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December 7, 2000
Dear Congressional Leaders: The Friends of AHRQ thank you for your strong support of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). As the Congressional session draws to a close, we are asking for your continued leadership in ensuring passage and enactment this year of the FY2001 Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education Appropriations bill. This bill, as last agreed upon, would provide $270 million in needed funding for the Agency and allow AHRQ to move forward with its improved patient safety agenda and important research on health care quality, access and costs. Policymakers at all levels of government and the private sector depend on AHRQ research to assist them in making sound health policy decisions. AHRQ will not be able to meet the demand for better health care information without the increased funding that would be provided in the FY2001 Labor-HHS bill. Last spring, the Friends of AHRQ requested a FY2001 budget of $300 million for AHRQ. This recommendation was supportive of the Senate mark of $50 million to enable the Agency to take needed steps to prevent medical errors and improve patient safety. The Friends recommendation also supported an extensive increase in funding by the Agency for investigator-initiated grants. As demands on AHRQ have grown, the success rate of investigator-initiated research was projected to plummet to a mere 7 percent in FY2000. The Friends recommended an additional $30 million be made available to aid investigator-initiated research, facilitate the translation of research into clinical practice and disease management strategies, and address the needs of vulnerable populations. The Friends of AHRQ greatly appreciate your continued leadership and support of AHRQ. We urge you and the White House to uphold funding for AHRQ and approve the FY2001 Labor-HHS Appropriations bill this year. Sincerely, Alliance for Aging Research |
