FY2022 Spending Bill Signed into Law, Includes Full Funding for STAR Act
President Biden signed a $1.5 trillion omnibus bill into law over the weekend, after it passed both chambers of Congress at the end of last week.
The fiscal year 2022 (FY22) spending bill, which funds the government through the end of September, includes full funding for the Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research (STAR) Act, the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative (CCDI), and the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act. It also provides record funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at $45 billion for FY22, an increase of $2.25 billion over FY21. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) at NIH receives $6.9 billion, an increase of $353 million over FY21.
Specifically, the bill provides:
$30 million for the STAR Act;
$50 million for the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative;
$12.6 million for the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act;
$194 million for the Cancer Moonshot;
$1 billion to create the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H);
$130 million for the Peer Review Cancer Research Program (PRCRP), which includes pediatric, adolescent and young adult cancers as a priority research topic.
We extend our sincerest thanks to every advocate who reached out to Congress to seek support for cancer research and for these life-saving programs. Childhood cancer research is almost entirely dependent on federal funding. Over 90% of children and adolescents who are diagnosed with cancer each year in the US are cared for at a children’s cancer center that is affiliated with the NCI-supported Children’s Oncology Group (COG).
Securing strong federal funding in the fight against childhood cancer is one of our top policy priorities at the Children’s Cancer Cause and is especially critical as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has interrupted clinical trials and threatens sustained cancer research progress. Much of our appropriations agenda is pursued through our membership in coalitions such as One Voice Against Cancer (OVAC), the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, the Cancer Leadership Council, the Coalition Against Childhood Cancer (CAC2), and others. This funding achievement is a testament to the power of collaboration and a strong collective voice.
We thank Congress for its continued bipartisan support of medical research and children with cancer. The STAR Act, signed into law in 2018, is the most comprehensive childhood cancer legislation ever passed by Congress and authorized $30 million annually for five years. This is the fourth straight year that we have successfully secured full funding for the STAR Act, which is advancing pediatric cancer research, treatment, and surveillance.
As we celebrate these appropriations victories, we’re also look ahead toward the final year of STAR Act funding in FY23 - and what lies beyond. Children’s Cancer Cause is leading an Alliance for Childhood Cancer working group in charting a roadmap for the community’s survivorship agenda, specifically in the next iteration of the STAR Act (“2.0”).