GOP pushes for moreNIH funding

The National Institutes of Health could see its biggest budget increase in more than a decade as part of a $1.1 trillion spending bill Congress will vote on Friday.

Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, Rep. Kevin Yoder of Kansas and other conservatives in Congress spearheaded the push to boost NIH’s funding by $2 billion – a billion more than requested by the Obama administration.

A letter to GOP leadership signed by more than 100 Republicans in the House of Representatives last month had advocated for an even higher increase of $3 billion.