WASHINGTON, DC (January 20, 2026) – Russ Paulsen, Executive Director of United for Cures, a collaborative network of patient advocacy organizations, released the following statement applauding and thanking House and Senate Appropriators for prioritizing medical research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in its final FY 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies appropriations bill.

“Patients and their families win when Congress chooses medical research. United for Cures applauds Chair Collins, Chairman Cole, Vice Chair Murray, and Ranking Member DeLauro for advancing a funding bill that supports medical research at universities across the country. Republicans and Democrats alike have embraced the call from American families in recognizing that cures can’t wait. Now Congress must pass this bill and send it to President Trump for his signature.  

“We thank the Appropriations Committee and its staff for championing medical research that is key to finding treatments and cures for millions of Americans. Adoption of a $415 million increase for NIH represents an important step for patients and families who rely on sustained research investment to deliver better treatments, earlier diagnoses, and lifesaving cures.

“We also commend the decision to include the bipartisan restriction on limits to multi-year funding at NIH in the final bill and thank the Committees’ leaders for choosing to maximize the number of chances for success in research.  United for Cures led a broad coalition of patient and research organizations in urging Congress to preserve the bipartisan Senate language related to NIH grant funding. As outlined in a recent letter to congressional leaders, protecting the use of incremental funding for multi-year research grants is critical to ensuring that NIH investments support the greatest possible number of research projects and advance the development of new treatments and cures.

“On Wednesday, January 21, United for Cures will hold a day of action so that families from across the country can urge Congress to pass this final bill and NIH can get back to work on discovering new treatments and cures for American families.”