President Joe Biden has taken a significant step forward in prioritizing women’s health research by signing an executive order to implement action plans to improve research in this critical area.
The directive seeks to integrate and prioritize women’s health across the federal research portfolio and budget, fostering new studies on various topics, including midlife health for women.
Central to this initiative is the call for Congress to allocate $12 billion in new funding to establish a dedicated fund for women’s health research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and to establish a new nationwide network of research centers of excellence and innovation in women’s health.
The executive order mandates that constituent agencies of the initiative develop research and data standards on women’s health across all relevant funding opportunities.
It also directs agencies to prioritize women’s health research funding and encourage innovation through initiatives like the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) and other multi-agency efforts.
One of the key objectives of the order is to address research gaps in diseases and conditions prevalent in women’s midlife or post-menopause, such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis.
This involves expanding women’s midlife health-related data collection efforts and launching research to guide future menopause-related research investments.
Additionally, the order calls for enhancing menopause-related issue management and clinical care and developing new resources to assist women in understanding prevention and treatment options for menopause-related symptoms.
The Department of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) are also tasked with improving menopause-related treatment and research.
The Office of Management and Budget and Gender Policy Council will assess federal funding gaps for women’s health research and identify necessary changes to maximize support for such research across the federal government.
This NIH-wide coordinated effort will be overseen by the NIH Office of the Director, the Office of Research on Women’s Health, and institute directors from other institutes.
To bolster this initiative, President Biden and the First Lady have announced 20 new actions by federal agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), VA, and National Science Foundation (NSF), to launch a new interdisciplinary women’s health research effort with $200 million in funding in fiscal year 2025.
President Biden’s executive order represents a significant commitment to advancing women’s health research and addressing the unique health needs of women across the lifespan.
By prioritizing research in this area and allocating substantial funding, the administration aims to make meaningful strides in improving women’s health outcomes and reducing healthcare access and treatment disparities.
