Sen. Britt advances $73.4 million for NIH IMPROVE Initiative

U.S. Senator Katie Britt, R-Ala., as a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, secured a $20 million increase for the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Implementing a Maternal Health and PRegnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE) Initiative in the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. With Senator Britt’s support, the total appropriated in the Committee’s bill for the NIH IMPROVE Initiative would be $73.4 million for FY25.

This program supports research to reduce preventable causes of maternal deaths and improve health care for women before, during, and after pregnancy.

“Alabama has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation. This disproportionately affects black women,” said Senator Britt. “In 2024, it should not be like this. I was proud to advance a $20M increase that I secured for the NIH IMPROVE Initiative for Fiscal Year 2025. These funds would help support critical research on reducing maternal mortality and improving maternal care. I’ll continue to make this a top priority. Senator Laphonza Butler and I have introduced the NIH IMPROVE Act, which would ensure consistent funding for this important program, and we are working to enact this commonsense, bipartisan legislation into law.”

The FY25 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Act now awaits consideration by the full Senate.

During the Senate Appropriations Committee’s markup of the bill last week, Senator Britt highlighted this important issue and thanked members on both sides of the aisle for their attention to it.

Background:

Senator Britt has made health care, including rural and maternal care, a top legislative priority during her first 19 months in office. She joined Senator Laphonza Butler, D-Calif., in introducing the NIH IMPROVE Act. Their bipartisan legislation would provide consistent support and resources for the NIH Improve Initiative to conduct important research into the causes of America’s maternal mortality crisis and to improve health care and outcomes for women before, during, and after pregnancy.

Additionally, Senator Britt joined Senators Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Tina Smith, D-Minn., in introducing the Rural Obstetrics Readiness Act. This bipartisan legislation would expand access to maternal care by offering support for rural health care facilities and doctors to provide urgent obstetric care. This is especially important for Alabama, as 55 of the state’s 67 counties are considered rural.

Senator Britt also reintroduced the Access to Breast Cancer Diagnosis (ABCD) Act with Senator Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., in September 2023. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation would eliminate copays and other out-of-pocket expenses for breast cancer diagnostic tests, making them more accessible and affordable.

Last December, Senator Britt joined a bipartisan group of 59 of her Senate colleagues in reintroducing the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act of 2023. This bill would expand coverage of telehealth services through Medicare, make permanent COVID-19 telehealth flexibilities, improve health outcomes, and make it easier for patients to connect with their doctors, especially important in rural areas.

Additionally, she cosponsored two pieces of bipartisan legislation to help all Alabamians access insulin. They include the Affordable Insulin Now Act of 2023, which would cap the price of insulin for all patients, including those who are uninsured, at $35 for a 30-day supply; and the Improving Needed Safeguards for Users of Lifesaving Insulin Now (INSULIN) Act of 2023, which would comprehensively address the skyrocketing costs of insulin, removing barriers to care and making it more accessible for millions more Americans.

Senator Britt, along with Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., also introduced the Youth Mental Health Research Act to create a national Youth Mental Health Research Initiative to guide long-term mental health care efforts, better target preventive interventions for those at risk of developing mental health challenges, and improve treatments for children.