagrantly ignoring the educated choice of guardians. 

Many community settings have too little assistance and too little supervision to 

be appropriate for those with severe multiple intellectual and physical impairments. 

Tragically, the result is an increase in neglect and abuse. 

I ask each member of this committee to seriously question HHS about misusing 

Federal funds to promote forced total deinstitutionalization for persons with intellectual disabilities. Help us keep our beloved family members safe and healthy. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE MEALS ON WHEELS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran: Thank you for the opportunity 

to present testimony to your Subcommittee concerning fiscal year 2015 funding for 

Older Americans Act (OAA) Nutrition Programs administered by the Administration 

for Community Living/Administration on Aging within the U.S. Department of 

Health and Human Services. We are sincerely grateful for your longstanding support, as well as your leadership in ensuring that these programs received a restoration of funding in fiscal year 2014 over the devastating fiscal year 2013 sequestration cuts. 

Last month, we sent a joint letter with the National Association of Nutrition and 

Aging Services Program (NANASP) to you, Chairman Mikulski and Ranking Member Shelby urging increased investments in OAA Nutrition Programs, including the 

Congregate Nutrition Program, Home-Delivered Nutrition Program (commonly referred to as Meals on Wheels), and the Nutrition Services Incentive Program. Specifically, we requested funding these programs at their fiscal year 2010 levels—totaling $819 million. During the fiscal year 2015 appropriations process, we implore you 

to give this modest request your utmost consideration due to the significant moral 

and economic benefits these programs offer. 

This week, a new report released by the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger shows that nearly 9.3 million Americans over the age of 60 struggled with hunger in 2012, up from 8.8 million in 2011—and a 28% increase since the start of the 

recession in 2007. Because OAA funding has not kept pace with needs, the chasm 

continues to widen. Through OAA Nutrition Programs, we are only able to provide 

nutritious meals to 2.5 million of them,1 leaving a staggering gap of nearly 7 million 

seniors still in need. The infrastructure and network exists to serve more of our seniors in need, but the financial resources fall substantially short. That is why we are 

asking for a critical boost in funding levels. 

Senior hunger is a growing epidemic that has serious implications for our current 

and future Mandatory spending. Without proper nutrition and the critical social 

connection that comes along with it, one’s health deteriorates and inevitably fails. 

It is extremely costly not only in personal terms for the individuals who struggle 

with hunger, but also for our Nation in terms of increased healthcare costs. As such, 

we hope that you recognize the need to invest in Discretionary programs, like OAA 

Nutrition Programs, that help prevent and mitigate the effects of chronic diseases, 

improve quality of life, expedite recovery after an illness or injury, and reduce unnecessary Medicare and Medicaid expenses both today and in the future. These programs are part of the solution to our Nation’s fiscal challenges. 

For over 40 years, OAA Nutrition Programs in communities large and small, 

urban and rural have been effectively serving our country’s most vulnerable, frail 

and isolated seniors. What started as a demonstration project has grown into a 

highly effective community-based, nationwide network of more than 5,000 local programs. While not all programs receive OAA funds, the majority rely, in part, on the 

Federal dollars authorized under Title III of the Act as a foundation on which to 

leverage other funding. This enables a very successful public-private partnership to 

help raise the remaining resources needed to provide daily nutritious meals and social contact to seniors 60 years of age and older who are at significant risk of hunger 

and losing their ability to remain independent and able to live in their homes. 

The evidence demonstrates that these programs are not only saving lives and taxpayer dollars every day, but they are doing precisely what they were designed to 

do by effectively reaching our Nation’s most at-risk seniors. 

Data from the 2012 National Survey of OAA Participants shows that the seniors 

receiving Meals on Wheels and congregate meals are primarily over age 75, impoverished, live alone, are in poor health and functionally impaired. For the majority 
535 

2Lloyd, Jean & Greuling, Holly. The Older Americans Act Nutrition Program Sets a New 

Table. Aging Today Online. American Society on Aging. March 2014. http://bit.ly/ONK7eK. 3Don’t Empty My Plate Campaign: http://bit.ly/1oUgRQ9 and http://bit.ly/1jvLSGO. 

4Schieder, Jessica & Lester, Patrick. Sequestering Meals on Wheels Could Cost the Nation 

$489 Million per year. The Center for Effective Government. April 2013. http://bit.ly/16jmmRU. 5Thomas, Kali & Mor, Vincent. The Relationship between Older Americans Act Title III State 

Expenditures and Prevalence of Low-Care Nursing Home Residents. Brown University. December 2012. http://bit.ly/16wl0B2. 6SSRS, independent research company. Survey among a nationally representative sample of 

respondents age 18∂. October 2013. 

of the individuals served, the meal that they receive provides one half or more of 

their total food for the day. 

Of the seniors receiving Meals on Wheels: 

—60 percent have six to 14 chronic health conditions 

—51 percent take from six to at least 23 medications daily 

—29 percent have three or more limitations in everyday activities, such as bathing, getting dressed and toileting 

Of the seniors receiving congregate meals: 

—40 percent have six to 14 chronic health conditions 

—29 percent take from six to at least 23 medications daily 

—50 percent have at least one limitation in everyday activities, such as preparing 

meals or grocery shopping 

Each day, Meals on Wheels programs in Iowa, Kansas and in every State across 

the Nation are serving far more than just meals to seniors in need. They are delivering a caring and efficient service—nutritious meals, friendly visits, and safety 

checks—enabling more than 2.5 million seniors to continue to live independently in 

their own homes and without the worry of hunger and isolation. In short, these programs are a lifeline. 

The following comments from individuals served illustrate the degree to which 

these OAA Nutrition Programs are delivering far more than just a meal. 

—‘‘The companionship and fellowship as well as the nutritious meals keep me getting up in the morning, getting dressed and to the site to eat.’’ 

—‘‘My husband needs lots and lots of help . . . If it wasn’t for meals, I wouldn’t 

be able to continue taking care of him in our home.’’ 

—‘‘If it wasn’t for Meals on Wheels, I would starve.’’ 

—‘‘Once a day a knock at my door means I eat for that day.’’ 

—‘‘I am so grateful for the volunteer drivers... sometimes it is the only human 

contact I have for days.’’ 

—‘‘I had major surgery. I feel these meals are big step toward keeping me from 

going to a nursing home.’’ 

—‘‘I do not get much social security so at least I have food to eat; this is my only 

meal; I am 89 and need Meals on Wheels or I can’t stay in my home; the friendly volunteers are the only people I see most days.’’ 2,3

Beyond the real people and lives these programs impact on a daily basis, there 

is increasing and irrefutable evidence that improving and bolstering funding for 

OAA Nutrition Programs will substantially reduce healthcare costs—both in the 

short- and long-term. A recent report from the Center for Effective Government 

found that for every $1 invested in Meals on Wheels, up to $50 could be saved in 

Medicaid alone.4 Brown University conducted a recent study which found that by 

investing more in Meals on Wheels, more seniors can be kept out of nursing homes. 

Specifically, the research found that for every additional $25 a State spends on 

home-delivered meals each year, per person over 65, the low-care nursing home population—seniors who are nursing home eligible but could remain in their homes 

with only a little outside support—decreases by a percentage point.5 One percentage 

point can translate to billions of dollars in savings annually. 

On top of the social and economic cases for investing in OAA Nutrition Programs, 

the public overwhelmingly supports them. In fact, an October 2013 survey found 

that 7 in 10 Americans agree that the government should pay for Meals on Wheels.6

The growing problem of senior hunger in America requires the continued public-private partnerships that have been a pivotal foundation; however, the Federal Government must serve as the strongest and most reliable fiscal partner by elevating 

its support to higher levels that keep pace with a rapidly aging population, increased need and ever-rising costs. 

We understand the difficult decisions you and your colleagues are tasked with in 

fiscal year 2015 and beyond. However, the evidence demonstrates that these programs are not only saving lives and taxpayer dollars every day, but they are effectively reaching our Nation’s most vulnerable seniors and have the capacity to serve 
536 

more if properly resourced. In short, these proven and effective programs are a part 

of the solution to our Nation’s fiscal challenges and should be looked to as such. 

As your Subcommittee crafts and considers the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill, we ask that you provide fiscal year 2010 appropriations 

levels for all three nutrition programs authorized under the OAA—Congregate Nutrition Program, Home-Delivered Nutrition Program, and the Nutrition Services Incentive Program. You have the ability to shorten waiting lists and increase the 

number of nutritious meals we can serve to seniors today. At the same time you 

will be investing in a stronger fiscal path for our country by reducing future 

healthcare costs. 

Again, we thank you for the opportunity to present this testimony to you, and for 

your continued support. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE MEDICAL LIBRARY ASSOCIATION AND ASSOCIATION OF

ACADEMIC HEALTH SCIENCES LIBRARIES

SUMMARY OF FISCAL YEAR 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS

—Continue the commitment to the National Library of Medicine (NLM) by sup- porting the President’s budget proposal which requests $372.85 million, and an 

additional $8.2 million from amounts under Section 241 of the Public Health 

Service Act, for the National Information Center on Health Services Research 

and Health Care Technology. 

—Continue to support the medical library community’s role in NLM’s outreach, 

telemedicine, disaster preparedness, health information technology initiatives, 

and healthcare reform implementation. 

INTRODUCTION

The Medical Library Association (MLA) and Association of Academic Health 

Sciences Libraries (AAHSL) thank the Subcommittee for the opportunity to submit 

testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the National Library of 

Medicine (NLM), an agency of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Working in 

partnership with the NIH and other Federal agencies, NLM is the key link in the 

chain that translates biomedical research into practice, making the results of research readily available to all who need it. 

NLM Leverages NIH Investments in Biomedical Research 

In today’s challenging budget environment, we recognize the difficult decisions 

Congress faces as it seeks to improve our Nation’s fiscal stability. We thank the 

Subcommittee for its long-standing commitment to strengthening NLM’s budget. 

While extramural funding comprises the largest portion of funding for institutes 

within the NIH, some eighty percent of NLM’s budget supports intramural services 

and programs that sustain the Nation’s biomedical research enterprise and more— 

it builds, sustains, and augments NLM’s suite of more than 200 databases which 

provide information access to health professionals, researchers, educators, and the 

public. Intramural funding also supports all aspects of library operations and programs, including the acquisition, organization, preservation, and dissemination of 

the world’s biomedical literature, no matter the medium. 

In fiscal year 2015 and beyond, it is critical to continue augmenting NLM’s baseline budget to support expansion of its information resources, services, and programs which collect, organize, and make readily accessible rapidly expanding biomedical knowledge resources and data. NLM maximizes the return on the investment in research conducted by the NIH and other organizations. The Library makes 

the results of biomedical information more accessible to researchers, clinicians, business innovators, and the public, enabling such data and information to be used more 

efficiently and effectively to drive innovation and improve health. NLM is a leader 

in Big Data and plays a critical role in accelerating nationwide deployment of health 

information technology, including electronic health records (EHRs), by leading the 

development, maintenance and dissemination of key standards for health data interchange that are now required of certified EHRs. NLM also contributes to Congressional priorities related to drug safety through its efforts to expand its clinical trial 

registry and results database (ClinicalTrials.gov) in response to legislative requirements, and to the Nation’s ability to prepare for and respond to disasters. 

Growing Demand for NLM’s Basic Services 

NLM delivers more than a trillion bytes of data to millions of users daily that 

helps researchers advance scientific discovery and accelerate its translation into new 

therapies; provides health practitioners with information that improves medical care 
537 

and lowers its costs; and gives the public access to resources and tools that promote 

wellness and disease prevention. Every day, medical librarians across the Nation 

use NLM services to assist clinicians, students, researchers, and the public in accessing information they need to save lives and improve health. Without NLM, our 

Nation’s medical libraries would be unable to provide the quality information services that our Nation’s health professionals, educators, researchers and patients increasingly need. 

NLM’s data repositories and online integrated services such as GenBank, 

PubMed, and PubMed Central are revolutionizing medicine and ushering in an era 

of personalized medicine in which care is based on an individual’s unique genetic 

profile. GenBank is the definitive source of gene sequence information. PubMed, 

with more than 23 million citations to the biomedical literature, is the world’s most 

heavily used source of bibliographic information. Approximately 760,000 new citations were added in fiscal year 2013, and the database provided high quality medical information to about 2.3 million users each day. PubMed Central is NLM’s digital archive which provides public access to the full-text versions of more than 3 million biomedical journal articles, including those produced by NIH-funded researchers. On a typical weekday more than one million users download 1.65 million fulltext articles, including those submitted in compliance with the NIH Public Access 

Policy. 

As the world’s largest and most comprehensive medical library, NLM’s traditional 

print and electronic collections continue to steadily increase each year, standing at 

more than 21 million items—books, journals, technical reports, manuscripts, microfilms, photographs and images. By selecting, organizing and ensuring permanent access to health sciences information in all formats, NLM ensures the availability of 

this information for future generations, making it accessible to all Americans, irrespective of geography or ability to pay, and guaranteeing that citizens can make the 

best, most informed decisions about their healthcare. 

Encourage NLM Partnerships 

NLM’s outreach programs are essential to MLA and AAHSL membership and to 

the profession. Through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM), 

with over 6,000 members in communities nationwide, these activities educate medical librarians, health professionals and the general public about NLM’s services 

and train them in the most effective use of these services. The NN/LM promotes 

educational outreach for public libraries, secondary schools, senior centers and other 

consumer-based settings, and its emphasis on outreach to underserved populations 

helps reduce health disparities among large sections of the American public. NLM’s 

‘‘Partners in Information Access’’ program improves access by local public health officials to information which prevents, identifies and responds to public health 

threats and ensures every public worker has electronic health information services 

that protect the public’s health. 

NLM’s MedlinePlus provides consumers with trusted, reliable health information 

on more than 900 topics in English and Spanish. It has become a top destination 

for those seeking information on the Internet, attracting more than 1.2 million visitors daily. NLM has continued to make enhancements to MedlinePlus, with selected 

materials now available in forty other languages. Other products and services that 

benefit public health and wellness include the NIH MedlinePlus Magazine and NIH 

MedlinePlus Salud, available in doctors’ offices nationwide, and NLM’s MedlinePlus 

Connect—a utility which enables clinical care organizations to implement links from 

their electronic health records systems to relevant patient education materials in 

MedlinePlus. 

MLA and AAHSL applaud the success of NLM’s outreach initiatives, and we look 

forward to continuing to work with NLM on these programs. 

Emergency Preparedness and Response 

Through its Disaster Information Management Research Center, NLM collects 

and organizes disaster-related health information, ensures effective use of libraries 

and librarians in disaster planning and response, and develops information services 

to assist responders. NLM responds to specific disasters worldwide with specialized 

information resources appropriate to the need, including information on bioterrorism, chemical emergencies, fires and wildfires, earthquakes, tornadoes, and pandemic disease outbreaks. MLA and NLM continue to develop the Disaster Information Specialization (DIS) program to build the capacity of librarians and other interested professionals to provide disaster-related health information outreach. Working 

with libraries and publishers, NLM’s Emergency Access Initiative makes available 

free full-text articles from hundreds of biomedical journals and reference books for 

use by medical teams responding to disasters. MLA and AAHSL ask the Sub-
538 

committee to support NLM’s role in this crucial area which ensures continuous access to health information and use of libraries and librarians when disasters occur. 

Health Information Technology and Bioinformatics 

For more than 40 years, NLM has supported informatics research, training and 

the application of advanced computing and informatics to biomedical research and 

healthcare delivery including telemedicine projects. Many of today’s biomedical 

informatics leaders are graduates of NLM-funded informatics research programs at 

universities nationwide. A number of the country’s exemplary electronic and personal health record systems benefit from findings developed with NLM grant support. 

The importance of NLM’s work in health information technology continues to 

grow as the Nation moves toward more interoperable health information technology 

systems. A leader in supporting the development, maintenance, and dissemination 

of standard clinical terminologies for free nationwide use (e.g., SNOMED), NLM 

works closely with the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information 

Technology to promote the adoption of interoperable electronic records, and has developed tools to make it easier for EHR developers and users to implement accepted 

health data standards in their systems. 

Organizational Bios 

The Medical Library Association (MLA) is a nonprofit, educational organization 

with 4,000 health sciences information individual and institutional members. 

Founded in 1898, MLA provides lifelong educational opportunities, supports a 

knowledge base of health information research, and works with a network of partners to promote the importance of quality information for improved health to the 

healthcare community and the public. 

The Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL) supports academic health sciences libraries and directors in advancing the patient care, research, 

education and community service missions of academic health centers through visionary executive leadership and expertise in health information, scholarly communication, and knowledge management. 

Thank you again for the opportunity to present our views. We look forward to continuing this dialogue and supporting the Subcommittee’s efforts to secure the highest possible funding level for NLM in fiscal year 2015 and the years beyond to support the Library’s mission and growing responsibilities. Information about NLM and 

its programs can be found at http://www.nlm.nih.gov. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE MESOTHELIOMA APPLIED RESEARCH FOUNDATION

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran and Members of the Subcommittee, 

thank you for the opportunity to provide written testimony on behalf of the mesothelioma community. My name is Mary Hesdorffer and I am the Executive Director 

of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation. I am testifying on behalf of the 

mesothelioma community composed of patients, physicians, caregivers and family 

members. I am a Nurse Practitioner with over sixteen years’ experience working 

with mesothelioma patients in the clinical setting. I would like to use this opportunity to emphasize the great need for increased funding for the National Institutes 

of Health (NIH), including the National Cancer Institute (NCI), both of which play 

a critical role in improving treatment for mesothelioma. 

Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer known to be caused by exposure to asbestos. 

Doctors say it is among the most painful of cancers, and the prognosis is poor even 

with the best available treatment. 

The harsh reality for patients with malignant mesothelioma is that it is a terminal illness; the five-year survival rate is five to ten percent, making it one of the 

most deadly cancers. Left untreated, survival ranges from six to 9 months, and if 

treated with the sole Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved therapy, median survival is only 12.3 months. 

With only one FDA approved treatment available, mesothelioma patients must 

take a trial and error approach to treatment, making agonizing decisions each step 

of the way. Most patients must make the tough decision to go into a clinical trial, 

use off label treatments, or undergo drastic surgeries knowing they may see no benefit whatsoever. They choose to do this with a powerful hope they can help doctors 

learn how to treat mesothelioma, possibly live a while longer and prevent future 

mesothelioma patients from enduring the same difficult experience. 

Fortunately, there are brilliant researchers dedicated to mesothelioma. The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation has made a significant investment, funding 

a total of $8.7 million to support research in hopes of giving researchers the first 
539 

seed grant they need to get started. We need the continued partnership with the 

Federal Government to develop the promising findings into effective treatments. 

In research, innovative and personalized therapies from the mapping of the 

human genome or those that utilize the body’s own immune system are becoming 

a reality for mesothelioma. These developments have the potential to reduce the 

human toll of mesothelioma, but need continued research funding to bring the advances from the bench to the bedside. 

Recent research findings have linked mesothelioma to a germline mutation in the 

BAP1 gene and a somatic mutation in the NF2 gene. Currently, the research goal 

of the BAP1 and NF2 genes is for prevention and early detection of mesothelioma. 

For example, individuals known to be exposed to asbestos who carry this gene can 

be studied to determine if a cancer signal can be picked up before the development 

of mesothelioma. The idea is that if you have a germ line mutation, you and your 

immediate family will be screened for cancers associated with this gene in the hope 

of picking up an early malignancy. Also, researchers will study ways to turn off this 

gene, if defective. There is great potential in these findings. 

Immunotherapy is another exciting area of research. An immunotherapy is a 

treatment that uses certain parts of a person’s immune system to target cancer, and 

is one of the most exciting areas in cancer research. Dr. Raffit Hassan at the NCI 

and his collaborators have shown that mesothelin, a tumor antigen which was discovered at the NCI, is a useful target for tumor-specific therapy of malignant mesothelioma. His group is presently conducting clinical trials of three different agents 

targeting mesothelin. Namely, SS1P which is an anti-mesothelin immunotoxin, 

MORAb-009 which is a chimeric anti-mesothelin monoclonal antibody and CRS-207 

which is a mesothelin tumor vaccine. They have seen some success, and it has given 

patients a reason to be optimistic. 

It is efforts like these that give mesothelioma patients hope. I am grateful for the 

Federal Government’s investment in mesothelioma research and I want to see it 

continued and increased. Unless researchers have the funds to continue, these discoveries will not yield improved treatments, patients will run out of options and continue to die from this disease. 

Cancer research funding as a share of the NIH budget has declined while the scientific and public health need has gone up. In the late 1990s, NCI’s budget made 

up 18.7 percent of the NIH budget. Today, it is 16.4 percent of the NIH budget . 

That decline has reduced NCI’s funding by $680 million below what it would have 

received in fiscal year 2014 if its share of NIH’s total budget had been maintained. 

The mesothelioma community asks that the Subcommittee recognize the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH) as a critical national priority by providing at least $32 

billion, including $5.26 Billion for the National Cancer Institute in funding in the 

fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. This funding recommendation represents the minimum investment necessary to avoid further loss 

of promising research and at the same time allows the NIH’s budget to keep pace 

with biomedical inflation. 

I look to the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies 

Appropriations Subcommittee to provide continued leadership and hope to the people who develop this fatal cancer. Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony and for funding the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer 

Institute at the highest possible level. 

About the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation: 

The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation is the nonprofit collaboration of 

patients and families, physicians, advocates, and researchers dedicated to eradicating the life-ending and vicious effects of mesothelioma. We believe in a cure for 

mesothelioma. Given the human toll of suffering the disease causes, the compassion 

and energy of the mesothelioma community, the moral, legal and economic aspects 

of asbestos, and the benefits of mesothelioma research to cancer research generally, 

we believe that the resources to accomplish this cure are available and must be mobilized. We seek to marshal and utilize these resources responsibly, as effectively 

as possible, with financial transparency and by adhering to health policy guidelines 

that foster ethical clinical and administrative practices, and ethical decisionmaking 

to: 

—Offer hope and support to patients and families by educating them on the disease, helping them to obtain the most up-to-date information on treatment options and to connect with mesothelioma treatment specialists, and providing 

them assistance, emotional support and community with others; 

—Fund the highest quality and most promising mesothelioma research projects 

from around the world through rigorous peer-review; and 
540 

—Raise awareness of mesothelioma, and advocate that the public and private sectors partner in the effort to cure it by directing the resources needed to stop 

this global tragedy 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL AHEC ORGANIZATION

The members of the National AHEC Organization (NAO) are pleased to submit 

this statement for the record recommending $75 million in fiscal year 2015 for the 

Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Program authorized under Title VII of the 

Public Health Service Act and administered through the Health Resources and 

Services Administration (HRSA) at the Department of Health and Human Services. 

The NAO is the professional organization representing AHECs. The AHEC Program is an established and effective national primary care training network built 

on committed partnerships of 53 medical schools and academic centers. Additionally, 

253 AHEC centers within 48 States and tens of thousands of community practitioners are affiliated with the AHEC’s national clinical training network. 

AHEC is one of the Title VII Health Professions Training programs, originally authorized at the same time as the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) to create 

a complete mechanism to provide primary care providers for Community Health 

Centers (CHCs) and other direct providers of healthcare services for underserved 

areas and populations. The plan envisioned by creators of the legislation was that 

the CHCs would provide direct service. The NHSC would be the mechanism to fund 

the education of providers and supply providers for underserved areas through 

scholarship and loan repayment commitments. 

The AHEC program would be the mechanism to recruit providers into primary 

healthcareers, diversify the workforce, and develop a passion for service to the underserved in these future providers, i.e. Area Health Education Centers are the 

workforce development, training and education machine for the Nation’s healthcare 

safety-net programs. The AHEC program is focused on improving the quality, geographic distribution and diversity of the primary care healthcare workforce and 

eliminating the disparities in our Nation’s healthcare system. 

AHECs develop and support the community based training of health professions 

students, particularly in rural and underserved areas. They recruit a diverse and 

broad range of students into healthcareers, and provide continuing education, library and other learning resources that improve the quality of community-based 

healthcare for underserved populations and areas. 

The Area Health Education Center program is effective and provides vital services 

and national infrastructure. Nationwide, over 379,000 students have been introduced to healthcareer opportunities, and over 33,000 mostly minority and disadvantaged high school students received more than 20 hours each of healthcareer exposure. Over 44,000 health professions students received training at 17,530 community-based sites, and furthermore; over 482,000 health professionals received continuing education through AHECs. AHECs perform these education and training 

services through collaborative partnerships with Community Health Centers (CHCs) 

and the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), in addition to Rural Health Clinics 

(RHCs), Critical Access Hospitals, (CAHs), Tribal clinics and Public Health Departments. 

Justification for Recommendations 

The AHEC network is an economic engine that fuels the recruitment, training, 

distribution, and retention of a national health workforce. AHEC stands for JOBS. 

—AHECs are critical in the recruitment, training, and retention of the primary 

care workforce. 

—Research has demonstrated that the community-training network is the most 

effective recruitment tool for the health professions and those who teach remain 

longer in underserved areas and communities. 

—AHECs are in almost every county in the United States. 

—With the aging and growing population, the demand for primary care workforce 

is far outpacing the supply. 

—AHECs continue to educate and train current workforce, as well as recruiting 

and preparing future workforce 

—In 2012, AHEC’s trained 476,585 Health Professionals in 48 States in 13,842 

Health Professions Shortage Areas (HPSAs)—26.4 percent of those trained were 

physicians (125,818). 

—In 2012, the AHEC’s introduced nearly 403,000 students to the healthcareers 

professions and workforce from grades K–College. 
541 

—The AHEC network’s outcomes are the backbone of the Nation’s communitybased health professions training, with a focus on training primary care workforce. 

—Continued funding for the AHEC program is necessary as demonstrated by 1) 

a growing unmet need for primary care doctors in rural areas, and 2) the use 

of the national network of AHEC programs to carry out administrative priorities. 

1. The National Health Service Corps (NHSC), has been mentioned as a program that addresses the priority of increasing diversity in the health professions workforce in underserved and rural areas and addresses the end of 

the pipeline. The AHEC program engages in pre-pipeline, pipeline, and 

post-pipeline activities that works to move individuals through a 

healthcareers pathway and beyond, with a special focus on primary care 

doctors. 

2. The national network of the AHEC program has been tasked with: 

—Training 13,000∂ providers nationwide in OIF/OEF/OND Veteran’s behavioral and mental health, substance abuse, traumatic brain injury and posttraumatic stress, for those not utilizing the VA system 

—Working with the Food and Drug Administration to educate healthcare professionals nationwide on proper opioid prescribing habits to address the epidemic of prescription drug abuse 

—HRSA has encouraged functional linkage between Bureau of Primary Care 

and Bureau of Health Professions Programs. AHECs have partnerships 

with over 1,000 Community Health Centers nationally to recruit, train, and 

retain health professionals who have the cultural and linguistic skills to 

serve in HRSA designated underserved areas 

—Affordable Care Act activities such as increasing the enrollment of individuals, training community health workers, and educating providers nationwide on health insurance exchanges 

[This statement was submitted by Rob Trachtenberg, Executive Director, National 

AHEC Organization.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR EYE AND VISION RESEARCH

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research (NAEVR) requests fiscal year 2015 NIH funding of $32 billion, which would fully restore the $1.7 billion fiscal 

year 2013 sequester cut partially restored in fiscal year 2014 and enable an inflationary increase-the NIH has lost 22 percent of its purchasing power since fiscal 

year 2003, in terms of constant dollars-and provide for modest growth. This request 

improves on the President’s proposal to increase NIH funding by only $200 million 

over fiscal year 2014 and which also increases the Program Evaluation Transfer to 

3 percent, effectively reducing NIH’s increase by $150 million. fiscal year 2015 NIH 

funding of $32 billion is an important step toward consistent and sustained funding 

increases which are necessary to build upon past investment that has created an 

unprecedented scientific opportunity in biomedical research. —$32 billion NIH funding is critical for supporting Research Project Grants, as 

the number of RPGs awarded in fiscal year 2013 was 20 percent less than in 

fiscal year 2003. R01s, or investigator-initiated grants, have been affected even 

more dramatically, as the number awarded fell by 24 percent between fiscal 

year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 

—NIH-funded basic and clinical research has helped to understand the basis of 

disease, thereby resulting in innovations in healthcare to save and improve 

lives. Its research serves an irreplaceable role the private sector could not duplicate. 

—As an economic driver, in fiscal year 2011NIH-funded research supported 

432,000 jobs across the United States and generated more than $62 billion in 

new economic activity. Every $1 of NIH funding generates $2.21 in local economic growth. 

NAEVR requests National Eye Institute (NEI) funding at $730 million, concomitant with $32 billion NIH funding. The President’s budget proposes a minimal NEI 

increase of $0.9 million or 0.15 percent, based on its fiscal year 2014 operational 

net of $675 million-not its $682 million appropriation. This is unacceptable since 

NEI has lost 25 percent of its purchasing power since fiscal year 2003, and the fiscal 

year 2013 sequester has already resulted in NEI awarding 30 fewer grants-any one 

of which may have held the promise to save sight and restore vision. 
542 

As NEI’s Budget Decreases, the Incidence of Eye Disease and Vision Impairment In- creases, As Does the Associated Cost, Estimated at $139 Billion Annually in the 

United States 

Although the fiscal year 2013 sequester cut reduced NEI’s budget by $36 million to $662 million, $20 million of that was restored in fiscal year 2014 through an appropriation of $682 million. In each year, however, NEI’s appropriation was reduced 

even further by $5.6 million and $6.9 million to operational nets of $657 million and 

$674 million, respectively, due to the transfer back to the NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR) for funding of the dissolved NEI-sponsored Ocular Complications of 

AIDS studies. Although OAR’s funding to NEI was not committed into perpetuity, 

its return to NIH Central effectively reflects a cut in NEI funding and results in 

a new baseline upon which future funding will be based. For example, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request bases its 0.15 percent NEI increase on the 

fiscal year 2014 operational net of $674 million, which results in just a $0.9 million 

increase in NEI funding to $675 million. 

The funding nets described above are well below NEI’s highest appropriation-that 

of $707 million in fiscal year 2010 (prior to addition of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding. Unfortunately, as NEI funding has decreased, the 

challenges it faces have grown, due to dramatic increases in the incidence and cost 

of vision impairment and eye disease. 

The NEI estimates that more than 38 million Americans age 40 and older experience blindness, low vision, or an age-related eye disease such as age-related macular 

degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, or cataracts. This is expected 

to grow to more than 50 million Americans by year 2020. Much of this is being driven by the aging of the population, for example, the ‘‘Silver Tsunami’’ of the 78 million baby boomers who will turn age 65 this decade and experience the greatest risk 

for eye disease. Other demographic changes are also contributing to NEI’s challenges, for example, African Americans and Hispanics which increasingly account 

for a larger share of the U.S. population and who experience a disproportionately 

greater prevalence of eye disease. Vision loss can also be a co-morbid condition of 

chronic disease, such as diabetes, which is at epidemic levels due to the increased 

incidence of obesity. 

In June 2013, Prevent Blindness America, in conjunction with the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, released updated estimates of the 

cost of vision disorders. NORC estimates the annual costs of vision disorders at $139 

billion annually, inclusive of direct and indirect costs. Most importantly, the direct 

medical costs associated with vision disorders are the fifth highest-only less than 

heart disease, cancers, emotional disorders, and pulmonary conditions. 

NEI’s fiscal year 2014 operational net funding of $674 million, as well as the 

President’s fiscal year 2015 proposed funding of $675 million, are each less than 0.5 

percent of this $139 billion annual vision disorder cost burden. The U.S. is spending 

only $2.10 per-person, per-year for vision research at the NEI, while NORC estimates that the cost of treating low vision and blindness is $6,690 per-person, peryear. 

In 2009, Congress spoke volumes in passing S. Res 209 and H. Res. 366, which 

designated 2010–2020 as The Decade of Vision and recognized NEI’s 40th anniversary as the lead institute in funding research to save sight and restore vision. With 

the fiscal year 2015 LHHS spending bill, Congress can act upon its past resolutions 

regarding vision and ensure that NEI is adequately funded to meet these challenges. 

$730 MILLION FISCAL YEAR 2015 FUNDING ENABLES NEI TO PURSUE ITS PRIMARY

‘‘AUDACIOUS GOAL’’ OF RESTORING VISION

NEI has lost 25 percent of its purchasing power since fiscal year 2003. The fiscal 

year 2013 sequester cut resulted in NEI awarding 30 fewer grants, and the President’s fiscal year 2015 proposal would result in 23 fewer awards. Any one of those 

missed funding opportunities could have held the promise to save sight and restore 

vision-goals that would have seemed unattainable just a few short years ago. The 

NEI has long been a leader in biomedical research. As NIH Director Francis Collins, 

M.D., Ph.D. stated in February 2013: 

‘‘It’s often, it seems to me, that vision research is a couple of steps in front of 

things that are happening in biomedical research. It’s clear that vision research has 

played a disproportionately large share in scientific breakthroughs.’’ 

Dr. Collins made his comments at NEI’s Audacious Goals Development meeting, 

where more than 200 attendees reflecting every sector of the vision community, including government scientists and regulators from various disciplines, discussed top-
543 

ics built around the ten winning submissions from a pool of nearly 500 entries selected through NEI’s Audacious Goals in Vision Research and Blindness Rehabilitation Challenge. This initiative, conducted by NEI with its National Advisory Eye 

Council (NAEC) and through The America Competes Act, yielded such ideas as restoring light sensitivity to the blind through gene-based therapies and visual prosthetics, pinpoint correction of defective genes, and growing healthy tissue from stem 

cells for ocular tissue transplants. 

In consultation with the NAEC, the NEI converged on its primary Audacious Goal 

for vision research: To Regenerate Neurons and Neuronal Connections in the Eye 

and Visual System.’’ As NEI Director Paul Sieving, M.D., Ph.D. stated in February 

2014: 

‘‘The goals are bold but achievable. They are beyond what medicine currently can 

do. We are planning for a 10–12–15 year effort to reach these endpoints. Success 

would transform life for millions of people with eye and vision diseases. It would 

have major implications for medicine of the future, for vision diseases, and even beyond this, for neurological diseases.’’ 

As NEI works to achieve this goal, it will build upon its breakthrough research 

funded through past Federal investment. For example, NEI has been a leader in determining the genetic basis of disease-the research it has funded has identified more 

than 500 genes associated with both common and rare eye diseases, which is 7.5 

percent of all disease-causing genes discovered to-date. Understanding the genetic 

basis of the disease and underlying mechanisms will lead to better diagnostics and 

therapies. Since last year’s testimony, NEI has announced that: 

—The AMD Gene Consortium, a network of international investigators representing 18 research groups, has discovered seven new regions of the human 

genome-called loci-that are associated with increased risk of AMD. They also 

confirmed 12 loci already identified in previous studies. These loci implicate a 

variety of biological functions, including regulation of the immune system, 

maintenance of cellular structure, growth and permeability of blood vessels, 

lipid metabolism, and atherosclerosis. AMD is the leading cause of vision loss 

overall, as well as the leading cause in individuals are 60-plus. 

—The NEI Glaucoma Human Genetics Collaboration (NEIGHBOR) Consortium, 

which involves clinicians and geneticists at multiple institutions throughout the 

U.S. who are studying genetic variants associated with Primary Open Angle 

Glaucoma-the most common form of the disease-has identified the first common 

genetic risk factors for normal pressure glaucoma. NEIGHBOR, unique because 

it is the largest Genome-Wide Association Study to-date, will generate new insights into the molecular pathogenesis, effective screening and prevention strategies, and more rational treatment approaches for this disease. Glaucoma is 

three-to-four times more prevalent in African Americans than non-Hispanic 

Whites and is the leading cause of blindness in the Latino population. 

These are ambitious goals that require increased-not decreased-funding. Our Nation’s investment in vision health is an investment in its overall health. NEI’s 

breakthrough research is a cost-effective investment, since it is leading to treatments and therapies that can ultimately delay, save, and prevent health expenditures, especially those associated with the Medicare and Medicaid programs. It can 

also increase productivity, help individuals to maintain their independence, and 

generally improve the quality of life, especially since vision loss is associated with 

increased depression and accelerated mortality. 

The very health of the vision research community is also at stake with the decrease in NEI funding. Not only will funding for new investigators be at risk, but 

also that of seasoned investigators, which threatens the continuity of research and 

the retention of trained staff, while making institutions more reliant on bridge and 

philanthropic funding. . 

ABOUT NAEVR

NAEVR, which serves as the ‘‘Friends of the NEI,’’ is a 501(c)4 non-profit advocacy coalition comprised of 55 professional (ophthalmology and optometry), patient 

and consumer, and industry organizations involved in eye and vision research. Visit 

NAEVR’s Web site at www.eyeresearch.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS

Chairman Harkin and members of the Subcommittee, I am Mary Giliberti, Executive Director of NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness). I am pleased today 

to offer NAMI’s views on the Subcommittee’s upcoming fiscal year 2015 bill. The Na-
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tional Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is the Nation’s largest grassroots advocacy 

organization representing persons living with serious mental illness and their families. Through our 1,100 affiliates in all 50 States, we support education, outreach, 

advocacy and research on behalf of persons with serious mental illness such as 

schizophrenia, manic depressive illness, major depression, severe anxiety disorders 

and mental health conditions affecting children. 

An estimated 11.5 million American adults live with a mental illness, such as 

schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression. Based on estimates for 2010, 

mental disorders accounted for 21.3percent of all years lived with disability in the 

United States. Among the top 20 causes of years lived with disability, five were 

mental disorders: major depressive disorder (8.3 percent of the total), anxiety disorders (5.1 percent), schizophrenia (2.2 percent), bipolar disorder (1.6 percent) and 

dysthymia (1.5 percent). Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S., accounting for the loss of more than 38,000 American lives each year, more than double the number of lives lost to homicide. The social and economic costs associated 

with these disorders are tremendous. A cautious estimate places the direct and indirect financial costs associated with mental illness in the U.S. at well over $300 billion annually, and it ranks as the third most costly medical condition in terms of 

overall healthcare expenditure, behind only heart conditions and traumatic injury. 

These costs are not only financial, but also human in terms of lost productivity, 

broken families and lives lost to suicide. Investment in mental illness research and 

services are—in NAMI’s view—the highest priority for our Nation and this Subcommittee. 

National Institute of Mental Health Research Funding 

As a member of the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research Funding, NAMI supports a $32 billion overall allocation for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This increase is needed to avoid having our country continue to fall behind China, India 

and other emerging Nations in terms of our public investment in scientific research. 

As you know, the President is requesting a $23 million increase for the National 

Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) for fiscal year 2015, boosting funding for the 

agency to $1.44 billion. NAMI would urge the Subcommittee to fund investments 

beyond this amount with an overall higher allocation for the entire NIH. 

NAMI also supports the President’s BRAIN Initiative (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) and the request for a $40 million boost, 

up to $100 million. The BRAIN Initiative is multi–agency collaborative with a number of foundations designed to unleash new technologies and undertake basic mapping of circuits and neurons in the most complex organ in the human body. 

Accelerating the Pace of Psychiatric Drug Discovery 

In NAMI’s view, there is an urgent need for new medications to treat serious 

mental illness. Existing medications can be helpful, but they often have significant 

limitations; in some cases requiring weeks to take effect; failing to relieve symptoms 

in a significant proportion of patients; or, resulting in debilitating side effects. However, developing new medications is a lengthy and expensive process. Many promising compounds fail to prove effective in clinical testing after years of preliminary 

research. To address this urgent issue, NAMI is encouraging NIMH to accelerate 

the pace of drug discovery through an ‘experimental medicine’ approach to evaluate 

novel interventions for mental illnesses. This ‘‘fast–fail’’ strategy is designed not 

only to quickly identify candidates that merit more extensive testing, but also to 

identify targets in the brain for the development of additional candidate compounds. 

Through small trials focused on proof–of–concept experimental medicine paradigms, 

we can make progress to demonstrate target engagement, safety, and early signs 

of efficacy. 

Advancing Services and Intervention Research 

NAMI enthusiastically supports the NIMH Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode (RAISE) Project, aimed at preventing the long–term disability associated with schizophrenia by intervening at the earliest stages of illness. The RAISE 

Early Treatment Program (RAISE ETP) will conclude this year. The RAISE Connection Program has successfully integrated a comprehensive early intervention program for schizophrenia and related disorders into an existing medical care system. 

This implementation study is now evaluating strategies for reducing duration of untreated psychosis among persons with early–stage psychotic illness. When individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder progress to later stages of their illness, 

they become more likely to develop—and die prematurely—from medical problems 

such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, stroke, and pulmonary disease than members of the general population. NIMH funded research is demonstrating progress advancing the health of people with serious mental illness. NIMH needs to advance 
545 

this research to large–scale clinical trials aimed at reducing premature mortality for 

people living with serious mental illness. 

Investing in Early Psychosis Prediction and Prevention (EP3) 

As many as 100,000 young Americans experience a first episode of psychosis 

(FEP) each year. The early phase of psychotic illness is a critical opportunity to 

alter the downward trajectory and social, academic, and vocational challenges associated with serious mental illness such as schizophrenia. The timing of treatment 

is critical; short– and long–term outcomes are better when individuals begin treatment close to the onset of psychosis. Unfortunately, the majority of people with 

mental illness experience significant delays to seeking care—up to 9 years in some 

cases. Such delays result in periods of increased risk for poor outcomes, especially 

suicide. 

NIMH–funded research has focused on the prodrome, the high–risk period preceding the onset of the first psychotic episode of schizophrenia. Through North 

American Prodrome Longitudinal Study (NAPLS) and other studies focused on early 

prediction and prevention of psychosis, NIMH has launched Early Psychosis Prediction and Prevention (EP3) initiative. EP3 is showing promise in detecting risk 

States for psychotic disorders and reducing the duration of untreated psychosis in 

adolescents that have experienced FEP. 

Advancing Precision Medicine 

NAMI supports efforts at NIMH to translate basic research findings on brain 

function into more person–centered and multifaceted diagnoses and treatments for 

mental disorders. The Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) is showing promise toward 

efforts to build a classification system based more on underlying biological and basic 

behavioral mechanisms than on symptoms, RDoC should begin to give us the precision currently lacking with traditional diagnostic approaches to mental disorders. 

Funding for Programs at SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services 

As noted above, the costs of untreated mental illness to our Nation are enormous—as high as $300 billion when taking into account lost wages and productivity 

and other indirect costs. These costs are compounded by the fact that across the Nation States and localities devote enormous resources addressing the human and financial costs untreated mental illness through law enforcement, corrections, homeless shelters and emergency medical services. This phenomenon of ‘‘spending money 

in all the wrong places’’ is tragic given that we have a vast array of proven evidence–based interventions that we know work—assertive community treatment, 

supported employment, family psycho–education and supportive housing. 

NAMI supports programs at the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) at 

SAMHSA that are focused on replication and expansion of these evidence–based 

practices that serve children and adults living with serious mental illness. The most 

important of these programs is the Mental Health Block Grant (MHBG). NAMI is 

extremely grateful for the increases in funding for the MHBG that this Subcommittee has made in recent years, boosting funding from $420 million in fiscal 

year 2010, up to its current level of $484 million in fiscal year 2014. This increase 

has been important to helping States fills gaps in services that have occurred as 

States cut more than $4 billion from State mental health budgets since the recession began in 2008. 

NAMI also supports the 5 percent set aside in the in the MHBG that this Subcommittee enacted in fiscal year 2014 for early intervention in psychosis. As noted 

above, the NIMH RAISE study validated the most effective approaches for providing 

coordinated care for adolescents experiencing FEP. Among these is Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC), a collaborative, recovery–oriented approach that emulates the assertive community treatment combining evidence–based services into an effective 

package. CSC emphasizes shared decisionmaking—which NAMI strongly supports— 

with the recipient of services taking an active role in determining treatment preferences and recovery goals. 

In April, CMHS issued guidance to the States specifying that funding as part of 

the 5 percent set aside must be used for those who have developed the symptoms 

of early serious mental illness, not for ‘‘preventive intervention for those at high risk 

of serious mental illness.’’ NAMI supports this guidance and we recommend that the 

Subcommittee continue this 5 percent set aside for FEP in fiscal year 2015 and beyond. 

NAMI would also recommend the following priorities for CMHS for fiscal year 

2015: 

—Continuation of the Children’s Mental Health program at $117 million, and 
546 

—Support the President’s proposal for a $6 million increase for suicide prevention 

activities at CMHS (up to $54.2 million), including funding for the Garrett Lee 

Smith Memorial Act. 

Addressing Early Mortality and Serious Mental Illness, Integrating Primary and Behavioral Health Care 

The CMHS Primary Behavioral Health Care Integration (PBHCI) program supports community behavioral health and primary care organizations that partner to 

provide essential primary care services to adults with serious mental illnesses. Because of this program, more than 33,000 people with serious mental illness and substance use disorders are screened and treated at 100 grantee sites for diabetes, 

heart disease, and other common and deadly illnesses in an effort to stem the 

alarming early mortality rate from these health conditions in this population. NAMI 

urges the Subcommittee to fund the PBHCI for fiscal year 2015 at $50 million. 

Addressing the Needs of Homeless Individuals Living with Serious Mental Illness 

On any given night, according to 2013 data, 610,042 people are homeless, and 15 

percent of these individuals are defined as long–term or chronically homeless. Years 

of reliable data and research demonstrate that, for single individuals with serious 

mental illness who live with complex needs, the most successful intervention for 

ending and preventing homelessness is linking housing to appropriate support services. Although there is a need for more affordable housing, funding the supportive 

services is even more difficult. SAMHSA homeless programs fill a gap created by 

a preference of HUD to fund housing rental assistance and capital needs. HHS must 

take responsibility to fund the critically important services that are necessary for 

programs to be effective. 

In 2013, SAMHSA was not able to award any new community–based services 

grants. For the first time, eleven States (AZ, GA, HI, WA, LA, IL, NV, PA, MA, MI 

and CO) did receive funding to improve statewide alignment of resources but every 

State could use SAMHSA assistance in their efforts to end homelessness. Over the 

years, hundreds of government entities and local providers have been unable to 

move forward with important work due to inadequate funding levels. The current 

fiscal year 2014 funding level of SAMHSA homeless programs is $74 million, divided 

between CMHS and CSAT. NAMI supports an increase for this joint program up 

to $100 million, equally divided between CMHS and CSAT. 

NAMI also supports funding for the PATH program (Projects for Assistance in 

Transition from Homelessness) that allocates funds by formula to States to serve 

homeless people with serious mental illness. Eligible services include outreach, 

screening and diagnosis, habilitation and rehabilitation, community mental health 

services, substance abuse treatment, case management, residential supervision, and 

housing. PATH supported programs reached over 191,839 people in fiscal year 2013. 

Of these, 65 percent were unsheltered at the time of engagement, 42 percent were 

not engaged in mental illness treatment and 53 percent had co–occurring substance 

use disorders. NAMI recommends at least $75 million for the PATH program for fiscal year 2015 (the authorized amount). In fiscal year 2014, the PATH program is 

funded at $65 million. 

Conclusion 

Chairman Harkin, thank you for the opportunity to share NAMI’s views on the 

Labor–HHS–Education Subcommittee’s fiscal year 2015 bill. NAMI’s consumer and 

family membership thanks you for your leadership on these important national priorities. 

[This statement was submitted by Mary Giliberti, Executive Director, National Alliance on Mental Illness.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE TO END SEXUAL VIOLENCE

On behalf of the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence (NAESV) representing 

56 state and territorial sexual assault coalitions and more than 1300 local rape crisis centers, I am respectfully requesting fiscal year 2015 Federal funding to support 

comprehensive rape prevention and education and direct services for victims of sexual violence. Specifically, NAESV is requesting $50.6 million, $45 million for the 

program and $5.6 million in PHS evaluation tap funds, for the Rape Prevention & 

Education Program (RPE) in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

(CDC) National Center for Injury Prevention and Control budget. In addition, 

NAESV is requesting level funding of $160 million for the Preventive Health and 

Health Services Block Grant, which includes a $7 million set-aside for rape preven-
547 

tion services, in CDC’s National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health 

Promotion budget. Together, we must make our communities safer. 

One in five women has been the victim of rape or attempted rape. Nearly one in 

two women has experienced some form of sexual violence and one in five men has 

experienced a form of sexual violence other than rape in their lifetime. The CDC 

National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey study confirmed that the impacts of sexual violence on society are enormous. Over 80 percent of women who 

were victimized experienced significant short and long-term impacts related to the 

violence such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), injury (42 percent) and 

missed time at work or school (28 percent). The CDC report also shows that most 

rape and partner violence is experienced before the age of 24, highlighting the importance of preventing this violence before it occurs. 

The 2013 Rape Crisis Center Survey, distributed by NAESV, demonstrated that 

over 75 percent of these programs lost funding in the last year, causing programs 

to have to reduce services, lay off staff or even close. Over one third of rape crisis 

centers reported having a waiting list for services, with victims waiting most often 

for counseling services and support groups. Three out of four programs cannot meet 

current requests for community prevention programs. As you begin the fiscal year 

2015 appropriations process, please fund the following priorities. 

Rape Prevention and Education (RPE).—The National Alliance to End Sexual Violence urges Congress to provide $45 million for the program and an additional $5.6 

million in PHS evaluation tap funds for RPE program evaluation, with the goal of 

creating a more extensive evidence base for sexual violence prevention. Funding for 

RPE through CDC’s Injury Center provides formula funding to every State and territory to raise awareness of the problem of sexual assault, support efforts to prevent 

first-time perpetration and victimization, and bring together diverse partners to develop, implement and evaluate statewide sexual assault prevention plans. The RPE 

program engages boys and men as partners, supports interdisciplinary research collaborations, fosters cross-cultural approaches to prevention, promotes healthy relationships, and funds the critically important National Sexual Violence Resource 

Center. High profile cases have increased the demand for prevention and education 

beyond the current capacity of State sexual assault coalitions and local rape crisis 

centers. The expansive media attention also points to the need for comprehensive 

community responses to sexual violence like those funded by RPE. With fiscal year 

2013 funding, the program educated more than 1.8 million students, answered 

340,000 hotline calls, and conducted over 105,000 trainings nationwide. 

Formula Shortfall.—Beginning in fiscal year 2014, a new RPE funding formula 

is being implemented based on VAWA 2013. While the formula provides a base 

funding of $150,000 for all 50 States, Washington, DC and Puerto Rico, and $50,000 

for territories, it reduces the funding provided to large States. In addition, CDC is 

altering the fiscal year of the program which results in reduced funding stretched 

over a span of 15 months, further penalizing State coalitions and local rape crisis 

centers at the same time demand for rape prevention and education is increasing 

due to high profile cases causing alarm in local communities. Increased funding is 

required to avoid critical shortfalls. 

Program Evaluation.—There is a need to increase the evidence base for sexual violence prevention. However, those efforts should be funded by additional funding— 

not from program funds to States and local rape crisis centers. Most recently, CDC 

decided to make ‘‘State level evaluation’’ mandatory despite many States starting 

local, regional or targeted evaluation efforts. It is the CDC’s stated perspective that 

this would be ‘‘less labor intensive.’’ However, this strategy forces everyone down 

one path, without a recognition of the work and progress that is currently underway 

in many States, nor of each State’s individual goals, projects or bandwidth to accomplish the work. To date, CDC has not demonstrated that they have developed any 

significant sexual violence specific research and evaluation over the years. Rather, 

all indicators suggest that they are relying on proxy measures that have been developed for other issues such as alcohol use, which are not suited to measure sexual 

violence. We support the CDC proposal to use PHS evaluation tap funding for this 

purpose. We do not want program funds diverted from the communities at a time 

when demand for prevention and education, as well as services, is increasing at 

such a rapid rate. 

Preventive Health & Health Services Block Grant (PHHSBG).—We are very grateful for the fiscal year 2014 funding of $160 million enacted by Congress and disappointed with the Administration’s efforts to eliminate the program which provides 

much needed resources to communities. The Public Health Service Act of 2010 authorizes the block grant (CDC, Chronic Disease) and provides a rape set-aside provision which guarantees at least $7 million for rape services and prevention. Please 

retain the block grant funding that supports local rape crisis centers providing serv-
548 

ices, statewide training and technical assistance to increase capacity to assist rape 

victims and prevent future victimization. Maximum funding is requested. 

We must have the resources to meet the education and prevention needs in the 

community. Victims deserve support, our young people deserve to grow up safely, 

and research tells us that appropriate and early intervention and prevention can 

mitigate the costs and consequences of sexual violence and prevent that violence 

from occurring in the first place. The best way to prevent victimization is to prevent 

first time perpetration. The best way to convict a rapist is to support and advocate 

for the victim, obtain evidence and provide assistance and training to law enforcement. 

Thank you for the opportunity for the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence 

to present testimony for the record as the Senate Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related 

Agencies begins the process to prepare the fiscal year 2015 Appropriations Bill. If 

you need further information, I can be reached at monika@nccasa.org and 

www.endsexualviolence.org. 

[This statement was submitted by Monika Johnson-Hostler, Board President, National Alliance to End Sexual Violence.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ALOPECIA AREATA FOUNDATION

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the priorities of the community of individuals 

affected by alopecia areata as you work to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health 

and Human Services Appropriations Bill. 

ABOUT ALOPECIA AREATA

Alopecia areata is a prevalent autoimmune skin disease resulting in the loss of 

hair on the scalp and elsewhere on the body. It usually starts with one or more 

small, round, smooth patches on the scalp and can progress to total scalp hair loss 

(alopecia totalis) or complete body hair loss (alopecia universalis). 

Alopecia areata affects approximately 2.1 percent of the population, including 

more than 6.5 million people in the United States alone. The disease disproportionately strikes children and onset often occurs at an early age. This common skin disease is highly unpredictable and cyclical. Hair can grow back in or fall out again 

at any time, and the disease course is different for each person. In recent years, scientific advancements have been made, but there remains no cure or indicated treatment options. 

The true impact of alopecia areata is more easily understood anecdotally than empirically. Affected individuals often experience significant psychological and social 

challenges in addition to the biological impact of the disease. Depression, anxiety, 

and suicidal ideation are health issues that can accompany alopecia areata. The 

knowledge that medical interventions are extremely limited and of minor effectiveness in this area further exacerbates the emotional stresses patients typically experience. 

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

NAAF, headquartered in San Rafael, California, supports research to find a cure 

or acceptable treatment for alopecia areata, supports those with the disease, and 

educates the public about alopecia areata. NAAF is governed by a volunteer Board 

of Directors and a prestigious Scientific Advisory Council. Founded in 1981, NAAF 

is widely regarded as the largest, most influential, and most representative foundation associated with alopecia areata. NAAF is connected to patients through local 

support groups and also holds an important, well-attended annual conference that 

reaches many children and families. 

Recently, NAAF initiated the Alopecia Areata Treatment Development Program 

(TDP) dedicated to advancing research and identifying innovative treatment options. 

TDP builds on advances in immunological and genetic research and is making use 

of the Alopecia Areata Clinical Trials Registry which was established in 2000 with 

funding support from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and 

Skin Diseases; NAAF took over responsibility financial and administrative responsibility for the Registry in 2012 and continues to add patients to it. NAAF is engaging 

scientists in active review of both basic and applied science in a variety of ways, 

including the November 2012 Alopecia Areata Research Summit featuring presentations from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and NIAMS. 
549 

DEIDRE’S STORY

It has been 15 years since I first found the bald patch on my head that would 

completely change the course of my life. As a student at Florida State University 

during my junior year I found a perfectly round bald patch while blow-drying my 

very thick long hair—my pride and joy! Little did I know then the significant effect 

alopecia areata would have on my life. 

I followed the typical patient profile for this disease. I started with one patch the 

size of a 50 cent piece, which later evolved into patches of varying sizes all over 

my head, and then to total loss of all scalp hair, which progressed to the most severe 

form of the disease: total loss of all body hair including my scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, etc. Recently, my hair has inexplicably started to grow back in a very patchy 

and strange fashion on my head, while most of my body still remains hairless; a 

perfect example of the completely unpredictable course of this disease, which can 

cause significant emotional turmoil and distress for the sufferer. 

As a professional woman, this disease has had a severe impact on my life. I have 

to present a confident image to the outside world. Living in constant fear of being 

discovered as a bald woman, being thought to be sick, bizarre, or worse has always 

been on the forefront of my mind. 

The exorbitant cost for treatments such as cortisone injections, extremely painful 

with questionable efficacy, has been an issue for me along with the expensive cranial prosthetics. Over the course of the years these have cost me thousands of dollars. If a lawyer like myself has financial difficulty when it comes to paying for 

treatments and prosthetics (which are not covered by insurance due to lack of CMS 

coverage benefits for those with Alopecia Areata), can you imagine the plight facing 

those patients that live on limited or fixed income? 

The fact that there is so little known about the causes or possible treatments/cure 

for this disease only adds to the pain and suffering. This is a disease that alters 

the way you see yourself and the way the outside world treats you, and also causes 

significant and often debilitating emotional distress. The fact that there is little that 

can currently be done adds to that pain and suffering. Patients face a bleak outlook. 

For me, it has been a constant battle. I have not lived a single moment in the 5,475 

days since that I have not looked in the mirror and wanted to scream or cry, not 

a single day that I haven’t thought that I am damaged, abnormal, or ugly because 

of my hair loss, not a single day that I haven’t worried about how a client, colleague, 

friend, or love-interest might see and judge me. Many will say to me that ‘‘it is only 

hair’’ or ‘‘at least it’s not cancer.’’ These comments only frustrate and upset me 

more. The feelings of being ostracized as an outcast can become deafening, even for 

a confident, intelligent professional. I shudder to think how others who don’t possess 

my strength of character handle the stresses of this disease. 

It is only with additional funding for research that we might hope to improve the 

lives of the millions in the U.S. living with alopecia areata. Few have even heard 

of the disease. That fact alone creates additional stresses and difficulties for those 

of us with the disease, constantly having to explain what is ‘‘wrong’’ with us. Increased research into viable treatment options and a potential cure could significantly impact millions of lives, from small children to adults, facing the constant 

battle that comes from a total loss of self image and confidence. 

I thank you on behalf of myself and of the entire alopecia areata community for 

consideration of NAAF’s requests. 

SEQUESTRATION

We have heard from the medical research community that sequestration and deficit reduction activities have created serious issues for Federal funding opportunities 

and the career development pipeline. In order to ensure that research into alopecia 

areata, skin, and autoimmune disorders can continue to move forward, and, more 

importantly, to ensure that our country is adequately preparing the next generation 

of young investigators, we urge you to avert, mitigate, or otherwise eliminate the 

specter of sequestration. While the Foundation has anecdotal accounts of the harms 

of sequestration, the Federated American Societies for Experimental Biology has reported: 

—In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the NIH budget in fiscal year 2013 

was $6 billion (22.4 percent) less than it was in fiscal year 2003. 

—The number of competing research project grants (RPGs) awarded by NIH has 

also fallen sharply since fiscal year 2003. In fiscal year 2013, NIH made 8,283 

RPG awards, which is 2,110 (20.3 percent) fewer than in fiscal year 2003. 

—Awards for R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated research, suffered even greater losses. The number awarded fell 

by 2,528 (34 percent) between fiscal year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 
550 

The pay line for some NIH funding mechanisms has fallen from 18 percent to 10 

percent while the average age for a researcher to receive their first NIH-funded 

grant has climbed to 42. These are strong disincentives to choosing a career as a 

medical researcher. Our scaling-back is occurring at a time when many foreign 

countries are investing heavily in their biotechnology sectors. China alone plans to 

dedicate $300 million to medical research over the next 5 years; this amount is double the current NIH budget over the same period of time. Scientific breakthroughs 

will continue, but America may not benefit from the return-on-investment of a robust biotechnology sector. For the purposes of economic and national security, as 

well as public health, the Foundation asks that you work with your colleagues to 

eliminate sequestration and recommit to supporting this Nation’s biomedical research enterprise. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CDC and NCCDPHP are well-positioned to improve our understanding of alopecia 

areata through surveillance and surveys. There are many opportunities in this area 

due to the fact that alopecia areata is the most easily observable autoimmune disease. Robust epidemiology could yield important information for all autoimmune diseases, not just alopecia areata. CDC requires a meaningful investment in fiscal year 

2015 so that it can expand its crucial public health activities beyond winnable battles. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH hosts a modest alopecia areata research portfolio, and the Foundation works 

closely with NIH to advance critical activities. NIH projects, in coordination with 

the Foundation’s TDP, have the potential to identify biomarkers and develop therapeutic targets. In fact, alopecia areata research has a strong value proposition as 

scientific advancements may have applications for other autoimmune and skin diseases. Please provide NIH with meaningful funding increases to facilitate growth in 

the alopecia areata research portfolio. 

One exciting emerging opportunity is the new Accelerating Medicines Partnership 

(AMP) that was recently announced by NIH. This effort is outcomes-oriented and 

based on a public private-partnership model. Industry, patient organizations, and 

researchers work together to conduct research with the goals of improving treatments and diagnostic tools. Rheumatoid arthritis is one of the diseases being examined in the first round of study, which should generate opportunities for alopecia 

areata due to the similarities between the conditions. Please support AMP and encourage NIH to expand activities in this area, particularly when there is research 

overlap between conditions 

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES

FDA nominated alopecia areata as a potential condition for specific review 

through the Patient-Focused Drug Development Initiative (PFDDI). This is because 

many of the impacts of alopecia areata have to be reported by patients and cannot 

be measured biologically. While we appreciate that FDA falls under the guise of the 

Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, we ask that you work with your colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to support this important program. Further, FDA should be encouraged to review all originally-nominated conditions in a 

timely manner so the PFDDI can continue to move forward. 

Thank you for your time and your consideration of the community’s requests. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR GERIATRIC EDUCATION

The National Association for Geriatric Education (NAGE) is pleased to submit 

this statement for the record recommending $41.997 million in fiscal year 2015 to 

support geriatrics programs under the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Title VII, Section 753 of the Public Health Service Act. NAGE respectfully requests that the Subcommittee return to its approved level for fiscal year 

2010, which was also included that year in the Administration’s request, but was 

not included in the final bill. Unfortunately, only $34 million was funded in the final 

bill, and that has been cut to under $34 million in subsequent years. 

NAGE is a non-profit membership organization representing Geriatric Education 

Centers (GECs) and other programs that provide education and training to health 

professionals in the areas of geriatrics and gerontology. Our mission is to help 

America’s health workforce be better prepared to render age-appropriate care to today’s older Americans and those of tomorrow. 
551 

NAGE recognizes the Subcommittee faces difficult decisions in a constrained 

budget environment, a continued commitment to programs supporting the growing 

need for geriatric education programs that help the Nation’s health professions better serve the older and disabled population should remain a top priority. The Nation 

faces a shortage of geriatric health professionals. Every day in America 10,000 more 

persons reach the age of 65 years. There simply are not enough geriatricians, gerontological nurse practitioners and the myriad other health professions needed to provide interprofessional care to this burgeoning older population. 

Three geriatric health professions programs are financed under Title VII, Section 

753 of the Public Health Service Act and are included in the Health Resources and 

Services Administration (HRSA). Geriatric Education Centers (GECs) and their related programs, the Geriatric Academic Career Awards and the Geriatric Faculty 

Fellowships, provide much needed interdisciplinary geriatric and gerontology training to a broad range of health professionals who serve our rapidly growing aging 

population. 

GECs train healthcare professional faculty, students, and practitioners in the 

interprofessional diagnosis, management and prevention of disease, disability, and 

other health problems of the elderly. This program also provides interprofessional 

continuing education for healthcare practitioners related to prominent issues in the 

field of geriatrics, such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and advances in palliative 

care, among others. The GEC program currently funds 45 GECs in 34 States, including statewide and multi-state programs. About half of GECs provide education 

for areas that are more than 50 percent rural and one-fourth of GECs focuses on 

training in areas that are 25–49 percent rural. In the 2012–2013 Academic Year, 

GEC programs provided over 1,650 different continuing education courses to over 

94,000 trainees. GEC grantees exceeded the program’s performance goal by 58.5 

percent. 

Geriatrics Training for Physicians, Dentists, and Behavioral/Mental Health Professionals (GTPD) support faculty fellowships that help physicians, dentists, and behavioral and mental health professionals who plan to teach geriatrics in their selected fields. The aim of the program is increase the number of quality, culturally 

competent geriatric faculty and to retain mid-career faculty in geriatrics. GTPD provided funding for 64 fellows in the academia field of geriatric medicine, dentistry, 

and psychiatry. The GTPD fellows received clinical training in over 200 different 

healthcare locations across the Nation. The majority were trained in Veteran’s Affairs hospitals, private hospitals and academic centers with nearly half of the sites 

located in medically underserved communities. Notably, each fellow dedicated at 

least 25 percent of their time for teaching health students about geriatric-related 

topics. In Academic Year 2012–2013, it is estimated that over 275 courses, workshops and other activities were delivered by GTPD fellows. 

Geriatrics Academic Career Awards (GACAs) provide a financial incentive for junior faculty to pursue an academic career in geriatrics. GACA currently supports 62 

newly trained geriatric physicians. Award recipients delivered over 1,110 different 

health courses, workshops and other types of training activities to over 53,000 trainees across the health profession spectrum. The most common health professions include medical school students, residents in internal medicine and residents in geriatrics. 

These successful programs improve the education, supply, distribution, diversity, 

and quality of healthcare professionals who care for our Nation’s growing older 

adult population, including the underserved and minorities. Thus, we need your continued support for geriatric programs to adequately prepare the next generation of 

health professionals for the rapidly changing and emerging needs of the growing 

and aging population. 

On behalf of NAGE, thank you for this opportunity to share our requests for support for these important programs. We ask that you thoughtfully consider our request for funding in fiscal year 2015. 

[This statement was submitted by Thomas Caprio, MD, MPH, CMD, FACP, University of Rochester, Division of Geriatrics & Aging; Co-Director, Finger Lakes Geriatric Education Center, President, National Association for Geriatric Education.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR STATE COMMUNITY

SERVICES PROGRAMS

Mr. Chairman and Members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to 

submit this testimony on behalf of the National Association for State Community 

Services Programs (NASCSP), a membership association for the administrators of 

the federally-funded Community Services Block Grant which serves millions of 
552 

American families in communities across the country. As the Executive Director of 

NASCSP, I submit this testimony on behalf of the States in their work to improve 

the lives of low-income families and strengthen local economies. We are requesting 

that the Committee approve $710 million in fiscal year 2015 to adequately fund the 

CSBG network. This level of funding is the same as the fiscal year 2014 enacted 

funding for CSBG. We strongly believe that CSBG is a wise strategic investment 

not only in America’s ongoing economic recovery, but in our Nation’s long-term economic stability as well. Maintaining funding is necessary not only to continue 

CSBG’s well-documented role in strengthening our economy, but also for the ongoing reforms to the block grant which adapt it to new realities and strengthen it for 

the next generation. We strongly oppose the reduction in funding for CSBG as proposed by the Administration, and I welcome this opportunity to explain exactly why. 

First, however, I’d like to thank Congress for its past support of CSBG. The services provided by this network are crucial to the millions of Americans facing poverty 

and economic insecurity at a time when the impact of the slow economy is affecting 

every Congressional District in America. Right now, more than 46 million Americans are living below the Federal poverty level (defined as $23,050 a year for a family of four). CSBG directly addresses the need to help hard-working Americans who 

are struggling in the present economy and to prevent people from slipping further 

into poverty. The strength and productivity of our Nation depends on the economic 

well-being of all of its citizens, and CSBG is a proven strategy to support millions 

of low-income Americans on the path to economic security. The CSBG network uses 

grassroots, innovative strategies to alleviate poverty and provides a significant return on taxpayers’ investment. In fiscal year 2012, the CSBG network leveraged 

$22.75 for every Federal dollar invested in CSBG. 

By acting as a conduit between the Federal administration and local community 

action agencies (CAA’s), States build public-private partnerships, support innovation, and advance best practices to ensure the most effective use of taxpayers’ 

money. Local agencies utilize CSBG funds to leverage additional funds to eliminate 

poverty through a variety of programs and services. While CAAs across the Nation 

address similar issues, local needs determine unique approaches to addressing 

them. 

Poverty is a national problem, but can only be effectively addressed at the grassroots level. The CSBG network strives to find local solutions to these community 

issues by conducting community needs assessments to keep in touch with the needs, 

challenges, and resources in their community. The community needs assessments 

enable CAAs to provide the most effective and efficient strategies and services. 

These efforts fall into nine service categories outlined in the CSBG Act; employment, education, income management, housing, emergency services, nutrition, linkages, self-sufficiency, and health. 

National data compiled by NASCSP shows that CSBG serves a broad segment of 

low-income individuals and families. Data from fiscal year 2012 shows: 

—There are 1,045 CAAs across the country, serving 99 percent of U.S. counties; 

—CSBG serves 1 out of every 5 people in America below the poverty line; 

—The majority of clients are female (58 percent), white (59 percent), renters (60 

percent) and between the ages of 24—44 years old (24 percent)—the second 

largest group was children ages 0–5 years old (14 percent); 

—The majority of clients are receiving incomes from employment-related sources 

(50 percent); 

—Many of the families served (33 percent) were in ‘‘severe poverty,’’ with incomes 

below 50 percent of the Federal Poverty Guideline. 

The successes of the CSBG network are well documented: 

—CSBG served 16 million Americans including 76.9 million families in fiscal year 

2012. 

—Over the past 5 years, the CSBG network helped over 630,000 people obtain 

employment. 

—Over the past 5 years, the CSBG network addressed 21.2 million barriers to employment through helping people to either acquire jobs, obtain employment supports, or to receive job training. 

—Over the past 5 years, the CSBG network expanded 19.8 million community opportunities or resources to stimulate community and economic development. 

—Over the past 5 years, the CSBG network facilitated 18.5 million opportunities 

for infants, children, youth, parents and other adults through developmental or 

enrichment programs. 

States provide administrative oversight to ensure that eligible entities are meeting State and Federal requirements as well as their locally driven Community Action Plans. This includes monitoring eligible entities, providing training and technical assistance, investing in innovation, and maintaining effective performance 
553 

measurement and management systems. Adequate funding is needed to maintain a 

high level of accountability and performance in the following areas: 

Support High Achievement and Innovation 

Adequate funding, sufficient to meet national standards and incentives must be 

provided to States, local agencies, and national partners for high achievement and 

innovation. CSBG appropriations should include sufficient resources for local agencies, States, and national partners to engage in the work necessary to achieve the 

goals of the CSBG Act and the Promise of Community Action, which includes addressing the needs of vulnerable people and building strong communities. It should 

create the opportunity to provide a consistent resource to the people, families and 

communities that benefit from the activities conducted under the Act. It should also 

provide funds to extend the work to create and test innovative approaches as well 

as include and engage an ever wider circle of partners. 

Support Coordination of Services 

NASCSP believes that a $710 million funding level for CSBG is essential for continued innovation and stronger coordination. It will also maintain the stature of the 

CSBG in both State and Federal administrations. Further, adequate funds in the 

CSBG will create additional opportunities and development for low-income programs and will allow for further coordination with agencies outside our Network 

that share a similar mission. 

Mr. Chairman, I respectfully request the Committee to fund CSBG at the level 

of $710 million in fiscal year 2015 to support America’s ongoing economic recovery 

and future economic stability. Maintaining CSBG funding is an investment in both 

strengthening our economy and in adapting our efforts to new realities for future 

generations of hard-working Americans. Thank you. 

[This statement was submitted by Jenae Conti Bjelland, Executive Director, National Association for State Community Services Programs.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHAIN DRUG STORES

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) thanks the Members of 

the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related 

Agencies for the opportunity to submit the following statement for the record regarding pharmacy-related provisions contained within the fiscal year 2015 Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Budget. NACDS and the chain pharmacy industry are committed to partnering with Congress, HHS, patients, and other 

healthcare providers to improve the quality and affordability of healthcare services. 

NACDS represents traditional drug stores and supermarkets and mass merchants 

with pharmacies. Chains operate more than 40,000 pharmacies, and NACDS’ 125 

chain member companies include regional chains, with a minimum of four stores, 

and national companies. Chains employ more than 3.8 million individuals, including 

175,000 pharmacists. They fill over 2.7 billion prescriptions yearly, and help patients use medicines correctly and safely, while offering innovative services that improve patient health and healthcare affordability. NACDS members also include 

more than 800 supplier partners and nearly 40 international members representing 

13 countries. For more information, visit www.NACDS.org. 

As the face of neighborhood healthcare, community pharmacies and pharmacists 

provide access to prescription medications and over-the-counter products, as well as 

cost-effective health services such as immunizations and disease screenings. 

Through personal interactions with patients, face-to-face consultations and convenient access to preventive care services, local pharmacists are helping to shape the 

healthcare delivery system of tomorrow—in partnership with doctors, nurses and 

others. 

In recent years, retail community pharmacies have played an increasingly important role in providing patient care, including medication therapy management 

(MTM) and expanded immunization services. Moreover, policymakers have begun to 

recognize the vital role that local pharmacists can play in improving medication adherence. The role of appropriate medication use in lowering healthcare costs has 

been acknowledged by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The CBO revised its 

methodology for scoring proposals related to Medicare Part D and found that for 

each 1 percent increase in the number of prescriptions filled by beneficiaries there 

is a corresponding decrease in overall Medicare spending. When projected to the entire population, this translates into a savings of $1.7 billion in overall healthcare 

costs, or a savings of $5.76 for every person in the U.S. for every 1 percent increase 

in the number of prescriptions filled. 
554 

Congress has recognized the importance of pharmacist-provided services such as 

MTM by including it as a required offering in the Medicare Part D program. The 

experiences of Part D beneficiaries, as well as public and private studies, have confirmed the effectiveness of pharmacist-provided MTM. A 2013 Centers for Medicare 

and Medicaid Services (CMS) report found that Part D MTM programs consistently 

and substantially improved medication adherence and quality of prescribing for evidence-based medications for beneficiaries with congestive heart failure, COPD, and 

diabetes. The study also found significant reductions in hospital costs, particularly 

when a comprehensive medication review (CMR) was utilized. This included savings 

of nearly $400 to $525 in overall hospitalization costs for beneficiaries with diabetes 

and congestive heart failure. The report also found that MTM can lead to reduced 

costs in the Part D program as well; showing that the best performing plan reduced 

Part D costs for diabetes patients by an average of $45 per patient. 

How and where MTM services are provided also impact its effectiveness. A study 

published in the January 2012 edition of Health Affairs identified the key role of 

retail pharmacies in providing MTM services. The study found that a pharmacybased intervention program increased adherence for patients with diabetes and that 

the benefits were greater for those who received counseling in a retail, face-to-face 

setting as opposed to a phone call from a mail-order pharmacist. The study suggested that interventions such as in-person, face-to-face interaction between the retail pharmacist and the patient contributed to improved adherence behavior with a 

return on investment of 3 to 1. 

Since pharmacists have the proven ability to provide services that lead to better 

clinical outcomes and lower healthcare costs, we urge the implementation of budget 

proposals that allow all healthcare providers, including retail pharmacists, to practice to their maximum capabilities, working in partnership to provide accessible, 

high quality care to patients. 

NACDS appreciates HHS’s proposed goals to reduce healthcare costs and produce 

a more efficient healthcare system; however, we have concerns with some proposals 

contained in the fiscal year 2015 HHS Budget. HHS has proposed excluding brand 

and authorized generic drugs from the calculation of average manufacture price 

(AMP), thereby calculating Medicaid Federal Upper Limits (FULs) based only on generic drug prices. While the goal of this provision may be to decrease Medicaid 

costs, we believe it may in fact reduce access to prescription drugs and pharmacy 

services for Medicaid patients, resulting in increased overall healthcare expenditures. 

Given that AMP has never been used as a basis for pharmacy reimbursement, 

and that AMP-based FULs remain in draft form, we believe the fiscal year 2015 

budget provisions changing the calculation of FULs are premature. In fact, based 

on NACDS’ most recent analysis, approximately 35 percent of the draft FULs are 

below National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC). This analysis confirms 

that additional efforts by CMS are necessary to ensure that pharmacies are not reimbursed below their costs using the reimbursement formula created by the Affordable Care Act. We urge CMS to utilize the rulemaking process to implement the 

Medicaid pharmacy provisions in a manner consistent with Congressional intent, 

rather than pursuing policies that would further cut pharmacy reimbursement. 

The fiscal year 2015 HHS Budget includes a proposal to limit Medicaid reimbursement of durable medical equipment (DME) to the rates paid by Medicare. Implementing a blanket proposal to reduce payment for Medicaid DME has the potential 

to disrupt access to DME and produce poorer health outcomes. This is particularly 

true in the case of diabetes testing supplies (DTS). Last year, CMS established a 

new Medicare single payment of $10.41 for DTS. This amount drastically decreased 

Medicare reimbursement by an average of 72 percent for retail pharmacies. The current reimbursement amount barely covers a pharmacy’s costs-of-goods plus dispensing and counseling for these products and services. Reducing Medicaid reimbursement for DTS to match the Medicare rate could similarly produce hardships 

for Medicaid beneficiaries in terms of reducing access to needed supplies and threatening the health of an already fragile population. NACDS urges CMS to refrain 

from making any changes to Medicaid reimbursement for DTS. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget also includes several provisions to increase the utilization of generic drugs. NACDS applauds the inclusion of these important provisions, which would encourage the use of generic medications by Medicare Low Income Subsidy (LIS) beneficiaries, and promote generic competition for biologics. Increasing generic utilization is one of the most effective ways of controlling prescription drug costs, and the generic dispensing rate of retail pharmacies—80 percent— 

is higher than any other practice setting. 

