Continuing Resolution Keeps Health Discretionary Spending at Current Levels

President Bush has signed a continuing resolution, or CR, that will keep the federal government funded until March 6, leaving in place current funding levels for federal agencies, but possibly delaying the processing of new grant money.

Bush signed the CR on Sept. 30 after Congress was unable to pass a Labor, HHS and Education bill for the current 2009 fiscal year, or FY '09, which began Oct. 1. The Labor, HHS and Education bill is the source of funding for programs and agencies administered by HHS, including Title VII of the Public Health Service Act, the National Health Service Corps, the federal community health centers program, the CDC, the NIH and all discretionary health spending.

The CR is a stop-gap measure designed to keep the federal government funded until the administration and Congress can reach an agreement on federal spending. In this instance, the CR will delay the enactment of an FY '09 spending plan until the next Congress convenes in 2009.

"Next January, when the new Congress convenes, House and Senate appropriators will be anxious to clear the final federal 2009 spending bill so they can get under way with appropriations plans for 2010," said Teresa Baker, federal government relations representative in the AAFP Division of Government Relations.

The CR will impact Title VII of the Public Health Service Act, which is designed to strengthen the primary care educational infrastructure at medical schools and residency programs while encouraging residents to pursue careers in locations where they can work with underserved populations. Section 747 of Title VII provides the only federal grants for the training of family physicians.

The grant application process for Title VII usually occurs during November and December, but it is not clear whether that process will start on time this year because of the CR, said Hope Wittenberg, director of government relations for the Academic Family Medicine Advocacy Alliance. Although the CR will not result in diminished funding for Title VII, the possibility of a grant application delay could postpone the awarding of grant money, Wittenberg said.

"Repeated uncertainty about the availability of funds for these programs causes disruptions in schools and training programs, making it difficult for them to plan for or conduct new programs," she said.