September Will Be Critical Legislative Month in Congress; Endocrine Society Advocates for Policy Priorities
When the Congress returned to Washington, D.C., September 2 from its six-week recess, it will have only 28 days to pass legislation to fund the federal government or face a government shutdown.
The federal fiscal year ends September 30, and by then Congress must pass and the president must sign either 12 bills addressing all federal agency programs or a bigger, “omnibus” bill that ties all the individual bills together. When Congress recessed, several bills had advanced in the House of Representatives and the Senate, but none had been approved by both chambers. As this issue of Endocrine News goes to press, only the Senate Appropriations Committee has passed the bill that covers the Department of Health & Human Services, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Because of the short window to complete funding bills, many in Washington, D.C., believe Congress may opt to pass legislation known as a continuing resolution (CR) that will avert a shutdown by continuing to fund the federal government at current levels. Others in Washington, however, worry that Congress may allow a government shutdown to occur and that it could last for a long time.
The Endocrine Society continues to advocate to protect funding for the NIH, including opposing policy changes such as multi-year funding that would significantly lower NIH paylines. On September 18, the Society is bringing members to Washington to participate in a research community Rally for Medical Research Hill Day and advocate for funding for medical research. Hundreds of researchers from different organizations will share the same message with congressional offices about the importance of NIH funding.
In addition, several health programs are scheduled to expire September 30, if Congress does not pass legislation to extend them. This includes the Special Diabetes Program (SDP), a program the Society has long advocated for. The SDP provides additional funding for type 1 diabetes at the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and funding to the Indian Health Service to provide type 2 diabetes prevention and treatment programs to Alaska and American Indian communities disproportionately affected by the disease.
We encourage our members to join our advocacy campaigns to share our messages with their U.S. representative and senators. Please visit www.endocrine.org/take-action for the latest ways to get involved.
Society Continues to Advocate for Congress to Address Insulin Affordability
The Endocrine Society continues to advocate for Congress to address the issue of insulin affordability, which is an issue for millions of people living with diabetes.
The Society is working closely with the co-chairs of the Senate Diabetes Caucus on legislation expected to be introduced soon that would lower the cost of insulin for people with private insurance. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) authored legislation during the previous Congress to expand the $35 co-pay cap currently available to Medicare beneficiaries to the private insurance market. The bill would also require pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to pass through insulin and rebates and other discounts to ensure that patients can share in any savings and would promote further development of biosimilar insulins.
The Society was a leading advocate of legislation signed into law by President Joe Biden, which capped out-of-pocket costs of insulin at $35 per-month for Medicare beneficiaries. We will continue to urge Congress to pass legislation expanding that co-pay to the commercial market and address insulin affordability for people without insurance.
The Society strongly supports this proposal, which aligns with recommendations in our position statement on insulin access and affordability calling for limiting insulin co-pay caps to no more than $35 per month. Our position statement also recommends passing savings from insulin rebates directly to patients and the development of biosimilar insulins. The Society was a leading advocate of legislation signed into law by President Joe Biden, which capped out-of-pocket costs of insulin at $35 per-month for Medicare beneficiaries. We will continue to urge Congress to pass legislation expanding that co-pay to the commercial market and address insulin affordability for people without insurance.
Updates from the NIH Office of Research on Women’s Health
Women’s health is one of the Endocrine Society’s top policy and advocacy priorities. We want to bring to your attention the following updates and information:
- Sex as a Biological Variable (SABV): The SABV policy at the NIH provides framework for NIH-funded researchers to account for sex as a biological variable in human and vertebrate animal studies. While many NIH policies are changing, we understand that the SABV policy remains in effect at the NIH. The Endocrine Society championed the introduction of the SABV policy at the NIH and applauds the continuation of this policy across the NIH’s Institutes and Centers.
- DiscoverWHR: A new resource is available to serve as a place for individuals to find information on menopause, polycystic ovary syndrome, ovarian cancer, and more that affect women’s health across the lifespan. Individuals can also find information on clinical trials related to these areas of health on this website: discoverwhr.nih.gov.
- NIH-Wide Strategic Plan for Autoimmune Disease Research: The Office of Autoimmune Disease Research within ORWH recently released their NIH-Wide Strategic Plan for Autoimmune Disease Research. With over 140 identified autoimmune diseases affecting every organ system, 25% of individuals having more than one autoimmune disease, and over 80% of individuals with an autoimmune disease are women, this strategic plan identifies five priorities which will be used to guide autoimmune research across the NIH’s Institutes and Centers.
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