Finally, the fiscal year 2015 HHS Budget includes a number of proposals to cut 

waste, fraud and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, including the abil-
555 

ity to suspend coverage and payment for questionable Part D prescriptions. NACDS 

applauds HHS for working to ensure that such activity does not exist in these Federal programs. However, NACDS urges HHS to move forward in a cautious manner 

which does not disrupt beneficiary access or jeopardize beneficiary health. This can 

be done by ensuring that overly-burdensome requirements are not placed on providers to the point that it interferes with the ability to treat and care for patients. 

NACDS thanks the Subcommittee for consideration of our comments. We look forward to working with policymakers and stakeholders on these important issues. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY HEALTH

CENTERS

Introduction 

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and Distinguished Members of the 

Subcommittee: on behalf of health centers across the Nation, we wish to thank you 

for the opportunity to submit testimony for the committee to review as you craft the 

fiscal year 2015 Labor-Health and Human Services-Education and Related Agencies 

Appropriations bill. 

Health Centers- General Background 

Health Centers are community-owned and operated non-profit entities providing 

primary medical, dental, and behavioral healthcare as well as pharmacy and a variety of enabling and support services. Today, there are over 1,200 health centers operating at more than 9,000 urban and rural communities nationwide. We are the 

‘‘healthcare home’’ for more than 22 million patients in all 50 States and nearly 

every Congressional district. 

By statute and mission, health centers are located in medically underserved areas 

or serve a medically underserved population. Health centers are directed by patientmajority boards, a model which helps to ensure they are responsive to the needs 

of each individual community they serve. Health centers offer comprehensive care 

to all residents of the community who seek their care, regardless of ability to pay 

or insurance status and offer services on a sliding fee scale. Our unique model of 

care has enabled us to save the entire health system approximately $24 billion annually. Health Centers reduce preventable hospitalizations and Emergency Department use, as well as the need for more expensive specialty care. The services provided at health centers save $1,263 per patient per year compared to expenditures 

for non-health center users. 

In addition to reducing costs, health centers also serve as small businesses and 

economic drivers in their communities. In 2012, health centers employed 153,000 individuals and in 2009 generated $20 billion in total economic benefits in poor urban 

and rural communities. 

Fiscal year 2014 Funding Background 

In fiscal year 2014, health centers received a total of $3.7 billion in total Federal 

funding. This includes $1.49 billion in discretionary funding provided by the Health 

Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and $2.2 billion in mandatory funding for health centers through the Health Center Fund. We want to thank the members of this Subcommittee for their support of health centers within the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 to ensure health center funding continues to reach 

communities in need. 

Access to a Health Center Reduces Barriers to Primary Care 

NACHC’s recently released a report entitled: Access is the Answer finds 62 million Americans lack regular access to primary care and the vast majority of these 

medically disenfranchised Americans actually have insurance coverage. Many individuals still face barriers such as availability, affordability, and accessibility to primary and preventive care. Even among people who have an insurance card, access 

may be out of reach because of who they are and where they live. As health reform 

changes the healthcare landscape, we know that demand for health centers will continue to climb among the uninsured, underinsured and underserved due to the lack 

of other healthcare providers willing to see our patients. 

True ‘‘access’’ means having a regular, reliable source of quality preventive and 

primary healthcare and simply having an insurance card does not guarantee ready 

access to primary care. With our unique model of care, Health Centers can help address these primary care demands in a cost effective manner. However, Health Centers cannot continue to deliver results without a sound financial base. 
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Fiscal year 2015 Funding Request and Health Center Funding Cliff 

In fiscal year 2015, Health Centers are respectfully requesting level discretionary funding of $1.49 billion for the Health Center program. Together with the $3.6 billion in funding available in fiscal year 2015 through the mandatory Health Center 

Fund, health centers are requesting a total of $5.1 billion in total program funding. 

This funding for the Health Center program, which requires no new appropriation 

from this Subcommittee, should be fully utilized during fiscal year 2015 to increase 

access to primary care in medically underserved communities. With access to all 

available funding for the program in fiscal year 2015, Health Centers could build 

the capacity to serve up to 11 million new patients, both in new communities and 

through expanded services and capacity at existing health centers. In addition, existing Health Centers could ensure they are keeping up with current patient demand. 

The President’s proposed fiscal year 2015 Health Resources and Services Adminis- tration (HRSA) budget provides $1 billion in discretionary funding for the Health 

Centers program. Together with the $3.6 billion in fiscal year 2015 mandatory funding available for health centers, under the President’s proposal, health centers 

would receive a net increase of $960 million in total programmatic funding for fiscal 

year 2015 equaling total funding of $4.6 billion. Within this proposal, the President 

will allocate $860 million for one-time quality improvement and capital development 

awards and $100 million to fund new health center sites. 

We strongly oppose the President’s proposed $500 million discretionary funding 

reduction for health centers as it further reduces the discretionary allocation for the 

program beyond the levels in place prior to the inception of the Health Center Fund. 

Health centers simply cannot survive further decreases to their base discretionary 

funding which undermines the long-term sustainability of the program, and may 

well threaten access for existing patients. 

We do appreciate the President’s acknowledgement and recognition of the looming 

funding crisis for health centers upon the expiration of the Health Center Fund 

after fiscal year 2015. Under current law the Health Center Fund will end after fiscal year 2015, resulting in as much as a 70 percent reduction in health center grant 

funding in fiscal year 2016. Averting the health center cliff is critical to ensuring 

that health centers remain financially viable and able to serve the diverse needs of 

their communities. However, the President only proposes a temporary (3 year) solution reducing program funding down to fiscal year 2014 levels after a one-time increase in fiscal year 2015. Given the number of communities and individuals in need 

of access to healthcare, longer-term solutions must encompass both stability and expansion of access to care. 

Conclusion 

We understand this Subcommittee must make difficult budgetary decisions as you 

work within the funding limits set for the subcommittee’s bill. As the fiscal year 

2015 appropriations process moves forward, we urge you to keep in mind that without their local health center, many individuals located in medically underserved 

communities will seek care in emergency departments and hospitals, often waiting 

until they are sicker get treatment. This will mean poorer health for these patients 

and much higher costs to the system. Health centers have continually proven to be 

a worthwhile investment by delivering high quality, affordable healthcare while 

generating savings to the entire health system in these communities. We are extremely grateful for your past support and ask for the Subcommittee’s continued 

support for the Health Center program. We look forward to working with you and 

thank you for your consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by Daniel R. Hawkins, Jr., Senior Vice President, 

Public Policy and Research.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY AND CITY HEALTH

OFFICIALS

The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) is the 

voice of the 2,800 local health departments across the country that work every day 

to ensure the safety of the water we drink, the food we eat, and the air we breathe. 

On behalf of local health departments, NACCHO submits the following requests: 

Prevention and Public Health Fund 

In fiscal year 2015, NACCHO requests $1 billion for the Prevention and Public 

Health Fund (PPHF), a dedicated Federal investment in programs that prevent disease at the community level. NACCHO wishes to thank Congress for allocating the 
557 

PPHF in fiscal year 2014 and setting specific funding levels to support the prevention of disease and promotion of health in communities across the Nation. 

CDC Public Health Emergency Preparedness 

NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to provide $675 million for the Public Health 

Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) grant program in fiscal year 2015. PHEP protects 

communities by strengthening local and State public health department capacity to 

effectively respond to public health emergencies including terrorist threats, infectious disease outbreaks, natural disasters, and biological, chemical, nuclear, and radiological emergencies. These grants have been cut more than 30 percent since fiscal 

year 2007 with more than 55 percent of local health departments relying solely on 

Federal funds for emergency preparedness activities. NACCHO urges inclusion of 

language asking CDC to provide information on how much of the State PHEP 

grants are being allocated to local health departments and on what basis or formula 

each State is determining such allocations, including the method through which 

States reach statutorily-required concurrence with local health departments. 

Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response 

NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to fund the Hospital Preparedness Program 

(HPP) at $300 million in fiscal year 2015 and restore some of the $104 million (35 

percent) cut from the program in fiscal year 2014.. HPP supports health department 

preparedness coordinators to organize coalitions of public health and healthcare providers to plan and prepare for public health emergencies, including medical surge 

following terrorist attacks, mass casualty incidents, an influenza pandemic or other 

infectious disease outbreak. NACCHO is concerned that the 35 percent cut to HPP 

in fiscal year 2014 will erode medical system preparedness, making communities 

across the country more vulnerable. NACCHO urges Congress to request information from Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) on how State 

HPP funding is distributed at the local level, including how much is being allocated 

to local health departments and on what basis or formula each State making such 

allocations. This information should be publicly available. 

CDC Section 317 Immunization Program 

NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to provide $650 million for the Section 317 Immunization Program in fiscal year 2015. The Section 317 Immunization Program 

funds 50 States, six large cities and eight territories for vaccine purchase for at-need 

populations and immunization program operations, including support for implementing immunization billing systems at public health clinics to sustain high levels 

of vaccine coverage. NACCHO supports directing $8 million of the funding, as proposed in the President’s Budget, to continue projects to facilitate billing by health 

departments of public and private insurance for covered immunization services. 

CDC Chronic Disease Prevention 

Partnerships to Improve Community Health (Community Prevention Grants).— 

NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to provide $100 million to support continuation 

of the Partnerships to Improve Community Health program in fiscal year 2015, 

which supports implementation of evidence-based strategies to address heart attacks, strokes, cancer, diabetes, and other chronic diseases which contribute to the 

soaring cost of healthcare. Local health departments lead efforts to reduce tobacco 

use, increase physical activity and expand access to nutrition in order to reduce 

costly chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes. NACCHO urges Congress to 

encourage CDC to conduct a comprehensive national evaluation of the program including recommendations for national qualitative and quantitative standards for 

quality preventive services and a report of how much of the funding was granted 

to the local level and to which eligible entities. 

Heart Disease and Stroke.—NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to continue to support Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention at $130 million in fiscal year 2015. In 

fiscal year 2014, Congress provided a $76 million increase for heart disease and 

stroke prevention and urged CDC to ensure that some portion of the increase in 

funding is sub-granted to the local level. The risk factors of obesity and smoking 

must be addressed at the community level to combat disease. Local health departments who are experts on community needs and prevention interventions in the 

area of heart disease and stroke. 

Diabetes Prevention and Control.—NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to continue 

to support Diabetes Prevention at $150 million in fiscal year 2015. In fiscal year 

2014, Congress provided a $76 million increase for diabetes prevention and urged 

CDC to ensure that some portion of the increase in funding is sub-granted to the 

local level. Because evidence-based disease self-management programs are effective 
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at improving health, greater emphasis must be placed on enhancing the reach of 

these community level interventions. 

CDC Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant 

In fiscal year 2015, NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to continue to support the Preventive Health and Health Services (PHHS) Block Grant at $160 million. This 

unique funding gives States the flexibility to address State problems and provide 

similar support to local communities, while demonstrating the local, State, and national impact of this investment. NACCHO urges Congress to encourage CDC to enhance reporting and accountability for the PHHS Block Grant including providing 

capacity building to States for core public health capacities that may not be supported through other CDC categorical funding streams. In order to make sure that 

funding supports the needs of local communities, local health departments should 

be full partners in developing State plans. CDC should also require States to report 

the funding allocation used to subgrant funds to local health departments and to 

encourage they include locals in their statewide planning efforts. 

CDC Food Safety 

NACCHO urges the Subcommittee to support CDC’s Food Safety Program at $54 

million in fiscal year 2015. Local and State health departments are an essential part 

of the process that ensures that food is safe to eat at home, at community events, 

in restaurants, and in schools. 

As the Subcommittee drafts the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill, NACCHO urges consideration of these recommendations for programs 

that protect the public’s health and safety. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE DIRECTORS OF

CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION CONSORTIUM

Dear Chairman Mikulski, Ranking Member Shelby, Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran: On behalf of the National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), I am writing to urge the 

committee to support Career Technical Education (CTE) through a strong Federal 

investment in the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins). 

The passage of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 has helped to alleviate 

most of the harmful sequester cuts which have negatively impacted important Federal investments in CTE programs through this legislation. However, our organization recognizes that there are still difficult decisions to be made regarding individual program funding levels in fiscal year 2015. To that end, NASDCTEc is requesting that the committee restore funding for the Perkins Basic State Grant to 

at least $1.264 billion, equivalent to the pre-sequestration level of 2010, and make 

investing in Perkins a top priority in the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human 

Services, and Education appropriations bill. 

Perkins is the principal source of Federal support for CTE programs at secondary 

and postsecondary institutions across the county. This Federal investment is crucial 

to ensuring that students have the academic, technical and employability skills that 

are needed for expanding fields like engineering, information technology, advanced 

manufacturing and healthcare. Perkins-funded CTE programs are working with 

business and industry partners to help fill positions that are available today, while 

preparing a qualified workforce for the careers of tomorrow. In a rapidly changing 

job market, CTE provides students with transferable skills that ensure they are college-and career-ready, while offering retraining opportunities to many adult or dislocated workers. 

CTE produces a strong return on the Federal investment and has an unmistakably positive societal and economic impact. Students enrolled in CTE programs are 

more engaged, perform better academically and graduate at higher rates. CTE supports the development of an educated and highly skilled workforce that provides a 

direct benefit to employers, while strengthening the economy through increased productivity and innovation. 

However, funding for CTE has not been immune to significant budget cuts over 

the past several years. The Perkins Act basic State grant program still remains approximately $5 million below pre-sequestration levels. In addition to sequestration, 

funding for Perkins was reduced by over $140 million between fiscal year 2010 and 

fiscal year 2012, dramatically reducing the capacity of CTE programs to offer academically rigorous instruction and career training that is aligned to the needs of 

business and industry. Dozens of States are currently receiving funding allocations 

close to the levels they received in 1998. When taking into account inflation over 

this period, the relative investment in CTE through the Perkins Act has declined 
559 

considerably more. This erosion has hurt high schools, CTE centers, community and 

technical colleges, employers and millions of CTE students nationwide. This pathway of disinvestment in our Nation’s CTE system is unsustainable— we cannot cut 

our way to a 21st century workforce! Instead, Perkins funding must be restored to 

meet the needs of CTE programs around the country and ensure students are fully 

prepared for their future academic and career goals. 

Thank you for your continued leadership in this difficult fiscal environment and 

for your thoughtful consideration during the appropriations process. NASDCTEc 

looks forward to working with the committee in a bipartisan fashion to restore funding for CTE and support the millions of CTE students across the Nation. 

[This statement was submitted by Kimberly Green, Executive Director, National 

Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE HEAD INJURY

ADMINISTRATORS

Dear Chairman Tom Harkin and Ranking Member Jerry Moran: On behalf of the 

National Association of State Head Injury Administrators (NASHIA), thank you for 

the opportunity to submit testimony regarding the fiscal year 2015 appropriations 

for programs authorized by the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Act within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The TBI Act programs are the only programs providing Federal assistance to help States with developing an array of rehabilitation, home and community-based services and other short-term and long-term 

supports specific to the cognitive and behavioral needs of individuals with TBI and 

their families. These programs are designed to restore and improve functioning and 

assist individuals to return to school, engage in employment and to live as independently as possible. To assist States in improving and expanding service delivery, 

NASHIA recommends the following: 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Injury Center 

The CDC National Injury Center supports State TBI registries, surveillance, data 

collection and analysis; State and local prevention interventions to address falls related, motor vehicle related, and sports-related injuries, including concussions (mild 

TBI); as well as educates primary clinicians and other professionals to be able to 

identify, diagnose and manage TBIs appropriately and effectively. 

NASHIA recommends an increase in funding for the CDC TBI Program in the 

amount of $10 million to address the expanding population of TBI. 

CDC’s National Injury Center is the primary Federal agency responsible for translating science into effective programs and policies to prevent and minimize the consequences of TBI when they occur. Through its funded programs and activities, the 

Injury Center works with national organizations, Federal agencies, State health 

agencies, and other key groups to develop, implement, and promote effective injury 

and violence prevention and control practices. 

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Federal TBI Program 

NASHIA recommends $12 million total for the HRSA TBI Federal Program, which 

is split by HRSA between two programs: HRSA Federal TBI State Grant Program 

and the HRSA Federal TBI Protection & Advocacy (P&A) Systems Grant Program. 

HRSA Federal TBI State Grant Program 

Since 1997, HRSA has awarded grants to 48 States, District of Columbia and one 

Territory, although not concurrently, to develop and improve services and systems 

to address the short-term and long-term needs. These grants have been time limited 

and are relatively small. Five years ago, HRSA increased the amount of the award 

from approximately $100,000 to $250,000 to make it more feasible for States to 

carry out their grant goals and the legislative intent. While this increased amount 

is more attractive to States, this change reduced the number of grantees to 21— 

less than half of the States and Territories receive funding. As a result, States that 

do not have Federal grant funding are finding it increasingly difficult to sustain 

their previous efforts, let alone expand and improve service delivery, due to other 

budget constraints within their States. Therefore, NASHIA recommends: 

$8 million in total for the HRSA Federal TBI State Grant Program to increase the 

number of State grant awards. 

Over the course of the grant program, States have developed State plans and implemented initiatives for improving service delivery; information & referral systems; 

service coordination systems; outreach and screening among unidentified popu-
560 

lations such as children, victims of domestic violence, and veterans; and training 

programs for direct care workers and other staff. States have conducted public 

awareness and educational activities that have helped States to leverage and coordinate funding in order to maximize resources within States to the benefit of individuals with TBI. 

While NASHIA is well aware that Federal funds are becoming increasingly difficult to obtain, NASHIA is recommending increased funding for the Federal TBI 

Act programs because: 

—The number of Americans who sustain a TBI is increasing, especially among 

older adults and young children, and among our men and women in uniform 

as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

—All States have enacted legislation to develop return to play guidelines with regard to sports-related concussions among our youth. Two States have recently 

expanded their laws to include ‘‘return to learn’’ guidelines to help with the 

identification of TBI and appropriate accommodations and related educational 

assistance that may be needed after a mild TBI (concussion) in order to be successful academically. Through these efforts, children and youth are now being 

identified and screened for potential assistance. 

—State budgets have not been able to keep up with the demand for services. 

HRSA Federal TBI Protection & Advocacy (P&A) Systems Grant Program 

HRSA also administers the Federal TBI P&A Systems Grant Program which is 

a formula-based program that allows 57 States, Territories, and the Native American Protection and Advocacy Project to assess their State P&A Systems’ responsiveness to TBI issues and provide advocacy support to individuals with TBI and their 

families. Together, P&As comprise the Nation’s largest provider of legally based advocacy services for people with disabilities. To further the work of the P&As, 

NASHIA recommends: 

$4 million in total be appropriated to increase the amount of grant awards administered by HRSA Federal TBI P&A Systems Grant Program. 

The TBI Act, which was last reauthorized in 2008, is due for reauthorization. TBI 

stakeholders are working with key Congressional leaders to extend authorization of 

appropriations for these critical programs. In addition: 

NASHIA recommends transferring the HRSA TBI State Grant and P&A programs 

to the Administration for Community Living to maximize resources to support 

the array of services and supports needed following a brain injury. 

Transferring the TBI State Grant and P&A Grant programs within ACL would: 

—Integrate TBI into the HHS long-term services initiatives, which also rely on 

Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs) as the entry point into these 

systems; 

—Promote collaboration with the Administration on Aging (AoA) on falls related 

TBIs among older adults; 

—Include TBI in the veterans initiatives between HHS and Department of Veterans Affairs to support Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) for veterans and returning servicemembers coordinated by the ACL’s Office of Disability and Aging Policy’s Office of Integrated Programs; 

—Coordinate and enhance services for individuals with TBI who could benefit 

from the ACL’s Administration on Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities 

(AIDD) initiatives to improve education, transition services, employment outcomes and self-advocacy for children and youth; and 

—Include TBI in the Office of Disability and Aging Policy’s Office of Integrated 

Policy initiatives (i.e. Lifespan Respite Care Program, Participant Direction Program, Evidenced-Based Care Transitions, and Transportation Research and 

Demonstration Program). 

In keeping with the Olmstead decision, States are taking advantage of Federal 

initiatives and opportunities to expand community long-term services options. Unfortunately, most States focus on the traditional populations of I/DD, physical disabilities, aging and mental health and are omitting TBI in their long-term care initiatives. This leaves individuals with TBI with little options, other than nursing facilities or other segregated living programs, for assistance with activities of daily living and residential or housing needs. We believe that aligning the Federal TBI State 

Grant Program with these other programs will help address these concerns. 

About the National Association of State Head Injury Administrators (NASHIA) 

NASHIA is a non-profit organization representing and assisting State governmental officials who administer an array of short-term and long-term rehabilitation 

and community services and supports for individuals with TBI and their families. 
561 

Since 1990, NASHIA has held an annual State-of-the-States conference, and has 

served as a resource to State TBI program managers and others seeking public programs and services. Membership also includes associate members who are professionals, provider agencies, State affiliates of the Brain Injury Association of America 

(BIAA) or U.S. Brain Injury Alliance, family members and individuals with TBI. 

Over the past 30 years, States have initiated efforts to develop capacity for offering information and referral services, service coordination, rehabilitation, in-home 

support, personal care, counseling, transportation, housing, vocational and other 

support services for persons with TBI and their families. These services vary in size 

and scope across the country and even within a State. Twenty-four States have enacted legislation to assess fines or surcharges to traffic related offenses or other 

criminal offenses and/or assessed additional fees to motor vehicle registration or 

drivers license to generate funding for TBI programs and services, generally referred to as trust fund programs. About the same number of States have implemented TBI Home and Community-Based Medicaid Waiver Programs with twelve 

States having the advantage of administering both a trust fund and waiver program. These programs are administered by State public health, Vocational Rehabilitation, mental health, Medicaid, intellectual disabilities, education or social services 

agencies within the States. 

Thank you. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE LONG-TERM CARE

OMBUDSMAN PROGRAMS

I am pleased to present this testimony on behalf of residents and tenants residing 

in Iowa’s long-term care facilities in collaboration with the National Association of 

State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs (NASOP). This statement and the following funding recommendations for fiscal year 2015 for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs administered through the Administration for Community Living 

(ACL) is submitted for the record. 

—$5 million authorized under the Elder Justice Act for Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) services and training to fight elder abuse, neglect, and 

exploitation; 

—$16.83 million authorized under Title VII of the Older Americans Act for 

LTCOPs to restore funding back to the fiscal year 2011 level; 

—$20 million for LTCOP services in assisted living facilities; and 

—$1 million authorized under Title II of the Older Americans Act for the National 

Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center (NORC). 

NASOP, formed in 1985 as a non-profit organization, is composed of state longterm care ombudsmen representing their State programs created by the Older 

Americans Act (OAA). The primary function of the LTCOP in the Federal OAA is 

to identify, investigate, and resolve complaints that relate to action, inaction or decisions that may adversely affect the health, safety, welfare, and rights of residents 

of long-term care facilities. Ombudsman representatives work with the consent and 

at the direction of residents in the resolution of their problems. They visit residents 

living in nursing homes and residential care homes. Ombudsman representatives 

ask them about problems or concerns they have and if they need or want our help 

to resolve these issues. Ombudsman representatives act as their advocates. We 

strongly believe that our work not only improves the quality of life for millions of 

long-term care facility residents, but also saves Medicare and Medicaid resources by 

avoiding unnecessary costs associated with poor quality care. 

Nationally, n Federal fiscal year 2012, over 11,000 volunteers, including 8,712 individuals certified to investigate complaints, and 1,180 staff served in 573 local 

LTCOPs. Ombudsmen investigated and worked to resolve 193,650 complaints made 

by 126,398 individuals. Ombudsmen were able to resolve or partially resolve 73 percent, or almost three out of every four complaints investigated. In addition, ombudsmen provided information on rights, care and related services 405,589 times. 

Iowa’s LTCOP is responsible for advocating for 53,287 residents and tenants residing within 844 long-term care facilities. The Iowa Office of State Long-Term Care 

Ombudsman consists of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman; 8 Local Long-Term 

Care Ombudsman; 2 Volunteer Coordinators; numerous volunteers, and an Administrative Assistant. Currently, the Federal funding for our program only fully funds 

two (2) of the twelve (12) paid positions. 

In Federal fiscal year 2013, Iowa’s LTCOP received 1,174 complaints by or on behalf of residents and tenants; directly served 3,226 residents and tenants; provided 

4,445 hours of advocacy services beyond complaint handling; and provided 5,360 

consultations, education sessions, visits, and other activities. Our office advocates 
562 

for 53, 287 residents/tenants in 844 facilities and we do this with just a few staff. 

We are grateful for the staffing that we do have, but feel that our efforts are just 

a drop in the bucket. According to two national studies from the Institute of Medicine and the Bader Report, the national recommendation for States to follow is 1 

long-term care ombudsman for 2,000 beds or people. With the current number of 

long-term care ombudsman staff in Iowa, our ombudsmen are serving 6,661 beds or 

people. Iowa would need a total of 27 local long-term care ombudsmen to fully meet 

this Federal recommendation. This would ensure that all individuals residing in 

long-term care would have immediate access to an advocate who can represent their 

interests. 

We understand that this Subcommittee faces a strained financial situation, but 

a continued commitment to Ombudsman programs advocating for the healthcare 

needs and safety of millions of older adults living in nursing homes and assisted 

living facilities across the Nation should remain a high priority. Since 1978, the 

LTCOP has been a core program of the OAA. It is the only program in the OAA 

that specifically serves residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities. We 

all appreciate and value the importance of living in one’s own home. The OAA provides critically needed home and community based services that often delay institutionalization. However, some elders can no longer live safely in their own homes and 

must move at some point in their lives to either an assisted living facility or a nursing home. These residents are usually frail and extremely vulnerable and rely on 

the advocacy services of the LTCOP. 

Demand for our services and advocacy is growing. The number of complex and 

very troubling cases that long-term care ombudsmen investigate has been steadily 

increasing. In addition, there continues to be a disturbing increase in the frequency 

and severity of citations for egregious regulatory violations by long-term care providers. These violations put facility residents in immediate jeopardy of harm. This 

trend suggests a frightening decline in the quality of long-term care services. Ombudsmen are needed now more than ever in nursing homes, board and care facilities, and in assisted living communities. As well, the demand placed on the program 

by the need to assist residents who are relocating from long-term care facilities that 

are downsizing or closing their doors continues to complicate ombudsman programs’ 

daily operations. 

Administrators in many long-term care facilities have recognized the value and 

benefit of having ombudsmen assist with staff training and consultation and this 

form of outreach has also placed an increasing strain on available advocacy resources. In order to improve advocacy and services available to residents of longterm care facilities, NASOP recommends, and the Iowa Office of the State LongTerm Care Ombudsman supports, several augmentations to appropriations that 

support the work of LTCOP. NASOP requests $5 million to support the work of the LTCOP under the Elder 

Justice Act. This appropriation would allow States to hire additional staff and leverage that staff to recruit additional volunteers to help support the investigation of 

complaints of abuse, neglect, and exploitation of residents of nursing home and assisted living facilities. 

NASOP request $16.83 million authorized under Title VII of the Older Americans 

Act for LTCOPs to restore funding back to the fiscal year 2011 level. Programs in 

every district and State are suffering from recent cuts. These funds would help in 

a partial way to restore our reduced ability to visit residents in nursing homes. 

NASOP requests $20 million to support 333 additional Ombudsman salaried staff 

at an estimated $60,000 average annual salary/fringe benefits and necessary staff 

training. The requests adds new ombudsman positions specifically dedicated to providing Ombudsman services to residents of assisted living facilities and other community-based long- term care delivery systems, which currently suffer from a significant lack of personnel resources around the country. 

Finally, NASOP wants to acknowledge the importance and value of the National 

Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center (NORC). The NORC provides valuable and reliable technical assistance, training, and support to State and local 

LTCOPs. 

NASOP requests an appropriation of $1 million to support the work of the NORC 

in providing training and technical assistance to State and local LTCOPs. Congress 

funds the NORC at $550,000 per year; the very same level of funding it has received 

since 1993. This request adds $450,000 to the line item for the NORC, which is such 

a critical component of the ombudsman program. The NORC plays an integral role 

in assuring the overall effectiveness of LTCOPs across the country through its training, educational materials, data analysis, and best practices efforts. 

Overall, Ombudsmen offer valuable consumer protections to residents and provide 

a voice for those unable to speak for themselves. Every day in America, 10,000 more 
563 

persons reach the age of 65 years. With a rapidly growing older population, LTCOPs 

can continue to enhance the quality of life, improve the level of care, protect the 

individual’s rights and promote the dignity of Americans across the Nation. 

On behalf of residents, tenants and State Long-Term Care Ombudsmen across 

this Nation, thank you for this opportunity to share these requests for support of 

this important program that protects the health, safety, welfare, and rights of vulnerable older adults and persons with disabilities. We ask that you thoughtfully consider our detailed request for funding in fiscal year 2015. 

[This statement was submitted by Deanna Clingan-Fischer, JD, Iowa State LongTerm Care Ombudsman.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATES UNITED FOR AGING

AND DISABILITIES

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran: Thank you to for the opportunity to 

submit this testimony. As you work to develop fiscal year 2015 funding priorities, 

the National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD) 

urges you to consider the Administration for Community Living’s (ACL) fiscal year 

2015 request for $25 million to address the all-too prevalent problem of elder abuse. 

This investment would support initial implementation of the Elder Justice Act’s 

(EJA) Adult Protective Services (APS), research, and evaluation activities. 

NASUAD represents the 56 officially designated State and territorial agencies on 

aging and disabilities. Each of our members oversees the implementation of the 

Older Americans Act (OAA), and many also serve as the operating agency in their 

State for Medicaid waivers that serve older adults and individuals with disabilities. 

Together with our members, we work to design, improve, and sustain State systems 

delivering home and community based services and supports for people who are 

older or have a disability, and their caregivers. 

According to ACL, an estimated 2.1 million older Americans are victims of elder 

abuse, neglect, or exploitation each year. As the Nation’s older population increases, 

so too does the incidence of elder abuse. While there is no single set of national 

elder abuse prevalence data, the number of reported cases is on the rise. A 2004 

national survey of State APS programs showed a 16 percent increase in the number 

of elder abuse cases from an identical study conducted in 2000. Additionally, an 

overwhelming number of cases of abuse, neglect, and exploitation go undetected and 

untreated each year. Experts estimate that for every case of elder abuse or neglect 

reported, as many as five cases go unreported. 

Despite the clear and growing need, there is no dedicated Federal funding for, or 

corresponding Federal oversight of, elder abuse prevention services. Absent a national framework, States have been left to address this issue independently from 

one another, and must rely on multiple funding streams to support their work, ultimately resulting in a fragmented system. Though each State has developed an APS 

program that responds to reports of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, these programs vary greatly from State to State—from the populations they serve, to the reporting mechanisms they use, and the budget structures under which they operate. 

These discrepancies, which continue to be exacerbated by the absence of Federal 

APS funding, necessarily impede efforts to compare, evaluate, and improve State approaches to reducing and preventing elder abuse. 

To address the systemic inadequacies in our Nation’s approach to eradicating 

elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, we urge you to support ACL’s request of $25 

million in discretionary funding to implement the EJA in fiscal year 2015. This critical funding would be used to develop much-needed program standards and data collection efforts, as well as to support the implementation of a nationwide APS data 

system; these dollars would also fund research activities, including efforts to translate promising interventions from other violence prevention areas to elder abuse, 

and evaluations of the effectiveness of these interventions. 

NASUAD believes that efforts to improve the response to, awareness of, and intervention in elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation could be more effectively coordinated through the establishment of a national APS program. Accordingly, we urge 

you to fully fund the Elder Justice Initiative in fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you for the opportunity to provide input on this critical issue, and for your 

leadership. NASUAD looks forward to working with all of you to preserve the dignity, independence, and health of older adults, and to protect those who may no 

longer be able to protect themselves. 
564 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL BLOOD CLOT ALLIANCE

The National Blood Clot Alliance (NBCA) is pleased to submit this statement in 

support of increased appropriations for fiscal year 2015 for the Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Division of Blood Disorders, a component of CDC’s 

National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities. NBCA’s statement addresses the programs specific to blood clots, known scientifically as Deep 

Vein Thrombosis (DVT) and Pulmonary Embolism (PE), a major public health problem facing this Nation. Combined, these disorders are known as venous thromboembolism (VTE). Preventing death and disability from VTE is an important public 

health priority, and the Division is responsible for all CDC activities related to blood 

clots and other bleeding disorders. 

NBCA asks the Subcommittee to restore funding for the Division to its fiscal year 2010 level, $19.9 million. The fiscal year 2014 funding has dropped precipitously to 

$13 million. Of this, support for blood clot prevention has been cut in half, to a mere 

$560,000, hardly enough to make a dent in a major public health problem that annually kills more Americans than AIDS, breast cancer and motor vehicle accidents 

combined. NBCA further requests that the Subcommittee establish a budget line 

item specific to blood clots and clotting disorders and that $4 million be appropriated for this line each year for the next 5 years. 

Funding this program at the requested level will be a major step in advancing 

the Surgeon General’s 2008 ‘‘Call to Action to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) 

and Pulmonary Embolism (PE)’’ and the Nation’s ‘‘Healthy People 2020 Objectives.’’ 

The urgency of this request is underscored by the fact that the great majority of 

blood clots could be prevented. We have the tools to do that, but the resources to 

deploy them are woefully inadequate. 

Blood clots are the leading cause of unnecessary hospital readmissions in the U.S., costing our Nation an estimated $10 billion dollars in avoidable healthcare expenses 

annually. According to the American Public Health Association, DVT deaths are the 

most common preventable cause of hospital death. Researchers at Johns Hopkins 

University School of Medicine recently reported that as many as 70 percent of 

healthcare associated VTE could be eliminated with the application of improved prevention protocols. Other targeted population-based prevention tools can be applied 

to avert disability and death from blood clots due to aging, lengthy travel, immobility, obesity and other risk factors. 

The National Blood Clot Alliance 

Founded in 2003, NBCA is a patient led non-profit, voluntary health organization 

dedicated to advancing the prevention, early diagnosis and successful treatment of 

life-threatening blood clots such as deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism and 

clot-provoked stroke. We work on behalf of people who have or could be susceptible 

to blood clots, including, but not limited to, people with clotting disorders, atrial fibrillation, cancer, traumatic injury, and risks related to surgery, lengthy immobility, 

child birth and birth control. NBCA accomplishes its mission through programs that 

build public awareness, educate patients and healthcare professionals and promote 

supportive public and private sector policy. Our content is reviewed by an internationally recognized Medical and Scientific Advisory Board. We invite the Members 

of the Subcommittee to visit our website at www.stoptheclot.org to learn more about 

blood clots and the programs of NBCA. 

Who Has Blood Clots and What Are They? 

No American is immune from life-threatening blood clots, regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity or health status. Normal blood clots play an important role in 

protecting our health because they stop bleeding from a cut or wound. However, 

blood clots can also form abnormally, causing a heart attack, stroke, or other serious 

medical problems. Experts estimate that two million Americans suffer such venous 

and arterial blood clots every year. More than 200,000 Americans die from them annually. An often silent killer, death can be sudden with no forewarning. But in most 

instances, the damage can be averted or contained. Age, smoking, obesity can all 

contribute to clotting risk, but so can birth control or pregnancy or cancer. Even 

prominent athletes in peak physical condition have suffered career- ending, life 

-threatening clots. It can happen to any of us. In fact, the memories of former U.S. 

Reps. Walter Capps (D–CA) and Jennifer Dunn (R–WA), who died due to blood clots 

while serving in Congress, motivated the creation of National Blood Clot Awareness 

Month in March of 2009. 

Physicians estimate that as little as 20 percent of blood clots are actually recognized for what they are. Misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis are all too common and 

all too often fatal. The general public is even farther behind, with surveys showing 

that nearly three quarters of the population has little or no knowledge about blood 
565 

clots, their risks, their signs and symptoms and their prevention. The Government 

must play a greater role in educating the general public, people who are at special 

risk and health professionals. This is the ‘‘low hanging fruit’’ of public health prevention that has yet to be adequately picked and the return on invest can be tens 

of thousands of lives saved and billions of dollars in unnecessary healthcare expenses avoided! 

The Federal Government Has a Vital Role in Meeting this Acknowledged Public 

Health Priority 

Many Federal agencies play important roles in the effort to reduce death and disability from blood clots and clotting disorders. The National Institutes of Health and 

the National Science Foundation support the work of basic scientists in their efforts 

to understand the causes and effects of blood clots and identify improved treatments. The VA also supports research in this field and strives to prevent blood clots 

in the special population of Americans it serves. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in 2001 was among the first to recognize that blood clot prevention in hospitals was our best opportunity for patient safety improvement. The Partnership for Patients makes made blood clot prevention a key component of improved 

hospital care. CMS includes surgery-related blood clot prevention as a key measure 

of hospital quality. DOD has examined how blood clots can be prevented in the military, affecting soldiers who must often live in cramped conditions, suffer dehydration and experience bone fractures and more severe injuries that require surgery. 

Each of these agencies plays a special role in the effort to reduce clotting death 

and injury. However, the CDC, the Nation’s leading prevention agency, is the one 

best suited to guide and coordinate Federal efforts targeted at populations more 

broadly. No other agency possesses its unique capabilities in public health outreach, 

education and promotion. Regrettably the agency best suited for leadership is the 

one with the fewest resources. NBCA believes it is imperative that Congress act now 

to provide adequate, sustained funding for this specific activity at CDC—the reduction of death and disability due to blood clots. 

The funding request presented at the beginning of this statement will provide 

CDC with the resources it needs to begin seriously to meet this public health challenge. fiscal year 2014 funding for blood clot programs is only $560,000, half of what 

was available in the last fiscal year. The Administration’s proposed fiscal year 2015 

budget would make no change to this level. The current funding situation for the 

Blood Disorders Division has already forced CDC to cut or curtail the few programs 

it has been able to support. These include two pilot programs to improve community-based VTE surveillance and evaluation; one focused on healthcare provider education; one targeted at women’s health (e.g., blood clots are the leading cause of maternal mortality); and a collaboration with the VA and academia to develop new 

VTE surveillance tools. Staffing of the Division has also been cut nearly in half, decreasing by 18 FTEs, including essential personnel with specialized laboratory, IT 

and analytic skills. At a time when this public health problem is growing, we have 

allowed even the small investment in CDC to address it become further negligible. 

This is neither thoughtful public policy nor wise economically. 

NBCA believes that our citizens deserve better and that Federal support for this 

acknowledged public health priority should be equal to the task. Tragically, it is not 

at present. NBCA urges the Subcommittee to take the lead in making the changes 

needed to provide CDC with the funds it needs to combat this major public health 

issue—blood clots, clotting disorders and the ensuing disability that consumes far 

too many lives and dollars in the U.S. unnecessarily. 

[This statement was submitted by Joseph C. Isaacs, Chief Executive Officer, National Blood Clot Alliance.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR LEARNING DISABILITIES

The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) works to ensure that the 

Nation’s 60 million children, adolescents and adults with learning disabilities and 

attention issues have every opportunity to succeed in school, work and life. NCLD 

asks you to consider our request as you work on the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health 

and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill. 

As you begin work on the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, 

and Education Appropriations bill, we urge you to support continued funding for 

special education at the President’s request level of $11.57 billion for the Individuals 

with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and the President’s $100 million for Results 

Driven Accountability Incentive Grants which would provide competitive grants to 

States to implement promising, evidence-based reforms that would improve service 
566 

1 Cortiella, Candace and Horowitz, Sheldon H. The State of Learning Disabilities: Facts, 

Trends and Emerging Issues. New York: National Center for Learning Disabilities, 2014. 2 Newman, L.A. & Madaus, J. W. (2013). Reported Accommodations and Supports Provided 

to Secondary and Postsecondary Students with Disabilities: National Perspective. Publication 

forthcoming. 3 Cortiella & and Horowitz (2014). 

delivery for children with disabilities while building State and local capacity to improve long—term outcomes for those children 

We also urge you to support funding for the National Technical Assistance Center 

within the Higher Education Opportunity Act (Section 777(a)) at $2 million to provide useful and comprehensive information to students with disabilities on the 

choices available to them in higher education and to provide much-needed training, 

technical assistance, and professional development to institutes of higher education. 

IDEA Part B Grants to States & Results Driven Accountability Incentive Grants 

Currently, there are over 6.5 million children eligible for special education services under the disability categories of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 

Act (IDEA). The comprehensive assessment and support services authorized by 

IDEA help to close the academic achievement gap and ensure a meaningful education for every student. We owe it to all students to provide a quality education 

that will help them graduate and enter successful careers. 

We support the Administration’s request that would maintain funding for IDEA, 

Part B (Grants to States program) at $11.57 billion, which the Administration estimates would provide $1,758 per child for an estimated 6.6 million students with disabilities. Additionally we support the President’s $100 million for Results Driven Accountability Incentive Grants, which would provide competitive grants to States to 

implement promising, evidence-based reforms that would improve service delivery 

for children with disabilities. We encourage innovation in the realm of service delivery to students receiving special education and believe that these grants have the 

potential to spark innovative ideas and a renewed focused on improved outcomes 

for students. 

The National Technical Assistance Center 

In the HEA reauthorization of 2008, Congress authorized the establishment of 

National Center for Information and Technical Support for Postsecondary Students 

with Disabilities. This Center was intended to serve three primary purposes: (1) 

serve as a resource to parents and students with disabilities on the services available at various IHEs; (2) serve as a technical assistance center to IHEs and provide 

training to faculty and staff on how to improve services for students with disabilities; and (3) serve as an online database for the collection and dissemination of a 

variety of disability-related information for students with disabilities who are interested in higher education. Though the Center was authorized, it has never been 

funded. 

How Students with Disabilities are Faring in Higher Education 

In recent years, due to the services provided to students with disabilities through 

the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, students with learning and attention issues have graduated from 

high school at higher rates than ever before. In fact, a majority (54 percent) of students with learning disabilities have the goal to attend a 2- or 4-year college.1 Students with learning disabilities make up the largest population of students with disabilities who attend postsecondary schools, at 69 percent of all students with disabilities in postsecondary programs.2

Unfortunately, students with disabilities are not attending postsecondary education programs at the same rate as students in the general population. In the general education population, within 4 years of graduating high school, 53 percent of 

students continue on to postsecondary education programs, compared to only 45 percent of youth with disabilities. Even worse, young adults with learning disabilities 

(LD) attend four-year colleges at half the rate of the general population.3 Students 

with disabilities would benefit from better outreach, recruitment, and assistance 

programs to bridge the gap between high school and postsecondary education programs. Comprehensive information on higher education programs and services is 

needed now more than ever. With more students with disabilities setting goals of 

attending college but few actually enrolling and completing college programs, it is 

critical that they have access to the information and support services they need. 
567 

4For more information on the survey conducted by NCLD and the IHEs we surveyed to find 

this data, please contact us. 5 Newman, L., Wagner, M., Knokey, A.-M., Marder, C., Nagle, K., et al. (2011). The PostHigh 

School Outcomes of Young Adults With Disabilities up to 8 Years After High School. A Report 

From the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 (NLTS2) (NCSER 2011–3005). Menlo Park, 

CA: SRI International. 6 Cortiella & and Horowitz (2014). 

7 Newman, Wagner, Knokey, Marder, et al. (2011). 

The Lack of Comprehensive Information on Post-Secondary Education Programs 

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has made efforts to improve parent and 

student access to timely and useful information regarding colleges and universities 

through the development of the College Navigator. The Department of Education 

collects data from IHEs through Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System 

(IPEDS) surveys, including data on enrollment, program completion, graduation 

rates, faculty and staff, finances, institutional prices, and student financial aid. The 

data is made available to students and parents via College Navigator—a public 

website that allows users to perform a search of colleges. The data and information 

provided through the College Navigator—has the potential to support and improve 

rates of transition for all young adults from high school into the postsecondary setting. However, this information alone is not enough to ensure a smooth transition 

for students with disabilities into their postsecondary education programs. 

NCLD has conducted its own survey of the information provided by IHEs on College Navigator. College Navigator provides a place for every IHE to provide information on the disability services offered at the institution. We examined the responses 

that nearly 400 institutions submitted, including private, public, and for profit institutions as well as community colleges. Only 6 of the institutions surveyed listed any 

information to students and the public regarding disability services.4

The Need for a Smoother Transition to Post-Secondary Programs 

Research shows that students with disabilities are getting less support in college 

than in high school, despite wishing they had more assistance. Even though 87 percent of students with disabilities received some type of accommodation or support 

in high school, that number drops off sharply when students with disabilities enter 

college, decreasing to only 19 percent of students who receive accommodations or 

support.5 For students with learning disabilities, 17 percent of young adults receive 

accommodations and supports in postsecondary education compared with 94 percent 

in high school.6 Of the many students who did not receive any help at all, 43 percent felt that it would have been helpful to receive assistance.7 We know that selfadvocacy is one of the keys to student success, but it is clear that students are not 

aware of their rights and responsibilities, are not adequately prepared to advocate 

for themselves, and are not provided adequate transition assistance to be successful 

in postsecondary education programs. 

The Purpose of the National Technical Assistance Center 

We recognize that providing useful and comprehensive information to parents and 

students on the choices available is not an easy task. Therefore, we recommend 

funding the National Technical Assistance Center, found in the 2008 authorization 

of HEA, at $2 million. The Center would serve several key purposes: (1) providing 

information and resources to students and parents on disability services and programs at IHEs; (2) providing training and technical assistance to IHEs; (3) providing training and professional development to faculty and staff at IHEs; and (4) 

information collection and dissemination on best practices, documentation requirements, financial aid, services available, policies, and accessible instructional materials. 

We urge you to continue your investment in students with disabilities through 

funding of IDEA and the RDA grants and support funding in fiscal year 2015 for 

the National Technical Assistance Center. Thank you for your consideration of our 

request. 

[This statement was submitted by Lindsay E. Jones, Esq., Director, Public Policy 

& Advocacy, National Center for Learning Disabilities.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL CHILDREN’S FACILITIES NETWORK

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and distinguished Members of the 

Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, 

and Related Agencies: Thank you for the opportunity to offer written testimony on 

the Administration’s fiscal year 2015 Budget Request for the Department of Health 
568 

and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. I write on behalf 

of the National Children’s Facilities Network (NCFN) to express support for the 

funding of Head Start, Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships and other programs that provide access to high quality early care and education. These initiatives 

are critical to ensuring that all children, especially low-income children, are given 

a strong start and the tools necessary to succeed in life. As you make important 

funding decisions about programs that provide children with the opportunity to obtain an early start on the pathway to success, we encourage you to recognize the 

critical role that early childhood facilities play in preparing young children for 

achievement in school and in life, and support Federal policies that adequately finance the acquisition, construction, and improvement of these spaces. 

NCFN is a national coalition of nonprofit organizations that provide financing, 

technical assistance and training on the design, development and financing of early 

care and education facilities in low-income communities throughout the country. We 

see the positive impact of high quality early learning on children’s lives and on the 

future economic health and development of neighborhoods. Our coalition also recognizes the importance of the spaces where these programs take place. A growing body 

of research shows that a well-designed, well-equipped physical environment supports learning and good outcomes for children, while a poorly adapted and overcrowded space undermines it. For example, bathrooms adjacent to classrooms, accessible cubbies, and child-sized sinks, counters, furnishings and fixtures increase children’s autonomy and competence while decreasing the demands on teachers. 

Infants, toddlers, and young children should be educated and cared for in high 

quality physical spaces that meet their needs and complement high quality programs. Federal programs focused on improving families’ access to high quality early 

care and education options should include adequate funding for the acquisition, construction, and improvement of facilities. 

Thank you for your leadership on these issues. Please consider us as a resource 

as you advance early childhood policies. If you would like additional information 

about our work, please contact Karen O’Mansky, Center for Community Self-Help, 

Chair, National Children’s Facilities Network. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL CONGRESS OF AMERICAN INDIANS

On behalf of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), this testimony 

addresses programs in the Departments of Education and Labor and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. NCAI also supports the testimony of the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the American Indian Higher Education Consortium, 

and the National Indian Education Association. NCAI is the oldest and largest 

American Indian organization in the United States. Tribal leaders created NCAI in 

1944 as a response to termination and assimilation policies that threatened the existence of American Indian and Alaska Native tribes. Since then, NCAI has fought 

to preserve the treaty rights and sovereign status of tribal governments, while also 

ensuring that Native people may fully participate in the political system. As the 

most representative organization of American Indian tribes, NCAI serves the broad 

interests of tribal governments across the Nation. 

Department of Education 

Investing in the education of American Indian and Alaska Native students is not 

only one most of the most important cornerstones of the Federal trust responsibility 

to tribes, but is also critical strategy for creating jobs and securing the Nation’s future prosperity in today’s challenging economic climate. Education provides tribal 

economies with a more highly-skilled workforce while also directly spurring economic development and job creation. The profound value of education for Native Nations extends beyond just economics, however. Education drives personal advancement and wellness, which in turn improves social welfare and empowers communities—elements that are essential to maintaining tribes’ cultural vitality and to 

protecting and advancing tribal sovereignty. 

Despite the enormous potential of education for transforming tribal communities, 

Native education is in a state of emergency. American Indian and Alaska Native 

students lag far behind their peers on every educational indicator, from academic 

achievement to high school and college graduation rates. For example, in 2011, only 

18 percent of Native fourth graders and 22 percent of Native eighth graders scored 

proficient or advanced in reading, and only 22 percent of Native fourth graders and 
569 

1 National Indian Education Study 2011, NCES 2012–466. National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, United States Department of Education. 2School Year 2010–2011 4-Year Regulatory Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rates, Department 

of Education. 

17 percent of Native eighth graders scored proficient or advanced in math.1 The crisis of Indian education is perhaps most apparent in the Native high school dropout 

rate, which is not only one of the highest in the country, but is also above 50 percent in many of the States with high Native populations.2

Title I, Part A Local Education Agency Grants—Provide $25 billion for Title I, 

Part A.—Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act provides critical 

financial assistance to local educational agencies and schools with high percentages 

of children from low-income families that ensure all children meet challenging State 

academic standards. Currently, there are over 600,000 Native students across the 

country with nearly 93 percent of those students attending non-Federal institutions, 

such as traditional public schools in rural and urban locations. A drastic increase 

in funding to counter annual inflation and sequestration is necessary to meet the 

needs of Native students and students from low-income families. 

Impact Aid—Provide $2 billion for Impact Aid, Title VIII of the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act (ESEA).—Impact Aid provides direct payments to public 

school districts as reimbursements for the loss of traditional property taxes due to 

a Federal presence or activity, including the existence of an Indian reservation. 

With nearly 93 percent of Native students enrolled in public schools, Impact Aid 

provides essential funding for schools serving Native students. In fiscal year 2014, 

Impact Aid saw an increase of $64 million over fiscal year 2013 that restored most 

of the destructive sequestration cuts tribal communities faced in Indian Country. In 

order to ensure Native students have access to education, however, Impact Aid must 

be fully funded at $2 billion. Furthermore, Impact Aid should be converted to a forward-funded program to eliminate the need for cost transfers and other funding 

issues at a later date. 

Title VII (Indian Education Formula Grants)—Provide $198 million for Title VII 

of the ESEA.—This grant funding is designed to supplement the regular school program and assist Native students so they have the opportunity to achieve the same 

educational standards and attain equity with their non-Native peers. Title VII provides funds to school divisions to support American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian students in meeting State standards. Furthermore, Title VII funds 

support early-childhood and family programs, academic enrichment programs, curriculum development, professional development, and culturally-related activities. 

Currently, funding for Title VII only reaches 500,000 Native students leaving over 

100,000 without supplementary academic and cultural programs in their schools. 

State-Tribal Education Partnership (STEP) Program—Provide $5 million for the 

State-Tribal Education Partnership Program..—Congress appropriated roughly $2 

million dollars for the STEP program to five participating tribes in fiscal year 2012 

and fiscal year 2013 under the Tribal Education Department appropriations’ line 

that is administered by the Department of Education. In order for this program to 

continue to succeed and thrive, it must receive its own line of appropriations in fiscal year 2015. Collaboration between tribal education agencies and State educational agencies is crucial to developing the tribal capacity to assume the roles, responsibilities, and accountability of Native education departments and increasing 

self-governance over Native education. 

Alaska Native Education Equity Assistance Program—Provide $35 million for 

Title VII, Part C of the ESEA.—This assistance program funds the development of 

curricula and education programs that address the unique educational needs of 

Alaska Native students, as well as the development and operation of student enrichment programs in science and mathematics. This funding is crucial to closing the 

gap between Alaska Native students and their non-Native peers. Other eligible activities include professional development for educators, activities carried out 

through Even Start programs and Head Start programs, family literacy services, 

and dropout prevention programs. 

Native Hawaiian Education Program—Provide $35 million for Title VII, Part B 

of the ESEA.—This program funds the development of curricula and education programs that address the education needs of Native Hawaiian students to help bring 

equity to this Native population. Where Native Hawaiians once had a very high rate 

of literacy, today Native Hawaiian educational attainment lags behind the general 

population. 
570 

3 U.S. Census Bureau. Census 2000 Summary File 4, 2006–2010, 2009–2011 American Community Survey. 4 U.S. Census. 2011 American Community Survey. 

5 U.S. Department of Interior. Bureau of Indian Affairs. 2005 American Indian Labor Force 

Report. 6See youthbuild.org/research. 

7 U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census, Summary File 1. 

Department of Labor 

Fund the Department of Labor’s Indian and Native American Program (INAP) at a minimum of $60.5 million. Fund the Native American Employment and Training 

Council at $125,000 from non-INAP resources.—In order to reduce the education 

and employment disparity between Native people and other groups, a concentrated 

effort is required that provides tailored and sufficient assistance to enhance education and employment opportunities, to create pathways to careers and skilled employment, and to secure a place for Native people within the Nation’s middle class. 

The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Section 166 program (INAP) serves the training and employment needs of over 38,000 American Indians and Alaska Natives via 

a network of 175 grantees through the Comprehensive Service Program (Adult) and 

Supplemental Youth Service Program (Youth), and the Indian Employment and 

Training and Related Services Demonstration Act of 1992, Public Law 102–477. 

Furthermore, the number of American Indians and Alaska Natives served through 

WIA does not fully capture its impact in Indian Country, as many more are served 

by grantees that leverage WIA funding, along with other similar federally funded 

employment and training programs, through PL 102–477. 

There has been a trend of decreasing funds for INAP, and a failure to appropriate 

at the statutory minimum level of $55 million. These decreases in funding are detrimental and hamper progress in Indian Country’s labor situation. According to the 

Census, the average unemployment rate on reservations dropped more than 3 percentage points since 2000,3 but more still needs to be done as American Indians and 

Alaska Natives still lag significantly behind. With the average unemployment rate 

in Indian Country cited up to 17 percent 4 and an average rate of joblessness of approximately 50 percent,5 INAP is vital to helping reverse these trends. 

Further, because INAP is the only Federal employment and job training program 

that serves American Indians and Alaska Natives who reside both on and off reservations, it is imperative that its funding is preserved. For Native citizens living 

on remote reservations or in Alaska Native villages, it can be difficult to access the 

State and local workforce systems. In these areas, INAP can be the lone employment and training provider. Since 2003, WIA has been up for reauthorization; and 

over this 11-year period, WIA has not accounted for the population growth of tribal 

communities, nor the economic environment that has drastically changed. WIA authorizes the INAP to be funded at ‘‘not less than $55 million,’’ but Section 166 is 

currently being funded at approximately $46 million. WIA also authorizes the Native American Employment and Training Council to advise the Secretary on the operation and administration of INAP, but it uses funds that are intended for INAP 

grantees. Since the current INAP funding is already below $55 million, the Secretary should use other streams of funding to support its advisory council. Without 

an increase in funding, not enough tribes are able to benefit from the support and 

training activities for employment opportunities in Indian Country. 

Restore the YouthBuild Program funding to a minimum of $102.5 million, restore 

the rural and tribal set-aside in the YouthBuild program, and reinstate a dedicated 

10 percent rural and tribal set-aside of at least $10.25 million.—The YouthBuild program is a workforce development program that provides significant academic and 

occupational skills training and leadership development to youth ages 16–24, and 

engages approximately 10,000 youth annually. According to YouthBuild, in 2010, 

4,252 youth participated in the program and had a completion rate of 78 percent, 

and 60 percent of those who completed the program were placed in jobs or further 

education.6 There are a number of tribal YouthBuild programs in several States, 

and Native Americans make up roughly 4 percent of YouthBuild participants. With 

the recent reduction in tribal YouthBuild programs, high unemployment rates, serious housing challenges in Indian Country, and the growing Native youth population 

(42 percent of American Indian/Alaska Native population is under 25 years old),7

it is critical that the 10 percent rural and tribal set- aside be restored. 

Corporation for Public Broadcasting 

In the CPB, NCAI supports an advanced fiscal year 2016 appropriation of $5 million for American Indian and Alaska Native radio stations. This $5 million appropriation would come out of the fiscal year 2015 advanced appropriation of $445 mil-
571 

lion for the overall CPB budget. This is the same budget amount enacted for fiscal 

year 2014 and requested for fiscal year 2015. 

For more than 30 years, decisions on the amount of Federal support for public 

broadcasting have been made 2 years ahead of the fiscal year in which the funding 

is allocated. Since 1976, CPB’s 2-year advance appropriation has served as a Congressional strategy to protect public media from any immediate political pressure. 

Community Service Grants (CSGs) account for approximately 70 percent of CPB’s 

appropriation, which directly funds 1,300 local public television and radio stations 

including 35 Native radio stations. 

In Indian Country, Native radio stations are essential to the tribal communities 

they serve since they are often the first source of emergency reporting and information. Public broadcasters use datacast technology for homeland security, public alert 

and warning systems, and public safety purposes. In Oklahoma, KCNP Chickasaw 

radio provided real time weather reports that saved lives during the 2013 tornado 

season. In Arizona, KUYI Hopi radio provides ‘‘House Calls,’’ a health call-in show 

that connects listeners with a local doctor on questions about hanta virus, diabetes, 

HIV, and other local health issues. In Alaska, KNBA covers news from Alaska Native villages about climate change refugees, language revitalization, and other hyper 

local stories important and relevant to Alaska Native communities. Often, the only 

place where Native stories and issues are heard is on Native radio stations. 

Local public media stations and their employees have experienced significant reductions through cuts to other Federal programs that benefit public media. The 

elimination of CPB’s Digital appropriation and the Public Telecommunications Facilities Program coupled with cuts to programs at the Departments of Education and 

Agriculture represent a $57.5 million, or 7.3 percent, funding cut between fiscal year 

2010 and fiscal year 2012. These cuts come at a time when stations are struggling 

to maintain service to their communities in the face of shrinking nonFederal revenues—a $239 million, or 10.8 percent, drop between fiscal year 2008 and fiscal year 

2011. 

CPB also funds the essential system-wide station support services provided by 

Native Public Media, Inc., and content production and satellite programming distribution by Koahnic Broadcast Corporation. Access to these funds allows Native 

Public Media, Inc., to ensure that Native radio stations stay on the air by maintaining compliance with FCC and other Federal rules and regulations, and by providing 

the training and support Native broadcasters need. Native public radio stations still 

exist as one of the primary sources of public information on tribal lands, and represent cornerstones of tribal efforts for information dissemination. Much of Indian 

Country remains disconnected from vital telecommunications services, radio should 

not be counted among them. Radio has always existed as a key component of public 

information and 55 tribal radio stations among this country’s 566 federally recognized tribes illustrates the need for these services in Indian Country. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF NATIONAL COUNCIL OF SOCIAL SECURITY MANAGEMENT

ASSOCIATIONS

On behalf of the National Council of Social Security Management Associations 

(NCSSMA), thank you for the opportunity to submit this testimony regarding the 

Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) fiscal year 2015 Appropriation. 

NCSSMA is a membership organization of nearly 3,300 SSA managers and supervisors who provide leadership in over 1,200 community-based field offices and teleservice centers throughout the country. We are the front-line service providers for 

SSA in communities all over the Nation. Since the founding of our organization over 

44 years ago, NCSSMA has considered a stable SSA, which delivers quality and 

timely community-based service to the American public, our top priority. We also 

consider it a top priority to be good stewards of the taxpayers’ monies and the Social 

Security programs we administer. 

We would like to express our appreciation for the fiscal year 2014 Limitation on 

Administrative Expenses (LAE) account funding of $11.697 billion provided to SSA. 

Increased resources, especially in SSA’s field offices and teleservice centers, will 

have a positive impact on delivering vital services to the American public and in 

fulfilling the agency’s stewardship responsibilities. Since October 2010, SSA field offices had lost almost 4,100 permanent employees prior to the first wave of fiscal 

year 2014 hiring. The teleservice centers (TSCs) lost 1,159 employees during the 

same timeframe. For the first time in over 3 years, we are replacing some of these 

losses. Because of the fiscal year 2014 funding, authority was granted to field offices 

and teleservice centers to hire 2,350 and 850 permanent employees, respectively. In 
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addition, 550 permanent hires were approved for Workload Support Units (WSUs) 

that are expected to ease the burden placed on field offices. 

The dramatic growth in SSA workloads, along with the attrition in our offices 

over the last several years, has highlighted the need to receive necessary resources 

to maintain service levels vital to the nearly 65 million Social Security beneficiaries 

and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients. Despite agency strategic planning, expansion of online services, significant productivity gains, and the best efforts 

of management and employees, SSA still faces many challenges providing the service the American public has earned and deserves. 

Over the last several years, SSA has experienced a significant increase in Social 

Security claims. The additional claims receipts are driven in large part by the initial 

wave of the nearly 80 million baby boomers who will be filing for Social Security 

benefits by 2030, an average of 10,000 per day. 

—In fiscal year 2013, SSA field offices assisted 43.3 million visitors, received 4.9 

million retirement, survivor and Medicare applications, and 2.9 million initial 

disability claims. 

—In fiscal year 2013, SSA completed 2,987,883 initial disability claims. Since fiscal year 2007, initial disability claims receipts have increased by over 25 percent. 

—In fiscal year 2013, SSA completed 5,006,855 retirement, survivor, and Medicare claims (5,001,092 in fiscal year 2012)—a record number and over a million 

more than completed in fiscal year 2007. 

—In fiscal year 2013, retirement, survivor, and Medicare claims were 30 percent 

higher as compared to fiscal year 2007. 

—Each day over 155,000 people visit SSA field offices and more than 436,000 call 

SSA for a variety of services. We fully support the President’s budget request of $12.024 billion for SSA’s LAE 

account in fiscal year 2015. While this would be a much-appreciated increase of 

$327 million over the fiscal year 2014 level of funding, it would only address fixed 

cost increases. The fiscal year 2015 Budget Request submitted by Acting Commissioner Carolyn Colvin to President Obama for SSA’s administrative funding was 

$12.6 billion. This level of funding will allow SSA to continue improving and modernizing customer service, enhance program integrity efforts, detect and deter fraud 

and errors, and continue to address high volumes of work. In November of 2013, 

NCSSMA co-authored a letter with 29 other organizations, which was submitted to 

the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and recommended a funding level consistent with the Acting Commissioner’s request for SSA’s administrative funding. 

Specifically the letter stated: 

SSA teleservice centers, hearing offices, program service centers, disability determination services (DDS), and field offices are in critical need of adequate resources to address their growing workloads. The recommended fiscal year 2015 

budget of no less than $12.6 billion would allow SSA to cover inflationary increases, resume efforts to reduce hearings and disability backlogs, complete deficit-reducing program integrity work, and replace critical staffing losses in 

SSA’s components, including field offices, teleservice centers, and DDSs. 

Adequate funding would also help to minimize the closure of additional field offices. Since fiscal year 2010, SSA consolidated 92 field offices into 46 field offices 

and closed 521 contact stations. The agency also cancelled plans to open eight 

new hearing offices and a new teleservice center due to limited resources. In 

many cases, applicants for benefits or those approaching retirement age who 

have questions about their eligibility or benefits have been forced to travel 

greater distances to visit a Social Security field office. The fiscal year 2014 appropriation for SSA provided $1.197 billion dedicated to 

program integrity activities to ensure that disability and other benefits are properly 

paid. SSA plans to process 2.6 million SSI redeterminations and 510,000 full medical continuing disability reviews (CDRs) in fiscal year 2014. Despite these efforts, 

the agency continues to have 1.3 million CDRs backlogged due to budgetary shortfalls. The fiscal year 2015 budget request would provide $1.396 billion dedicated to 

program integrity. With these funds, the agency would be able to complete 880,000 

full medical CDRs and 2.6 million SSI redeterminations. Completing more than 

880,000 CDRs would more than double the CDRs completed in 2013, saving billions 

of taxpayer dollars. 

While it is critical SSA focus on cost-effective program integrity work to protect 

taxpayer dollars, there must be a balance between these efforts, preventing fraud 

and improper payments before they occur, and service to the American public. One 

way we can help stop fraud before it starts is through the work of Cooperative Disability Investigation (CDI) units. With the increased fiscal year 2014 funding, SSA 

will be able to add 7 units to the existing 25. We recognize CDI unit expansion is 
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not enough and advocate for additional focus on program integrity initiatives including providing in-depth training for identifying and reporting fraud for our front-line 

employees. Field office employees are the first line of defense against fraud, and 

must have the training and resources necessary to identify and report questionable 

activities and claims. Additional training initiatives have begun in fiscal year 2014, 

but must continue. 

SSA is challenged by ever-increasing workloads, very complex programs to administer, and increased program integrity work with diminished staffing and resources. 

With the current fiscal challenges confronting SSA, we encourage Congress to consider changes to the Social Security and SSI programs that have the potential to 

increase administrative efficiency and lower operational costs. 

It is critical SSA receives adequate, yet flexible funding for the LAE account to 

respond to requests for assistance from the American public, and to fulfill our stewardship responsibilities. SSA TSCs, hearing offices, program service centers (PSCs), 

DDS, and the over 1,200 field offices are in grave need of adequate resources to address their growing workloads. Many of SSA’s field offices are currently experiencing wait times in excess of 60 minutes. One out of every 8 visitors waits more 

than 1 hour to receive services, which is 177 percent more than in fiscal year 2012 

and 224 percent more than fiscal year 2011. Without adequate funding, SSA will 

not be able to provide the high-quality customer service Americans deserve and will 

be unable to process program integrity workloads, which save taxpayer dollars and 

reduce the Federal budget and deficit. 

We realize the fiscal year 2015 funding level requested above is not insignificant, 

particularly in this difficult Federal budget environment. However, Social Security 

serves as the largest most vital component of the social safety net of America and 

is facing unprecedented challenges. The American public expects and deserves SSA’s 

assistance. 

On behalf of NCSSMA members nationwide, thank you for the opportunity to submit this written testimony. We respectfully ask that you consider our comments, 

and would appreciate any assistance you can provide in ensuring the American public receives the critical and necessary service they deserve from the Social Security 

Administration. 

[This statement was submitted by Scott Hale, President, National Council of Social Security Management Associations.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ENERGY ASSISTANCE DIRECTORS’ 

ASSOCIATION

The members of the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association (NEADA), 

representing the State directors of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) would first like to take this opportunity to thank the members of 

the Subcommittee for considering our funding request for fiscal year 2015 and advance funding for fiscal year 2016. 

We would also like to thank the members of the Committee for increasing the 

funding for fiscal year 2014. These additional funds allowed States to increase 

grants for low income families to help them pay a portion of their higher home heating costs during this year’s bitterly cold winter. The additional funds will also allow 

States to maintain at least a minimal level of support for cooling programs this 

summer. 

Purchasing Power of LIHEAP Continues to Decline 

The increase in program funding in fiscal year 2014, however, was not sufficient 

to stem the continuing decline in the purchasing power of the average LIHEAP 

grant. Since fiscal year 2010, the purchasing power of the average grant has declined from 60.2 percent of the cost of home heating to 44.7 percent. In other words, 

in fiscal year 2010, the average grant could purchase approximately 72 days of home 

heating, whereas in fiscal year 2014, the average grant could only purchase 54 days 

of home heating. 

The program’s purchasing power is declining for two reasons: 

—First and foremost is the decline in the program’s appropriation. Between fiscal 

year 2010 and fiscal year 2013, LIHEAP’s annual appropriation declined from 

$5.1 billion to $3.25 billion. As a result, during this time States were forced to 

reduce the average grant from $520 to $398 and the number of households 

served from 8.1 million to 6.7 million. The increase in funding in fiscal year 

2014 to $3.4 billion allowed States to increase the average grant by $21 to $419, 

still almost $100 less than the average grant awarded in fiscal year 2010. 
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—Second, average home heating costs increased from $796 during the winter heating season of 2011—12 (fiscal year 2012) to $936 during this recent winter 

heating season. During this period, the average increase for those using natural 

gas went from $567 to $663; for electricity, from $840 to $934; for heating oil, 

from $1,735 to $2,243; and for propane, from $1,563 to $2,269. 

LIHEAP is the primary source of heating and cooling assistance for some of the 

poorest families in the United States. In fiscal year 2014, the number of households 

receiving heating assistance is expected to remain at about 6.7 million households, 

or about 19 percent of those eligible to receive assistance. In addition, the program 

is expected to reach about 600,000 households for cooling assistance, the same level 

that received assistance in fiscal year 2013. 

President’s Budget Would Severely Reduce the Number of Households Served 

The President’s fiscal year 2015 Budget request for LIHEAP would result in even 

greater cuts to the program’s effectiveness by reducing the amount available for program grants to $2.7 billion. In order to maintain the program’s purchasing power, 

States would have no choice but to reduce the number of households served from 

about 6.7 million to 5.3 million, or about 15 percent of eligible households. 

Fiscal year 2015 Funding Request and fiscal year 2016 Advanced Funding Request 

For fiscal year 2015 we are requesting that the Subcommittee restore funding for LIHEAP to the authorized level of $5.1 billion. The additional funds would allow 

States to increase the number of households served to 8.1 million, raise the average 

grant to at least 50 percent of the cost of home heating, and expand the number 

of households served by home cooling. 

In addition, we are concerned that States will be hampered in their ability to administer their programs efficiently due to the lack of advanced funding. The lack 

of a final program appropriation prior to the beginning of the fiscal year creates significant administrative problems for States in setting their program eligibility 

guidelines. To address this concern, we are requesting advance appropriations of 

$5.1 billion for fiscal year 2016. 

What Is the Impact of Declining Federal Funds? 

Surveys of families receiving Federal assistance have been consistent over the 

years. Poor families struggle to pay their home energy bills. When they fall behind, 

they risk shut-off of energy services or they are not able to afford the purchase of 

delivered fuels. In fiscal year 2011, NEADA conducted a survey of approximately 

1,800 households that received LIHEAP benefits. The results show that LIHEAP 

households are among the most vulnerable in the country: 

—40 percent had someone age 60 or older. 

—72 percent had a family member with a serious medical condition. 

—26 percent used medical equipment that requires electricity. 

—37 percent went without medical or dental care. 

—34 percent did not fill a prescription or took less than their full dose of prescribed medication. 

—19 percent became sick because the home was too cold. 

—85 percent of people with a medical condition were seniors. 

Many LIHEAP recipients were unable to pay their energy bills: 

—49 percent skipped paying or paid less than their entire home energy bill. 

—37 percent received a notice or threat to disconnect or discontinue their electricity or home heating fuel. 

—11 percent had their electric or natural gas service shut off in the past year due 

to nonpayment. 

—24 percent were unable to use their main source of heat in the past year because their fuel was shut off, they could not pay for fuel delivery, or their heating system was broken and they could not afford to fix it. 

—17 percent were unable to use their air conditioner in the past year because 

their electricity was shut off or their air conditioner was broken and they could 

not afford to fix it. 

LIHEAP’s impact in many cases goes beyond providing bill payment assistance by 

playing a crucial role in maintaining family stability. It enables elderly citizens to 

live independently and ensures that young children have safe, warm homes to live 

in. Although the circumstances that lead each client to seek LIHEAP assistance are 

different, LIHEAP links these stories by enabling people to cope with difficult circumstances with dignity. 

The Need for LIHEAP 

Households reported enormous challenges despite the fact that they received 

LIHEAP assistance. However, they reported that LIHEAP was extremely important. 
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About 64 percent reported that they would have kept their home at unsafe or 

unhealthy temperatures and/or had their electricity or home heating fuel discontinued if it had not been for LIHEAP. Almost 98 percent said that LIHEAP was 

very or somewhat important in helping them to meet their needs. In addition, 53 

percent of those who did not have their electricity or home heating fuel discontinued 

said that they would have if it had not been for LIHEAP. 

The members of NEADA recognize the difficult budget decisions that you face as 

you consider funding levels for LIHEAP for fiscal year 2015 and advance funding 

for fiscal year 2016. We appreciate your interest and continued support for LIHEAP. 

Please feel free to call upon us if we can provide you with additional information. 

[This statement was submitted by Mark Wolfe, Executive Director, National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL FAMILY PLANNING & REPRODUCTIVE

HEALTH ASSOCIATION

Summary: Requesting $337 million in funding for fiscal year 2015 for the national 

family planning program (Title X of the Public Health Service Act). 

My name is Clare Coleman; I’m the President & CEO of the National Family 

Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA), a membership organization 

representing the Nation’s safety-net family planning providers—nurse practitioners, 

nurses, physicians, administrators and other key healthcare professionals. Many of 

NFPRHA’s members receive Federal funding from Medicaid and through Title X of 

the Federal Public Health Service Act, the only federally funded, dedicated, family 

planning program for the low income and uninsured. These critical components of 

the Nation’s public health safety net are essential resources for those providing access to high-quality services in communities across the country. As the Committees 

work on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill, NFPRHA respectfully requests that 

you make a significant investment in Title X by including $337 million to restore 

the capacity of the program to serve those in need. 

NFPRHA was disappointed to see the president’s fiscal year 2015 proposal only 

included $286.5 million for Title X. As more individuals gain access to healthcare 

coverage through the Affordable Care Act, the publicly funded family planning network will continue to play an essential role in our Nation’s service delivery framework, setting the standard for and providing high-quality care to all patients—the 

insured, uninsured, under-insured as well as patients seeking confidential services. 

If the Massachusetts health reform experience were to prove representative of what 

could be expected by nationwide health reform, there will be a strong increase in 

demand for services within the already-strained safety net. At present, six in ten 

women describe family planning centers as their usual source of medical care. According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as 

health reform in Massachusetts expanded coverage for most people living in the 

State, Title X family planning health centers continued to have high volumes of patients, both insured and uninsured, and remained providers of choice for many. 

The failure of States to expand Medicaid eligibility for all adults up to 138 percent 

of the Federal poverty level (an income of $16,105 a year for an individual in 

2014)—along with new barriers to coverage being sought by some expansion States, 

such as premiums and other cost-sharing requirements—compounds the demand 

being placed on the Title X safety net. Currently, 25 States have not expanded their 

Medicaid eligibility under the ACA. Twenty-one of these States have Medicaid eligibility equal to or less than 75 percent of FPL (an income of $8,753 a year); 14 have 

eligibility at or below 50 percent (an income of $5,835 a year). Five States have eligibility set at less than 25 percent of FPL—that means individuals making more 

than $2,918 are too ‘‘rich’’ for Medicaid. 

Similar to other publicly funded health programs, Title X has unfortunately suffered budget cuts despite rising patient need. Between fiscal year 2010-fiscal year 

2013, the Title X family planning program was cut $39.2 million (–12.3 percent). As 

a result, the total number of Title X users shrunk from 5.22 million users to 4.76 

million during this time period, with no indication that patients went elsewhere for 

care. Congress made incremental progress in fiscal year 2014, funding Title X at 

$286.5 million, a restoration of $8.2 million over the fiscal year 2013 post-sequester 

level. As appropriators grapple with how best to distribute limited Federal resources, NFPRHA encourages the Committees continue to prioritize investments in 

programs, including Title X, that are proven to save critical taxpayer dollars. Every 

$1 invested in publicly funded family planning services saves $5.68 in Medicaid 

costs associated with unplanned births. Additionally, services provided in Title X- 
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supported centers alone yielded $5.3 billion of the $10.5 billion in total savings for 

publicly funded family planning in 2010. 

Lastly, Title X supports critical infrastructure and technology necessary for modern service delivery that are not reimbursable under Medicaid and commercial insurance. Resources for electronic health record implementation for safety-net providers—just as for others in the safety net—are necessary to help achieve the ACA 

goal of having a nationwide health information technology infrastructure and more 

coordinated models of care. Increased Title X funding is essential to help address 

the gap caused by the oversight in Federal planning that led to most family planning health providers’ ineligibility for the electronic health records (EHR) incentives 

available under the HITECH Act. 

For these reasons, NFPRHA urges the Committees to make a significant investment in the Nation’s safety-net family planning health services and requests funding for Title X at $337 million in fiscal year 2015. 

[This statement was submitted by Clare Coleman, President & CEO, National 

Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL HEAD START ASSOCIATION

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and Members of the Subcommittee, 

thank you for allowing the National Head Start Association (NHSA) to submit testimony on behalf of funding for Head Start and Early Head Start in fiscal year 2015 

. For almost 50 years, Head Start centers have been creating opportunities for atrisk children and families to achieve success in life by providing critical early education, health, nutrition, parent engagement and family support services. NHSA respectfully urges the Subcommittee to continue its enduring bipartisan support by 

allocating $8,868,389,000 for Head Start and Early Head Start in fiscal year 2015, 

in line with the President’s Budget. 

