Dear Congressional Leaders:On behalf of the Council of State Bioscience Associations (CSBA)—a national coalition of independent, state and territory-based organizations representing the full breadth of America’s biotechnology ecosystem—we write to urge swift congressional action on three bipartisan, urgently needed policies that will strengthen the U.S. life sciences sector and improve patient access to affordable, life-changing therapies.According to a recent industry report, U.S. bioscience industry employment in 2023 reached 2.3 million jobs in more than 149,000 businesses across every state in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. The total economic impact of the bioscience industry on the U.S. economy, as measured by overall output, totaled $3.2 trillion dollars in 20231. Our member companies—many of them research-intensive, pre-revenue biotechnology innovators—are working every day to discover treatments and cures for diseases that currently have none. Their ability to continue taking scientific and financial risks depends heavily on clear, stable federal policy frameworks. Just as importantly, patients across the country depend on policymakers to ensure the affordability, accessibility, and timely development of new therapies.Congress has a critical opportunity to advance reforms that directly help patients and promote the virtuous circle of biotech innovation. To support the ecosystem, we urge you to:Reauthorize the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher ProgramExtend the SBIR/STTR ProgramsAdvance important PBM transparency reformsReauthorize the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher ProgramWe strongly urge passage of the “Mikaela Naylon Give Kids A Chance Act” to ensure continuity of the FDA Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher (RPD PRV) program. Nearly half of rare disease patients are children, yet therapeutic options remain extremely limited due to high development costs and small patient populations. The RPD PRV program has been one of…