Congress seems increasingly likely to shower BARDA, NIH with funding

On Monday evening, Senate Republicans released their newest attempt at crafting a coronavirus response package. The biggest winner of the proposal is the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, which would get an eye-popping $20 billion in new funding.

Prior to the pandemic, BARDA’s annual budget was shy of $1.4 billion, however, the organization has been flooded with cash in recent months.The most recent Covid-19 response bill, the CARES Act,  included $3.5 billion in funding for BARDA, a hefty increase at the time that is now overshadowed by the new bill.

The National Institutes of Health would also come away with a big infusion of cash under  Monday’s proposal. The funding for NIH includes $10 billion to jumpstart research stalled by the pandemic and another $4.5 billion in funding for substance abuse and mental health initiatives. Read more here.