Head Start and Early Head Start directors remain appreciative of your leadership 

in ensuring that the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus Appropriations legislation not only 

restored the damaging cuts from sequestration, but also prioritized high quality by 

including additional funds to retain qualified staff and cope with the increased costs 

of program operation. We also sincerely appreciate the new investment in one of our 

most underserved populations—low-income infants and toddlers. 

Within the total amount of funding for fiscal year 2015, we urge the Subcommittee to continue and build on these investments. In particular, we propose a 

$150 million increase to support workforce quality improvements and to help offset 

the continued rise in energy, transportation, and other fixed costs related to operating a Head Start program. It is well known that one of the hallmarks of excellence 

in any early learning program is the caliber of its teachers. Head Start teachers are 

required to possess Bachelor’s degrees in early learning or related fields, which enables the program to have one of the best-trained workforces in the country. However, the average salary for these degreed teachers is $30,086—lower than what 

many schools pay teachers, and much lower than salaries for many other jobs with 

comparable education requirements. 

Examples of programs losing their best staff to higher paying schools or other providers are plentiful across the country. In New York, one Head Start social/emotional education mentor-coach reported seeing several ‘‘gifted teachers, assistants 

and aides leave our classrooms after short stays due to the pressure to provide for 

their own families.’’ Many of the staff who choose to stay with Head Start struggle 

to make ends meet—such as the Oregon teachers who have depended on a local food 

bank to help feed their own children. Others depend on other income supports. Focusing increased investment toward workforce quality improvements will help enable programs to hold on to dedicated teachers, and provide a solid foundation for 

the good of our students and families. 

Supporting a High-Quality Birth-to-Five Pipeline: 

NHSA also urges the Subcommittee to support the continued development of a 

birth-to-five pipeline of services through expanded access to Early Head Start, which 

today is only able to serve a scant 4 percent of eligible infants and toddlers. Continued early brain research tells us that with the achievement gap present as early 

as 18 months, these first 2 years of life represent a critical window in development. 

Early Head Start centers are among the highest quality environments for children 

of this age. We propose that the Subcommittee continue to fund the new Early Head 

Start-Child Care Partnerships at $500 million. These funds should, as in fiscal year 

2014, support the straight expansion of Early Head Start as well as partnerships 
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with Child Care providers, ensuring programs designed by and solely based on the 

needs of individual communities. 

We are aware of many underserved areas with few options for partnerships— 

these communities should be given as much flexibility as possible to increase access 

to high-quality care. For example, Audubon Area Community Services, Inc. in Kentucky serves a 16 county area. However, even though there are an estimated 17,911 

children in their service area that are eligible for Early Head Start, they are only 

funded to serve 301 Early Head Start slots. In two of those 16 counties, there are 

600 eligible children but no licensed child care facilities with which possibly to partner. In yet a third county, there is licensed child care but none of it for infants and 

toddlers. With flexibility to invest in expansion, they could find a way to serve those 

areas. Further, NHSA also urges the Subcommittee to allocate $100 million to fund the 

expansion of the Birth-to-Five pilot programs that the Office of Head Start (OHS) 

began last year in Detroit, Baltimore, Jersey City, Washington, DC, and Mississippi’s Sunflower County as part of the first Designation Renewal System (DRS) 

recompetition. The grants are meant to encourage applicants to develop comprehensive, flexible, seamless Birth-to-Five programs which incorporate both Head Start 

and Early Head Start funding. We hope the Subcommittee will recognize the value 

of this approach and support expansion of these models outside of DRS. In particular, we suggest that the Administration utilize a portion of the funds to create 

a process that enables current grantees that hold both types of grants to streamline 

the administrative burden and combine these two grants into one. 

These Birth-to-Five expansion funds should also be used to assist Head Start 

grantees to add Early Head Start slots and convert existing Head Start slots for 3– 

4 year olds to Early Head Start slots; both actions support the goal of providing an 

Early Head Start slot to complement each Head Start slot. Across the country, as 

States and localities both expand and contract services for infants, toddlers, and 

preschoolers, Head Start programs have the necessary skills to adapt their services 

to fit the changing needs of their community. But as resources shift, additional 

funding to help transition to new or different types of slots would be a welcome support. 

For instance, many States have increased their investment in serving 4-year-olds 

in a variety of settings through their mixed delivery system, including through organizations who receive Head Start grants. Head Start grantees are able to tap into 

this funding stream to support and expand their current services to 4-year-olds— 

however many of those communities are now under-investing in low-income infants 

and toddlers. If that same Head Start grantee were able to apply for funds to help 

transition some of its Head Start slots to Early Head Start slots, the community 

would then be served by a more comprehensive birth-to-five pipeline—meeting a significant need for the working parents of very young children. 

Ongoing Quality Improvements: 

Robust funding for Head Start and Early Head Start will ensure that key quality 

improvement initiatives are able to continue at the Office of Head Start. In particular, we are keen for the Office of Head Start to finalize an update to our rigorous 

performance standards as mandated in the 2007 Head Start Reauthorization Act. 

Serious and meaningful efforts are underway to ensure that the standards are modernized to reflect the needs of today’s children, families, teachers, staff, and communities—while allowing for innovation and local adaptability. These standards are the 

heart of Head Start’s model, and critical to future success. 

Further, we are hopeful that the Office of Head Start is able to continue its improvements to the Head Start Monitoring System—the oversight mechanism that 

ensures Head Start and Early Head Start grantees are meeting all of their high 

standards. We are pleased that the Office has instituted new initiatives that aim 

to work with programs to prevent issues before they occur. We are also appreciative 

that they are enabling iterative feedback and data collection to better target assistance and intervention where programs require it most. These are welcome changes, 

and we are hopeful that the Office of Head Start is afforded the resources to continue these improvements. 

One of the best-known provisions of the 2007 Head Start Act requires Head Start 

grantees designated as low-performing to compete for the continuation of their 

grant. Different from the Head Start grant termination process, this additional accountability measure, the Designation Renewal System (DRS) which is now in its 

third cycle, has been an enormous undertaking for the Office of Head Start and requires adequate resources to fully staff and execute. 

We support the Administration’s request for $25 million to assist with grantee 

transition costs in the event that a grant turns over, though NHSA remains con-
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1Ludwig, J. and Phillips, D. (2007). The Benefits and Costs of Head Start. Social Policy Report. 21 (3: 4); Deming, D. (2009). Early childhood intervention and life-cycle skill development: 

Evidence from Head Start. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 1(3): 111–134; 

Meier, J. (2003, June 20). Interim Report. Kindergarten Readiness Study: Head Start Success. 

Preschool Service Department, San Bernardino County, California; Deming, D. (2009, July). 

Early childhood intervention and life-cycle skill development: Evidence from Head Start, p. 112. 2Meier, J. (2003, June 20). Kindergarten Readiness Study: Head Start Success. Interim Report. Preschool Services Department of San Bernardino County. 3Frisvold, D. (2006, February). Head Start participation and childhood obesity. Vanderbilt 

University Working Paper No. 06–WG01; Currie, J. and Thomas, D. (1995, June). Does Head 

Start Make a Difference? The American Economic Review, 85 (3): 360; Anderson, K.H., Foster, 

J.E., & Frisvold, D.E. (2009). Investing in health: The long-term impact of Head Start on smoking. Economic Inquiry, 48 (3), 587–602. 4 Reuters. (2009, March). Cost of locking up Americans too high: Pew study; Garces, E., Thomas, D. and Currie, J. (2002, September). Longer-term effects of Head Start. American Economic 

Review, 92 (4): 999–1012. 5 Barnett, W. (2002, September 13). The Battle Over Head Start: What the Research Shows.; 

Garces, E., Thomas, D. and Currie, J. (2002, September). Longer-Term Effects of Head Start. 

American Economic Review, 92 (4): 999–1012. 6 NHSA Public Policy and Research Department analysis of data from a Montgomery County 

Public Schools evaluation. See Zhao, H. & Modarresi, S. (2010, April). Evaluating lasting effects 

of full-day prekindergarten program on school readiness, academic performance, and special 

education services. Office of Shared Accountability, Montgomery County Public Schools. 

cerned that the Office of Head Start’s timetable for executing these competitions is 

unintentionally poorly timed. Currently, Head Start grantees are notified in January of their recompetition status, but the results of those competitions are not determined until late in the summer. With a school year beginning shortly thereafter, 

any new grantee taking over for a low-quality incumbent faces a steep climb to recruit teachers, enroll children, and find any necessary facilities and other resources 

to start up their program. This is an avoidable strain on communities. 

Considering the opportunity that DRS provides to improve program quality, we 

must ensure that the process is done right. We hope the Subcommittee considers 

additional assistance to the Office of Head Start to ensure that these competitions 

are run effectively and efficiently, and that the process is accurately capturing programs that are of low quality. 

Head Start is a High Yield Investment: 

To take a step back, NHSA believes that the budget caps now in place limit the 

opportunities to make effective investments in our future. President Obama proposed an additional $800 million to support Head Start and Early Head Start expansion. We support the President’s focus on the need to reach the large population 

of underserved, at-risk infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, but understand that appropriations that exceed the fiscal year 15 budget caps are unlikely. 

Certainly, we respect the idea that our debt cannot be left for the very children 

we serve. We do hope that deficit reduction can still be achieved in a way that does 

not squander our highest-yield investments. Studies show that for every one dollar 

invested in a Head Start child, society earns at least $7 back through increased 

earnings, employment, and family stability; 1 as well as decreased welfare dependency,2 healthcare costs,3 crime costs,4 grade retention,5 and special education.6

These are the very results taxpayers demand. 

Again, the Head Start community understands the pressure the Subcommittee 

faces and is grateful for the commitment shown by Congress and the President to 

keep early learning, and Head Start in particular, as a priority. We urge the Subcommittee to build on the investments made in Head Start and Early Head Start, 

to increase access, to improve accountability, and ensure the prosperity of our next 

generation. Thank you for your time and consideration. 

[This statement was submitted by Yasmina Vinci, Executive Director, National 

Head Start Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ASSOCIATION

The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) is a national American 

Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) nonprofit organization. NICWA has over 35 years of 

experience providing leadership in the development of public policy that supports 

tribal self-determination in child welfare and children’s mental health systems. 

Child Welfare Overview 

Tribes have an important relationship with their children and families: they are 

experts in the needs of AI/AN children, best suited to effectively serve those needs, 
579 

and most able to improve child welfare outcomes for these children (NICWA & Pew 

Charitable Trust, 2007). In addition, statistics show that AI/AN children face elevated rates of child abuse and neglect (Dept. of Health and Human Services, 2012). 

The key to successful tribal child welfare is a budget that avoids unnecessary restraint on tribal decisionmaking and accounts for the elevated need. For this reason 

we make the following recommendations: 

—For programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services, 

Administration for Children and Families: Promoting Safe and Stable Families 

($75 million discretionary; $345 million mandatory), Child Welfare Services 

($280 million), Child Abuse Discretionary Activities ($35 million), Community 

Based Child Abuse Prevention Program ($60 million), and Demonstration to Address Over-Utilization of Psychotropic Medications for Children in Foster Care 

($250 million). 

Children’s Mental Health Overview 

To understand the mental health needs of AI/AN children, policymakers must consider the legacy of trauma that has been visited upon this population and left them 

with unresolved historical trauma (Yellow Horse Brave Heart and DeBruyn, 1998). 

Inadequate funding, uncoordinated health systems, cultural incompetence, and a 

shortage of mental health professionals are barriers to the development of successful 

mental health systems of care in AI/AN communities (Novins & Bess, 2011). Key 

to children’s mental health programs in tribal communities is a budget that supports and strengthens a system of tribally driven children’s mental health prevention, intervention, and treatment. For this reason we make the following recommendations: 

—For programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services, 

Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration: Programs of Regional 

and National Significance, Children and Family Programs ($6.5 million), Children’s Mental Health Services Program, Children’s Mental Health Initiative 

($117 million), Tribal Behavioral Health Grants ($40 million), GLS Youth Suicide Prevention Program ($35.5 million), and AI/AN Suicide Prevention ($2.94 

million). 

CHILD WELFARE PRIORITY RECOMMENDATIONS

Child Welfare Services Program recommendation: Restore funding to at least $280 

million, to increase funding for tribal programs while still providing for an increase 

in state funding. 

This program provides funds to promote program flexibility and fill gaps in child 

welfare programming. Tribes receive an allocation based on a population-based formula identified within the regulations. This tribal allocation is then deducted from 

the state’s allocation. Studies show that culturally competent programs, resources, 

and case management result in better outcomes for AI/AN children and families involved in the child welfare system (Red Horse, Martinez & Day, 2001). The funding 

of the Child Welfare Service Program is flexible enough for tribes to tailor their 

child welfare services to fit their communities’ needs and culture. 

Without adequate funding AI/AN children and families in tribal communities cannot receive the care they need and remain at risk of further harm and trauma. Of 

the 566 federally recognized tribes 180 depend on this funding. The median tribal 

grant is about $13,300 an insufficient amount to support all the gaps in tribal services this program can fill. Because of the way the formula for tribal grants has been 

created, it is essential to increase the entire appropriation of this program to $280 

million to increase tribal amounts. 

Promoting Safe and Stable Families recommendation: Increase discretionary funding to $75 million to allow more tribes, who are currently ineligible, access to these 

funds. As recommended by the President’s Budget fully fund the $345 million in 

mandatory funding cut due to sequestration. 

PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES (SOCIAL SECURITY ACT TITLE IV-B, SUBPART 2) 

Fiscal year 

2012 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2013 * 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2014 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2015 

president 

budget 

Fiscal year 

2015 

recommended 

Authorization 

Mandatory ....................... $345,000,000 $327,405,500 $320,160,000 $345,000,000 $345,000,000 $345,000,000 

Discretionary ................... 63,065,000 59,671,500 59,765,000 59,765,000 75,000,000 200,000,000 

Total ................................ 408,065,000 387,077,000 379,925,000 404,765,000 420,000,000 545,000,000 

Tribal Mandatory ............ 9,149,000 8,459,200 9,604,800 10,350,000 14,100,000 3% set aside 
580 

PROMOTING SAFE AND STABLE FAMILIES (SOCIAL SECURITY ACT TITLE IV-B, SUBPART 2)— 

Continued 

Fiscal year 

2012 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2013 * 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2014 

enacted 

Fiscal year 

2015 

president 

budget 

Fiscal year 

2015 

recommended 

Authorization 

Tribal Discretionary ........ 1,892,000 1,790,000 1,792,950 1,792,950 2,250,000 of total 

Tribal Total ..................... 11,041,000 ∼10,249,200 ∼11,397,750 12,142,950 16,350,000 appropriation 

* Reflects sequestration effects. 

This program is designed to provide funds to operate a coordinated program of 

family preservation, family support, reunification, and adoption services. Promoting 

Safe and Stable Families is authorized with both a mandatory capped entitlement 

($345 million) as well as a discretionary appropriation ($200 million). Tribes are eligible for funds based on a 3 percent set-aside of the total appropriation. All tribes 

whose plan receives approval are eligible for a portion equal to that tribe’s relative 

share of children compared with all tribal entities with approved plans. Tribes who 

would qualify for less than 10 thousand dollars under the formula are not eligible 

to receive funding. 

Tribal child welfare programs work tirelessly to strengthen families and provide 

services that keep children safely in their homes. This program is an integral part 

of these efforts. It supports parenting classes, home-visiting services, respite care for 

caregivers of children, and other services that safely preserve families. 

One hundred and thirty tribes and tribal consortia depend on this funding. Yet 

because of the funding levels, many tribes are ineligible for these formula grant dollars as their portion of the tribal set-aside is less than $10,000. Increasing this program’s discretionary funding to $75 million and fully funding the $345 million in 

mandatory funding would help dozens of new tribes access this funding and hundreds of families obtain tribal child welfare services. 

CHILD WELFARE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS

Child Abuse Discretionary Activities, including Innovative Evidence-Based Com- munity Prevention Programs recommendation: Increase appropriations to $35 million to account for tribes’ recent eligibility for these funds while holding state and 

other grantees harmless. 

The Community Based Child Abuse Prevention Program recommendation: Increase funding to $60 million, so that more tribes can have access to these scarce 

child abuse prevention dollars. 

Demonstration to Address Over-Utilization of Psychotropic Medications for Children in Foster Care (Presidents fiscal year 2015 Initiative) recommendation: Fund 

this initiative at the proposed $250 million and ensure a tribal set-aside of 3 percent 

so that tribal communities can also participate in this important initiative to ensure 

children receive holistic mental healthcare. 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES RECOMMENDATIONS SUBSTANCE ABUSE

AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH PRIORITY RECOMMENDATIONS

Programs of Regional and National Significance: Children and Family Programs 

(Circles of Care) recommendation: Fund Circles of Care Program at $6.5 million as 

recommended by the President to ensure current communities can continue their 

important work and new tribal communities can have access to this program. 

The Children and Family Programs line item represents funds allocated to the 

Circles of Care Program. The Circles of Care program is the cornerstone of children’s mental health programming in tribal communities. The Circles of Care program is the only SAMHSA grant program that is focused specifically on AI/AN children’s mental health needs. It is also the only SAHMSA program that allows tribes 

and tribal organizations to apply without competing for funding with other governmental entities such as States, counties, or cities. There are currently seven communities receiving Circles of Care funding. 

The American Psychiatric Association has found that AI/AN children and youth 

face a ′′disproportionate burden′′ of mental health issues while simultaneously facing 

more barriers to quality mental healthcare (2010). Circles of Care provides communities with funding to plan and build culturally competent services and design integrated supports that meet the specific needs of their youth with behavioral health 

challenges. It is essential to the well-being of AI/AN children. It is imperative that 
581 

funding that matches the President’s Budget request of $6.5 million be reserved in 

this line item for the Circles of Care program. This will ensure that more tribal communities can access this grant and improve their children’s mental healthcare systems. 

Children’s Mental Health Services Program: Children’s Mental Health Initiative 

(Systems of Care) recommendation: Maintain funding at $117 million to continue 

support of Tribal children’s mental health systems change efforts. 

The various Systems of Care grants funded under this line item support a community’s efforts to plan and implement strategic approaches to mental health services 

and supports that are family driven; youth guided; strength based; culturally and 

linguistically competent; and meet the intellectual, emotional, cultural, and social 

needs of children and youth. 

The American Psychiatric Association (APA; 2010) has recognized family, culture, 

and traditional health practices as important protective factors for AI/ANs struggling with mental health challenges. The Systems of Care program, which foster 

those protective factors described by the APA, has been both well-received and particularly effective in tribal communities. Currently, 17 tribal communities are funded under the Children’s Mental Health Initiative line item. 

The well-being of AI/AN children is dependent on the ability of more tribes to access these funds and create real systems change. Thus, funding must be maintained 

at $117 million as recommended by the President’s Budget. This will ensure the current Systems of Care grantees can continue, and a new robust cohort of grantees 

can begin this important work. 

CHILDREN’S MENTAL HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS

Tribal Behavioral Health Grants recommendation: Implement President’s Budget 

fiscal year 2013 recommendation to fund this new initiative at $40 million so that 

additional tribal communities can receive resources for children’s mental health and 

substance abuse. 

The GLS State/Tribal Youth Suicide Prevention and Early Intervention Program 

recommendation: Keep funding at the fiscal year 2014 appropriated level of $35.5 

million to ensure that current grantees can complete their projects, and a similar 

sized cohort of annual grantees will have access to this program. 

AI/AN Suicide Prevention program recommendation: Fund at the President’s 

Budget recommended amount of $2.94 million, to ensure that the epidemic of AI/ 

AN suicide receives the attention it warrants. 

If you have any questions about this testimony please contact NICWA Government Affairs Associate Addie Smith at addie@nicwa.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL INDIAN EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

The National Indian Education Association (NIEA) was incorporated in 1970 and 

is the most representative Native education organization in the United States. 

NIEA’s mission is to advance comprehensive and equal educational opportunities for 

American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian students. NIEA supports 

tribal sovereignty over education as well as strengthening traditional Native cultures and values that enable Native learners to become contributing members of 

their communities. As the most inclusive Native education organization, NIEA 

membership consists of tribal leaders, educators, students, researchers, and education stakeholders from all 50 States. From communities in Hawaii, to tribal reservations across the continental U.S., to villages in Alaska and urban communities 

in major cities, NIEA has the most reach of any Native education organization in 

the country. 

Tribes and Native communities have a tremendous stake in an improved education system, because an improved system equates to better services for Native 

people and students. As tribes work to increase their footprint in education, there 

must be support for that increased participation. The Federal Government must uphold its trust relationship with tribes. Established through treaties, Federal law, 

and U.S. Supreme Court decisions, this relationship includes a fiduciary obligation 

to provide parity in access and equal resources to all American Indian and Alaska 

Native students, regardless of where they attend school. National fiscal and policy 

concerns should not be addressed by decreasing funds and investment to Native students or the programs that serve them. Rather, Native education, including those 

programs and services under the Departments of Education (ED) and Health and 

Human Services (HHS), is one of the most effective and efficient investments the 

Federal Government can make. 
582 

As tribes and Native communities work with Congress for parity in access to increase their role and responsibility in administering education, Federal support for 

tribal governments and Native education institutions has continued to shrink as a 

percentage of the Federal budget. Historical funding trends illustrate that the Federal Government is abandoning its trust responsibility by decreasing Federal funds 

to Native-serving programs by more than half in the last 30 years. Sequestration 

only exacerbated those shortfalls. 

While fiscal year 2014 funding increases over sequestration levels were welcome, 

several Native-serving programs remained flat with 2013 sequestration levels, such 

as Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title VII funding. These levels continue to be insufficient for effectively and equally serving Native students. Partly 

as a result of this insufficient funding, Native students continue to lag behind their 

non-Native peers. Graduation rates often hover around 50 percent in many States, 

which can lead to increased substance abuse, criminal acts, and extended periods 

of unemployment. If the 25,000 Native students who dropped out of the Class of 

2010 had graduated, an additional $295 million would likely have been added to 

total annual earnings, supplementing local and regional economies. 

To provide tribes and Native communities the educational institutions that supplement economic growth, the Federal Government should fund Native education 

programs at the levels requested below as they detail the minimum appropriations 

needed to maintain a system that is already struggling and underfunded. The following funding requests illustrate continuing need for Native programs but do not 

comprise the full list of budget requests, which can be found in the fiscal year 2015 

NIEA Budget Document. Further, NIEA supports the budget requests of the National Congress of American Indians and American Indian Higher Education Consortium. 

State-Tribal Education Partnership (STEP) Program (ED) 

—Provide $5 million. An increase of $3 million. 

Congress appropriated roughly $2 million dollars for the STEP program to five 

participating tribes under the Tribal Education Department appropriations. In order 

for this program to successfully achieve the original intent of the appropriation, it 

must receive its own line and authorization of appropriations in fiscal year 2015. 

Collaboration between tribal education agencies and State education agencies is crucial to developing the tribal capacity to assume the roles, responsibilities, and accountability of tribal education departments that increase self-governance in Native 

education. 

Impact Aid (ED) 

—Provide $2 billion for Impact Aid, under ESEA Title VIII. An increase of $711 

million. 

Impact Aid provides direct payments to public school districts as reimbursement 

for the loss of traditional property taxes due to a Federal presence or activity, including the existence of an Indian reservation. With nearly 93 percent of Native students enrolled in public schools, Native students were disproportionately affected by 

the devastating reductions implemented under sequestration. Additional funds are 

required to cover previous Impact Aid shortfalls. 

Title VII (Indian Education Formula Grants in ED) 

—Provide $198 million under ESEA Title VII, Part A. An increase of $74 million. 

This grant funding is designed to supplement the regular school program and assist Native students so they have the opportunity to achieve the same educational 

standards as their non-Native peers. Title VII funding, which was maintained at 

2013 sequestration levels in fiscal year 2014, only reaches 500,000 Native students 

leaving over 100,000 without supplementary academic and cultural programs in 

their schools. As Native students continually lag behind their non-Native peers in 

educational achievement, increased funding is necessary to address this substantial 

gap. 

Native Hawaiian Education Program (ED) 

—Provide $35 million under ESEA Title VII, Part B. An increase of $3 million. 

The Native Hawaiian Education program empowers innovative culturally-appropriate programs to enhance the quality of education for Native Hawaiians. When 

establishing the Native Hawaiian Education Program, Congress acknowledged the 

trust relationship between the Native Hawaiian people and the United States. 

These programs strengthen Native Hawaiian culture and improve educational attainment, both of which are correlated with positive economic outcomes. 
583 

Alaska Native Education Equity Assistance Program (ED) 

—Provide $35 million under ESEA Title VII, Part C. An increase of $5 million. 

This assistance program funds the development of curricula and education programs that address the unique educational needs of Alaska Native students as well 

as the development and operation of student enrichment programs in science and 

mathematics. Other eligible activities include professional development for educators, activities carried out through Even Start and Head Start programs, family 

literacy services, and dropout prevention programs. 

Vocational Rehabilitation Services Projects for American Indians with Disabilities 

(ED) 

—Provide $67 million to Vocational Rehabilitation Services Projects. Create a line 

item of $5 million for providing outreach to tribal recipients. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 30 

percent of Native adults have a disability—the highest rate of any other population 

in the Nation. Of those, 51 percent reported having fair or poor health. A number 

of issues contribute to this troubling reality, including high incidences of diabetes, 

heart disease, and preventable accidents. As a result, tribes have an extraordinary 

need to support their disabled citizens in improving their health, attaining experiential learning courses, and becoming self-sufficient. Tribes have limited access to 

funding for vocational rehabilitation and job training as compared to States and $67 

million would begin to put tribes on par to support their disabled citizens. 

Native Languages Preservation (Esther Martinez Program Grants in HHS) 

—Provide $12 million for Native language preservation with $5 million designated 

to fund the Esther Martinez Native Language Programs. An increase of $3 million. 

Native language grant programs are essential to revitalizing Native languages 

and cultures, many of which are at risk of disappearing in the upcoming decades. 

In addition to protecting Native languages, these immersion programs promote 

higher academic success for participating students in comparison to their Native 

peers who do not participate. The Federal budget should include $12 million for Native language preservation activities which would include $5 million designated to 

support Esther Martinez Native Language Programs’ immersion initiatives. 

Thank you for your consideration of this testimony. For more information or to 

attain NIEA’s complete budget document with all fiscal year 2015 requests for the 

Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, please contact 

Ahniwake Rose, NIEA Executive Director, at arose@niea.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL KIDNEY FOUNDATION

The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is pleased to submit testimony for the 

written record in support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Chronic 

Kidney Disease Program, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease, and the Health Resources and Services Administration Division of 

Transplantation. NKF is America’s largest and oldest health organization dedicated 

to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease for hundreds of thousands of healthcare professionals, millions of patients and their families, and tens 

of millions of people at risk. In addition, we have provided universally recognized 

evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for all stages of chronic kidney disease 

(CKD) since 1997 through the NKF Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative 

(NKF KDOQI). 

We respectfully request fiscal year 2015 funding of $2.1 million for the CDC 

Chronic Kidney Disease Program, $2.066 billion for NIDDK, and $24 million for the 

HRSA Division of Transplantation. 

In 2011, almost 616,000 Americans had End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), including more than 430,000 dialysis patients and nearly 186,000 kidney transplant recipients, with members of many minority populations disproportionately affected. 

Complicating the cost and human toll is the fact that it is a disease multiplier, with 

patients very likely to be diagnosed with diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or hypertension (40 percent of ESRD patients had a diagnosis of diabetes and two-thirds 

have diabetes or hypertension). ESRD is the only disease-specific coverage under 

Medicare regardless of age or other disability. In 2011, ESRD was present in 1.4 

percent of Medicare beneficiaries but responsible for more than 7 percent of Medicare expenditures. (1) 

NKF recently announced an initiative to help address awareness of CKD by increasing communication between practitioners and patients. There is a misconcep-
584 

tion that once someone is diagnosed with CKD, there must be a referral to a 

nephrologist. However, there are not enough nephrologists to care for the 15 percent 

of the U.S. population with chronic kidney disease. NKF’s CKD Primary Care Initiative will disseminate CKD guidelines to primary care physicians through education 

programs, symposia and practical implementation tools so they can provide this care 

to the growing numbers of Americans with CKD. Our initiative will help build on 

CDC’s program, outlined below. 

CDC Chronic Kidney Disease Program 

To address the social and economic impact of kidney disease, NKF worked with 

Congress to initiate a Chronic Kidney Disease Program at CDC in fiscal year 2006. 

Prior to this, no national public health program focusing on early detection and 

treatment existed. Cost-effective treatments exist to potentially slow progression of 

kidney disease and prevent its complications, but only if individuals are diagnosed 

before the latter stages of CKD. 

The CDC program is designed to identify members of populations at high risk for 

CKD, develop community-based approaches for improving detection and control, and 

educate health professionals about best practices for early detection and treatment. 

The National Kidney Foundation respectfully urges the Committee to maintain $2.1 

million in line-item funding for the Chronic Kidney Disease Program for fiscal year 

2015. Continued support will benefit kidney patients and Americans who are at risk 

for kidney disease, advance the objectives of Healthy People 2020 and the National 

Strategy for Quality Improvement in Health Care, and fulfill the mandate created 

by Sec. 152 of the Medicare Improvement for Patients and Providers Act. 

It is estimated that CKD affects 26 million adult Americans (2) and 73 million 

more are at risk. Furthermore, a task force of the American Heart Association noted 

that decreased kidney function has consistently been found to be an independent 

risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes and all-cause mortality and 

that the increased risk is present with even mild reduction in kidney function. (3) 

Therefore addressing CKD is a way to achieve one of the priorities in the National 

Strategy for Quality Improvement in Health Care: Promoting the Most Effective 

Prevention and Treatment of the Leading Causes of Mortality, Starting with Cardiovascular Disease. 

CKD is often asymptomatic, especially in the early stages and therefore goes undetected without laboratory testing. Some people remain undiagnosed until they 

have reached CKD Stage 5 and must begin dialysis immediately. However, early 

identification and treatment can slow the progression of kidney disease, delay complications, and prevent or delay kidney failure. Accordingly, Healthy People 2020 

Objective CKD—2 is to ‘‘increase the proportion of persons with chronic kidney disease (CKD) who know they have impaired renal function.’’ 

Screening and early detection provides the opportunity for interventions to foster 

awareness, foster adherence to medications and control risk factors. Additional data 

collection is required to precisely define the incremental benefits of early detection 

on kidney failure, cardiovascular events, hospitalization and mortality. Increasing 

the proportion of persons with CKD who know they are affected requires expanded 

public and professional education programs and screening initiatives targeted at 

populations who are at high risk. As a result of consistent congressional support, 

the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at CDC 

has instituted a series of projects that could assist in attaining the Healthy People 

2020 objective. However, this forward momentum will be stifled and CDC’s investment in CKD to date jeopardized if line-item funding is not continued. 

As noted in CDC’s Preventing Chronic Disease: April 2006, Chronic Kidney Disease meets the criteria to be considered a public health issue: (1) the condition 

places a large burden on society; (2) the burden is distributed unfairly among the 

overall population; (3) evidence exists that preventive strategies that target economic, political, and environmental factors could reduce the burden; and (4) evidence shows such preventive strategies are not yet in place. 

The Chronic Kidney Disease program has consisted of three projects to promote 

kidney health by identifying and controlling risk factors, raising awareness, and 

promoting early diagnosis and improved outcomes and quality of life for those living 

with CKD. These projects include (1) demonstrating approaches for identifying individuals at high risk for CKD through State-based screening; (2) conducting an economic analysis on the economic burden of CKD and the cost-effectiveness of interventions; and (3) establishing a surveillance system for CKD by analyzing and interpreting information to assist in prevention and health promotion efforts for kidney 

disease. The surveillance project includes a CDC website program containing information on risk factors, early diagnosis, and strategies to improve outcomes. 
585 

Undetected Chronic Kidney Disease can lead to costly and debilitating irreversible 

kidney failure. However, cost-effective interventions are available if patients are 

identified in the early stages of CKD. With the continued support of Congress, NKF 

is confident a feasible detection, surveillance and treatment program can be established to slow, and possibly prevent, the progression of kidney disease. 

NIDDK 

NKF joins multiple other kidney patient and professional organizations to request $2.066 billion for NIDDK in fiscal year 2015. Medicare spends $77 billion annually 

to care for patients with kidney disease, including nearly $35 billion for individuals 

with ESRD, yet NIH funding for kidney disease research is only about $600 million 

annually or less than $25 per patient for the 26 million adults with CKD. In March 

2014, NKF hosted a Kidney Patient Summit that included participation from our 

advocates and those of five other kidney patient organizations. Increased Federal 

support for kidney disease research was one of the requests the advocates presented 

in meetings with their congressional delegations. 

We were honored to have NIDDK Director Dr. Griffin Rodgers address the Kidney 

Summit where we learned of exciting opportunities in CKD research. America’s scientists are at the cusp of many potential breakthroughs in improving our understanding of CKD and providing new therapies to delay and treat various kidney diseases. With the unique status of ESRD in the Medicare program, it can be argued 

that breakthroughs in CKD have the potential to provide cost savings to the Federal 

Government like that of no other chronic disease. We urge Congress to continue its 

strong bipartisan support for NIH in fiscal year 2015 and to fund NIDDK at this 

requested level that is widely supported by the kidney community. 

HRSA Organ Transplantation 

NKF also urges the Committee to support the President’s Budget Request of $24 

million for organ donation and transplantation programs run by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Division of Transplantation (DoT). 

This represents an increase of less than $500,000 over the fiscal year 2014 level and 

would restore funding to the fiscal year 2012 level. 

The national organ transplant wait list contains more than 122,000 listings, including 100,000 people waiting for a kidney. Transplantation remains the treatment 

of choice for most patients with kidney failure yet few of them will be given an opportunity to receive a new kidney, especially if they do not have a potential living 

kidney donor. Kidney recipients often have an improved quality of life (and are more 

likely to stay in or return to the work force) and transplantation is tremendously 

cost effective. Medicare spends about $25,000 per year on a kidney recipient after 

the year of transplant, compared to more than $80,000 annually on a dialysis patient (these figures reflect all Medicare expenses and are not limited to kidney related care). 

The HRSA program supports the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) which allocates donor organs to individuals on wait lists. Additional 

activities supported by DoT include initiatives to increase the number of donor organs; a grant program to assist living donors with out-of-pocket expenses that are 

not reimbursed by insurance, a health benefit program, or any other State or Federal program; State donor registry initiatives to enroll potential donors; and, activities to build upon achievements of HRSA’s Breakthrough Collaboratives of a decade 

ago. 

Thank you for your consideration of our requests for fiscal year 2015. 

(1) 2013 U.S. Renal Data System Annual Report. 

(2) Josef Coresh, et al. ‘‘Prevalence of Chronic Kidney Disease in the United 

States,’’JAMA, November 7, 2007. 

(3) Mark J. Sarnak, et al. Kidney Disease as a Risk Factor for the Development 

of Cardiovascular Disease: A Statement from the American Heart Association Councils on Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease, High Blood Pressure Research, Clinical 

Cardiology, and Epidemiology and Prevention. Circulation 2003: 108: 2154–69. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR NURSING

The National League for Nursing (NLN) is the premiere organization dedicated 

to promoting excellence in nursing education to build a strong and diverse nursing 

workforce to advance the Nation’s health. With leaders in nursing education and 

nurse faculty across all types of nursing programs in the United States—doctorate, 

master’s, baccalaureate, associate degree, diploma, and licensed practical—the NLN 

has more than 1,200 nursing school and healthcare agency members, 40,000 individual members, and 24 regional constituent leagues. 
586 

The NLN urges the subcommittee to fund the following HRSA nursing programs: 

—The Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs at $251 million in fiscal year 2015; and 

—The Title III Nurse-Managed Health Clinics at $20 million in fiscal year 2015. 

Nursing Education Is a Jobs Program 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the registered nurse (RN) 

workforce will grow by 19.4 percent from 2012 to 2022, outpacing the 11 percent 

average for most occupations. BLS projects that this growth will result in 1,052,600 

job openings in the economy, representing one of the largest numeric job increases 

for all occupations. BLS calculates the openings from an increase of 526,800 new 

RN jobs due to technological advancements fueling growth in treatments, preventive 

care being emphasized more, expanding demand from new health reform enrollments, and accelerating demand from the two million Baby Boomers aging into 

Medicare every year. A particularly disconcerting element of the probable RN job 

openings is a loss of nursing expertise owing to the replacement need of some 

525,700 jobs vacated by RNs expected to leave the profession and/or retire from the 

labor force by 2022. 

The March 7, 2014, BLS Employment Situation Summary—February 2014 likewise reinforces the strength of the nursing workforce in creating job growth. While 

the Nation’s overall unemployment rate was little changed at 6.7 percent for February 2014, the employment in healthcare increased with the addition of 10,000 jobs 

at ambulatory healthcare services, hospitals, and nursing and residential care facilities, amounting to an unemployment rate of only 4.0 percent in the industry. 

BLS notes that the healthcare sector is a critically important industrial complex 

for the Nation. It is at the center of the economic recovery with the number of jobs 

climbing steadily. Growing even when the recession began in December 2007, 

healthcare jobs are up nationwide. Almost five million workers are in hospital settings, which often are the largest employer in a State. Healthcare has been a stimulus program generating employment and income, and nursing is the predominant 

occupation in the healthcare industry with more than 4.031 million active, licensed 

RNs in the United States in 2014. 

The Nursing Workforce Development Programs provide training for entry-level 

and advanced degree nurses to improve the access to, and quality of, healthcare in 

underserved areas. The Title VIII nursing education programs are fundamental to 

the infrastructure delivering quality, cost-effective healthcare. The NLN applauds 

the subcommittee’s bipartisan efforts to recognize that a strong nursing workforce 

is essential to a health policy that provides high-value care for every dollar invested 

in capacity building for a 21st century nurse workforce. 

The current Federal funding falls short of the healthcare inequities facing our Nation. Absent consistent support, slight boosts to Title VIII will not fulfill the expectation of generating quality health outcomes, nor will episodic increases in funding fill 

the gap generated by a 15-year nurse and nurse faculty shortage felt throughout 

the U.S. health system. 

The Nurse Pipeline and Education Capacity 

Although the recession resulted in some stability in the short-term for the nurse 

workforce, policy makers must not lose sight of the long-term growing demand for 

nurses in their districts and States. The NLN’s findings from its Annual Survey of 

Schools of Nursing—Academic Year 2011–2012 cast a wide net on all types of nursing programs, from diploma through doctoral, to determine rates of application, enrollment, and graduation. This data can be found at http://www.nln.org/ 

researchgrants/slides/index.htm. Key findings include: 

—Demand for spots in nursing education programs historically outstripped supply. In 2012, 43 and 37 percent of master’s and doctoral nursing programs, respectively, rejected qualified applicants. More dramatically, 72 percent of programs offering practical nursing (PN) degrees and 84 percent offering associate’s degrees in [registered] nursing programs (ADN) were forced to turn away 

qualified candidates, as did almost two-thirds (64 percent) of baccalaureate in 

science of [registered] nursing (BSN) programs. The aggregate rate across all 

basic RN programs was 28 percent of qualified applications not accepted in the 

Fall 2012. 

—Expansion of nursing education programs impeded by shortage of faculty. Deans 

and directors of schools providing programs that did not accept all eligible applicants were asked to identify the primary obstacle to expanding their program’s 

capacity. Since 2010, the percentage of those directing ADN and PN programs 

that cited a shortage of clinical sites as the primary impediment to expansion 

has steadily increased. For PN programs in particular, the percentage jumped 
587 

to 51 percent in 2012. By contrast, graduate programs consistently cite a lack 

of faculty as the primary obstacle to expansion. A strong correlation exists between the shortage of nurse faculty and the inability of nursing programs to 

keep pace with the demand for new nurse faculty and new RNs. Increasing the 

productivity of education programs is a high priority in most States, but faculty 

recruitment is a glaring problem. Without faculty to educate our future nurses, 

the shortage cannot be resolved. 

—Age of associate degree students rises. A substantial increase in the percentage 

of ADN students who were over 30 years old occurred, rising in 2012 to 50 percent of the student nursing enrollments. Because ADN students comprise twothirds of all pre-licensure RN enrollees, this uptick in enrollments among older 

students could reignite concerns over an aging nursing workforce and the potential for future labor shortages. 

Equally Pressing Is Lack of Diversity 

Our Nation is enriched by cultural diversity—37 percent of our population identify 

as racial and ethnic minorities. Yet ethnic, cultural, and gender diversity eludes the 

nursing student and nurse educator populations. A survey of nurse educators conducted by the NLN and the Carnegie Foundation’s Preparation for the Professions 

Program found that only 7 percent of nurse educators were minorities compared 

with 16 percent of all U.S. faculty. The lack of faculty diversity limits nursing 

schools’ ability to deliver culturally appropriate health professions education. In addition, the NLN survey for the 2011–2012 academic year reported that: 

—African-American enrollment drops. The percentage of racial-ethnic minority 

students enrolled in pre-licensure RN programs has declined steadily over the 

past 2 years—ultimately dropping from a high of 29 percent in 2009 to 24 percent in 2011 and up to 26 percent in 2012. The majority of that decline stems 

from a steep reduction in the percentage of African-American students enrolled 

in associate degree nursing programs, which dropped by almost 5 percent to 9 

percent. BSN programs saw a small, but not significant drop, in African-American enrollment, down from 13 to 12 percent. Inversely, diploma programs saw 

a sharp rise in African-American enrollments to 30 percent, but because they 

represent just 4 percent of all basic RN programs, the impact is not great. 

—Hispanic representation, while still lagging, inches upward. Hispanics remain 

dramatically underrepresented among nursing students. Representing a mere 6 

percent of associate degree and baccalaureate nursing students, Hispanics were 

enrolled in basic nursing programs at less than half the rate at which they were 

enrolled in undergraduate programs overall. However, the percentage of Hispanics enrolled in post-licensure programs has nearly doubled at every level. 

—Men’s enrollment at historic high. While significantly less than the proportion 

in the U.S. population, at 15 percent, men enrolled in basic RN programs (i.e., 

13 percent BSN, 16 percent diploma, and 16 percent ADN) remained at the historic high reached at the start of the recession. Approximately 11 percent of PN 

students, RN-to BSN students, master’s, and doctoral students were male in 

2012. 

Besides representing an untapped talent pool to remedy the nursing shortage, 

ethnic, cultural, and gender-diverse minorities in nursing are essential to developing 

a healthcare system that understands and addresses the needs of our rapidly diversifying population. Workforce diversity is needed where research indicates that factors such as societal biases and stereotyping, communication barriers, limited cultural sensitivity and competence, and system and organizational determinants contribute to healthcare inequities. 

Title VIII Federal Funding Reality 

Today’s undersupply of appropriately prepared nurses and nurse faculty, as well 

as the projected loss of experienced nurses over the next decade, does not bode well 

for our Nation. The Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs are a comprehensive system of capacity-building strategies that provide students and schools 

of nursing with grants to strengthen education programs, including faculty recruitment and retention efforts, facility and equipment acquisition, clinical lab enhancements, and loans, scholarships, and services that enable students to overcome obstacles to completing their nursing education programs. A few examples of HRSA’s 

Title VIII data below provide perspective on current Federal investments. 

Nurse Faculty Loan Program (NFLP)—BLS projects a need of 35 percent more 

faculty members to meet the expected increase in demand. In addition, with 10,200 

current faculty members expected to retire, 34,200 new nursing instructors will be 

needed by 2022. NFLP supports the establishment and operation of a loan fund at 

participating schools of nursing to assist nurses in completing their graduate edu-
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cation to become qualified nurse faculty. Ongoing NFLP support for faculty production is critical to building the pipeline that assures the full capacity of the Nation’s 

future nursing workforce. Targeting a portion of those funds for minority faculty 

preparation is fundamental to achieving that goal. In fiscal year 2012, NFLP grantees exceeded the program’s performance target by 49.6 percent in providing loans 

to 2,259 students pursuing faculty preparation. About one out of every four students 

receiving the NFLP loans were considered underrepresented minorities. 

Comprehensive Geriatric Education Program (CGEP)—CGEP provides support to 

educate individuals in providing geriatric care for the elderly. This goal is accomplished through curriculum development and dissemination, continuing education, 

and traineeships for individuals preparing for advanced nursing education degrees. 

In fiscal year 2012, CGEP grantees awarded traineeships to 74 students—the majority of whom (81 percent) were pursuing a Master’s Degree in Nursing. 

Nurse Education, Practice, Quality, and Retention Grants (NEPQR)—NEPQR addresses the critical nursing shortage via projects to expand the nursing pipeline, 

promote career mobility, provide continuing education, and support retention. 

Grants to support recruiting and retaining nursing assistants and personal and 

home care aides in occupational shortage and/or high demand areas trained 4,624 

students during fiscal year 2012. NEPQR also supported expanding the size of BSN 

programs and supported nurse-managed health clinics. 

Nurse-Managed Health Clinics (NMHC) 

NMHCs are a nurse-practice arrangement, managed by advanced practice registered nurses, that provides primary care or wellness services. NMHCs are associated with a school, college, university, or department of nursing, federally qualified 

health center, or independent nonprofit health or social services agency. 

NMHCs deliver comprehensive primary healthcare services, disease prevention, 

and health promotion in medically underserved areas for vulnerable and specialized 

populations (e.g., veterans and/or families of active military). The complexity of care 

for these patients presents significant financial barriers, heavily affecting the sustainability of these clinics. While providing access points in areas where primary 

care providers are in short supply, expansion of NMHCs also increases the number 

of structured clinical teaching sites available to train nurses and other primary care 

providers. In fiscal year 2012, more than 1,600 health professions students were 

trained in NMHCs, where the majority of NMHCs and associated training sites 

were primarily located in medically underserved communities (97 percent) and 

served as a primary care setting for their local community (65 percent). Appropriating $20 million in fiscal year 2015 to NMHCs would increase access to primary 

care for thousands of underserved people. 

The NLN can state with authority that the deepening health inequities, inflated 

costs, and poor quality of healthcare outcomes in this country will not be reversed 

until the concurrent shortages of nurses and qualified nurse educators are addressed. Your support will help ensure that nurses exist in the future who are prepared and qualified to take care of you, your family, and all those who will need 

our care. Without national efforts of some magnitude to match the healthcare reality facing our Nation today, an under resourced nurse education and its adverse 

effect in healthcare generally will be difficult to avoid. 

The NLN urges the subcommittee to maintain the Title VIII Nursing Workforce 

Development Programs by funding them at a level of $251 million in fiscal year 

2015. We also recommend that the Title III Nurse-Managed Health Clinics be funded at $20 million in fiscal year 2015. 

[This statement was submitted by Beverly Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN, Chief Executive Officer, National League for Nursing.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL MPS SOCIETY

The National MPS Society supports research to find cures for 

Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) and related diseases, and provides hope and support 

for affected individuals and their families through research, advocacy, and awareness of these devastating disorders. The Society submits this testimony to request 

insertion of language in the fiscal year 2015 Appropriations to direct the National 

Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund MPS research. 

MPS diseases are rare genetic diseases that affect both children and adults. They 

cause progressive damage to cells in the body, resulting in severe disability and 

early death. There are currently few treatments and no cures. There are 11 types 

of MPS but only 4 FDA approved enzyme replacement therapy treatments to slow 

disease progression. The damage from MPS results in severe problems, including 
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profound intellectual disabilities, heart disease, vision loss, speech and hearing impairment, short stature, stiff joints, and pain, among others. MPS diseases are devastating for children and families, largely due to the progressive nature of the diseases. Babies are often born looking perfectly healthy. It is only later, as cell damage becomes worse, that parents receive the heartbreaking diagnosis. All MPS diseases are terminal with most affected individuals not surviving beyond teenage 

years. 

The National MPS Society is requesting the insertion of language specific to MPS 

and related diseases into the fiscal year 2015 Appropriations Bill. This language will 

help focus NIH research efforts related to MPS and related diseases. After several 

years of decreased funding, the NIH budget for MPS research increased between 

2010 through 2013 but saw a significant decline in 2014 due to sequestration. 

Researchers focused on MPS diseases get almost all of their funding from the 

NIH. There is very little private funding for MPS and related diseases research. Although there are very few therapies for MPS diseases, the ones that are available 

are the result of NIH-funded research. Prominent researchers in the field believe 

that continued research holds the promise of effective treatments and cures for MPS 

diseases, including stem cell therapies, gene therapies, and small molecule therapies. Researchers are beginning to build momentum in their work on MPS diseases. 

Increased funding for MPS and related diseases research will ensure that this momentum translates into progress toward new treatments and a cure. Reduced funding stalls progress and prevents these critical gains. 

On behalf of the children and families impacted by MPS diseases, the National 

MPS Society respectfully requests the insertion of the following language into the 

fiscal year 2015 Appropriations Bill. 

Mucopolysaccharidoses: The Committee encourages the NINDS and NIDDK to expand research efforts in the development of effective treatments for MPS diseases. 

The Committee commends the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and 

Stroke (NINDS) and the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) for sponsoring scientific conferences like the Gordon Research Conference (April 2013) focusing on 

basic science of lysosomal biology and function but with strong emphasis on pathogenic mechanisms of lysosomal disease. The Committee further acknowledges and 

applauds the National Institutes of Health ORDR, NINDS and NIDDK for their 

work related to the Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network (RDCRN) over the 

next 5 years to fund research consortia including lysosomal diseases: 

mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS), and MPS bone disease, helping to create additional 

opportunities for small research communities, such as the Lysosomal Disease Network, to address some of these clinical research needs. 

Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) are a group of genetic, progressive diseases that are 

caused by the absence or malfunctioning of certain enzymes needed to break down 

molecules called glycosaminoglycans—long chains of sugar carbohydrates in each of 

our cells. When mutations occur in the genes for the enzymes involved in the normal turnover of Mucopolysaccharidoses, excess amounts of them are stored in the 

body, causing progressive damage to a number of different organs and tissues, and, 

in most cases, early death. There are no current cures for MPS, although stem cell 

transplants and enzyme replacement therapy show potential for reducing symptom 

severity. Treatment for the skeletal abnormalities remains a challenge due to the 

difficulty of introducing replacement enzymes or transplanted cells into skeletal tissues. Although the greatest benefit is likely to be discovered through MPS research 

supported by other NIH components, ongoing research at the NIAMS in other areas 

of skeletal research may help to inform the science base and potentially improve the 

quality of life of patients with the disease. 

Action taken or to be taken: The Committee encourages NINDS, ORDR and 

NIDDK to continue supporting scientific conferences in the Mucopolysaccharidoses 

and other Lysosomal Disease research community, such as the Lysosomal Disease 

Network’s Annual WORLD Symposium. This international conference gives researchers an opportunity to share findings in basic, translational and clinical research and to establish collaborations that could enable multicenter studies in natural history and other areas of clinical research. In addition, this Symposium promotes interaction among interested lay participants and medical and scientific experts, in addition to representatives from pharmaceutical industry, involved in 

lysosomal diseases. 

The intent of the report language is to focus and encourage the National Institutes of Health’s efforts with respect to the direction of Mucopolysaccharidoses and 

other Lysosomal Disease related research. The language included annually in the 

LHHS report has consistently addressed some of the most pressing, scientific needs 

in this complex area of biomedical research. The outcome has been, and one would 
590 

hope continue to be, the Institutes examination of the issues raised by the Committee so that it can make meaningful efforts to enhance NIH activity on these important Mucopolysaccharidoses and Lysosomal Disease research issues. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS SOCIETY

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity 

to provide testimony regarding funding of critically important Federal programs 

that impact those affected by multiple sclerosis. We urge the Subcommittee to provide the following in fiscal year 2015: $2.5 million for the Lifespan Respite Care 

Program; at least $32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH); robust support for Medicare and Medicaid; and $12.6 billion for the Social Security Administration (SSA). 

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central 

nervous system that interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS in any one 

person cannot yet be predicted. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the 

ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being 

diagnosed with the disease. 

The National MS Society sees itself as a partner to the Government in many critical areas. As we advocate for NIH research, we do so as an organization that in 

2013, funded approximately $48 million in MS research through funds generated 

through the Society’s fundraising efforts. And as we advocate for Lifespan Respite 

funding, we do so as an organization that works to provide some level of respite relief for caregivers. So while we’re here to advocate for Federal funding, we do it as 

an organization that commits tens of millions of dollars each year to similar or complementary efforts as those being funded by the Federal Government. 

Lifespan Respite Care Program 

Up to one quarter of individuals living with MS require long-term care services 

at some point during the course of the disease. Often, a family member steps into 

the role of primary caregiver. According to a 2011 AARP report, 61.6 million family 

caregivers provided care at some point during 2009 and the value of their uncompensated services was approximately $450 billion per year. Family caregivers allow 

the person living with MS to remain home for as long as possible and avoid premature admission to costlier institutional facilities. 

Family caregiving, while essential, can be draining and stressful. A 2012 National 

Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) survey of individuals providing care to people living 

with MS shows that on average, caregivers spend 24 hours a week providing care. 

Sixty 4 percent of caregivers were emotionally drained, 32 percent suffered from depression and 22 percent have lost a job due to caregiving responsibilities. 

The Lifespan Respite Care Program, enacted in 2006 under President Bush, provides competitive grants to States to establish or enhance statewide lifespan respite 

programs that better coordinate and increase access to quality respite care. Respite 

offers professional short-term help to give caregivers a break from the stress of providing care and has been shown to provide family caregivers with the relief necessary to maintain their own health and bolster family stability. Perhaps the most 

critical aspect of the program for people living with MS is that Lifespan Respite 

serves families regardless of special need or age—literally across the lifespan. Much 

existing respite care has age eligibility requirements and since MS is typically diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, Lifespan Respite programs are often the only 

open door to needed respite services. 

For these reasons, the National MS Society asks that Congress provide $2.5 million for the Lifespan Respite Care Program in fiscal year 2015. 

National Institutes of Health 

As mentioned previously, the National MS Society invested $48 million to MS research in 2013 and sees the NIH as an invaluable partner to stop MS in its tracks, 

restore function and end MS forever. Approximately $115 million of fiscal year 2013 

was directed to MS-related research and over the years, NIH research projects have 

helped make significant progress in understanding MS. NIH scientists were among 

the first to report the value of MRI in detecting early signs of MS and have enhanced knowledge about how the immune system works and its role in the development of MS lesions. 

Twenty years ago, there were no MS therapies or medications—now there are ten. 

The NIH provided the basic research necessary so that these therapies could be developed. Despite this progress, there are still no treatments approved for people liv-
591 

ing with progressive MS. Only with continued investment will the innovation momentum continue, allowing us to find successful treatments for those with progressive MS and a cure for all. 

The NIH also directly supports jobs in all 50 States and 17 of the 30 fastest growing occupations in the U.S. are related to medical research or healthcare. More than 

83 percent of the NIH’s funding is awarded through almost 50,000 competitive 

grants to more than 325,000 researchers at over 3,000 universities, medical schools, 

and other research institutions in every State. 

For these reasons, the Society urges Congress to provide at least $32 billion for 

the NIH in fiscal year 2015. 

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services 

Medicare: It is estimated that over 20 percent of the MS population relies on 

Medicare as its primary insurer. The majority of these individuals are under the age 

of 65 and receive the Medicare benefit as a result of their disability. Of particular 

importance to the MS community are: having appropriate reimbursement levels for 

Medicare physicians, maintaining access to diagnostics and durable medical equipment, protecting access to needed speech, physical and occupational therapy services, and discouraging overly burdensome cost-sharing for prescription drugs. 

Medicaid: Medicaid provides comprehensive health coverage to over eight million 

persons living with disabilities, plus six million persons with disabilities who rely 

on Medicaid to fill Medicare’s gaps. The latest statistics (which are pre-recession) 

show that about 5–10 percent of people with MS have Medicaid coverage. The most 

recently available data (2007) reveals that the average annual direct and indirect 

(e.g. lost wages) cost for someone with MS in the U.S. is approximately $69,000. 

After years of paying to manage their disease, some people with MS have spent the 

vast majority of their earnings and savings, making their financial situation so dire 

that Medicaid becomes their only option for health coverage. 

The National MS Society urges Congress to maintain funding for Medicaid and 

reject proposals to cap or block grant the program. Any of these proposals would 

merely shift costs to States, forcing States to shoulder a seemingly insurmountable 

financial burden or cut services on which our most vulnerable rely. The Society also 

urges Congress to protect and promote access to home- and community-based care 

in line with the 1999 U.S. Supreme Court decision Olmstead. 

Social Security Administration 

Because of the unpredictable nature and sometimes serious impairment caused by 

the disease, SSA recognizes MS as a chronic illness or ‘‘impairment’’ that can cause 

disability severe enough to prevent an individual from working. During such periods, people living with MS are entitled to and rely on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits to survive. The National MS Society urges Congress to provide $12.3 billion for the SSA’s administrative budget so that it can continue efforts to reduce hearings and disability backlogs, 

pay monthly benefits in a timely manner, and determine post-entitlement issues in 

a timely manner. 

Conclusion 

The National MS Society thanks the Committee for the opportunity to provide 

written testimony and our recommendations for fiscal year 2015 appropriations. The 

agencies and programs we have discussed are of vital importance to people living 

with MS and we look forward to continuing to working with the Committee to help 

move us closer to a world free of MS. Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any 

questions. 

[This statement was submitted by Ted Thompson, Vice President, Federal Government Relations.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL NURSING CENTERS CONSORTIUM

On behalf of the National Nursing Centers Consortium (NNCC), I would like to 

thank the members of this subcommittee for the opportunity to submit testimony 

regarding the importance of appropriating funds to support nurse-managed health 

clinics. Specifically, NNCC and its members request an appropriation of $20 million 

to support grants to nurse-managed health clinics through the Nurse Managed 

Health Clinic grant program under the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Bureau of Primary Health Care in the Department of Health and Human 

Services. 
592 

1Public Health Services Act, 42 USC § 254(c)–1a(e) (2014). 

2 American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC). (June 2010). The impact of healthcare reform on the future supply and demand for physicians updated projections through 2025. 

Retrieved from https://www.aamc.org/download/158076/data/updatedlprojectionslthrough 

l2025.pdf. 

3Dill, M. & Salsberg, E., AAMC Center for Workforce Studies. (Nov. 2008). The complexities 

of physician supply and demand. Retrieved from https://members.aamc.org/eweb/upload/ 

The%20Complexities%20of%20Physician%20Supply.pdf. 4 Congressional Budget Office (CBO). (July 2012). Estimates for the insurance coverage provisions of the affordable care act updated for the recent supreme court decision. Retrieved from 

http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/attachments/43472-07-24-2012- 

CoverageEstimates.pdf. 5Massachusetts Medical Society. (2008). Physician workforce study: Executive summary. Retrieved from www.massmed.org/workforce. 6 Health Resources and Servs. Admin., Dept. of Health and Human Services. (November 

2013). Projecting the supply and demand for primary care practitioners through 2020. 

Retrieved from http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/supplydemand/usworkforce/primarycare/ 

projectingprimarycare.pdf. 7 Institute of Medicine (IOM). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. p. 1– 

2. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. 8 Institute of Medicine (IOM). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. p. c– 

4. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. 

NNCC is a 501(c)(3) member association of nonprofit, nurse-managed health clinics, sometimes called nurse-managed health centers or NMHCs. Section 254(c)– 

1a(a)(2) of the Public Health Services Act defines ‘‘nurse-managed health clinic’’ as 

‘‘a nurse practice arrangement, managed by advanced practice nurses, that provides 

primary care or wellness services to underserved or vulnerable populations and that 

is associated with a school, college, university or department of nursing, federally 

qualified health center (FQHC), or independent nonprofit health or social services 

agency.’’ Currently, there are approximately 250 NMHCs in operation throughout 

the United States. Section 254(c)–1a also mandates the creation of a Nurse Managed Health Clinic grant program and authorizes $50 million in grant funding.1 The 

NMHC grant program was established to provide these clinics with a stable source 

of Federal funding that would place them on footing similar to other safety-net providers. However, to date, funding for the grant program has not been appropriated. 

The Value of NMHCs and the Need for NMHC Grant Funding 

NMHCs Expand Primary Care Workforce Capacity.—The Nation is facing a primary care crisis that is about to get worse. According to the Association of American 

Medical Colleges (AAMC), by 2025 there will be a dearth of 130,600 physicians, 

which includes a shortage of 65,800 primary care physicians.2 AAMC data also 

shows that American medical schools are not graduating enough doctors to meet 

this need.3 The Congressional Budget Office estimates the Medicaid expansion 

called for by the ACA will lead to 11 million new enrollees.4 As these new enrollees 

establish primary care homes, the burden on the primary care workforce is likely 

to increase dramatically. Data from Massachusetts shows just how bad the problem 

could get. A study conducted 2 years after expanding its public coverage found that 

only 52 percent of internists in Massachusetts were accepting new patients and onethird of family physicians were no longer accepting new patients.5

NMHCs are primarily managed by nurse practitioners, which make up the fastest 

growing segment of primary care providers in the country. According to the Health 

Resources and Services Agency, the number of primary care NPs is expected to grow 

by 30 percent, from 55,400 in 2010 to 72,100 by 2020.6 Because of these growing 

numbers, policymakers across the country are calling for nurse practitioners and 

NMHCs to assume a greater role in primary care. For example, in its report, ‘‘The 

Future of Nursing, Leading Change, Advancing Health,’’ the Institute of Medicine 

(IOM) states, ‘‘advanced practice registered nurses should be called upon to fulfill 

and expand their potential as primary care providers across practice settings based 

on their education and competency.’’ 7 When discussing the role of NMHCs, the IOM 

report says, ‘‘Nurse-managed health clinics offer opportunities to expand access; provide quality, evidence-based care; and improve outcomes for individuals who may 

not otherwise receive needed care.’’ 8

Along with the IOM, the National Governor’s Association (NGA) and the National 

Institute for Health Care Reform (NIHCR) both released reports identifying the 

greater use of nurse practitioners as a means of alleviating the pressure on the primary care workforce and presenting NP scope of practice law and payment policy 

reform as important to ensuring comprehensive access to primary care. Most recently, in a 2013 study published in Health Affairs, the RAND Corporation projected 
593 

9 Auerbach, D. I. (Nov. 2013). Nurse-Managed Health Centers and Patient-Centered Medical 

Homes Could Mitigate Expected Primary Care Physician Shortage. Health Affairs, 32 (11), 

1933—41. 10 Coddington, J. A. & Sands, L. P. (2008). Cost of healthcare and quality outcomes of patients 

at nurse-managed clinics. Nurs. Econ, 26(2), 75-83. 11 Institute for Nursing Centers. (2009). Feedback from student focus groups. 12 Institute of Medicine (IOM). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. p. 

c–4. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. 13 NNCC. (2012). NNCC Membership Survey. 14 National Nursing Centers Consortium (NNCC). (2011). Survey of NMHCs. 

that greater use of the nurse-managed health centers model could address the increased demand for primary care.9

As safety-net providers, NMHCs offer high quality primary care to medically underserved patients regardless of the patient’s ability to pay. However, NMHCs are 

struggling financially and often lack access to FQHC money available to other safety 

net providers. Thus, the NMHC grant program was created, providing NMHCs with 

alternative Federal funding to ensure their continued ability to meet the needs of 

their patients and communities. Because they already serve a high percentage of 

Medicaid patients, the clinics are positioned to not only absorb demand from the 

newly ensured but also fill gaps in care resulting from the fragmented application 

of Medicaid expansion. 

To lessen the primary care crisis and ensure the underserved can take full advantage of the care NMHCs offer, NNCC requests that the Subcommittee appropriate 

funding to the NMHC grant program. Evidence suggests that funding NMHCs will 

not only expand access but also lower the cost of care. In addition to lower labor 

costs, research shows that NMHCs decrease costs by reducing unnecessary emergency room visits and hospitalizations.10

NMHCs Help Educate the Health Professionals of Tomorrow.—FQHC funding is 

often unavailable to NMHCs, because many are affiliated with academic schools of 

nursing. Academically-affiliated NMHCs operate under the jurisdiction of a university, so most cannot meet FQHC governance requirements without breaking their 

academic connection and giving up their clinical programs. Ironically, it is these academic affiliations that make the NMHC model especially responsive to primary care 

shortages, since they contribute to workforce development. NMHCs naturally serve 

as community-based clinical training sites for a diverse group of health profession 

students including those training to be registered nurses and advance practice 

nurses (mostly nurse practitioners) as well as medical, pharmacy, dental, social 

work, public health, and other students. In post-clinical focus groups, students report being ‘‘overwhelmingly satisfied’’ with their experience in NMHC clinical rotations, crediting, in part, the community-based experience absent from other clinical 

rotations.11 The Future of Nursing report also praised NMHC clinical programs for 

their interprofessional education, which relates to both job satisfaction and a flexible 

workforce.12

In 2012, the NNCC conducted a survey of its members to measure their contribution to health professions education. Twenty-eight NMHCs in a mix of urban, rural, 

and suburban communities reported providing educational opportunities for nearly 

1,500 students.13 The average number of students educated by the NMHC grant 

funded clinics was 80, while the clinics participating in the 2012 survey reported 

educating an average of 55 students. These results demonstrate that (1) NMHCs advance workforce development and (2) increased funding enhances the ability of 

NMHCs to offer educational opportunities. 

Despite the benefits of NMHC clinical programs, NMHC leaders are often forced 

to abandon this important piece of the NMHC model to qualify for FQHC funding. 

By providing an alternative source of funding for NMHCs, the Nurse-Managed 

Health Clinic grant program helps to preserve the contribution of NMHCs to workforce development. Given the country’s growing need for nurses, NNCC respectfully 

requests that the subcommittee members appropriate funding to support clinical 

programs and place NMHCs on a similar footing with other safety-net providers 

through the NMHC grant program. In October of 2010, HRSA released $14.8 million in Prevention and Public Health 

Fund dollars to fund ten NMHC grants. In addition to serving over 27,000 patients 

and recording more than 72,000 encounters, the NMHC grantees have provided 

interdisciplinary clinical training to over 800 health profession students annually.14

Request.—The 10 NMHC grants distributed in 2010 will expire this year if Congress does not move to appropriate funding to the program. NNCC respectfully requests an appropriation of $20 million in fiscal year 2015 for the Nurse-Managed 

Health Clinic Grant Program, as authorized under Title III of the Public Health 

Service Act. 
594 

[This statement was submitted by Tine Hansen-Turton, CEO, National Nursing 

Centers Consortium.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL RESPITE COALITION

Mr. Chairman, I am Jill Kagan, Chair of the National Respite Coalition (NRC), 

a network of respite providers, family caregivers, national, State and local agencies 

and organizations who support respite. Thirty State respite coalitions are also affiliated with the NRC. This statement is presented on behalf of these organizations. 

The NRC also facilitates the Lifespan Respite Task Force, a coalition of over 100 

national, State and local groups who support the Lifespan Respite Program and its 

continued funding. We are requesting that the Subcommittee include $2.5 million 

for the Lifespan Respite Care Program administered by ACL/AoA in the fiscal year 

2015 Labor, HHS, and Education Appropriations bill or designate this amount from 

the Prevention and Public Health Fund as recommended in the President’s fiscal 

year 2015 budget. This amount is only modestly above the current fiscal year 2014 

level of $2.3. This will enable: 

—State replication of best practices in Lifespan Respite to allow family caregivers, 

regardless of the care recipient’s age or disability, to have access to affordable 

respite, and to be able to continue to play the significant role in long-term care 

that they are fulfilling today, saving Medicaid billions; 

—Improvement in the quality of respite services currently available; 

—Expansion of respite capacity to serve more families by building new and enhancing current respite options, including recruitment and training of respite 

workers and volunteers; and 

—Greater consumer direction by providing family caregivers with training and information on how to find, use and pay for respite services. 

WHO NEEDS RESPITE?

A 2012 national survey from the Pew Research Center found that four in ten 

adults in the U.S. are caring for an adult or child with significant health issues, 

up from 30 percent in 2010 (Fox, S, et al, 2013). The estimated economic value of 

the unpaid contributions of family caregivers caring for someone over the age of 18 

is approximately $450 billion. This amount is more than total Medicaid spending, 

including both Federal and State contributions for healthcare and long-term services 

and supports. If parents caring for children with special needs are also considered, 

another $50 to $100 billion would be added to the economic value of family 

caregiving (AARP Public Policy Institute, 2011). 

Family caregiving is not just an aging issue, but also a lifespan one. While the 

aging population is growing rapidly, the majority of family caregivers are caring for 

someone under age 75 (56 percent); 28 percent of family caregivers care for someone 

between the ages of 50–75, and 28 percent care for someone under age 50 (National 

Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) and AARP, 2009). Many family caregivers are in the 

sandwich generation—46 percent of women who are caregivers of an aging family 

member and 40 percent of men also have children under the age of 18 at home 

(Aumann, K, and Galinsky, E, 2008). And 6.7 million children are in the primary 

custody of an aging grandparent or other relative. 

Families of the wounded warriors, military personnel who returned from Iraq and 

Afghanistan with traumatic brain injuries and other serious chronic and debilitating 

conditions, don’t have full access to respite. Even with enactment of the VA Family 

Caregiver Support Program which serves only veterans since 9/11, the need for respite will remain high for all veterans and their family caregivers. Caregivers whose 

veterans have PTSD are about half as likely as other caregivers to receive respite 

(11 percent vs. 20 percent) (NAC, November 2010). Sixty-eight percent of veterans’ 

caregivers reported their situation as highly stressful compared to 31 percent of 

caregivers nationally, and three times as many say there is a high degree of physical strain (40 percent vs. 14 percent) (NAC, 2010). Veterans’ caregivers specifically 

asked for up-to-date lists of respite providers in their communities and help to find 

services, the very thing Lifespan Respite is charged to provide (NAC, 2010). 

National, State and local surveys have shown respite to be the most frequently 

requested service of the Nation’s family caregivers (The Arc, 2011; National Family 

Caregivers Association, 2011). Other than financial assistance for caregiving 

through direct vouchers payments or tax credits, respite is the number one national 

policy related to service delivery that family caregivers prefer (NAC and AARP, 

2009). Yet respite is unused, in short supply, inaccessible, or unaffordable to a majority of the Nation’s family caregivers. The NAC 2009 survey found that despite 

the fact that among the most frequently reported unmet needs of family caregivers 
595 

were ‘‘finding time for myself’’ (32 percent), ‘‘managing emotional and physical 

stress’’ (34 percent), and ‘‘balancing work and family responsibilities’’ (27 percent), 

nearly 90 percent of family caregivers across the lifespan are not receiving respite 

services at all. 

An estimated 80 percent of all long-term care in the U.S. is provided at home. 

This percentage will only rise in the coming decades with greater life expectancies 

of individuals with disabling and chronic conditions living with their aging parents 

or other caregivers, the aging of the baby boom generation, and the decline in the 

percentage of the frail elderly who are entering nursing homes. 

RESPITE BARRIERS AND THE EFFECT ON FAMILY CAREGIVERS

Barriers to accessing respite include reluctance to ask for help, fragmented and 

narrowly targeted services, cost, and the lack of information about respite or how 

to find or choose a provider. Even when respite is an allowable funded service, a 

critically short supply of well-trained respite providers may prohibit a family from 

making use of a service they so desperately need. Lifespan Respite is designed to 

help States eliminate these barriers through improved coordination and capacity 

building. 

While most families take great joy in helping their family members to live at 

home, it has been well documented that family caregivers experience physical and 

emotional problems directly related to their caregiving responsibilities. In a 2009 

survey of family caregivers, a majority (51 percent) who are caring for someone over 

age 18 have medium or high levels of burden of care, measured by the number of 

activities of daily living with which they provide assistance, and 31 percent were 

identified as ‘‘highly stressed’’ (NAC and AARP, 2009). Parents of children with special healthcare needs report poorer general health, more physical health problems, 

worse sleep, and increased depressive symptoms compared to parents of typically 

developing (TD) children (McBean, A and Schlosnagle, L, 2013). 

A family caregiver’s declining health status is a risk factor for care recipient institutionalization. When caregivers lack effective coping styles or are depressed, care 

recipients may be at risk for falling, developing preventable secondary health conditions or limitations in functional abilities. The risk of abuse from caregivers among 

care recipients with significant needs increases when caregivers themselves are depressed or in poor health (American Psychological Association, nd). 

Supports that would ease family caregiver stress, most importantly respite, are 

too often out of reach or completely unavailable. Restrictive eligibility criteria also 

preclude many families from receiving services or continuing to receive services for 

which they once were eligible. Children with disabilities will age out of the system 

when they turn 21 and they will lose many of the services, such as respite. A survey 

of nearly 5000 caregivers of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) conducted by The Arc found: the vast majority of caregivers report that 

they are suffering from physical fatigue (88 percent), emotional stress (81 percent) 

and emotional upset or guilt (81 percent) some or most of the time; 1 out of 5 families (20 percent) report that someone in the family had to quit their job to stay home 

and support the needs of their family member; and more than 75 percent of family 

caregivers caring for adult children with developmental disabilities could not find 

respite services (The Arc, 2011). Respite may not exist at all in some States for individuals with Alzheimer’s, those under age 60 with conditions such as ALS, MS, spinal cord or traumatic brain injuries, or children with serious emotional conditions. 

RESPITE BENEFITS FAMILIES AND IS COST SAVING

Respite has been shown to be an effective way to reduces stress and improve the 

health and well-being of family caregivers that in turn helps avoid or delay out-ofhome placements, such as nursing homes or foster care, minimizes the precursors 

that can lead to abuse and neglect, and strengthens marriages and family stability. 

A recent study of parents of children with autism spectrum disorders found that respite care was associated with reduced stress and improved marital quality (Harper, 

Amber, et al, 2013). A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report prepared by the Urban Institute found that reducing key stresses on caregivers, such 

as physical strain and financial hardship, through services such as respite would 

reduce nursing home entry (Spillman and Long, USDHHS, 2007). In a survey of 

caregivers of individuals with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), two-thirds said that respite 

would help keep their loved one at home. When the care recipient with MS also has 

cognitive impairment, the percentage of those saying respite would be helpful to 

avoid or delay nursing home placement jumps to 75 percent (NAC, 2012). 

The budgetary benefits that accrue because of respite are just as compelling. Delaying a nursing home placement for just one individual with Alzheimer’s or other 
596 

chronic condition for several months can save Medicaid and other government programs thousands of dollars. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania studied 

the records of over 28,000 children with autism ages 5 to 21 who were enrolled in 

Medicaid in 2004. They concluded that for every $1,000 States spent on respite services in the previous 60 days, there was an 8 percent drop in the odds of hospitalization (Mandell, David S., et al, 2012). In the private sector, U.S. businesses lose from 

$17.1 billion to $33.6 billion per year in lost productivity of family caregivers 

(MetLife Mature Market Institute, 2006). Higher absenteeism alone among working 

caregivers costs the U.S. economy an estimated $25.2 billion in lost productivity per 

year (Witters, D., 2011). Respite for working family caregivers could help improve 

job performance and employers could potentially save billions. 

LIFESPAN RESPITE CARE PROGRAM WILL HELP

The Federal Lifespan Respite program is administered by the Administration for 

Community Living (ACL), Administration on Aging (AoA), U.S. Department of 

Health and Human Services (HHS). ACL/AoA provides competitive grants to eligible 

State agencies in concert with Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs) 

working in collaboration with State respite coalitions or respite organizations. Congress appropriated $2.5 million each year from fiscal year 2009—fiscal year 2012 

and a slightly lower amount due to sequestration in fiscal year 2013 and fiscal year 

2014. Since 2009, 32 States and the District of Columbia each received three-year 

$200,000 start-up Lifespan Respite Grants. Nine States and DC received one-time 

$150,000 expansion grants to focus on direct services, especially for those who are 

unserved. In the last 2 years, many of the States received 17-month Integration and 

Sustainability grants to continue their important work. 

The purpose of the law is to expand and enhance respite services, improve coordination, and improve respite access and quality. States are required to establish 

State and local coordinated Lifespan Respite care systems to serve families regardless of age or special need, provide new planned and emergency respite services, 

train and recruit respite workers and volunteers and assist caregivers in gaining access to services. Those eligible would include family members, foster parents or 

other adults providing unpaid care to adults who require care to meet basic needs 

or prevent injury and to children who require care beyond that required by children 

generally to meet basic needs. 

Lifespan Respite, defined as a coordinated system of community-based respite 

services, helps States use limited resources across age and disability groups more 

effectively. Provider pools can be recruited, trained and shared, administrative burdens reduced by coordinating resources, and savings used to fund new respite services for families who do not qualify for any Federal or State program. 

HOW IS LIFESPAN RESPITE PROGRAM MAKING A DIFFERENCE?

With limited funds, Lifespan Respite grantees are engaged in innovative activities 

such as: 

—In TN and RI, the Lifespan Respite program is building respite capacity by expanding volunteer networks of providers by recruiting University students or 

Senior Corps volunteers or expanding the national TimeBanks model for establishing voluntary family cooperative respite strategies. 

—In Texas, the Lifespan Respite program has established a statewide Respite Coordination Center, and an online database. 

—In SC, the State respite coalition and the Lifespan Respite program are 

partnering in new ways with the untapped faith community to provide respite, 

especially in rural areas. 

—The North Carolina Lifespan Respite Program has challenged each of its 100 

counties to improve respite service delivery locally, and has partnered with the 

Money Follows the Person program to develop family caregiver peer-to-peer support and respite. 

—In NH, new providers have been recruited and trained through partnerships 

with the NH National Alliance on Mental Illness, New Hampshire Family 

Voices, and the College of Direct Support with funding from the Department of 

Labor to expand the pool of respite providers to work with teens and older individuals with mental health conditions or other groups where respite is in short 

supply. 

