News

123October 15, 2026The Honorable Shelley Moore CapitoChairSenate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor,Health and Human Services, Education, andRelated AgenciesWashington, DC 20510The Honorable Tammy BaldwinRanking MemberSenate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor,Health and Human Services, Education, andRelated AgenciesWashington, DC 20510Dear Chair Capito and Ranking Member Baldwin:On behalf of the Friends of the Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH), we write tothank you for your efforts to keep the federal government funded and to ensure that criticalgovernment functions and programs can continue without interruption. As the Senate Labor,Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS) Appropriationssubcommittee considers its fiscal year (FY) 2027 funding requests, we urge you to remain firm inyour commitment to the health of all Americans by providing no less than $51.303 billion forthe National Institutes of Health (NIH) and $115.74 million for the ORWH in the SenateLabor-HHS funding bill.The Friends of ORWH is a coalition of more than 50 organizations representing researchers,clinicians, patients, and policy advocates that are committed to elevating the mission of ORWHto address biological sex differences in health and prioritize closing research gaps to advancewomen’s health. Earlier this year, the Friends of ORWH sent a letter to congressionalappropriators detailing the promise and benefits of the NIH and ORWH. We furtherdemonstrated the value of sustained women’s health research investment in testimony to boththe House and Senate Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittees .While we were encouraged by the proposed $111.48 million for the ORWH in the HouseLabor-HHS bill passed in June, we continue to urge Congress to provide no less than $115.74million for the ORWH. Not only is this request consistent with recommendations from thebroader scientific community (representing an 8.7 percent increase over FY2026 enactedfunding), but investment at this level is necessary to continue advancing research to close thewomen’s health gap. At a time when NIH funding has not kept pace with inflation, this level offunding would support meaningful growth in research funding even after accounting forincreases in the cost of conducting biomedical research, as reflected by the Biomedical Researchand Development Price Index (BRDPI).We recognize the challenges of the current fiscal environment and the many competingpriorities before Congress, but sustained investment in women’s health research is essential toaddressing some of the nation’s most pressing health challenges. Chronic conditions such asAlzheimer’s disease, heart disease, and autoimmune diseases burden a large portion of the U.S.population, and these conditions disproportionately or disparately affect women.1,2,3 Yetresearch is only recently beginning to reveal evidence of how sex and gender influence diseaserisk, progression, diagnosis, and treatment across condition areas. ORWH is uniquely positionedto help build the evidence base. By coordinating and advancing women’s health research acrossNIH Institutes and Centers, and through programs that support training and mentorship forinvestigators and programs in sex-differences research, the ORWH ensures that women’s healthis considered throughout the biomedical research enterprise.The consequences of insufficient investment in biomedical research on women’s health extendbeyond scientific progress. When women’s unique biology and health needs are not adequatelyreflected in research, it can contribute to missed or delayed diagnoses, less effectivetreatments, and preventable deaths. These gaps also carry significant economic costs,increasing avoidable health care spending, reducing productivity, and placing added financialstrain on individuals, families, and communities.While the Friends appreciate Congress passing the continuing resolution (CR) to keep thegovernment open through December 11 and avoiding a government shutdown, CRs create anenvironment of scientific uncertainty. They can disrupt ongoing studies, delay researchmilestones, and create difficult financial pressures for research teams, including potential staffreductions or the termination of studies, in medical research laboratories and institutions acrossthe country. These disruptions are particularly concerning for women’s health research, whichoften depends on longitudinal studies that collect and analyze data over many years tounderstand how women’s health and disease risk change across the lifespan. The Friends ofORWH strongly encourages Congress to work in a bipartisan manner to pass a full-yearspending bill as soon as possible. Maintaining stable, predictable federal funding is essential topreserving these investments and ensuring that years of research, data collection, and scientificprogress are not lost.3 Kronzer, V. L., Bridges, S. L., Jr, & Davis, J. M., 3rd (2020). Why women have more autoimmune diseases than men:An evolutionary perspective. Evolutionary applications, 14(3), 629–633. https://doi.org/10.1111/eva.131672 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). About women and heart disease. Centers for Disease Controland Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/women-and-heart-disease.html1 O'Neal M. A. (2024). Women and the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Frontiers in global women's health, 4, 1324522.https://doi.org/10.3389/fgwh.2023.1324522The Friends of ORWH looks forward to working with you to ensure sufficient and necessarysupport for federal medical research agencies in FY2027. We would welcome the opportunity tomeet with your offices to discuss our request in more detail. Please reach out to LindseyMiltenberger, MA, Chief Advocacy Officer at the Society for Women’s Health Research, atlindsey@swhr.org for any questions or if you need additional information.Sincerely,51&AcademyHealthAlliance for Aging ResearchAmerican College of Nurse-MidwivesAmerican College of Obstetricians & GynecologistsAmerican Medical Women's AssociationAmerican Physiological SocietyAvestria Ventures ManagementBlack Women's Health ImperativeCenter for Endometriosis CareCleveland Clinic Women’s Comprehensive Health and Research CenterEndocrine SocietyEvia Wellness, LLCFertility Alliance ProvidersFoundation for Sarcoidosis ResearchGlobal Health Technologies CoalitionHealthy Americas FoundationHealthyWomenImpact AdvocacyMaternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance (MMHLA)Miles for MigraineMinneapolis Heart Institute FoundationNational Alliance for Hispanic HealthNational Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women's HealthOvarian Cancer Research AlliancePreeclampsia FoundationRESOLVE: The National Infertility and Family Building AssociationSociety for Women's Health ResearchWomen First Research CoalitionWomen’s Alzheimer’s Movement at Cleveland ClinicWomen's Health AdvocatesWomenHeartWorld Health Education Foundation