Stimulus Adds $10 Billion for NIH; Will Help to Support ALS Research



The ALS Association won a hard fought victory as Congress will provide an additional $10 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as part of the economic stimulus plan passed by Congress this evening and expected to be signed into law by President Obama. This represents a nearly 18% increase in funding over 2008 and will help to increase support for ALS research at the NIH, which is the single largest source of ALS research funding in the world. Click here to read The Association's letter urging support for the increased funding.

Before President Obama took office in January, The Association also reached out to key members of the President's transition team outlining our priorities for the NIH and how the new Administration can support people with ALS in the fight for a treatment. In addition to advocating funding be included in the economic stimulus package, we also urged the new Administration to partner with the ALS community and support innovative programs that provide us with the best opportunities to advance ALS research as quickly as possible. A copy of our comments to the Obama Transition Team can be found here .

2009 National ALS Advocacy Day and Public Policy Conference
We are pleased to share that Dr. Story Landis, Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), will be a featured speaker at The ALS Association's 2009 Public Policy Conference, which takes place May 10-12 in Washington, DC. Dr. Landis will share the latest news on innovative ALS research underway at NIH and how this additional $10 billion in funding is advancing the fight for a treatment and cure. The ALS Association's Senior Vice President for Research and Development, Dr. Lucie Bruijn, will lead the session and also will share additional information about how The Association continues to partner with NIH.

For additional information about the Advocacy Conference, including registration information and details about the conference schedule and speakers, please visit our website at www.alsa.org/policy/alsday.cfm. If you have other questions about this update, please contact us at advocacy@alsa-national.org or toll-free at 1-877-444-ALSA.