DeGette, Upton statement on reigniting Cancer Moonshot program
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following is a joint statement from U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette (D-CO) and Fred Upton (R-MI) on President Biden's call on Congress to create a new Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, or ARPA-H, to end cancer as we know it:
"Six years ago, we had the privilege to work with then-Vice President Biden to include his Cancer Moonshot program as part of our 21st Century Cures Act. And we are just as excited today, as we were then, to continue working with the administration to not only reignite this important program, but to build upon the tremendous success that it's had.
"Diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's and diabetes, don't care if you're a Democrat or Republican, they affect all of us the same. And finding new cures and treatments for these devastating illnesses is something that all of us should be able to support.
"Immediately after meeting with President Biden in the Oval Office back in March to discuss his plan for creating a new Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, we began working with our congressional colleagues to make it happen. It's time to make the impossible, possible. And we are hopeful that we'll be able to get this exciting new agency up and running soon."
Additional Background:
In 2016, with the enactment of the 21st Century Cures Act – a landmark piece of legislation authored by DeGette and Upton – Congress invested $1.8 billion of new funding for cancer research. Among other things, the law streamlined cancer-related decision-making at the FDA through the formation of an Oncology Center of Excellence, so that effective treatments can be approved faster and patients can have more direct access to information about the regulatory process.
In 2021, to build upon the tremendous progress made since passage of the 21st Century Cures Act, DeGette and Upton introduced new legislation they have dubbed "Cures 2.0." While the original 21st Century Cures Act sought to revolutionize how the U.S. developed new cures and treatments for some of the most difficult diseases, Cures 2.0 is aimed at getting those new cures and treatments to patients faster.
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing on February 8 in which ARPA-H and Cures 2.0 will be discussed.