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Appropriations bill includes $2 million for lupus research

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Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 83, a contentious end-of-session bill known as the “Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act,” which avoids a government shutdown and includes $2 million in National Institutes of Health funding for lupus research programs. The funding is part of more than $30 billion appropriated to the NIH for health initiatives.

The bill passed with 214 votes to 212 and will now move on to the U.S. Senate, which must pass it by midnight to continue to fund the government.

Lupus advocacy groups welcome the funds. The Lupus Research Institute (LRI) said it has been lobbying Congress through its Lupus Initiative division, according to a press release.

“The Lupus Initiative has made significant headway in 1 year, but there is more work ahead to ensure that every health care professional considers lupus when faced with a patient describing vague symptoms like severe fatigue and joint pain,” LRI CEO, Margaret Dowd, said in the press release. “Our LRI coalition of patient advocates thanks Congress for recognizing the need for additional funds to expand our reach among medical students and front-line providers most likely to encounter undiagnosed cases of lupus.”

The Lupus Initiative is managed by the American College of Rheumatology and is a collaborative program between the U.S. Office of Minority Health, the U.S. Office of Women’s Health and the U.S. Surgeon General.

The bill instructs the NIH to release an update on lupus research and to outline research plans for the coming year. The bill also provides more than $247 million to the U.S. Department of Defense Peer-Reviewed Medical Research Program, according to the release.

The appropriations bill was criticized by both Democrats and Republicans for numerous provisions that were inserted with little or no discussion. Among the contentious additions were provisions that would insure losses stemming from derivatives trading that critics said would provide for future bank bailouts by taxpayers, as well as a provision to allow truck drivers to work up to 80 hours in 1 week.

Reference: www.lupusresearchinstitute.org.