[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 17 (Thursday, February 2, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S323-S326]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. KYL (for himself, Mr. McCain, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Graham, Mr.
Rubio, Ms. Ayotte, and Mr. Thune):
S. 2065. A bill to amend the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985 to modify the discretionary spending limits to take
into account savings resulting from the reduction in the number of
Federal employees and extending the pay freeze for Federal employees;
to the Committee on the Budget.
Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the
bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record as follows:
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S. 2065
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 ``Down Payment to Protect
National Security Act of 2012''.
SEC. 2. REDUCTION IN THE NUMBER OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.
(a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``agency'' has
the meaning given the term ``Executive agency'' under section
105 of title 5, United States Code.
(b) Determination of Number of Employees.--Not later than
60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget shall determine the
number of full-time employees employed in each agency. The
head of each agency shall cooperate with the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget in making the determinations.
(c) Replacement Hire Rate.--
(1) In general.--During the period described under
paragraph (2), the head of each agency may hire no more than
2 employees in that agency for every 3 employees who leave
employment in that agency.
(2) Period of replacement hire rate.--Paragraph (1) shall
apply to each agency during the period beginning 60 days
after the date of enactment of this Act through the date on
which the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
makes a determination that the number of full-time employees
employed in that agency is 5 percent less than the number of
full-time employees employed in that agency determined under
subsection (a).
(d) Waivers.--This section may be waived upon a
determination by the President that--
(1) the existence of a state of war or other national
security concern so requires; or
(2) the existence of an extraordinary emergency threatening
life, health, public safety, property, or the environment so
requires.
SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF PAY FREEZE FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.
(a) In General.--Section 147 of the Continuing
Appropriations Act, 2011 (Public Law 111-242; 5 U.S.C. 5303
note) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``December 31, 2012''
and inserting ``June 30, 2014''; and
(2) in subsection (c), by striking ``December 31, 2012''
and inserting ``June 30, 2014''.
(b) Clarification That Freeze Applies to Members of
Congress.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no
adjustment shall be made under section 601(a) of the
Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 U.S.C. 31)
(relating to cost of living adjustments for Members of
Congress) during the period beginning on the first day of the
first pay period beginning on or after February 1, 2013 and
ending on June 30, 2014.
SEC. 4. REDUCTION OF REVISED DISCRETIONARY SPENDING LIMITS TO
ACHIEVE SAVINGS FROM FEDERAL EMPLOYEE
PROVISIONS.
Paragraph (2) of section 251A of the Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901a) is
amended to read as follows:
``(2) Revised discretionary spending limits.--The
discretionary spending limits for fiscal years 2013 through
2021 under section 251(c) shall be replaced with the
following:
``(A) For fiscal year 2013--
``(i) for the revised security category, $546,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$501,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(B) For fiscal year 2014--
``(i) for the revised security category, $551,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$500,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(C) For fiscal year 2015--
``(i) for the revised security category, $560,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$510,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(D) For fiscal year 2016--
``(i) for the revised security category, $571,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$520,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(E) For fiscal year 2017--
``(i) for the revised security category, $584,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$531,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(F) For fiscal year 2018--
``(i) for the revised security category, $598,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$543,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(G) For fiscal year 2019--
``(i) for the revised security category, $610,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$556,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(H) For fiscal year 2020--
``(i) for the revised security category, $624,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$568,000,000,000 in budget authority.
``(I) For fiscal year 2021--
``(i) for the revised security category, $638,000,000,000
in budget authority; and
``(ii) for the revised nonsecurity category,
$579,000,000,000 in budget authority.''.
SEC. 5. CALCULATION OF TOTAL DEFICIT REDUCTION.
Section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901a) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (3)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``$1,200,000,000,000''
and inserting ``$1,073,000,000,000''; and
(B) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``by 9'' and inserting
``by 8'';
(2) in paragraph (4), by striking ``On January 2, 2013, for
fiscal year 2013, and in'' and inserting ``In'';
(3) in paragraphs (5) and (6), by striking ``2013'' each
place it appears and inserting ``2014''; and
(4) in paragraph (7)--
(A) by striking ``reductions.--'' and all that follows
through ``Fiscal years 2014-2021.--On the date'' and
inserting ``reductions.--On the date''; and
(B) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as subparagraphs
(A) and (B), respectively, and adjusting the margin
accordingly.
______
By Ms. MIKULSKI (for herself, Mr. Kerry, Ms. Collins, Mr.
Blumenthal, and Mr. Warner):
S. 2069. A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to speed
American innovation in research and drug development for the leading
causes of death that are the most costly chronic conditions for our
Nation, to save American families and the Federal and State governments
money, and to help family caregivers; to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I am proud to introduce the Spending
Reductions Through Innovations in Therapies Agenda Act with my good
friends and colleagues, Senators Collins, Kerry, Blumenthal, and
Warner. This is a bi-partisan and bi-cameral bill that I have worked on
with Representatives Markey and Smith and community organizations and
leaders such as George and Trish Vradenburg's U.S. Against Alzheimer's.
