President Signs 21st Century Cures Act

CHICAGO, Dec. 13, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Obama signed into law the "21^st Century Cures Act" today, following last week's Congressional approval of the bipartisan bill.  This past weekend, Congress also approved full funding for various components of the 21^st Century Cures Act, including $300 million in fiscal year 2017 for the Vice President's Cancer Moonshot Initiative.

The American Brain Tumor Association (ABTA), the first and only national patient advocacy organization committed to brain tumors, praised these actions, and spent the past few weeks encouraging its advocates to contact their members of Congress to support full funding for the Cancer Moonshot Initiative.

"The ABTA is proud to have played a role in the passage of this vital funding package in the waning days of the 114^th Congress," stated Elizabeth Wilson, president and CEO, American Brain Tumor Association. "This legislative accomplishment would not have been possible without the advocacy efforts of families coping with brain tumors, and other Americans across the country whose daily lives are burdened with cancers and rare diseases."

The funding cleared by Congress this weekend for the Cancer Moonshot was part of an $872 million package that also included funding for the BRAIN Initiative, the Precision Medicine Initiative, and other important programs authorized by 21^st Century Cures.  The approval of this package, combined with the President's signature today, ensures that the full $300 million will be invested this year on new treatments and cures.

"Throughout 2017 and beyond, the ABTA will be working with the National Institutes of Health and the Moonshot Cancer Task Force to ensure that this funding is spent wisely," stated Wilson. "We will work with these agencies and Congress to see how we can best leverage some of this funding into accelerating research into new cures and treatments for brain tumors."

For more information, visit www.abta.org or call 800-886-ABTA (2282).

About the American Brain Tumor Association
Founded in 1973, the American Brain Tumor Association was the first and is the only national patient advocacy organization committed to funding brain tumor research and providing support and education programs for people of all tumor types and all ages.

Media Contact: Phung Tran
Phone: (773) 577-8792
Email: ptran@abta.org

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SOURCE American Brain Tumor Association