National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins, MD, said a holdup of funds could harm NIH goals, according to Medscape.
Here are five things to know:
1. The recent election of Donald Trump as president has created uncertainty in Washington, but Dr. Collins does not see the new administration negatively impacting the NIH and biomedical research, as long as there is no funding delay.
2. Dr. Collins believes the NIH will be able to continue research on single-cell biology, the brain, spinal cord injury, Alzheimer's disease, stem cells, infectious disease, diabetes and precision medicine.
3. He noted medical research does not reflect a partisan issue and "Congress has been continually positive" about it, according to Medscape. Some programs are more vulnerable, however, such as the Cancer Moonshot, which is not funded as yet.
4. Dr. Collins said Congress has not yet approved a 2017 budget for the federal government, though, despite the fiscal year starting Oct. 1, 2016. He noted if Congress doesn't approve a budget by Dec. 15, 2016, biomedical research could take a hit.
5. So far, a House panel has approved a $1.5 billion increase in NIH's 2017 budget and a Senate committee has approved a $2 billion increase. Congress as a whole must approve these amounts in the finalized budget, however.