House Appropriations Subcommittee Approves $123.1B Labor-HHS Budget

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education on Oct. 3 approved the $123.1 billion FY 2002 Labor-HHS appropriations bill by voice vote, including "big increases" for fighting bioterrorism, the Baltimore Sun reports (Baltimore Sun, 10/4). The NIH, CDC and HHS Office of Emergency Preparedness would receive $393 million -- up $100 million from last year -- to prepare for a possible bioterrorist attack. The bill would also provide:

$23 billion for NIH, $2.5 billion more than last year;
$4.1 billion for the CDC, up $200 million from last year;
$1.9 billion in Ryan White CARE Act funds, an increase of $112 million;
$1.3 billion for community health centers, $150 million more than last year;
$740 million for the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant, $25 million more than last year;
$1.725 billion for the Substance Abuse Block Grant, $60 million more than last year;
$440 million for the Mental Health Block Grant, up $20 million from last year (House Appropriations Committee release, 10/3).

In addition, the subcommittee "dodged a potentially divisive" debate over embryonic stem cell research. The bill includes language that would prohibit federal funding of research that uses human embryos, but the subcommittee agreed to include language "saying that President Bush's policy allowing funding of research on stem cells derived from human embryos obtained before Aug. 9" would not violate the ban (Rovner, CongressDaily/AM, 10/4).

Abstinence, Contraception, Abortion
The subcommittee also approved a total of $102 million for abstinence education programs, a $22 million increase from last year (House Appropriations Committee release, 10/3). It also increased funding for the Title X family planning program, which provides reproductive health and preventive services, by $10 million. But a "fight is still possible" over an amendment that Rep. David Vitter (R-La.) may introduce when the full House Appropriations Committee addresses the bill (CongressDaily/AM, 10/4). Vitter said he may seek to deny Title X funding to organizations that perform abortions (Alpert, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 10/4). Currently, groups cannot use Title X funds to pay for abortions but may use separate funds to provide abortions and abortion-related services (CongressDaily/AM, 10/4). "I don't feel taxpayers' money should fund private groups that perform abortions," Vitter said. He added that he may not introduce the amendment on "such a divisive issue" in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, but said that "we're counting votes and will make the decision soon." Abortion-rights groups have "vowed to fight" the amendment (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 10/4).

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House Appropriations Subcommittee Approves $123.1B Labor-HHS Budget

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