Citing Hospital Stay, Menino Weighs In On Fiscal Cliff

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is weighing in on federal budget negotiations.

The mayor has sent a letter (PDF) to President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner urging that federal health research funding be spared any cuts.

Menino says his recent hospitalization demonstrates the "importance of funding for health research, training and care":

I know a little bit about the importance of funding for health research, training, and care. Boston is home to the #1 medical school in the country and the #1 hospital in the country. Researchers in Boston earn more NIH support than in any other city. Health care companies and institutions employ more people than any other sector.

Oh, and there’s this: I just spent a month in one of our world-class health care institutions and am writing you from another.

He concludes:

The fiscal cliff is bad for our country, and so is any remedy that guts funding for discovery, for health care training, and for healing. I write to urge you and all of your counterparts to give it to us straight on that fact, even from here. Especially from here.

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