On September 25, just days short of the September 30 deadline, Congress passed a temporary, short-term spending bill, called a continuing resolution (CR), to avoid a government shutdown and fund the government at current levels through December 20. This CR came soon after Republicans in the House of Representatives failed to pass a different CR that included new voter identification requirements. The new CR, which received bipartisan support, also came about after the recent Rally for Medical Research Hill Day during which hundreds of research and patient advocates urged the Congress to pass a funding bill. The CR passed the House with a 341-82 vote and the Senate with a vote of 78-18. It is now headed to the White House for President Biden to sign before October 1.
Members of Congress are on recess for the month of October; many will spend their time campaigning for themselves or their colleagues as Election Day approaches on Tuesday, November 5. The House and Senate will return in mid-November to continue their work on finalizing the federal budget for Fiscal Year 2025. T. The Endocrine Society will continue to put the pressure on Congress to complete the federal budget process as quickly as possible to avoid further disruptions in research funding, but we need your help.
We urge all our US members to participate in our online campaign to tell your Congressional delegation to protect NIH funding. The more people who share our message to Congress, the more influence we will have.
This past week, scientists, policy experts, and community members gathered at a symposium in New York convened by the NYU Langone Center for the Investigation of Environmental Hazards (CIEH) to discuss the scientific evidence linking chemicals in plastic to human and environmental harms, as well as policy solutions at the state, federal, and international level. The meeting, organized by ES member Leo Trasande, MD, featured numerous members of the Endocrine Society as scientific contributors, including Drs. Lindsey Trevino, Angel Nadal, and Rob Sargis. The event also included powerful remarks by leading policymakers about the need to address plastic pollution and clarify deficiencies and misunderstanding about recycling, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the Minister of Climate and Environment of Norway, Tore O. Sandvik.
Importantly, representatives from communities impacted directly by plastic pollution including Jo Banner, Co-Founder and Co-Director of The Descendants Project, and Barbra Weber, Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the Ground Score Association, shared their perspectives and identified key questions and needs from the people they represent. The symposium took place as the United Nations General Assembly gathered nearby to debate and discuss “acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development, and human dignity for present and future generations.” The Endocrine Society will continue to urge UN Member States to advance a comprehensive and ambitious treaty to address plastic pollution that includes limits on production of new plastic combined with efforts to restrict the use of hazardous EDCs and other chemicals in plastic.
On September 24, the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee conducted a hearing on the high price of Novo Nordisk medications Wegovy and Ozempic. These medications are substantially less expensive in other countries. For example, in the US, the list price of Wegovy is $1,349 per month; in the United Kingdom it is sold for $92. The Endocrine Society has been a leading advocate of policies to improve access and to lower the price and out-of-pocket costs of diabetes and obesity medications. The Society supports the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act, introduced in both the House and Senate, which would allow Medicare to cover anti-obesity medications such as Wegovy. Medicare is currently prohibited by law from covering anti-obesity medications. The Society also supports allowing Medicare to negotiate the price of prescription drugs and instituting co-pay caps on medications. In 2022, we successfully advocated for Congress to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, which caps out-of-pocket costs of insulin at $35 a month for people with Medicare, but our work is not done. We continue to advocate for expansion of the cap to people with private insurance and the uninsured. We also continue to educate the Congress about obesity and the need for the Congress to address it through various public health policies, including expanding access to anti-obesity medications.
We rely on your voice to advocate for our policy priorities. Join us to show our strength as a community that cares about endocrinology. Contact your US representatives or European Members of Parliament through our online platform. Take action and make a difference today.
