The National Institutes of Health is one of "The Crown Jewels" in our effort to make major breakthroughs in the fight against life-threatening diseases. That's why I am an enthusiastic cosponsor of a resolution introduced by U.S. Rep. George Gekas, R-Pa., that calls for increasing NIH's appropriation by $3.4 billion in the coming year, raising it to $23.64 billion.

This bid is part of an effort to double the funding of NIH by the year 2003. If one looks at the extraordinary progress NIH is helping to make in the fight against dread diseases and other major health problems, it's hard to think of a better investment we could make. A May 16, 2001, statement by NIH Acting Director Ruth Kirschstein, M.D. explains what is happening because of the commitment to double spending. "As a result of that additional funding, progress in the medical sciences is advancing at a speed we only dreamed of a few years ago," Dr. Kirschstein said. "This is a time of extraordinary opportunity."

In just the last few years NIH has helped to produce remarkable progress in the fight against blood and lymphatic cancers, new drug treatment strategies for drug abusers and ways to relieve speech impairments that affect seven percent of school-age children, to name just a few advances.

This spending is truly one of the best things we can do with our federal tax dollars. I'll support it as strongly as I can.