On July 10, 2014, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed legislation intended to speed the approval of drugs and medical devices and increase funding for medical research. The central aim of H.R. 6, the “21st Century Cures Act” (Cures bill), is to accelerate the drug development process by reducing or removing regulatory obstacles. Specifically, the Cures bill seeks to:

• Modernize the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drug and medical device approval process;
• Place greater regulatory attention on personalized medicine and rare diseases; and
• Provide for significant funding increases for the FDA and National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The vote margin of 344–77 in the House shows the strong bipartisan support that the Cures bill has been receiving.