Good Day BIO: 'Frankly, patients can't wait.'

Beginning a new week with an explainer on Cures 2.0 and recent exhibits on the National Mall highlighting agriculture and women in STEM. Today, we’ll be watching to see what’s in President Biden’s FY23 budget. (604 words, 3 minutes, 1 second)

Cures 2.0: ‘Frankly, patients can’t wait.’

Cures 2.0—the long-awaited update to the 21st Century Cures Act—was the hot topic during a virtual congressional briefing last week with U.S. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and Diana DeGette (D-CO), hosted by MichBio and multiple other CSBA associations. 

The mission of the 21st Century Cures Act was to “advance medical research and foster a new era of medical innovations, and to try to find cures that will help us with some of the world's most difficult and intractable diseases,” said Rep. DeGette.

It helped expedite the COVID-19 vaccines “eight or ten months earlier,” said Rep. Upton. “We would have lost hundreds of thousands more Americans had we not gotten the 21st Century Cures Act done.”

Now, it’s time for version 2.0: “21st Century Cures really focused on revolutionizing how we research and develop new cures and treatments,” said Rep. DeGette. “2.0 is looking at how we modernize how we get these breakthrough treatments and drugs to patients faster.”

There’s a lot packed in the bill—including the creation of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) and provisions to improve clinical trial diversity, access to telehealth, and training for at-home caregivers. Here’s the official section-by-section summary, and our previous recap of the draft legislation.

Both the 21st Century Cures Act and Cures 2.0 highlight that bipartisanship is still possible: “When that bill passed, everybody was on board and it was a 53-to-nothing vote,” said Rep. Upton. “Let’s get this done. Frankly, patients can’t wait.”

Dr. Michelle’s Diagnosis: “Cures 2.0 could help ensure scientists, researchers and entrepreneurs have the policy and regulatory environment they need to develop new medicines for patients around the globe,” said BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath in November.

National Mall exhibits highlight agriculture, women in STEM

We got a look at the fun!

ICYMI: Last Tuesday was National Agriculture Day, highlighting the important role of food and agriculture—including 7% of the U.S. economy and 29% of jobs, per the Feeding the Economy report released the same day. To celebrate, tractors and U.S. agricultural products took over the National Mall:

What BIO had to say: “The Feeding the Economy report continues to illustrate the role cutting edge technologies have in increasing agriculture production and strengthening America’s bioeconomy," said BIO's Vice President for Agriculture & Environment Sarah Gallo. "We must build on this progress and encourage policies that embrace science so we can enhance our supply chains, increase access to nutritional foods, and combat climate change.”

Meanwhile, for Women's History Month, #IfThenSheCan: The Exhibit honors 125 women in STEM by showcasing life-size 3D-printed statues of them at the Enid A. Haupt Garden by the Smithsonian Institution Building—watch the virtual tour. The featured women are American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) IF/THEN® Ambassadors, serving as high-profile role models for middle-school girls.

What they’re saying: “Our ag-related technology, our human health technology and our next-generation energy technology all require a high and evolving level of cybersecurity. These industries have to be operating in lockstep, and Ashley is helping us build the relationships needed to get there,” said Joni Ekstrum, Executive Director of SDBiotech. 

During Women's History Month, BIO’s been showcasing women in biotech and STEM, too—here are 40 more you should know. Plus, we explore what we can do about the underrepresentation of women and biotech and how we can support them.

More Agriculture and Environment News:

The Guardian: ‘Climate smart’ policies could increase southern Africa’s crops by up to 500%
“There had been successful trials of agricultural methods such as terracing, said researchers, as a way to improve soil health and water availability. The report added that developing new crop varieties was crucial to cope with extreme temperatures and rainfall.”

President Biden’s Monday: At 2:45 PM ET, he’ll announce his FY23 budget, which the White House says “will reduce deficits by more than $1 trillion over the next decade, advance safety and security at home and around the world, and make the investments needed to build a better America."

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: The Senate is “likely to act on the America COMPETES Act,” says POLITICO Day Ahead.