—The AZ Lifespan Respite program housed in Division of Aging and Adult Services has partnered with their State’s Children with Special Health Care Needs 

Program to provide respite vouchers to families in need across the age and disability spectrum. 
597 

—The OK Lifespan Respite program partnered with their State’s Federal Transit 

Administration’s Section 5310 transportation authority to release a van no 

longer needed to develop mobile respite to serve isolated rural areas of the 

State. 

Across the board, States are building respite registries and ‘‘no wrong door systems’’ in collaboration with State respite coalitions and ADRCs to help family caregivers access respite and funding sources. OK, AL, NV, TN and others are using 

Lifespan Respite grants to expand or implement participant-directed respite through 

voucher systems so that family caregivers have greater control over the type and 

quality of the respite they select. State grantees secure commitments from 

partnering State agencies to share information and coordinate resources to build a 

seamless Lifespan Respite system for accessing respite. 

Funding must be maintained to help sustain these innovative State efforts. The 

goal of Lifespan Respite System is to coordinate respite services and funding, maximize existing resources and leverage new dollars in both the public and private sectors to build respite capacity and serve the unserved, but States need more time 

and fiscal support to do so. Maintaining funding for the program in fiscal year 2015 

could allow several new States to start Lifespan Respite Programs and help assist 

at least a few of the remaining grantees to complete the work that they have started. As it is, given the limited funding for fiscal year 2014, only 1–2 new States and 

5–8 of the current grantees are expected to be funded. States are working successfully with ARCH to develop comprehensive sustainability plans, but without Federal 

support, many of the grantees will be cut off before they have had a chance to have 

a lasting impact. 

No other Federal program mandates respite as its sole focus, helps ensure respite 

quality or choice, and allows funds for respite start-up, training or coordination to 

address accessibility and affordability issues for families. With tens of millions of 

families affected, caregiving is a public health issue requiring an immediate proven 

preventive response, such as respite. We urge you to include at least $2.5 million 

in the fiscal year 2015 Labor, HHS, and Education appropriations bill or designate 

this amount in the Prevention and Public Health Fund. This will allow Lifespan 

Respite Programs to be replicated and sustained. Families, with access to respite, 

will be able to maintain their own health and well-being and continue to play the 

significant role that they are fulfilling today. 

[This statement was submitted by Jill Kagan, Chair, National Respite Coalition.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL RURAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION

The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) is pleased to provide the Labor, 

Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee with a statement for the record on fiscal year 2015 funding levels for programs with a significant impact on the health of rural Americans. 

NRHA is a national nonprofit membership organization with a diverse collection 

of 21,000 individuals and organizations who share a common interest in rural 

health. The Association’s mission is to improve the health of rural Americans and 

to provide leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communications, education and research. 

NRHA is advocating support for a group of rural health program that assist rural 

communities in maintaining and building a strong healthcare delivery system into 

the future. Most importantly, these programs help increase the capacity of the rural 

healthcare delivery system and true safety net providers. Rural Americans, on average, are poorer, sicker and older than their urban counterparts. Programs in the 

rural health safety net increase access to healthcare, help communities create new 

health programs for those in need and train the future health professionals that will 

care for the 62 million rural Americans. With modest investments, these programs 

evaluate, study and implement quality improvement programs and health information technology systems. 

Important rural health programs supported by NRHA are outlined below. 

Rural Health Outreach and Network Grants provide capital investment for planning and launching innovative projects in rural communities that later become selfsufficient. These grants are unique in the Federal system as they allow the community to build a program around their needs. These grants award funding to develop 

needed formal, integrated networks of providers that deliver primary and acute 

services. The grants have led to projects including information technology networks, 

oral screenings, and preventative care. Due to the community nature of the grants 

and a focus on self-sustainability after the terms of the grant have run out—85 per-
598 

cent of the Outreach Grantees continue to deliver services 5 full years after Federal 

funding ended. Request: $62.7 million. 

Rural Health Research and Policy Grants form the Federal infrastructure for 

rural health policy. Without these funds, rural America has no coordinated voice in 

the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In addition to the expertise 

provided to agencies such as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, this 

line item also funds rural health research centers across the country. Additionally, 

we urge the Subcommittee to include in report language instructions to the Office 

of Rural Health Policy to direct additional funding to the State rural health associations. Request: $10.3 million. 

State Offices of Rural Health are the State counterparts to the Federal rural 

health research and policy efforts, and form the State infrastructure for rural health 

policy. They assist States in strengthening rural healthcare delivery systems by 

maintaining a focal point for rural health within each State and by linking small 

rural communities with State and Federal resources to develop long term solutions 

to rural health problems. Without these funds, States would have diminished capacity to administer many of the critical rural health programs. The State offices play 

a key role in assisting rural health clinics, community health centers, and small, 

rural hospitals assess community healthcare needs. This program creates a State 

focus for rural health interests, brings technical assistance to rural areas, and helps 

frontier communities tap State and national resources available for healthcare and 

economic development. In partnership with other State agencies, the State rural 

health offices have been essential in addressing the unique needs of rural communities. Request: $11.1 million. 

Rural Hospital Flexibility Grants fund quality improvement and emergency medical service projects for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) across the country. The 

BBA created this essential program to improve access to essential healthcare services by CAHs, rural hospital networks and rural emergency medical services. These 

grants allow statewide coordination and provide expertise to CAHs for quality improvement or information technology activities. Also funded in this line is the Small 

Hospital Improvement Program (SHIP), which provides grants to more than 1,500 

small rural hospitals (50 beds or less) across the country to help improve their business operations, focus on quality improvement and to ensure compliance provisions 

related to health information privacy. Request: $47.7 million. 

Rural and Community Access to Emergency Devices assist communities in purchasing emergency devices and training potential first responders in their use. 

Defibrillators double a victim’s chance of survival after sudden cardiac arrest, which 

an estimated 163,221 Americans experience every year. This program trains lay rescuers and first responders in their use and places them in public areas where sudden cardiac arrest is likely to occur. Request: $3.7 million. 

The Office for the Advancement of Telehealth supports distance-provided clinical 

services and is designed to reduce the isolation of rural providers, foster integrated 

delivery systems through network development and test a range of telehealth applications. Long-term, telehealth promises to improve the health of millions of Americans, provide constant education to isolated rural providers and save money through 

reduced office visits and hospital care. The OAT leads, coordinates and promotes the 

use of telehealth technologies by fostering partnerships between Federal agencies, 

States and private sector groups to create telehealth projects. These approaches are 

still new and unfolding and continued investment in the infrastructure and development is needed. Request: $15.3 million. 

National Health Service Corps (NHSC) plays a critical role in providing primary 

healthcare services to rural underserved populations by placing healthcare providers 

in our Nation’s most underserved communities. Investment in our healthcare workforce is absolutely vital to support the newly insured population resulting from 

health reform and the long-term underserved in isolated rural communities. Programs like the NHSC help maximize the capacity of our health system to care for 

patients. The demand for primary care providers far exceeds the supply, and the 

needs of our rural communities continue to grow. The NRHA supports the President’s request to ensure that the NHSC has access to the dedicated funding through 

the CHC Fund. 

Frontier Community Health Integration Demonstration Program (F–CHIP) funds 

development and testing of new models for the delivery of healthcare services in 

frontier areas through improving access and integration of the delivery of healthcare 

to Medicare beneficiaries. 

Frontier Extended Stay Clinic (FESC) a geographically isolated medical clinic designed to provide primary, emergency, and extended-stay care 24 hours per day 

when hospital services are not readily available. The Federal Office of Rural Health 
599 

Policy (ORHP) has provided funding for infrastructure development to four clinics 

in Alaska. 

Title VII Health Professions Training Programs (with a significant rural focus): 

—Area Health Education and Centers (AHECs) financially support and encourage 

those training to become healthcare professionals to practice in rural areas. 

Without this experience and support while in medical school, far fewer professionals would make the commitment to rural areas and facilities including Community Health Centers, Rural Health Clinics and rural hospitals. The AHEC 

Programs and Centers play a critical national role in addressing healthcare 

workforce shortages, particularly those in primary care through an established 

infrastructure. The program grantees support the recruitment and retention of 

physicians, students, faculty and other primary care providers in rural and 

medically underserved areas by providing local, community-based, interdisciplinary primary care training. Educating and training rural healthcare providers 

ensures a sound future in the delivery of rural healthcare. It has been estimated that nearly half of AHECs would shut down without Federal funding. 

Request: $75 million. 

—Rural Physician Pipeline Grants will help medical colleges develop special rural 

training programs and recruit students from rural communities, who are more 

likely to return to their home regions to practice. This ‘‘grow-your-own’’ approach is one of the best and most cost-effective ways to ensure a robust rural 

workforce into the future. Request: $4.4 million. 

—Geriatric Programs train health professionals in geriatrics, including funding 

for Geriatric Education Centers (GEC). There are currently 47 GECs nationwide 

that ensure access to appropriate and quality healthcare for seniors. Rural 

America has a disproportionate share of the elderly and could see a shortage 

of health providers without this program. Request: $36.7 million. 

The National Rural Health Association appreciates the opportunity to provide our 

recommendations to the Subcommittee. These programs are critical to the rural 

health delivery system and help maintain access to high quality care in rural communities. We greatly appreciate the support of the Subcommittee and look forward 

to working with Members of the Subcommittee to continue making these important 

investments in rural health. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCIL

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and Members of the subcommittee, 

thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony regarding the National Safety 

Council’s workplace safety appropriations priorities. My name is Jim Johnson, and 

I am Vice President of Workplace Safety Initiatives at the National Safety Council. 

We are a 100 year-old Congressionally chartered nonprofit safety organization dedicated to saving lives by preventing injuries and deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the roads through leadership, research, education, and advocacy. 

Our more than 14,000 member companies represent over 8 million employees at 

more than 51,000 worksites. Today I am seeking support for $565.01 million for the 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and $332.86 million for the 

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), two organizations 

whose work is vitally important to the mission of safety. 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration 

The National Safety Council believes that an effective and efficient OSHA is important for the safety of American workers and workplaces. NSC supports stable 

funding for OSHA that adequately funds all the agency’s key functions, including 

compliance assistance and support to companies striving for safety excellence, the 

timely promulgation of regulations to protect America’s workers, enforcement actions against companies that fail to comply with OSHA standards, and whistle blower protection for workers. 

The Council supports the top line funding level of $565.01 million for the agency 

included in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget request, and we strongly encourage the committee to fund the agency at a minimum of this funding level. While 

the Council is pleased that OSHA rulemaking and enforcement efforts in fiscal year 

2014 have been restored to pre-sequester funding levels, we continue to have strong 

concerns about funding constraints placed on the agency’s Federal compliance assistance efforts, which are presently funded at $69.4 million, more than 9 percent 

less than fiscal year 2012 enacted levels. 

Of special concern to the Council is the impact that reduced compliance assistance 

funding has had on the agency’s Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP). We encour-
600 

1 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. (2013). Table 2. numbers of 

nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses by case type and ownership, selected industries, 

2012. Retrieved February 12, 2014, from http://www.bls.gov/news.release/osh.t02.htm. 2 National Safety Council. (2013). Injury Facts®, 2013 Edition. 

age the committee to include report language recommending that VPP receive no 

less than $3 million in fiscal year 2015. 

VPP were created by OSHA in 1982 as a way of recognizing those employers who 

successfully implement effective safety and health management systems and maintain injury and illness rates below the national average for their industries. Under 

VPP, company stakeholders establish a relationship with OSHA based on a cooperative partnership. Because of this, approval into VPP is as much a proactive effort 

as it is recognition of hard work and effort put in by employers and employees to 

achieve exceptional records in occupational safety and health. 

The pursuit of VPP status has helped many safety professionals encourage their 

employers’ leadership to improve safety management systems by complying with the 

program’s criteria. Organizations with VPP status represent business leaders who 

have implemented strong safety management systems and demonstrated a commitment to continuous improvement. VPP sites have a Days Away Restricted or Transferred (DART) case rate of 52 percent below the industry average. The majority of 

VPP sites have less than 100 employees. 

However, despite the success of this program, recent budget constraints have required the agency to slow the growth in the number of new cooperative program 

participants. Following sequestration in fiscal year 2013, OSHA only reapproved 

sites that could be visited through local travel. As it stands, OSHA is not scheduling 

new VPP site approvals until a region’s backlog of re-approvals of existing VPP facilities is eliminated. Minimum funding at a level of at least $3 million will ensure 

that OSHA has the resources necessary to address the backlog of re-approvals of 

existing VPP facilities and to begin to approve new VPP sites. 

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 

Funding NIOSH at the fiscal year 2014 program level of $332.86 million at a minimum, and preserving the fiscal year 2014 level of $24 million for the Institute’s Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AgFF) Sector Program and $27.5 million for the 

Education and Research Centers (ERCs), is essential to ensuring that NIOSH can 

fulfill its mission of saving lives and preventing injuries. 

Finally, I would like to focus on the important role that NIOSH programs play 

in reducing workplace injuries and fatalities. NIOSH’s primary responsibility is to 

conduct research and make recommendations for the prevention of work-related injuries and illnesses. NIOSH works to ensure the health and safety of the American 

workforce through research, education and training. It is not a regulatory agency, 

and can only issue recommendations for health and safety standards. The Council 

is disheartened to see the President’s budget request again target the Institute’s Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (AgFF) Sector Program and Education and Research 

Centers (ERCs) by eliminating their budget. 

NIOSH established the AgFF program in 1990 in response to evidence that agricultural workers were suffering higher rates of injury and illness than other U.S. 

workers. The agriculture, forestry, and fishing, industry fatality rate is more than 

8 times that of the all-industry average. Yearly, almost 18,000 workers in this sector 

are injured seriously enough to require time away from work.1 Daily, an average 

of over 330 workers in this sector sustain injuries serious enough to require medical 

consultation, and nearly 2 workers die from an injury suffered at work.2 Today, the 

initiative includes nine regional centers and one national center to address children’s farm safety. These centers conduct vital research leading to evidence-based 

standards that save lives. The AgFF Program is the only substantive Federal effort 

to meet the obligation to ensure safe conditions for workers in this sector, and it 

is effective. 

NIOSH supports education and research in occupational health through academic 

degree programs and research opportunities, primarily through 18 university-based 

ERCs located at leading universities around the country serving all 50 States. The 

mission of the ERCs is to reduce work-related injuries and illnesses in the U.S. by 

performing prevention research and by educating, through degree programs and 

continuing education, high-quality professionals who implement programs to improve occupational health and safety and minimize the dangers faced by workers 

across the country. The ERCs provide programs in a unique group of disciplines that 

benefit employers of all sizes and industries in every part of the country. Currently, 

the ERCs are responsible for supplying a good portion of the country’s OSH graduates who will go on to fill professional roles. With an aging occupational safety and 
601 

health workforce, and a shortage of qualified OSH professionals, ERCs are essential 

to educating the next generation of professionals. 

Thank you again for the opportunity to submit testimony for the record. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE FOR THE DEAF AND

ROCHESTER INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I am pleased to present the fiscal 

year 2015 budget request for the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID), 

one of nine colleges of the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), in Rochester, 

N.Y. Created by Congress by Public Law 89–36 in 1965, we provide university technical and professional education for students who are deaf and hard of hearing, 

leading to successful careers in high-demand fields for a sub-population of individuals historically facing high rates of unemployment and under-employment. We also 

provide baccalaureate and graduate-level education for hearing students in professions serving deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. NTID students live, study and 

socialize with more than 17,000 hearing students on the RIT campus. 

Budget Request 

On behalf of NTID, for fiscal year 2015 I would like to request $66,291,000 in Operations. NTID has worked hard to manage its resources carefully and responsibly 

and as such is not requesting an increase in support in 2015. Over the past 2 years 

we have reduced our workforce by 12 percent (70 positions) and limited our equipment expenditures. We also reduced our non-personnel expenditures by over 30 percent in such areas as building and equipment maintenance, instructional supplies, 

freelance interpreting, professional travel and student employment. NTID has also 

postponed requests for construction funding for critical and long overdue renovations to a 33-year old building currently housing three times the number of staff 

for which it was intended. In terms of non-Federal revenues, from fiscal year 2006 

to fiscal year 2014, student tuition and fees increased by 63 percent to offset the 

rising costs of providing a state-of-the-art college education. Likewise, from fiscal 

year 2006 to fiscal year 2013, NTID raised almost $20 million in support from individuals and organizations. 

Our fiscal year 2015 request to continue fiscal year 2014 funding of $66,291,000 

in Operations would allow us to maintain a balanced budget and avoid harmful reductions. Without this funding, we would have to impose additional limitations in 

the areas of equipment purchasing, interpreting and captioning, scholarship support, building maintenance, and, most importantly, in personnel and enrollment. 

These are not the consequences a successful Federal investment should face. 

Enrollment 

Truly a national program, NTID has enrolled students from all 50 States. In Fall 

2013 (fiscal year 2014), we attracted 1,432, the sixth straight year of more than 

1,400 students. For fiscal year 2015, NTID hopes to maintain this high enrollment, 

if our operational resources allow us to do so. Our enrollment history over the last 

8 years is shown below: 

NTID ENROLLMENTS: FISCAL YEAR 2007—FISCAL YEAR 2014 

Fiscal 

Year 

Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing Students Hearing Students 

Grand 

Total Undergrad Grad 

RIT MSSE Sub-Total Interpreting Program MSSE Sub-Total 

2014 ......................... 1,195 42 18 1,255 147 30 177 1,432 

2013 ......................... 1,269 37 25 1,331 167 31 198 1,529 

2012 ......................... 1,281 42 31 1,354 160 33 193 1,547 

2011 ......................... 1,263 40 29 1,332 147 42 189 1,521 

2010 ......................... 1,237 38 32 1,307 138 29 167 1,474 

2009 ......................... 1,212 48 24 1,284 135 31 166 1,450 

2008 ......................... 1,103 51 31 1,185 130 28 158 1,343 

2007 ......................... 1,017 47 31 1,095 130 25 155 1,250 

MSSE: Master of Science in Secondary Education of Deaf/Hard of Hearing Students 

Grad RIT: other graduate programs at RIT 
602 

NTID Academic Programs 

NTID offers high quality, career-focused associate degree programs preparing students for specific well-paying technical careers. NTID also is expanding the number 

of its transfer associate degree programs to better serve the higher achieving segment of our student population seeking bachelor’s and master’s degrees. These 

transfer programs provide seamless transition to baccalaureate studies in the other 

colleges of RIT. In support of those deaf and hard-of-hearing students enrolled in 

the other RIT colleges, NTID provides a range of access services (including sign language interpreting, real-time speech-to-text captioning, and notetaking) as well as 

tutoring services. One of NTID’s greatest strengths is our outstanding track record 

of assisting high-potential students to gain admission to, and graduate from, the 

other colleges of RIT at rates comparable to their hearing peers. 

A cooperative education (co-op) component is an integral part of academic programming at NTID and prepares students for success in the job market. A co-op 

gives students the opportunity to experience a real-life job situation and focus their 

career choice. Students develop technical skills and enhance vital personal skills 

such as teamwork and communication, which will make them better candidates for 

full-time employment after graduation. Almost 300 students last year participated 

in 10-week co-op experiences that augment their academic studies, refine their social skills, and prepare them for the competitive working world. 

Student Accomplishments 

For our graduates, over the past 5 years, an average of 91 percent have found 

jobs commensurate with their education level. Of our fiscal year 2012 graduates (the 

most recent class for which numbers are available), 93 percent were employed 1 

year later, with 65 percent employed in business and industry, 24 percent in education/non-profits, and 11 percent in government. 

Graduation from NTID has a demonstrably positive effect on students’ earnings 

over a lifetime, and results in a notable reduction in dependence on Supplemental 

Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). In fiscal year 

2012, NTID, the Social Security Administration, and Cornell University examined 

earnings and Federal program participation data for approximately 16,000 deaf and 

hard-of-hearing individuals who applied to NTID over our entire history. The studies show that NTID graduates over their lifetimes are employed at a much higher 

rate, earn substantially more (therefore paying significantly more in taxes), and participate at a much lower rate in SSI and SSDI than students who withdrew from 

NTID. 

Using SSA data, at age 50, 78 percent of NTID deaf and hard-of-hearing graduates with bachelor degrees and 73 percent with associate degrees report earnings, 

compared to 58 percent of NTID deaf and hard-of-hearing students who withdrew 

from NTID. Equally important is the demonstrated impact of an NTID education 

on graduates’ earnings. At age 50, $58,000 is the median salary for NTID deaf and 

hard-of-hearing graduates with bachelor degrees and $41,000 for those with associate degrees, compared to $34,000 for deaf and hard-of-hearing students who withdrew from NTID. Higher earnings, of course, yield higher tax revenues. 

An NTID education also translates into reduced dependency on Federal transfer 

programs, such as SSI and SSDI. At age 40, less than 2 percent of NTID deaf and 

hard-of-hearing associate and bachelor degree graduates participated in the SSI program compared to 8 percent of deaf and hard-of-hearing students who withdrew 

from NTID. Similarly, at age 50, only 18 percent of NTID deaf and hard-of-hearing 

bachelor degree graduates and 28 percent of associate degree graduates participated 

in the SSDI program, compared to 35 percent of deaf and hard-of-hearing students 

who withdrew from NTID. 

Access Services 

NTID provides an access services system to meet the needs of a large number of 

deaf and hard-of-hearing students enrolled in baccalaureate and graduate degree 

programs in RIT’s other colleges as well as students enrolled in NTID programs who 

take courses in the other colleges of RIT. Access services also are provided for 

events and activities throughout the RIT community. Access services include sign 

language interpreting, real-time captioning, classroom notetaking services, captioned classroom video materials, and Assistive Listening Services. 

As enrollments have steadily increased, so has the demand for access services. In 

fiscal year 2013, 145,003 hours of interpreting were provided—an increase of 27 percent compared to fiscal year 2008. In fiscal year 2013, 18,263 hours of real-time captioning were provided to students—a 9 percent increase over fiscal year 2008. The 

increase in demand is partly a result of the increase in the number of students enrolled in baccalaureate programs at RIT and the number of students with cochlear 
603 

implants. In fiscal year 2014, there were 526 deaf and hard-of-hearing students enrolled in baccalaureate programs at RIT, a 19 percent increase compared to fiscal 

year 2008, and 360 students with cochlear implants, a 47 percent increase over fiscal year 2008. 

Summary 

It is extremely important that our fiscal year 2015 funding request be granted in 

order that we might continue our mission to prepare deaf and hard-of-hearing people to excel in the workplace. NTID has shown through hard data that our graduates have higher salaries, pay more taxes, and depend less on Federal SSI/SSDI 

payments than their counterparts who do not attend NTID. Our employment rate 

is 91 percent over the past 5 years—even more remarkable given the state of the 

economy. Demand for an NTID education is higher than ever. Therefore, I ask that 

you please consider funding our fiscal year 2015 request of $66,291,000 for Operations. 

We are hopeful that the members of the Committee will agree that NTID, with 

its long history of successful stewardship of Federal funds and outstanding educational record of service with people who are deaf and hard of hearing, remains 

deserving of your support and confidence. Likewise, we will continue to demonstrate 

to Congress and the American people that NTID is a proven economic investment 

in the future of young deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens. Quite simply, NTID is a 

Federal program that works. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Gerard J. Buckley, President, National 

Technical Institute for the Deaf, and Vice President and Dean, Rochester Institute 

of Technology. ] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL VIOLENCE PREVENTION NETWORK

Thank you for this opportunity to submit testimony in support of increased funding for the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), which is administered by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The National Violence Prevention Network, 

a broad and diverse alliance of health and welfare, suicide and violence prevention, 

and law enforcement advocates supports increasing the fiscal year 2015 funding 

level to $25 million to allow for nationwide expansion of the NVDRS program. fiscal 

year 2014 NVDRS funding is $11.2 million. 

BACKGROUND

Each year, about 55,000 Americans die violent deaths. In addition, an average of 

105 people (22 of which are military veterans) take their own lives each day. 

The NVDRS program makes better use of data that are already being collected 

by health, law enforcement, and social service agencies. The NVDRS program, in 

fact, does not require the collection of any new data. Instead it links together information that, when kept in separate compartments, is much less valuable as a tool 

to characterize and monitor violent deaths. With a clearer picture of why violent 

deaths occurs, law enforcement, public health officials and others can work together 

more effectively to identify those at risk and target effective preventive services. 

Currently, NVDRS funding levels only allow the program to operate in 18 States, 

including Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, 

New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, 

South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Several other States have expressed 

an interest in joining once new funding becomes available. While NVDRS is beginning to strengthen violence and suicide prevention efforts in the 18 participating 

States, non-participating States continue to miss out on the benefits of this important public health surveillance program. 

NVDRS IN ACTION

Child abuse and other violence involving children and adolescents remains a problem in America, and it is only through a comprehensive understanding of its root 

causes that these needless deaths can be prevented. Studies suggest that between 

3.3 and 10 million children witness some form of domestic violence annually. Additionally, 1,560 children died as a result of abuse or neglect in 2010. 

Children are most vulnerable and most dependent on their caregivers during infancy and early childhood. Sadly, NVDRS data has shown that young children are 

at the greatest risk of homicide in their own homes. Combined NVDRS data from 

Alaska, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, South Carolina, and Vir-
604 

ginia determined that African American children aged 4 years old and under are 

more than four times as likely to be victims of homicide than Caucasian children, 

and that homicides of children aged four and under are most often committed by 

a parent or caregiver in the home. The data also shows that household items, or 

‘‘weapons of opportunity,’’ were most commonly used, suggesting that poor stress responses may be factors in these deaths. Knowing the demographics and methods of 

child abusers can lead to more effective, targeted prevention programs. 

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is another issue where NVDRS is proving its 

value. While IPV has declined along with other trends in crime over the past decade, thousands of Americans still fall victim to it every year. Intimate partner homicides accounted for 30 percent of the murders of women and 5 percent of the murders of men in 2006, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. 

Despite being in its early stages in several States, NVDRS is already providing 

critical information that is helping law enforcement and health and human service 

officials allocate resources and develop programs in ways that target those most at 

risk for intimate partner violence. For example, NVDRS data shows that while occurrences are rare, most murder-suicide victims are current or former intimate partners of the suspect, and a substantial number of victims were the suspect’s offspring. In addition, NVDRS data indicate that women are about seven times more 

likely than men to be killed by a spouse, ex-spouse, lover, or former lover, and most 

of these incidents occurred in the women’s homes. 

NVDRS & VA SUICIDES

Although it is preventable, every year more than 38,000 Americans die by suicide 

and another one million Americans attempt it, costing more than $36 billion in lost 

wages and work productivity. In the United States today, there is no comprehensive 

national system to track suicides. However, because NVDRS includes information 

on all violent deaths—including deaths by suicide—information from the system can 

be used to develop effective suicide prevention plans at the community, State, and 

national levels. 

The central collection of this data can be of tremendous value for organizations 

such as the Department of Veterans Affairs that are working to improve their surveillance of suicides. For instance, CDC determined from national NVDRS data that 

veterans comprised 20 percent of all suicide victims. The types of data collected by 

NVDRS including gender, blood alcohol content, mental health issues and physical 

health issues can help prevention programs better identify and treat at-risk individuals. 

FEDERAL ROLE NEEDED

At an estimated annual cost of $25 million for full implementation, NVDRS is a 

relatively low-cost program that yields high-quality results. While State-specific information provides enormous value to local public health and law enforcement officials, data from all 50 States, the U.S. territories and the District of Columbia must 

be obtained to complete the national picture. Aggregating this additional data will 

allow us to analyze national trends and also more quickly and accurately determine 

what factors can lead to violent death so that we can devise and disseminate strategies to address those factors. 

STRENGTHENING AND EXPANDING NVDRS IN FISCAL YEAR 2014

The 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act recognized the public health utility of 

NVDRS in preventing violent deaths and increased NVDRS funding by roughly $8 

million to facilitate continued expansion of the NVDRS program. With this new 

funding, NVDRS will expand to roughly two-thirds of the country. The time is now 

to complete the nation-wide expansion of NVDRS by providing an appropriation of 

$25 million in fiscal year 2015. 

We thank you for the opportunity to submit this statement for the record. The 

investment in NVDRS has already begun to pay off, as the 18 participating States 

are adopting effective violence prevention programs. We believe that national implementation of NVDRS is a wise public health investment that will assist State and 

national efforts to prevent deaths from domestic violence, veteran suicide, teen suicide, gang violence and other violence that affects communities around the country. 

We look forward to working with you secure an fiscal year 2015 NVDRS appropriation of $25 million. 
605 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NATIVE HAWAIIAN EDUCATION COUNCIL

Aloha Chairman Harkin and members of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Labor, HHS, and Education Subcommittee: Mahalo, thank you, for allowing 

us an opportunity to submit this request for appropriations. 

We are seeking continued funding at pre-sequestration levels for the Native Hawaiian Education Program (NHEP) that targets the Native Hawaiian student population. The NHEP is an important part of fulfilling the trust relationship between 

the U.S. and Native Hawaiians, and it helps to improve the educational status of 

Native Hawaiians. It is an important element in the Native community’s effort to 

control its education programs and policies and to achieve educational parity. NHEP 

aims to close the education achievement gap between Native Hawaiians and the 

general population, and also functions to fulfill the trust relationship between the 

United States and Native Hawaiians, the indigenous people of a once sovereign nation. During the time of their own sovereignty in the kingdom of Hawai‘i, Native 

Hawaiians had a higher rate of literacy than citizens of the United States. The educational achievement gap has occurred during the intervening years since the loss 

of Native Hawaiian sovereignty, so that today Native Hawaiians are among the 

most disadvantaged groups in the State. 

The NHEP Works 

NHEP has been effective over the years in meeting the goals of the program. For 

example, NHEA has been instrumental in preserving and protecting the Native Hawaiian language through funding projects that are designed to address the use of 

the Native Hawaiian language in instruction, one of the priorities named in the 

NHEA. The number of speakers nearly doubled in 18 years from 8,872 speakers in 

1990 to 16,864 in 2008 (Source: OHA Data Book 2011 Tables 4.19 and 4.44) 

The NHEP has funded programs that incorporate culture and indigenous teaching 

practices in the classroom that leads to better outcomes for Native Hawaiian students. An example is the improvement in the graduation rates for Native Hawaiians 

and math and reading scores. Graduation rates for Native Hawaiians between 2002 

and 2010 rose from 70 percent to 72.2 percent (Sources: Kamehameha Schools’ Native Hawaiian Education Assessment Update 2009, Fig. 9 and HI DOE 2005–06 to 

2009–10). 

Similarly, math and reading scores have risen for Native Hawaiians. The percent 

of Native Hawaiians scoring ‘‘Proficient or Above ‘‘ from 2007 to 2012 rose from 27 

percent to 49 percent in math and from 41 percent to 62 percent in reading (Source: 

Hawaii DOE Longitudinal Data System ). 

School attendance rates in schools with student populations that are over 50 percent Native Hawaiian have increased from 90.1 percent in the 2000–01 school year 

to 91.3 percent in the 2011–12 school year (Source: Kamehameha Schools’ draft Ka 

Huaka‘i update, p. 58) 

The Need Still Exists 

In spite of the gains that Native Hawaiians have made educationally, the need 

for innovative programs to assist Native Hawaiians to improve their academic performance still exists, since Native Hawaiians have not yet attained parity with the 

rest of the students in the State. 

Timely high school graduation rates for students in the State rose from 77 percent 

to 79.6 percent in the same time period that it rose from 70 percent to 72.2 percent 

for Native Hawaiians (Sources: Kamehameha Schools’ Native Hawaiian Education 

Assessment Update 2009, Fig. 9 and HI DOE 2005–06 to 2009–10). 

Native Hawaiians still lag behind the rest of the State in academic performance; 

however the gap between the Native Hawaiians and others is decreasing. From 

2007 to 2012 the increase in the percentage of Native Hawaiians scoring ‘‘Proficient 

or Above ‘‘ in math rose 22 percentage points, while the increase for the State during the same time period was 21 percentage points. The increase for Native Hawaiians in reading was even more dramatic during that time period, increasing 21 percentage points compared to the State increase of only 11 percentage points. Unfortunately those gains were not enough to bring Native Hawaiians to parity. In 2012 

Native Hawaiians were still 10 points behind the State in the percentage scoring 

‘‘Proficient or Above’’ in math and nine points behind in the percentage scoring ‘‘Proficient or Above’’ in reading. 

Percent Scoring Proficient or Above 

2007 2012 Change 

Native Hawaiians ................................................. Math ..................................... 27% 49% 22 
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Percent Scoring Proficient or Above—Continued 

2007 2012 Change 

State Totals ......................................................... Math ..................................... 38 59 21 

Difference ............................. ¥11 ¥10 ..........

Native Hawaiians ................................................. Reading ................................ 41 62 21 

State Totals ......................................................... Reading ................................ 60 71 11 

Difference ............................. ¥19 ¥9 ..........

Source: Hawaii DOE Longitudinal Data System. 

In the area of Native Hawaiian language immersion, although the gains have 

been tremendous, the nearly 17,000 speakers in 2008 only represents 6 percent of 

the approximately 290,000 Native Hawaiians in Hawai‘i (2010 U.S. Census). 

Appropriations Request 

The pre-sequestration appropriations level for the NHEP was $34 million. Sequestration reduced the amount by $2 million to $32 million, which is the amount entered into the President’s budget. For such a small program as the NHEP, the $2 

million reduction makes a significant negative impact on the program. We would 

like to continue to make gains in the educational achievement of Native Hawaiians, 

and request the pre-sequestration level of $34 million so that we don’t lose the momentum of improvement. 

NHEP funds programs to help improve the educational attainment of Native Hawaiians in ways that are linguistically and culturally aligned to the needs of our 

Native students and communities in Hawai‘i. Improving education, particularly for 

the most depressed groups, eventually leads to cost savings over time through decreased incarceration, poor health, and public assistance.(Barnett, W. S., & Ackerman, D. J. 2006. Costs, benefits, and the long-term effects of early care and education programs: Cautions and recommendations for community developers. Journal 

of the Community Development Society, 37(2), 86–100.) Academic achievement is 

also correlated with positive economic outcomes. (Belfield, C. 2008, June. The economic investments of early education in Hawaii. Issue Brief. Flushing, NY: Queen’s 

College, City University of New York.) 

Please help us sustain the NHEP to its pre-sequestration level in order to continue the educational gains that have taken this program years to accomplish. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NEPHCURE FOUNDATION

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015

—$32 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

—Provide a corresponding increase to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) 

—Expansion of the FSGS/NS Research Portfolio at NIDDK, the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) and the National Institute on Minority Health and 

Health Disparities (NIMHD) by funding more research proposals for Primary 

Glomerular Disease 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the NephCure Foundation 

regarding research on idiopathic focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) and primary nephrotic syndrome (NS). NephCure is the only non-profit organization exclusively devoted to fighting FSGS and the NS disease group. Driven by a panel of respected medical experts and a dedicated band of patients and families, NephCure 

works tirelessly to support kidney disease research and awareness. 

NS is a collection of signs and symptoms caused by diseases that attack the kidney’s filtering system. These diseases include FSGS, Minimal Change Disease and 

Membranous Nephropathy. When affected, the kidney filters leak protein from the 

blood into the urine and often cause kidney failure, which requires dialysis or kidney transplantation. According to a Harvard University report, 73,000 people in the 

United States have lost their kidneys as a result of FSGS. Unfortunately, the causes 

of FSGS and other filter diseases are poorly understood. 

FSGS is the second leading cause of NS and is especially difficult to treat. There 

is no known cure for FSGS and current treatments are difficult for patients to endure. These treatments include the use of steroids and other dangerous substances 

which lower the immune system and contribute to severe bacterial infections, high 
607 

blood pressure and other problems in patients, particularly child patients. In addition, children with NS often experience growth retardation and heart disease. Finally, NS that is caused by FSGS, MCD or MN is idiopathic and can often reoccur, 

even after a kidney transplant. 

FSGS disproportionately affects minority populations and is five times more prevalent in the African American community. In a groundbreaking study funded by 

NIH, researchers found that FSGS is associated with two APOL1 gene variants. 

These variants developed as an evolutionary response to African sleeping sickness 

and are common in the African American patient population with FSGS/NS. 

FSGS has a large social impact in the United States. FSGS leads to end-stage 

renal disease (ESRD) which is one of the most costly chronic diseases to manage. 

In 2008, the Medicare program alone spent $26.8 billion, 7.9 percent of its entire 

budget, on ESRD. In 2005, FSGS accounted for 12 percent of ESRD cases in the 

U.S., at an annual cost of $3 billion. It is estimated that there are currently approximately 20,000 Americans living with ESRD due to FSGS. 

Research on FSGS could achieve tremendous savings in Federal healthcare costs 

and reduce health status disparities. For this reason, and on behalf of the thousands 

of families that are significantly affected by this disease, we encourage support for 

expanding the research portfolio on FSGS/NS at the NIH. 

Encourage FSGS/NS Research at NIH 

There is no known cause or cure for FSGS and scientists tell us that much more 

research needs to be done on the basic science behind FSGS/NS. More research 

could lead to fewer patients undergoing ESRD and tremendous savings in 

healthcare costs in the United States. 

With collaboration from other Institutes and Centers, ORDR established the Rare 

Disease Clinical Research Network. This network provided an opportunity for the 

NephCure Foundation, the University of Michigan, and other university research 

health centers to come together to form the Nephrotic Syndrome Study Network 

(NEPTUNE). NEPTUNE is developing a database of NS patients who are interested 

in participating in clinical trials which would alleviate the problem faced by many 

rare disease groups of not having access to enough patients for research. NephCure 

urges the subcommittee to continue its support for RDCRN and NEPTUNE, which 

has tremendous potential to facilitate advancements in NS and FSGS research. 

The NephCure Foundation is also grateful to NIDDK for issuing program announcements (PA) that serve to initiate grant proposals on primary glomerular disease. Two PAs that have recently been issued utilize the R01 and UM1 mechanisms 

to award funding for primary glomerular disease research. NephCure recommends 

the subcommittee encourage NIDDK to continue to issue primary glomerular disease PAs. 

Due to the disproportionate burden of FSGS on minority populations, it is appropriate for NIMHD to develop an interest in this research. NephCure asks the subcommittee to encourage ORDR, NIDDK and NIMHD to collaborate on research that 

studies the incidence and cause of this disease among minority populations. 

NephCure also asks the Subcommittee to urge NIDDK and the NIMHD to undertake culturally appropriate efforts aimed at educating minority populations about 

primary glomerular disease. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the FSGS/NS community. 

Please contact the NephCure Foundation if additional information is required. 

[This statement was submitted by Irving Smokler, PH.D., President and Founder, 

Nephcure Foundation.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NEUROFIBROMATOSIS NETWORK

Thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony to the Subcommittee on the 

importance of continued funding at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research on Neurofibromatosis (NF), a genetic disorder closely linked to many common 

diseases widespread among the American population. We respectfully request that 

you include the following report language on NF research at the National Institutes 

of Health within your fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations bill. 

Neurofibromatosis [NF]—The Committee supports efforts to increase funding and 

resources for NF research and treatment at multiple NIH Institutes, including NCI, 

NINDS, NIDCD, NHLBI, NICHD and NEI. Children and adults with NF are at significant risk for the development of many forms of cancer; the Committee encourages NCI to increase its NF research portfolio in fundamental basic science, 

translational research and clinical trials focused on NF. The Committee also encour-
608 

ages the NCI to support NF centers, NF clinical trials consortia, NF preclinical 

mouse models consortia and NF-associated tumor sequencing efforts. Because NF 

causes brain and nerve tumors and is associated with cognitive and behavioral problems, the Committee urges NINDS to continue to aggressively fund fundamental 

basic science research on NF relevant to nerve damage and repair, learning disabilities and attention deficit disorders. Since NF2 accounts for approximately 5 percent 

of genetic forms of deafness, the Committee encourages NIDCD to expand its investment in NF2 basic and clinical research. 

On behalf of the Neurofibromatosis (NF) Network, a national organization of NF 

advocacy groups, I speak on behalf of the 100,000 Americans who suffer from NF 

as well as approximately 175 million Americans who suffer from diseases and conditions linked to NF such as cancer, brain tumors, heart disease, memory loss, and 

learning disabilities. Thanks in large measure to this Subcommittee’s strong support, scientists have made enormous progress since the discovery of the NF1 gene 

in 1990 resulting in clinical trials now being undertaken at NIH with broad implications for the general population. 

NF is a genetic disorder involving the uncontrolled growth of tumors along the 

nervous system which can result in terrible disfigurement, deformity, deafness, 

pain, blindness, brain tumors, cancer, and even death. In addition, approximately 

one-half of children with NF suffer from learning disabilities. NF is the most common neurological disorder caused by a single gene and is more common than Muscular Dystrophy and Cystic Fibrosis combined. There are three types of NF: NF1, 

which is more common, NF2, which initially involves tumors causing deafness and 

balance problems, and Schwannomatosis, the hallmark of which is severe pain. 

While not all NF patients suffer from the most severe symptoms, all NF patients 

and their families live with the uncertainty of not knowing whether they will be seriously affected because NF is a highly variable and progressive disease. 

Researchers have determined that NF is closely linked to heart disease, learning 

disabilities, memory loss, cancer, brain tumors, and other disorders including deafness, blindness and orthopedic disorders, primarily because NF regulates important 

pathways common to these disorders such as the RAS, cAMP and PAK pathways. 

Research on NF therefore stands to benefit millions of Americans: 

Learning Disabilities/Behavioral and Brain Function 

Learning disabilities affect one-half of people with NF1. They range from mild to 

severe, and can impact the quality of life for those with NF1. In recent years, research has revealed common threads between NF1 learning disabilities, autism and 

other related disabilities. New drug interventions for learning disabilities are being 

developed and will be beneficial to military dependants, as well as the general population. Research being done in this area includes a clinical trial of the statin drug 

Lovastatin, as well as other categories of drugs. 

Bone Repair 

At least a quarter of children with NF1 have abnormal bone growth in any part 

of the skeleton. In the legs, the long bones are weak, prone to fracture and unable 

to heal properly; this can require amputation at a young age. Adults with NF1 also 

have low bone mineral density, placing them at risk of skeletal weakness and injury. Research currently being done to understand bone biology and repair will pave 

the way for new strategies to enhancing bone health and facilitating repair. 

Pain Management 

Severe pain is a central feature of Schwannomatosis, and significantly impacts 

quality of life. Understanding what causes pain, and how it could be treated, has 

been a fast-moving area of NF research over the past few years. Pain management 

is a challenging area of research and new approaches are highly sought after. 

Nerve Regeneration 

NF often requires surgical removal of nerve tumors, which can lead to nerve paralysis and loss of function. Understanding the changes that occur in a nerve after 

surgery, and how it might be regenerated and functionally restored, will have significant quality of life value for affected individuals. Light-based therapy is being 

tested to dissect nerves in surgery of tumor removal. If successful it could have applications for treating nerve damage and scarring after injury, thereby aiding repair 

and functional restoration. 

Wound Healing, Inflammation and Blood Vessel Growth 

Wound healing requires new blood vessel growth and tissue inflammation. Mast 

cells, important players in NF1 tumor growth, are critical mediators of inflammation, and they must be quelled and regulated in order to facilitate healing. Re-
609 

searchers have gained deep knowledge on how mast cells promote tumor growth, 

and this research has led to ongoing clinical trials to block this signaling, resulting 

in slower tumor growth. As researchers learn more about blocking mast cell signals 

in NF, this research can be translated to the management of mast cells in wound 

healing. 

New Cancer Treatments 

NF can cause a variety of tumors to grow, which includes tumors in the brain, 

spinal cord and nerves. NF affects the RAS pathway which is implicated in 70 percent of all human cancers. Some of these tumor types are benign and some are malignant, hard to treat and often fatal. One of these tumor types is malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST), a very aggressive, hard to treat and often fatal 

cancer. MPNSTs are fast growing, and because the cells change as the tumor grows, 

they often become resistant to individual drugs. Clinical trials are underway to 

identify a drug treatment that can be widely used in MPNSTs and other hard-totreat tumors. 

The enormous promise of NF research, and its potential to benefit over 175 million Americans who suffer from diseases and conditions linked to NF, has gained 

increased recognition from Congress and the NIH. This is evidenced by the fact that 

numerous institutes are currently supporting NF research, and NIH’s total NF research portfolio has increased from $3 million in fiscal year 1990 to an estimated 

$18 million in fiscal year 2014. Given the potential offered by NF research for 

progress against a range of diseases, we are hopeful that the NIH will continue to 

build on the successes of this program by funding this promising research and 

thereby continuing the enormous return on the taxpayers’ investment. 

We appreciate the Subcommittee’s strong support for NF research and will continue to work with you to ensure that opportunities for major advances in NF research are aggressively pursued. Thank you. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NEW ENGLAND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY

ASSOCIATION

On behalf of the low-income, first-generation students and students with disabilities served by the Federal TRIO Programs (‘‘TRIO’’) across Connecticut, Maine, 

Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont, the New England 

Educational Opportunity Association (‘‘NEOA’’) respectfully requests that the Senate 

Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education boost TRIO 

funding by $52 million in fiscal year 2015. 

A $52 million funding increase would allow for a total funding level of $890 million in fiscal year 2015 which, in turn, would allow TRIO’s Student Support Services 

program to expand its reach by 10 percent and grow to serve 20,000 additional lowincome, first-generation students at colleges and universities across the Nation during the 2015–2016 academic year. This funding level would also allow current TRIO 

programs to sustain the high-quality access and success services provided to 750,000 

students across the Nation as well as allow for the expansion of these services to 

include 23,000 more who stand in need. Such growth is critical as TRIO programs 

have lost more than 120,000 students over the last decade. While we are tremendously grateful for the work of this Subcommittee to restore 95 percent of the funds 

lost to sequestration in fiscal year 2014, we would be remiss if we did not request 

additional funding so that we may continue to recoup from earlier losses. If the success of TRIO in New England serves as any indicator, it becomes clear that greater 

investment in TRIO is critical to boosting educational attainment nationally. 

More than 42,000 students ranging from middle school through graduate study 

participate in TRIO programs across New England. Throughout the region, stories 

of student success abound, with strong statistics to support them. For instance, both 

the Talent Search and Upward Bound programs in Rhode Island can boast of 99 

percent high school graduation rates. Moreover, 86 percent of Rhode Island’s Talent 

Search students go directly onto college as do 90 percent of the Upward Bound students. 

In New Hampshire, a longitudinal study of Student Support Services (‘‘SSS’’) participants at the University of New Hampshire demonstrated that, compared to eligible non-participants, SSS students exhibited higher graduation rates, greater improvement in grades, and lower academic suspension rates. Meanwhile, during fiscal 

year 2010, Plymouth State University had a 92 percent retention rate among nongraduating SSS participants. The SSS program at the University of Bridgeport in 

Connecticut can demonstrate similar success. During the 2013–2014 Academic Year, 
610 

58 percent of SSS participants made the Dean’s List and/or the President’s List as 

a result of their GPAs. 

In recent years, the Educational Opportunity Center (EOC) in Vermont aided 63 

percent of its clients—which include out-of-work adults and military veterans—in 

enrolling in postsecondary education programs for the first time; a similar percentage (61 percent) of postsecondary ‘‘stop-outs’’ re-enrolled in postsecondary education 

programs. Similarly, the EOC program in Maine helped more than 900 adult learners enroll in college and assisted nearly 2,000 adults in developing career and educational plans. 

Massachusetts also produces stellar results through its TRIO programs. Many notable examples are found at the University of Massachusetts-Boston. For instance, 

the institution’s Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) program found that 81.5 percent 

of VUB participants who enrolled in postsecondary education programs persisted 

through to a second year of academic study. Meanwhile, 48 percent of students who 

participated in their Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement program 

earned doctoral degrees within 10 years of receipt of their bachelor’s degree. 

This is just a sampling of the success sparked by the supportive services provided 

by TRIO. We hope that you will strongly consider these examples when determining 

funding levels for our program in fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you for your consideration of this request. 

[This statement was submitted by Karen Keim, President, New England Educational Opportunity Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE COMMUNITY LOAN FUND

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and distinguished Members of the 

Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, 

and Related Agencies: Helping child-care centers finance improvements to their facilities has been a key poverty-fighting strategy of the New Hampshire Community 

Loan Fund for the last two decades. We see first-hand what the experts are able 

to prove: that quality early learning provides a critical foundation for social and economic success. 

The Community Loan Fund wishes to endorse the testimony of the National Children’s Facilities Network and the network’s call for adequate Federal funding for 

the acquisition, construction, and improvement of child-care facilities. Over the last 

7 years, New Hampshire’s child-care centers have grown increasingly averse to the 

risks associated with investing in capital improvements. The recession heightened 

the typical executive director’s financial anxiety and that anxiety persists. Now 

would be the perfect time for Federal action that would increase their confidence 

and encourage investments in their facilities. 

Please let me know if you would like additional information from us. 

[This statement was submitted by Richard A. Minard, Jr., Vice President, New 

Hampshire Community Loan Fund.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE NURSING COMMUNITY

The Nursing Community is a forum comprised of 60 national professional nursing 

associations that builds consensus and advocates on a wide spectrum of healthcare 

and nursing issues surrounding practice, education, and research. These organizations are committed to promoting America’s health through the advancement of the 

nursing profession. Collectively, the Nursing Community represents nearly one million Registered Nurses (RNs), Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs-including certified nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and certified registered nurse anesthetists), nurse executives, nursing students, faculty, and 

researchers. 

For fiscal year 2015, our organizations respectfully request $251 million for the 

Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Nursing Workforce Development programs (authorized under Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act [42 

U.S.C. 296 et seq.]), $150 million for the National Institute of Nursing Research 

(NINR) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and $20 million in authorized funding for the Nurse-Managed Health Clinics (Title III of the Public Health 

Service Act). These investments will help ensure that our Nation’s population receives the highest-quality nursing services possible. 
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Demand for Nurses Continues to Grow 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Employment Projections for 

2012–2022, the expected number of practicing nurses will grow from 2.71 million 

in 2012 to 3.24 million in 2022, an increase of 526,800, or 19.4 percent. The number 

of job openings due to demand for registered nursing services and replacements in 

the workforce brings the total of RNs needed to 1.053 million by 2022. In addition, 

nurse practitioners are one of the fastest growing occupations according to the BLS 

projections, noting there will be a 33.7 percent increase in nurse practitioners between 2012–2022. 

Two primary factors contribute to this overwhelming demand. First, America’s 

nursing workforce is aging. A 2013 HRSA report, The U.S. Nursing Workforce: 

Trends in Supply and Education, indicates that over the next 10 to 15 years, the 

nearly one million RNs over age 50 (comprising approximately one-third of the current workforce), will reach retirement age. Secondly, America’s Baby Boomer population is aging. This population will require a vast influx of nursing services, particularly in areas of primary care and chronic illness management. A significant investment must be made in the education of new nurses to provide the Nation with 

the nursing services it demands. 

Addressing the Demand: Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs 

For 50 years, the Nursing Workforce Development programs, authorized under 

Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act, have helped to build the supply and distribution of qualified nurses to meet our Nation’s healthcare needs. The Title VIII 

programs bolster nursing education at all levels, from entry-level preparation 

through graduate study, and provide support for institutions that educate nurses for 

practice in rural and medically underserved communities. Today, the Title VIII programs are essential to ensure the demand for nursing care is met. Between fiscal 

year 2005 and 2012 alone, these programs supported over 450,000 nurses and nursing students, as well as numerous academic nursing institutions and healthcare facilities. 

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s (AACN) Title VIII Student Recipient Survey gathers information about Title VIII dollars and their impact on 

nursing students. The 2013–2014 survey, which included responses from over 800 

students, indicated that the Title VIII programs played a critical role in funding 

these students’ nursing education. The survey showed that 78 percent of the students receiving Title VIII funding are attending school full-time. By supporting fulltime students, the Title VIII programs are helping to ensure that students enter the 

workforce without delay. 

The Title VIII programs also address the need for more nurse faculty. Data from 

AACN’s 2013–2014 enrollment and graduations survey show that nursing schools 

were forced to turn away 78,089 qualified applications from entry-level baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2013, and faculty vacancy was a primary reason. The Title VIII Nurse Faculty Loan Program aids in increasing nursing 

school enrollment capacity by supporting students pursuing graduate education, 

provided they serve as faculty for 4 years after graduation. 

—The Nursing Community respectfully requests $251 million for the Nursing 

Workforce Development programs in fiscal year 2015. 

National Institute of Nursing Research: Foundation for Evidence-Based Care 

As one of the 27 Institutes and Centers at the NIH, the NINR funds research that 

lays the groundwork for evidence-based nursing practice. Nurse scientists at NINR 

examine ways to improve care models to deliver safe, high-quality, and cost-effective 

health services to the Nation. Our country must look toward the prevention aspect 

of healthcare as the vehicle for saving our system from further financial burden, and 

the work of NINR embraces this endeavor through research related to care management of patients during illness and recovery, reduction of risks for disease and disability, promotion of healthy lifestyles, enhancement of quality of life for those with 

chronic illness, and care for individuals at the end of life. 

Moreover, NINR helps to provide needed faculty to support the education of future generations of nurses. Training programs at NINR develop future nurse researchers, many of whom also serve as faculty in our Nation’s nursing schools. 

—The Nursing Community respectfully requests $150 million for the NINR in fiscal year 2015. 

Nurse-Managed Health Clinics: Expanding Access to Care 

NMHCs are healthcare delivery sites managed by APRNs and are staffed by an 

interdisciplinary health provider team which may include physicians, social workers, public health nurses, and therapists. These clinics are often associated with a 
612 

school, college, university, department of nursing, federally qualified health center, 

or independent nonprofit healthcare agency. NMHCs serve as critical access points 

to keep patients out of the emergency room, saving the healthcare system millions 

of dollars annually. 

NMHCs provide care to patients in medically underserved regions of the country, 

including rural communities, Native American reservations, senior citizen centers, 

elementary schools, and urban housing developments. The populations within these 

communities are the most vulnerable to chronic illnesses that create heavy financial 

burdens on patients and the healthcare system. NMHCs aim to reduce the prevalence of disease and create healthier communities by providing primary care services and educating patients on health promotion practices. Furthermore, NMHCs 

serve as clinical education training sites for nursing students and other health professionals. This is crucial given that a lack of training sites is commonly identified 

as a barrier to nursing school enrollment. 

—The Nursing Community respectfully requests $20 million for the Nurse-Managed Health Clinics authorized under Title III of the Public Health Service Act 

in fiscal year 2015. 

Without a workforce of well-educated nurses providing evidence-based care to 

those who need it most, including our growing aging population, the healthcare system is not sustainable. The Nursing Community’s request of $251 million for the 

Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development programs, $150 million for the National 

Institute of Nursing Research, and $20 million for Nurse-Managed Health Clinics 

in fiscal year 2015 will help ensure continued access to quality care provided by 

America’s nursing workforce. 

MEMBERS OF THE NURSING COMMUNITY SUBMITTING THIS TESTIMONY

Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses 

American Academy of Ambulatory Care 

Nursing 

American Academy of Nursing 

American Assembly for Men in Nursing 

American Association of Colleges of 

Nursing 

American Association of Critical-Care 

Nurses 

American Association of Heart Failure 

Nurses 

American Association of Neuroscience 

Nurses 

American Association of Nurse 

Anesthetists 

American Association of Nurse 

Assessment Coordination 

American Association of Nurse 

Practitioners 

American College of Nurse-Midwives 

American Nurses Association 

American Organization of Nurse 

Executives 

American Pediatric Surgical Nurses 

Association 

American Psychiatric Nurses Association 

American Rehabilitation Nurses 

American Society for Pain Management 

Nursing 

American Society of PeriAnesthesia 

Nurses 

Association of Community Health 

Nursing Educators 

Association of Nurses in AIDS Care 

Association of periOperative Registered 

Nurses 

Association of Public Health Nurses 

Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric 

and Neonatal Nurses 

Commissioned Officers Association of the 

U.S. Public Health Service 

Dermatology Nurses’ Association 

Developmental Disabilities Nurses 

Association 

Emergency Nurses Association 

Gerontological Advanced Practice Nurses 

Association 

Hospice and Palliative Nurses 

Association 

Infusion Nurses Society 

International Society of Psychiatric 

Nursing 

National American Arab Nurses 

Association 

National Association of Clinical Nurse 

Specialists 

National Association of Hispanic Nurses 

National Association of Pediatric Nurse 

Practitioners 

National Association of School Nurses 

National Black Nurses Association 

National Forum of State Nursing 

Workforce Centers 

National Nursing Centers Consortium 

National Organization for Associate 

Degree Nursing 

National Organization of Nurse 

Practitioner Faculties 

Nurses Organization of Veterans Affairs 

Oncology Nursing Society 

Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses 

Association 

Society of Urologic Nurses and Associates 
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1 Administration on Aging. (2013). Aging Statistics. Retrieved from http://www.aoa.gov/ 

AginglStatistics/. 2 Consumer Survey, National Association of Dental Plans. 2012. 

3 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2000). Oral Health in America: A Report 

of the Surgeon General. Retrieved from http://silk.nih.gov/public/hck1ocv.@www.surgeon. 

fullrpt.pdf. 4 Borrel, L.N., Burt, B.A., & Taylor, G.W. (2005, October). Prevalence and Trends in 

Periodontitis in the USA: from the NHANES III to the NHANES, 1988 to 2000. Journal of Dental Research,84(10). Retrieved from http://jdr.sagepub.com/content/84/10/924.abstract. 5Dolan, T. A., Atchison, K., & Huynh, T. N. (2005). Access to Dental Care Among Older 

Adults in the United States. Journal of Dental Education, 69(9), 961–974. Retrieved from http:// 

www.jdentaled.org/content/69/9/961.long. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE OLDER AMERICANS ACT

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee, Oral Health America (OHA), a leading organization dedicated to changing lives by connecting communities with resources to increase access to care, education, and advocacy for all Americans, especially those most vulnerable; is requesting fiscal year 2015 funding for all programs administered under the Older Americans Act (OAA) be restored to fiscal year 2012 levels. Of particular interest to OHA 

is to ensure Title III–D, Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, is restored to 

at least $21,000,000 because of the cost-effectiveness that health education, prevention and promotion programs provide to the system. 

The OAA provides Federal programs that serve to meet the needs of millions of 

older Americans. We understand the United States continues to operate amid a 

challenging budgetary environment. However, OHA believes that proper Federal investment in the OAA is critical to keep pace with the rate of inflation and to meet 

the needs of this ever-growing segment of the population through the multitude of 

services the OAA provides. Simply stated, proper investment in OAA saves taxpayer 

dollars. This is especially evident when it comes to health services. Health services 

the emphasize prevention and promotion will help to reduce disease, leading to the 

improvement of the overall health and well-being of America’s older adults and resulting in the reduction of premature and costly medical interventions. OHA strongly contends that one’s health and overall well-being begins with proper oral health. 

Background 

The population of the United States is aging at an unprecedented rate. Older 

adults make up one of the fastest growing segments of the American population. In 

2009, 39.6 million seniors were U.S. residents. This aging cohort is expected to 

reach 72.1 million by 2030—an increase of 82 percent.1

The oral health of older Americans is in a state of decay. The reasons for this are 

complex. Limited access to dental insurance, affordable dental services, community 

water fluoridation, and programs that support oral health prevention and education 

for older Americans are significant factors that contribute to the unmet dental needs 

and edentulism among older adults, particularly those most vulnerable. While improvements in oral health across the lifespan have been observed in the last half 

century, long term concern may be warranted for the 10,000 Americans retiring 

daily, as it is estimated that only 9.8 percent of this ‘‘silver tsunami’’—baby boomers 

turning age 65—will have access to dental insurance benefits.2

Dental Health and Disparities.—Older adults experience an increased risk for oral 

conditions such as edentulism, oral cancer, and periodontal disease. The reasons for 

this vary but are often related to age-associated physiologic changes, underlying 

chronic diseases, race, gender, and the use of various medications. These oral conditions disproportionately affect persons with low income, racial and ethnic minorities, 

and those who have limited or no access to dental insurance. Older adults with 

physical and intellectual disabilities and those persons who are homebound or institutionalized are also at greater risk for poor oral health.3

As examples of these disparities, older African American adults are 1.88 times 

more likely than their white counterparts to have periodontitis; 4 low-income older 

adults suffer more than twice the rate of gum disease than their more affluent peers 

(17.49 verses 8.62 respectively); and Americans who live in poverty are 61 percent 

more likely to have lost all of their teeth when compared to those in higher socioeconomic groups. 

Edentulism and Overall Health.—Despite these existing conditions, recent dental 

public health trends demonstrate that as the population at large ages, older Americans are increasingly retaining their natural teeth.5 Today, many older adults benefit from healthy aging associated with the retention of their natural teeth, improve-
614 

6 Ira B. Lamster, DDS, MMSc, Evanthia Lalla, DDS, MS, Wenche S. Borgnakke, DDS, PhD 

and George W. Taylor, DMD, DrPH. (2008). Journal of the American Dental Association. 7Fox, Philip C. (2008). Xerostomia: Recognition and Management. Retrieved from: http:// 

www.colgateprofessional.com.hk/LeadershipHK/ProfessionalEducation/Articles/Resources/ 

profedlartlaccess-supplement-2008-xerostimia.pdf. 

ments in their ability to chew, and the ability to enjoy a variety of food choices not 

previously experienced by earlier generations of their peers. 

Oral health data reveals that many older adults experience adverse oral health 

associated with chronic and systemic health conditions. For example, associations 

between periodontitis and diabetes have emerged in recent years, as well as oral 

conditions such as xerostomia associated with the use of prescription drugs.6,7

Xerostomia, commonly known as dry mouth, contributes to the inception and progression of dental caries (cavities). For older Americans, the occurrence or recurrence of dental caries coupled with an inability to access treatment may lead to significant pain and suffering along with other detrimental health effects. 

Oral Care Provider Issues.—Although a growing number of older Americans need 

oral healthcare, the current workforce is challenged to meet the needs of older 

adults. The current dental workforce is aging, and many dental professionals will 

retire within the next decade.2 A lack of geriatric specialty programs complicates 

this problem, and few practitioners are choosing geriatrics as their field of choice. 

While these trends are favorable, adverse oral health consequences are emerging. 

Due to reasons stated in this report, together with increased demand for services, 

lack of access to dental benefits through Medicare, increased morbidity and mobility 

among older adults, and reduced income associated with aging and retirement, 

many older Americans are unable to access oral healthcare services. As a result, 

many older adults who have retained their natural teeth are now experiencing dental problems. 

Older Adults’ Oral Health in State of Decay 

OHA released State of Decay on October 8, 2013, which is a State-by-State analysis of oral healthcare delivery and public health factors impacting the oral health 

of older adults. The report revealed more than half of the country received a ‘‘fair’’ 

or ‘‘poor’’ assessment when it comes to minimal standards affecting dental care access for older adults. The top findings of the report were: 

—Persistent lack of oral health coverage across much of the Nation. Forty-two 

percent of States (21 States) provide either no dental benefits or provide only 

emergency coverage through adult Medicaid Dental Benefits. Nearly 70 percent 

of older Americans lack dental insurance, and in the context of a rapidly aging 

Nation, this percentage will only likely increase. 

—Strained dental health work force. Thirty-one States (62 percent) have high 

rates of Dental Health Provider Shortage Areas (HPSAs), meeting only 40 percent or less of dental provider needs. 

—Tooth loss remains a signal of suboptimal oral health. Eight States had strikingly high rates of edentulism, with West Virginia notably having an adult population that is 33.8 percent edentate. 

—Deficiencies in preventive programs. Thirteen States (26 percent) have upwards 

of 60 percent of their residents living in communities without water fluoridation 

(CWF), despite recognition for 68 years that this public health measure markedly reduces dental caries. Hawaii (89.2 percent) and New Jersey (86.5 percent) 

represent the highest rates of citizens unprotected by fluoridation, an unnecessary public peril. 

Moreover, poor oral health has substantial financial implications. For example, in 

2010 alone, between $867 million and $2.1 billion was spent on emergency dental 

procedures. When compared to care delivered in a dentist’s office, hospital treatments are nearly ten times more expensive than the routine care that could have 

prevented the emergency. This places a costly yet avoidable burden on both the individual and the health institutions that must then bear the expense. 

In sum, oral health and access to preventive care significantly impact overall 

health and expenditure, yet are difficult to maintain—particularly for older adults— 

in the Nation’s present context of support systems and healthcare. 

How OHA Empowers Older Adults to Meet their Oral Health Needs 

Oral Health America’s Wisdom Tooth Project® aims to change the lives of older 

adults especially vulnerable to oral disease. Its goal is to educate Americans about 

the oral health needs of older adults, connect older adults to local resources, and 

to advocate for policies that will improve the oral health of older adults. The Wis-
615 

dom Tooth Project achieves these goals through five strategies: publications, our 

web portal, regional symposia, communications, and demonstration projects. 

In addition to the State of Decay report referenced above, a vital component of 

the Wisdom Tooth Project is Toothwisdom.org, which is a first-of-its-kind website 

created to connect older adults and their caregivers to local care and education 

around the oral health issues they face, the importance of continuing prevention as 

we age, and the overall impact of oral health on overall health. 

Importance of OAA Reauthorization to Oral Health of Older Adults 

Recognizing this current State of oral health among older adults, Oral Health 

America welcomes the bipartisan-supported Older Americans Act reauthorization in 

the U.S. Senate, S.1562. The Senate’s bill includes—for the first time—a small provision that allows the Aging Network to use funds they receive for disease prevention and health promotion activities to conduct oral health screenings. Preventive 

dental care that can be provided through oral health screenings can head off more 

expensive dental work and help prevent severe diseases. Unfortunately, dentists see 

older adults everyday living with infection and pain that could be easily avoided 

with proper care that these screenings could provide. Although the oral health 

screenings provision would not require new or additional funding under Title III– 

D, Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Services, restoring funding to fiscal 

year 2012 levels would greatly assist the Aging Network to conduct the screenings. 

More succinctly, the Senate’s bill recognizes the importance of oral health and its 

role in disease prevention. We view this as a step toward improving the oral—and 

overall—health of older adults and call for the bill’s passage. 

RECOMMENDATION

It is evident the United States’ healthcare system is woefully unprepared to meet 

the oral health challenges of a burgeoning population of older adults with special 

needs, chronic disease complications, and a growing inability to access and pay for 

dental services. However, the benefits of proper oral hygiene and routine care for 
616 

older adults to our Nation’s healthcare system and economy are also quite clear. 

Through OHA’s Wisdom Tooth Project, OHA aspires to change the lives of older 

adults especially vulnerable to oral disease. OHA views proper funding of the Older 

Americans Act as a crucial Federal investment vehicle to advance health promotion 

and disease prevention. Therefore, OHA recommends the Subcommittee to restore 

fiscal year 2015 funding for all OAA program to fiscal year 2012 levels, and moreover, to ensure Title III–D, Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, is restored 

to at least $21,000,000 because of the cost-effectiveness that health education, prevention and promotion programs provide to the system. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present and submit our written testimony before 

the Subcommittee. 

[This statement was submitted by Beth Truett, CEO/President, Oral Health 

America.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE OVARIAN CANCER NATIONAL ALLIANCE

The Ovarian Cancer National Alliance (the Alliance) greatly appreciates the opportunity to submit testimony for the record regarding our fiscal year 2015 funding 

recommendations. The fiscal year 2015 programmatic funding levels we are advocating for will help advance the awareness, detection and treatment of ovarian cancer, the deadliest of gynecologic cancers. Specifically, the Alliance respectfully requests Congress provide $7.5 million for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Ovarian Cancer program, which funds critical public health research of ovarian cancer. CDC also leads a public gynecologic cancer (ovarian, uterine, cervical, vaginal, vulvar) awareness initiative, authorized by Johanna’s Law, 

that plays an integral role in women’s cancer education, detection and prevention. 

As such, the Alliance respectfully requests Congress appropriate $5.5 million for 

Johanna’s Law implementation. Furthermore, to advance and leverage the important ovarian cancer research funded through the National Cancer Institute (NCI) 

at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Alliance respectfully requests Congress allocate $5.26 billion to NCI, as a portion of $32 billion appropriated to NIH 

in fiscal year 2015. 

For 17 years, the Alliance has worked to increase awareness of ovarian cancer 

and advocate on behalf of women with ovarian cancer. As an umbrella organization 

of 58 State and regional Partner Member organizations, the Alliance unites the efforts of survivors, caretakers and healthcare professionals to bring national attention to ovarian cancer. The Alliance advocates at a national level for greater investment in Federal research to support the development of an early detection test, improved healthcare practices and life-saving treatment protocols. The Alliance also 

educates healthcare professionals about—and raises public awareness of—risk factors for and symptoms of ovarian cancer. 

Ovarian cancer is a highly deadly disease. According to the American Cancer Society, in 2013, an estimated 22,240 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer and 

14,030 women lost their lives to this terrible disease. A quarter of women diagnosed 

with ovarian cancer will die within 1 year of diagnosis and over half of women do 

not survive 5 years after diagnosis. Unfortunately, these rates have not changed in 

nearly 40 years. These grim statistics arise from the fact that there is no early detection test for ovarian cancer; tragically, most cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed 

after the disease has already begun to spread and are more difficult to effectively 

treat. However, if ovarian cancer is caught in the early stages, nearly ninety percent 

of women survive. As such, it is critical that women and healthcare providers be 

aware of the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer and that valid and reliable early 

detection tests be developed. 

Few treatments for ovarian cancer have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Many FDA approved drugs are platinum-based therapies, to 

which cancers readily become resistant if multiple rounds of chemotherapy are 

needed. Nearly 80 percent of ovarian cancer patients will have a recurrence of disease, underscoring the great need for new and better treatments for ovarian cancer. 

For these reasons, we respectfully urge you and your colleagues to support ovarian 

cancer research, education and awareness efforts. 

CDC DIVISION OF CANCER PREVENTION AND CONTROL—OVARIAN CANCER

The Ovarian Cancer Line (also known as the Ovarian Cancer Control Initiative) 

funds public health research of ovarian cancer to better identify women most at risk 

for developing ovarian cancer, and design risk-reduction and prevention-focused 

interventions. In fiscal year 2014, CDC’s ovarian cancer program received $4.75 mil-
617 

lion to achieve its mission. Some of the projects being supported by those funds include: the development of a Continuing Medical Education curriculum on hereditary 

breast and ovarian cancer that educates physicians about how to identify, screen 

and manage high-risk patients; the investigation of ways to improve follow-up care 

for ovarian cancer patients given that so many experience disease recurrence; and 

the examination of risk factors, treatment disparities and other factors influencing 

survival rates to identify ways to improve patient outcomes with existing tools and 

treatments. 

With an allocation of $7.5 million in fiscal year 2015, the CDC will be able to continue this important work, and expand a pilot initiative that promotes educating 

women and providers about the BRCA mutations, identifies women at high risk for 

developing breast/ovarian cancer and ensures appropriate referral of these at risk 

women for genetic counseling or testing. This pilot program is currently operational 

in three States, but with increased funding, similar programs can be established in 

additional States and communication among women and their providers about 

genomic risk and testing can be further encouraged. 

Given the shared risk between ovarian and breast cancers for individuals with 

BRCA mutations, it is imperative that we integrate ovarian cancer risk assessment, 

education and genetic testing into other CDC cancer-related programs, such as the 

EARLY Act and the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Programs. 

Combining breast and ovarian cancer programs in this manner will leverage scarce 

resources, better coordinate efforts between existing Federal programs, create economies of scale and efficiencies with respect to CDC education and awareness programs and advance complementary efforts to reduce ovarian cancer related deaths. 

CDC DIVISION OF CANCER PREVENTION AND CONTROL—JOHANNA’S LAW

Johanna’s Law funds a CDC-led gynecologic cancer awareness campaign, Inside 

Knowledge, which educates women and healthcare providers about the signs and 

symptoms of gynecologic cancers. In fiscal year 2014, CDC received $4.85 million for 

Johanna’s Law activities, which include supporting the ongoing creation and dissemination of awareness campaign materials in English and Spanish, and a series 

of print, radio and television PSAs featuring survivor stories. In 2012, the campaign 

achieved one billion views of its PSAs across media types. 

With $5.5 million in fiscal year 2015, CDC will be able to continue to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of ovarian and other gynecologic cancers, undertake 

a targeted outreach of its messages to high risk women and expand its partnerships 

with external patient advocacy, health professional and other stakeholder organizations to leverage scarce resources and amplify their messages. Collaboration with 

these organizations, such as the Alliance, would magnify the CDC’s efforts to raise 

awareness and help ensure that women, particularly those known to be at a higher 

risk, seek the healthcare they need to identify and treat gynecologic cancers early. 

NCI AT NIH

NCI and the NIH fund the majority of ovarian cancer research in the United 

States and the world. On average, each year, NCI and NIH fund more than $140 

million in peer-reviewed research grants to researchers at universities and small 

businesses across the United States. These studies are generating insights into the 

origins of ovarian cancer and disease progression that may lead to the development 

of early detection tests and better treatments for ovarian cancer. For example, NIH 

and NCI investments in basic research led to the understanding of a class of enzymes called PARPs implicated in ovarian cancer. Pharmaceutical companies have 

built upon these insights to develop PARP inhibitors, a class of drugs holding great 

promise for ovarian cancer patients. 

In addition to the basic research underlying future cures, NCI supports clinical 

research necessary for translating those ideas into treatments. NCI funding provides critical support to the ovarian cancer Specialized Programs of Research Excellence (SPORE), which facilitate collaborative research studies on the early detection 

and treatment of ovarian cancer. The Roswell Park Cancer Institute and University 

of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute Ovarian Cancer SPORE is working on reducing morbidity and mortality of ovarian cancer through groundbreaking translational research aimed at risk stratification, treatment, and prevention of relapse. Currently, 

a phase I clinical trial is being conducting on vaccines that induce anti-tumor immunity and several other clinical trials are in development. NCI’s clinical trials enterprise plays an essential role in testing the safety and effectiveness of potential treatments for ovarian cancer. Robust NCI funding is critical to the continued excellence 

of the SPOREs. 
618 

Furthermore, NCI recently launched the National Clinical Trials Network 

(NCTN), which consolidates and streamlines existing cooperative clinical trial 

groups. One of these new groups, the NRG Oncology Clinical Trial network, includes 

the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG), whose trials have been responsible for several advances in ovarian cancer research. Specifically, a GOG trial found that chemotherapy followed by maintenance use of Avastin increased progression free survival 

time of advanced ovarian cancer patients, when compared to chemotherapy alone. 

By funding important trials such as this, GOG (and now NRG) fills a clinical research gap left open by pharmaceutical companies that do not often research maintenance therapies. Due to the NCTN’s critical importance in clinical trial design and 

implementation, robust NCI funding is necessary to accomplish these and other important tasks. 

Robust investment in NCI of $5.26 billion, out of a total $32 billion for NIH in 

fiscal year 2015, is critical to ensuring the next generation of discoveries that will 

improve the health and well-being of women with—and at-risk for—ovarian cancer, 

as well as all Americans. 

* * * 

The Alliance maintains a long-standing commitment to working with Congress 

and other stakeholders to improve the survival rates for women with ovarian cancer 

through increased research, education and awareness. On behalf of our community 

of patients, caregivers and survivors, we thank you for your consideration of our fiscal year 2015 requests and urge you to support the aforementioned Federal programs so vital to conquering this horrible disease. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF PARENTS OF DEAD CHILDREN

Can you please address a serious health epidemic that is affecting families everywhere? There is a medical epidemic that no one in Congress seems to want to address. That is heroin addiction and proper ways to treat it. The government is 

spending way too much money in the wrong places and the money should go for 

helpful and intensive treatment, including a significant amount of time addressing 

mental health treatment—again, something no one wants to talk about. Addicts do 

not choose to be addicts, which seems to be the way the vast majority of Americans 

like to think about it. There are mental health issues that go untreated and lead 

to self-medication. Methadone Clinics are a huge failure and have little to no oversight and certainly have no statistics that provide meaningful data as to their success or failure. The money poured into those places could be better utilized. Also, 

more oversight of in patient treatment centers is desperately needed—these are 

money making ventures and they say they treat for co-occurring disorders (such as 

bi-polar), it is a joke. If a patient meets one on one with a psychiatrist for half an 

hour every 2 weeks, how does that help? 

Read this article:The Problem with Methadone Clinics: They Are For-Profit Businesses 

Sine Nomine, Yahoo Contributor Network 

Mar 30, 2007 

Today, many Americans go to a methadone clinic. Some do it for legitimate reasons, others do it just to get a high. The problem with these methadone clinics are 

that they are for-profit organizations. Many people do not realize that the methadone clinic is a business. Businesses are open to make money. Here in lies the biggest problem facing people who do go to these clinics. The nurses, the counselors, 

and the doctors that are there to help patients are actually there to keep patients 

coming back. Why would they want someone to quit coming to the clinic? If everyone decided to quit using methadone then they would be out of a job. I know many 

people who get up every morning and make it to the methadone clinic. Some of 

these people have tried to quit and they always go back. Most don’t even last 2 days 

without their methadone. These people have ended up trading one addiction for another. That is what methadone is, a legal addiction. People can go there everyday 

and get a legal high. 

