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Fox Focus | Policy
Our Work in
Washington, D.C.
to Advocate
for Parkinson’s
Research
Won’t Stop
Washington, D.C. looks very different these
days. Like many cities with a “stay-at-home”
mandate, the streets and sidewalks are empty.
But throughout April, the lights burned long
into the night on Capitol Hill as Congress
delivered federal relief packages to help our
nation manage the economic and health effects
of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The pandemic has reinforced the importance
of federally funded biomedical research. This
moment in time has shown policymakers a
return on their investment in research and
that more research is critical to the health of
our nation. This message was strengthened
in early March, as 51 researchers from 28
states traveled to Capitol Hill for Researcher
Hill Day to urge Congress to increase federal
funding for Parkinson’s research. “Our
world has changed dramatically since I was
on Capitol Hill. But advocating for research
remains just as important,” said Girija
Muralidhar, a person with Parkinson’s and
researcher. “Moving Parkinson’s science
forward will require support from the federal
government, much like what is happening
right now around the world with COVID-19.”
While navigating this global crisis, members of
Congress are keeping the government running
and looking ahead to the new fiscal year that
starts October 1. This is the time of year that
the U.S. House and Senate Appropriations
Committees decide how federal dollars will be
spent. The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF)
continues to work with congressional aides
on obtaining critical funding increases for the
National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) and a Parkinson’s-specific research
program at the Department of Defense.