John E. Fogarty
| John E. Fogarty | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Rhode Island's 2nd district |
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In office January 3, 1941 – January 10, 1967 |
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| Preceded by | Harry Sandager |
| Succeeded by | Robert Tiernan |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
John Edward Fogarty March 23, 1913 Providence, Rhode Island |
| Died | January 10, 1967 (aged 53) Washington, D.C. |
| Resting place | St. Ann’s Cemetery, Cranston |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Luise Rohland |
| Occupation | bricklayer |
John Edward Fogarty (March 23, 1913 – January 10, 1967) was a Congressman from Rhode Island for 26 years.
John E. Fogarty was born in Providence, Rhode Island, March 23, 1913. He attended La Salle Academy and Providence College, afterwards settling in Harmony, Rhode Island. Fogarty was employed as a bricklayer and was also active in Rhode Island's Bricklayers Union Number 1, of which he became President.
In 1940 Fogarty was a successful Democratic candidate for the United States House of Representatives. He served from January 3, 1941 until his death. As a member of the Naval Affairs Committee, he traveled with, worked with and observed a Seabee battalion in the Pacific Theater from December, 1944 to February, 1945.
Assigned to the Appropriations Committee in January 1947, he served on the subcommittee providing funds for the Departments of Labor, Health, Education and Welfare longer than any other member in the history of Congress. As Chairman of the subcommittee for sixteen (16) years, Fogarty became nationally known as the spokesman for medical research in the Congress. He is often referred to as the "Champion of Better Health for the Nation."
During his years on the Committee, appropriations for the National Institutes of Health rose from $3.5 Million in 1946 to $1.5 Billion for fiscal 1967. It was in 1955, at the instigation of Fogarty, that Federal funds in the amount of $750,000 were first appropriated for activities in the field of the mentally retarded and by 1967 was increased to $334 Million. This increase in available funds permitted the Institutes to take great strides forward in their constant search to find the cause and cure of today's killing and crippling diseases.
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