[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 27, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9197-S9198]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    FOUNDATION FOR THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH IMPROVEMENT ACT

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 117, S. 302.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 302) to make improvements in the Foundation for 
     the National Institutes of Health.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill 
which had been reported from the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
and Pensions, with an amendment.
  [Strike the part shown in black brackets and insert the part shown in 
italic.]

                                 S. 302

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     [SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       [This Act may be cited as the ``Foundation for the National 
     Institutes of Health Improvement Act''.

     [SEC. 2. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH ESTABLISHMENT AND 
                   DUTIES.

       [Section 499 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
     290b) is amended--
       [(1) in subsection (d)--
       [(A) in paragraph (1)--
       [(i) by amending subparagraph (D)(ii) to read as follows:
       [``(ii) Upon the appointment of the appointed members of 
     the Board under clause (i)(II), the terms of service as 
     members of the Board of the ex officio members of the Board 
     described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B) shall 
     terminate. The ex officio members of the Board described in 
     clauses (iii) and (iv) of subparagraph (B) shall continue to 
     serve as ex officio members of the Board.''; and
       [(ii) in subparagraph (G), by inserting ``appointed'' after 
     ``that the number of'';
       [(B) by amending paragraph (3)(B) to read as follows:
       [``(B) Any vacancy in the membership of the appointed 
     members of the Board shall be filled in accordance with the 
     bylaws of the Foundation established in accordance with 
     paragraph (6), and shall not affect the power of the 
     remaining appointed members to execute the duties of the 
     Board.''; and
       [(C) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``appointed'' after 
     ``majority of the'';
       [(2) in subsection (j)--
       [(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``(d)(2)(B)(i)(II)'' and 
     inserting ``(d)(6)''; and
       [(B) in paragraph (10), by striking ``of Health.'' and 
     inserting ``of Health and the National Institutes of Health 
     may accept transfers of funds from the Foundation.''; and
       [(3) by striking subsection (l) and inserting the 
     following:
       [``(l) Funding.--From amounts appropriated to the National 
     Institutes of Health, for each fiscal year, the Director of 
     NIH shall transfer not less than $500,000 to the 
     Foundation.''.]

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Foundation for the National 
     Institutes of Health Improvement Act''.

     SEC. 2. NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH ESTABLISHMENT AND 
                   DUTIES.

       Section 499 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
     290b) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (d)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by amending subparagraph (D)(ii) to read as follows:
       ``(ii) Upon the appointment of the appointed members of the 
     Board under clause (i)(II), the terms of service as members 
     of the Board of the ex officio members of the Board described 
     in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B) shall terminate. 
     The ex officio members of the Board described in clauses 
     (iii) and (iv) of subparagraph (B) shall continue to serve as 
     ex officio members of the Board.''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (G), by inserting ``appointed'' after 
     ``that the number of'';
       (B) by amending paragraph (3)(B) to read as follows:
       ``(B) Any vacancy in the membership of the appointed 
     members of the Board shall be filled in accordance with the 
     bylaws of the Foundation established in accordance with 
     paragraph (6), and shall not affect the power of the 
     remaining appointed members to execute the duties of the 
     Board.''; and
       (C) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``appointed'' after 
     ``majority of the'';
       (2) in subsection (j)--
       (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``(d)(2)(B)(i)(II)'' and 
     inserting ``(d)(6)'';
       (B) in paragraph (4)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, including an 
     accounting of the use of amounts transferred under subsection 
     (l)'' before the period at the end; and
       (ii) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(C) The Foundation shall make copies of each report 
     submitted under subparagraph (A) available--
       ``(i) for public inspection, and shall upon request provide 
     a copy of the report to any individual for a charge that 
     shall not exceed the cost of providing the copy; and
       ``(ii) to the appropriate committees of Congress.''; and
       (C) in paragraph (10), by striking ``of Health.'' and 
     inserting ``of Health and the National Institutes of Health 
     may accept transfers of funds from the Foundation.''; and
       (3) by striking subsection (l) and inserting the following:
       ``(l) Funding.--From amounts appropriated to the National 
     Institutes of Health, for each fiscal year, the Director of 
     NIH shall transfer not less than $500,000 and not more than 
     $1,250,000 to the Foundation.''.

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I strongly support the Foundation for the 
National Institutes of Health Improvement Act.
  The bill makes several improvements in the 1990 law that established 
the Foundation. Most significantly, it assures the Foundation at least 
$500,000 annually from the NIH to support its administrative and 
operating expenses. The annual allocation is capped at $1.25 million. 
These funds will enable the Foundation to use its own resources for the 
actual support of projects to strengthen NIH programs, rather than 
raise money for its own expenses. As the bill makes clear, the NIH 
Director and the Commissioner of Food and Drugs are ex officio members 
of the Foundation's board of directors.
  Congress established the Foundation in 1990 to raise private funds to 
support the research of the NIH. The Foundation has been a remarkable 
success. For every dollar the Foundation received from the NIH in 2003, 
it raised $426 in private funds. Since its creation, it has raised $270 
million, or $68 in private support for every dollar from the NIH.
  The Foundation is currently managing 37 programs supported by $270 
million generated from private contributions. As one important example, 
the Edmond J. Safra Family Lodge on the NIH campus gives families of 
patients receiving in-patient treatment at the NIH Clinical Center a 
place to stay, at no cost to them.
  In addition, the Foundation has formed partnerships with the NIH to 
develop new cancer treatments, to identify biochemical signs of 
osteoarthritis and Alzheimer's Disease, and to build on the promise of 
genomics. Through a public-private partnership, the Foundation has 
helped accelerate the sequencing of the mouse genome. It is also 
collecting private funds to study drugs in children. In 2003, Bill 
Gates announced a gift to the Foundation of $200 million over the next 
10 years to support research on global health priorities. Clearly, the 
Foundation's partnership with the NIH will grow productively in the 
coming years.
  I urge my Senate colleagues to support this legislation, which will 
enable the Foundation to continue its effective support of the work and 
mission of the NIH.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
committee reported amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be 
read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the 
table, and that

[[Page S9198]]

any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The bill (S. 302), as amended, was read the third time and passed.

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