A Senate Appropriations subcommittee voted to increase funding for medical research and a program to fight fraud in public and private health plans. The Appropriations subpanel governing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), led by retiring Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), approved the increases in a mark-up Tuesday. The $605 million increase for the National Institutes of Health would effectively cancel the sequester's cut to the institution when combined with a $1 billion increase appropriated for this fiscal year. The move won praise from research advocacy groups who urged lawmakers to continue efforts to increase funding for meaningful research.
