Both chambers of Congress this afternoon (December 19) agreed to a suite of government spending bills that included roughly $29 billion for the National Institutes of Health, according to Nancy Granese from the Campaign for Medical Research.

This budget, for FY08, is $130 million more than FY07. The raise was smaller than some medical and research organizations had hoped for. In a press release from CMR, the group's chairman, G. Steven Burrill, said: "we remain deeply concerned that Federal investment in the NIH has failed to keep pace with inflation for five straight years." That sentiment was echoed in a statement by the American Association of Medical Colleges.

The bill now moves to the president for his approval.