Because of the successes of the Kids First Program and Data Resource Center, Representatives Jennifer Wexton (D-VA10), along with Tom Cole, R-OK, Gus Bilirakis, R-FL, and Debbie Dingell, D-MI, and 33 other bipartisan cosponsors, plus other Representatives got it passed in the House on March 5, 2024!
Now, all we need to do is get the Senate to pass it. Senators Tim Kaine, D-VA, and Jerry Moran, R-KS, with 13 other bipartisan Senators re-introduced the bill as S. 1624 Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act 2.0.
The bill is named in honor of Gabriella Miller, a Leesburg resident who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and passed away in 2013 at age 10.
Gabriella’s advocacy for lawmakers to “stop talking, start doing,” led to the creation of the Ten-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund which authorized $12.6 million in annual funds for childhood disease research. The current 10 year program will sunset (end) in September 2024. This new legislation would reauthorize and increase funding for the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Gabriella Miller Kids First Pediatric Research Program (Kids First), which has supported lifesaving research of treatments for childhood cancer including an open Data Resource Center for use by researchers in the USA and around the globe. We can not afford to lose this most valuable program and Data Resource Center.
“Gabriella Miller was a Virginian and a passionate activist, and it’s my mission to honor her by working to make sure pediatric disease research is a priority in Congress,” said Senator Tim Kaine in a statement. “I’m proud to join together with colleagues from both sides of the aisle in introducing this legislation, which would provide a crucial source of funding for the pediatric cancer and disease research that can support treatments and save lives in the years to come.”
We have 15 Senators today and need more. Help save the Kids First Program
Senate Cosponsors
If your Senator has not cosponsored yet, contact them by CLICKING HERE . When you contact your Senator, please reference S. 1624 – The Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act 2.0