Statement on President's FY 2007 Budget

Statement on President's FY 2007 Budget

Thursday, February 16, 2006 at 3:00 PM

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (Conn.-3), a member of the House Committee on the Budget, released the following statement in response to the Fiscal Year 2007 budget proposal submitted to Congress this morning by President Bush.

The budget anticipates the biggest deficit in American history. Calling for nearly $2.8 trillion in spending, it significantly reduces investments in health research and support programs. The proposal cuts Medicare by $105 billion over the next decade, funding for the National Cancer Institute by $40 million, and funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by $179 million while freezing funding to the National Institutes of Health. While calling on Congress to make permanent the tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003, the proposal also repeats the president's calls to the privatize Social Security, as well as imposing over $500 million in new fees on veterans' health care and cuts to education, labor and community development programs.

"At a time when families face record-high energy costs and spiraling health care costs, the president's budget proposal ought to reflect the nation's priorities and signal a new direction for our country. Yet only a week after the Republican majority pushed through draconian cuts to health care, college loan assistance and child support enforcement by the barest of margins, President Bush again wants Congress to prioritize tax cuts for the wealthiest at the expense of the health of seniors, veterans and our most vulnerable working families.

"I was pleased to see the president directing significant resources in the budget for bird flu preparations and for much-needed military equipment such as Black Hawk helicopters to support our troops. But these are but two of the areas in which the American people are looking to their president for leadership and a new direction - particularly when it comes to health care.

"Looking at this budget, it is clear that the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs and the confusion seniors across the country are experiencing with the Medicare prescription drug benefit will only worsen after the program is cut by $105 billion. The president's drug plan and Medicare cuts are a real blow to seniors across our state and country.

"And by stifling funding for the National Institutes of Health and $160 million in cuts to the Centers for Disease Control—agencies on the front lines of cutting edge medical research—we are compromising our efforts to make real headway in treating chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer's - the very diseases that have contributed to health care costs exploding these last several years.

"With record budget deficits and mounting challenges on so many fronts, the American people are looking for a sign that the president recognizes the need to change course - they are looking for hope. This budget gives them neither."

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