[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5993]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  BUDGETING FOR MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS

  (Mr. YARMUTH asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. YARMUTH. Madam Speaker, budgets don't heal the sick or solve 
centuries-long medical challenges, but the programs budgets prioritize 
can.
  In my district in Louisville, Kentucky, medical researchers at the 
University of Louisville and the Frazier Rehab Institute have made an 
incredible breakthrough. Thanks to an electronic implant that 
stimulates the spinal cord, four paralyzed men are now moving their 
legs on command. With continued therapy, they are confident they will 
walk again.
  The Human Locomotor Research Center in Louisville is funded in part 
through investments made by the National Institutes of Health. More 
than 80 percent of NIH funding goes to the broader research community, 
fueling the innovation that makes breakthroughs like those in 
Louisville possible.
  The Republican budget reduces the number of new NIH grants by 1,400, 
on top of hundreds of projects NIH has already had to turn down because 
of last year's reckless, across-the-board spending cuts.
  Madam Speaker, when you see a man paralyzed for years lift his legs, 
you can't help but share in the enthusiasm for breaking boundaries we 
once thought impassible. But if we approve this Republican budget and 
these cuts, we extinguish that enthusiasm and the hopes of millions of 
families waiting for the next medical breakthrough.

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