Besides that, regulations for methadone clinics are practically non existent. You 

can fail a drug test there and not have to worry about it. All that will happen to 

you is that they will make you come there everyday to get your methadone. You 

won’t be allowed to take any home with you. What is even worse is they do not care 

if you fail a drug test just as long as your back there the next day to get your next 

dose. The government needs to step in and make some serious regulations on this 

business. 
619 

1 ‘‘The Current and Projected Economic Burden of Parkinson’s Disease in the United States,’’ 

Movement Disorders, Vol. 28, No. 3, 2013. 

As it stands, right now you can go to the methadone clinic for as long as you need 

to. There is no turning you away just as long as you can pay for your dose and to 

make that easier they will even let you charge a day if you don’t have the money. 

People go to the methadone clinic for years even decades because they are addicted 

to the methadone. Their bodies won’t let them quit. They start suffering withdraw 

symptoms within the first 48 hours. So back to the methadone clinic they go. No 

one will help you detox if they know you are on methadone. You have to go to a 

specialized institution to detox off methadone. 

The government can step in and ban the sell of prescription drugs, ban the use 

of marijuana, they even tell you where you can and can’t smoke today. But what 

are they doing for the growing methadone problem? Very little. More and more people are dying every day because of methadone. But let me be clear it is not just 

the methadone that is killing them. These people are mixing methadone with other 

drugs such as Xanax, Valium, Percocet, OxyContin, etc. The drug tests done at 

these methadone clinics show up these other drugs. Yet nothing is done about the 

fact that these people are abusing other drugs that interact with methadone causing 

a lethal combination. The government should step in and implement a system for 

checking this so called business. A system that would allow them to check the drug 

screens of each individual. Those individuals that cannot pass three drug screens 

should be eliminated from the program. The government should also make it mandatory to drug test each individual at least twice a week. I also believe that a set 

time limit for methadone maintenance should be implemented. Every two weeks the 

patient should be made to come down a minimum of two milligrams of methadone. 

This means that a patient starting out at 50 mg will be completely off the methadone in a little under a year. By implementing this system the government would 

decrease the patients who abuse methadone and would help those who need the 

methadone without making them methadone addicts. 

Gina Haggerty, mother of a dead son who just wanted help and was not going 

to a methadone clinic because he said they were a joke. The deadline for submitting 

this testimony, May 23rd, would have been his 25th birthday. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE PARKINSON’S ACTION NETWORK

Dear Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran: The Parkinson’s Action Network (PAN) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Our comments 

will focus on the importance of Federal investment in biomedical research at the 

National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), which recently adopted a series of priority research recommendations for Parkinson’s disease. PAN supports at least $32 billion in funding 

for the NIH and an increase for NINDS to support the research recommendations 

set forth by the NINDS planning strategy to bring us closer to better treatments 

and a cure for Parkinson’s disease. 

PAN is the unified voice of the Parkinson’s community advocating for better treatments and a cure. In partnership with other Parkinson’s organizations and our powerful grassroots network, we educate the public and government leaders on better 

policies for research and improved quality of life for the estimated 500,000 to 1.5 

million Americans living with Parkinson’s, for whom there is no treatment available 

that slows, reverses, or prevents progression. 

As the second most common neurodegenerative condition after Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease is projected to grow substantially over the next few decades as the size of the elderly population grows and will have a direct impact on 

the healthcare system and economy. A study published in Movement Disorders estimated that the economic burden of Parkinson’s disease is at least $14.4 billion a 

year in the United States, and the prevalence of Parkinson’s will more than double 

by the year 2040.1 In addition, the study calculated an additional $6.3 billion in indirect costs such as missed work or loss of a job for the patient or family member 

who is helping with care, long-distance travel to see a neurologist or movement disorder specialist, as well as costs for home modifications, adult day care, and personal care aides. 

A second study also published in Movement Disorders projected that if Parkinson’s progression were slowed by 50 percent, there would be a 35 percent reduction 

in excess costs, representing a dramatic reduction in cost of care spread over a 
620 

2 ‘‘An Economic Model of Parkinson’s Disease: Implications for Slowing Progression in the 

United States,’’ Movement Disorders, Vol. 28, No. 3, 2013. 3 ‘‘Investing in the Nation’s Health,’’ Dr. Francis Collins. The Washington Post. Opinions. December 24, 2013. 

longer expected survival.2 Both studies highlight the enormous economic implications of this devastating disease, and make it abundantly clear that increased research funding is a wise investment on the front end to help significantly lower or 

eliminate costs on the back end. 

NIH has the unique role of being at the forefront of medical discovery in the 

United States. NIH supports research in all fifty States, with more than 80 percent 

of the funding going to universities, research institutions, and small businesses, 

which create thousands of jobs and grow local economies. In 2012, this amounted 

to over 402,000 jobs nationwide and $57.8 billion in economic activity. Perhaps even 

more important than their economic contributions is the practical impact NIH 

grants have in identifying and developing a better understanding of and treatments 

for countless complex diseases and disorders. 

There is currently a concerted effort at NIH to better target areas of unmet medical need, including Parkinson’s research. In January 2014, NINDS approved a list 

of 31 priority research recommendations specific to Parkinson’s that highlight areas 

in which NINDS and the broader field should direct its resources to achieve the 

greatest impact in addressing treatments and the underlying causes of the disease. 

These recommendations were the result of an intensive planning process that 

brought together clinicians, researchers, and the patient community to determine 

the areas of greatest need to reframe how we approach the disease. We applaud 

NINDS for their leadership in this effort, which represents an unparalleled opportunity to coordinate critical initiatives to help unlock the mysteries of Parkinson’s— 

but its success is dependent upon strengthening funding at NIH and NINDS to ensure that sufficient capacity and resources are available. 

Unfortunately, due to ongoing fiscal constraints, including sequestration, the NIH 

research budget has not kept pace with inflation or the growing needs of an aging 

population and the overall public health. Sequestration alone cut over $1.55 billion 

from NIH in fiscal year 2013, which is roughly equivalent to the entire budget for 

NINDS. NIH, the largest funder of Parkinson’s research in the world, was also 

forced to reduce its Parkinson’s-related research from a high of $154 million in fiscal 

year 2012 to $135 million in fiscal year 2013, a 12 percent decrease. Across the 

country, many institutions have felt the burden of these cuts, receiving smaller 

grants or no grants at all. As NIH continues to find high-priority areas to fund in 

order to advance Parkinson’s research, we should be increasing support and not applying cuts that could possibly delay years of progress toward a cure for Parkinson’s 

and other diseases. 

Despite some greater certainty in the current appropriations cycle because of the 

budget agreement passed in December 2013, there is still grave concern over the 

implications for medical research long-term. Dr. Francis Collins, director of NIH, 

has even noted that ‘‘without sustained investment, many high-priority efforts 

would move at a substantially slower pace, and years of effectively flat funding for 

biomedical research have left scientists facing the lowest chances in history of having their research funded by NIH.’’ 3 Because of this trend, there is also the fear 

that the next generation of scientists will leave the United States or be reluctant 

to enter the field of neurological research at all because of the uncertainty in financial support they see and feel here at home. Innovation and new possibilities for 

medical research are at our fingertips, and we must be sure that we have the resources in place to fully recognize and cultivate their potential. 

We recognize that due to spending caps put into place by the 2013 budget agreement, the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposal only requests a modest increase for NIH and many other important programs. But, we also understand that 

the final decision on how these funds should be allocated within those caps is the 

responsibility of Congress—and we look to you for your leadership and support. 

PAN urges the Subcommittee to prioritize biomedical research funding by supporting at least $32 billion for the NIH overall and increasing funding for NINDS 

to advance critical priorities designed to fundamentally change our understanding 

of Parkinson’s disease. We look forward to working with the Subcommittee as the 

fiscal year 2015 appropriations process moves forward. 
621 

1 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Oral Health in America: A Report of the 

Surgeon General, DHHS, Rockville, MD, 2000. 2 Ibid. 

3 Ibid. 

4 HCUPnet, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, ‘‘Information on ED visits from the 

HCUP Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS),’’ Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://hcupnet.ahrq.gov/ 5 ‘‘315 Patients a Day Seek Dental Treatment in Florida’s Hospital Emergency Rooms,’’ a news 

release by the Florida Public Health Institute, (December 15, 2011). 6 Andy Miller, ‘‘Fight over Georgia dental rules flares again,’’ Georgia Health News, September 

7, 2011, http://www.georgiahealthnews.com/2011/09/fight-dental-rules-flares/. 7 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Oral Health in America: A Report of the 

Surgeon General, DHHS, Rockville, MD, 2000. 8T. M. Leiendecker, G. C. Martin et al., ‘‘2008 DOD Recruit Oral Health Survey: A Report 

on Clinical Findings and Treatment Need,’’ Tri-Service Center for Oral Health Studies (2008), 

1. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE PEW CHILDREN’S DENTAL CAMPAIGN

On behalf of the Pew Children’s Dental Campaign, thank you for the opportunity 

to submit testimony regarding appropriations for fiscal year 2015. We appreciate the 

subcommittee’s recognition of oral health as a key aspect of overall health and its 

continued support of programs that expand access to preventive and restorative 

services through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

The Pew Children’s Dental Campaign works at the State and national levels to 

ensure that more children receive dental care and benefit from evidence-based policies, such as community water fluoridation, dental sealant programs, and expansion 

of the dental workforce. Since it was established in 2008, our initiative has produced 

numerous reports evaluating access to care across the 50 States and the District of 

Columbia, and while we have made significant progress in advancing reforms nationally and in the States, there is still much to be done on this important issue. 

Tooth decay affects nearly 60 percent of the Nation’s children, and, 

unsurprisingly, its consequences are concentrated disproportionately among low-income children.1 Dental disease is the most common chronic disease among children 

in the U.S.—five times more prevalent than asthma, and in a single year, U.S. students may miss as many as 51 million hours of school due to dental health problems.2 It causes pain, hampers school performance, and if left untreated can lead 

to tooth loss and abscesses that spread infection to the blood and brain.3

Lack of access to preventive services and oral healthcare also imposes a huge cost 

on States. In 2011, preventable dental conditions were the primary reason for 857, 

712 emergency room (ER) visits in the U.S.4 In 2010, Florida spent more than $88 

million on more than 115,000 hospital ER visits for dental problems and in 2007, 

60,000 dental visits to ERs cost the State of Georgia more than $23 million.5,6 Dental problems can also impact the workforce, causing an estimated 164 million hours 

of lost work time each year, and can inhibit a person’s ability to find a job.7 Additionally, a 2008 study of the armed forces found that 52 percent of new recruits 

were found to be Class 3 in ‘‘dental readiness,’’ meaning they had oral health problems that needed urgent attention and would delay overseas deployment.8

Given the enormous impact of oral health on overall health and the associated social and economic consequences, we respectfully request that the subcommittee consider the following appropriations requests for programs that aim to expand access 

to care and preventive services for those most in need. 

Focusing on prevention 

With support from the CDC Division of Oral Health, States can better promote 

oral health and efficiently administer scarce resources, monitor oral health status 

and problems, and conduct and evaluate prevention programs through cooperative 

agreements. This funding is critical to a State’s ability to prevent problems before 

they occur, rather than treating them when they are painful and expensive. The cooperative agreement program also supports State community water fluoridation programs and school-based dental sealant programs, and while funding for this program has been authorized for all 50 States, the Division is currently only able to 

support 21 States: Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, 

Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New York, 

North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and 

Wisconsin. 

Research shows that community water fluoridation offers one of the greatest returns on investment of any preventive healthcare strategy. For most cities, every 
622 

9 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ‘‘Cost Savings of Community Water Fluoridation,’’ Fact Sheet, Accessed March 27, 2014: http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/factsheets/cost.htm 10 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ‘‘Preventing Dental Caries with Community 

Programs,’’ Fact Sheet, Accessed March 27, 2014: http://www.cdc.gov/oralhealth/publications/ 

factsheets/dentallcaries.htm 11 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ‘‘2012 Water Fluoridation Statistics,’’ Data and 

Statistics, Accessed March 27, 2014: http://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/statistics/2012stats.htm 12Truman, B. I., Gooch, B. F., Sulemana, I., Gift, H. C., Horowitz, A. M., Evans, C. A., et 

al. (2002). Reviews of evidence on interventions to prevent dental caries, oral and pharyngeal 

cancers, and sports-related craniofacial injuries. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 23(1 

Suppl.), 21—54. 13The Pew Charitable Trusts, ‘‘In Search of Dental Care,’’ June 2013, http:// 

www.pewstates.org/uploadedFiles/PCSlAssets/2013/Inlsearchlofldentallcare.pdf 14This figure counts children ages 1 to 18 eligible for the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment Benefit. See U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for 

Medicare and Medicaid Services, Annual EPSDT Participation Report, Form CMS–416 (National) fiscal year: 2011, April 1, 2013. Analysis by The Pew Charitable Trusts; U.S. Department 

of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Early and Periodic 

Screening, Detection and Treatment Web page (accessed May 24, 2013), http:// 

www.medicaid.gov/Medicaid-CHIP-Program-Information/By-Topics/Benefits/Early-PeriodicScreening-Diagnosis-and- Treatment.html. 15 American Dental Association, Health Policy Resources Center, 2011 American Dental Association Workforce Model: 2009–2030 (Chicago: American Dental Association, 2011), 11. 16Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, Public Law No. 111–148, sec. 5304, 124 

Stat. 119, 621–622 (2010). 17 Virtual Dental Home Demonstration Project, Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific: http://www.dental.pacific.edu/CommunitylInvolvement/PacificlCenterlforlSpeciallCare—(PCSC)/InnovationslCenter/VirtuallDentallHomelDemonstrationlProject. html. 18 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, ‘‘Emergency Room Diversion Grant Program,’’ 

2008– 2011, http://www.medicaid.gov/Medicaid-CHIP-Program-Information/By-Topics/DeliverySystems/Grant-Programs/ER-Diversion-Grants.html. 

$1 invested in water fluoridation saves $38 in dental treatment costs.9 CDC estimates that fluoridated water saves more than $4.6 billion annually in dental costs 

in the United States,10 and even more could be saved by expanding coverage to 

some of the 70 million people who still do not have it.11 Dental sealants are also 

cost-effective; school-based programs can efficiently prevent 60 percent of decay in 

the permanent teeth most likely to become decayed during childhood.12 We recommend a funding level sufficient to enable all States and the District of Columbia 

to receive the critical CDC prevention funds, starting with an increase for the coming fiscal year to begin moving toward full funding. 

Funding request for fiscal year 2015: $19 million for the CDC Division of Oral 

Health to expand cooperative agreements to additional States 

Addressing the dental access crisis 

Pew’s 2013 brief, In Search of Dental Care, found that roughly 45 million Americans live in dental professional shortage areas, regions that have a scarcity of dentists relative to the population.13 Additionally, in 2011, more than 14 million children enrolled in Medicaid did not receive any dental service, in part due to the low 

numbers of dentist participation in the Medicaid program.14 The supply of dentists 

nationally is also likely to shrink in the coming years. The American Dental Association projects that despite the addition of new dental schools and possible increase 

in graduates, between 2010 and 2030 the ratio of dentists to Americans will continue to fall due to high numbers of dentists approaching retirement age.15

Many States are expanding scope of practice laws to enable a variety of dental 

care providers to expand access to care to the underserved, such as dental therapists 

in Minnesota and Alaska tribal lands, public health hygienists in Kentucky, Maryland, and New Hampshire, and community dental health coordinators in Arizona, 

California, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. A Federal demonstration grant program authorized in 2010 but currently unfunded would provide training institutions, community health centers, public hospitals, and other organizations 

with funding to train these types of providers, all in accordance with State scope 

of practice laws, and evaluate their impact on access to care.16 Also eligible for funding through this demonstration are programs such as one in California that uses 

telehealth services to bring care to patients in Head Start centers and nursing 

homes 17 and ER diversion programs that link public hospitals to federally qualified 

health centers.18

Pilot efforts to assess how new dental providers can increase access to care are 

being developed in Oregon, Michigan, Connecticut and Hawaii, and Maine, Kansas, 

New Mexico, Ohio, and Washington are among the States considering legislation to 
623 

19David A. Nash et al., A Review of the Global Literature on Dental Therapists, April 2012, 

W.K. Kellogg Foundation, http://www.wkkf.org/knowledge-center/resources/2012/04/nash-dentaltherapist-literaturereview.aspx. 

authorize dental therapists. These providers and programs can increase access at 

a lower cost to States, and numerous studies have reaffirmed the quality of the 

services being provided.19 These evaluations would not only benefit those States 

that have authorized alternative providers, but would also provide information to 

inform policies in the many other States that are struggling to find answers to the 

challenge of expanding access to the underserved. 

HRSA funding request for fiscal year 2015: 

—Removal of the current funding block on existing funding for the Alternative 

Dental Health Care Provider Demonstration Grants, Section 340G–1 of the 

Public Health Service Act, and an appropriation of $10 million to initiate the 

program —$32 million for Title VII program grants to expand and educate the dental 

workforce 

By making targeted Federal investments in effective policy approaches, the subcommittee can enable States to sustain programs that prevent the pain, missed 

school hours and long-term health and economic consequences of untreated dental 

disease. A handful of States are leading the way, but all States can and must do 

more to ensure access to dental care for those who need it most. Thank you for your 

consideration of this testimony. 

[This statement was submitted by Shelly Gehshan, Director, Pew Children’s Dental Campaign.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

On behalf of the 187 accredited physician assistant (PA) education programs in 

the United States, the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) is pleased 

to submit these comments on the fiscal year 2015 appropriations for PA education 

programs that are authorized through Title VII of the Public Health Service Act. 

PAEA supports funding of at least $280 million in fiscal year 2015 for the health 

professions education programs authorized under Title VII of the Public Health 

Service Act and administered through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). We also request $12 million of that funding support PA programs 

operating across the country. This is the only designated source of Federal funding 

for PA education and is crucial to the U.S. PA education system’s ability to meet 

the demand for education and to continue to produce highly skilled physician assistants ready to enter the healthcare workforce in an average of 26 months. The way 

that PAs are educated in America—the caliber of our institutions and the expertise 

of our educators—is the gold-standard throughout the world and that distinction 

must be maintained in this period of unprecedented patient need and rapid growth 

within the PA profession. 

Need for Increased Federal Funding 

The unmet need for primary care services in the United States is well documented, and only expected to grow as Baby Boomers age and the Affordable Care 

Act is fully implemented. The very parameters of access and healthcare quality are 

rapidly evolving. Yet the one constant in our healthcare system remains the need 

for qualified healthcare providers in numbers sufficient to meet demand, and primary care has been clearly identified as the critical entry point into the healthcare 

system where that access must be guaranteed. The PA profession was created specifically to address a shortage of primary care physicians almost fifty years ago, and 

today’s PAs stand ready to help address the challenges our Nation faces in primary 

care. The effectiveness of physician assistants is well-documented by studies showing better patient access, especially for Medicaid patients, high patient satisfaction, 

more frequent patient education, and healthcare outcomes similar to physicians. Importantly, PAs could play an even larger role in high-quality, cost-effective care if 

offered appropriate financial support and through innovations in the PA education 

system. 

Like physicians, the PA profession also faces a shortage of graduates that will 

hinder its ability to help fully address the primary care issue in the United States. 

Without new solutions, at the current output of approximately 7000 graduates from 

PA programs per year, these shortages will persist, particularly in the rural and underserved communities where care is needed the most. Title VII is the only funding 
624 

source that provides direct support for PA programs and plays a crucial role in developing and supporting the education system’s ability to produce the next generation of these advanced practice clinicians. 

Background on the Profession 

Since the 1960s, PAs have consistently demonstrated they are effective partners 

in healthcare, readily adaptable to the needs of an ever-changing delivery system. 

Physician assistants are licensed health professionals with advanced education in 

general medicine that practice medicine as members of the healthcare team. They 

provide a broad range of medical and therapeutic services to diverse populations in 

rural and urban settings, including prescriptive authority in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Guam. PAs practice medicine to the extent allowed by law 

and within the physician’s scope of practice and their combination of medical training, advanced education, and hands-on experience allows PAs to practice with significant autonomy, and in rural and other medically underserved areas where they 

are often the only full-time medical provider. The profession is well established, yet 

nimble enough to embrace new models of care, adopt innovative approaches to training and education, and adapt to health system challenges. The PA practice model 

is, by design, a team-based approach to patient-centered care where the PA works 

in tandem with a physician and other health professionals. This PA practice approach to quality care is uniquely aligned with the patient-centered, collaborative, 

interprofessional and outcomes-based care models transforming the U.S. healthcare 

system. 

PA Education: The Pipeline for Physician Assistants 

There are currently 187 accredited PA education programs in the United States— 

a 23 percent increase over the past 5 years; together these programs graduate over 

7,000 PA students each year. PAs are educated as generalists in medicine and that 

training gives them the flexibility to practice in more than 60 medical and surgical 

specialties. More than one third of PA program graduates are working in a primary 

care specialty. 

The average PA education program is 26 months in length and includes one didactic year in the classroom, and another year devoted to clinical rotations. Most curricula include 340 hours of basic sciences and nearly 2,000 hours of clinical training, 

second only to physicians in time spent in clinical study. 

As of today, approximately 65 new PA programs are in the pipeline at various 

stages of development and moving toward accredited status. The growth rate in the 

applicant pool is even more pronounced. Since its inception in 2001 through the 

most recent application cycle, the Centralized Application Service (CASPA) used by 

most programs grew from 4,669 applicants to over 20,000. As of March 2014, there 

were 19,968 applicants to PA education programs, a 36 percent increase in CASPA 

applicants over the past 5 years alone. 

The PA profession is expected to continue to grow as a result of the projected 

shortages of physicians and other healthcare professionals, the growing demand for 

care driven by an aging population, and the continuing strong PA applicant pool. 

Accordingly, The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 39 percent increase in the 

number of PA jobs between 2008 and 2018. With its relatively short initial training 

time and the flexibility of generalist-trained PAs, the PA profession is well-positioned to help fill projected shortages in the numbers of healthcare professionals— 

if appropriate resources are available to support the education system behind them. 

AREAS OF ACUTE NEED

Faculty Shortages 

Faculty development is one of the profession’s critical needs and educators are an 

often overlooked element to developing an adequate primary care workforce. Nearly 

half of PA program faculty are 50 years or older and the PA teaching profession 

faces large numbers of retirements in the next 10–15 years. An interest in education 

must be developed early in the educational process to ensure a continuous stream 

of educators, and to do so, we must alleviate the significant loan burdens that prevent many physician assistants from entering academia. In order to attract the most 

highly qualified faculty, PA education programs must have the resources to help clinicians transition into education, including curriculum development, teaching methods, and laboratory instruction. Most educators come from clinical practice and 

these non-clinical professional skills are essential to a successful transition from 

clinical practice to a classroom setting. Without Federal support, we will face an impending shortage of educators who are prepared for and committed to the critical 

teaching role that will ensure the next generation of skilled practitioners. 
625 

Clinical Site Shortages 

Outside of the classroom, PA education faces additional challenges in meeting demand. A lack of clinical sites for PA education is hampering PA programs’ ability 

to produce PAs at the pace needed to meet the demand for primary care in the U.S. 

This shortage is caused by two main factors: a shortage of medical professionals 

willing to teach students as they are cycling through their clinical rotations (preceptors), and a lack of sites with the physical space to teach. 

This phenomenon is experienced throughout the health professions, and is particularly acute in primary care. It has created unintentional competition for clinical 

sites and preceptors within and among PAs, physicians and advance practice nurses. 

Federal funding can help incentivize practicing clinicians to both offer their time as 

preceptors, and volunteer their clinical operations as training grounds for PAs and 

other health professionals to train together and directly interact with patients as 

a team. PAEA believes that interprofessional clinical training and practice are necessary for optimum patient care and will be a defining model of healthcare in the 

U.S. in the 21st century. We can only make that a reality if we begin to build a 

sufficient network of health professionals who are willing to teach the next generation of primary care professionals—that approach will benefit PAs as well as the future physicians, nurses and other clinicians that comprise the full primary care 

team. 

Enhancing Diversity 

Workforce diversity, and practice in underserved areas are key priorities identified by HRSA and are consistent with those of PAEA. It is increasingly important 

for patient care quality that the health workforce better represents America’s changing demographics, as well as addresses the issues of disparities in healthcare. PA 

programs have been committed to attracting students from underrepresented minority groups and disadvantaged backgrounds into the profession, including veterans 

who have served our country and desire to transition to civilian health professions. 

Studies have found that health professionals from underserved areas are three to 

five times more likely to return to underserved areas to provide care, and PA programs are looking for unique ways to recruit diverse individuals into the profession, 

and sustain them as leaders in the education field. If we can provide resources to 

schools that are particularly poised to improve their diversity recruitment efforts 

and replicate or create best practices including transition programs for our veterans, 

we can begin to address this systemic need. 

In order to leverage the efforts of PA programs through Title VII funding to increase workforce diversity in the PA profession, PAEA also supports the restoration 

of funding for the Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP), and increased 

funding for the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students and National Health Service Corps. Historically, access to higher education has been constrained for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. These programs help to provide a clear path 

for students who might not otherwise consider a physician assistant career. 

Title VII Funding 

Title VII funding fills a critical need for curriculum development, faculty development, clinical site expansion and diversification of the primary care workforce— 

areas that if appropriately supported can help ensure the PA profession realizes its 

full promise in the U.S. healthcare system. These funds enhance clinical training 

and education, assist PA programs with recruiting applicants from minority and disadvantaged backgrounds, and enable innovative programs that focus on educating 

a culturally competent workforce. Title VII funding increases the likelihood that PA 

students will practice in medically underserved communities with health professional shortages. The absence of this funding would result in the loss of care to patients with the most urgent need for access to care. 

Title VII support for PA programs was strengthened in 2010 when Congress enacted a 15 percent allocation in the Appropriations process specifically for PA programs working to address the health provider shortage. This funding has enhanced 

capabilities to train a growing PA workforce, creatively expand care to the underserved, and develop a more diverse PA workforce: 

—One Texas program has used its PA training grant to support the program at 

a distant site in an underserved area. This grant provides assistance to the program for recruiting, educating, and training PA students in the largely Hispanic 

South Texas and mid-Texas/Mexico border areas and supports new faculty development. 

—A Utah program has used its PA training grant to promote interprofessional 

teams. The grant allowed the program to optimize its relationship with three 

service-learning partners, develop new partnerships with three service-learning 
626 

sites, and create a model geriatric curriculum that includes didactic and clinical 

education. 

—An Alabama program used its PA training grant to update and expand the current health behavior educational curriculum and HIV/STD training. They were 

also able to include PA students from other programs who were interested in 

rural, primary care medicine for a four-week comprehensive educational program in HIV disease diagnosis and management. 

Recommendations on fiscal year 2015 Funding 

The Physician Assistant Education Association requests the Appropriations Committee’s support in funding for Title VII health professions programs at a minimum 

of $280 million for fiscal year 2015.This level of funding is crucial to support the 

Nation’s ability to produce and maintain highly skilled primary care practitioners, 

particularly those from diverse backgrounds and the military who will practice in 

medically underserved areas and serve vulnerable populations. We also ask for the 

continuation of the 15 percent allocation for PA education programs in the Primary 

Care cluster as mandated in the Affordable Care Act. The Accreditation Review 

Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant estimates that an additional 

75 programs will be added by 2018. Therefore, we request an increase in funding 

to $12 million which will allow sufficient funding for the expanding number of PA 

programs expected to begin enrolling students during the next four to 5 years. 

We thank the members of the subcommittee for their support of the health professions and look forward to your continued commitment to finding solutions to the Nation’s health workforce shortage. We appreciate the opportunity to present the Physician Assistant Education Association’s fiscal year 2015 funding recommendation. 

[This statement was submitted by Anthony Miller, M.Ed., PA-C Chief Policy and 

Research Officer.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE POPULATION ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA AND

ASSOCIATION OF POPULATION CENTERS

Introduction 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and other distinguished members of the Subcommittee, for this opportunity to express support for 

the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Center for Health Statistics 

(NCHS), and Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). These agencies are important to the 

members of the Population Association of America (PAA) and Association of Population Centers (APC) because they provide direct and indirect support to population 

scientists and the field of population, or demographic, research overall. In fiscal year 

2015, we urge the Subcommittee to adopt the following funding recommendations: 

NIH, $32 billion, consistent with the level recommended by the Ad Hoc Group for 

Medical Research; NCHS, $182 million, consistent with the Administration’s request; and BLS, $610 million, consistent with the Administration’s request, at a 

minimum. 

The PAA and APC are two affiliated organizations that together represent over 

3,000 social and behavioral scientists and almost 40 population research centers nationwide that conduct research on the implications of population change. Our members, which include demographers, economists, sociologists, and statisticians, conduct scientific research, analyze changing demographic and socio-economic trends, 

develop policy recommendations, and train undergraduate and graduate students. 

Their research expertise covers a wide range of issues, including adolescent health 

and development, aging, health disparities, immigration and migration, marriage 

and divorce, education, social networks, housing, retirement, and labor. 

National Institutes of Health 

Demography is the study of populations and how or why they change. A key component of the NIH mission is to support biomedical, social, and behavioral research 

that will improve the health of our population. The health of our population is fundamentally intertwined with the demography of our population. Recognizing the 

connection between health and demography, NIH supports extramural population 

research programs primarily through the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the 

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). 

National Institute on Aging 

To inform the implications of our rapidly aging population, policymakers need objective, reliable data about the antecedents and impact of changing social, demographic, economic, health and well-being characteristics of the older population. The 
627 

NIA Division of Behavioral and Social Research (BSR) is the primary source of Federal support for basic research on these topics. 

In addition to supporting an impressive research portfolio that includes the prestigious Centers on the Demography and Economics of Aging, the NIA BSR Division 

also supports several large surveys that produce accessible data. These surveys include the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), which has enrolled 

8,000 Medicare beneficiaries with the goal of studying late-life disability trends and 

dynamics. The study also includes a supplement to examine informal caregivers and 

their impact on the utilization of long-term care by people with chronic disabilities. 

Another NIA survey, the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), provides unique information about economic transitions in work, income, and wealth, allowing scientists to study how the domains of family, economic resources, and health interact. 

The HRS has collected data every 2 years since 1992, including most recently, biomarkers, from a representative sample of more than 26,000 Americans over the age 

of 50. These data are accessible to researchers worldwide and have informed numerous scientific findings. For example, in 2013, researchers using the HRS published 

a study in the New England Journal of Medicine, concluding that the cost of providing dementia care is comparable to, if not greater than, those for heath disease 

and cancer. 

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development 

Since 1968, NICHD has supported research on population processes and change. 

This research is housed in the Institute’s Population Dynamics Branch, which supports research and training in demography, reproductive health, and population 

health and funds major national studies that track the health and well-being of children and their families from childhood through adulthood. These studies include 

Fragile Families and Child Well-Being, the first scientific study to track the health 

and development of children born to unmarried parents, and the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), tracing the effects of childhood and 

adolescent exposures on later health. 

One of the most important population research programs that the NICHD supports is the Population Dynamics Centers Research Infrastructure Program. This 

program promotes innovation, supports interdisciplinary research, translates scientific findings into practice, and develops the next generation of population scientists. In addition, the centers provide incentives to reduce the costs and increase 

the efficiency of research by streamlining and consolidating research infrastructure. 

The population research centers generate and facilitate significant scientific research findings as well. For example, in March 2014, researchers at Johns Hopkins 

University published findings in JAMA, concluding that opening or expanding casinos on California tribal lands reduces poverty and the obesity rate of children by 

almost 3 percent. 

National Center for Health Statistics 

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) is the Nation’s principal statistical agency. Most notably, NCHS funds and manages the National Vital Statistics 

System (NVSS), which contracts with the States to collect birth and death certificate 

information, and funds a number of complex large surveys, such as National Survey 

of Family Growth and National Health Interview Survey, which are an invaluable 

resource for population scientists. The Subcommittee’s support of NCHS in recent 

years has enabled it to make significant progress toward modernizing the NVSS and 

expediting the release of these data to the user community. Yet, much work is still 

needed to fully modernize the NVSS and to support necessary expansions to the 

agency’s core surveys so that these data can effectively assess Americans’ health. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) produces essential economic information for 

public and private decisionmaking. Its data are used extensively by population scientists who study and evaluate labor and related economic policies and programs. 

Given the importance and unique nature of BLS data, we urge the Subcommittee 

to support the Administration’s request, $610 million, at a minimum, but to consider 

increasing its funding to $631 million. This additional funding is necessary to restore the agency’s purchasing power back to fiscal year 2010 levels and specifically 

to restore recent program cuts. 

Thank you for considering the importance of these agencies under your jurisdiction that benefit the population sciences. 

[This statement was submitted by Mary Jo Hoeksema, Director, Government Affairs Population Association of America/Association of Population Centers.] 
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1 ‘‘Vision Problems in the U.S.: Prevalence of Adult Vision Impairment and Age-Related Eye 

Disease in America,’’ Prevent Blindness America and the National Eye Institute, 2008. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF PREVENT BLINDNESS

FUNDING REQUEST OVERVIEW

Prevent Blindness appreciates the opportunity to submit written testimony for the 

record regarding fiscal year 2015 funding for vision and eye health related programs. As the Nation’s leading non-profit, voluntary health organization dedicated 

to preventing blindness and preserving sight, Prevent Blindness maintains a longstanding commitment to working with policymakers at all levels of government, organizations and individuals in the eye care and vision loss community, and other 

interested stakeholders to develop, advance, and implement policies and programs 

that prevent blindness and preserve sight. Prevent Blindness respectfully requests 

that the Subcommittee provide the following allocations in fiscal year 2015 to help 

promote eye health and prevent eye disease and vision loss: 

—Provide at least $1,000,000 to strengthen the Vision Health Initiative (visual 

screening education) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

—Provide at least $3,319,000 to continue the Glaucoma Project at the CDC. 

—Support the Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s (MCHB) National Center for 

Children’s Vision and Eye Health. 

—Provide at least $639 million in to sustain programs under the Maternal and 

Child Health (MCH) Block Grant. 

—Provide at least $730 million to the National Eye Institute (NEI). 

INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

Vision-related conditions affect people across the lifespan. Good vision is an integral component to health and well-being, affects virtually all activities of daily living, and impacts individuals physically, emotionally, socially, and financially. Loss 

of vision can have a devastating impact on individuals and their families. An estimated 80 million Americans have a potentially blinding eye disease, three million 

have low vision, more than one million are legally blind, and 200,000 are more severely visually blind. Vision impairment in children is a common condition that affects five to 10 percent of preschool age children, and is a leading cause of impaired 

health in childhood. Recent research showed that the economic burden of vision loss 

and eye disorders is $139 billion each year, $47.4 billion of which is Federal spending. Alarmingly, while half of all blindness can be prevented through education, 

early detection, and treatment, the NEI reports that ‘‘the number of Americans with 

age-related eye disease and the vision impairment that results is expected to double 

within the next three decades.’’ 1

To curtail the increasing incidence of vision loss in America, and its accompanying 

economic burden, Prevent Blindness advocates sustained and meaningful Federal 

funding for programs that promote eye health and prevent eye disease, vision loss, 

and blindness; needed services and increased access to vision screening; and vision 

and eye disease research. In a time of significant fiscal constraints, we recognize the 

challenges facing the Subcommittee and urge you to consider the ramifications of 

decreased investment in vision and eye health. Vision loss is often preventable, but 

without continued efforts to better understand eye conditions, and their treatment, 

through research, to develop the public health systems and infrastructure to disseminate and implement good science and prevention strategies, and to protect children’s vision, millions of Americans face the loss of independence, loss of health, and 

the loss of their livelihoods, all because of the loss of their vision. 

VISION AND EYE HEALTH AT THE CDC: HELPING TO SAVE SIGHT AND SAVE MONEY

The CDC serves a critical role in promoting vision and eye health. Since 2003, 

the CDC and Prevent Blindness have collaborated with other partners to create a 

more effective public health approach to vision loss prevention and eye health promotion. The CDC works to promote eye health and prevent vision loss; improve the 

health and lives of people living with vision loss by preventing complications, disabilities, and burden; reduce vision and eye health related disparities; and integrate 

vision health with other public health strategies. However, severely constrained financial resources have limited the CDC’s ability to take the work of the Vision 

Health Initiative (VHI) to the next level. 

Prevent Blindness requests at least $1,000,000 in fiscal year 2015 to strengthen 

vision and eye health efforts of the CDC. This funding level would allow the VHI 

to increase vision impairment and eye disease surveillance efforts, apply previous 
629 

CDC vision and eye health research findings to develop effective prevention and 

early detection interventions, and begin to incorporate vision and eye health promotion activities into State and national public health chronic disease initiatives, 

with an initial focus on early detection of diabetic retinopathy 

Improving Access to Eye Care for those at High Risk for Glaucoma 

An estimated 2.2 million people are affected by glaucoma. A disease of the aging 

eye, risk for glaucoma increases with age, especially among black, Hispanic/Latinos, 

and Asians. Once vision is lost to glaucoma, it cannot be restored, but with early 

diagnosis and appropriate treatment, it is possible to slow disease progression and 

save the remaining sight. Detection and management of glaucoma are challenged 

by difficulties in reaching high-risk populations and by the lack of simple, cost-effective screening plans. 

Prevent Blindness requests at least $3,319,000 in fiscal year 2015 to continue the 

work of the Glaucoma Project to improve glaucoma screening, referral, and treatment. The program is intended to reach those populations experiencing the greatest 

disparity in access to glaucoma care through an integrated collaboration among private and public organizations. 

INVESTING IN THE VISION OF OUR NATION’S MOST VALUABLE RESOURCE—CHILDREN

While the risk of eye disease increases after the age of 40, eye and vision problems in children are of equal concern. The visual system in children younger than 

8 years old is in a critical developmental stage. Unidentified and untreated vision 

problems can lead to permanent and irreversible visual loss and/or cause problems 

socially, academically, and developmentally in this critical time of a child’s life. Currently, only one in three children receive eye care services before the age of six.[1] 

Requirements for preventive eye care/vision screenings prior to or during the school 

years vary broadly from State to State. Many States have no standards and those 

with standards present with little consistency regarding type, frequency, and referral or follow-up requirement protocol.[i] Inclusion of vision screenings with a comprehensive approach to follow up treatment and an integrated approach to data collection as a part of the required health component for grant recipients will help to 

change disparities in vision and eye health for our Nation’s children. 

In 2009, the MCHB established the National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye 

Health (the Center), a national vision health collaborative effort aimed at developing 

the public health infrastructure necessary to promote eye health and ensure access 

to a continuum of eye care for young children. 

The Center is guided by an Advisory Committee comprised of the Nation’s leaders 

in children’s vision and public health to implement national guidelines for quality 

improvement strategies, vision screening and developing a continuum of children’s 

vision and eye health. With this support the Center, will continue to: (1) provide 

national leadership in dissemination of best practices, infrastructure development, 

professional education, and national vision screening guidelines that ensure a continuum of vision and eye healthcare for children; (2) advance State-based performance improvement systems, screening guidelines, and mechanisms for uniform data 

collection and reporting; and (3) provide technical assistance to States in the implementation of strategies for vision screening, establishing quality improvement measures, and improving mechanisms for surveillance. 

Prevent Blindness also requests at least $639 million in fiscal year 2015 to sustain programs under the MCH Block Grant. The MCH Block Grant enables States 

to expand critical healthcare services to millions of pregnant women, infants and 

children, including those with special healthcare needs. In addition to direct services, the MCH Block Grant supports vital programs, preventive and systems building services needed to promote optimal health—including the National Center for 

Children’s Vision and Eye Health. 

ADVANCE AND EXPAND VISION RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

Prevent Blindness calls upon the Subcommittee to provide $730 million for the 

NEI to enable the agency to pursue its primary ‘‘audacious goal’’ of restoring vision 

by bolstering its efforts to identify the underlying causes of eye disease and vision 

loss, improve early detection and diagnosis of eye disease and vision loss, and advance prevention and treatment efforts. Research is critical to ensure that new 

treatments and interventions are developed to help reduce and eliminate vision 

problems and potentially blinding eye diseases facing consumers across the country. 

By providing additional funding for the NEI at the NIH, essential efforts to identify 

the underlying causes of eye disease and vision loss, improve early detection and 
630 

diagnosis of eye disease and vision loss, and advance prevention, treatment efforts 

and health information dissemination will be bolstered. 

CONCLUSION

On behalf of Prevent Blindness, our Board of Directors, and the millions of people 

at risk for vision loss and eye disease, we thank you for the opportunity to submit 

written testimony regarding fiscal year 2015 funding for the CDC’s vision and eye 

health efforts, the MCHB’s National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health, 

and the NEI. Please know that Prevent Blindness stands ready to work with the 

Subcommittee and other Members of Congress to advance policies that will prevent 

blindness and preserve sight. Please feel free to contact us at any time; we are 

happy to be a resource to Subcommittee members and your staff. We very much appreciate the Subcommittee’s attention to—and consideration of—our requests. 

[This statement was submitted by Hugh Parry, President & CEO, Prevent Blindness.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE PROSTATITIS FOUNDATION

Some young men have prostatitis before they even reach twenty years of age, 

many older men have had symptoms for many years. You do not hear about it as 

much as prostate cancer because men do not discuss such issues with their friends, 

families and acquaintances. Many couples assume there may be a stigma to having 

the annoying condition. Even many urologists tell them there is no cure and they 

will just have to live with it. 

Prostatitis is a family affair as it presents itself as a disabling pain accompanied 

by sexual dysfunction and infertility issues. It usually causes a hesitant urination 

and an inability to empty the bladder. Patients are sometimes unable to work and 

sometimes even become suicidal. 

Prostatitis is a huge financial drain as it tends to imitate prostate cancer symptoms. The tests and procedures needed to rule out prostate cancer are very expensive and often unnecessary but needed to reassure the patient and his family. Prostatitis has been mentioned in historical literature from previous times and generations ago. 

The NIH has worked to find a cause and cure for (CP/CPPS) chronic prostatitis/ 

chronic pelvic pain syndrome for nearly twenty years. In the latest research group 

called the MAPP Research Network they have included other specialties than urologists to help find a clue to prostatitis which affects 10 percent of men all over the 

world. It is critical to fully fund those research efforts of the NIH and keep the CDC 

involved. 

[This statement was submitted by Mike Hennenfent, President, Prostatitis Foundation.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE PULMONARY HYPERTENSION ASSOCIATION

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the priorities of the pulmonary hypertension 

community as you work to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human 

Services Appropriations Bill. 

ABOUT PULMONARY HYPERTENSION

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a disabling and often fatal condition simply described as high blood pressure in the lungs. It affects people of all ages, races and 

ethnic backgrounds. Although anyone can get PH, there are risk factors that make 

some people more susceptible. 

Treatment and prognosis vary depending on the type of PH. In one type, pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), the arteries in the lungs become too narrow 

to handle the amount of blood that must be pumped through the lungs. This causes 

several things to happen: a backup of blood in the veins returning blood to the 

heart; an increase in the pressure that the right side of your heart has to pump 

against to push blood through your lungs; and a strain on the right side of your 

heart due to the increased work that it has to do. If this increased pressure is not 

treated, the right side of your heart can become overworked, become very weak and 

may possibly fail. Because the blood has difficulty getting through the lungs to pick 

up oxygen, your blood oxygen level may be lower than normal. This can put a strain 
631 

not only on your heart, but also decrease the amount of oxygen getting to your 

brain. 

There is currently no cure for PAH. Twelve treatment options are available to 

help patients manage their disease and feel better day to day but even with treatment, life expectancy with PAH is limited. 

ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION

From simple beginnings—four women who met around a kitchen table in Florida 

in 1990—the Pulmonary Hypertension Association has evolved into a community of 

well over 10,000 pulmonary hypertension patients, caregivers, family members and 

medical professionals. 

As we have grown, we have stayed true to our roots and the vision and ingenuity 

of our founders: We continue to work every day to end the isolation that PH patients face, and find a cure for pulmonary hypertension. 

Research 

PHA provides grants to promising researchers in the field of pulmonary hypertension. The program fosters new leaders in the field by supporting their interest 

in PH research and providing them with opportunities to work with mentors and 

learn new skills. Researchers supported by PHA are looking for new methods for 

early detection, new treatments to prevent the onset of PH and ultimately a cure 

for this terrible illness. To date, PHA has leveraged more than $13 million in PH 

research funding through partnerships with the NIH and others. 

Early Diagnosis Campaign 

It takes too long for pulmonary hypertension to be diagnosed. The median survival rate without treatment is approximately 2.8 years, making the need to obtain 

a rapid and accurate diagnosis urgent. Unfortunately, the median duration from 

symptom onset to a confirmed diagnosis by right heart catheterization is 1.1 years. 

We are reaching patients too late in the process. Almost three-fourths of patients 

have advanced PH by the time they are diagnosed, leading more costly treatments 

and poorer outcomes. For the most advanced cases of PH, a lung or heart-lung 

transplant may be the only treatment option. The goal of PHA’s Early Diagnosis 

Campaign is to discover the disease sooner in the early stages. This will allow the 

start of a treatment regimen that can slow the progression of PH and secure a better life for the patient. 

Center Accreditation 

The Pulmonary Hypertension Association’s Scientific Leadership Council, 28 global leaders in the field of pulmonary hypertension, have spearheaded the PHA-Accredited PH Care Centers (PHCC) initiative. The goal of this initiative is to establish a program for accreditation of centers with special expertise in pulmonary hypertension (PH), particularly pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), to raise the 

overall quality of care and outcomes in patients with this life-threatening disease. 

ONE PATIENT’S STORY

In 2011, at the age of 29, GS12 Human Terrain Analyst Jessica (Puglisi) Armstrong began experiencing shortness of breath and dizziness. She was in Afghanistan at the time. Jessica was first diagnosed with dehydration. Then, as is the case 

with many PH patients, she was told she had asthma and was given an inhaler. 

Two months later, she fainted for no apparent reason. An echocardiogram revealed 

blood clots in her lungs and Jessica was medically evacuated to Germany and then 

to the U.S. Six months after her fist symptoms, she was finally given a complete 

work up and diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension. 

Jessica, she had a unique form of PH due to blood clots that can be mitigated 

with a pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE)—a complex surgery that involves 

opening the chest cavity and stopping circulation for up to twenty minutes. She describes the surgery, which she underwent at the University of California San Diego, 

as ‘‘more painful than I could ever imagine.’’ She notes that UCSD’s PTE program 

did not begin until 1990 and even now, despite being recognized as the global leaders on this procedure, has only completed about 3,000 surgeries. The procedure that 

saved Jessica’s was developed in her lifetime. 

Jessica was terminated from Army employment and spent $60,000 out of pocket 

on medical expenses which she has not been able to recoup. She was forced to begin 

a civilian job just two weeks after her PTE in order to retain health insurance. Despite this, Jessica is, in many ways, one of the lucky ones. I am glad to report that 

she is now doing well and serving an integral role at PHA as the coordinator of our 

Early Diagnosis Campaign. 
632 

Over the past decade, treatment options, and the survival rate, for pulmonary hypertension patients have improved significantly. However, courageous patients of 

every age lose their battle with PH each day. There is still a long way to go on the 

road to a cure and biomedical research holds the promise of a better tomorrow. 

SEQUESTRATION

We have heard from the medical research community that sequestration and deficit reduction activities have created serious issues for Federal funding opportunities 

and the career development pipeline. In order to ensure that the pulmonary hypertension research portfolio can continue to grow, and, more importantly, to ensure 

that our country is adequately preparing the next generation of young investigators, 

we urge you to avert, mitigate, or otherwise eliminate the specter of sequestration. 

The Association has anecdotal accounts of the harms of sequestration and the Federated American Societies for Experimental Biology has reported: 

—In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the NIH budget in fiscal year 2013 

was $6 billion (22.4 percent) less than it was in fiscal year 2003. 

—The number of competing research project grants (RPGs) awarded by NIH has 

also fallen sharply since fiscal year 2003. In fiscal year 2013, NIH made 8,283 

RPG awards, which is 2,110 (20.3 percent) fewer than in fiscal year 2003. 

—Awards for R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated research, suffered even greater losses. The number awarded fell 

by 2,528 (34 percent) between fiscal year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 

The pay line for some NIH funding mechanisms has fallen from 18 percent to 10 

percent while the average age for a researcher to receive their first NIH-funded 

grant has climbed to 42. These are strong disincentives to choosing a career as a 

medical researcher. Our scaling-back is occurring at a time when many foreign 

countries are investing heavily in their biotechnology sectors. China alone plans to 

dedicate $300 million to medical research over the next 5 years; this amount is double the current NIH budget over the same period of time. Scientific breakthroughs 

will continue, but America may not benefit from the return-on-investment of a robust biotechnology sector. For the purposes of economic and national security, as 

well as public health, the Association asks that you work with your colleagues to 

eliminate sequestration and recommit to supporting this Nation’s biomedical research enterprise. 

HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

Due to the serious and life-threatening nature of PH, it is common for patients 

to face drastic health interventions, including heart-lung transplantation. Federal 

organ transplantation activities are coordinated through HRSA. To ensure HRSA 

can expand its important mission and continue to make improvements in donor lists 

and donor-matching please provide HRSA with a meaningful funding increase in fiscal year 2015. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

As a result of Federal investment in medical research, there are now twelve FDAapproved treatments for PH. The effectiveness of these therapies though is dependent on how early a patient can receive an accurate diagnosis and begin treatment. 

Unfortunately, two-thirds of patients are not diagnosed until PH has reached a late 

stage. In addition to mitigating the impact of many treatments, late diagnosis puts 

PH patients in a position to face interventions like heart-lung transplantation and 

even death. CDC and NCCDPHP have the resources to compliment PHA’s own 

Sometimes its PH Early Diagnosis Campaign. Improving public awareness and recognition of PH will not only save lives, it can save the Federal healthcare system 

money. Please provide CDC with meaningful funding increases so the agency can 

expand its focus beyond winnable battles into increasingly important and cost-effective areas. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH hosts a sizable PH research portfolio. Further, NIH and PHA have a strong 

track record of working together to advance our scientific understanding of PH. The 

twelve FDA-approved treatments, more than nearly every other rare disease, are 

evidence of the return-on-investment from these activities. Please provide NIH with 

meaningful increases to facilitate expansion of the PH research portfolio so we can 

continue to improve diagnosis and treatment. 
633 

NCATS 

The Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR), located within NCATS, supports 

and coordinates rare disease research and provides information on rare diseases to 

patients, their families, healthcare providers, researchers and the public. In collaboration with other NIH institutes, ORDR funds rare diseases research primarily 

through the Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network (RDCRN), which supports 

clinical studies, investigator training, pilot projects, and access to information on 

rare diseases. The most recent funding opportunity announcement, which was widely broadcast and open to all rare diseases, including PAH, was issued in the fall 

of 2013 and awards are expected to be made in the summer of 2014 

NHLBI 

The NHLBI-funded Centers for Advanced Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics in Lung Diseases Stage II program, which will begin in fiscal year 2014, will 

provide a mechanism to accelerate the development of therapies for lung diseases, 

including pulmonary fibrosis and pulmonary arterial hypertension. 

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES

S. 1453 

Senator Robert Casey (D–PA) has introduced the Pulmonary Hypertension Research and Diagnosis Act (S.1453). This budget neutral legislation has a bipartisan 

companion in the House due to its emphasis on lowering healthcare costs by promoting efficiencies within the Federal Government. S. 1453 seeks to establish an 

HHS-wide Committee tasked with preparing a report on how to leverage limited resources to improve early diagnosis of PH. Please consider cosponsoring S. 1453 and 

working with your colleagues to advance this important legislation. 

S. 2115 

PHA has written to Senators Richard Durbin (D–IL) and Barbara Mikulksi (D– 

MD) to thank them for their leadership on the American Cures Act (S. 2115). We 

hope this legislation is an indication that policymakers have committed themselves 

to supporting innovative proposals to bolster and advance our Nation’s biomedical 

research enterprise. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF RESEARCH!AMERICA

Research!America, the Nation’s largest public education and advocacy alliance 

committed to advancing medical research and development, appreciates your stewardship over such a critical subset of our Nation’s discretionary funding priorities. 

As the subcommittee begins the process of prioritizing fiscal year 2015 funding, we 

urge you to consider the following thoughts on Federal agencies entrusted with sustaining our Nation’s sophisticated public health infrastructure, partnering with the 

private sector to accelerate medical progress, and optimizing healthcare outcomes. 

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) play 

pivotal roles in combating disabling and deadly health conditions. Moreover, the 

funding, or lack of it, allocated to these agencies will bear on our Nation’s ability 

to compete in key export markets within the global economy, foster business development that grows and maintains jobs across the country, meet our solemn obligations to wounded warriors and support troops on the ground, combat deadly medical 

errors, and protect our Nation against pandemics and emerging health threats. The 

stakes truly are that high. 

NIH as a driver of innovation 

In fiscal year 2015, we urge you to provide at least $32 billion in NIH funding 

to drive us beyond the stagnation that squanders opportunities to advance science 

and strengthen our Nation. Research funded by the NIH at universities, academic 

medical centers, independent research institutions and small businesses across the 

country lays the foundation for new product development by the private sector. 

Since much of the research NIH supports is at the non-commercial stages of the research pipeline, NIH funding does not compete with, but rather sets the stage for, 

critical private sector investment and development. These two complementary funding streams lead to business development, job growth and beneficial medical advances. Taxpayer-funded research through the NIH has helped our Nation make remarkable progress against such insidious health threats as childhood cancer, HIVAIDS and heart disease. 
634 

The secrets of diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, myriad cancers and many other 

diseases can and will be unlocked by science. The question is not if, but 

when . . . unless we dismiss the significance of such progress and continue to 

allow research resources to stagnate. And our Nation’s best weapon against spiraling healthcare costs is research. Ignoring growing healthcare costs is a ticket to 

disaster. Alzheimer’s disease alone is projected to cost the Federal Government over 

$1 trillion during the next 20 years. Ultimately, we must prevent and cure disease 

in order to tackle the costs associated with it. 

CDC as a first responder 

In fiscal year 2015, we urge you to provide a funding level that continues the 

growth in CDC budget authority that was initiated in fiscal year 2014. The CDC 

engages in research that stems deadly and costly pandemics, bolsters our Nation’s 

defenses against bioterrorism, and helps prevent the onset of debilitating and expensive diseases. The CDC is the Nation’s first responder to lethal viruses and infections, including life-threatening and costly drug-resistant infections that pose a particular threat to children and young adults, as well as investigating tragic phenomena like cancer clusters. Due to cuts in recent years, the CDC is functioning 

with one hand tied behind its back, even as health challenges like the obesity epidemic, autism epidemic and infectious disease outbreaks capture headlines and ruin 

lives. It is always more efficient and cost effective to be in front of an outbreak or 

biological attack than to take reactionary measures. 

AHRQ translates medical innovation into the right care at the right time 

In fiscal year 2015, we urge you to provide at least $375 million in funding for 

AHRQ. Research supported by AHRQ identifies inefficiencies in healthcare delivery 

that inflate the cost of public and private insurance. AHRQ-supported research also 

combats medical errors and improves the quality of care to help reduce the length 

and intensity of disability and disease. It helps patients and physicians make informed treatment decisions that improve outcomes and reduce costly ‘‘false starts’’ 

in the provision of healthcare services. 

Just one of many success stories is AHRQ’s issuance of new standards of care and 

practices related to central line-associated bloodstream infections. The implementation of the guidelines resulted in a reduction of up to two-thirds of cases during 

early rollout studies. With an annual estimated 80,000 cases, up to 28,000 deaths 

and an average cost per patient of $45,000, this has the potential to save $2.3 billion 

annually in healthcare costs. Given the enormity of the challenge of inefficiency in 

healthcare delivery, AHRQ is severely underpowered. 

The threat of sequestration’s return 

The Ryan-Murray Bipartisan Budget Act provided America with 2 years of partial 

relief from sequestration after across the board budget cuts dramatically impacted 

medical research in March 2013. Unfortunately, sequestration will go back into full 

effect in 2016 unless Congress takes action, and it will be in effect for 2 years longer 

than originally established under the 2011 Budget Control Act. The return of sequestration’s budget cuts to discretionary spending, including that for NIH, CDC 

and AHRQ, poses potentially devastating setbacks to medical research. Short-changing medical research is not a solution to the Federal deficit or debt. On the contrary, 

neglecting medical research undercuts strategies to fight chronic disease and the 

multipronged Federal costs that arise from it, while squandering opportunities to 

increase private sector and Federal revenues through new medical innovations. 

Research!America appreciates the difficult task facing the subcommittee as it 

seeks to simultaneously confront the budget deficit, strengthen the U.S. and promote the well-being of Americans. There are few Federal investments that confer 

as many benefits as medical research—new cures, new businesses, new jobs, new 

solutions to healthcare cost inflation, and new fuel to drive U.S. leadership in a 

global economy shaped by the ability of countries to continuously innovate. We firmly believe that investing in NIH, CDC and AHRQ is a means of advancing all three 

of these fundamental goals. Thank you for your leadership and consideration; we 

know that your task is extraordinarily difficult, and that our Nation is fortunate to 

have such pragmatic, committed and gifted leaders at the helm. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH WORKING GROUP

Chairman Harkin, Ranking Member Moran, and members of the Committee, 

thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony on the National Institutes of 

Health (NIH) budget overall and for AIDS research in fiscal year 2015. Tomorrow’s 

scientific and medical breakthroughs depend on your vision, leadership, and com-
635 

mitment to robust NIH funding this year. To this end, the Research Working Group 

(RWG) urges this Committee to support a funding target of $36 billion in fiscal year 

2015 to maintain the United States’ position as the world leader in medical research 

and innovation. 

Investments in health research via the NIH have paid enormous dividends in the 

health and wellbeing of people in the U.S. and around the world. NIH-funded HIV 

and AIDS research has supported innovative basic science for better drug therapies, 

evidence-based behavioral and biomedical prevention interventions, and vaccines 

that have saved and improved the lives of millions, and holds great promise for significantly reducing HIV infection rates and providing more effective treatments for 

those living with HIV/AIDS in the coming decade. 

Despite these advances, the number of new HIV/AIDS cases continues to rise in 

the U.S. and around the world. There are 1.1 million HIV-infected people in the 

U.S., the highest number in the epidemic’s more than 30 year history; additionally 

over 50,000 Americans become newly infected every year. In 2012, 35.3 million were 

infected with HIV/AIDS worldwide, 1.6 million died from the disease and 2.3 million 

people were newly infected. With proper funding, we can capitalize on the ongoing 

scientific progress in therapeutics and prevention science, vaccines, and finding a 

cure for HIV, as well as addressing the comorbidity such as viral hepatitis and tuberculosis that affect patients living with HIV. 

Major advances over the last few years in HIV prevention technologies—with HIV 

vaccines, medical male circumcision, antiretroviral treatment as prevention, and 

pre-exposure prophylaxis using antiretrovirals (PrEP) —demonstrate that adequately resourced NIH programs can transform our lives. Because HIV disease entails many common co-morbidities, HIV research funding is spread across the Institutes and Centers—and HIV research discoveries have had broad benefits for many 

other conditions including: aging, cancer, immunosuppression and auto-immune disorders, heart disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, viral hepatitis, and 

influenza, among others. Federal support for AIDS research has led to new treatments for other diseases, including cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, hepatitis, 

osteoporosis, and a wide range of autoimmune disorders. 

Over the years, the NIH has sponsored the evaluation of a host of vaccine candidates, some of which are advancing to efficacy trials. The successful iPrEx and 

HPTN 052 trials have shown the potential of antiretroviral drugs to prevent HIV 

infection. Moreover, increased funding will support the future testing of new vaccines, microbicides and therapeutics in the pipeline via the newly restructured, 

cross-cutting NIAID clinical trials network that translates NIH-funded scientific innovation into critical quality-of-life gains. 

It is also essential to note that NIH-funded HIV pathogenesis and clinical research has contributed substantially to our understanding of potential curative approaches. The NIAID clinical trial networks comprise one of the largest groups of 

clinical research sites in the world and have been instrumental to the progress 

made in response to the HIV epidemic domestically and globally. These networks 

are now taking on the challenges of tuberculosis and hepatitis C and have dramatically expanded the opportunities to test new drugs and other critically needed interventions to advance knowledge in these leading infectious disease killers. 

Increased funding for the NIH in fiscal year 2015 makes good bipartisan economic 

sense, especially in shaky fiscal times. Robust funding for the NIH overall will enable research universities to pursue scientific opportunity, advance public health, 

and create jobs and economic growth. In every State across the country, the NIH 

supports research at hospitals, universities, private enterprises, and medical 

schools. This includes the creation of jobs that will be essential to future discovery. 

Sustained investment is also essential to train the next generation of scientists and 

prepare them to make tomorrow’s HIV discoveries. NIH funding puts 350,000 scientists to work at research institutions across the country. According to the NIH, 

each of its research grants creates or sustains six to eight jobs, and NIH-supported 

research grants and technology transfers have resulted in the creation of thousands 

of new, independent private-sector companies. Strong, sustained NIH funding is a 

critical national priority that will foster better health and economic revitalization. 

Since 2003, funding for the NIH has failed to keep up with our existing research 

needs—damaging the success rate of approved grants and leaving very little money 

to fund promising new research. The real value of the increases prior to 2003 has 

precipitously declined because of the relatively higher inflation rate for the cost of 

research and development activities undertaken by the NIH. According to the Biomedical Research and Development Price Index, which calculates how much the 

NIH budget must change each year to maintain purchasing power, between fiscal 

year 2003 and fiscal year 2014, the cost of NIH activities increased by 38.1 percent. 

By comparison, the overall NIH budget increased by 10.8 percent, over fiscal year 
636 

2003. So in real terms, the NIH has already sustained budget decreases of close to 

30 percent over the past decade due to inflation alone! As such, flat funding or cuts 

to the NIH will have the clear and devastating effects of undermining our Nation’s 

leadership in health research and our scientists’ ability to take advantage of the expanding opportunities to advance healthcare. The race to find better treatments and 

a cure for cancer, heart disease, AIDS, and other diseases, and for controlling global 

epidemics like AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, all depend on a robust long-term 

investment strategy for health research at NIH. 

In conclusion, the RWG calls on Congress to continue the bipartisan Federal commitment towards combating HIV as well as other chronic and life-threatening illnesses by increasing funding for the NIH to $36 billion in fiscal year 2015. A meaningful commitment to stemming the epidemic and securing the well being of people 

with HIV cannot be met without prioritizing the research investment at the NIH 

that will lead to tomorrow’s lifesaving vaccines, treatments, and cures. Thank you 

for the opportunity to provide these written comments. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE ROTARY INTERNATIONAL

Chairman Harkin, members of the Subcommittee, Rotary International appreciates this opportunity to submit testimony in support of the polio eradication activities of the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Global Polio 

Eradication Initiative (GPEI) is an unprecedented model of cooperation among national governments, civil society and UN agencies working together to reach the 

most vulnerable children through the safe, cost-effective public health intervention 

of polio immunization. We appeal to this Subcommittee for continued leadership to 

ensure we seize the opportunity to conquer polio once and for all. Rotary International strongly supports the President’s 2015 request of $161 million for the polio 

eradication activities of the CDC to enable full implementation of the polio eradication strategies and innovations outlined in the Polio Eradication and Endgame 

Strategic Plan (2013–2018). 

PROGRESS IN THE GLOBAL PROGRAM TO ERADICATE POLIO

Significant strides were made in 2013 toward stopping transmission of polio. 

Thanks to this committee’s leadership in appropriating funds for the polio eradication activities of the CDC: 

—India was certified polio free in February 2014, following 3 years with no cases 

of polio. The entire Southeast Asia region was certified polio free on 27 March 

2014. 

—Eradication efforts have led to more than a 99 percent decrease in cases since 

the launch of the GPEI in 1988. 

—The number of polio cases in the endemic countries was 40 percent lower in 

2013 than in 2012 (160 vs. 217). Afghanistan and Nigeria each had less than 

half the number of cases in 2013 that they had in 2012. 

—Pakistan is now considered to be the only country in the world with uncontrolled transmission of wild polio and as of 20 March, accounts for more than 

75 percent of polio cases in 2014. 

—Outbreaks in the Horn of Africa and Syria accounted for roughly 60 percent of 

all cases in 2013. These outbreaks underscore the risk to polio-free countries 

until the wild poliovirus has been eradicated in the remaining places where it 

persists. 

—Incidence of type 3 polio is at historically low levels. There have been no cases 

of type 3 polio since November 2012. 

—Lack of access to children in insecure areas continues to hamper progress. In 

Pakistan alone, more than 50 health workers and security personnel assigned 

to protect them have been killed in targeted attacks since November of 2012. 

Insecurity/inability to access large populations is now a key factor in all endemic transmission zones and is also a factor in outbreak areas (Syria, Horn 

of Africa). 

The Polio Eradication and Endgame Strategic Plan (2013–2018) launched in 2013 

lays out the strategies for the certification of the eradication of wild poliovirus by 

2018 at a total global cost of US$5.5 billion. This new plans builds on the lessons 

learned from the successful eradication of polio to date and the substantial advances 

in technology in 2012. The timely availability of funds remains essential to the 

achievement of a polio free world. The United States has been the leading public 

sector donor to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. Members of U.S. Rotary clubs 

appreciate the United States’ generous support and recognize increased funding provided by Congress in fiscal year 2014 to ensure the GPEI can fully implement the 
637 

plan. Rotarians are committed to continuing their own fundraising for the program 

until the world is certified polio free. Rotarians will also continue to advocate support from the public and other governments, both polio free and polio affected, to 

support the successful execution of the Strategic Plan. The ongoing support of donor 

countries, like the United States, is essential to assure the necessary human and 

financial resources are made available to polio-endemic and at risk countries to certify the world polio free by the end of 2018. 

THE ROLE OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL

Rotary International, a global association of more than 34,000 Rotary clubs in 

more than 170 countries with a membership of over 1.2 million business and professional leaders (more than 345,000 of which are in the U.S.), has been committed 

to battling polio since 1985. Rotary International has contributed more than US$1.2 

billion toward a polio free world—representing the largest contribution by an international service organization to a public health initiative ever. Rotary also leads the 

United States Coalition for the Eradication of Polio, a group of committed child 

health advocates that includes the March of Dimes Foundation, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Task Force for Global Health, the United Nations Foundation, 

and the U.S. Fund for UNICEF. These organizations join us in thanking you for 

your support of the GPEI. 

THE ROLE OF THE U.S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Rotary commends CDC for its leadership in the global polio eradication effort, and 

greatly appreciates the Subcommittee’s increased support of CDC’s polio eradication 

activities to support full implementation of the Strategic Plan. The United States 

is the leader among donor nations in the drive to eradicate this crippling disease. 

CDC is using the increased Congressional support provided in fiscal year 2014 to: 

—Build capacity in Nigeria. Increased investment in Nigeria will serve to establish and broaden environmental surveillance; strengthen traditional AFP surveillance, scale up the National Stop Transmission of Polio Program (N–STOP) 

in Kano and other high risk polio States to ensure broad coverage at the Local 

Government Authority Level, trapping poliovirus in its remaining reservoirs in 

Northern Nigeria. 

—Build capacity in Pakistan. Increased investment in Pakistan will focus on 

training and placing local personnel to strengthen the program in areas where 

access is possible. 

—Provide essential technical assistance in Afghanistan. The investment in Afghanistan will support two staff members in country. 

—Laboratory Surveillance: Investment with CDC’s Polio Global Reference Lab 

will allow the recruitment of additional staff, training for country and regional 

labs, essential IPV research, and expansion of environmental surveillance capabilities in the field. CDC provides technical and programmatic assistance to the 

global polio laboratory network through the Polio Laboratory in CDC’s Division 

of Viral Diseases. CDC’s labs provide critical diagnostic services and genomic 

sequencing of polioviruses to help guide disease control efforts. CDC will continue to serve as the global reference laboratory, while expanding environmental surveillance in countries to serve as a ‘‘safety measure’’ to detect any 

polioviruses circulating in areas without cases. 

—Vaccine Purchase: CDC funds are being used to purchase oral polio vaccine to 

immunize children against polio. 

—Vaccine Operations & Social Mobilization. CDC, through its cooperative agreement with WHO, provides funding for immunization activities in high risk and 

polio infected countries. CDC funding is essential to supporting the supplemental immunization activities that both stop existing outbreaks and prevent 

new outbreaks. CDC collaborates closely with UNICEF and provides critical 

support on analysis and use of campaign results to identify and address reasons 

why children are missed and address vaccine hesitancy concerns. 

—Immunization Systems Strengthening. Investment in this area will allow CDC 

to provide scientific assistance across a range of topics related to the introduction of IPV to focus countries, other GAVI-eligible countries, and to non-eligible 

countries. 

Continued funding will allow CDC to fully capitalize on the resources of the 

Emergency Operation Center to provide direct support and build capacity to continue intense supplementary immunization activities in the remaining polio-affected 

countries, continue leadership on data management to drive evidence-based decisionmaking, and continue to implement strategies to increase effective management 
638 

and accountability. These funds will also help maintain essential certification standard surveillance. 

BENEFITS OF POLIO ERADICATION

Since 1988, over 10 million people who would otherwise have been paralyzed are 

walking because they have been immunized against polio. Tens of thousands of public health workers have been trained to manage massive immunization programs 

and investigate cases of acute flaccid paralysis. Cold chain, transport and communications systems for immunization have been strengthened. The global network of 

145 laboratories and trained personnel established by the GPEI also tracks measles, 

rubella, yellow fever, meningitis, and other deadly infectious diseases and will do 

so long after polio is eradicated. 

A study published in the November 2010 issue of the journal Vaccine estimates that the GPEI could provide net benefits of at least $40–50 billion. Polio eradication 

is a cost-effective public health investment with permanent benefits. On the other 

hand, as many as 200,000 children could be paralyzed annually in the next 10 years 

if the world fails to capitalize on the more than $10 billion already invested in eradication. Success will ensure that the significant investment made by the U.S., Rotary 

International, and many other countries and entities, is protected in perpetuity. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE RYAN WHITE MEDICAL PROVIDERS COALITION

My name is Dr. James Raper, and I serve as the Director of the 1917 HIV/AIDS 

Outpatient Clinic at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. I am writing to submit testimony on behalf of the Ryan White Medical Providers Coalition (RWMPC), 

which I co-chaired from 2010–2013. I remain a member of the RWMPC Steering 

Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to describe the lifesaving HIV/AIDS care 

and treatment provided by Ryan White Part C funded programs, including those 

provided at my own clinic. 

RWMPC is a national coalition of medical providers and administrators who work 

in clinics supported by the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program funded by the HIV/AIDS 

Bureau (HAB) at the Health Services and Resources Administration (HRSA). I 

thank the Subcommittee for its support of Ryan White Part C Programs in fiscal 

year 2014. And while I am grateful for this support, and understand that times are 

tough, I request $225.1 million, or a $24 million increase for Ryan White Part C 

programs in fiscal year 2015. While I know that this is a lot of funding, it is in fact 

well below the estimated need, and Ryan White providers would spend those dollars 

identifying, engaging and treating persons living with HIV/AIDS—an infectious disease that can be effectively prevented and treated in a way that saves both lives 

and money. 

The 1917 Clinic is a dedicated, not–for profit outpatient HIV/AIDS medical and 

dental clinic established in 1988 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Ryan 

White Part C funding provides critical assistance in helping the clinic meet the 

needs of our patients. Today, 35 percent of the 1917 Clinic’s patients are uninsured 

and would be at risk for losing access to lifesaving services without Ryan White Program funding. 

The 1917 Clinic provides comprehensive outpatient HIV primary care services to 

residents of Jefferson, Walker, Winston, Cullman, Blount, St. Clair, and Shelby 

counties. Although our service area technically includes only these seven counties, 

we serve people with HIV/AIDS throughout Alabama and its neighboring States. In 

February 2013, the 1917 Clinic absorbed 800∂ new patients from the previously 

Ryan White Part C funded Cooper Green Hospital’s St. Georges’ Clinic, which closed 

on January 31, 2013. The 1917 Clinic is now providing care to 2,950 adult patients—this represents approximately 24 percent of the 12,404 known adults living 

with HIV/AIDS in Alabama. 

The clinic offers a range of primary care and social services critical to successful 

HIV treatment, including primary medical and oral healthcare; on–site case management; mental health and substance abuse treatment services; onsite access to 

clinical trials; medication adherence; spiritual, risk reduction, and nutrition counseling; infusion therapy; coordination of hospital discharge planning; and home 

healthcare/hospice referral. To avoid emergency room visits, the 1917 Clinic provides ‘sick call’ services five days a week. Subspecialty care is available at the University’s Kirklin Clinic—which is located just two blocks from the 1917 Clinic. 

In addition to critical funding that Ryan White Part C provides through direct 

Federal grants for comprehensive medical care clinics like the 1917 Clinic, most 

Part C clinics, including the 1917 Clinic, also receive support from other Parts of 

the Ryan White Program that help support access to medication; additional medical 
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1 1 See Improvement in the Health of HIV–Infected Persons in Care: Reducing Disparities at 

http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/08/24/cid.cis654.full.pdf+html. 2See CDC’s HIV in the United States: The Stages of Care http://www.cdc.gov/nchhstp/newsroom/docs/2012/Stages–of–CareFactSheet–508.pdf. 

care, such as dental services; and key support services, such as case management 

and transportation, which are essential components of the highly effective Ryan 

White HIV care model that result in excellent outcomes for our patients. 

Ryan White Part C Programs Support Comprehensive, Expert and Effective HIV 

Care 

Part C of the Ryan White Program funds comprehensive, expert and effective HIV 

care and treatment—services that are directly responsible for the dramatic decrease 

in AIDS–related mortality and morbidity over the last decade. The Ryan White Program has supported the development of expert HIV care and treatment programs 

that have become patient–centered medical homes for individuals living with this 

serious, chronic condition. In 2011, a ground–breaking clinical trial—named the scientific breakthrough of the year by Science magazine—found that HIV treatment 

not only saves the lives of people with HIV, but also reduces HIV transmission by 

more than 96 percent—proving that HIV treatment is also HIV prevention. 

The comprehensive, expert HIV care model that is supported by the Ryan White 

Program has been highly successful at achieving positive clinical outcomes with a 

complex patient population.1 In a convenience sample of eight Ryan White–funded 

Part C programs ranging from the rural South to the Bronx, retention in care rates 

ranged from 87 to 97 percent. In estimates from the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC), only 37 percent of all people with HIV are in regular care 

nationally.2 Once in care, patients served at Ryan White–funded clinics do well— 

with 75 to 90 percent having undetectable levels of the virus in their blood. This 

is much higher than the estimate from the CDC that just 25 percent of all people 

living with HIV in the U.S. are virally suppressed. 

Investing in Ryan White Part C Programs Saves Both Lives and Money 

Early and reliable access to HIV care and treatment both helps patients with HIV 

live relatively healthy and productive lives and is more cost effective. One study 

from the 1917 Clinic at the University of Alabama at Birmingham found that patients treated at the later stages of HIV disease required 2.6 times more healthcare 

dollars than those receiving earlier treatment meeting Federal HIV treatment 

guidelines. On average it costs $3,501 per person per year to provide the comprehensive outpatient care and treatment available at Part C funded programs. The comprehensive services provided often include lab work, STD/TB/Hepatitis screening, 

ob/gyn care, dental care, mental health and substance abuse treatment, and case 

management. 

Current Challenges—Future Promise 

However, this effective and comprehensive HIV care model is not completely supported by Medicaid or most private insurance. While many Ryan White Program clients have some form of insurance coverage, without the Ryan White Program, they 

would risk falling out of care. Barriers include poor reimbursement rates; benefits 

designed for healthier populations that fail to cover critical services, such as care 

coordination; and inadequate coverage for other important services, such as extended medical visits, mental health and substance use treatment. Full implementation of the Affordable Care Act plus continuation of the Ryan White Program will 

dramatically improve health access and outcomes for many more people living with 

HIV disease. 

Fully Funding and Maintaining Ryan White Part C Programs Is Essential 

Because of both the inadequacy of insurance coverage for people with complex 

conditions like HIV and the fact that some individuals will remain uncovered, even 

with Affordable Care Act implementation (particularly in the non-Medicaid expansion States), fully funding and maintaining the Ryan White Program is essential to 

providing comprehensive, expert and effective HIV care nationwide. 

And while RMWPC is concerned about the proposal to consolidate Ryan White 

Part D funding into Part C, it welcomes the $4 million increase for Part C programs 

proposed in the President’s fiscal year 2015 budget. RWMPC’s specific concerns include: 

—Part D funding supports effective HIV care and treatment services for vulnerable populations, including women and adolescents. With adolescents accounting for 39 percent of new HIV infections in the U.S., it is critical to target re-
640 

1 National Research Council. Injury in America: A Continuing Public Health Problem. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 1985. 2 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [online] (2007) 

[accessed 2013 Feb 15]. Available from URL: http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars. 

sources to support comprehensive services that effectively engage and retain 

young people in HIV care and treatment. 

—In some communities, Part D-funded programs are the main providers of HIV 

care and treatment. It is critical to ensure that implementation of any budget 

proposal does not leave any community without adequate access to effective and 

comprehensive HIV care and treatment. Also, for Ryan White medical clinics 

that currently receive only Part D funding, it could prove difficult to successfully compete for Part C funding if there currently exists a Part C program 

serving that community. Loss of the aforementioned Part D program would reduce the community’s access to HIV care and treatment. 

—It is unclear how the proposed consolidation would be implemented. At this 

time it is unclear what the consolidation process would entail and how it would 

practically impact grantees and access to HIV care and treatment in communities. Since most Ryan White medical clinics receive funding from multiple 

parts of the Ryan White Program, reduction of funding to one part can have 

damaging and unintended consequences to the overall services provided by 

Ryan White medical clinics, especially now, at a time when providers are working to expand access to HIV care and treatment. 

