Congress OKs drug, cancer research bill
Measure to spend $6.3B over the next decade draws bipartisan support
WASHINGTON — With an atypical burst of bipartisanship, the Senate shipped legislation to President Barack Obama on Wednesday lowering hurdles for government drug approvals as the 114th Congress bumped toward the end of a two-year run highlighted by upheaval and stalemate.
A week after the House easily approved the biomedical bill, senators passed it by a similarly overwhelming 94-5 margin. That was testament to a package that plans spending $6.3 billion over the next decade on popular efforts like cancer research and battling drug addiction.
“This is a reminder of what we can do when we look out for one another,” Obama said in a written statement that promised his signature. Referring to families that have endured losses to cancer, Alzheimer’s and drug abuse, he added, “Their heartbreak is real, and so we have a responsibility to respond with real solutions. This bill will make a big difference.”
“This is an opportunity we cannot miss, and we’re not going to miss it,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate health committee.
In a chamber where senators can flash barely concealed animosity, they showed their more gracious side with speeches lauding departing colleagues including Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., Barbara Mikulski, DMd., and Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H. The Senate floor was also the
Vice President Joe Biden, who served 36 years as a Democratic senator from Delaware.
“You’ve been a real friend, you’ve been a trusted partner and it’s been an honor to serve with you,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said to Biden, who presided over the tribute.
That comradery was also reflected in the biomedical bill, which included a planned $1.8 billion for cancer research. Biden, whose 46-year-old son Beau succumbed to the disease last year, has championed such work.
That bill, which also takes steps to sharpen federal mental health programs, drew praise from scores of pharmaceutical, device and other medical industry associations and from numerous patients’ groups.
It was opposed by consumer organizations and liberals who said the measure’s shortcuts for Food and Drug Administration approvals would endanger consumers and represented a sellout to drug makers. They also complained that it will take later legislation for Congress to provide the funds the bill envisions.
“Congress should not have had to jeopardize patient safety to increase medical research funding,” said Michael Carome, director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group.
Before adjourning, lawmakers still needed to approve government-wide spending legislation. It contained money to keep agencies functioning into next spring, when the new President Donald Trump and GOP-run Congress would make final budget decisions.