The NIH is a step closer to getting a $150 million boost by September. Last night (June 19) the House of Representatives passed a supplementary 2008 appropriations bill that includes a hefty chunk to the agency.

Of $400 million that the Senate snuck into a bill last month intended to support the Iraq war and disaster relief, $150 million will now go to the NIH, The Chronicle of Higher Education reported. The remaining money will be split up between NASA and the National Science Foundation.

The bill now returns to the Senate next week for a final vote, and the President has said he will sign it.

This week the House Appropriations Committee passed a spending bill for 2009 that would boost the NIH budget by $1.2 billion.