At this critical time in the HIV/AIDS epidemic, when research has confirmed that 

early access to HIV care and treatment not only saves lives but prevents new infections by reducing the risk of transmission to near zero for patients who are virally 

suppressed, it is essential to maintain overall funding levels for the Ryan White 

Program. While the ACA provides important new healthcare coverage options for 

many patients, most health insurers fail to support the comprehensive care and 

treatment necessary for many patients to manage HIV infection. Exorbitant cost 

sharing, benefit gaps and limited State uptake of the Medicaid expansion necessitate a vital and ongoing role for the Ryan White Program. Increasing access to 

and successful engagement in effective, comprehensive HIV care and treatment is 

the only way to lead the Nation to an AIDS-free generation and reduce the devastating costs of—including lives lost to—HIV infection. 

Conclusion 

Thank you very much for your consideration of RWMPC’s fiscal year 2015 request 

of $225.1 million for Ryan White Part C programs, a $24 million increase over fiscal 

year 2014. 

[This statement was submitted by James L. Raper, PhD, CRNP, JD, FAANP, 

FAAN; Director, 1917 HIV/AIDS Outpatient Clinic; Professor of Medicine & Nursing.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SAFE STATES ALLIANCE

Safe States Alliance, the national membership association dedicated to strengthening the practice of injury and violence prevention, appreciates the opportunity to 

provide testimony in support of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

(CDC). Safe States Alliance requests that the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (Injury Center) receive $205.5M in fiscal year 15—an additional 

$29.7M for the Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP), including resources to meaningfully address the epidemic of prescription drug misuse, abuse 

and overdose; and an additional $13.7M for the National Violent Death Reporting 

System (NVDRS). Safe States Alliances also supports continued funding of the 

CDC’s Preventive Health and Health Services (PHHS) Block Grant at $180 million. 

BACKGROUND

In 1985, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) first called attention to the lack of recognition and funding for injury and violence prevention (IVP) as a public health 

issue in the United States.1 Although some progress has been made in subsequent 

years, injuries and violence continue to have a significant impact on the health of 

Americans and the healthcare system, as more people ages 1–44 die from injuries 

than from any other cause, including cancer, HIV, or the flu.2

Injuries and violence are serious public health problems. Areas include: 
641 

3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [online] (2007) 

[accessed 2013 Feb 15]. Available from URL: http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars 

Assault & Homicide 

Bullying 

Child Maltreatment 

Child Passenger Safety 

Disaster Response 

Domestic & Intimate Partner Violence 

Drowning 

Elder Abuse 

Falls 

Fire & Burns 

Motor Vehicle Safety 

Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety 

Poisoning & Prescription Drug Overdose 

Sexual Assault & Rape 

Suicide 

Traumatic Brain Injury 

Youth Violence 

In fact, more than 29 million people are treated in emergency departments each 

year, two million are hospitalized, and approximately 180,000 people die—one person every three minutes. Every 45 minutes, one of those preventable deaths is a 

child.2 In a single year, injuries and violence will ultimately cost $406 billion in 

medical costs and lost productivity.3 Yet to date, there is no national program to 

support State public health IVP programs. 

At the Federal level, the CDC Injury Center serves as the focal point for the public health approach to IVP. The CDC Injury Center only receives approximately 2 

percent of the CDC/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry budget to address the significant burden of injuries and violence nationwide. In fiscal year 2013, 

the total Injury Center budget was only $138.9 million. 

CORE VIOLENCE AND INJURY PREVENTION PROGRAM (VIPP) AND NEW PRESCRIPTION

DRUG OVERDOSE PREVENTION EXPANDED COMPONENT

Given its limited budget, the CDC Injury Center currently provides small capacity 

building grants of approximately $250,000 to only 20 State health departments 

(SHDs) through the Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP). The Core 

VIPP is comprised of multiple components including: Basic Prevention (20 States); 

Regional Network Leaders (5 States); Surveillance Quality Improvement (4 States); 

Older Adult Falls Prevention (3 States); and Motor Vehicle/Child Injury Prevention 

(4 States). The President’s 2015 Budget Request includes an increase of approximately $15.6M to expand the number of funded Core VIPP programs ($5.6M) and 

to allow for the development of a new expanded component for States to address 

the epidemic of prescription drug misuse, abuse and overdose ($10 million). 

Opioid pain relievers are now involved in more overdose deaths than cocaine and 

heroin combined. The abuse of prescription opioid pain relievers costs up to $72 billion annually. The CDC Injury Center provides leadership in enhancing drug overdose surveillance, identifying and evaluating effective program and policy interventions for preventing overdoses, improving clinical practice to reduce prescription 

drug diversion and abuse, and equipping and empowering States with the information and resources they need to reverse the epidemic. Core VIPP States would be 

funded to advance promising surveillance and prevention strategies and would complement other Federal agencies, such as SAMHSA’s work on screening, treatment 

and community prevention activities. State health departments are well positioned 

to coordinate the necessary multi-sector responses to reverse the epidemic through 

the regulation of healthcare professionals, prescription drug monitoring programs, 

and other major levers for preventing prescription drug abuse. 

Ohio’s Core Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP) provides statewide 

leadership and funding for community-based efforts to address prescription drug 

abuse and overdose through the PHHS Block Grant from CDC. The OH VIPP coordinates the development and implementation of statewide prevention strategies, 

conducts surveillance, supports the Governor’s Cabinet Opiate Action Team Prescriber Education Work Group including the development of opioid prescribing 

guidelines, and provides support and technical assistance to expand naloxone distribution programs. Examples of locally PHHS Block Grant funded strategies include: expanding access to naloxone distribution programs; facilitating healthcare 

system changes such as implementation of opioid prescribing guidelines and other 

pain management strategies; obtaining commitment of prescribers to use the Ohio 

prescription drug monitoring program; and expanding access to sustainable drug 

disposal options. 

With overall program funding of $29.7M, the CDC Injury Center could support 

injury and violence prevention programs in ALL States and territories, much as it 

does for other key public health issues including chronic and infectious diseases, as 
642 

4State of the States: 2011 Report. Atlanta, GA: Safe States Alliance; 2013. 

well as make significant strides in reversing the prescription drug overdose epidemic. 

NATIONAL VIOLENT DEATH REPORTING SYSTEM (NVDRS)

NVDRS is a state-based surveillance system that uses information from a variety 

of States and local agencies and sources—medical examiners, coroners, police, crime 

labs and death certificates—to form a more complete picture of the circumstances 

that surround violent deaths. State and local violence prevention practitioners use 

these data to guide their prevention programs, policies and practices including: identifying common circumstances associated with violent deaths of a specific type (e.g. 

gang violence) or a specific area (e.g. a cluster of suicides); assisting groups in selecting and targeting violence prevention efforts; supporting evaluations of violence prevention activities; and improving the public’s access to in-depth information on violent deaths. CDC Injury Center currently funds 18 States to implement NVDRS and 

received an approximately $7.9M increase in fiscal year 2014 to expand number of 

participating States up to 30–35 States. 

The Oregon Older Adult Suicide Prevention Advisory Work Group and the Oregon 

Department of Human Services used NVDRS data to inform efforts to develop and 

focus suicide prevention programs for older adults. Almost 50 percent of men ages 

65 and older who died by suicide were reported to have a depressed mood before 

death, but only a small proportion were receiving treatment, suggesting screening 

and treatment for depression might have saved lives. As a result, Oregon developed 

primary care recommendations in 2006 to better integrate with mental health services so that suicidal behavior and ideation are diagnosed and older adults received 

appropriate treatment. These recommendations were implemented as part of Oregon’s ‘‘Healthy Aging’’ efforts. The recommendations include the objectives of increasing the confidence and competence of primary care providers and other clinicians to identify, assess and treat older adult suicide behavior and depression. The 

suicide rates among males ages 65 and older in Oregon decreased approximately 8 

percent from 2007 to 2010. 

Safe States Alliance supports the investment of an additional $13.7 million to expand NVDRS to all States and territories. 

PREVENTIVE HEALTH AND HEALTH SERVICES (PHHS) BLOCK GRANT

For more than 30 years, the PHHS Block Grant has remained an essential source 

of Federal agencies to support State solutions to State health problems. The PHHS 

Block Grant allows each State to respond to its own distinct health priorities and 

need. In fiscal year 2011, more than 20 percent of the Prevent Block Grant was used 

by States to support IVP and emergency medical services. According to a 2011 survey conducted by Safe States Alliance, 29 States reported receiving an average of 

$329,000 from the Prevent Block Grant for IVP efforts.4 The Prevent Block Grant 

is a critical source of funding for SHD IVP programs representing 9.4 percent of 

total State funding in 2011. Safe States Alliance supports continued funding of the 

PHHS Block Grant at the $180 million level. 

Preventable injuries exact a heavy burden on Americans through premature 

deaths and disabilities, pain and suffering, medical and rehabilitation costs, disruption of quality of life for families, and disruption of productivity for employers. 

Strengthening investments in public health IVP programs is a critical step to keep 

Americans safe and productive for the 21st century. Safe States Alliance would like 

to thank the Committee for consideration of this testimony. 

[This statement was submitted by Amber Williams, Executive Director, Safe 

States Alliance.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SCLERODERMA FOUNDATION

Chairman Harkin and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, thank you for 

your time and your consideration of the scleroderma community’s priorities while 

working to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill. 

ABOUT SCLERODERMA

Scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis, is a chronic connective tissue disease generally 

classified as one of the autoimmune rheumatic diseases. 
643 

The word ‘‘scleroderma’’ comes from two Greek words: ‘‘sclero’’ meaning hard, and 

‘‘derma’’ meaning skin. Hardening of the skin is one of the most visible manifestations of the disease. The disease has been called ‘‘progressive systemic sclerosis,’’ but 

the use of that term has been discouraged since it has been found that scleroderma 

is not necessarily progressive. The disease varies from patient-to-patient. 

It is estimated that about 300,000 Americans have scleroderma. About one third 

of those people have the systemic form of scleroderma. Since scleroderma presents 

with symptoms similar to other autoimmune diseases, diagnosis is difficult. There 

may be many misdiagnosed or undiagnosed cases. 

Localized scleroderma is more common in children, whereas systemic scleroderma 

is more common in adults. Overall, female patients outnumber male patients at a 

ratio of 4–to–1. Factors other than gender, such as race and ethnic background, may 

influence the risk of getting scleroderma, the age of onset, and the pattern or severity of internal organ involvement. The reasons for this are still unknown. Although 

scleroderma is not directly inherited, some scientists feel there is a slight predisposition to it in families with a history of rheumatic or autoimmune diseases. While, 

scleroderma can develop in every age group from infants to the elderly, its onset 

is most frequent between the ages of 25 to 55. 

Currently, there is no cure for scleroderma. Treatments are based on a patient’s 

particular symptoms. For instance, heartburn can be controlled by medications 

called proton pump inhibitors or medicine to improve the motion of the bowel. Some 

treatments are directed at decreasing the activity of the immune system. Due to the 

fact that there is so much variation from one person to another, there is great variation in the treatments prescribed. 

Any chronic disease can be serious. The symptoms of scleroderma vary greatly for 

each person, and the effects of scleroderma can range from mild to life threatening. 

The seriousness will depend on which organ systems of the body are affected, and 

the extent to which they are affected. A mild case can become more serious if not 

properly treated. Prompt and proper diagnosis and treatment by qualified physicians may minimize the symptoms of scleroderma and lessen the chance for irreversible damage. 

ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

The non-profit Scleroderma Foundation is the national organization for people 

with scleroderma and their families and friends. It was formed January 1, 1998, by 

a merger between the West Coast-based United Scleroderma Foundation and the 

East Coast-based Scleroderma Federation. The national office is headquartered in 

Danvers, Massachusetts. The Foundation has a three-fold mission of support, education, and research. 

Support 

The Scleroderma Foundation offers the following tools and resources in support 

of people living with scleroderma and their families: 

—A nationwide network of 24 chapters and more than 150 support groups 

—A toll-free helpline providing information and referrals to callers 

—Educational materials, including a quarterly magazine called ‘‘Scleroderma 

Voice′′ 

—Offer a variety of brochures, booklets and newsletters, along with our informative website 

Additionally, the Foundation hosts an annual National Patient Education Conference. The conference offers various educational and networking opportunities for 

people living with scleroderma, their caregivers, family members and friends. Workshops, panel discussions and other educational sessions are led by the leading 

scleroderma researchers and healthcare professionals. 

Education 

As part of our education mission, we not only perform all the functions mentioned 

above, we also work with our Medical Advisory Board of internationally known 

scleroderma experts to provide patient education programs as well as education for 

physician/healthcare professionals. 

Research 

The Scleroderma Foundation budgets at least $1 million a year for research funding, its single largest budgeted expense. The Scleroderma Foundation takes its fiduciary responsibility to donors very seriously, especially with regard to our research 

grant program. 

In the case of research funds, the Foundation’s Peer Research Review Committee, 

composed of medical experts on scleroderma from around the world, helps determine 
644 

which proposals will be funded by reading, analyzing and ranking all proposals received. It follows a peer review system based on that of the National Institutes of 

Health. 

ONE FAMILY’S STORY

Cheyenne Cogswell is an 8-year old third-grader living in the poverty-stricken 

town of Falmouth, Kentucky. Cheyenne was diagnosed at age six with a severe case 

of systemic scleroderma. The disease has caused kidney failure and significant damage to her digestive system, making it difficult for the body to receive the proper 

nutrition needed for a growing child. She has undergone several life-saving operations and numerous hospitalizations. Her skin and other internal organs, such as 

the heart and lungs, are also affected. Cheyenne’s treatment first consisted of hospitalization and intense chemotherapy. She continues with daily chemotherapy injections, now given by her mother, to help suppress her immune system and slow 

the progression of the disease. Cheyenne is being raised by a single mother who has 

faced extreme consequences from the financial burden created by scleroderma, losing her job in the economic downturn, as well as the family’s home. Doctors doubted 

if Cheyenne would survive beyond her seventh birthday, but she continues to beat 

the odds. Chronic diseases like scleroderma are unpredictable in their course, and 

the family—together with their close circle of friends—continues to fight and hope 

for the best. Their road is uncertain and illustrates why funding for NIH and its 

research programs are vital to so many people whose lives are impacted by chronic 

illness such as scleroderma. 

SEQUESTRATION

We have heard from the medical research community that sequestration and deficit reduction activities have created serious issues for Federal funding opportunities 

and the career development pipeline. In order to ensure that the scleroderma research portfolio can continue to grow, and, more importantly, to ensure that our 

country is adequately preparing the next generation of young investigators, we urge 

you to avert, mitigate, or otherwise eliminate the specter of sequestration. While the 

Foundation has anecdotal accounts of the harms of sequestration, the Federated 

American Societies for Experimental Biology has reported: 

—In constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), the NIH budget in fiscal year 2013 

was $6 billion (22.4 percent) less than it was in fiscal year 2003. 

—The number of competing research project grants (RPGs) awarded by NIH has 

also fallen sharply since fiscal year 2003. In fiscal year 2013, NIH made 8,283 

RPG awards, which is 2,110 (20.3 percent) fewer than in fiscal year 2003. 

—Awards for R01-equivalent grants, the primary mechanism for supporting investigator-initiated research, suffered even greater losses. The number awarded fell 

by 2,528 (34 percent) between fiscal year 2003 and fiscal year 2013. 

The pay line for some NIH funding mechanisms has fallen from 18 percent to 10 

percent while the average age for a researcher to receive their first NIH-funded 

grant has climbed to 42. These are strong disincentives to choosing a career as a 

medical researcher. Our scaling-back is occurring at a time when many foreign 

countries are investing heavily in their biotechnology sectors. China alone plans to 

dedicate $300 million to medical research over the next 5 years; this amount is double the current NIH budget over the same period of time. Scientific breakthroughs 

will continue, but America may not benefit from the return-on-investment of a robust biotechnology sector. For the purposes of economic and national security, as 

well as public health, the Foundation asks that you work with your colleagues to 

eliminate sequestration and recommit to supporting this Nation’s biomedical research enterprise. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Early recognition and an accurate diagnosis of scleroderma can improve health 

outcomes and save lives. CDC in general and the NCCDPHP specifically have programs to improve public awareness of scleroderma and other rare, life-threatening 

conditions. Unfortunately, budgetary challenges at CDC have pushed the agency to 

focus resources on combating a narrow set of ‘‘winnable battles.’’ Please increase 

funding for CDC and NCCDPHP so that the agency can invest in additional, critical 

education and awareness activities that have the potential to improve health and 

save lives. 
645 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH has worked with the Foundation to lead the effort to enhance our scientific 

understanding of the mechanisms of scleroderma with the shared-goal of improving 

diagnosis and treatment, and ultimately finding a cure. Since scleroderma impacts 

multiple organ systems, NIAMS, NHLBI, and NIDDK all play crucial roles in basic, 

translational, and clinical research efforts. Further, emerging NIH initiatives like 

the Cures Acceleration Network and the Accelerating Medicines Partnership are 

creating meaningful opportunities to advance scleroderma research. Please provide 

NIH with a significant funding increase to the scleroderma research portfolio can 

continue to expand and facilitate key breakthroughs. 

—NHLBI, is leading Scleroderma Lung Study II, is comparing the effectiveness 

of two drugs in treating pulmonary fibrosis in scleroderma. 

—NIAMS, is leading efforts to discover whether three gene expression signatures 

in skin can serve as accurate biomarkers predicting scleroderma, and investigations into progression and response to treatment to clarify the complex interactions of T cells and interleukin-31 (IL–31) in producing inflammation and fibrosis, or scarring in scleroderma. 

ADDITIONAL MEDICAL RESEARCH ACTIVITIES

In recent years, scleroderma has been listed as a condition eligible for study 

through the Department of Defense (DOD) Peer-Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP). Since fiscal year 2005, the opportunity for scleroderma researchers 

to compete for funding through this mechanism led to over $10 million in 

scleroderma research funding as well as the initiation of meaningful research 

projects. Research on the underlying mechanisms of scleroderma is showing relevance to all fibrosis, which occurs at higher rates among individuals who served 

in the military and our veterans. Further, military service-associated environmental 

triggers, particularly silica, solvent, and radiation exposure, are believed to be potential triggers for scleroderma in individuals that are genetically predisposed to it. 

Despite the connection between military service and scleroderma, the condition 

was left off the PRMRP’s eligible conditions list in fiscal year 2014. While we appreciate that the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee and the Senate play important 

roles in crafting the annual eligible conditions list, the scleroderma community 

urges you to weigh in with your colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to actively work to see that scleroderma is re-listed as a condition eligible for study 

through the PRMRP within the Committee Report accompanying the fiscal year 

2015 Defense Appropriations Bill. 

Thank you again for your time and your consideration of the scleroderma community’s requests. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SENIOR SERVICE AMERICA, INC. 

This statement concerns the Administration’s proposed fiscal year 2015 appropriations of $380 million for the Department of Health and Human Services—Administration for Community Living’s Senior Community Service Employment Program. 

We urge that funding for this program be increased to $600 million, returning the 

program to its funding levels prior to the Great Recession (adjusted for inflation). 

This investment would provide jobs and training for more than 30,000 additional 

unemployed older Americans than the Administration’s proposal. We also urge that 

the Congress refer to the authorizing committee any proposals to revise the mission 

of the program or transfer the program from the Department of Labor. 

The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) is the only Federal 

program targeted to provide jobs and training to low-income older adults 55 and 

older. According to GAO Report GAO–11–92, SCSEP is one of only three Federal 

workforce development programs that do not overlap with any other program. 

Launched in 1968, SCSEP is authorized by Title V of the Older Americans Act and 

is currently administered by the Department of Labor Employment and Training 

Administration. In the year ending June 30, 2013, SCSEP provided jobs and training for 67,551 economically disadvantaged older adults, who in turn provided over 

37.2 million hours of staffing to 30,000 local private and private nonprofit agencies 

serving the community. The value of these community service hours was $825 million, based on hourly-wage estimates from the Independent Sector. 

The Administration’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes to cut funding for SCSEP 

to $380 million, $52 million less than $432 million in total grants awarded by the 

USDOL for fiscal year 2014. Senior Service America estimates that this cut would 
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result in 8,600 fewer jobs and training nationwide for low income older adults and 

4.4 million fewer staff hours in local agencies (whose value exceeds $97 million). 

The following facts strongly support increasing the appropriations for SCSEP in 

fiscal year 2015: 

Low-income older workers, most of whom are long-term unemployed, continue to 

suffer extremely high rates of joblessness.—As the following table shows, since 2000 

the jobless rate of low-income older workers (55 years and older with annual family 

incomes less than $20k) has been 2.5 to 3 times higher than the rate among all 

older workers: 

Year 

Unemployment 

rate for low 

income older 

workers 

(%) 

Unemployment 

rate of 

All 55+ 

(%) 

2000 ........................................................................................................................................ 6.6 2.6 

2001 ........................................................................................................................................ 7.6 3.0 

2002 ........................................................................................................................................ 9.7 3.8 

2003 ........................................................................................................................................ 11.1 4.0 

2004 ........................................................................................................................................ 10.6 3.7 

2005 ........................................................................................................................................ 10.1 3.4 

2006 ........................................................................................................................................ 9.9 3.0 

2007 ........................................................................................................................................ 10.0 3.1 

2008 ........................................................................................................................................ 11.8 3.8 

2009 ........................................................................................................................................ 18.8 6.6 

2010 ........................................................................................................................................ 19.9 7.0 

2011 ........................................................................................................................................ 19.5 6.5 

2012 ........................................................................................................................................ 18.4 6.0 

2013 ........................................................................................................................................ 17.0 5.8 

Source: Low-income (<$20,000) age 55+ jobless rate tabulations fromCurrent Population Survey, by the Center for Labor Market Studies,Northeastern University, for Senior Service America, Inc., January2014. 

SCSEP is a unique employment and training program of the Federal Government.—Cited in the previously mentioned 2011 GAO report as one of only three 

Federal workforce programs ‘‘that do not overlap with other programs.’’ It also assists a harder-to-serve segment of the older adult workforce: 88 percent of participants were at or below the poverty level; 60 percent were at least 60 years old; nearly two-thirds were women; and over half of the participants were from a racial/ethnic minority (PY2012). 

SCSEP grantees succeed in carrying out the Congressional intent for the program.—According to an independent national evaluation conducted by Mathematica 

Policy Research (MPR) and Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) in 2012 for the 

U.S. Department of Labor, ‘‘SCSEP projects are largely successful in recruiting and 

enrolling older workers with serious barriers to employment, providing participants 

with community service assignments at host agencies, and [annually] placing nearly 

half of program exiters who are available for work into unsubsidized jobs.’’ 

Programs under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) continue to underserve older 

workers.—Several GAO reports have cited that WIA performance measures may create disincentives for serving older workers seeking part-time work. As a result, a 

disproportionately small percentage of those served by American Job Centers are 

older workers. The 2012 MPR/SPR evaluation of SCSEP stated that ‘‘SCSEP 

projects find it difficult to draw on the resources of American Job Centers to support 

participants in finding jobs.’’ 

The value of work performed by SCSEP participants in their community service 

assignments is nearly double the total amount appropriated for SCSEP.—In PY2012, 

SCSEP participants worked over 37 million hours at minimum wage in over 30,000 

host agencies (nonprofit, faith-based, and public), including more than 10 million 

hours serving other older persons through Meals on Wheels, area agencies on aging, 

and other organizations. Using the Independent Sector’s estimated hourly value of 

volunteer work, the estimated value of this community service was nearly $825 million. 

The fiscal year 2015 budget proposes to cut SCSEP funding to 66 percent of the 

2008 level (in constant 2000 dollars), yet low-income older workers continue to suffer 

from extraordinarily high rates of unemployment.—The following graph shows the 

unemployment rate among low-income older workers since 2000 (described in the 

previous table on page 2) in contrast to the history of SCSEP funding, in both cur-
647 

rent dollars and constant 2000 dollars. In 2008, the average annual unemployment 

rate for low-income older adults 55 and over was 11.8 percent and SCSEP funding 

was $521.6 million (unadjusted) or $417.2 million (in constant 2000 dollars). In 

unadjusted dollars, the proposed fiscal year 2015 budget for SCSEP of $380 million 

represents 73 percent of the 2008 funding for SCSEP, but the fiscal year 2015 budget would cut SCSEP to only 66 percent of the 2008 funding in constant dollars— 

yet the average annual unemployment rate for the SCSEP-eligible population is 

about 17 percent in 2013 compared to less than 12 percent in 2008. 
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The following table shows the history of SCSEP funding since 2000: 

Fiscal Year 

Final 

appropriations in 

current dollars 

(millions) 

Real value of 

annual 

appropriations in 

constant dollars 

(base year: 2000) 

2000 ............................................................................................................................ 440.2 440.2 

2001 ............................................................................................................................ 440.2 428.0 

2002 ............................................................................................................................ 445.1 426.1 

2003 ............................................................................................................................ 442.3 413.9 

2004 ............................................................................................................................ 434.0 395.7 

2005 ............................................................................................................................ 436.7 385.0 

2006 ............................................................................................................................ 432.3 369.3 

2007 ............................................................................................................................ 483.6 401.6 

2008 ............................................................................................................................ 521.6 417.2 

2009 ............................................................................................................................ 691.9 558.4 

2010 ............................................................................................................................ 825.4 651.8 

2011 ............................................................................................................................ 449.1 343.8 

2012 ............................................................................................................................ 448.3 336.2 

2013 ............................................................................................................................ 424.8 313.9 

2014 ............................................................................................................................ 434.4 318.6 

2015 (proposed) .......................................................................................................... 380.0 274.6 (est) 

Note: Estimation Procedure for 2015 Constant Dollar Value (base year = 2000): 

Estimated Cumulative Inflation Index (CII) for 2015 is based on projected annual inflation rate of 1.5 percent. OMB proposed SCSEP appropriation for fiscal year 2015 = $380m. fiscal year 2015 $380m = $278.7m in 2014 constant dollars. The CII through 2014 = $380/$278.7 = 1.3635. Estimated CII for 2015 (based on 1.5 percent inflation rate) = 1.3635 + (1.3635 x 0.015) = 1.3840. fiscal year 2015 proposed 

$380m appropriation = $380m/1.3840 = $274.57m in constant dollars (base year 2000). 

The proposed fiscal year 2015 would have a damaging impact on local communities.—As the following table shows, cuts in SCSEP funding would harm small and 

large States: 
649 

Total fiscal year 2014 

funding awarded by 

USDOL 

($) 

Estimated funding in 

fiscal year 2015 

($) 

Cut in funding in 

fiscal year 2015 

($) 

Cut in number of 

SCSEP 

participants 

Cut in total hours 

of community 

service 

Value of lost hours of 

community service 

($) 

All States and Territories .................................................................................. 432,285,000 380,000,000 ¥52,285,000 ¥8,630 ¥4,381,000 97,000,000 Alabama ............................................................................................................ 8,011,355 7,042,000 ¥969,000 ¥160 ¥87,800 ¥1,900,000 Illinois ................................................................................................................ 16,502,969 14,507,000 ¥1,996,000 ¥330 ¥161,000 ¥3,600,000 Iowa ................................................................................................................... 5,430,241 4,773,000 ¥657,000 ¥110 ¥57,900 ¥1,300,000 Kansas ............................................................................................................... 4,210,174 3,701,000 ¥509,000 ¥80 ¥43,900 ¥1,000,000 Maryland ............................................................................................................ 5,832,216 5,127,000 ¥705,000 ¥120 ¥62,200 ¥1,400,000 Mississippi ......................................................................................................... 5,232,771 4,600,000 ¥633,000 ¥100 ¥53,000 ¥1,200,000 Tennessee .......................................................................................................... 8,660,178 7,613,000 ¥1,047,000 ¥170 ¥93,000 ¥2,100,000 Washington ........................................................................................................ 6,489,633 5,705,000 ¥785,000 ¥130 ¥54,900 ¥1,200,000 
650 

In summary, our economy continues to leave millions of low-income older Americans behind. These older workers help expand the capacity of local agencies to meet 

the basic needs of their communities. In an independent national survey of 10,000 

of these agencies, 75 percent reported that SCSEP significantly or somewhat increased their ability to provide services. SCSEP is a unique program that achieves 

a wide range of outcomes and produces multiple returns on investment. Throughout 

the Nation, older Americans and communities need and depend on the Senior Community Service Employment Program. 

[This statement was submitted by Anthony R. Sarmiento, Executive Director, 

Senior Service America, Inc.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SLEEP RESEARCH SOCIETY

Chairman Tom Harkin, Ranking Member Jerry Moran, and distinguished members of the Subcommittee, as you begin to craft the fiscal year 2015 Labor-HHSEducation appropriations bill, the Sleep Research Society (SRS) is pleased to submit 

this statement for the record asking you to provide $32 billion for NIH, including 

a proportional increase for the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), 

$1 million in funding for sleep disorders awareness and surveillance at the Centers 

for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), full support for the National Center on 

Sleep Disorders Research (NCSDR), and implementation of the 2011 NIH Sleep Disorders Research Plan. These actions will ensure increased awareness of the importance of sleep and circadian rhythms and further the advancements being made by 

sleep researchers to better understand the relationship between sleep and health. 

SLEEP RESEARCH SOCIETY

SRS was established in 1961 by a group of scientists who shared a common goal 

to foster scientific investigations on all aspects of sleep and sleep disorders. Since 

that time, SRS has grown into a professional society comprising over 1,100 researchers nationwide. From promising trainees to accomplished senior level investigators, 

sleep research has expanded into areas such as psychology, neuroanatomy, pharmacology, cardiology, immunology, metabolism, genomics, and healthy living. SRS recognizes the importance of educating the public about the connection between sleep 

and health outcomes. We promote training and education in sleep research, public 

awareness, and evidence-based policy, in addition to hosting forums for the exchange of scientific knowledge pertaining to sleep and circadian rhythms. 

According to an Institute of Medicine’s report entitled, ‘‘Sleep Disorder and Sleep 

Deprivation: An Unmet Public Health Problem’’ (2006), chronic sleep and circadian 

disturbances and disorders are a very real and relevant issue in today’s society as 

they affect 50–70 million Americans across all demographic groups. Sleep deprivation is a major safety issue, particular in reference to drowsy driving, where it is 

a factor in 20 percent of motor vehicle injuries. The widespread effect of sleep disorders on every age group poses a public health risk, extending from the ability to 

learn to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Furthermore, it is important to recognize that 

sleep disorders and circadian disturbances are often an indicator of, or a precursor 

to other major diseases and disorders including; obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke, depression, bipolar disorder, and substance abuse. Another increasingly detrimental condition affecting 15 percent of the population is 

sleep-disordered breathing, including obstructive sleep apnea. Sleep apnea results in 

excessive daytime somnolence, poor performance, increased frequency of road traffic 

accidents, and arterial hypertension. Studies show that 85 percent of 725 troops returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq had a sleep disorder and the most common 

was obstructive sleep apnea (51 percent). If left untreated, obstructive sleep apnea 

has significant negative impacts on health, including early mortality. 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

Due to the fact that sleep is a multi-disciplinary issue, many institutes and centers at NIH, utilize a portion of their funding to support sleep and circadian research. The majority of sleep research is coordinated by NHLBI, particularly the 

National Center on Sleep Disorders Research. An appropriation of $32 billion for 

NIH, and $3 billion for NHLBI, is needed to facilitate the continued growth and advancement in the sleep and circadian research portfolio. 

The reason NCSDR is housed at NHLBI is due to the important link between 

sleep disorders and cardiovascular health. NCSDR supports research, health education, and research training related to sleep-disordered breathing and the fundamental function of sleep and circadian rhythms. Furthermore, NCSDR coordinates 
651 

sleep research across NIH and with other Federal agencies and outside organizations. 

NCSDR’s coordinating role between institutes is made possible through adequate 

funding. These research activities also have far reaching effects, beginning with 

training grants targeted towards undergraduate students and career development 

opportunities attracting top talent in doctoral programs. Sequestration has the potential to disrupt the research training pipeline by reducing the amount of K, T, and 

F series awards for new investigators. It could also disrupt the career development 

pipeline designed to train future investigators who are pursuing research in sleep 

disorders and circadian rhythms. It is important to fund NIH at $32 billion and 

NHLBI at $3 billion in fiscal year 2015 so that we can continue these advancements 

in sleep and circadian research. 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS & DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE RESEARCH ACTIVITIES

It is also important to recognize that by increasing the Federal commitment to 

sleep and circadian research, we can improve the health of those brave Americans 

who have served in uniform and are suffering from sleep disorders. Both obstructive 

sleep apnea and insomnia have a high prevalence among active-duty U.S. Armed 

Forces and among Veterans. Post-traumatic stress disorder and/or depression are 

highly prevalent in returning Iraq and Afghanistan combat Veterans. Sleep disturbance is a prominent symptom in these disorders. Traumatic brain injury is increasingly common in modern combat, and sleep disruption in the aftermath of TBI may 

have negative effects on long-term recovery of normal brain function. 

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense have 

shown a commitment to collaborating with NIH on sleep research related to PostTraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and Gulf War Illness (GWI). This is highlighted in the fiscal year 2014 president’s budget request 

detailing research initiatives in PTSD and TBI. The ‘‘Longitudinal Health Study of 

Gulf War Era Veterans’’ is one of the largest scientific research studies on chronic 

diseases and multi-symptom illnesses, including Gulf War Illness. Researchers 

found that prazosin, an inexpensive drug already used by millions of Americans for 

hypertension and prostate problems, improves sleep and reduces nightmares for veterans with PTSD. They continue to pursue activities such as the difference between 

female and male veterans with PTSD and possible intervention strategies to help 

veterans with TBI return to daily activities. One study described in the Veteran’s 

Health Administration report State of VA Research 2012, found that 96 percent of 

veterans with chronic multi-symptom illnesses experienced sleep disordered breathing. By using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) these veterans reported 

reductions in pain and fatigue and improvements in cognitive function. 

Sleep disruption, especially insomnia, is a contributing risk factor to the onset and 

severity of major mental health problems such as depression, bipolar disorder, substance abuse, PTSD, TBI, and suicide among the veteran population. It is important 

to continue supporting the sleep research endeavors of the VA through robust funding for the Medical and Prosthetic Research Program at $589 million. 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

CDC gathers important data on sleep disorders through their surveillance efforts 

under the Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion program. Most notably, CDC hosts a National Sleep Awareness Roundtable (NSART) by promoting the 

importance of sleep through the production of State fact sheets, updating the CDC 

website, and disseminating information on sleep related topics. CDC also promotes 

awareness of sleep disorders and the dangers associated with sleep deprivation for 

the benefit of millions of Americans. Currently population-based data on the prevalence of circadian disruption and its relationship to disease risk is relatively limited. 

Please fund CDC at $7.8 billion including an allocation of $1 million solely for sleep 

awareness and surveillance activities within the Chronic Disease Prevention and 

Health Promotion program and within NSART, so that progress can continue in the 

areas of sleep disorders and disturbances, sleep awareness, and education to the 

public community. 

NIH SLEEP DISORDERS RESEARCH PLAN

NCSDR published the NIH Sleep Disorders Research Plan in November of 2011 

highlighting the implementation of pertinent sleep research goals to enable further 

advancements in the realm of sleep and circadian rhythm disorders. A Joint Task 

Force between the two leading organizations representing the sleep medicine and 

research community, Sleep Research Society (SRS) and American Academy of Sleep 
652 

Medicine (AASM), has identified research opportunities that will have the highest 

impact on health within the plan. 

The Plan recommends implementation of the following sleep research goals which 

will help us understand the function of sleep and inform individuals on healthier 

lifestyle choices: 

—Advance the understanding of sleep and circadian functions and of basic sleep 

and circadian mechanisms, in both the brain and the body, across the lifespan. 

—Identify genetic, pathophysiological, environmental, cultural, lifestyle factors, 

and sex and gender differences contributing to the risk of sleep and circadian 

disorders and disturbances, and their role in the development and pathogenesis 

of co-morbid diseases and disability. 

—Improve prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of sleep and circadian disorders, 

chronic sleep deficiency, and circadian disruption, and evaluate the resulting 

impact on human health. 

—Enhance the translation and dissemination of sleep and circadian research findings and concepts to improve healthcare, inform public policy, and increase community awareness to enhance human health. 

—Enable sleep and circadian research training to inform science in cross-cutting 

domains, accelerate the pace of discovery, and the translation of enhanced 

therapies from bench to bedside to community. 

Research activities and stakeholders addressed by the plan benefit from the encompassing range of NIH research, training, and outreach programs. Over the past 

2 years, steps have been taken to implement portions of this research plan, but additional work needs to be done. SRS encourages you to recommend that this research plan continue to be implemented during fiscal year 2015. 

Thank you for the opportunity to submit the views of the sleep research community. Please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions or require 

additional information. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Janet Mullington, Ph.D., President, Sleep 

Research Society.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SOCIETY FOR HEALTHCARE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF AMERICA AND THE ASSOCIATION FOR PROFESSIONALS IN INFECTION CONTROL AND EPIDEMIOLOGY

The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) and the Association 

for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) thank you for this 

opportunity to submit testimony on Federal efforts to detect dangerous infectious 

diseases, protect the American public from preventable healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and address the rapidly growing threat of antibiotic resistance (AR). 

We ask that you support the following programs: First, under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious 

Diseases: $250 million for Core Infectious Diseases including $30 million for the new 

Detect and Protect Against Antibiotic Resistance (AR) Initiative, $32 million for the 

National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), and $30 million for the Advanced Molecular Detection (AMD) Initiative. Additionally, we request $34 million for HAI research activity conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

(AHRQ) and $4.58 billion for the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of 

Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). 

HAIs are among the leading causes of preventable death in the United States. In 

hospitals alone, CDC estimates that one in 25 patients has an HAI, totaling approximately 722,000 infections in 2011. According to the CDC, every day, more than 

200 Americans with HAIs will die during their hospital stay. Further, AR is one of 

the most critical public health and patient safety threats facing us today, causing 

an estimated two million illnesses and approximately 23,000 deaths annually. It is 

estimated that as much as half of antibiotic prescribing in hospitals is not necessary. Antibiotics, created to save lives, are now contributing to patient’s deaths 

by promoting the emergence of highly resistant bacteria and leading to deadly adverse events. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

We urge you to support the CDC Coalition’s request for $7.8 billion in fiscal year 

2015 for the CDC’s ‘‘core programs.’’ We are concerned that the President’s fiscal 

year 2015 budget proposal would reduce the CDC’s budget authority by $243 million 

when compared with fiscal year 2014. This total is, in fact, lower than 2003 levels. 

We urge Congress to prioritize funding for the activities and programs supported 
653 

by CDC that are essential to protect the health of the American people and reduce 

healthcare costs. 

We especially want to highlight our support for the $30 million in the President’s 

budget for the Detect and Protect Against Antibiotic Resistance (AR) Initiative. This 

initiative will establish a robust network of five regional labs that will detect the 

deadliest AR threats and protect patients and communities through the rapid identification of outbreaks, saving lives and reducing healthcare costs. It will prioritize 

healthcare prevention collaboratives focused on improving antibiotic use and preventing deadly infections caused by Clostridium difficile (C. diff), carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), Pseudomonas, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Most importantly, the initiative will invest in direct action 

by implementing proven evidence-based interventions that reduce the emergence 

and spread of AR pathogens and improve antibiotic use. It is critical that Congress 

prioritize this rapidly growing threat to public health and patient safety in our Nation and around the world. Moreover, we strongly support CDC’s focus on the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs in all healthcare settings. 

We urge you to support the $32 million in the President’s budget for the CDC’s 

National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). The President’s request represents a 

$14 million increase over the fiscal year 2014 enacted level for the NHSN to extend 

HAI prevention efforts to more than 3,000 ambulatory surgery centers and other 

non-hospital settings. This will enable CDC to conduct applied research on interventions for infection prevention and continue to provide data for national HAI elimination and targeted HAI prevention intervention. This funding level will also allow 

for the extension and implementation of the NHSN Antimicrobial Use and Resistance Components to enable rapid detection of highly resistant pathogens and track 

antibiotic use in healthcare settings. 

The NHSN serves as the foundation for the development of innovative, evidencebased HAI prevention strategies through high-quality monitoring of HAI prevalence 

as well as antibiotic usage in the US. It is a critical tool used by healthcare facilities 

to monitor and prevent HAIs. The NHSN provides medical facilities, states, regions, 

and the Nation with data collection and reporting capabilities needed to comply with 

state and Federal public reporting mandates, including the Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services’ Value-Based Purchasing Program. Consistent, scientifically 

sound and validated data are necessary to be reported at the state and Federal levels to ensure that accurate data are available to evaluate progress related to the 

HHS National Action Plan to Prevent HAIs as well as to support transparency to 

the public, allowing for fair comparisons between facilities. 

By August 2013, over 12,400 healthcare facilities, including nearly all U.S. hospitals, participated in NHSN for quality improvement. The number of acute care 

hospitals reporting multi-drug resistant organisms (such as C.diff and MRSA) 

through NHSN more than doubled to 4,000 in fiscal year 2013. Since 2008, the cumulative impact of CDC data systems, guidelines and programs has contributed to 

significant reductions of HAIs in healthcare settings, including a 44 percent reduction in central line-associated bloodstream infections, a 31 percent reduction in 

healthcare-associated invasive MRSA infections, and a 20 percent reduction in surgical site infections. 

We strongly support the CDC Prevention Epicenters Program. Funded through 

the NHSN, this program is a collaboration between CDC and academic medical centers that conduct innovative infection control and prevention research to address important scientific questions regarding the prevention of HAIs, antibiotic resistance 

and other adverse healthcare events. The Epicenters Program has provided a 

unique forum in which academic leaders in healthcare epidemiology can partner directly with each other and with CDC subject matter experts. The resultant emphasis on multicenter collaborative research projects, through which investigators work 

together as a group, allows for research that in many cases, would not have been 

possible for a single academic center. Going forward, the Prevention Epicenters will 

continue to address gaps and pilot innovative ways to prevent HAIs and antimicrobial resistance. 

We urge your continued support of the President’s $30 million request for the Advanced Molecular Detection (AMD) Initiative in bioinformatics and genomics, which 

allows CDC to more quickly determine where emerging diseases come from, whether 

microbes are resistant, and how microbes are moving through a population. This 

Initiative is critical because it strengthens CDC’s epidemiologic and laboratory expertise to effectively guide public health action. 

We strongly support the critical work conducted through the Emerging Infections 

Program (EIP), which engages a network of state health departments and their academic medical center partners to help answer important questions about emerging 
654 

HAI threats, advanced infection tracking methods and antibiotic resistance in the 

U.S. 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

We request your support of the proposed investment of $34 million for AHRQ’s 

HAI research activity, the level of enacted support in fiscal year 2014. Building on 

the successes of fiscal year 2013 and 2014, these funds will support a portfolio of 

grant- and contract-funded projects seeking to advance our knowledge about effective approaches to reducing HAIs while promoting the implementation of proven 

methods for preventing HAIs. These grants ($13.9 million) and contracts ($20.1 million) will investigate methods of controlling HAIs in diverse healthcare settings and 

will address the major types of HAIs. In addition, contracts funded by the HAI 

budget will accelerate the nationwide implementation of the Comprehensive Unitbased Safety Program (CUSP). To date, widespread adoption of this evidence-based 

checklist of safety practices to over 1,000 intensive care units has reduced the incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) by 41 percent. 

Our organizations are pleased to participate in the On the CUSP: Stop CAUTI initiative, which aims to reduce mean rates of CAUTI in U.S. hospitals by 25 percent 

by working with state organizations and hospitals across the country to implement 

the CUSP and catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) reduction practices in hospital units. In spite of notable progress, there remains work to be done 

toward the goal of HAI elimination. 

National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) 

Within NIH, we believe that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) should be funded at least at the $4.58 billion requested by the Administration in the fiscal year 2014 budget request. Nearly flat-funding NIAID limits investment in new research and serves as a disincentive for young people to pursue infectious disease research careers so critical to the discovery of new therapies, 

new diagnostic approaches, and new preventive strategies. 

In 2013, the NIAID began funding a new clinical trials network focused on antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. With sufficient funding, the new research network/infrastructure will conduct studies to address antibiotic resistance as well as 

begin to answer questions that will help fill the nearly empty antibiotic research 

and development pipeline. Severe economic disincentives have caused a mass exodus 

of private companies from the antibiotics market, making federally funded research 

in this area more critical than ever. We applaud NIAID’s initiative in launching the 

new network. We recommend increased investment in this area. 

We thank you for the opportunity to submit testimony and greatly appreciate your 

leadership in the effort to eliminate preventable HAIs and combat antibiotic resistance. 

Please forward questions to: 

Melanie Young, Policy & Strategic Initiatives Director, SHEA, myoung@shea-online.org and Lisa Tomlinson, Senior Director, Government Affairs, APIC, 

ltomlinson@apic.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SOCIETY FOR NEUROSCIENCE

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, my name is Carol Ann Mason, 

Ph.D. I am a professor of pathology and cell biology, neuroscience, and ophthalmic 

science at Columbia University. I study the development of visual pathways in 

mammalian brains, with a focus on how neurons in the eye are encoded to project 

to the correct side of the brain, setting up the circuit for binocular vision. This statement is in support of increased funding for NIH for fiscal year 2015. 

I am pleased to submit this testimony in my capacity as president of the Society 

for Neuroscience (SfN). On behalf of the nearly 40,000 members of SfN, thank you 

for your past support of neuroscience research at NIH. SfN’s mission is to advance 

the understanding of the brain and nervous system; provide professional development activities, information and educational resources; promote public information 

and general education; and inform legislators and other policymakers. 

The Society stands with others in the research community in requesting at least 

$32 billion for NIH for fiscal year 2015. Sequestration is taking an enormous toll 

on biomedical research, coming on top of recent years when funding has failed to 

keep pace with the cost of research—let alone the scientific opportunities that are 

available. SfN urges Congress to reverse the current course and find ways to invest 

more in biomedical research. Let’s work to put biomedical research on a trajectory 
655 

of sustained growth that recognizes its promise and opportunity as a tool for economic growth and, more importantly, for advancing the health of Americans. 

Neuroscience: An Investment in Our Future 

Even in the face of the difficult funding situation, the last several years have been 

a tremendously exciting and productive time for neuroscience discoveries. Major research advances on brain development, imaging, genomics, circuits, computational 

neuroscience, neural engineering, and many other disciplines are leading to new 

tools, new knowledge, and greater understanding that were unimaginable even a 

few years ago. Sustained investment to fuel and speed these discoveries is essential 

to American health and economic well-being for many reasons. 

First, major investment in basic and translational neuroscience is not only fueling 

an enduring and vital scientific endeavor; it is the essential foundation for understanding and treating diseases that strike nearly 1 billion people worldwide. All 

told, there are more than 1,000 debilitating neurological and psychiatric diseases 

that strike over 100 million Americans each year, producing inestimable hardship 

for millions of America families and costing the U.S., in a conservative estimate, at 

least $760 billion a year, with expenses in the trillions looming for conditions such 

as Alzheimer’s disease. Advances made possible by publicly-funded basic research 

will help better understand and treat traumatic brain injury, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, Down syndrome, schizophrenia, epilepsy, and post-traumatic stress 

disorder, to name just a few. With so much promising research, now, more than 

ever, it is time to fan the flames of research in order to ensure lifesaving breakthroughs continue. 

Additionally, NIH funding is an investment in America’s current economic 

strength. Funding for research supports quality jobs and increases economic activity. NIH supports approximately 400,000 jobs and $58 billion in economic output nationwide. Eighty-five percent of the NIH budget fund extramural research in communities located in every State. 

Finally, without robust, sustained investment, America’s status as the preeminent 

leader in biomedical research is at risk. Other countries are investing heavily in biomedical research to take advantage of new possibilities. Even with the growing philanthropic support, private sector cannot be expected to close the gap. The lag time 

between discovery and profitability means that the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, 

and medical device industries need federally-funded basic (also known as fundamental) research to develop products and treatments. The foundation that basic research provides is at risk if federally-funded research declines. 

The BRAIN Initiative 

SfN appreciates that both Congress and the administration recognize brain 

science as one of the great scientific challenges of our time. The Brain Research 

through Application of Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative—announced 

by the President last April—will enable NIH and other Federal agencies to develop 

tools and plans that will help accelerate fundamental discoveries and improve the 

health and quality of life for millions of Americans. An eminent group of 

neuroscientists with diverse research interests is helping to formulate a scientifically-driven direction for the initiative, and SfN thanks public leaders for their interest and early support for a truly transformative scientific grand challenge that 

would need major financial emphasis in future years. 

The overarching goal of the BRAIN Initiative is to map the circuits of the brain 

and the activity within those circuits to understand our unique cognitive and behavioral capabilities. The Initiative has a strong focus on developing technologies which 

has the potential to benefit all of neuroscience and even non-neuroscience research. 

BRAIN, like other major brain-related initiatives around the world, demonstrates 

the global interest in tackling the mysteries of the brain. But BRAIN—as with all 

the neuroscience research that takes place with Federal support—can only be successful if it is part of a broad neuroscience commitment across Congress and the 

Administration. Such an investment will also help ensure the U.S. remains a global 

leader, as other nations and regions are now rapidly ramping up their investments 

in neuroscience research. 

Cross-Disciplinary Neuroscience and the Promise of Brain Circuits 

NIH-funded basic research continues to be essential for discoveries that will inspire scientific and medical progress for generations. Past NIH-supported projects 

have helped neuroscientists make tremendous strides in diagnosing and treating 

neurological and psychiatric disorders. 

A prime example of the importance of funding research at levels from the most 

basic to translational is the current focus on understanding brain circuits. Circuits 

in the brain underlie every thought, emotion, and action we take. Current knowl-
656 

edge about the intricate patterns connecting brain cells is extremely limited. Identifying these patterns is essential to understand healthy brain function and dysfunction in injury or disease. Research suggests that some brain disorders, like autism 

and schizophrenia, may result from errors in neural circuit development. Elucidating brain circuit structure and function is an enormously challenging endeavor; 

the brain consists of billions of cells, and each cell contacts thousands of others. 

These cells communicate with precisely-timed signals, which then activate a multitude of biochemical pathways that influence every process in the cell. However, 

scientists are beginning to map the functions of brain circuits with previously unheard-of specificity using cutting-edge technologies, and learning how these circuits 

produce behaviors. 

The following examples are just a few of the many basic research success stories 

in the science of brain circuitry emerging now thanks to interdisciplinary research 

funded by a strong historic investment in NIH and other research agencies. 

Optogenetics 

Optogenetics is a technique which uses light to activate specific populations of 

neurons with millisecond precision. It is difficult to overstate how revolutionary 

optogenetics is for neuroscience research. With optogenetics, flashes of light are 

used to activate neurons that have been genetically modified to contain a light-sensing protein. This precise control over specific populations of neurons at specific 

times was impossible until a confluence of basic research in marine biology, genetic 

engineering, cellular biology, and fiber optic technology facilitated its development; 

together these developments created an approach that enables the proteins to be 

used as ‘‘on switches’’ for cells. Introduced a decade ago, optogenetics is now used 

by hundreds of labs; it is one of the many neurotechnologies that today is transforming the field’s ability to understand brain function, and is being used to study 

brain circuits in both normal function and disease, including Parkinson’s disease, 

as described below. The development of this technology also perfectly demonstrates 

the often serendipitous nature of scientific discovery and the need to fund both research on all levels, from basic to translational to clinical. 

Understanding the Development of Vision 

My own area of research is the development of the circuits underlying vision. For 

binocular vision to function, the brain must receive information from both eyes. 

Nerve fibers from each retina grow to the ‘optic chiasm,’ at the midline of the bottom of the brain. Here, nerve fibers from each eye cross to the other side of the 

brain. Other axons, however, are repelled at the midline and project to the same 

side of the brain. These connections underlie binocular vision which enables animals, including humans, to calculate how far objects lie in the distance. One area 

of my research focuses on this question and the molecular mechanisms that prompt 

some growing nerve fibers to ‘‘stop in their tracks’’ and reroute to the same side. 

These two groups of cells in the eye, each taking different routes, are endowed with 

distinct genes that direct their time of birth and their growth to the regions where 

they make their synaptic connections. Understanding their genetic ‘‘signatures’’ and 

growth helps us to learn how to encourage stem cells to be integrated into the diseased eye and injured nerve fibers to regrow in the correct circuits. We also investigate how the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) surrounding the eye, directs retinal 

development. Perturbations in the RPE occur in albinism and in juvenile forms of 

macular degeneration, the latter leading to blindness, and our gene identification 

efforts are important for gene therapy at early stages of the disease. Moreover, understanding how tracts are laid down is essential for unraveling the basis of defects 

in fiber pathways and synapse formation in neurodevelopmental disorders such as 

autism. This research is made possible with support primarily from NIH, especially 

the National Eye Institute and with a team of innovative and collaborative scientists and trainees in my lab and in our community, and provides a foundation for 

future discovery and new understanding about diseases of the eye and other 

neurodevelopmental conditions. 

Deep Brain Stimulation 

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a tool that emerged as a result of advances in 

health research. DBS involves a surgical procedure in which a neurostimulator device—similar to a heart pacemaker—is implanted to deliver electrical stimulation to 

targeted areas in the brain. While both DBS and optogenetics have emerged as instrumental methods to influence circuits, DBS has also been developed into a revolutionary therapy for the treatment of neurological disease. The electrical pulses delivered through the electrodes can transiently disrupt abnormal activity that occurs 

in localized circuits of diseased brains, such as in Parkinson’s patients. 
657 

DBS has created a new way to approach the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. 

Many patients experience pronounced relief from symptoms that include tremor, 

stiffness, slowed movement, and walking problems. Moreover, DBS can allow patients to reduce the dosage of their medication, providing relief from debilitating 

motor side-effects. Additionally, advances in materials science to create more flexible 

electrodes and in imaging research to produce higher resolution images of the brain 

will improve the precision and outcome of this intervention. 

At this time, how and why DBS works is unknown. Insight into its mechanism 

of action came from optogenetic studies in rodents of the brain circuits that control 

movement. By systematically manipulating precise areas of the circuit affected by 

this disease, scientists were able to implicate the connection between two areas of 

the brain as the most effective target for DBS. These studies will also inform the 

design of other interventions in Parkinson’s, and establish a model for study of basic 

brain circuitry to inform DBS treatment. 

DBS has also had success in treating both intractable depression and epilepsy, 

and has the potential to improve therapies for a whole host of brain diseases and 

disorders—as long as the correct target is identified. Because stimulating adjacent 

regions in the brain can have vastly different effects, researchers are attempting to 

better understand the complex brain circuits that control our normal functions (e.g., 

movement, emotion) and how they can go wrong (e.g., addiction). They also are 

tweaking the physical devices used, as well as the frequency and strength of the 

electrical pulses delivered. As we understand more about language of the brain 

through the research made possible by NIH funding, new applications of DBS will 

be possible. 

The Future of American Science 

As the subcommittee considers this year’s funding levels, please consider that significant advancements in the biomedical sciences often come from young investigators. As a director of the PhD training program of a leading neuroscience department, I see firsthand that the current funding environment is taking a toll on the 

energy and resilience of these young people and their career choice. America’s scientific enterprise—and its global leadership—has been built over generations. Without sustained, consistent investment, we will quickly lose that leadership. Dramatic 

swings in funding have stifling and irreversible impacts on progress; a closed laboratory can’t simply open again when funding is restored. The culture of entrepreneurship and curiosity-driven research could be hindered for decades. 

We live at a time of extraordinary opportunity in neuroscience. A myriad of questions once impossible to consider are now within reach because of new technologies, 

an ever-expanding knowledge base, and a willingness to embrace many disciplines. 

To take advantage of the opportunities in neuroscience we need an NIH appropriation that allows for sustained, reliable growth. That, in turn, will lead to improved 

health for the American public and will help maintain American leadership in 

science worldwide. Thank you for this opportunity to testify. 

[This statement was submitted by Carol Ann Mason, Ph.D., President, Society for 

Neuroscience.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SOCIETY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATION

I am pleased to submit this testimony on behalf of The Society for Public Health 

Education (SOPHE), a 501 (c)(3) professional organization founded in 1950 to provide global leadership to the profession of health education and health promotion. 

SOPHE’s 4,000 national and chapter members work in universities, medical/ 

healthcare settings, businesses, voluntary health agencies, international organizations, and all branches of Federal/State/local government. Members include behavioral scientists, faculty, practitioners, and students engaged in disease prevention 

and health promotion in both the public and private sectors. The Society contributes 

to the health of all people and the elimination of health disparities through advances in health education theory and research; excellence in professional preparation and practice; and advocacy for public policies conducive to health. SOPHE is 

the only independent professional organization devoted exclusively to health education and health promotion. SOPHE’s two scientific peer-reviewed journals, electronic newsletters, listservs, websites, new Center for Online Education (CORE), as 

well as its national conference help ensure that vital public health activities and 

programs in various regions are expeditiously disseminated. There are currently 20 

SOPHE chapters covering more than 30 States and regions across the country. 

SOPHE’s vision of a healthy world through health education compels us to advocate for increased resources targeted at the most pressing public health issues. For 
658 

the fiscal year 2015 funding cycle, SOPHE encourages the Labor, Health and 

Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) Subcommittee to increase funding for public health programs that focus on preventing chronic disease 

and other illnesses in adults as well as youth, and eliminating health disparities. 

In particular, SOPHE requests the following fiscal year 2015 funding levels for 

Labor-HHS programs: 

—$7.8 billion for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

—$1.1 billion for the CDC National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and 

Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) 

—$25 million for CDC’s National Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion’s Division of Population Health School Health Program 

—$1 billion for the Prevention and Public Health Fund 

—$80 million for Community Prevention Grants 

—$50 million for Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health 

The discipline of health education and health promotion, which is some 100 years 

old, uses sound science to plan, implement, and evaluate interventions that enable 

individuals, groups, and communities to achieve personal, environmental and population health. Beyond supporting individual behavior change, health education focuses on policy, systems, and environmental changes to support a healthy lifestyle. 

There is a robust, scientific evidence-base documenting not only that health education specialists and their various health education interventions work, but that 

they are also cost-effective. These principles serve as the basis for our support for 

the programs outlined below and can help ensure our Nation’s resources are targeted for the best return on investment. Our profession is the first to recruit and 

train community health workers in terms of cost-effective program interventions. 

SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level $7.8 billion for CDC in order 

to prevent chronic diseases and other illnesses, promote health, prevent injury and 

disability, and ensure preparedness against health threats. Unfortunately, President 

Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget request of $6.6 billion for CDC represents a decrease of some $243 million when compared with fiscal year 2014. CDC is at the 

forefront of U.S. efforts to monitor health, detect and investigate health problems, 

conduct research to enhance prevention, develop sound public health policies, and 

foster safe and healthful environments. More than 80 percent of all CDC funds go 

back to States to address State and local health issues. Measured investments now 

in community-led, evidence-based innovative programs will help to increase our Nation’s productivity and performance in the global market; help ensure military readiness; decrease costly deaths due to infant low birth weight and adult onset of cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS, and; increase pediatric and 

adult immunization rates. Moroever, cuts to CDC’s budget are not sustainable and 

will reduce the ability to investigate and respond to public health emergencies as 

well as foodborne and infectious disease outbreaks. 

Preventing Chronic Disease 

The data are clear: chronic diseases are the Nation’s leading causes of morbidity 

and mortality and account for 75 percent of every dollar spent on healthcare in the 

U.S. Collectively, they account for 70 percent of all deaths nationwide. Healthcare 

accounts for 18 percent of GDP, and it is expected to account for 19.6 percent by 

2021. Yet evidence shows that investing just $1 in preventing chronic disease will 

yield a $5 return on investment. 

SOPHE requests an appropriation of $1.1 billion for the CDC’s National Center 

for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP). For example, 

heart conditions cost the Nation more than $107 billion annually in healthcare 

costs, and nearly $95 billion in lost economic productivity. Studies show that spending as little as $10 per person on proven preventive interventions could save the 

country over $16 billion in just 5 years. The public overwhelmingly supports increased funding for disease prevention and health promotion programs. 

Among the many vital programs in CDC’s NCCDPHP, SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $25 million to the CDC Division of Population 

Health’s School Health Branch (SHB). The increase in funding will allow the SHB 

to create a coordinated, national response to school health and chronic disease, 

which will maximize program effectiveness and accelerate health improvements. 

School health activities supported through the SHB include: supporting healthier 

nutrition environments in schools; providing comprehensive school physical activity 

programs and multi-component physical education policies; and improving capacity 

to manage chronic conditions. Almost 80 percent of young people do not eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Daily participation in 

high school physical education classes dropped from 42 percent in 1991 to 32 per-
659 

cent in 2001. Health and fitness are linked to improved academic achievement and 

grades, cognitive ability, and behavior as well as reduced truancy. 

Since fiscal year 2012, funding for CDC’s school health activities to prevent chron- ic diseases has essentially been level funded at $14.9 million. DPH provides a basic 

level of funding for school health activities in all 50 States (about $75,000 per 

State). This small amount of funding allows States to only conduct a minimum of 

school-based health activities. The School Health Branch also provides an enhanced 

level of funding on a competitive basis to a smaller number of States. Increasing 

resources for the SHB will enable all 50 States and DC to engage in enhanced 

school health activities that improve the school nutrition environment and increase 

the quality and quantity of physical education and physical activity opportunities. 

States would also be strongly encouraged to fund a school health position at the 

State education agency to coordinate efforts with the State health department. 

CDC’s Coordinated School Health Programs are cost-effective in improving children’s health, their behavior, and their academic success. This funding builds 

bridges between State education and public health departments to coordinate health 

education, nutritious meals, physical education, mental health counseling, health 

services, healthy school environments, and parent and community involvement. The 

2013 IOM report Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School, stated that the school environment is key in encouraging 

and providing opportunities for children and adolescents to be active. The lack of 

physically fit and health-literate graduates has become a national security issue— 

being overweight or obese has become the leading medical reason why applicants 

fail to qualify for military service. 

An Avenue to Future Health Savings 

SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $1 billion for the Prevention and Public Health Fund. We applaud Congress for appropriating the Fund for 

the first time, as was intended by the law since the Fund’s inception, in the fiscal 

year 2014 omnibus bill. We strongly encourage Congress to continue to appropriate 

the Fund at this level in fiscal year 2015 to sustain essential core public health infrastructure, the workforce, and our capacity to improve health in our communities. 

This fund provides the agility for innovation and meeting the needs of communities 

at the State and local levels. 

Specifically, the Prevention Fund helps States tackle the leading causes of death 

and root causes of costly, preventable chronic disease; detect and respond rapidly 

to health security threats; and prevent accidents and injuries. With this investment, 

the Fund helps States and the Nation as a whole focus on fighting disease and illness before they happen. The evidence is overwhelming: investing in prevention 

saves lives and money. A 2011 Urban Institute study concluded that it is in the Nation’s best interest from both a health and economic standpoint to maintain funding 

for evidence-based, public health programs that save lives and bring down costs; a 

July 2011 study published in the journal Health Affairs found that increased spending by local public health departments can save lives currently lost to preventable 

illnesses; and a follow up to that study in 2013 found that low-income communities 

experience the largest health and economic gains with respect to increases in local 

public health spending. In addition, lower death rates and healthcare costs were 

seen especially in communities that allocated their public health funding across a 

broader mix of preventive services. 

SOPHE supports the new Community Prevention Grant program that will be 

funded at $80 million to help communities build multi-sector partnerships to 

strengthen multisector partnerships aimed at better health. Although SOPHE is 

disappointed that the Community Transformation Grant (CTG) program was discontinued in the fiscal year 2014 omnibus, we look forward to a new stream of funding 

that will support communities to implement evidence-based chronic disease prevention strategies. SOPHE has met with key stakeholders in both Congress and the Administration and looks forward to realizing the vision of forthcoming funding opportunity announcements. 

As part of the Prevention Fund, SOPHE strongly supports the increase in funding 

CDC’s Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health Across the U.S. 

(REACH U.S.) program, which addresses health risk behaviors in both children and 

adults. Chronic diseases account for the largest health gap among populations and 

increase health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups. As the U.S. 

population becomes increasingly diverse, the Nation’s health status will be heavily 

influenced by the morbidity of racial and ethnic minority communities. With additional funding from the Prevention and Public Health Fund, the REACH program 

will address strategies in the areas of tobacco-free living, active living and healthy 

eating, clinical and other preventive services, social and emotional wellness, and 
660 

healthy and safe physical environments—with a primary focus on African-American/ 

Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaskan Native populations. These culturally sensitive, population specific programs, often led by health education specialists in tandem with community health 

workers, are aimed at disease risk reduction and preventing costly hospital re-admission rates. 

Thank you for this opportunity to present our views to the Subcommittee. We understand there will be difficult choices to make in this fiscal environment, and join 

you in seriously evaluating how our Nation’s scarce resources can provide maximum 

return on investment. Public health funding gets the job done at the State and local 

levels and only represents 1.5 percent of Federal budget; lack of full funding would 

only be ‘‘penny wise and pound foolish’’. 

SOPHE shares the Subcommittee’s goals to support the Nation’s efforts to thrive 

and grow through sound investments in labor, education and health. This can only 

be accomplished with a healthy population contributing to a skilled, healthy and 

productive workforce. We look forward to working with you to prevent chronic illness, improve the quality of lives, and save billions of dollars in healthcare spending. 

[This statement was submitted by M. Elaine Auld, MPH, MCHES, Chief Executive Officer, Society for Public Health Education.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SOCIETY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATION

The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) is a 501 (c)(3) professional organization founded in 1950 to provide global leadership to the profession of health 

education and health promotion. SOPHE contributes to the health of all people and 

the elimination of health disparities through advances in health education theory 

and research; excellence in professional preparation and practice; and advocacy for 

public policies conducive to health. SOPHE is the only independent professional organization devoted exclusively to health education and health promotion. SOPHE’s 

two scientific peer-reviewed journals, electronic newsletters, listservs, websites, new 

Center for Online Education (CORE), as well as its national conference help ensure 

that vital public health activities and programs in various regions are expeditiously 

disseminated. Members include behavioral scientists, faculty, practitioners, and students engaged in disease prevention and health promotion in both the public and 

private sectors. Collectively, SOPHE’s 4,000 national and chapter members work in 

universities, medical/healthcare settings, businesses, voluntary health agencies, 

international organizations, and all branches of Federal/State/local government. 

There are currently 20 SOPHE chapters covering more than 30 States and regions 

across the country. 

SOPHE’s vision of a healthy world through health education compels us to advocate for increased resources targeted at the most pressing public health issues. For 

the fiscal year 2015 funding cycle, SOPHE encourages the Labor, Health and 

Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) Subcommittee to increase funding for public health programs that focus on preventing chronic disease 

and other illnesses in adults as well as youth, and eliminating health disparities. 

In particular, SOPHE requests the following fiscal year 2015 funding levels for 

Labor-HHS programs: 

—$7.8 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

—$1 billion for the Prevention and Public Health Fund 

—$50 million for Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health 

—$80 million for Community Prevention Grants 

—$25 million for CDC’s Division of Population Health School Health Program 

The discipline of health education and health promotion, which is some 100 years 

old, uses sound science to plan, implement, and evaluate interventions that enable 

individuals, groups, and communities to achieve personal, environmental and population health. There is a robust, scientific evidence-base documenting not only that 

various health education interventions work but that they are also cost-effective. 

These principles serve as the basis for our support for the programs outlined below 

and can help ensure our Nation’s resources are targeted for the best return on investment. 

Preventing Chronic Disease 

The data are clear: chronic diseases are the Nation’s leading causes of morbidity 

and mortality and account for 75 percent of every dollar spent on healthcare in the 

U.S. Collectively, they account for 70 percent of all deaths nationwide. Healthcare 

now accounts for 18 percent of GDP, and it’s expected to account for 19.6 percent 
661 

by 2021. Yet evidence shows that investing just $1 in preventing disease will yield 

a $5 return on investment. 

SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level $7.8 billion for CDC in order 

to prevent chronic diseases and other illnesses, promote health, prevent injury and 

disability, and ensure preparedness against health threats. Unfortunately President 

Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget request of $6.6 billion for CDC represents a nearly 

$243 million reduction when compared with fiscal year 2014. CDC is at the forefront 

of U.S. efforts to monitor health, detect and investigate health problems, conduct research to enhance prevention, develop sound public health policies, and foster safe 

and healthful environments. More than 80 percent of all CDC funds go back to 

States to address State and local health issues. Studies show that spending as little 

as $10 per person on proven preventive interventions could save the country over 

$16 billion in just 5 years. The public overwhelmingly supports increased funding 

for disease prevention and health promotion programs. Small investments now in 

community-led, innovative programs will help to increase our Nation’s productivity 

and performance in the global market; help ensure military readiness; decrease 

rates of infant mortality, deaths due to cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and 

HIV/AIDS, and; increase immunization rates. Cuts to CDC’s budget are not sustainable and will reduce the ability to investigate and respond to public health emergencies as well as foodborne and infectious disease outbreaks. SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $1 billion for the Prevention and Public Health Fund. We applaud Congress for appropriating the Fund for 

the first time, as was intended by the law since the Fund’s inception, in the fiscal 

year 2014 omnibus bill. We strongly encourage Congress to continue to appropriate 

the Fund at this level in fiscal year 2015 to sustain essential core public health infrastructure, the workforce, and our capacity to improve health in our communities. 

The Prevention Fund helps States tackle the leading causes of death and root 

causes of costly, preventable chronic disease; detect and respond rapidly to health 

security threats; and prevent accidents and injuries. With this investment, the Fund 

helps States and the Nation as a whole focus on fighting disease and illness before 

they happen. The evidence is overwhelming: investing in prevention saves lives and 

money. A 2011 Urban Institute study concluded that it is in the Nation’s best interest from both a health and economic standpoint to maintain funding for evidencebased, public health programs that save lives and bring down costs; a July 2011 

study published in the journal Health Affairs found that increased spending by local 

public health departments can save lives currently lost to preventable illnesses; and 

a follow up to that study in 2013 found that low-income communities experience the 

largest health and economic gains with respect to increases in local public health 

spending. In addition, lower death rates and healthcare costs were seen especially 

in communities that allocated their public health funding across a broader mix of 

preventive services. 

SOPHE strongly supports the increase in funding CDC’s Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health Across the U.S. (REACH U.S.) program, which addresses health risk behaviors in both children and adults. Chronic diseases account 

for the largest health gap among populations and increase health disparities among 

racial and ethnic minority groups. As the U.S. population becomes increasingly diverse, the Nation’s health status will be heavily influenced by the morbidity of racial 

and ethnic minority communities. With additional funding from the Prevention and 

Public Health Fund, the REACH program will address strategies in the areas of tobacco-free living, active living and healthy eating, clinical and other preventive services, social and emotional wellness, and healthy and safe physical environments— 

with a primary focus on African-American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Alaskan Native populations. 

SOPHE supports the new Community Prevention Grant program that will be 

funded at $80 million to help communities build multi-sector partnerships around 

better health. While SOPHE is disappointed that the Community Transformation 

Grant (CTG) program was discontinued in the fiscal year 2014 omnibus, we look forward to a new stream of funding that will support communities to implement evidence-based chronic disease prevention strategies. SOPHE looks forward to working 

with the Administration on forthcoming funding opportunity announcements. 

SOPHE is requesting a fiscal year 2015 funding level of $25 million to CDC’s Division of Population Health’s School Health Branch (SHB). The increase in funding 

will allow the SHB to create a coordinated, national response to school health and 

chronic disease, maximizing program effectiveness, and accelerating health improvements. School health activities supported through the SHB include: supporting 

healthier nutrition environments in schools; providing comprehensive school physical activity programs and multi-component physical education policies; and improving capacity to manage chronic conditions. Almost 80 percent of young people do not 
662 

eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Daily participation in high school physical education classes dropped from 42 percent in 1991 

to 32 percent in 2001. Health and fitness are linked to improved academic achievement and grades, cognitive ability, and behavior as well as reduced truancy. 

Since fiscal year 2012, funding for CDC’s school health activities to prevent chron- ic diseases has essentially been level funded at $14.9 million. DPH provides a basic 

level of funding for school health activities in all 50 States (about $75,000 per 

State). This small amount of funding allows States to only conduct a minimum of 

school-based health activities. The School Health Branch also provides an enhanced 

level of funding on a competitive basis to a smaller number of States. Increasing 

resources for the SHB will enable all 50 States and DC to engage in enhanced 

school health activities that improve the school nutrition environment and increase 

the quality and quantity of physical education and physical activity opportunities. 

States would also be strongly encouraged to fund a school health position at the 

State education agency to coordinate efforts with the State health department. 

CDC’s Coordinated School Health Programs have been shown to be cost-effective in 

improving children’s health, their behavior, and their academic success. This funding builds bridges between State education and public health departments to coordinate health education, nutritious meals, physical education, mental health counseling, health services, healthy school environments, and parent and community involvement. 

Thank you for this opportunity to present our views to the Subcommittee. We understand there will be tough choices to make in this fiscal environment. However, 

public health funding only makes up 1.5 percent of Federal budget, and yields a 

much a greater return on investment. We look forward to working with you to prevent chronic illness, improve the quality of lives, and save billions of dollars in 

healthcare spending. 

[This statement was submitted by Elaine Auld, Chief Executive Officer, Society 

for Public Health Education.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH RESEARCH

The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) is pleased to have the opportunity to submit the following testimony urging renewed investment in scientific 

and medical research within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). 

For almost 25 years, our organization has been considered the thought leader in research on biological differences in disease and is dedicated to transforming women’s 

health through science, advocacy, and education. We believe that a robust Federal 

research agenda that is inclusive of women’s health research is critical for the U.S. 

to meet the needs and expectations of its citizens. We request that for fiscal year 

2015, Congress fund the following agencies and programs at the following levels: —Agency for Healthcare and Research Quality-$471 million 

—Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-$6.904 billion 

—Health Resources Services Administration-$6.113 billion 

—National Institutes of Health-$32 billion 

—Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration-$3.6 billion 

—Office of Research on Women’s Health at NIH-$42 million 

—HHS Office of Women’s Health-$35 million 

SWHR remains concerned with the ramifications of the Budget Control Act and 

sequestration. Funding levels for Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), 

were significantly cut and those agencies that fall underneath the umbrella of HHS; 

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), all play vital roles in improving and protecting the health 

of Americans but are forced to do more with less funding. Continued cuts to public 

health agencies decrease public health emergency preparedness and response capabilities, reducing funding for States to monitor air quality and offer mental health 

services, and increasing the risk for infectious disease outbreaks. These are essential public health services that save lives and protect our health. Currently, 

healthcare spending is the largest driver of the Federal deficit. By 2021, estimates 

indicate that this spending will account for nearly one-fifth of the U.S. economy. 

Proper and sustained Congressional investment in medical and scientific research 

can ultimately save valuable healthcare dollars that are wasted on inappropriate 

and ineffective treatment. We realize that the current budgetary environment limits 

the amount of monies available for a substantial increase; however, the benefit from 

every dollar invested in medical research outweighs the cost many times over and 
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is, perhaps, the single most cost effective strategy in reducing our Federal deficit. 

Past investments in medical research have allowed scientists to begin unraveling 

the biologic and genetic underpinning of disease. This research has shown that biological sex impacts every organ of the body, and plays an important role in disease 

susceptibility, prevalence, time of onset and severity. Sex differences are evident in 

all major disease categories, including cancer, obesity, and heart disease. These differences are also evident in drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination. The medical community has now begun to tailor treatments to meet the 

needs of individual patients, taking the first step towards truly personalized medicine. 

National Institutes of Health-NIH serves as the America’s premier medical research agency and is the largest source of funding for biomedical and behavioral research in the world. Many of the medical advances in recent decades are direct results from investments in the agency. Unfortunately, years of flat-funding, without 

controlling for rising inflation, has meant that NIH’s overall budget has decreased 

by 10 percent between 2004 and 2014, and its purchasing power has decreased by 

22 percent. This number does not just impact NIH’s campus in Maryland. Approximately 85 percent of NIH funding is spent in communities across the country, creating jobs at more than 3,000 universities, medical schools, teaching hospitals, and 

research institutions. In 2013, NIH funded 750 fewer grants than in 2012 and grant 

funding fell to an all-time low of 20 percent. A shrinking number of available grants 

put scientists out of work. With limited opportunities for research funding, scientists 

have little choice than to pursue opportunities outside of academic research in the 

U.S., resulting in the loss of skilled bench scientists and researchers to Asia, the 

European Union and the United Kingdom, who continue to heavily invest in research. Unfortunately, the Administration’s request of a 0.7 percent increase doesn’t 

make much headway in reversing the $1.5 billion cut the agency sustained under 

sequestration in fiscal year 2013, nor does it keep up with biomedical inflation rate, 

projected by the HHS’s Biomedical Research and Development Price Index, to be 2.2 

percent. Once that inflation rate is taken into account, the Administration’s budget 

request results in another cut to the Agency. SWHR recommends that Congress set, 

at a minimum, a budget of $32 billion for NIH for fiscal year 2015. Further we recommend that Congress expand NIH’s mandate on the inclusion of women in basic 

research to include women in all phases of basic, clinical and medical research. Current practice only mandates sufficient female subjects only in Phase III research, 

and researchers often miss out on the chance to look for variability by sex in the 

early phases of research, safety and effectiveness is determined. 

