On October 3, the Senate approved, by voice vote, the FY2008 Department of Defense spending bill (H.R. 3222). A House-Senate conference committee will meet to reconcile the differences in the two versions of the bill. The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the bill on September 12 (see The Source, 9/14/2007). The House approved the measure on August 5 (see The Source, 8/3/07).
H.R. 3222 would allocate $448.674 billion in FY2008, $124.82 billion less than FY2007 (including emergency and supplemental appropriations) and $149.647 billion less than the administration’s request (including requested emergency and supplemental appropriations).
The measure would provide $23.49 billion for Department of Defense health programs, $2.273 billion above FY2007 and $948.927 million more than President Bush’s request. Included in that amount is $150 million for the peer-reviewed breast cancer research program and $10 million for the peer-reviewed ovarian cancer research program.
The Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program would receive $50 million in FY2008. The committee “directs the secretary of Defense, in conjunction with the service surgeons general, to select medical research projects of clear scientific merit and direct relevance to military health. Research areas considered under this funding are restricted to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, blood cancer, diabetes, Duchenne’s disease, drug abuse, epilepsy, inflammatory bowel disease, interstitial cystitis, leishmaniasis, lupus, kidney cancer, mesothelioma, multiple sclerosis, neurofibromatosis, Paget’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, polycystic kidney disease, social work research, tinnitus, and Tuberous Sclerosis Complex research. The committee emphasizes that the additional funding provided under the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program shall be devoted only to the purposes listed above.”
