September 5, 2003

Dear Chairman Specter and Senator Harkin:

The Friends of AHRQ appreciate your leadership in providing funding increases for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Maintaining AHRQ's funding is critical in continuing research needed to improve health care quality, access, and financing in the United States.

As the lead Public Health Service agency focused on health care quality, AHRQ's research provides the evidence-based information needed to reduce medical errors, improve access to health care services, translate research into practice, improve reporting on quality and disparities, and more efficiently utilize health care resources. AHRQ research also examines health care costs, a critical issue as health care spending continues to grow at an alarming rate.

The Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $303.7 million for AHRQ in FY 2004, the same level provided last year. The Friends of AHRQ appreciates your continued support and commitment to AHRQ funding and respectfully requests your consideration of an additional $10 million for FY 2004. This amount would allow AHRQ to continue its mission of supporting research that improves health care quality and translating this research into better patient care. Also, the additional funding would help to offset the $12 million earmarked in the House-passed appropriations bill for research on pharmaceutical effectiveness and allow the agency to fund important investigator-initiated research.

We urge your support for providing these additional resources to AHRQ in FY 2004 and thank you again for your leadership and support.

Sincerely,

Administrators of Internal Medicine
Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine
Ambulatory Pediatric Association
American Academy of Family Physicians
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Association for Clinical Chemistry
American Association of Colleges of Nursing
American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons
American Association for Dental Research
American Clinical Laboratory Association
American College of Epidemiology
American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
American College of Physicians
American College of Preventative Medicine
American College of Rheumatology
American Dental Association
American Dental Education Association
American Geriatrics Society
American Heart Association
American Medical Association
American Osteopathic Association
American Pediatric Society
American Physical Therapy Association
American Psychological Association
American Public Health Association
Association of American Medical Colleges
Association of Departments of Family Medicine
Association of Family Practice Residency Directors
Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs
Association of Professors of Medicine
Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine
Association of Subspecialty Professors
Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine
Coalition for American Trauma Care
Coalition for Health Funding
Coalition for Health Services Research
Consortium of Social Science Association
Health Insurance Association of America
Jeffrey Modell Foundation
Medical Group Management Association
National Health Council
National Institute for Health Care Management Foundation
National Osteoporosis Foundation
North American Primary Care Research Group
Paralyzed Veterans of America
Research!America
RTI International
Society for Adolescent Medicine
Society for Pediatric Research
Society of General Internal Medicine
Society of Teachers of Family Medicine
Society of Thoracic Surgeons
Spina Bifida Association of America
Washington Business Group on Health