Federal offices of women’s health-The offices of women’s health within the Federal 

health agencies do critical work, both individually and in collaboration with other 

offices and Federal agencies, to ensure that women receive the appropriate care and 

treatments in a variety of different areas. Under HHS, the agencies currently with 

offices, advisors or coordinators for women’s health or women’s health research include the AHRQ, CDC, FDA, HRSA, Indian Health Service (INS), and SAMHSA. 

These offices do important work, both individually and in collaboration with other 

offices and Federal agencies to ensure that women receive the appropriate care and 

treatments in a variety of different areas. In a time of limited budgetary dollars, 

Congress should invest in these offices that promote working in collaboration with 

other agencies, which shares much needed expertise while avoiding unnecessary duplication. SWHR recommends that these offices be sufficiently funded to ensure that 

these programs can continue to provide much needed services to women and their 

families in fiscal year 2015. 

Office of Research on Women’s Health—ORWH is the focal point for coordinating 

women’s health and sex differences research at NIH, and supports innovative interdisciplinary initiatives that focus on women’s health and sex differences research. 

ORWH promotes opportunities for and support of recruitment, retention, re-entry 

and advancement of women in biomedical careers. The Building Interdisciplinary 

Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) is an innovative, trans-NIH career 

development program that pairs junior faculty with senior investigators in a 

mentored environment. Approximately 500 scholars, the majority of them female, 

have been trained at 39 centers and have produced approximately 5,000 publications. ORWH’s administrative supplements for research on sex and fender differences, a trans-NIH initiative to broaden the field of sex and gender differences 

research, adds new dimensions to on-going studies. The specialized centers of research on sex and gender factors affecting women’s health (SCOR) are designed to 

integrate basic and clinical approaches to sex and gender research across scientific 

disciplines and has resulted in over 650 articles, reviews, abstracts, book chapters 

and other publications. To allow ORWH’s programs and research grants to continue 

make their impact on the research community, Congress must direct that NIH con-
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tinue its support of ORWH and provide it with a $1 million dollar budget increase, 

bringing its fiscal year 2015 total to $42 million. 

Health and Human Services’ Office of Women’s Health-The HHS OWH is the government’s champion and focal point for women’s health issues. It works to address 

inequities in research, healthcare services, and public education gaps, which have 

historically placed the health of women at risk. Without OWH’s actions, the task 

of translating research into practice would be only more difficult and delayed. Considering the impact of women’s health programs from OWH on the public, we urge 

Congress to provide an increase of $1 million for this office, a total of $35.7 million 

for fiscal year 2015. 

In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, we thank you and this Committee for its support 

for medical and health services research and its commitment to the health of the 

Nation. We look forward to continuing to work with you to build a healthier future 

for all Americans. 

[This statement was submitted by Leslie Ritter, Director of Government Affairs, 

Society for Women’s Health Research.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE SQUAXIN ISLAND TRIBE

On behalf of the Tribal Leadership and members of the Squaxin Island Tribe, I 

am honored to submit our recommendation to this Subcommittee for appropriations 

to address the un-funded needs of American Indian and Alaska Native Treatment 

(AI/AN) Centers. The alarming statistics of increased alcohol and substance abuse 

use in the AI/AN communities speaks volumes to the need for improved and additional facilities to provide treatment and recovery opportunities to our citizens, our 

youths, our future leaders and the next seven generations. Although SAMHSA has 

limited discretionary funding and even less resources for residential care facilities, 

the Indian Health Service cannot keep pace with the growing need for these treatment centers. The only funding opportunity available in SAMHSA is the Treatment 

for Pregnant and Postpartum Women. In 2015, we respectfully request the Subcommittee: 

—$10 million—Expand access to residential care facility appropriations to include 

Treatment Centers and increase the annual appropriations to supplement inadequate funding for these centers from the Indian Health Service of which the 

NWITC will receive $1.5 million; 

—$50 million—SAMHSA’s Behavioral Health Tribal Prevention Grant Program; 

and, 

—$15 million—SAMHSA for Behavioral Health 

The Squaxin Island Tribe has been operating the Northwest Indian Treatment 

Center (NWITC) since 1994. Ingenious in creativity, the center offers a wide variety 

of cultural activities and traditional/religious ceremonies, making it a natural place 

to heal—body, mind and soul. Fittingly, the center was given the spiritual name 

‘‘D3WXbi Palil’’ meaning ‘‘Returning from the Dark, Deep Waters to the Light.’’ 

NWITC is a residential chemical dependency treatment facility designed to serve 

American Indians from Tribes located in Oregon, Washington and Idaho who have 

chronic relapse patterns related to unresolved grief and trauma. NWITC is unique 

in its integration of Tribal cultural values into a therapeutic environment for co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders. It is a 28 bed, 30–60 day residential facility. 

Welcomed and hailed by Tribal Leaders who felt the urgent need for such a facility, NWITC is centrally located in Grays Harbor County between Olympia and Aberdeen, on 2.5 acres in the small rural town of Elma, Washington. NWITC accepts 

patients that are referred through outpatient treatment programs, parole and probation services, hospitals, assessment centers and child and family service centers. 

Medical care is provided through local Indian Health Service clinics and other medical service providers. NWITC has responded with an overwhelming success rate of 

nearly 65 percent. 

Since the original Congressional set-aside in 1993, NWITC has not received an 

adequate increase in the base Indian Health Service budget. It is critical to increase 

the NWITC’s annual base in order to sustain the current services to the Tribes of 

the Northwest. An increase of $1.5 million would restore lost purchasing power and 

meet the need to add mental health and psychiatric components to the treatment 

program. This increase would allow NWITC to continue its effective treatment of 

Native Americans. 

In 2011, the NWITC served 225 patients from 28 Tribes and added intensive case 

management and crisis support to alumni in order to continue to promote positive 

outcomes for clients. Despite funding challenges, NWITC has continued to develop 
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and deliver innovative, culturally appropriate services to meet increasingly complex 

demands. 

The Treatment Center’s traditional foods and medicines program is supported 

through a partnership with the Northwest Indian College and is funded through 

grants from the Washington Health Foundation, the National Institute of Food and 

Agriculture, The Potlatch Fund and several Tribes. Weekly hands-on classes focus 

on traditional foods and medicines, including methods for growing, harvesting, processing, and preparation. Twice a month, Tribal elders, storytellers, and cultural specialists speak as part of the program. A monthly family class allows patients to 

share what they are learning with their loved ones. Patients gain hands-on experience by working in three on-site teaching gardens. This program serves as a model 

for other Tribal communities. 

$50 million—SAMHSA Behavioral Health Tribal Prevention Grant Program 

The Behavioral Health Tribal Prevention Grant will support behavioral health 

services that promote overall mental and emotional health, specifically substance 

abuse prevention and suicide prevention services. If funded, the grant program 

would be the only source for Federal substance abuse and suicide prevention funding exclusively available to Tribes. 

$15 million—SAMHSA for Behavioral Health 

This SAMHSA grant program has been authorized to award grants to Indian 

health programs to provide prevention or treatment of drug use or alcohol abuse, 

promotion of mental health, or treatment services for mental illness. To date, these 

funds have never been appropriated. An appropriation of $15 million would provide 

support to Indian health programs to meet the critical substance abuse and mental 

health needs of our citizens. 

Self-Governance—An Efficient and Effective Use of Federal Funds (Title VI of the 

ISDEAA) 

Self-Governance is the most successful policy in the history of Tribal—Federal relations and it inspires efficient and effective government spending. Through SelfGovernance, Tribes are empowered, as sovereign nations, to exercise self-determination and to design facilities, manage programs and funds, and provide services that 

are responsive to the needs of our communities and Tribal citizens. Tribes participating in Self-Governance have become successful in the business of healthcare and 

perform several key roles, serving as, governments, employers, healthcare providers 

and patients. 

Self-Governance Tribes have made every attempt to be innovative to operate successful health programs given the budget constraints and cuts Tribal programs have 

incurred the past two decades. For more than a decade we have made every effort 

to expand Self-Governance to other programs and our efforts to seek expansion of 

the program will continue until we achieve our goal. We request that this Committee recognizes the success of Self-Governance and encourage HHS to work with 

Tribes to make the most efficient and effective use of Federal appropriations to fund 

Tribal programs. 

Thank you for this opportunity to submit written testimony. 

[This statement was submitted by Dave Lopeman, Chairman, Squaxin Island 

Tribe.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE TREATMENT ADVOCACY CENTER

The Treatment Advocacy Center is grateful for the opportunity to submit this testimony in support of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) Grant Program (AOT Grant Program) for Individuals with 

Serious Mental Illness. The Treatment Advocacy Center supports full funding of the 

AOT Grant Program at $15,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2015 through 2018. 

The Treatment Advocacy Center (Organization) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating barriers to the timely and effective treatment of severe 

mental illness. The Organization promotes laws, policies and practices for the delivery of psychiatric care and supports the development of innovative treatments for 

and research into the causes of severe and persistent psychiatric illnesses, such as 

schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The Treatment Advocacy Center is funded by a 

host of individual donors, foundations and grants and does not accept funding from 

companies or entities involved in the sale, marketing, or distribution of pharmaceutical products. 
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1Swanson, Jeffrey W., Van Dorn, Richard A., Swartz, Marvin S., Robbins, Pamela Clark, 

Steadman, Henry J., McGuire, Thomas G., and John Monahan. 2013. ‘‘The Cost of Assisted Outpatient Treatment: Can It Save States Money?’’ American Journal of Psychiatry 170:1423–1432. 2Swanson, Jeffrey W., Van Dorn, Richard A., Swartz, Marvin S., Cislo, Andrew M., Wilder, 

Christine M., Moser, Lorna L., Gilbert, Allison R., and Thomas McGuire. 2010. ‘‘Robbing Peter 

to Pay Paul: Did New York State’s Outpatient Commitment Program. 

Crowd Out Voluntary Service Recipients?’’ Psychiatric Services 61: 1–10. 

3 Assisted Outpatient Treatment. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs. Retrieved 

from http://www.crimesolutions.gov/ProgramDetails.aspx?ID=228. 4Swartz, Marvin S., Swanson, Jeffrey W., Steadman, Henry J., Robbins, Pamela Clark, and 

John Monahan. 2009. New York State Assisted Outpatient Treatment Program Evaluation. 

Duke University School of Medicine. 5Swartz, Marvin S., Swanson, Jeffrey W., Wagner, H. Ryan, Burns, Barbara J., Hiday, Virginia A., and Randy Borum. ‘‘Can Involuntary Outpatient Commitment Reduce Hospital Recidivism?: Findings from a Randomized Trial With Severely Mentally Ill Individuals.’’ American 

Journal of Psychiatry 156: 1968–1975. 6Zanni, Guido and Paul F. Stavis. 2007. ‘‘The Effectiveness and Ethical Justification of Psychiatric Outpatient Commitment.’’ American Journal of Bioethics 7: 31–41. 

In far too many communities across the country, individuals whose severe mental 

illness impairs their ability to seek and voluntarily comply with treatment become 

caught up in a revolving door of hospitalization, incarceration, homelessness and repeated victimization. This small segment of the total population of individuals with 

a severe mental illness consumes a disproportionate percentage of their communities’ limited mental health resources, without a concurrent benefit. AOT is a lifeline that can break this cycle, allowing this otherwise highly vulnerable population 

to survive and thrive safely in the community. AOT achieves this by providing medically prescribed mental health treatment under court order. 

Unfortunately, local communities are sometimes unable to realize AOT’s benefits 

due to the initial start-up costs of moving away from their current flawed approach 

to one that effectively utilizes AOT. The AOT Grant Program will help to address 

this concern by providing communities with resources they can leverage to implement these proven programs. Studies show that AOT benefits not only those who 

receive court-ordered treatment, but also, ‘‘those who will be served in a more efficient public behavioral healthcare system... with greater capacity that produces 

better outcomes for a broader population in need.’’ 1 For example, an analysis of 

New York’s Kendra’s Law found that, ‘‘In the long run . . . overall service capacity 

was increased, and the focus on enhanced services for AOT participants appears to 

have led to greater access to enhanced services for both voluntary and involuntary 

recipients’’ 2

AOT is a Proven Means of Assisting Those Most in Need 

AOT is proven to help address the revolving door that traps far too many individuals with severe mental illness. In 2012, the Department of Justice deemed AOT 

to be an effective, evidence-based program for reducing crime and violence.3

AOT Reduces Hospitalization 

Researchers in 2009 conducted an independent evaluation of New York’s courtordered outpatient treatment law (Kendra’s Law) and documented a striking decline 

in the rate of hospitalization among participants. During a 6-month study period, 

AOT recipients were hospitalized at less than half the rate they were hospitalized 

in the 6 months prior to receiving AOT. Among those admitted, hospital stays were 

shorter: average length of hospitalization dropped from 18 days prior to AOT to 11 

days during the first 6 months of AOT and 10 days for the seventh through twelfth 

months of AOT.4

A randomized controlled study in North Carolina (Duke Study) in 1999 demonstrated that intensive routine outpatient services alone, without a court order, did 

not reduce hospital admission. However, when the same level of services (at least 

three outpatient visits per month, with a median of 7.5 visits per month) were combined with long-term AOT (6 months or more), hospital admissions were reduced 57 

percent, and length of hospital stay was reduced by 20 days compared to individuals 

receiving the services alone. The results were even more dramatic for the subset of 

individuals with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders—long-term AOT reduced hospital admissions by 72 percent and length of hospital stay by 28 days compared with services alone. The participants in the North Carolina study were from 

both urban and rural communities and ‘‘generally did not view themselves as mentally ill or in need of treatment.’’ 5

A Washington State study of 115 patients found that AOT decreased hospitalization by 30 percent over 2 years. The savings in hospital costs for these 115 patients 

alone was $1.3 million.6 In an AOT program in Florida, AOT reduced hospital days 
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7 Esposito, Rosanna, Westhead, Valerie, and Jim Berko. 2008. ‘‘Florida’s Outpatient Commitment Law: Effective but Underused’’ (letter). Psychiatric Services 59: 328. 8Gilbert, Allison R., Moser, Lorna L., Van Dorn, Richard A., Swanson, Jeffrey W., Wilder, 

Christine M., Robbins, Pamela Clark, Keator, Karli J., Steadman, Henry J., and Marvin S. 

Swartz. 2010. ‘‘Reductions in Arrest Under Assisted Outpatient Treatment in New York.’’ Psychiatric Services 61: 996–999. 9 New York State Office of Mental Health. 2005. Kendra’s Law: Final Report on the Status 

of Assisted Outpatient Treatment. 10 Esposito, Rosanna, Westhead, Valerie, and Jim Berko. 2008. ‘‘Florida’s Outpatient Commitment Law: Effective but Underused’’ (letter). Psychiatric Services 59: 328. 11Swanson, Jeffrey W., Borum, Randy, Swartz, Marvin S., Hiday, Virginia A., Wagner, H. 

Ryan, and Barbara J. Burns. 2001a. ‘‘Can Involuntary Outpatient Commitment Reduce Arrests 

Among Persons with Severe Mental Illness?’’ Criminal Justice and Behavior 28: 156–189. 12 New York State Office of Mental Health. 2005. Kendra’s Law: Final Report on the Status 

of Assisted Outpatient Treatment. 13Phelan, Jo C., Sinkewicz, Marilyn, Castille, Dorothy, Huz, Steven, and Bruce G. Link. 2010. 

‘‘Effectiveness and Outcome of Assisted Outpatient Treatment in New York State.’’ Psychiatric 

Services 61: 137–143. 14Swanson, Jeffrey W., Swartz, Marvin S., Borum, Randy, Hiday, Virginia A., Wagner, H. 

Ryan, and Barbara J. Burns. 2001. ‘‘Involuntary Outpatient Commitment and Reduction of Violent Behaviour in Persons with Severe Mental Illness.’’ British Journal of Psychiatry 176: 224– 

231. 15 Hiday, Virginia A., Swartz, Marvin S., Swanson, Jeffrey W., Borum, Randy, and H. Ryan 

Wagner. 2002. ‘‘Impact of Outpatient Commitment on Victimization of People with Severe Mental Illness.’’ American Journal of Psychiatry 159: 1403–1411. 

from 64 to 37 days per patient over 18 months, a 43 percent decrease. The savings 

in hospital costs averaged $14,463 per patient.7

AOT Reduces Arrests and Incarceration 

A study of Kendra’s Law published in 2010 concluded that the ‘‘odds of arrest in 

any given month for participants who were currently receiving AOT were nearly 

two-thirds lower’’ than those not receiving AOT.8 According to a 2005 New York 

State Office of Mental Health report on Kendra’s Law, arrests for AOT participants 

were reduced by 83 percent, from 30 percent prior to the onset of a court order to 

only 5 percent after participating in the program.9

A Florida report found AOT reduced days spent in jail among participants from 

16.1 to 4.5 days, a 72 percent reduction.10 Similarly, the Duke Study found that, 

for individuals who had a history of multiple hospital admissions combined with arrests and/or violence in the prior year, long-term AOT reduced the risk of arrest by 

74 percent. The arrest rate for participants in long-term AOT was 12 percent, compared with 47 percent for those who had services without a court order.11

AOT Reduces Violence, Crime, and Victimization. 

The New York State Office of Mental Health report also found that Kendra’s Law 

resulted in dramatic reductions in harmful behaviors for AOT. Among AOT recipients at 6 months of assisted outpatient treatment compared to a similar period of 

time prior to the court order: 55 percent fewer recipients engaged in suicide attempts or physical harm to self; 47 percent fewer physically harmed others; 46 percent fewer damaged or destroyed property; and 43 percent fewer threatened physical 

harm to others. Overall, the average decrease in harmful behaviors was 44 percent.12

A 2010 study by Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health reached 

equally striking findings about the impact of Kendra’s Law on the incidence of violent criminal behavior. When AOT recipients in New York City and a control group 

of other mentally ill outpatients were tracked and compared, the AOT patients—despite having more violent histories—were found four times less likely to perpetrate 

serious violence after undergoing treatment.13

The Duke Study found that long-term AOT combined with intensive routine outpatient services was significantly more effective in reducing violence and improving 

outcomes for severely mentally ill individuals than the same level of outpatient care 

without a court order. Among a group of individuals characterized as ‘‘seriously violent,’’ 63.3 percent of those not in long-term AOT repeated violent acts, while only 

37.5 percent of those in long-term AOT did so. Long-term AOT combined with routine outpatient services reduced the predicted probability of violence by 50 percent.14

The Duke Study further demonstrated that individuals with severe psychiatric illnesses who were not on AOT ‘‘were almost twice as likely to be victimized as were 

outpatient commitment subjects.’’ 24 percent of those on AOT were victimized, compared with 42 percent of those not on AOT.15
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16 New York State Office of Mental Health. 2005. Kendra’s Law: Final Report on the Status 

of Assisted Outpatient Treatment. 17 Hiday, Virginia A. and Teresa L. Scheid-Cook. 1987. ‘‘The North Carolina Experience with 

Outpatient Commitment: A Critical Appraisal.’’ International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 10: 

215–232. 18Munetz, Mark R., Grande, Thomas, Kleist, Jeffrey, and Gregory A. Peterson. 1996. ‘‘The Effectiveness of Outpatient Civil Commitment.’’ Psychiatric Services 47: 1251–1253. 19 Van Putten, Robert A., Santiago, Jose M., and Michael R. Berren. 1988. ‘‘Involuntary Outpatient Commitment in Arizona: A Retrospective Study.’’ Hospital and Community Psychiatry 

39: 953–958. 20 Rohland, Barbara M. 1998. The Role of Outpatient Commitment in the Management of Persons with Schizophrenia. Iowa City: Iowa Consortium for Mental Health, Services, Training, and 

Research. 21Swartz, Marvin S., Swanson, Jeffrey W., Steadman, Henry J., Robbins, Pamela Clark, and 

John Monahan. 2009. New York State Assisted Outpatient Treatment Program Evaluation. 

Duke University School of Medicine. 

AOT Improves Treatment Compliance 

AOT has also been shown to be effective in increasing treatment compliance. In 

New York, AOT led to a 51 percent increase in recipients’ exhibition of good service 

engagement, and more than doubled the exhibition of ‘‘good’’ adherence to medication.16

In North Carolina, only 30 percent of AOT patients refused medication during a 

6-month period, compared to 66 percent of patients not under AOT.17 In Ohio, AOT 

increased attendance to outpatient psychiatric appointments from 5.7 to 13.0 per 

year; it also increased attendance at day treatment sessions from 23 to 60 per 

year.18

AOT also promotes long-term voluntary treatment compliance. In Arizona, ‘‘71 

percent [of AOT patients]... voluntarily maintained treatment contacts 6 months 

after their orders expired’’ compared with ‘‘almost no patients’’ who were not courtordered to outpatient treatment.19 In Iowa, ‘‘it appears as though outpatient commitment promotes treatment compliance in about 80 percent of patients while they 

are on outpatient commitment. After commitment is terminated, about three-quarters of that group remained in treatment on a voluntary basis.’’ 20

The New York Independent Evaluation also yielded interesting findings on the 

likelihood of voluntary compliance after AOT is allowed to expire. For individuals 

who received AOT for periods of 6 months or less, the researchers found that postAOT sustainability of improvements in medication adherence depended on whether 

intensive outpatient services were continued on a voluntary basis. Those who continued with intensive services maintained their substantial increase in medication 

adherence relative to the pre-AOT period (from 37 to 45 percent); those who discontinued such assistance dropped back to near the pre-AOT levels (33 percent). Patients who received AOT for more than 6 months, however, experienced increased 

medication adherence whether or not intensive services were continued. The medication adherence rate was higher for those who continued intensive services than 

for those who did not (50 percent vs. 43 percent), but both groups maintained substantial improvements from the pre-AOT rate (37 percent).21

The Treatment Advocacy Center reemphasizes it support for full funding of the AOT Grant Program at $15,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2015 through 2018. 

Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact John Snook, Deputy Executive Director, Treatment Advocacy Center at (703) 294–6006 or 

snookj@treatmentadvocacycenter.org. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE TREVOR PROJECT

Dear Chairman Harkin and Senator Moran: The Trevor Project appreciates the 

opportunity to submit a statement on the critical and timely issue of funding for 

children’s suicide prevention and mental health initiatives. We encourage you to 

support our Nation’s most vulnerable youth by funding these vital programs: 

[Dollars in millions] 

Program Fiscal year 2014 enacted 

President’s proposed 

fiscal year 2015 budget 

Fiscal year 2015 

trevor project 

recommendation 

SAMHSA—Suicide Prevention Programs ..................... 51 40 .1 61 

HHS/ACF—Runaway and Homeless Youth Act Funding ........................................................................... 114 .1 114 152 .5 

NIMH—Suicide Prevention Research ........................... .................................. .................................. 40 
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1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS), available at http:// 

www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars (last visited Mar. 14, 2013). 2 2007 National Survey of Children’s Health, Data Resource Center for Child & Adolescent 

Health, Child and Adolescent Health Measurement Initiative, http://www.nschdata.org (last visited May 2009). 3 Ronald C. Kessler et al., Lifetime Prevalence and Age-of-Onset Distributions of DSM-IV Disorders in the National Co-morbidity Survey Replication (NCSR), 62 GENERAL PSYCHIATRY 

593 (2005); and Philip S. Wang et al., Failure and Delay in Initial Treatment Contact After First 

Onset of Mental Disorders in the National Co-morbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R), 62 GENERAL PSYCHIATRY 603 (2005). 4Suicide in the U.S.: Statistics and Prevention, National Institute of Mental Health, available 

at http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/suicide-in-the-us-statistics-and-prevention/index. 

shtml#Moscicki-Epi (last visited Mar. 14, 2013). 

[Dollars in millions] 

Program Fiscal year 2014 

enacted 

President’s proposed 

fiscal year 2015 budget 

Fiscal year 2015 

trevor project 

recommendation 

CDC—National Violent Death Reporting System ........ 11 .3 23 .5 25 

SAMHSA Project AWARE ............................................... 55 55 60 

The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people under 24. Among young people ages 10 to 24, suicide 

is the second leading cause of death.1 According to the National Survey of Children’s 

Health, up to 20 percent of young people have a diagnosable mental illness, but only 

60 percent of those in need of mental healthcare receive the treatment they require.2 In fact, half of all individuals with mental illness experience onset of the disorder by age 14, but do not seek treatment, on average, until the age of 24.3 For 

youth, the consequences of untreated mental illness vary and include increased suicide risk, school failure, involvement in the criminal justice system, unemployment, 

substance abuse, and homelessness. Among stigmatized populations such as LGBTQ 

young people, these negative outcomes can be exacerbated by prejudice, fear, and 

hate experienced in homes, schools, and communities. 

Suicidality is closely associated with mental illness; more than 90 percent of those 

who die by suicide have a diagnosable mental disorder.4 Therefore suicide prevention is an essential component of a comprehensive mental health system. 

We thank the Committee for your ongoing support for suicide prevention and 

mental health initiatives, and we hope that this letter will identify the critical programs that exist to protect our most vulnerable youth. 

The Trevor Project recommends the following fiscal year 2015 appropriations to 

improve access to effective mental healthcare and reduce suicide risk for young people: 

GARRETT LEE SMITH MEMORIAL ACT SUICIDE PREVENTION PROGRAMS (SAMHSA)

The Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act provides the largest dedicated source of Federal funding for youth suicide prevention efforts, which are a life-saving and effective means to address the daunting issue of youth suicide. We can help avoid tragedy by appropriately funding programs that focus on extreme harming behaviors 

and mental illness in young people. To date, Garrett Lee Smith funding has supported suicide prevention programs in 49 States, 48 tribes, and 138 colleges. Fully 

appropriating these programs would ensure that the Suicide Prevention Resource 

Center continues to provide technical assistance to organizations nationwide; and it 

would allow for the expansion of State, tribal, and campus grants. Also encompassed 

within our funding recommendations for these programs is the National Strategy 

for Suicide Prevention, which works towards a unified approach to suicide prevention through collaboration between public and private sectors; and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which answers more than 94,000 calls a month, including 

calls from veterans, active duty members and their families, as well as the general 

public. 
670 

5Durso, L. E. & Gates, G. J. (2012). Serving our youth: Findings from a national survey of 

service providers working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth who are homeless 

or at risk of becoming homeless. Los Angeles, CA: The Williams Institute with True Colors Fund 

and The Palette Fund. 6 Van Leeuwen, J. M., Boyle, S., Salomonsen-Sautel, S., Baker, D. N., Garcia, J. T., Hoffman, 

A. & Hopfer, C. J. (2006). Lesbian, gay, bisexual homeless youth: An eight-city public health 

perspective. Child Welfare 85(2), 151–170. 

RUNAWAY AND HOMELESS YOUTH ACT (HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES)

An estimated 40 percent of all homeless youth are LGBTQ-identified, often because they are thrown out of their homes or face family rejection.5 Nearly 2/3 of 

these young people are likely to attempt suicide at least once.6

HUDs last Point in Time Count counted over 46,000 homeless youth, but less 

than 5,000 beds. Less than 10 percent of our homeless youth are receiving services, 

but funding for the RHYA has not significantly increased since 2008, despite a 

growing population desperately in need of the services provided by this Act. In order 

to meet the Administration’s goal of ending youth homelessness by 2020, funding 

for runaway and homeless youth services needs to significantly increase. Through 

the RHYA, Congress ensures funding for community outreach programs, transitional housing and support services, and counseling and reunification guidance for 

families to be reconnected. Congress should appropriate $152.5 million to help keep 

our vulnerable youth safe and healthy as part of a nationwide commitment to ending youth homelessness by 2020. 

SUICIDE PREVENTION RESEARCH (NIMH)

There is a strong correlation between research funding and morbidity rates associ- ated with diseases and disorders. Between 2009 and 2012, $165 million has been 

spent on suicide prevention research, and yet in the last decade, suicide rates have 

increased by 31 percent. Conversely, over 5 billion dollars has been spent on heart 

disease research, and rates in the past decade have decreased by 16 percent. We encourage you to include an additional $40 million for the National Institute 

of Mental Health to conduct suicide prevention and brain research, a recommendation that reflects current legislation in the Senate and House (S. 2305/H.R. 7045), 

the Suicide Prevention Research INnovaTion Act (the SPRINT Act). The SPRINT 

Act aims to reduce the risk of self-harm, suicide, and interpersonal violence, especially in rural communities with a shortage of mental health services. 

PROJECT AWARE—(SAMHSA)

The President’s Now is the Time plan is an important step forward to effectively 

address school safety and youth mental health. These programs must be adequately 

funded in order to fulfill the promise of making our schools and communities safe 

for all young people. Through piloting Mental Health First Aid training with $20 

million , Project AWARE would support innovative, State-based strategies for improving mental health training and responsiveness to mental health emergencies; 

and would be particularly effective in rural communities, where community mental 

health services are less frequently available. Additionally, through $40 million in 

State grants, Project AWARE would put more trained teachers and mental health 

professionals on the ground; help school districts make sure students get the referrals they needs; and would underscore the importance of prevention by offering students mental health services for trauma or anxiety, conflict resolution programs, 

and other school-based violence prevention strategies. 

NATIONAL VIOLENT DEATH REPORTING SYSTEM (NVRDS) (CDC)

The NVDRS serves as a clearinghouse for the details and circumstances surrounding suicides completed in the jurisdictions in which it operates. This valuable 

information informs suicide prevention and crisis intervention efforts, but it is currently only collected in 18 States. Proposals to expand this system have received 

broad bipartisan support, and the NVDRS expansion was included in the Mental 

Health Awareness and Improvement Act (S. 689), which passed nearly unanimously 

in the Senate as an amendment to S. 649. Fully funding the NVRDS with $25 million would allow nationwide collection of this data to further public health research 

on suicide prevention. 

Conclusion 

We thank the Committee for taking the time to fully assess our Nation’s mental 

healthcare system, and we appreciate the opportunity to provide a written statement. We strongly support efforts to increase access to suicide prevention and men-
671 

tal healthcare for young people, and we urge the Committee to fully fund these critical programs. 

[This statement was submitted by Abbe Land, Executive Director & CEO, Trevor 

Project.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE TRI-COUNCIL FOR NURSING

The Tri-Council for Nursing, comprising the American Association of Colleges of 

Nursing (AACN), the American Nurses Association, the American Organization of 

Nurse Executives, and the National League for Nursing, respectfully requests $251 

million for the Nursing Workforce Development programs authorized under Title 

VIII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296 et seq.) and administered by 

the Health Resources and Services Administration in fiscal year 2015. 

The Tri-Council is a long-standing nursing alliance focused on leadership and excellence in the nursing profession. The members of these respective organizations 

are acutely aware of the demand for nursing services due to a growing aging population, an increased focus on preventative care, and skyrocketing rates of individuals 

with multiple chronic conditions. In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Employment Projections for 2012–2022, the profession of registered 

nurses (RN) will grow by 19 percent for the 10-year timeframe between 2012 and 

2022. The number of job openings due to both the increasing demand for nursing 

services and the large number of retiring RNs, brings the total of RNs needed to 

1.053 million by 2022. A 2013 HRSA report, The U.S. Nursing Workforce: Trends 

in Supply and Education, indicates that over the next 10 to 15 years, the nearly 

one million RNs over age 50 (comprising approximately one-third of the current 

workforce), will reach retirement age. 

Moreover, the acute nurse faculty shortage is one significant reason why schools 

of nursing across the country turn away tens of thousands of qualified applications 

each year. The demand for nurses and the faculty who educate them is a serious 

impediment to improving the Nation’s healthcare needs. Nurses continue to be the 

largest group of healthcare providers whose services are directly linked to quality 

and cost-effectiveness. The Tri-Council is grateful to the Subcommittee for your past 

commitment to Title VIII funding and respectfully asks that you continue to make 

the long-term investment that will build the nursing workforce necessary to deliver 

the quality, affordable care envisioned in health reform. 

A Proven Solution: Nursing Workforce Development Programs 

The Nursing Workforce Development programs, authorized under Title VIII of the 

Public Health Service Act, have helped build the supply and distribution of qualified 

nurses to meet our Nation’s healthcare needs since 1964. Over these past 50 years, 

the original programs, newly added, and expanded programs have addressed all aspects of supporting the workforce—education, practice, retention, and recruitment. 

They have bolstered nursing education at all levels—from entry-level preparation 

through graduate study—and have provided support for institutions that educate 

nurses who practice in rural and medically underserved communities. A description 

of the Title VIII programs and their impact are included below. 

Advanced Nursing Education (ANE) Programs (Sec. 811) fund a number of grant 

activities—including several traineeships—that aim to increase the size and quality 

of the advanced nursing workforce. Supporting the preparation of RNs in master’s 

and doctoral nursing programs, the ANE grants help prepare our Nation’s nurse 

practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse midwives, nurse anesthetists, nurse 

educators, nurse administrators, nurses in executive practice, public health nurses, 

and other nursing specialists requiring advanced nursing education. In fiscal year 

2012, these grants supported the education of 15,986 students. Under the ANE program are two critical traineeship programs that are particularly relevant as the demand for primary and acute care services rise. 

Advanced Education Nursing (AEN) Traineeships assist graduate nursing students by providing full or partial reimbursement for the costs of tuition, books, program fees, and reasonable living expenses. Funding for the AEN Traineeships supports the education of future nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse 

midwives, nurse anesthetists, nurse educators, nurse administrators, public health 

nurses, and other nurse specialists requiring advanced education. 

Nurse Anesthetist Traineeships (NAT) support the education of students in nurse 

anesthetist programs. In some States, certified registered nurse anesthetists are the 

sole anesthesia providers in almost 100 percent of rural hospitals. 

In fiscal year 2012, the AEN Traineeship and the NAT supported 5,545 nursing 

students. 
672 

Nursing Workforce Diversity (NWD) Grants (Sec. 821) prepare students from disadvantaged backgrounds to become nurses, producing a more diverse nursing workforce. This outcome will help meet the increasing need for culturally aligned, quality 

healthcare for the Nation’s rapidly diversifying population and help close the gap 

in health disparities. This program awards grants and contract opportunities to 

schools of nursing for a variety of clinical training facilities to address nursing educational needs, not only for disadvantaged students, but also or racial and ethnic 

minorities underrepresented in the nursing profession. In fiscal year 2012, the program supported 12,077 students. 

Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention (NEPQR) Grants (Sec. 831) help 

schools of nursing, academic health centers, nurse-managed health clinics, as well 

as State and local governments strengthen nursing education programs, thereby increasing the size and quality of the nursing workforce. The purposes of the NEPQR 

grants are broad and flexible, allowing the program to address emerging needs in 

nursing workforce development. For example, projects have been funded to develop 

and disseminate collaborative practice models that incorporate the full range of 

healthcare workers in team-based care are of certain interest. NEPQR supports infrastructure development to enhance the coordination and capacity building of interprofessional practice and education among health professions across the United 

States, and particularly in medically underserved areas. 

For other interests, a number of grant activities have been funded to support several legislative purposes such as expanding the size of academic programs that are 

able to confer a baccalaureate degree of science in nursing (BSN); recruiting and 

educating individuals as qualified personal and home care aides in occupational 

shortage and/or high demand areas; training qualified nursing assistants and home 

health aides to meet the growing healthcare needs of the aging population; and/or 

supporting nurse-managed health clinics that serve as primary care access points 

in areas where primary care providers are in short supply. 

NURSE Corps (formerly known as the Nursing Education Loan Repayment and 

Scholarship Program) (Sec. 846) provides monies to students by paying up to 85 percent of a student’s loan in return for at least 3 years of service in a designated 

health shortage area or in an accredited school of nursing. The NURSE Corps Loan 

Repayment Program (LRP) is a financial incentive program under which individual 

RNs and advanced practice registered nurses enter into a contractual agreement 

with the Federal Government to work full-time in a healthcare facility with a critical shortage of nurses, in return for repayment of qualifying nursing educational 

loans. In fiscal year 2013, the Nursing Education Loan Repayment Program supported 1,446 nurses working in these facilities. However, given the current climate, 

the HRSA 2015 Congressional Budget Justification anticipates that they will only 

be able to support 1,296 in fiscal year 2014. 

Nurse Faculty Loan Program (NFLP) (Sec. 846 A) increases the number of qualified nurse faculty by creating a student loan fund within individual schools of nursing. Students agree to teach at a school of nursing in exchange for cancellation of 

up to 85 percent of their educational loans, plus interest, over a 4-year period. In 

fiscal year 2012, these grants supported the education of 2,259 future nurse educators. 

Comprehensive Geriatric Education Program (CGEP) Grants (Sec. 855) provide 

support to nursing students specializing in care for the elderly. These grants may 

be used to educate RNs who will provide direct care to older Americans, develop and 

disseminate geriatric curriculum, prepare faculty members, and provide continuing 

education. They may also fund traineeships for individuals who are preparing for 

advanced education nursing degrees in geriatric nursing, long-term care, gero-psychiatric nursing or other nursing areas that specialize in the care of the elderly population. In fiscal year 2012, there were 11,600 trainees supported by these grants. 

Our Nation is faced with a growing healthcare crisis that must be addressed on 

many fronts. Nurses are an important part of the solution to the crisis of cost, burden of disease, and access to quality care. To meet this challenge, funding of proven 

Federal programs such as Title VIII will help ease the demand for RNs. The TriCouncil respectfully requests your support for $251 million for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs in fiscal year 2015. If our organizations can 

be of assistance, please contact AACN’s Director of Government Affairs and Health 

Policy, Dr. Suzanne Miyamoto, at Smiyamoto@aacn.nche.edu. 
673 

Sincerly, 

Eileen Breslin, PhD, RN, FAAN, President, Geraldine ‘‘Polly’’ Bednash, PhD, 

RN, FAAN, Chief Executive Officer, American Association of Colleges of 

Nursing; Linda Knodel, MHA, MSN, RN, NE-BC CPHQ, FACHE, President, 

Pamela A. Thompson, MS, RN, CENP, FAAN , Chief Executive Officer and 

Sr. Vice President, American Organization of Nurse Executives; Karen Daley, 

PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN,President,Marla J. Weston, PhD, RN, FAAN, Chief 

Executive Officer, American Nurses Association, Marsha Howell Adams, PhD, 

RN, CNE, ANEF, President,Beverly Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN, Chief 

Executive Officer, National League for Nursing. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE TRUST FOR AMERICA’S HEALTH

Trust for America’s Health (TFAH), a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to saving lives by working to make disease prevention a national priority, is 

pleased for this opportunity to provide written testimony on the State of public 

health funding. As this subcommittee works to develop a fiscal year 2015 Labor, 

Health & Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (LHHS) appropriations 

bill, I urge you to ensure adequate funding for public health prevention and preparedness programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and 

other public health agencies. 

After several years of cuts, Congress included a significant increase to CDC in the 

fiscal year 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act, and we thank you for recognizing 

the importance of public health. Eighty–five percent of the CDC’s annual budget 

flows to your States and districts in the form of grants and contracts to State and 

local public health departments, and community partners, to conduct critical public 

health and prevention activities that every American relies on, such as protecting 

us from infectious disease by combating healthcare-associated infections, delivering 

immunizations, ensuring preparedness, and conducting nonstop surveillance. 

The CDC and its grantees across the country are working to help give Americans 

the information they need to adopt the healthy lifestyles that will reduce the chronic 

disease burden on our healthcare system. In 2012, we spent roughly 75 percent of 

our Nation’s annual $2.8 trillion healthcare bill on treating preventable chronic diseases. Long-term healthcare spending at these levels is unsustainable for our economy and our Federal budget. 

There is a growing evidence base that demonstrates that the majority of chronic 

disease is preventable by addressing common risk factors. We have begun to see 

signs of success, with childhood obesity rates declining in cities and States that were 

among the first to adopt a comprehensive approach to obesity prevention. We must 

bring that knowledge to scale, so that Americans across the country have the opportunity to lead healthier lives. We were pleased that last year Congress made important new investments in community prevention that will help continue our efforts 

to transform our healthcare system to one that values prevention and wellness, and 

we urge the Committee to build on those investments in the fiscal year 2015 bill. 

The recently released Robert Wood Johnson Foundation 2014 County Health 

Rankings serve as another sobering reminder that an American’s zip code is a 

strong predictor of whether or not they have the opportunity to lead a healthy life. 

Meeting these twin challenges of protecting the American people from natural and 

man-made threats and preventing disease can only occur with continued support for 

CDC. 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 

From fiscal year 2010 to 2013, the CDC saw its budget authority cut by 18 percent. We were pleased that the fiscal year 2014 Omnibus Appropriations measure 

provided CDC with an increase of more than $550 million, including $373 million 

from the Prevention and Public Health Fund, resulting in a nearly $175 million increase for chronic disease programs. For perspective, however, that increase simply 

brought CDC funding back to fiscal year 2013 levels. Scarce resources means CDC 

will be forced to make extremely difficult, sometimes life and death choices. We urge 

the Committee to maintain adequate CDC funding levels in fiscal year 2015. 

The Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF) 

TFAH was pleased to see Congress exercise its authority to allocate the Prevention and Public Health Fund in fiscal year 2014, and we urge this committee to do 

so again in the fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill. To date, the Fund had made 

investments in every State to support State and local efforts to transform and revitalize communities, build epidemiology and laboratory capacity to track and respond 

to disease outbreaks, address healthcare associated infections, train the Nation’s 
674 

public health and health workforce, prevent the spread of HIV, expand access to 

vaccines, reduce tobacco use, and help control the obesity epidemic. 

National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) 

Our Nation’s doctors and hospitals are our trusted front line when illness appears, 

but we must continue to engage not only health systems but sectors such as education, housing, business and planning to transform communities to make the 

healthy choice the easy choice and prevent illness in the first place. The Chronic 

Disease Center has made progress in moving away from the traditional categorical 

approach to funding disease prevention and toward more coordinated, cross-cutting 

strategies. While we were disappointed at the premature termination of the Community Transformation Grants program, TFAH appreciates the new investments in 

community prevention made in fiscal year 2014. We hope the Committee restores 

funding for the Chronic Disease Center to fiscal year 2010 levels ($1.167 billion), 

building upon fiscal year 2014 investments in diabetes, heart disease and stroke, 

the Partnerships to Improve Community Health initiative, the Racial and Ethnic 

Approaches to Community Health program and the Preventive Health and Health 

Services Block Grant program. For the block grant, TFAH calls upon the Committee 

to promote its use to modernize our public health system by supporting health department accreditation and other efforts to ensure the Nation’s health departments 

can deliver foundational public health capabilities to all Americans. 

National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) 

Critical programs conducted at the CDC National Center for Environmental 

Health support our chronic disease prevention and public health preparedness efforts. Yet it remains one of the most critically underfunded parts of CDC. We recommended that you fund NCEH at fiscal year 2010 levels ($181.004 million) in fiscal year 2015 to continue to rebuild the lead control program, grow our National 

Environmental Public Health Tracking Network, and pursue other priorities. 

Public Health Emergency Preparedness Grants 

The Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) Grants, administered by 

CDC, is the only Federal program that supports the work of health departments to 

prepare for all types of disasters, including bioterror attacks, natural disasters, and 

infectious disease outbreaks. The grants fund nearly 4,000 State and local public 

health staff positions, and support 15 core capabilities including public health laboratory testing, surveillance and epidemiology, community resilience, countermeasures and mitigation, and more. These funds are used for everyday preparedness activities, such as monitoring public health threats, and have been integral in 

expanding to respond to full-scale disasters such as Hurricane Sandy, the fungal 

meningitis outbreak, and the West Nile Virus outbreak in Texas. TFAH recommends $670 million for the Public Health Emergency Preparedness Cooperative 

Agreements in fiscal year 2015 to help States and localities restore some of the core 

capabilities lost due to significant cuts to the program. 

Hospital Preparedness Program 

The Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP), administered by the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), provides funding and technical assistance to prepare the health system to respond to and recover from a disaster. The 

program, which began in response to 9/11, has evolved from one focused on equipment and supplies held by individual hospitals in response to a terrorist event, to 

a system-wide, all-hazards approach. The new HPP is building the capacity of 

healthcare coalitions—regional collaborations between healthcare organizations, providers, emergency managers, public sector agencies, and other private partners—to 

meet the disaster healthcare needs of communities. Through the coalition planning 

process, facilities are learning to leverage resources, such as developing interoperable communications systems, tracking beds, and writing contracts to share assets. 

HPP helped a prepared healthcare system save lives during recent events, including the Boston Marathon bombings and tornadoes in Kentucky and Joplin, MO. 

HPP appropriations have decreased from $426 million in fiscal year 10 to $255 million in fiscal year 2014, including a one third cut in the fiscal year 2014 omnibus. 

TFAH recommends $300 million for fiscal year 2015 for HPP, an incremental step 

to rebuild the program. The significant reduction in fiscal year 14 will likely result 

in fewer staff, fewer coalitions and less of the Nation prepared for disasters. 

Combatting Prescription Drug Abuse 

Prescription drug abuse is a growing public health crisis. Overdose deaths involving prescription painkillers have quadrupled since 1999 and now outnumber deaths 

from all illicit drugs, including heroin and cocaine, combined. This is a multi-faceted 
675 

problem, and the CDC, SAMHSA, NIH and a range of other agencies have a role 

to play in finding a solution. TFAH recommends a $15.6 million increase to the CDC 

Injury Center’s Injury Prevention Activities line to enable the CDC to work with additional States with a high burden of prescription drug abuse to help address the 

main drivers of the epidemic of prescription drug overdoses, and also urge you to 

provide the funding to ensure that patients with prescription drug addiction have 

access to the treatment they need to turn their lives around. 

Conclusion 

Investing in disease prevention is the most effective, common-sense way to improve health and address our long-term deficit. Hundreds of billions of dollars are 

spent each year to pay for healthcare services once patients develop an acute illness, 

injury, or chronic disease. A sustained investment in public health and prevention 

is essential to reduce high rates of disease and improve health in the United States. 

[This statement was submitted by Jeffrey Levi, Executive Director, Trust for 

America’s Health.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF REBECCA UNDERWOOD, PARENT/GUARDIAN/ADVOCATE

Thank you for this opportunity to provide outside witness testimony for the record 

to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, 

Education and Related Agencies. I strongly object to the use of United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) appropriations to develop coercive 

and subversive methods of deinstitutionalization resulting in the eviction of the 

most vulnerable individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities from DHHS 

Medicaid licensed and funded facilities including intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ICFs/IID). I submit this testimony as a request 

that Congress prohibit Federal funds be allocated to Federal programs which are 

currently using their public funds to achieve dangerous public policies of forced deinstitutionalization, resulting in the eviction of eligible individuals with severe, profound and extreme intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) from their 

HHS-licensed and funded homes, without regard to individual choice. 

I am the mother and co-guardian of an adult son, aged 34 who, as the result of 

brain and pulmonary hemorrhaging occurring during a premature birth, functions 

at the level of a 4–12 week old infant with chronic and complex medical issues. 

After providing his 24/7 care in our home for several years, we accepted the reality 

that our son would benefit from the extended care available in a highly specialized 

intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Our son has 

benefitted tremendously from the highly specialized medical services provided in 

this setting as evidenced by his continued survival beyond any one’s expectations. 

Our parenting decisions, our son’s continued residence in his current DHHS funded facility and receipt of the services uniquely suited to meet his extensive and complex physical and medical needs, which have proven beneficial for his survival, are 

under attack. A number of DHHS funded programs are targeting forced displacement of our most fragile constituency without regard to individual choice, need and 

safety. 

Examples of how government dollars, through DHHS appropriations, are being 

misused in a cruel and absurd method by DHHS funded programs and policies to 

affect the downsizing and closure of DHSS licensed and funded facilities include: 

—Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) administers programs and grants created under Public Law 106–402, Developmental 

Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (DD Act). The DD Act was 

last reauthorized in 2000. Authorizations for DD Act appropriations expired in 

2007; however Congress continues to fund these programs. DD Act programs, 

including Protection and Advocacy (P&A) and DD Councils, operate in every 

State. AIDD, now under the umbrella of the Administration for Community Living within DHHS, administers the DD Act programs. In 2011 AIDD’s (f/k/a 

ADD) proposed recommendations included ‘‘[d]evelop and implement plans to 

close public and private institutions’’. There have been no hearings or recourse 

for families to address concerns as to the way in which programs, including 

AIDD, use/misuse Federal funds. DHHS has been unresponsive to complaints 

from families of persons with severe, profound and extreme forms of developmental disabilities about AIDD policies. DHHS has turned a blind eye to the 

tragic, but predictable, results for many individuals when they are forced from 

their specialized, Medicaid certified and funded congregate care settings. Independent oversight of Federal AIDD and DD Act programs is desperately needed. 

How long will Congress and society continue to ignore the increasing rate of 
676 

1 Audra T. Wenzlow and Debra J. Lipson, ‘‘Transitioning Medicaid Enrollees from Institutions 

to the Community: Number of People Eligible and Number of Transitions Targeted Under 

MFP’’, Reports from the Field, Number 1, January 2009, Mathematica Policy Research, 

pg 6, http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/health/MFPfieldrpt1.pdf (accessed 20 

March 2014). 

tragic outcomes due to a misguided ideological agenda of forced deinstitutionalization of our most vulnerable citizens from their safe environments? 

—National Council on Disability (NCD) is an independent Federal agency funded 

through DHHS appropriations. In October 2012 the NCD released a 110 page 

policy document and an accompanying 201 page ‘‘tool-kit’’ to assist opponents 

of congregate care to accomplish the closure of Medicaid-certified specialized 

homes of 4 or more beds in which individuals with severe and profound cognitive and other developmental disabilities receive supports and services. Families and guardians of these affected individuals are universally opposed to such 

closures and are united in their opposition to NCD’s misuse of their authority 

as an independent Federal agency and their Federal funding. NCD has been 

called upon by these families to reject their stance on forced deinstitutionalization. The NCD has thus far ignored, and failed to respond to, the request of 

these most important stakeholders. Despite extensive documentation of widespread abuse in community settings, along with a nationwide crisis of understaffed, underpaid, and poorly trained direct care workers resulting in tragic 

outcomes, the NCD continues pressing forward with their position that ALL individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities, even those who experience 

profound and complex medical, physical and/or behavioral challenges, be forced 

from their safe homes if that safe home is 4 or more beds. As an ‘‘independent 

Federal agency charged with advising the President, Congress, and other Federal agencies regarding policies, programs, practices and procedures that affect 

people with disabilities’’ NCD should not be taking any position which tramples 

on the rights of a portion of the disability community. 

—DHHS Incentive grants (increase in FMAP funds) to encourage States to move 

away from providing institutional care. 

—Money Follows the Person is a Federal ‘‘reward’’ for cash strapped States to 

move away from providing institutional care. Money Follows the Person 

(MFP) grants provide increased FMAP (Federal Medical Assistance Percentage) funds to States as a reward for each institutionalized person in the target population who transitions to an eligible non-institutional setting. Money 

Follows the Person grants ($4 Billion) have been acknowledged to disproportionately target individuals with developmental disabilities for transition.1

MFP has also been acknowledged as a way for States to transition individuals 

‘‘out the back door’’ of institutions while ‘‘closing the front door’’ to new admissions in an effort to close facilities. 

—Balancing Incentive Program (BIP) is another Federal incentive in the 

amount of $3 billion to cash strapped States to divert eligible individuals from 

institutional settings, disregarding choice and need. 

Combined total of $7 Billion in Federal funds through these Incentive grants, in 

addition to States’ regular Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), to encourage States to abandon institutional settings. Federal funds should not be utilized to favor one service setting over another, particularly as clarified in the Supreme Court’s Olmstead ruling: ‘‘We emphasize that nothing in the ADA or its implementing regulations condones termination of institutional settings for persons 

unable to handle or benefit from community settings...Nor is there any Federal requirement that community-based treatment be imposed on patients who do not desire it.’’ Olmstead, 119 S. Ct. 2176, 2187 (1999) (majority). 

It will be a travesty if the Federal Government is successful in pigeon-holing disability policy into a one-size-fits-all, eliminating choice, while continuing to ignore 

Supreme Court clarifications within Olmstead regarding the care of those with the 

most severe forms of developmental disabilities. We need an increasing array of viable options for services and supports for our most vulnerable, not less. 

How long will Congress and society continue to ignore the increasing rate of tragic 

outcomes (abuse, neglect, unnecessary & preventable deaths) of a misguided ideological agenda of forced deinstitutionalization of our most vulnerable citizens from 

their safe environments? 

In conclusion I call upon Congress to prohibit the Department of Health and 

Human Services’ use of appropriations for deinstitutionalization activities that result in the eviction of eligible individuals with intellectual and other developmental 

disabilities from DHHS licensed and funded facilities. 
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PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE UNITED NEGRO COLLEGE FUND

Introduction 

I am Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President of Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. 

Founded in 1881, Spelman College is a global leader in the education of women of 

African descent and a Historically Black College. Since 2008 Spelman College has 

averaged a 6-year graduation rate of 77 percent—one of the highest of the 105 Historically Black Colleges and Universities and substantially above the national average of 59 percent. 

Spelman College is one of the 37 private Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that are members of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), which 

I am representing. UNCF is the Nation’s largest higher education organization serving students of color, perhaps best known by the iconic motto—‘‘A mind is a terrible 

thing to waste®.’’ 

In its 70-year history, UNCF has raised more than $4 billion in scholarship aid 

to help more than 400,000 students of color attend HBCUs and 900 other colleges 

and universities across the country to obtain the education they need to excel in the 

21st century economy. UNCF’s largest scholarship is the Gates Millennium Scholarship offered to high-achieving, low-income African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian Pacific Islander and Hispanic American students. UNCF has 

awarded $179 million in Gates Millennium Scholarships to help 3,200 students from 

the States the Labor-Health and Human Services-Education Subcommittee represents earn college degrees. 

HBCU Value Proposition 

UNCF’s core mission, however, remains its partnership with the Nation’s 37 private HBCUs. The money raised by UNCF has become even more important today 

as HBCUs have suffered from a ‘‘perfect storm’’ of Federal disinvestments since 

2011. Limitations on Pell Grant eligibility requirements, sequestration cuts to the 

Title III HBCU Program and Parent PLUS Loan reductions have resulted in a loss 

of more than $250 million in Federal support. Despite these challenges, HBCUs provide enormous value for students and the Nation. HBCUs represent approximately 

4 percent of all 4-year colleges and universities; enroll 9 percent of all African American college students; confer 16 percent of bachelor’s degrees awarded to African 

Americans; and generate 27 percent of the STEM bachelor’s degrees awarded to African Americans. Moreover, HBCUs accomplish this while serving students with 

greater need: more than 70 percent of students who attend HBCUs are low-income 

students who depend on Federal Pell Grants for their education, a substantially 

greater share than the 43 percent of students at all other 4-year colleges and universities. At the same time, total cost of attendance at HBCUs is 30 percent lower, 

on average, than other 4-year institutions. 

Fiscal year 2014 Appropriations 

I would like to thank the Subcommittee and, in particular, Chairman Harkin and 

Ranking Member Moran for playing leadership roles in restoring some of the vital 

Federal resources to HBCUs and the students we serve in the fiscal year 2014 budget. UNCF appreciates you providing a maximum Pell award of $5,730, restoring sequestration cuts to other student aid programs, and restoring two-thirds of the sequestration cuts to the Title III HBCU Program. 

Fiscal year 2015 Appropriations Priorities 

Looking to fiscal year 2015, a national strategy to produce more college graduates, 

boost our economy and enhance global competitiveness must include greater investment in HBCUs. On behalf of the UNCF institutions and all HBCUs, I urge the 

Subcommittee to support our highest priority programs listed below: 

—I urge you to appropriate $267 million in discretionary dollars and $85 million 

in mandatory dollars for the Title III, Part B—Strengthening Historically Black 

Colleges and Universities Program. These are formula funds awarded to 

HBCUs for operational support and essential academic services. Let me note 

that during the 2007–2012 grant cycle, Spelman College received and expended 

more than $11 million in Title III funding. Spelman has enhanced its campus 

infrastructure to include upgrades in technology to facilities, classrooms, labs 

and centers. Title III assisted with the establishment of the SpelBots 

(Spelman’s Robotic Team) a winning robotics initiative. Additional examples of 

the achievements that critical Title III funding has supported at Spelman are 

included as an attachment to my testimony. Please reinvest in this program and 

restore the $43 million cut from the program since fiscal year 2010. 

—The HBCU Capital Financing Program finances low-risk Federal loans to help 

HBCUs, especially private institutions, improve facilities, infrastructure and 
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technology. Investing in capital projects not only enhances the educational environment for students but also reinvigorates our communities and provides much 

needed jobs. I urge you to increase the appropriation for loan subsidies to $25 

million, which would leverage $390 million in annual loans to meet the infrastructure needs of our institutions. 

—Without Pell Grants, most HBCU students could not pay for the college education that is essential in today’s economy. I urge you to fund a $5,830 maximum Pell award to help our students persist and complete college. In addition, 

I encourage you to reinstate ‘‘summer’’ Pell Grants so students can earn their 

college degrees faster and at a lower cost. 

—UNCF also strongly supports the President’s fiscal year 2015 request of $75 

Million for College Success Grants for Minority-Serving Institutions. These competitive grants would help Minority-Serving Institutions launch new innovations and best practices to improve student outcomes. I urge you to fully fund 

this important initiative. 

—I urge you to approve the proposed College Opportunity and Graduation Bonuses, which would reward institutions that enroll and graduate large numbers 

of low-income students. UNCF recommends that this proposal be amended to 

take into consideration both the numbers and percentages of low-income students graduating from institutions, given that some HBCUs have smaller enrollments. 

—Finally, I urge you to restore the Health Professions Training for Diversity programs to fiscal year 2012 levels and ask that you expand the National Institute 

on Minority Health and Health Disparities to $283 million to improve diversity 

in the workforce and research funding for minority populations. 

Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Moran and members of this Subcommittee—you have the power to increase Federal resources for operating support, 

student assistance, best practices and innovations so that HBCUs can thrive in 

years to come. Or, you can adhere to the status quo and allow our institutions to 

merely survive. 

UNCF does not accept the status quo. We are accelerating our fundraising efforts, 

investing in capacity building at our member institutions, building new partnerships 

and leveraging our resources to enhance educational opportunities for minority students. In fact, UNCF has updated its motto to recognize education is an investment 

in better futures for everyone. We believe that, ‘‘A mind is a terrible thing to waste, 

but a wonderful thing to invest in.’’ Please help us invest in our youth, in our 

HBCUs, and most importantly, in our country so that millions more low-income, minority students can graduate from college and lead our country to heights we have 

yet to imagine. Thank you for the opportunity to submit written testimony. 

[This statement was submitted by Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President, Spelman 

College.] 

Attachments: 

—HBCU Coalition fiscal year 2015 Appropriations Priorities 

—Spelman College Title III Accomplishments 

ATTACHMENTS

HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES

$267 Million Discretionary/$85 Million Mandatory for Strengthening Historically 

Black Colleges and Universities Program—Title III, Part B, supports critical investments in HBCUs such as student academic services, infrastructure and teacher education programs needed to enhance educational opportunities for our students. This 

critical investment helps HBCUs to continue delivering services to our Nation’s 

neediest students. The HBCU Coalition respectfully requests $267 million discretionary funding, which would restore this program to its fiscal year 2010 level, and 

$85 million mandatory funding for fiscal year 2015. 

$61 Million for Strengthening Historically Black Graduate Institutions Program— 

This program provides financial assistance to Historically Black Graduate Institutions to establish or strengthen physical buildings and supports graduate students 

with scholarships and fellowships. This aid allows the next generation of scientists, 

mathematicians and graduate students to complete professional degrees in underrepresented fields of study. The HBCU Coalition requests $61 million funding, 

which would restore this program to its fiscal year 2010 funding level. 

$11 Million Discretionary/$15 Million Mandatory for Strengthening Predominantly Black Institutions—This program provides Predominantly Black Institutions 
679 

with funds to develop and implement programs to educate more low-income, African 

American college and secondary students. The HBCU Coalition requests $11 million 

discretionary and $15 million mandatory funding, which would restore this program 

to its fiscal year 2010 funding level. 

$25 Million for the HBCU Capital Financing Program and Remove the Loan 

Guarantee Cap—The HBCU Capital Financing program provides low-cost capital to 

finance physical improvements on HBCU campuses by guaranteeing and administering loans. In fiscal year 2013 and fiscal year 2014, demand is expected to exceed $800 million. We urge Congress to increase loan subsidies by $5.5 million to 

$25 million. This increase would support $86 million in new loans to approximately 

2—8 additional institutions for a total annual loan volume of $390 million. At a 

minimum, we recommend restoring the loan subsidy to its pre-sequester level of 

$20.5 million. We support the appropriations language recommended by the Education Department to remove the $1.1 billion loan guarantee statutory cap. 

$5,830 for the Pell Grant Maximum Award and Reinstate ‘‘Summer’’ Pell 

Grants—Pell Grants provide low- to moderate- income students with the financial 

assistance to go to and through college. The HBCU Coalition requests funding for 

the maximum Pell award at its authorized fiscal year 2015 level (currently estimated by OMB to be $5,830). In addition, we request reinstatement of the ‘‘summer’’ 

Pell Grant to allow students to accelerate their paths to graduation and lower their 

overall college costs. 

$75 Million for College Success Grants for Minority-Serving Institutions—The 

President’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes to initiate new College Success Grants 

for Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) to assist MSIs in developing sustainable 

strategies to reduce costs and improve student outcomes. Funded activities could include partnering with school districts and schools to provide college recruitment, 

awareness, and preparation activities; establishing high-quality dual-enrollment 

programs that allow students to earn college credit while still in high school; providing comprehensive student support services; and reducing the need for remedial 

education. The HBCU Coalition supports the President’s request of $75 million for 

this program. 

$647 Million for a College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus Program—President Obama’s fiscal year 2015 budget proposes a College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus program that will reward colleges that successfully enroll and graduate 

a significant number of low- and moderate-income students on time. Grants would 

fund key investments and best practices such as providing need-based financial aid, 

enhancing academic and student supports and other innovative strategies to improve low-income student outcomes. The HBCU Coalition supports the President’s 

request but also encourages Congress to modify the proposal to recognize institutions that enroll and graduate significant numbers or percentages of Pell-eligible 

students, accounting for the many HBCUs that have small enrollments. 

$50 Million for a National Five Fifths Agenda for America Initiative—To support 

the Administration’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative, the HBCU Coalition proposes 

$50 million for a new program called the Five Fifths Agenda for America to expand 

educational outcomes for African American males. The objective of this program is 

to demonstrate how colleges and universities, especially HBCUs, and K–12 schools 

can forge partnerships to help African-American males prepare for, get to and 

through college by implementing research-based best practices. 

$250 Million Authorization for a HBCU Innovation Fund—To support the Administration’s efforts to drive change in higher education policies and practices that improves college access, affordability, completion and quality, the HBCU Coalition proposes that additional financial resources be provided to HBCUs through an Innovation initiative under the Higher Education Act. An Innovation Fund would 

incentivize HBCUs to address performance goals in certain categories, such as student retention and completion, STEM, use of technology and new educational delivery methods that can speed time to degree and lower costs. All public and private 

HBCUs, or consortia of these HBCUs, other institutions and nonprofit organizations, would be eligible to receive planning and implementation grants. 

SPELMAN COLLEGE

HIGHLIGHTS: TITLE III, PART B, SEC. 323—STRENGTHENING HISTORICALLY BLACK

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES PROGRAM

Spelman College is the oldest historically black college for women. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, Spelman was founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary. The College maintains a student population of approximately 2,000 from 45 
680 

U.S. States and 13 countries, and since 2008 has had an average 6-year graduation 

rate of 77 percent. 

Title III—Strengthening Historically Black Colleges and Universities funding 

plays a critical role in obtaining resources that provide students and faculty with 

unparalleled opportunities for educational enrichment and advancement. In the 

2007–2012 grant cycle, Spelman College expended more than $11 million in Title 

III funds. Those resources were expended on a number or projects with wide-ranging effects on student life, faculty engagement, and facility improvement. 

—Title III funding supports and enhances institutional efforts in four critical 

areas: Academic Quality, Student Services Outcomes, Institutional Management 

and Fiscal Stability. Our advancements in these key areas are reflected in key 

indicators related to enrollment, retention, graduation and fiscal stability. 

—Title III funding undergirds 100 percent of the Foundational Priorities of the 

College’s Strategic Plan, enhancing academic rigor in new student orientation, 

freshman-year and sophomore-year experiences. 

—The College’s retention rate is 90 percent. The average 5-year (2007–2011) second-year retention rate is 87 percent. Title III funds continue to assist the institution with providing supportive programs that ensure Spelman’s first and second year students successfully progress to junior status. 

—The College’s 6-year graduation rate has ranged from a high of 83 percent to 

a low of 73 percent. The average 6-year (2001–2006) cohort rate is 77 percent. 

—Forty-nine Global STEM students have conducted STEM research abroad since 

2011. 

—48 labs and 22 classrooms upgraded with state-of-the-art technology. 

—Between 2008–2012, Spelman had 722 students who were admitted to and attended graduate or professional degree programs in disciplines in which African 

Americans are underrepresented. 

Select Examples of Title III Activities that Support our Success 

—A campus classroom was transformed into a data analysis hub, with 16 new 

workstations installed. More than 90 percent of students reported that their interest in and skills related to data analysis improved as a result of their work 

in this facility. 

—The College implemented DegreeWorks, an online auditing and advising system 

that aids students in proactively creating and fulfilling their individual academic plans and assists faculty advisors in providing effective support. 

—Spelman’s Education Studies Program enlarged its interdisciplinary course offerings through the addition of a new course entitled ‘‘History and Philosophy 

of African American Education.’’ 

—Creation and implementation of the Student Success Center, which provides a 

centralized location for student support services. 

—Spelman’s Department of Computer and Information Science (CIS) achieved 

international recognition for the accomplishments of its graduates and for its 

award-winning robotics initiative. The SpelBots participated in the NSF Education Technology Senate showcase in November 2009. 
681 

These accomplishments serve as evidence of the important role that resources 

from the Strengthening Historically Black Colleges and Universities program play 

at Spelman and on HBCU campuses across the Nation. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE UNITED TRIBES TECHNICAL COLLEGE

For 45 years, United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) has provided postsecondary 

career and technical education, job training and family services to some of the most 

impoverished, high risk Indian students from throughout the Nation. We are governed by the five tribes located wholly or in part in North Dakota. We are not part 

of the North Dakota State college system and do not have a tax base or State-appropriated funds on which to rely. We have consistently had excellent retention and 

placement rates and are a fully accredited institution. Section 117 Carl Perkins Act 

funds represent a significant portion of our operating budget and provides for our 

core instructional programs. The request of the UTTC Board for fiscal year 2015 is: 

—$10 million for base funding authorized under Section 117 of the Carl Perkins 

Act for the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions 

program (20 U.S.C. Section 2327). This is $2.3 million above the fiscal year 

2014 level and the fiscal year 2013 post-sequestration level. These funds are 

awarded competitively and distributed via formula. We are seeking a change to 

the formula which is not so reliant on Indian Student Count in order to avoid 

dramatic swings in annual awards. 

—Forward Funding. We ask that the Section 117 Perkins funds, like the other 

funds under the Carl Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, be put on 

a forward funded basis. 

—$30 million as requested by the American Indian Higher Education Consortium 

for Title III-A (Section 316) of the Higher Education Act, $5 million above the 

fiscal year 2014 level. 

—Maintain Pell Grants at the $5,830 maximum award level. 

We are disappointed that the fiscal year 2014 Appropriations Act did not restore 

the fiscal year 2013 Section 117 sequestration even though funding for the overall 

Perkins Act was restored. Perhaps Section 117 was overlooked as a source of job 

training as it is in the Higher Education portion of the budget. We all realize the 

urgent need to better prepare a workforce to meet industry and other emerging 

needs. We are part of that undertaking, but need more resources to come closer to 

our potential. 

We don’t know if Congress will reauthorize the Carl Perkins Act this session, but 

point out that the Administration’s Blueprint for Perkins reauthorization specifically 

states support for the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Education program and includes some national recommendations that UTTC is already 

implementing including: 

—Training that is industry certified and provision of postsecondary certificates 

and degrees. 

—Alignment with labor market needs—the ramifications of the North Dakota 

Bakken oil boom are seen throughout the State. We saw the need for more certified welders in relation to the oil boom and so expanded our certified welding 

program for these good- paying, in-demand jobs. Similarly, our online medical 

transcription program was designed to meet the growing need for certified med-
682 

ical support staff. Other courses reflect new emphasis on energy auditing and 

GIS Technology. 

—Articulation agreements between UTTC and junior and senior high schools. 

—A broad range of services for our students to help ensure their success. 

Additional Information about UTTC. We have: 

—Renewed unrestricted accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools for July 2011 through 2021, with authority to offer all of our 

full programs on-line. We have 26 Associate, 20 Certificate and three Bachelor 

degree programs. 

—Services including a Child Development Center, family literacy program, 

wellness center, area transportation, K–8 elementary school, tutoring, counseling and housing. 

—A semester retention rate of 85 percent and a graduate placement rate of 77 

percent. Over 45 percent of our graduates move on to 4-year or advanced degree 

institutions. 

—Students from 75–88 tribes; 85 percent of our undergraduate students receive 

Pell Grants. 

—An unduplicated count of undergraduate degree-seeking students and continuing education students of 1391. —A critical role in the regional economy. Our presence brings at least $34 million 

annually to the economy of the Bismarck region. A 2005 study showed a projected return on Federal investment of 20–1. 

—We have recently opened a distance learning center in Rapid City, SD, where 

there are some 16,000 American Indians in the area. We are also working toward the establishment of an American Indian Specialized Health Care Training Clinic. 

Section 117 Perkins Base Funding. Funds are needed to: 1) maintain 100-yearold education buildings and 50-year-old housing stock for students; 2) upgrade technology capabilities; 3) provide adequate salaries for faculty and staff who are in the 

bottom quartile of salary for comparable positions elsewhere; and 4) fund program 

and curriculum improvements. 

Perkins funds are central to the viability of our core postsecondary education programs. Very little of the other funds we receive may be used for core career and 

technical educational programs; they are competitive, often one-time targeted supplemental funds. Our Perkins funding provides a base level of support while allowing the college to compete for desperately needed discretionary funds. 

Forward Funding. We ask that the Appropriations Committees provide one-time 

funding for Section 117 Perkins to put it on a forward funded basis. We do not know 

why it is not already forward funded, given that the rest of the Perkins is forward 

funded. A number of years ago Section 117 was moved to the Higher Education portion of the budget even though it is authorized through the Perkins Act. Perhaps 

that has something to do with it, although we point out that many education programs are forward funded. Forward funding provides for vital education programs 

before the start of each school year, which is critically important when appropriations are delayed and the Government is funded via Continuing Resolutions. 

Title III-A (Section 316) Strengthening Institutions. Among the Title III-A statutorily allowable uses is facility construction and maintenance. We are constantly in 

need of additional student housing, including family housing. With the completion 

of a Science, Math and Technology building on our South Campus on land acquired 

with a private grant, we urgently need housing for up to 150 students, many of 

whom have families. 

While we have constructed three housing facilities using a variety of sources in 

the past 20 years, approximately 50 percent of students are housed in the 100-yearold buildings of what was Fort Abraham Lincoln, as well as housing that was donated by the Federal Government along with the land and Fort buildings in 1973. 

These buildings require major rehabilitation. New buildings are actually cheaper 

than rehabilitating the old buildings that now house students. 

Pell Grants. We support maintaining the Pell Grant maximum to at least a level 

of $5,830. This resource makes all the difference in whether most of our students 

can attend college. 

Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report. As you know, in March 2011 the 

GAO issued two reports regarding Federal programs which may have similar or 

overlapping services or objectives (GAO–11–318SP of March 1 and GAO–11–474R 

of March 18). Funding from the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) and the Perkins 

Act for Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Career and Technical Institutions were 

among the programs listed in the supplemental report of March 18, 2011. The GAO 

did not recommend defunding these or other programs; in some cases consolidation 
683 

1 Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Wyoming 

or better coordination of programs was recommended to save administrative costs. 

We are not in disagreement about possible consolidation or coordination of the administration of these funding sources so long as funds are not reduced. 

Perkins funds supplement, but do not duplicate, our BIE funds. It takes both 

sources of funding to frugally maintain the institution. Even these combined sources 

do not provide the resources necessary to operate and maintain the college and we 

actively seeks alternative funding to assist with curricula, deferred maintenance, 

and scholarship assistance. The need for postsecondary career and technical education in Indian Country is so great and the funding so small, that there is little 

chance for duplicative funding. There are only two institutions targeting American 

Indian/Alaska Native career and technical education at the postsecondary level— 

UTTC and Navajo Technical University. Combined, these institutions received less 

than $15 million in fiscal year 2014 Federal operational funds ($7.7 million from 

Perkins; $7 million from BIE), a very modest amount for two campus-based institutions which offer a wide and expanding array of training opportunities. 

* * * 

UTTC offers services catered to the needs of our students, many of whom are first 

generation college attendees and many of whom come to us needing remedial education and services. Although BIE and Section 117 Perkins funds do not pay for remedial education, we make this investment through other sources to ensure our students succeed at the postsecondary level. 

Thank you for your consideration of our requests. 

[This statement was submitted by David M. Gipp, Chancellor, United Tribes 

Technical College.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee; thank you for the opportunity 

to submit this statement regarding fiscal year 2015 funding for the National Institutes of Health’s Institutional Development Award or ‘‘IDeA’’ Program. The IDeA 

program is funded by NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences 

(NIGMS), and was authorized by the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act (Public Law 103– 

43). I submit this testimony on behalf of the Coalition of EPSCoR/IDeA States,1 the 

Kansas IDeA program, and the University of Kansas Medical Center. The Coalition 

of EPSCoR/IDeA States respectfully requests that the Subcommittee provide $310 

million for the IDeA program in fiscal year 2015. 

I would first like to provide some basic information about the IDeA program. The 

IDeA program increases our Nation’s biomedical research capability by improving 

research in States that have historically been less successful in obtaining biomedical 

research funds. Twenty-three States and Puerto Rico are eligible. The program 

funds only merit-based, peer-reviewed research that meets NIH’s biomedical research objectives. While IDeA was authorized by the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act 

(Public Law 103–43), sizable increases in funding only began in fiscal year 2000. 

The IDeA program then grew rapidly, due in large part to the thoughtful actions 

of this Subcommittee. This initial funding permitted the launch of two program elements: the COBRE and BRIN/INBRE programs. 

The first was the COBRE program or ‘‘Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence,’’ which are research clusters targeting specific biomedical research problems. 

The second IDeA program was BRIN or ‘‘Biomedical Research Infrastructure Networks,’’ which targeted key areas such as bioinformatics and genomics, and facilitated the development of cooperative networks between research-intensive universities and primarily undergraduate colleges. The BRIN grants underwent competitive renewals in 2004 and were funded under the new name of ‘‘IDeA Networks of 

Biomedical Research Excellence,’’ or INBRE. 

The COBRE program is designed to increase the pool of well-trained investigators 

in the IDeA States by expanding research facilities, equipping laboratories with the 

latest research equipment, providing mentoring for promising candidates, and developing research faculty through support of a targeted multi-disciplinary center, led 

by an established, senior investigator with expertise in the research focus area of 

the center. 
684 

The INBRE program is designed to increase the pipeline of outstanding students 

and enhances the quality of science faculty in the IDeA States by research-intensive 

networking with undergraduate institutions. The INBRE program supports research 

infrastructure and mentoring of young investigators, and prepares students for 

graduate and professional schools as well as careers in the biomedical sciences at 

participating institutions. As you can see, these two programs play complementary 

roles in developing research capability and human capital in biomedical fields in the 

IDeA States. 

Impact of the IDeA Program on Kansas 

Since the year 2000, Kansas has received more than $190 million in awards from 

the IDeA program. Those IDeA investments have enabled our investigators to secure National Institutes of Health grants and more than double the amount of funding coming into Kansas. The IDeA program has resulted in funding of 570 biomedical research grants, supported 71 core biomedical research core facilities, and 

has resulted in 1,152 new research related jobs. 

The Kansas INBRE (K–INBRE) program consists of three research-intensive universities and seven primarily undergraduate universities. Over its 13-year history, 

the K–INBRE has provided significant benefits to the State of Kansas, including 

training a skilled workforce and helping to drive scientific commercialization potential. Over $45.1 million from the NIH, numerous Kansas Universities, as well as 

philanthropies and industry support to the K–INBRE has benefitted Kansas Universities by significantly aiding Kansas’s faculty to increase NIH funding from $50.3M 

(2000) to $82.8M (2013). The K–INBRE has significantly improved in the dissemination of knowledge throughout Kansas via videoconferencing, symposia and increased 

intra- and inter-State collaborations. 

The K–INBRE has been successful in establishing the first bioinformatics facility 

in Kansas (three campus cores) and been instrumental in preparing for new advances in increased medical informatics and translational research. The K–INBRE 

has also assisted with building the Kansas biomedical science industry by facilitating industry collaborations. This is critical, as the growth of the Kansas bioscience sector is climbing at more than twice the national rate. 

Finally, the K–INBRE has contributed to building a skilled workforce for Kansas 

by assisting with the building of the biomedical workforce in Kansas by supporting 

research training for over 800 undergraduates, numerous post-docs and new faculty 

investigators. Importantly, the K–INBRE has helped broaden student research participation of under-represented groups (rural and ethnic). In 2013 alone, approximately 160 graduate and undergraduate students throughout the State of Kansas 

were supported by K–INBRE funds. More importantly, these funds have broadened 

research participation by under-represented rural and ethnic groups, and NIH-level 

research infrastructure has been initiated in seven of ten campuses within the K– 

INBRE network. 