This legislation will help us sprint to the finish line by getting
innovative therapies from bench to bedside more quickly for chronic
diseases like Alzheimer's. It spurs innovation in advanced research and
drug, device, and diagnostics development for chronic health conditions
that are leading causes of death as well as the most costly to
taxpayers and families.
The act puts the focus where it needs to be. It tackles the health
problems we are challenged with today and will be faced with in the
future if there is inaction. We must conquer these complex health
conditions and plug the drain that draws money from our nation's
economy and patients, families, and taxpayers checkbooks.
It is been over 10 years since a new Alzheimer's drug entered the
U.S. market. Eleven industry sponsored clinical trials have failed in
recent years. It takes 10 to 15 years to develop a drug and get the FDA
gold seal of approval. Each drug that successfully enters the market,
costs over $1 billion to develop. This is because of the high failure
rates in the ``Valley of Death.''
Currently, 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's and 15 million
Americans are caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's. There are no
drugs on the market today to delay-onset, prevent, or cure Alzheimer's.
Medicare spending for Alzheimer's patients is 3 times higher than
Medicare patients without Alzheimer's. Medicaid spending for
Alzheimer's patients age 65 and older is 9 times higher. This is
unsustainable. Families are left bewildered, bereft, and broke.
I know what this is like. My own dear father was one of the 5 million
Americans with Alzheimer's. I remember when I would go to visit him. It
didn't matter that I was a United States Senator or the Senator who
represents the National Institutes of Health. It didn't matter that I
could get Nobel Prize winners on the phone. The information that would
have made his life easier just wasn't there. My family and I knew about
the long goodbye. We lived the 36-hour day. It was devastating for him,
heart-breaking to my mother, and heart-wrenching for my sisters and me.
What was difficult was not only the disease but that we also felt
powerless. All we could do was make my father comfortable. There was no
cure. There was no safety net for our family.
I vowed to do everything I could. Not just to support research and
development in Alzheimer's but also to create a safety net for
families. I know it is gut-wrenching to wonder how you'll be able to
care for a parent. I have always believed Honor thy mother and father'
is a good commandment to live by and a good policy to govern by. We
need innovative strategies like the SPRINT program to make sure your
brain span lasts your life span.
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SPRINT speeds the development of drugs and therapies to combat the
most deadly and costly chronic diseases. It compresses the product
development timeline and increases the volume of drugs in the
development pipeline so that priority is given to the most promising
drugs. This bill expedites the Food and Drug Administration review
process. It helps get more drugs out of the labs and into patient's
hands more quickly.
This act establishes a new program--the SPRINT Program. SPRINT will
develop new therapies to reduce federal health care spending on chronic
health conditions like Alzheimer's, diabetes, heart disease and cancer
that are the leading causes of death identified by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention. In fact, some researchers are already
working hard to see if diabetes or heart diseases are associated with
Alzheimer's. I have seen first-hand that many Alzheimer's patients have
multiple chronic conditions.
SPRINT directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to work
collaboratively with non-profit investors to identify public and
private organizations with expertise in developing therapies for these
conditions like a biotech company or an academic health center such as
University of Maryland or Johns Hopkins. Prize payments, contracts,
grants, or cooperative agreements will be awarded to accelerate
development of therapies that have potential to prevent or diagnose,
delay onset or cure, and aid recovery or improve health outcomes for
Alzheimer's disease and other high-cost conditions.
This bill is built on a public-private partnership. We will make a
$50 million Federal investment and leverage private capital by raising
$2 in private investment for every Federal dollar to combat this
problem together. For this small investment we will get huge returns in
lives saved and new cures. By making a small investment today we will
save billions in future health care spending and long-term care costs.
Alzheimer's Association estimates that Alzheimer's alone costs our
federal health programs, Medicare and Medicaid, over $183 billion
annually.
SPRINT is a job creator. Manufacturers in Maryland and other states
are on the frontier of discovering new drugs and biologics. By helping
patients find new treatments we can also make targeted investments in
our innovation economy. Biotech companies are an economic engine in
Maryland's economy. SPRINT helps America remain number one in
biomedical innovation and job creation.
I have a saying, ``each of us can make a difference and together we
can make change''. I will keep fighting for a cure for Alzheimer's. I
will keep fighting to support our innovative industries in their quest
for new therapies and treatments that will help patients globally and
create jobs domestically. And I will keep fighting to help families
living with Alzheimer's. We are working together because a Congress
that works together works the best. We will get this done. Some people
want to go to Mars but I want to be in the United States of America
when they say ``we found a cure for Alzheimer's.''
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, today I wish to, with my colleague from
Maryland, introduce the Spending Reductions through Innovations in
Therapies agenda, or SPRINT, Act, a bipartisan, bicameral bill to
accelerate the development of treatments and therapies for high-cost
diseases such as Alzheimer's, diabetes, cancer, and heart disease.
Alzheimer's and other chronic conditions take a tremendous personal
and economic toll on millions of Americans and their families.
Moreover, in addition to the human suffering they cause, they pose
significant challenges to the fiscal health of our Nation.
