© Michael John Coleman 2009
Help Your Congressperson to Support Equitable Funding for Migraine & Headache Disorders Today!
WASHINGTON, DC—(Thursday, March 12th, 2009)—(Updated March 14th, 2009)—Today Congressmen Peter Welch issued Dear Colleague letter already signed by three other U.S. Representatives who are asking for other members of Congress to join them and sign this important Congressional document to improve the healthcare for over 48 million Americans. What Congresspersons Peter Welch, Jean Schmidt, Tammy Baldwin, and Raul Grijalva asking for what MAGNUM requested during their visits to the Senate and the Congress while attending Headache On the Hill 2 in the nation's capitol last month.
Here is their request-
In short we all asked that the House L-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee prioritize the full and equitable funding of NIH research on Migraine disease and headache disorders in the FY2010 federal budget.
In an e-mail which went out this morning to all members of Congress stated the following:
Help address a group of disorders that disables over 48 million Americans.
Join us in requesting that the House L-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee prioritize the full and equitable funding of NIH research on headache disorders in the FY2010 federal budget.
Headache disorders, including migraine, chronic daily headache and cluster headache, affect over 48 million of our constituents. NIH funding for research into these disorders has never been appropriate to the scale of the problem. (See attached fact sheet.)
The Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy, the World Health Organization, the World Headache Alliance, the American Academy of Neurology, the American Headache Society, the Headache Cooperative of New England, the Headache Cooperative of the Pacific, the Migraine Research Foundation, Miles for Migraine, the National Headache Foundation, the National Migraine Association (MAGNUM), and the Ohio Headache Association have called for substantial increases in NIH funding for research on headache disorders commensurate with their tremendous disease burden.
Please see the attached letter to Chairman Obey and Ranking Member Tiahrt requesting report language that prioritizes a long overdue increase in support for NIH research on headache disorders and fair peer-review of headache research grant proposals. THIS IS A PROGRAMMATIC REQUEST FOR REPORT LANGUAGE ONLY.
If you wish to co-sign this letter, or for answers to any questions, please contact Ms. Shayla Livingston in Mr. Welch's office (202) 225-4115.
Sincerely,
PETER WELCH JEAN SCHMIDT
Member of Congress Member of Congress
Here is the actual letter Congressman Welch is asking other member of the U.S. Congress to sign on to help all of us and our families, loved ones, friends , and co-workers. You can help too by contacting your Congressman or Congreswoman today.
Take a minute to read the letter from Congressman Welch & Congresswoman Schmidt below. Then please contact your Congressman or Congresswoman this afternoon! Even for those of you who are not sure who your Congressmen is, or you dont know your Congresswoman's e-mail address, not to worry. Just check out the next paragraph!
To contact your Representative using our partner's Action Alert webpage complete with sample e-mails to help you get the best information to your representive. The AHDA website simplifies contacting your members of the House with the right message at the right time. You will even be able to add a brief personal statement to your members of the Houseif you wish.
Please write Your Representative or e-mail them by going directly to AHDA's "Write Your Representative" webpage . Do it now and you will feel better in the morning!
Now here is the actual letter you would be asking your to Representative to sign-
The Honorable David R. Obey
Chairman
House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, Human Services
and Education
2358-B Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
The Honorable Todd Tiahrt
Ranking Member Senate Appropriations Subcommittee
on Labor, Health, Human Services and Education
2358-B Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Chairman Obey and Ranking Member Tiahrt,
We are very mindful that the House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) will be faced with many difficult choices in 2009. However, we respectfully request that the committee recognize and rectify at this time the federal neglect of Americans disabled by headache disorders.
Headache disorders are the most prevalent of all neurological disorders. 36 million Americans will experience a migraine attack this year and 12 million Americans will suffer from chronic daily headaches. Collectively, headache disorders cost the United States economy more than $31 billion annually, including 9 percent of all lost labor. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) expends less than $13 million annually on all research related to headache disorders. This represents less than 0.05 percent of the NIH budget.
The Alliance for Headache Disorders Advocacy, the American Academy of Neurology, the World Health Organization, the World Headache Alliance, the American Headache Society, the Headache Cooperative of New England, the Headache Cooperative of the Pacific, the Migraine Research Foundation, Miles for Migraine, the National Headache Foundation, the National Migraine Association (MAGNUM), and the Ohio Headache Association have called for substantial increases in NIH funding for research on headache disorders commensurate with their tremendous disease burden.
We hereby request that the following report language be appended to the FY 2010 bill that appropriates funding for the NIH:
“NIH funded research efforts on headache disorders have not been commensurate with their enormous disease burden. The Committee strongly urges NINDS (1) to solicit grant applications for fundamental and translational research on headache disorders with Requests for Applications (RFAs), and (2) to recruit new investigators aggressively with Program Announcements with set-aside funds (PASs) for career training and transition (F and K) awards specifically devoted to the investigation of headache disorders. The Committee strongly urges the establishment of a screening program for therapies for headache disorders comparable in scope to the Anticonvulsant Screening Program (ASP). The Committee strongly urges the NIH Center for Scientific Review to provide fair peer review by ensuring that headache research investigators have the option of review of their grant proposals by an Integrated Review Group study section containing at least three! permanent members who are principally headache research scientists. The Committee commends NINDS for recently initiating a process towards defining Headache Disorders Research Benchmarks and requests a report on the progress of this program. The Committee also requests a report on the status of NIH intramural research programs related to headache disorders.”
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Like we said, please write Your Representative or e-mail them by going directly to AHDA's "Write Your Representative" webpage . You have read the Congressional letter so do it now and you will feel better in the morning!
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