It has been an interesting and exciting year for the Section 317 program and our Coalition. We wanted to provide everyone with an overview of how the program has fared in the budget process and what we can expect for the upcoming fiscal year.
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
As you all know, the Section 317 program under CDC received a one-time $300 million increase within the 2009 economic stimulus package, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The Department of Health and Human Services has released a breakdown of how these funds have been spent over fiscal years (FY) 2009 and 2010. The agency provided the following analysis:
"Of the $300 million in Recovery Act funds allocated to the Section 317 program, $250 million will help existing Section 317 grantees acquire and make recommended vaccines available by using $200 million of these funds to purchase vaccines that will be made available to states and territories. The remaining $50 million will be used to provide program operation grants and vaccine distribution funding that states and territories will use to deliver the vaccines and strengthen vaccination programs. Vaccines and Recovery Act resources will also be made available to special Section 317 programs in Chicago, Houston, New York City, Philadelphia and San Antonio.
An additional $18 million in grants will be used to provide support to Section 317 grantees that demonstrate innovative approaches to increase the number of Americans who receive the childhood vaccine series, zoster vaccine, and influenza vaccine, and for improving reimbursement practices. Applications to apply for these grants will be made available on grants.gov.
Nearly $32 million in Recovery Act funds will be used to increase information, communication and education and strengthen the evidence base for immunization. This will include activities to increase national public awareness and knowledge about the benefits and risks of vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases. Funds will also help provide tools and education for health care providers and to monitor and assess the impact and safety of licensed vaccines routinely recommended for use in the United States to ensure that national vaccine policy is appropriate and effective."
To view the full description of ARRA activities, along with links to state funding breakdowns, please click HERE.
FY 2010 Appropriations Wrap-Up
On December 16th, President Obama signed into law the FY 2010 omnibus appropriations bill, which combined six spending measures including that for Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor-HHS) agencies. The Labor-HHS portion of the package reflects an $11 billion increase over FY 2009 levels, bringing total discretionary spending up to $163.6 billion.
CDC received an approximate total of $6.6 billion. Of that total, $559 million is appropriated for the Section 317 immunization program and related CDC program operations. Because of the substantial increases for certain health related activities within ARRA, related programs within the FY 2010 Labor-HHS bill saw few large funding boosts. And with stimulus funds for the 317 program being spent out over the course of 2009 and 2010, there was little opportunity for an additional increase. As a result, the 317 program received an increase of $1 million, which will be used for additional research regarding vaccine safety.
FY 2011 President's Budget and Beyond
President Obama released his budget for FY 2011 on February 1st, days after announcing his plan to freeze spending levels on the majority of domestic programs. Despite the flat lining of most programs within the FY 2011 Health and Human Services budget, $579 million is provided for the section 317 program at CDC, an increase of $17 million. The agency justifies the increase "to build on the gains made with FY 2009 Recovery Act funds to increase vaccination coverage and to support States in obtaining reimbursement of immunization services provided to children with private health insurance." This increase is comprised of three main components - $3 million is attributed to CDC program operations, while the remaining $14 million comes from the net difference between a $27 million increase in vaccine purchase grants for obtaining a greater number of vaccines recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, and a $13 million cut to state infrastructure. Click HERE to view the Section 317 program description from the FY 11 budget.
The steering committee for the 317 Coalition is in the process of developing new literature for its FY 11 lobbying effort. The Coalition will recommend an approximate $300 million increase for the program, bringing its total funding to $800 million. We will issue a series of Action Alerts in the coming month to you, our general membership, requesting that you reach out to your members of Congress to voice your support for the Section 317 program, as well as to emphasize the need for increased federal funds to maximize immunization levels among all underinsured children, adolescents, and adults.
Finally, if you know of any organization that might be interested in joining the 317 Coalition, please send an inquiry email to 317coalition@cgagroup.com for more information. There is no cost to join.
As always, thank you very much for your support!