Overall, the implementation of the K–INBRE program facilitates the generation 

of new strengths in Cell and Developmental Biology in the State of Kansas, and ultimately contributes importantly to the development of new tools and strategies for 

improving human health. 

Kansas researchers are currently involved in six active COBRE awards. Three of 

these COBREs are located at University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City. 

The Molecular Regulation of Cell Development and Differentiation COBRE has established a thriving multidisciplinary research group focused on the molecular regulation of cell development. This COBRE has been highly successful in helping young 

faculty obtain NIH funding. The purpose of the Nuclear Receptors in Liver Health 

and Disease COBRE has been to establish a recognized center to study liver function in health and disease. This COBRE has also been very successful at aiding 

young faculty in obtaining NIH funding. Importantly, it has also created a valuable 

‘‘liver bank’’ from many strains of inbred mice. The objective of the Novel Approaches for Control of Microbial Pathogens COBRE is to promote and enhance the 

research capabilities of tenure track junior faculty members of participating institutions in the State of Kansas with an emphasis on inhibiting microbial pathogens. 

This COBRE has been critical in enabling Kansas faculty to obtain $52 million in 

NIH funding and has established a highly utilized flow cytometry core facility at 

the University of Kansas Medical Center 

The remaining three COBRE programs reside in Lawrence, Kansas at the University of Kansas. The Center of Biomedical Research Excellence in Protein Structure 

and Function conducts important basic research in health-related protein structure 

and function. By better understanding the structure, function, and interaction of 

proteins present in human cells, researchers are gaining a deeper understanding of 

how proteins carry out critical functions within cells. This COBRE has helped 13 
685 

faculty establish independent NIH funding and two faculty supported by this 

COBRE have gone on to receive national recognition for their research. 

The Center for Molecular Analysis of Disease Pathways (CMADP) COBRE brings 

together junior and senior faculty from the physical, biological, and pharmaceutical 

sciences at the University of Kansas and other academic institutions in Kansas to 

conduct multidisciplinary research to develop and implement cutting-edge technologies for elucidating the genetic, chemical, and physical mechanisms of biological 

processes involved in disease. This COBRE has established a much needed Genome 

Sequence Core that provides state of the art sequencing capabilities for researchers 

in Kansas. 

Finally, the Center for Cancer Experimental Therapeutics (CCET) COBRE brings 

together researchers from the University of Kansas Lawrence campus, Kansas State 

University and the University of Kansas Medical Center. The Center combines the 

resources and faculty of Kansas’ institutions to create the infrastructure needed to 

pursue cancer-related research and experimentation at the interface between chemistry and biology. This is the oldest of the COBRE programs in Kansas and the 

CCET works to identify novel bioactive compounds that will be useful basic biomedical research tools and potential therapeutic agents. Scientists from the participating schools fight cancer through research projects focusing on specific types of 

cancer and the discovery of new anti-cancer drugs and therapies. This COBRE has 

established two important research cores associated with medicinal chemistry and 

high throughput screening, two key services that are important for drug discovery. 

The CCET was also instrumental in establishing a National Cancer Institute Designated Cancer Center at the University of Kansas Medical Center in 2012. 

Conclusion 

Despite these successes, our task is far from complete. Funding disparities between the States remain and may have a detrimental impact on our national selfinterest. Together, the 23 States and Puerto Rico that comprise the IDeA community secured just 5 percent of the total NIH budget in fiscal year 2011. With over 

22 percent of the Nation’s population living in the EPSCoR/IDeA States, this figure 

clearly indicates the critical need for further research development and the importance of a strong IDeA program. In fiscal year 1999, the year before COBRE grants 

were initiated, the 23 IDeA States and Puerto Rico received a total of $596 million 

from NIH. In fiscal year 2013 total NIH funding to the IDeA community has risen 

to $1.5 billion. This is evidence that the program is working and that the IDeA 

States are moving in the right direction. To put the value of the IDeA investment 

into perspective, the overall fiscal year 2014 IDeA budget, $273.325 million, for 23 

States and Puerto Rico, pales in comparison to the $606.8 million in NIH funding 

that one institution in one single non-IDeA State received in fiscal year 2012. In 

fiscal year 2012, the top seven States with NIH funding received over a $1 billion 

each, and California alone received over $3.5 billion. 

We request that this committee recommend the program to be funded in fiscal 

year 2015 at $310 million. As you know, the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition has maintained that IDeA program should constitute at least 1 percent of the total NIH 

budget. This level of funding would restore and continue funding for COBRE and 

INBRE, provide funding for the IDeA Program Infrastructure for Clinical and 

Translational Research (IDeA–CTR) program, and provide co-funding which would 

allow researchers and institutions to merge with the overall national biomedical research community. 

On behalf of the University of Kansas Medical Center, I express gratitude to this 

Subcommittee for the efforts it has made over the years to provide increased funding for IDeA, in particular this committee’s work to ensure the successful inclusion 

of a $50 million increase for the program in fiscal year 2012. I hope that you will 

continue to invest in this biomedical research program, which is so important to almost half of the States in the Union. Every region of the country has talent and 

expertise to contribute to our Nation’s biomedical research efforts—and every region 

of the country must participate if we are to increase our Nation’s biomedical research capacity substantially. On behalf of the EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition, the University of Kansas Medical Center and our partner institutions across Kansas, I thank 

the Subcommittee for the opportunity to submit this testimony. 

[This statement was submitted by Douglas Wright, Ph.D., Professor and Vice 

Chair Principal Investigator, Kansas INBRE, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Kansas Medical Center.] 
686 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTH DAKOTA

STATE UNIVERSITY

On behalf of the University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University, 

thank you for the opportunity to submit our written testimony regarding the fiscal 

year 2015 funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Institutional Development Award (IDeA) program. We respectfully request your support of no less than 

$310.0 million for this critically important program. We further request that the 

Subcommittee gives serious consideration to legislative language which would direct 

that future NIH budgets include funding for the IDeA program that reaches no less 

than 1 percent of the total NIH budget. IDeA was authorized by the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act (Public Law 103–43) and funds only merit-based, peer reviewed research that meets NIH research objectives in the 23 IDeA States and Puerto Rico. 

The States eligible for IDeA funding are defined as ‘‘all States/commonwealths 

with a success rate for obtaining NIH grant awards of less than 20 percent over 

the period of 2001–2005 or received less than an average of $120 million per year 

during that time period.’’ Currently this includes 23 States and Puerto Rico—nearly 

half of the States. Funding from this critical capacity-building program has been a 

key part of the growth in research capacity and impact at the two North Dakota 

research universities in recent years. 

Funding for the IDeA program in fiscal year 2014 was $273.325 million. The total 

budget for NIH in fiscal year 2014 was $30.2 billion; thus in fiscal year 2014, the 

IDeA program—funding competitively awarded biomedical research in nearly half 

the Nation—comprised only 0.89 percent of the entire NIH budget. The IDeA program exists because the 23 eligible States overall receive less than 20 percent of 

NIH’s extramural funding. The President’s proposed fiscal year 2015 budget request 

of $30.4 billion represents only a 0.7 percent increase to the NIH, and the proposed 

increase of $31 million for the entire National Institute for General Medical 

Sciences, which houses the IDeA program is even less, only 0.3 percent. The President’s proposed fiscal year 2015 budget request does not include a recommended increase for the IDeA program. The IDeA program is designed to aid small, rural 

States; it is small in the overall scheme of things at NIH, but huge for the States 

that compete for these funds. Our requested funding level of $310.0 million represents only 1 percent of the President’s total fiscal year 2015 budget request for 

NIH. 

Our State, North Dakota, has benefited immensely from the competitive funding 

available through the IDeA program in the form of COBRE (Center for Biomedical 

Research Excellence) and INBRE (IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence) grants. 

At the University of North Dakota, we have been awarded funding for three 

phases of a COBRE grant supporting research on neurodegenerative diseases. North 

Dakota has one of the largest populations of the extremely old in the Nation (second 

only to Rhode Island in the percentage of its citizens over 85 years of age), and high 

rates of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and multiple 

sclerosis. As an example of the impact of this funding and the research capacity it 

has built, externally funded research at the University of North Dakota’s School of 

Medicine and Health Sciences has grown substantially. Prior to COBRE funding, in 

fiscal year 2002, the SMHS received about $12.0 million in external funding; by fiscal year 2013, this had increased to $27.1 million, an increase of 126 percent. In 

2010, when UND developed a new strategic plan for research, neuroscience was 

identified as an existing strength on which to build further. 

Thus, the neurobiology COBRE grant is achieving its intended purpose of expanding our research capacity and our ability to compete for Federal funding. That research is directed at problems of direct interest not only to our citizenry, but also 

to the rest of the United States. 

The University of North Dakota has also received an additional COBRE grant on 

the topic of epigenetics. Epigenetics is the study of how environmental factors influence the expression of our genes; in many cases these changes in gene expression 

can then be inherited by the next generation. This $12.0 million grant was awarded 

early in fiscal year 2014, and will serve to carry out research on environmental factors that affect disease resistance while developing critical research capacity in the 

State. 

At North Dakota State University, the Center for Protease Research, a COBRE 

supported center, provides fundamental information on how proteases, key biological 

players, impact several diseases, including cancer, arthritis, autoimmune diseases, 

diabetes, and asthma. These studies have the potential to provide novel therapeutics 

that can treat these deadly and debilitating diseases. The multidisciplinary program 

has established two central Core Facilities in biology and synthesis that have had 
687 

a significant impact on research programs in the university and throughout North 

Dakota. The $24.0 million Center has initiated several outreach activities such as 

workshops for North Dakota University System faculty and students and a summer 

research program for undergraduates. 

The Center for Visual and Cognitive Neuroscience established in 2004 at North 

Dakota State University is devoted to increasing our understanding of the ways that 

information is perceived and processed by the brain. Center investigators are involved in the study of visual and cognitive processing. Core laboratory infrastructure 

has been developed allowing faculty and students to fruitfully explore the relationships between the nervous system and the behavior that it governs. 

Another critically important IDeA program is INBRE, which provides funding to 

build the biomedical workforce through activities ranging from outreach to elementary school children to creating opportunities for undergraduates to engage in research. This program has provided support for undergraduate students at 2- and 4- 

year colleges in North Dakota to participate in research during the summer at their 

home institutions. This program includes two tribal colleges and serves between 70 

and 100 students each year. Another program at the University of North Dakota 

serves about 60 undergraduates per year and applications routinely exceed the number of slots that are available. These programs are critical for keeping students in 

the pipeline for the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) workforce. 

Studies have repeatedly shown that engaging undergraduates in original research 

is a powerful tool for retaining students in college so that they graduate in a timely 

way. 

A major emphasis has been on outreach programs to Native American students, 

the minority group that is most under-represented in the fields of science, engineering, and math. Between 25 and 35 Native American students in grades 7–12 participate each year in a program that uses traditional Native American tools to teach 

science. As many as 40 students from tribal colleges are funded each year to visit 

UND and learn about opportunities to transfer to the university and complete their 

4-year degrees. INBRE provides support for transfer students from tribal colleges 

through the Pathway program, a 6-week summer program that prepares participants for advanced coursework in science. Pathway students can also receive tuition 

waivers from the university. INBRE funding is also provided to support the American Indian Health Research Forum on the UND campus each year; this forum attracts attendees from across the Nation. 

North Dakota, with an estimated 2013 population of 723,393, is the smallest of 

all the IDeA States. Yet, our School of Medicine and Health Sciences graduates a 

disproportionately large number of primary care physicians who practice in rural 

areas, and 20 percent of all Native American physicians in the U.S. are graduates 

of the University of North Dakota. The School recently was recognized by the American Academy of Family Physicians for having the largest percentage of its graduates enter the field of family medicine of all medical schools in the United States. 

The medical school clearly is making important contributions to healthcare for underserved populations. Like all medical schools, it must have a healthy research program underpinning its training of physicians, and funding from the IDeA program 

is critical to the health of that program and to building research capacity for the 

future. 

The IDeA States produce STEM graduates at the same per capita rate as States 

with larger populations and larger research portfolios. The students from IDeA 

States need and deserve the same exposure to research as students in larger States. 

If fiscal year 2015 funding levels for the IDeA program are not at least maintained 

at the current level, and preferably increased to $310.0 million, North Dakota and 

other small, mostly rural States, will receive a major setback in their efforts to increase their capacity to undertake biomedical research and to train the next generation of scientists who are critical for the health of our Nation and our economy. 

The IDeA program is absolutely critical not only for North Dakota’s two research 

universities, but also for the biomedical research capacity and capability of research 

institutions nationwide. We sincerely appreciate the Subcommittee’s ongoing support of the IDeA program and request that you give full consideration to our recommendations and fiscal year 2015 request of no less than $310.0 million for the 

National Institutes of Health IDeA program. We further request that the Subcommittee considers legislative language directing that future NIH budgets include 

funding for the IDeA program that reaches no less than 1 percent of the total NIH 

budget. 
688 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF US HEREDITARY ANGIOEDEMA ASSOCIATION

SUMMARY OF FISCAL YEAR 2015 RECOMMENDATIONS

—$32 Billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at an increase of $1 billion over fiscal year 2014. 

—Continued focus on Hereditary Angioedema Research and Education at NIH 

—Funding to create and support the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

(CDC) to Increase Awareness Efforts for Hereditary Angioedema at CDC 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the US Hereditary 

Angioedema Association (US HAEA) regarding the importance of Hereditary 

Angioedema (HAE) public awareness activities and research. 

The US HAEA is a non-profit patient advocacy organization founded in 1999 to 

help those suffering with HAE and their families to live healthy lives. The Association’s goals were, and remain, to provide patient support, advance HAE research 

and find a cure. The US HAEA provides patient services that include referrals to 

HAE knowledgeable healthcare providers, disease information and peer-to-peer support. US HAEA also provides research funding to scientific investigators to increase 

the HAE knowledge base and maintains an HAE patient registry to support groundbreaking research efforts. Additionally, US HAEA provides disease information materials and hosts forums to educate patients and their families, healthcare providers, and the general public on HAE. 

HAE is a rare and potentially life-threatening inherited disease with symptoms 

of severe, recurring, debilitating attacks of edema (swelling). HAE patients have a 

defect in the gene that controls a blood protein called C1-inhibitor, so it is also more 

specifically referred to as C1-inhibitor deficiency. This genetic defect results in production of either inadequate or nonfunctioning C1-inhibitor protein. Because the defective C1-inhibitor does not adequately perform its regulatory function, a biochemical imbalance can occur and produce an unwanted peptide—called 

bradykinin—that induces the capillaries to release fluids into surrounding tissues, 

thereby causing swelling. 

People with HAE experience attacks of severe swelling that affect various body 

parts including the hands, feet, face, airway (throat) and intestinal wall. Swelling 

of the throat is the most life-threatening aspect of HAE, because the airway can 

close and cause death by suffocation. Studies reveal that more than 50 percent of 

patients will experience at least one throat attack in their lifetime. 

HAE swelling is disfiguring, extremely painful and debilitating. Attacks of abdominal swelling involve severe and excruciating pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. Because 

abdominal attacks mimic a surgical emergency, approximately one third of patients 

with undiagnosed HAE undergo unnecessary surgery. Untreated, an average HAE 

attack lasts between 24 and 72 hours, but some attacks may last longer and be accompanied by prolonged fatigue. 

The majority of HAE patients experience their first attack during childhood or 

adolescence. Most attacks occur spontaneously with no apparent reason, but anxiety, stress, minor trauma, medical, surgical, and dental procedures, and illnesses 

such as colds and flu have been cited as common triggers. ACE Inhibitors (a blood 

pressure control medication) and estrogen-derived medications (birth control pills 

and hormone replacement drugs) have also been shown to exacerbate HAE attacks. 

HAE’s genetic defect can be passed on in families. A child has a 50 percent chance 

of inheriting the disease from a parent with HAE. However, the absence of family 

history does not rule out the HAE diagnosis; scientists report that as many as 25 

percent of HAE cases today result from patients who had a spontaneous mutation 

of the C1-inhibitor gene at conception. These patients can also pass the defective 

gene to their offspring. Worldwide, it is estimated that this condition affects between 1 in 10,000 and 1 in 30,000 people. 

PUBLIC AWARENESS AT THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

HAE patients often suffer for many years and may be subject to unnecessary medical procedures and surgery prior to receiving an accurate diagnosis. Raising awareness about HAE among healthcare providers and the general public will help reduce 

delays in diagnosis and limit the amount of time that patients must spend without 

treatment for a condition that could, at any moment, end their lives. 

Once diagnosed, many individuals are able to piece together a family history of 

mysterious deaths and episodes of swelling that previously had no name. In some 

families, over many years, this condition has come to be accepted as something that 

must simply be endured. Increased public awareness is crucial so that these pa-
689 

tients understand that HAE often requires emergency treatment and disabling attacks no longer need to be passively accepted. While HAE cannot yet be cured, intelligent use of available treatments can help patients lead a productive life. 

In order to prevent deaths, eliminate unnecessary surgeries, and improve patients’ quality of life, it is critical that CDC pursue programs to educate the public 

and medical professionals about HAE in fiscal year 2015. 

RESEARCH THROUGH THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

In years past, HAE research was conducted at the National Institutes of Health 

(NIH) through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Heart Lung and 

Blood Institute, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 

National Center for Research Resources, and the National Institute on Diabetes and 

Digestive and Kidney Diseases. However, NIH has not engaged in HAE-specific research since 2009, and there is no longer any Federal research as it relates to HAE. 

As it may provide greater opportunities for HAE research, we applaud the recent 

establishment of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) 

at NIH. Housing translational research activities at a single Center at NIH will 

allow these programs to achieve new levels of success. Initiatives like the Cures Acceleration Network are critical to overhauling the translational research process and 

overcoming the challenges that plague treatment development. In addition, new efforts like taking the lead on drug repurposing have the potential to speed access 

to new treatments, particularly to patients who struggle with rare or neglected diseases. As a rare disease community, HAE patients may also benefit from the Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program, housed at NCATS, as 

well coordination with the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR). We ask that 

you support NCATS and provide adequate resources for the Center in fiscal year 

2014. 

In order to reinvigorate HAE research at NIH, it is vital that NIH receive increased support in fiscal year 2015. US HAEA recommends an overall funding level 

of $32 billion for NIH in fiscal year 2015 and the inclusion of recommendations emphasizing the importance of HAE research to learn more about this rare disease and 

new pathways for appropriate treatment. 

Thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the HAE community. 

[This statement was submitted by Janet Long, Executive Vice President, US Hereditary Angioedema Association.] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF VOR 

I. Introduction 

VOR is a national organization that advocates for high quality care and human 

rights for all people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). VOR 

calls on the U.S. Senate to prohibit the use of U.S. Department of Health and 

Human Services’ (HHS) appropriations in support of deinstitutionalization activities 

which evict eligible individuals with I/DD from their HHS-licensed and funded Medicaid homes, in violation of Federal law. 

Deinstitutionalization activities, including advocacy, lobbying, class action lawsuits, and other tactics by some HHS-funded agencies (discussed below) resulting 

in the downsizing and closure of HHS-licensed homes are a cruel and absurd use 

of Federal funding. These closures often lead to human tragedy. Medicaid-licensed 

facility homes, including Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICFs/IID) and other specialized nursing facilities, are uniquely 

suited to meet the residents’ profound support, healthcare and behavioral needs. 

Tragedies are widespread and predictable when fragile citizens are removed from 

specialized care. The legally-protected rights of families and legal guardians to serve 

as primary decision-makers are routinely ignored. 

II. Using HHS Funds to Eliminate HHS-Supported Homes: The Administration on 

Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AIDD) and its State-based Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act (DD Act) Programs 

It has been 14 years since Congress last reauthorized the DD Act. Authorizations 

for DD Act appropriations expired in 2007; however, Congress continues to fund 

these programs. DD Act programs, including Protection & Advocacy (P&A), DD 

Councils, and University Programs, operate in every State. AIDD, within HHS, administers the DD Act programs. 
690 

1See, VOR Federal Comments Urging Objective Performance—Not More Self-Reporting—of 

DD Act Programs (January 25, 2012) (vor.net/images/VORCommentDDActEvaluation 

Jan2012.pdf). 2 June 14, 2010 and July 30, 2007 letters to Congress referring to families as ‘‘unaware’’ and 

‘‘clueless,’’ respectively. 

Independent oversight of Federal AIDD and DD Act programs is nearly non-existent.1 DD Act programs are using their public funds to achieve dangerous deinstitutionalization, evicting vulnerable people with I/DD from Medicaid-certified homes, 

disregarding individual choice and the legal right to appropriate services, as required by the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) (as interpreted by the 

Olmstead decision) and Medicaid law, both discussed below. 

The DD Act programs’ own authorizing statute supports residential choice and 

recognizes that individuals and their families are in the best position to make care 

decisions: 

‘‘Individuals with developmental disabilities and their families are the primary decisionmakers regarding the services and supports such individuals and 

their families receive, including regarding choosing where the individuals live 

from available options, and play decisionmaking roles in policies and programs 

that affect the lives of such individuals and their families.’’ DD Act, 42 U.S.C. 

15001(c)(3)(2000); see also, H. Rep. 103–442 (March 21, 1994) (‘‘[T]he goals expressed in this Act to promote the greatest possible integration and independence for some individuals with developmental disabilities may not be read as 

a Federal policy supporting the closure of residential institutions’’). 

Yet, AIDD persists in its support for DD Act programs’ deinstitutionalization activities and even proposed a recommendation to ‘‘[d]evelop and implement plans to 

close public and private institutions,’’ and ‘‘[k]eep people with disabilities out of congregate institutions,’’ in collaboration with DOJ and The Arc (2011). Hundreds of 

families and others objected; the recommendation has not yet been finalized. Likewise, the national organizations for the three DD Act programs have referred to 

families who select HHS-licensed homes (ICFs/IID) as ‘‘clueless’’ and ‘‘unaware,’’ 2 a 

view not shared by the Supreme Court (see, Heller v. Doe, 509 U.S. 312, 329 (1993) 

(‘‘. . . close relatives and guardians, both of whom likely have intimate knowledge 

of a mentally retarded person’s abilities and experiences, have valuable insights 

which should be considered during the involuntary commitment process.’’)). 

With AIDD directive, State-level DD Act program deinstitutionalization activities 

continue, exacting great harm on the very people Congress entrusted these HHSentities to protect. Since 1996, more than fifteen (15) P&A class action lawsuits for 

closure (not relating to conditions of care) and other deinstitutionalization tactics 

have been pursued over the objection of residents and their families. The P&A class 

action lawsuits are a particularly egregious use of Federal funds; they equate HHS 

suing itself because the targets of these HHS-funded lawsuits are HHS/Medicaidlicensed ICFs/IID. 

AIDD and its State-based programs persist in their ideological devotion to community placement despite reports of 1,200 ‘‘unnatural and unknown’’ deaths in New 

York, a risk of mortality in community settings of up to 88 percent in California, 

more than 100 deaths in Connecticut, 53 deaths in Illinois, 114 deaths in the District of Columbia, plus many more reports of abuse, neglect and death across the 

majority of all States (see e.g, Widespread Abuse, Neglect and Death in Small Settings Serving People with Intellectual Disabilities (VOR, 2014)). 

III. Using HHS Funds to Eliminate HHS-Supported Homes: National Council on 

Disability 

The National Council on Disability (NCD) is an HHS-funded, independent Federal 

agency that advises the President, Congress, and other Federal agencies on issues 

affecting people with disabilities. 

On October 23, 2012, NCD released a 300-page policy paper and related toolkit 

calling for the closure of residential homes for people with I/DD, arbitrarily targeting residential homes for four or more people. NCD spent nearly $150,000 in 

Federal funds to prepare and publish ‘‘Deinstitutionalization: Unfinished Business,’’ 

calling on the broader advocacy community to engage in advocacy efforts and lawsuits to evict people with I/DD from their homes. NCD did not consult with the individuals who could be evicted from their homes, nor their families and legal guardians. Instead, NCD accuses these caring families and guardians of violating their 

family members’ civil rights for choosing a care setting of four or more people. NCD 

has since received more than 350 letters from families opposing forced deinstitutionalization. 
691 

Like AAID, NCD cites the landmark Supreme Court decision of Olmstead v L.C. 

(1999) as justification for its position to close HHS homes. Like many organizations 

that support deinstitutionalization, AAID and NCD misread and misapply the 

Olmstead decision’s requirements. The Supreme Court is clear in its holding that 

the ADA requires individual choice before community placement can be imposed and 

recognizes the need for specialized care: 

‘‘We emphasize that nothing in the ADA or its implementing regulations condones termination of institutional settings for persons unable to handle or benefit from community settings...Nor is there any Federal requirement that community-based treatment be imposed on patients who do not desire it.’’ 

Olmstead, 119 S. Ct. 2176, 2187 (1999) (majority). 

‘‘As already observed [by the majority], the ADA is not reasonably read to 

impel States to phase out institutions, placing patients in need of close care at 

risk ...‘Each disabled person is entitled to treatment in the most integrated setting possible for that person—recognizing on a case-by-case basis, that setting 

may be an institution’[quoting VOR’s Amici Curiae brief].’’ Id. at 2189 (plurality). 

Likewise, Medicaid law and regulation requires that ICF/IID residents be ‘‘[g]iven 

the choice of either institutional or home and community-based services.’’ 42 C.F.R. 

§ 441.302(d)(2); see also, 42 U.S.C. § 1396n(c)(2)(C) and 42 C.F.R. § 441.303. 

NCD’s support for deinstitutionalization is contrary to Federal law and reckless. 

ICFs/IID have an array of services not often available elsewhere (e.g., on-site medical care, dental care, other specialties, and involvement in their broader communities). As discussed above, tragedies are predictable when residents are separated 

from life-sustaining supports. 

IV. Solution and Conclusion 

HHS-funded agencies should not be allowed to advance an ideological agenda in 

support of evicting eligible people from HHS-licensed homes, contrary to the DD 

Act, Medicaid law, and the ADA/Olmstead. Such actions are a cruel and absurd use 

of Federal funding that is exacting great harm on our nation’s most vulnerable citizens, and contrary to societal values which respect individual and family decisionmaking. 

Please support language to prohibit the use of HHS appropriations in support of 

deinstitutionalization activities which evict eligible individuals with I/DD from 

HHS-licensed and funded homes. No Federal agency should define ‘‘choice’’ so narrowly and illegally as to disenfranchise the most vulnerable segment of our disabled 

population. 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE WORKFORCE DATA QUALITY CAMPAIGN

Workforce Data Quality Campaign (WDQC)—a nonprofit initiative that advocates 

for inclusive, aligned and market-relevant data systems—urges Congress to support 

programs that provide crucial data needed to ensure that our Nation is educating 

its students and workers to succeed in the 21st century economy. 

Federal investments in State data systems, labor market information and statistical programs have real impacts for: 

—Students and workers trying to figure out which colleges and training programs 

are best at helping people land a job, continue their studies or advance in the 

labor market. 

—Policymakers who need to know whether education and workforce programs are 

preparing people for good jobs. 

—Business leaders wondering whether education and training programs are preparing enough prospective employees to meet their companies’ needs. 

—Educators who want to know the long-term education and employment outcomes of their graduates, so they can continually improve their courses and curricula. 

Despite their profound impact on education and workforce development, a number 

of data-related programs and services have faced stagnant or declining funding in 

recent years. As Congress deliberates on fiscal year 2015 appropriations, we recommend halting this downward trend and increasing funding for the following programs. 

State longitudinal data system grants.—The State Longitudinal Data System 

grants provided by the Department of Education (ED) and the Workforce Data 

Quality Initiative grants from Department of Labor (DOL) have propelled the successful development, implementation and expansion of longitudinal data systems. 

Continued Federal support will incentivize the State interagency cooperation nec-
692 

essary to build and utilize systems that can hold education and workforce programs 

accountable for their results. Funding for these grants has been decreasing over the 

past several years, gradually eroding this important source of support for State data 

systems. The last grant competition was in fiscal year 2012. Additional funding is 

important to help more States improve their data infrastructure and conduct a new 

grant competition that focuses States on using data to improve policy and practice, 

as well as incorporating longitudinal data from postsecondary and workforce programs into their systems to allow more analysis of varied education and career 

pathways. 

Recommendation.—Double the fiscal year 2014 funding level, as requested by the 

President’s Budget, to support about 20 grants and national activities designed to 

promote data coordination, quality, and use. Include report language directing ED 

and DOL to collaborate on providing technical assistance to grantees to ensure inclusive and aligned data systems. 

Workforce Information Grants/Electronic Tools. DOL awards grants to help States 

conduct research on local and regional labor markets, including shifts in industrial 

and occupational demand and its impact on the skills needed by the workforce. This 

information is critical to align education and training programs with employer 

needs, and help the workforce system guide students and workers to programs that 

will prepare them for high-demand occupations. Funding for these grants—included 

in the Workforce Information/Electronic Tools/System Building line item in the 

State Unemployment Insurance and Employment Service Operations Account—has 

not increased for over a decade, even as demand for labor market information has 

grown. This line item also funds important national data activities, including the 

dissemination of information on different types of credentials and O*NET, which 

collects and disseminates information about occupations including associated skills, 

knowledge and abilities. O*NET is used as the foundation for variety of tools to help 

workers explore careers, such as a new Skills to Work tool from Texas that helps 

veterans translate their military experience into skills appropriate for civilian resumes and match their skills to job openings. 

Recommendation.—Increase funding by $10 million to support an $8 million increase in grants to States and a $2 million increase for O*NET. 

National Center for Education Statistics. This office at ED provides a number of 

important services, including labor market-relevant data products and tools on secondary and postsecondary enrollments, completions and credential attainment. 

Recommendation.—Increase funding to match fiscal year 2012 (pre-sequester) levels. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics. This DOL agency produces an array of important data, 

including employment and unemployment of individuals, jobs and earnings by industry and occupation, job openings and labor turnover, mass layoffs and occupational projections. As the Nation continues to face high unemployment, this data is 

vital to help align human capital policies with the needs of employers. 

Recommendation.—Increase funding by $23 million to support the following efforts. 

—Restore Current Employment Survey funding to 2010 levels (+$7 million) to 

provide resources to enhance data quality and reduce employer response burden 

by encouraging businesses to voluntarily provide information through electronic 

data interchange. This survey is used by local leaders to provide a near realtime summary of employment conditions and to rapidly spot key trends in 

major industries. 

—Expand Current Population Survey supplements (+$4 million), which monitor 

labor market changes that can help State and local leaders understand the education and training needs in their communities. 

—Develop new cost-effective approaches for Occupational Employment Statistics 

and the National Compensation Survey (+$2 million) that allow data users to 

see occupational trends over time by locality. 

—Increase funding for cooperative agreements with States (+$10 million) to enable State partners to produce a variety of labor market information that is critical for workers, educators and employers. Funding for these agreements has 

not risen in over a decade. 
693 

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDED INCREASES 

[Dollars in thousands] 

Department of Labor 2014 

Enacted 

2015 Recommendation Increase 

Workforce Data Quality Initiative ....................................................................... 6,000 6,463 463 

Workforce Information/E-Tools/System Building ................................................ 60,153 70,153 10,000 

Bureau of Labor Statistics ................................................................................ 592,212 615,212 23,000 

Total Increase ........................................................................................... .................... ........................ 33,463 

Department of Education—Institute of Education Sciences 

Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems ............................................................... 34,539 70,000 35,461 

Statistics ............................................................................................................ 103,060 108,748 5,688 

Total Increase ........................................................................................... .................... ........................ 41,149 

Thank you for the opportunity to comment. 

[This statement was submitted by Rachel Zinn, Director, Workforce Data Quality 

Campaign.] 

(695) 

LIST OF WITNESSES, COMMUNICATIONS, AND 

PREPARED STATEMENTS 

Page 

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Prepared Statement of the ........................ 330 

AcademyHealth, Prepared Statement of ............................................................... 331 

Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research, Prepared Statement of the ....................... 333 

AIDS Alliance for Women, Infants, Children, Youth & Families, Prepared 

Statement of the ................................................................................................... 335 

AIDS Institute, Prepared Statement of the ........................................................... 337 

AIDS United, Prepared Statement of the .............................................................. 339 

Alexander, Senator Lamar, U.S. Senator From Tennessee, Questions Submitted by ........................................................................................................... 160, 227 

Alzheimer’s: 

Association, Prepared Statement of the ......................................................... 342 

Foundation of America, Prepared Statement of the ...................................... 344 

America Achieves, Prepared Statement of the ...................................................... 346 

American Academy of: 

Family Physicians, Prepared Statement of the .............................................. 348 

Pediatrics, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................ 350 

Physician Assistants, Prepared Statement of the .......................................... 352 

American Alliance of Museums, Prepared Statement of the ............................... 355 

American Association for Dental Research, Prepared Statement of the ............. 357 

American Association of: 

Colleges of Nursing, Prepared Statement of the ............................................ 359 

Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 361 

Immunologists, Prepared Statement of the .................................................... 363 

Nurse Anesthetists, Prepared Statement of the ............................................ 365 

Nurse Practitioners, Prepared Statement of the ........................................... 367 

American College of: 

Physicians, Prepared Statement of the .......................................................... 370 

Preventive Medicine, Prepared Statement of the .......................................... 372 

Radiology, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................ 374 

American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Prepared Statement 

of the ..................................................................................................................... 368

American Dental Education Association, Prepared Statement of the ................. 375 

American Dental Hygienists’ Association, Prepared Statement of the ............... 377 

American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Prepared Statement of the ......... 379 

American Geriatrics Society, Prepared Statement of the .................................... 381 

American Heart Association, Prepared Statement of the .................................... 383 

American Indian Higher Education Consortium, Prepared Statement of the ... 385 

American Physiological Society, Prepared Statement of the ............................... 387 

American Psychological Association, Prepared Statement of the ........................ 389 

American Public Health Association, Prepared Statement of the ....................... 391 

American Society for: 

Clinical Oncology, Prepared Statement of the ............................................... 401 

Hematology, Prepared Statement of the ........................................................ 404 

Microbiology, Prepared Statement of the.................................................... 393, 396 

Nephrology, Prepared Statement of the ......................................................... 405 

Nutrition, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................. 398 

Plant Biologists, Prepared Statement of the .................................................. 406 

Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics, Prepared Statement of the .. 399 

American Thoracic Society, Prepared Statement of the ....................................... 408 

Americans for Nursing Shortage Relief, Prepared Statement of the .................. 411 
Page

696 

Animal Protection of New Mexico and Animal Protection Voters, Prepared 

Statement of the ................................................................................................... 413 

Association of: 

American Cancer Institutes, Prepared Statement of the .............................. 415 

American Medical Colleges, Prepared Statement of the ............................... 417 

Independent Research Institutes, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 419 

Public Television Stations and the Public Broadcasting Service, Prepared 

Statement of the ........................................................................................... 321 

University Programs in Occupational Health and Safety, Prepared Statement of the .................................................................................................... 421 

Zoos and Aquariums, Prepared Statement of the .......................................... 423 

Austin, Christopher P., M.D., Director, National Center for Advancing 

Translational Sciences ......................................................................................... 1 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 30 

Birnbaum, Linda S., Ph.D., D.A.B.T., A.T.S., Director, National Institute of 

Environmental Health Sciences, Prepared Statement of ................................. 32 

Boozman, Senator John, U.S. Senator From Arkansas, Questions Submitted 

by ....................................................................................................................... 233, 285 

Brain Injury Association of America, Prepared Statement of the ....................... 424 

Briggs, Josephine P., M.D., Director, National Center for Complementary 

and Alternative Medicine, Prepared Statement of ............................................ 35 

California Association of: 

Psychiatric Technicians, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 425 

State Hospital Parent Councils for the Retarded, Prepared Statement 

of the .............................................................................................................. 427 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Coalition, Prepared Statement 

of the ..................................................................................................................... 427

Children’s Environmental Health Network, Prepared Statement of the ............ 429 

Children’s Hospital Association, Prepared Statement of the ............................... 431 

Coalition for: 

Clinical and Translational Science, Prepared Statement of the ................... 433 

Usher Syndrome Research, Prepared Statement of the ................................ 435 

Coalition of Northeastern Governors, Prepared Statement of the ...................... 437 

Cochran, Senator Thad, U.S. Senator From Mississippi, Question Submitted 

by ............................................................................................................... 110, 155, 223 

College on Problems of Drug Dependence, Prepared Statement of the .............. 438 

Collins, Francis S., M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services .......................................................... 1 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 20 

Summary Statement of .................................................................................... 5 

Consortium of Social Science Associations, Prepared Statement of the ............. 440 

Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Prepared Statement of the ....................... 442 

Council of Academic Family Medicine, Prepared Statement of ........................... 444 

Council on Social Work Education, Prepared Statement of the .......................... 446 

Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, Prepared Statement of the ............ 449 

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Prepared Statement of the ...................................... 450 

Digestive Disease National Coalition, Prepared Statement of the ...................... 452 

Duncan, Hon. Arne, Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Department of Education ..................................................................................................................... 165

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 174 

Summary Statement of .................................................................................... 169 

Durbin, Senator Richard J., U.S. Senator From Illinois, Questions Submitted 

by................................................................................................. 99, 279, 288, 292, 310 

Dystonia Medical Research Foundation, Prepared Statement of ........................ 454 

Elder Justice Coalition, Prepared Statement of the ............................................. 456 

Eldercare Workforce Alliance, Prepared Statement of the .................................. 457 

Emergency Nurses Association, Prepared Statement of the ................................ 459 

Endocrine Society, Prepared Statement of the ...................................................... 461 

Entomological Society of America, Prepared Statement of the ........................... 464 

Families & Friends of Care Facility Residents, Prepared Statement of ............. 465 

Fauci, Anthony S., M.D., Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 

Diseases ................................................................................................................ 1 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 22 
Page

697 

Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................................................................ 468 

Felak, Cheryl, Prepared Statement of ................................................................... 469 

Frieden, Hon. Thomas R., M.D., M.P.H., Director Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention ..................................................................................................... 249 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 251 

Questions Submitted to .................................................................................... 291 

Friends of the Health Resources and Services Administration, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................................................................ 470 

Friends of the National Institute of: 

Child Health and Human Development, Prepared Statement of ................. 472 

Dental and Craniofacial Research, Prepared Statement of the .................... 474 

Drug Abuse, Prepared Statement of the ........................................................ 477 

FSH Society, Inc., Prepared Statement of the ...................................................... 479 

GBS/CIDP Foundation International, Prepared Statement of the ...................... 483 

Gibbons, Gary H., M.D., Director, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute .. 1 

Girl Scouts of the USA, Prepared Statement of .................................................... 485 

Glass, Roger I., M.D., Ph.D., Director, Fogarty International Center, Prepared 

Statement of ......................................................................................................... 37 

Global Health Technologies Coalition, Prepared Statement of ............................ 488 

Government Relations Easter Seals, Inc., Prepared Statement of the ............... 490 

Grady, Patricia A., Ph.D., RN, FAAN, Director, National Institute of Nursing 

Research, Prepared Statement of ....................................................................... 38 

Graham, Senator Lindsey, U.S. Senator From South Carolina, Questions 

Submitted by..................................................................................................... 112, 302 

Green, Eric, M.D., Ph.D, Director, National Human Genome Research Institute, Prepared Statement of ................................................................................ 40 

Greenberg, Mark H., Esq., Acting Assistant Secretary, Administration for 

Children and Families ......................................................................................... 246 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 247 

Questions Submitted to .................................................................................... 288 

Guttmacher, Alan E., M.D., Director, ‘‘Eunice Kennedy Shriver’’ National 

Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Prepared Statement 

of ............................................................................................................................ 42 

Harkin, Chairman Tom, U.S. Senator From Iowa: 

Opening Statements of.................................................................... 1, 115, 165, 237, 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 166 

Questions Submitted by................................................. 94, 142, 193, 277, 291, 308 

Harm Reduction Coalition, Prepared Statement of the ....................................... 492 

Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition, Prepared Statement 

of the ..................................................................................................................... 493

HIV Medicine Association, Prepared Statement of the ........................................ 496 

Hodes, Richard J., M.D., Director, National Institute on Aging, Prepared 

Statement of ......................................................................................................... 44 

Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society Legislative 

Fund, Prepared Statement of the ....................................................................... 498 

Infectious Diseases Society of America’s, Prepared Statement of the ................. 500 

Inspector General, Railroad Retirement Board, Prepared Statement of the ...... 328 

International Foundation for Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders, Prepared 

Statement of the ................................................................................................... 502 

Interstate Mining Compact Commission, Prepared Statement of the ................ 504 

Interstitial Cystitis Association, Prepared Statement of the ............................... 511 

Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 513 

Johanns, Senator Mike, U.S. Senator From Nebraska, Questions Submitted 

by ........................................................................................................................... 161 

Katz, Stephen I., M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Institute of Arthritis and 

Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, Prepared Statement of ........................... 46 

Kirk, Senator Mark, U.S. Senator From Illinois, Questions Submitted 

by ....................................................................................................................... 231, 303 

Klurfeld, Michael, Prepared Statement of ............................................................. 516 

KNI Parent Guardian Group, Prepared Statement of the ................................... 518 

Koob, George, Ph.D., Director, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and alcoholism, Prepared Statement of ........................................................................... 47 
Page

698 

Komen, Susan G., Prepared Statement of ............................................................. 520 

Landis, Story C., PH.D., Director, National Institute of Neurological Disorders 

and Stroke ............................................................................................................ 1 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 29 

Landrieu, Senator Mary L., U.S. Senator From Louisana, Questions Submitted by ........................................................................................................... 198, 278 

Lenders Coalition for Community Health Centers, Prepared Statement of 

the .......................................................................................................................... 522 

Lindberg, Donald A.B., M.D., Director, National Library of Medicine, Prepared Statement of ............................................................................................... 49 

Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 524 

Lorsch, Jon R., PH.D., Director, National Institute of General Medical 

Sciences, Prepared Statement of ......................................................................... 51 

Love, Timothy, Chief Operating Officer, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 

Services ................................................................................................................. 237 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 244 

Questions Submitted to .................................................................................... 277 

Summary Statement of .................................................................................... 242 

Maddox, Yvonne T., Ph.D., Director, National Institute on Minority Health 

and Health Disparities, Prepared Statement of ................................................ 53 

March of Dimes Foundation, Prepared Statement of the .................................... 528 

Marfan Foundation, Prepared Statement of the ................................................... 530 

Meals On Wheels Association of America, Prepared Statement of the ............... 534 

Medical Library Association and Association of Academic Health Sciences 

Libraries, Prepared Statement of the ................................................................. 536 

Members of the Nursing Community Submitting this Testimony ...................... 612 

Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, Prepared Statement of the ......... 538 

Mikulski, Barbara A., U.S. Senator From Maryland, Prepared Statement 

of ............................................................................................................................ 239 

Moran, Senator Jerry, U.S. Senator From Kansas: 

Questions Submitted by ...................................... 106, 146, 213, 281, 288, 299, 315 

Statements of .................................................................................... 4, 116, 167, 240 

Murray, Senator Patty, U.S. Senator From Washington, Questions Submitted 

by ........................................................................................................................... 195 

National AHEC Organization, Prepared Statement of the .................................. 540 

National Alliance: 

for Eye and Vision Research, Prepared Statement of the ............................. 541 

on Mental Illness, Prepared Statement of the ............................................... 543 

to End Sexual Violence, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 546 

National Alopecia Areata Foundation, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 548 

National Association for: 

Geriatric Education, Prepared Statement of the ........................................... 550 

State Community Services Programs, Prepared Statement of the .............. 551 

National Association of: 

Chain Drug Stores, Prepared Statement of the ............................................. 553 

Community Health Centers, Prepared Statement of the .............................. 555 

County and City Health Officials, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 556 

National Association of State: 

Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium, Prepared Statement of the .................................................................................................... 558 

Head Injury Administrators, Prepared Statement of the ............................. 559 

Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs, Prepared Statement of the ......... 561 

National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities, Prepared Statement of the ................................................................................. 563 

National Blood Clot Alliance, Prepared Statement of the .................................... 564 

National Center for Learning Disabilities, Prepared Statement of the .............. 565 

National Children’s Facilities Network, Prepared Statement of the .................. 567 

National Congress of American Indians, Prepared Statement of the ................. 568 

National Council of Social Security Management Associations, Prepared 

Statement of ......................................................................................................... 571 

National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association, Prepared Statement of 

the .......................................................................................................................... 573 

National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, Prepared 

Statement of the ................................................................................................... 575 

National Head Start Association, Prepared Statement of the ............................. 576 
Page

699 

National Indian Child Welfare Association, Prepared Statement of the ............ 578 

National Indian Education Association, Prepared Statement of the .................. 581 

National Kidney Foundation, Prepared Statement of the .................................... 583 

National League for Nursing, Prepared Statement of the ................................... 585 

National MPS Society, Prepared Statement of the ............................................... 588 

National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Prepared Statement of the ......................... 590 

National Nursing Centers Consortium, Prepared Statement of the ................... 591 

National Public Radio, Prepared Statement of the ............................................... 324 

National Respite Coalition, Prepared Statement of the ....................................... 594 

National Rural Health Association, Prepared Statement of the ......................... 597 

National Safety Council, Prepared Statement of the ........................................... 599 

National Technical Institute for the Deaf and Rochester Institute of Technology, Prepared Statement of the ..................................................................... 601 

National Violence Prevention Network, Prepared Statement of the ................... 603 

Native Hawaiian Education Council, Prepared Statement of the ....................... 605 

Nephcure Foundation, Prepared Statement of the ............................................... 606 

Neurofibromatosis Network, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 607 

New England Educational Opportunity Association, Prepared Statement of 

the .......................................................................................................................... 609 

New Hampshire Community Loan Fund, Prepared Statement of the ................ 610 

Nursing Community, Prepared Statement of the ................................................. 610 

Older Americans Act, Prepared Statement of the ................................................ 613 

Ovarian Cancer National Alliance, Prepared Statement of the .......................... 616 

Parents of Dead Children, Prepared Statement of ............................................... 618 

Parkinson’s Action Network, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 619 

Perez, Hon. Thomas E., Secretary, Office of the Secretary, Department of 

Labor ..................................................................................................................... 115 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 121 

Summary Statement of .................................................................................... 118 

Pettigrew, Roderic I., Ph.D., M.D., Director, National Institute of Biomedical 

Imaging and Bioengineering, Prepared Statement of ....................................... 55 

Pew Children’s Dental Campaign, Prepared Statement of the ........................... 621 

Physician Assistant Education Association, Prepared Statement of the ............ 623 

Population Association of America and Association of Population Centers, 

Prepared Statement of the .................................................................................. 626 

Prevent Blindness, Prepared Statement of ........................................................... 628 

Prostatitis Foundation, Prepared Statement of the .............................................. 630 

Pryor, Senator Mark, U.S. Senator From Arkansas, Questions Submitted 

by ........................................................................................................................... 205 

Pulmonary Hypertension Association, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 630 

Railroad Retirement Board, Prepared Statement of the ...................................... 326 

Research Working Group, Prepared Statement of the ......................................... 634 

Research!America, Prepared Statement of ............................................................ 633 

Reed, Senator Jack, U.S. Senator From Rhode Island, Questions Submitted 

by ....................................................................................................................... 144, 202 

Rodgers, Griffin P., M.D., M.A.C.P., Director, National Institute of Diabetes 

and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Prepared Statement of ........................... 56 

Rotary International, Prepared Statement of the ................................................. 636 

Ryan White Medical Providers Coalition, Prepared Statement of the ................ 638 

Safe States Alliance, Prepared Statement of the .................................................. 640 

Scleroderma Foundation, Prepared Statement of the .......................................... 642 

Senior Service America, Inc., Prepared Statement of the .................................... 645 

Shaheen, Senator Jeanne, U.S. Senator From New Hampshire, Questions 

Submitted by ............................................................................ 103, 205, 280, 296, 313 

Shelby, Senator Richard C., U.S. Senator From Alabama, Questions Submitted by .................................................................. 110, 156, 223, 284, 289, 301, 319 

Sieving, Paul A., M.D., Ph.D., Director, National Eye Institute, Prepared 

Statement of ......................................................................................................... 58 

Skelly, Thomas P., Director, Budget Service, Department of Education ............ 165 

Sleep Research Society, Prepared Statement of the ............................................. 650 

Society for: 

Healthcare Epidemiology of America and the Association for Professionals 

in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Prepared Statement of the ......... 652 

Neuroscience, Prepared Statement of the ...................................................... 654 
Page

700 

Public Health Education, Prepared Statement of the................................ 657, 660 

Women’s Health Research, Prepared Statement of the ................................ 662 

Somerman, Martha, D.D.S., Ph.D., Director, National Institute of Dental and 

Craniofacial Research, Prepared Statement of .................................................. 60 

Squaxin Island Tribe, Prepared Statement of the ................................................ 664 

Tabak, Lawrence A., D.D.S., Ph.D., Office of Director, Prepared Statement 

of ............................................................................................................................ 62 

Treatment Advocacy Center, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 665 

Trevor Project, Prepared Statement of the ............................................................ 668 

Tri-Council for Nursing, Prepared Statement of the ............................................ 671 

Trust for America’s Health, Prepared Statement of the ...................................... 673 

Underwood, Rebecca, Parent/Guardian/Advocate, Prepared Statement of ......... 675 

United Negro College Fund, Prepared Statement of the ..................................... 677 

United Tribes Technical College, Prepared Statement of the .............................. 681 

University of Kansas Medical Center, Prepared Statement of the ..................... 683 

University of North Dakota and North Dakota State University, Prepared 

Statement of the ................................................................................................... 686 

US Hereditary Angioedema Association, Prepared Statement of ........................ 688 

Varmus, Harold E., M.D., Director, National Cancer Institute ........................... 1 

Vitale, Mary A., Guardian/Sibling/Advocate, Prepared Statement of ................. 533 

VOR, Prepared Statement of .................................................................................. 689 

Volkow, Nora D., M.D., Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Prepared 

Statement of ......................................................................................................... 64 

Wakefield, Hon. Mary K., Ph.D., R.N., Administrator, Health Resources and 

Services Administration ...................................................................................... 253 

Prepared Statement of ..................................................................................... 255 

Questions Submitted to .................................................................................... 308 

Whitescarver, Jack, Ph.D., Director, Office of AIDS Research, Prepared Statement of .................................................................................................................. 66 

Workforce Data Quality Campaign, Prepared Statement of the ......................... 691 
(701) 

SUBJECT INDEX 

CORPORATION OF PUBLIC BROADCASTING 

Corporation for Public Broadcasting ...................................................................... 321 

Request for Appropriations .............................................................................. 321 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

Ability of Rural Schools to Compete for Grant Funds .......................................... 189 

Access to: 

Early Learning .................................................................................................. 170 

Effective Library Programs ............................................................................. 203 

Postsecondary Education ................................................................................. 200 

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................ 193 

Affordability and Quality in Postsecondary Education ........................................ 175 

All Year School Study Act (S. 2029) ................................................................... 190, 191 

Alternate Funding Sources for College Ratings System ...................................... 215 

American Printing House Resources With Enhanced Accessibility for Learning Plan ................................................................................................................. 196 

Assessing the Impact of Formula Versus Competitive Grant Programs ............ 212 

Bipartisan Support Needed to Close Opportunity Gaps ...................................... 169 

Budget: 

Goal—Closing Opportunity Gaps, Fiscal Year 2015 ...................................... 173 

Request: 

Department of Education Fiscal Year 2015 ............................................ 165 

President Obama’s 2015 ........................................................................... 175 

Career and Technical Education Funding ............................................................. 217 

Chairman’s Closing Remarks ................................................................................. 193 

Changing Special Education to Outcomes ............................................................. 178 

Charter School: 

Access to School Turnaround Funds ............................................................... 186 

Program ............................................................................................................. 184 

Charter Schools as Means for Turning Around Schools ....................................... 186 

Chief Information Officer Role in Information Technology Investments ............ 220 

College Access Challenge Grants ........................................................................... 203 

College Opportunity and Graduation Bonus Grants ............................................ 179 

College Ratings System: 

Costs to Date ..................................................................................................... 215 

Criteria .............................................................................................................. 179 

Development Funds .......................................................................................... 215 

in the Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Request ........................................................ 215 

Committed to Development of College Ratings System ....................................... 181 

Competitive Grant: 

Awards and Recipients in Fiscal Years 2013 and 2014 ................................ 206 

Programs as Percentage of Education Funds ................................................. 187 

Versus Formula Allocation Programs ............................................................. 186 

Competitive Programs and: 

Competitive Ability of Small, Rural States .................................................... 205 

Equity and Opportunity Gaps ......................................................................... 234 

the Reduction of Achievement and Opportunity Gaps .................................. 216 

Congressional Provisions for School Improvement Grants Program Flexibility 230 

Connect ED and: 

Common Core Assessments ............................................................................. 197 

Teacher Evaluation Systems ........................................................................... 197 
Page

702 

Considerations in Developing Ratings Criteria ..................................................... 180 

Cost to Impact Aid Program of Reduced Department of Defense Funding 

of Domestic Defense Schools ............................................................................... 218 

Costs Associated With Gainful Employment Regulation ..................................... 227 

Data Collection on Online Learning Programs ..................................................... 205 

Department of Education Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Request ............................... 165 

Department Outreach for Innovative Approaches to Literacy Grant Applications ....................................................................................................................... 202 

Department Technology Applications—Cloudfirst and Sharefirst Initiatives .... 221 

Departmental Central Processing System and FAFSA-on-the-Web .................... 222 

Development, Modernization, and Enhancement Funding .................................. 221 

Disbursement of Federal Student Aid—Debit and Prepaid Cards ...................... 227 

Distribution of FSA GE Obligations in Fiscal Years 2011–2012 ......................... 228 

Education Investment in Higher Education .......................................................... 181 

Education Research and Development ................................................................... 219 

Educational Innovation and Improvement ............................................................ 176 

Effective Teachers and Leaders State Grants ....................................................... 212 

Elementary and Secondary Education Act Waivers and Student Protections ... 195 

Ensuring: 

Privacy of Student Data Under Connect ED .................................................. 198 

Timely Access to Printed Text for Blind and Disabled ................................. 196 

Widespread Benefits From Competitive Programs ........................................ 233 

Entrepreneurship ..................................................................................................... 218 

Equity and: 

Competitive Programs ...................................................................................... 216 

Opportunity ....................................................................................................... 175 

Estimated Costs Associated With Implementation of Gainful Employment 

Regulation ............................................................................................................. 228 

Estimated Gainful Employment Regulation Implementation Costs ................... 229 

Expanding High-Quality Preschool ........................................................................ 175 

FAFSA-on-the-Web Management ........................................................................... 223 

First in the World in College Completion .............................................................. 179 

Fiscal Year: 

2013 New Discretionary Grant Awards to States and Local Educational 

Agencies ......................................................................................................... 206 

2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill ................................................................. 166 

2015: 

Budget Goal—Closing Opportunity Gaps ................................................ 173 

Department of Education, Budget Request ............................................. 165 

Foreign Language Immersion Programs and Investing in Innovation Funding 232 

Funding for: 

Charter School Program .................................................................................. 198 

High School Equivalency Program and College Acceptance Migrant Program ............................................................................................................... 196 

Historically Black Colleges and Universities ................................................. 199 

Funding of: 

Competitive Versus Formula Grant Programs .............................................. 168 

Demonstration, Modernization, and Enhancement of IT Systems ............... 221 

Funds for Charter Schools and School Improvement Grants .............................. 185 

Gainful Employment: 

Institutional Accountability Metrics ............................................................... 229 

Calculation of Debt-To-Earnings Ratios ......................................................... 229 

Privacy Protections ........................................................................................... 229 

Gap in Access to High-Speed Broadband ............................................................... 172 

Good and Bad News for Education ........................................................................ 169 

Grant Periods of Competitive Grant Programs ..................................................... 212 

Guidance Provided on Use of Title I Funds for Homeless Students ................... 195 

Harkin, Leadership Contributions of Chairman Tom .......................................... 174 

High: 

Cost of Postsecondary Education .................................................................... 187 

Quality Early Learning .................................................................................... 193 

School Graduation Initiative ........................................................................... 194 

Higher Education Services for Disadvantaged Students ...................................... 219 

Impact Aid Payments for Federal Property ........................................................... 217 

Impact of Innovation Fund Set-Aside on Career and Technical Education 

State Funding Levels and Students ................................................................... 217 

Improving School Safety and Climate .................................................................... 176 

Incorporating Nontraditional Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Activities in After-School Programs ........................................................................ 213 
Page

703 

Innovation in Evaluation of Teacher Preparation Programs ............................... 231 

Innovative Approaches to Literacy Grant Application ......................................... 202 

Institutional Access to Debt-to-Earnings Metrics ................................................. 230 

Introduction of Secretary of Education .................................................................. 168 

Investment in Career and Technical Education .................................................... 233 

Kirk, From the Office of Senator Mark ................................................................. 191 

Lack of Access to the Full Range of Math and Science Courses ......................... 171 

Leadership Contributions of Chairman Tom Harkin ........................................... 174 

Learning From Previous Innovative Approaches to Literacy Grant Competition ........................................................................................................................ 202 

Mandatory Funding—Teacher and Principal Effectiveness ................................. 220 

Maximizing Impact With Limited Funds .............................................................. 190 

Measuring the Success of Programs Providing Access to Postsecondary Education ..................................................................................................................... 200

Need for Focus on Completion as well as Access .................................................. 181 

New Discretionary Grant Awards to States and Local Educational Agencies, 

Fiscal Year 2013 ................................................................................................... 206 

No Child Left Behind Waiver Authority ................................................................ 182 

No Federal Role or Involvement in Curriculum .................................................... 183 

Nondefense Discretionary Spending Cap ............................................................... 166 

Omnibus Appropriations Bill, Fiscal Year 2014 ................................................... 166 

Opportunity Gap in Access to Postsecondary Education ...................................... 172 

Opportunity, Growth, and Security Initiative ....................................................... 177 

Oregon’s Pay It Forward Program ......................................................................... 187 

Other Program Support for Year-Round Schooling .............................................. 232 

Overview of Implementation of School Improvement Grants .............................. 201 

Participation Rate of States and Seas in Competitive Programs ........................ 206 

Pell Grants ............................................................................................................... 225 

Percentage of U.S. Schools With Broadband Access ............................................. 173 

Postsecondary Education Veterans’ Resource Centers ......................................... 224 

Postsecondary Support Programs ........................................................................... 204 

Preschool Development Grants ............................................................................... 213 

Comprehensive Services ................................................................................... 214 

Encouraging State and Community Cooperation .......................................... 214 

Family Engagement ......................................................................................... 214 

Funding Subgrants ........................................................................................... 214 

Programs Requirements and Student Outcomes ........................................... 213 

Students With Disabilities ............................................................................... 214 

Preschool Education: 

Funds in Fiscal Year 2015 Budget .................................................................. 170 

Leadership and Support ................................................................................... 177 

Opportunity Gap ............................................................................................... 169 

President Obama’s 2015 Budget Request .............................................................. 175 

Prioritizing and Funding STEM Initiatives Within Competitions of Existing 

Federal Programs ................................................................................................. 224 

Professional Development Through the Connected Initiative .............................. 197 

Race to the Top—Equity and Opportunity ................................................ 200, 215, 225 

Regulated Banks and Non-Bank Campus Financial Service Providers .............. 226 

Regulations Affecting Management and Disbursement of Federal Student 

Aid ......................................................................................................................... 226 

Regulatory Cost-Benefit Analysis ........................................................................... 226 

Requirements to Obtain No Child Left Behind Waiver ....................................... 182 

Results Driven Accountability Incentive Grants ................................................... 178 

Ryan Budget Impact on Education ........................................................................ 173 

School Improvement Grants Funds ........................................................................ 186 

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Competitive Programs ..... 223 

Selected Department of Education Shared Services ............................................. 222 

Special Education in Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Request ....................................... 177 

Special Education—Results Driven Accountability Incentive Grants ................. 216 

Student: 

Impact of Elimination of Payments for Federal Property ............................. 218 

Outcomes and 21st Century Workforce Needs ............................................... 194 

Performance-Based Teacher Evaluation ......................................................... 181 

Students Benefiting From Race to the Top and Elementary and Secondary 

School Act, Title I Services .................................................................................. 216 

Successful and Effective i3 Program Models ......................................................... 233 

Successful School Turnaround Projects ................................................................. 201 

Support for: 

High-Quality Early Learning .......................................................................... 170 
Page

704 

Support for—Continued 

Successful Charter School Programs .............................................................. 234 

Teachers and School Leaders .......................................................................... 175 

Year-Round School Programs—i3 and Promise Neighborhoods ................... 231 

Sustaining Preschool Development Grants ........................................................... 214 

Teacher Evaluation and Federally Granted Waivers ........................................... 183 

Teacher Quality Partnership Grants Application ................................................. 204 

Priorities ............................................................................................................ 204 

Teachers Express Desire for More Classroom Technology ................................... 173 

Title II Funding: 

and the Supporting Effective Educator Development Grant Program ........ 223 

for SEED Program ............................................................................................ 199 

Topic Areas Funded by the Investing in Innovation Fund .................................. 233 

Transparency and Consumer Choice in Provision of Federal Student Aid ........ 227 

TRIO Funding .......................................................................................................... 234 

U.S. Lags Behind in Education .............................................................................. 191 

Use of: 

Maintenance of Effort Standard ...................................................................... 203 

Performance and Outcome Information To Inform Policy and Improvement ............................................................................................................... 199 

Title II National Activities Funds ................................................................... 220 

i3 Program Funding ......................................................................................... 232 

Using Performance Information to Turn Around Lowest Performing Schools ... 202 

Value of Early Learning .......................................................................................... 167 

Programs ........................................................................................................... 171 

Veterans’ Education ................................................................................................. 224 

Year-Round: 

School Programs Research ............................................................................... 232 

Schooling ........................................................................................................... 192 

Schools and Student Achievement Outcomes ................................................ 232 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

Accelerating Medicines Partnership ................................................ 10, 11, 12, 106, 111 

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................ 93 

Addressing Dual Burdens of Disease and Harnessing the Information and 

Communication Technology Revolution for Global Health Research, The 

Path Forward ....................................................................................................... 38 

Advancing Health Through Discovery ................................................................... 52 

Advancing Research on Natural Products ............................................................. 36 

AIDS Pandemic, The ............................................................................................... 67 

AIDS Research Priorities and Opportunities ........................................................ 67 

Alzheimer’s Disease ................................................................................................. 70 

Funding ............................................................................................................. 109 

American Cures Act ................................................................................................. 99 

An Implantable Artificial Kidney Holds Promise for Patients on Dialysis ......... 56 

Animal Research ...................................................................................................... 86 

Asthma ..................................................................................................................... 105

Autoimmune Diseases ............................................................................................. 76 

Back to Basics .......................................................................................................... 51 

Better Pain Management: A Major Goal of Addiction Research ......................... 65 

Big Data to Knowledge ............................................................................................ 88 

Big Opportunities in Big Data ................................................................................ 64 

Biomedical and Health Information Services ........................................................ 50 

BRAIN Initiative ...................................................................................................... 14, 68 

Brain Research through Application of Innovative Neurotechnologies ............... 108 

Breast Cancer .......................................................................................................... 33 

Screening ........................................................................................................... 112 

Budget Challenges ................................................................................................... 7 

Building Momentum Against Alzheimer’s Disease ............................................... 45 

Burden of Neurological Disorders .......................................................................... 29 

Cancer: 

and Distress ...................................................................................................... 98 

Detection From a Routine Blood Sample ........................................................ 56 

Immunotherapy ................................................................................................ 17 

Chimpanzee Retirement .......................................................................................... 94 
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705 

Clinical and Translational Science Awards ................................................. 84, 107, 111 

Clinical Science and Precision Medicine ................................................................ 57 

Collaborative Research Framework ....................................................................... 53 

Community Engagement ......................................................................................... 54 

Complementary and Integrative Health Care ....................................................... 35 

Congenital Heart Disease ....................................................................................... 102 

Coordinated Trans-NIH AIDS Research Program ................................................ 67 

Cures Acceleration Network ................................................................................... 32 

Cystic Fibrosis .......................................................................................................... 77 

DARPA-Like Program ............................................................................................. 106 

Development and Regeneration .............................................................................. 60 

Diabetes .................................................................................................................... 103 

Disease: 

Funding Prioritization ...................................................................................... 82 

Prevention ......................................................................................................... 95 

Specific Funding ............................................................................................... 71 

Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives 

(DPCPSI) ............................................................................................................... 62 

Economic Impact of Biomedical Research ............................................................. 75 

Embracing Research Opportunities ....................................................................... 43 

Emergency Care ....................................................................................................... 104 

Emily’s Story ............................................................................................................ 18, 19

Empowering the Next Generation of Researchers in Aging ................................ 45 

Enhancing End-of-Life and Palliative Care ........................................................... 39 

Environment and: 

Autoimmunity ................................................................................................... 33 

Neurological Disorders ..................................................................................... 33 

Extraordinary Opportunities .................................................................................. 29 

Focus on Rare Diseases ........................................................................................... 32 

Fundamentals of Health Disparities ...................................................................... 53 

Funding History and Success Rates ....................................................................... 79 

Future of: 

Biomedical Research ........................................................................................ 9 

Cancer Research ............................................................................................... 69 

Grant Success Rates ................................................................................................ 8 

Health Consequences of Marijuana Use ................................................................ 65 

Health Information for the Public .......................................................................... 50 

Immunoengineering to Modifiscal Year Immune System Responses .................. 55 

Impact of Funding on U.S. Innovation .................................................................. 84 

Impact on Public Health ......................................................................................... 35 

Improving the Health and Well-Being of Older Americans ................................. 44 

Individuals With Special Needs ............................................................................. 43 

Infectious Diseases Research .................................................................................. 22 

Innovation in Treating Spinal Cord Injury: New Hope for Those With Paralysis ......................................................................................................................... 55 

Integrating Science-Based Information Into Practice ........................................... 58 

Jackson Heart Study ............................................................................................... 110 

John Porter Memorial ............................................................................................. 78 

Late Stage Drug Development Failures: Years of Work and Millions of Dollars 

Lost ........................................................................................................................ 10

Loan Repayment and Scholarship Programs ........................................................ 64 

Looking Toward the Future: Nurse Scientists ...................................................... 40 

Medication in Pregnancy ......................................................................................... 97 

Medications Development ....................................................................................... 66 

Mission Into Action .................................................................................................. 31 

National Cancer Institute Community Programs ................................................. 83 

National Eye Institute (NEI): 

Audacious Goal Initiative ................................................................................ 58 

Regenerative Medicine Program ..................................................................... 59 

National Institutes of Health: 

AIDS Research Accomplishments ................................................................... 66 

Funding ....................................................................................................... 74, 79, 89 

Impact on U.S. Health and Medicine .............................................................. 7 

Mission .............................................................................................................. 6 

Program Level in Nominal Dollars and Constant 1998 Dollars ................... 90 

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Research (NIAAA) ........... 48 

New Areas of Emphasis .......................................................................................... 59 

Nurturing Talent and Innovation..................................................................... 37, 58, 65 
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Office of: 

AIDS Research (OAR) ...................................................................................... 62 

Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) ....................................... 63 

Disease Prevention (ODP) ............................................................................... 63 

Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP) ..................................................... 62 

Research on Women’s Health (ORWH) ........................................................... 63 

Strategic Coordination (OSC) and the Common Fund .................................. 63 

OppNet ..................................................................................................................... 103

Opportunities in Cancer: 

Research ............................................................................................................ 15 

Therapeutics: Targeted therapy of mestastatic melanoma ........................... 15 

Oral Cancer and Human Papillomavirus (HPV) ................................................... 61 

Oral Infections, Immunity and the Microbiome .................................................... 60 

Overview of NCI Research Priorities ..................................................................... 24 

Pediatric and Adolescent Development .................................................................. 42 

Planning Carefully for the Future ......................................................................... 52 

Potential Care for AIDS .......................................................................................... 91 

Preempting and Preventing Chronic Disease ........................................................ 27 

Preferred Method of Funding ................................................................................. 74 

Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes .............................................................................. 42 

Programs and Priorities .......................................................................................... 30 

Progress for Patients and Families ........................................................................ 29 

Providing Useful Information to the Public .......................................................... 36 

Reducing Pain and Improving Symptom Management ........................................ 35 

Rehabilitation: 

Research ............................................................................................................ 96 

Standards .......................................................................................................... 78 

Research: 

on Immunology and Immune-Mediated Disorders ........................................ 24 

Training and Infrastructure ............................................................................ 54 

Update on Endocrine Disruptors ..................................................................... 34 

Update on Gulf Oil Spill .................................................................................. 34 

Retirement of Chimpanzees .................................................................................... 81 

Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA) ................................................... 62 

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics ........................................... 110 

Scientific Opportunities ........................................................................................... 9 

Scope of the Problem ............................................................................................... 48 

Self-Management of Chronic Illness ...................................................................... 39 

Sequestration and Government Shutdown ............................................................ 100 

Smart Homes for Healthy Independent Living at All Ages ................................. 56 

Standards for Electronic Health Records .............................................................. 50 

Supporting a Diversity of Ideas .............................................................................. 52 

Symptom Science: Promoting Personalized Health Strategies ............................ 39 

Temporomandibular Joint Disorders ..................................................................... 61 

The AIDS Pandemic ................................................................................................ 67 

The Office of: 

AIDS Research (OAR) ...................................................................................... 62 

Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) ....................................... 63 

Disease Prevention (ODP) ............................................................................... 63 

Research on Women’s Health (ORWH) ........................................................... 63 

Strategic Coordination (OSC) and the Common Fund .................................. 63 

The Path Forward: Addressing Dual Burdens of Disease and Harnessing 

the Information and Communication Technology Revolution for Global 

Health Research ................................................................................................... 38 

Today’s Basic Science for Tomorrow’s Breakthroughs.................................... 37, 57, 64 

Translating Discoveries Into Public Health Impact ............................................. 28 

Translational Research ........................................................................................... 31 

Spectrum ........................................................................................................... 31 

Understanding Aging at Its Most Basic Level ...................................................... 44 

Universal Flu Vaccine.............................................................................................. 12, 13 

Unprecedented Scientific Opportunities ................................................................ 27 

Use of Complementary and Integrative Health Care ........................................... 35 

Wellness: Promoting Health and Preventing Illness ............................................ 39 

Women’s Health ....................................................................................................... 43, 85 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

340 B Drug Discount Program, The ....................................................................... 309 
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707 

Achieve Health Equity ............................................................................................ 256 

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................ 277 

Addressing the Over-Prescription of Psychotropic Drugs for Children in Foster 

Care ....................................................................................................................... 248 

Administration for Children and Families’ Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Request .. 261 

Affordable Care Act Funding .................................................................................. 276 

Alzheimer’s Disease Research ................................................................................ 299 

Antibiotic Resistance ............................................................................................... 275 

Area Health Education Centers ............................................................................. 319 

Biomedical Research ................................................................................................ 292 

Bolster Primary Care Infrastructure ..................................................................... 255 

Budget, Fiscal Year 2015 ........................................................................................ 247 

Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education & New Workforce Initiative . 289 

Community Health Centers ........................................................................ 272, 284, 308 

Critical Access Hospitals ......................................................................................... 283 

Duplication ............................................................................................................... 301 

Early Childhood Development ................................................................................ 247 

Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships ........................................................... 256 

Evaluation Tap ........................................................................................................ 289 

Exchange Cost .......................................................................................................... 282 

Exchange Enrollment .............................................................................................. 282 

Fighting Antibiotic Resistance ................................................................................ 252 

Fiscal Year 2015 Budget ......................................................................................... 247 

Global Health Security ............................................................................................ 257 

Initiatives .......................................................................................................... 275 

Head Start ................................................................................................................ 288 

Healthcare Fraud and Abuse .................................................................................. 274 

Control Program ............................................................................................... 277 

Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention ................................................... 265 

Heathcare.gov Backend Systems ............................................................................ 284 

Home Visiting and Lead Exposure ......................................................................... 266 

Implementation of the Affordable Care Act .......................................................... 268 

Improving the Efficiency of Medicare and Medicaid ............................................ 245 

Information Technology ........................................................................................... 316 

Keeping America and the World Safe Through Global Health Security ............. 251 

Linkages with Clinical Care ................................................................................... 291 

Low-Income Home Energy assistance Program ................................................ 264, 268 

Meaningful Use Stage 2 .......................................................................................... 279 

Medicaid Institutions for Mental Diseases ............................................................ 279 

Mental Health .......................................................................................................... 310 

Navigators ................................................................................................................ 285 

NonRecurring Expenses Fund ................................................................................ 315 

Oral Health .............................................................................................................. 311 

Packaging Rule ........................................................................................................ 280 

PostPartum Depression ........................................................................................... 312 

Prescription Drug: 

Abuse ................................................................................................................. 269 

Overdose ........................................................................................................ 291, 299 

Prevention and Public Health Fund ...................................................................... 315 

Private Insurance and the Marketplaces ............................................................... 244 

Program Integrity .................................................................................................... 245 

Program Management ............................................................................................. 244 

Provider Non-discrimination (Section 2706) .......................................................... 278 

Rate Stabilization Programs ................................................................................... 281 

Recovery Audit Contractors .................................................................................... 283 

Reversing the Prescription Drug Overdose Epidemic ........................................... 252 

Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program ............................................................................ 308 

State-Based Exchange Replacement Costs ............................................................ 283 

Strategic National Stockpile ................................................................................... 301 

Strengthen HealthCare Workforce ......................................................................... 255 

The 340 B Drug Discount Program ........................................................................ 309 

Tobacco and E-Cigarettes ........................................................................................ 294 

Unaccompanied Alien Children .............................................................................. 248 

Program ............................................................................................................. 288 

Working to Provide Health Security 24/7 .............................................................. 251 
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708 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

Additional Committee Questions ............................................................................ 141 

Additional Priorities ................................................................................................ 126 

Application of the Occupational Safety and Health Act to Farming Operations 

With Less Than 10 Employees ............................................................................ 129 

Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) ...................................................... 157 

Efforts To Combat Child Labor Abuses Abroad ............................................. 142 

Closing Statements .................................................................................................. 141 

Combating Long-Term Unemployment .................................................................. 120 

Community Service Employment for Older Americans Program ........................ 150 

Converting the Experimental Consumer Price Index for the Elderly Into 

an Official Published Index ................................................................................. 136 

Family Farm Exemption Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act ......... 136 

Farm Safety for Just Kids Organization ............................................................... 138 

Fiscal Year 2015 President’s Budget ..................................................................... 118 

Governor’s Set-Aside............................................................................................ 154, 157 

Gulfport, Mississippi Job Corps Center ................................................................. 155 

H–1B Visa Program ................................................................................................. 151 

H–2B Rules .............................................................................................................. 156 

Identifying and Combating Employee Misclassification ....................................... 139 

Implementing Reasonable Break Time for Nursing Mothers Provision of Affordable Care Act ................................................................................................. 135 

Improving Employment Opportunities for: 

People With Disabilities ................................................................................... 127 

for Veterans ...................................................................................................... 140 

Inspector General’s Report/Corrective Actions For Job Corps ............................. 146 

Investing in a Competitive Workforce ................................................................... 123 

Job Corps: 

Center Closures ................................................................................................ 147 

New On-Board Strength Model ....................................................................... 148 

Program Year 2012 Surplus ............................................................................ 144 

Job-Driven Training for Workers Presidential Memorandum ............................. 149 

New WHD Rule and Elimination of Companionship Exemption ........................ 161 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA): 

Inspection of Family Farms ............................................................................. 162 

Regional Emphasis Program ........................................................................... 158 

Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative .................................................... 120, 122 

President’s Budget, Fiscal Year 2015 .................................................................... 118 

Prohibiting Workplace Discrimination on the Basis of Sexual Orientation 

or Gender Identity ................................................................................................ 134 

Proposed Silica Rule ................................................................................................ 160 

Protecting America’s Workers and Their Income and Retirement Security ....... 124 

Protecting Employee Wages, Safety, and Retirement Security ........................... 121 

Rates for the auto supply industry, both nationally and in Alabama ................. 159 

Redefining Fiduciary Under Employee Retirement Income Security Act ........... 162 

Reemployment Eligibility Assessments ................................................................. 143 

Review of the Nation’s Training Programs ........................................................... 119 

Revision of Program Requirements Handbook for Job Corps .............................. 145 

Rewriting the Rule Defining Fiduciary Under Employee Retirement Income 

Security Act .......................................................................................................... 130 

Sector Strategies ...................................................................................................... 148 

Strategies for Rewriting the Definition of a Fiduciary ......................................... 132 

Union Presence During OSHA Inspections ........................................................... 162 

Updating Regulations on Overtime ........................................................................ 133 

Wage and Hour Division Plans To Prevent Abuses of Workers With Disabilities ........................................................................................................................ 142 

Wage Determinations on Military Bases ............................................................... 160 

Workforce Innovation Fund .................................................................................... 158 

Working With the Business Community To Employ People With Disabilities .. 128 

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD 

Agency Staffing ........................................................................................................ 326 

Financial Status of the Trust Funds ...................................................................... 327 

Information Technology Improvements ................................................................. 327 
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Other Requested Funding ....................................................................................... 327 

Proposed Funding For Agency Administration ..................................................... 326 

OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL

Budget Request ........................................................................................................ 328 

Office of: 

Audit .................................................................................................................. 328 

Investigations .................................................................................................... 329 

Operational Components ......................................................................................... 328 

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