Alzheimer's disease alone costs the United States $183 billion a
year, a figure that will only increase exponentially as the baby-boom
generation ages. If nothing is done to slow or stop the disease,
Alzheimer's will cost the United States $20 trillion over the next 40
years.
At a time of mounting deficits, the increasing incidence of diseases
such as diabetes and Alzheimer's also has dire implications for our
Federal budget. For example, it is estimated that spending on diabetes
accounts for one out of three Medicare dollars. The average annual
Medicare payment for an individual with Alzheimer's is three times
higher than for those without the condition. For Medicaid, average
payments for someone with Alzheimer's are nine times higher.
The Federal Government is currently spending hundreds of billions of
dollars a year caring for patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease,
diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and other conditions. This pricetag
will only increase as our population ages. Left unchecked, these
devastating diseases threaten not only to destroy our Nation's health,
but also to bankrupt our finances.
The SPRINT Act, which we are introducing today, is intended to speed
the development of therapies to significantly modify, cure, or prevent
these high-cost, chronic conditions. Among other provisions, the bill
authorizes $50 million for a public-private SPRINT program and fund
within the Department of Health and Human Services to support advanced
research into promising therapies that are most likely to improve
health outcomes and reduce health care costs.
Modeled after the successful Defense Advance Research Project Agency,
DARPA, the SPRINT program and fund will complement the basic research
done by the National Institutes of Health. It will work through public-
private partnerships to provide modest resources to research
institutions and other innovators conducting advanced research into
therapies and treatments for Alzheimer's and other high-cost chronic
conditions.
Funding provided under the bill will be targeted to chronic
conditions designated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
as being among the top 10 causes of death and focused on those that
account for high current and projected costs to Federal health
programs; reduce a victim's ability to carry out activities of daily
living; have a death rate that has increased and is projected to
increase significantly in future years; and lack existing therapies to
prevent, control, or cure the condition or delay cognitive decline.
Each Federal dollar awarded under the program must be matched by at
least $2 in private funding, and the Secretary may modify or terminate
funding for projects that fail to meet milestones. Finally, the
legislation will expedite review by the Food and Drug Administration of
the therapies developed through the program so they can be delivered to
patients as quickly as possible.
Chronic diseases such as Alzheimer's, heart disease, diabetes, and
cancer cause great suffering and financial hardship for millions of
Americans and their families. Given their increasing prevalence as our
population ages, they also threaten to bankrupt critically important
programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
The SPRINT Act will leverage a relatively small Federal investment to
speed the development of therapies that have the potential to prevent,
delay, cure, and improve outcomes for these terrible diseases. It also
offers us an opportunity to control the costs associated with these
devastating conditions. I urge my colleagues to join us in cosponsoring
this important legislation. I ask unanimous consent that a letter from
the Alzheimer's Association endorsing our legislation be printed in the
Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Alzheimer's Association,
Public Policy Office,
Washington, DC, January 31, 2012.
Hon. Susan Collins,
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Collins: On behalf of the Alzheimer's
Association, thank you for your leadership on issues
important to Americans with Alzheimer's disease and their
caregivers. As the co-chair of the Congressional Alzheimer's
Task Force you are well-aware of the national and global
epidemic that is Alzheimer's disease. This devastating
disease is the ultimate thief--a thief of memories, thief of
independence, thief of control, thief of time and ultimately,
a thief of life. The Alzheimer's Association is pleased to
support your bill, the Spending Reductions through
Innovations in Therapies Agenda Act of 2012 (SPRINT Act),
which would create a novel mechanism to target research
investments that development of new treatments and reduce
overall spending by Federal health care programs for high-
cost chronic conditions, including Alzheimer's disease.
The Alzheimer's Association is the world's leading
voluntary health organization in
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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. Our vision is a world
without Alzheimer's.
In 2011, the cost of caring for those with Alzheimer's to
American society will total an estimated $183 billion,
according to Alzheimer's Association's 2011 Alzheimer's
Disease Facts and Figures report. This is an $11 billion
increase over last year--a rate of increase more than four
times inflation. According to the Alzheimer's Association
report, Changing the Trajectory of Alzheimer's Disease: A
National Imperative, unless a treatment is found that can
prevent cure, or even slow the progression, by 2050, as many
as 16 million Americans will have Alzheimer's disease and the
cost of care will surpass $1 trillion annually (in today's
dollars). This will create an enormous strain on the health
care system, families and the federal budget.
The SPRINT Act aims to speed American innovation in
research and drug development for the leading causes of death
that are the most costly chronic conditions for our Nation,
which includes Alzheimer's disease. The legislation
highlights the growing need for research and the importance
of finding innovative ways to find a cure for Alzheimer's on
behalf of the estimated 5.4 million Americans currently
living with the disease.
The Alzheimer's Association appreciates your continued
leadership on Alzheimer's disease. If you have any questions,
please contact Rachel Conant, Director of Federal Affairs, at
Rachel.C[email protected] or 202-638-7121.
Sincerely,
Robert Egge,
Vice President, Public Policy.
____________________