On Friday, April 3, The White House released the Administration’s fiscal year 2027 budget request to Congress. We are analyzing the budget request and its impact on Endocrine Society priorities. The White House has not shared complete details yet, but rather high level framing. However, the request includes significant funding cuts for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and proposes some restructuring that would eliminate 3 Institutes/Centers. Specifically, the administration calls for the elimination of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, the Fogarty International Center, and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Also slated for elimination are specific initiatives within the National Library of Medicine and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The rest of NIH would see an overall budget reduction of $5 billion, though we do not yet have a detailed breakdown of the proposed funding levels for each Institute. The House and Senate Appropriations Committees have scheduled hearing with Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to learn more.
The President’s budget is only a proposal, and it now falls to Congress to make final spending decisions through the appropriations process. Consequently, it is critical that all Representatives and Senators need to hear from the medical research community about how these proposed cuts would affect research programs and jeopardize public health. Members of the Endocrine Society can take action through our NIH campaign and call on Congress to increase funding for medical research. The Endocrine Society is urging Congress to support $51.3 billion for the NIH in FY 2027. We are also working with a broad community of NIH advocates to urge the Congress to reject the administration’s proposed cuts and protect NIH.
As more details are made available, the Endocrine Society will continue to analyze budget documents from the White House and the Agencies to understand how these cuts will impact our members – stay tuned to Advocacy in Action to learn more!
On Wednesday, March 25, historic legislation to make insulin more affordable was introduced in the US Senate. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Susan Collins (R-ME), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and John Kennedy (R-LA) introduced the Improving Needed Safeguards for Users of Lifesaving Insulin Now (INSULIN) Act of 2026. The INSULIN Act would expand the $35 monthly cap on out-of-pocket insulin costs, currently available for Medicare beneficiaries, to those with private insurance. The legislation also would create a program to provide lower cost insulin to the uninsured. The Endocrine Society has endorsed this bipartisan legislation, and we need your help asking your Senators to cosponsor and advance the INSULIN Act in the Senate HELP Committee. It is imperative that your senators hear from you about the importance of cosponsoring this legislation and supporting this bill. We urge all Endocrine Society members to take action today and ask your Senators to cosponsor and pass this legislation quickly. You can take action today by clicking here.
The Endocrine Society’s next scientific statement - Obesity Science, Research Gaps and Opportunities in the New Era of Obesity Medicines: An Endocrine Society Scientific Statement is available for member comment. Developed by a writing group led by Daniel J. Drucker, MD, and Ania M. Jastreboff, MD, PhD, the statement has already undergone several stages of a rigorous review process. Internal reviews have been conducted by the Scientific Statement Subcommittee, the Research Affairs Core Committee, and expert external reviewers prior to the member comment period. To protect the Society's copyright and prevent multiple drafts from being circulated, please do not circulate this draft statement. Currently, we are seeking comments from Society members only. Your comments will be reviewed by the authors and will be considered in the preparation of the final document. This comment period will be deactivated at 5:00 PM ET on Wednesday, April 15. Thank you in advance for taking the time to review and comment on this Statement. Please feel free to contact Joe Laakso at [email protected] if you have any questions.
This month, the European Parliament will vote on revisions to the Cosmetics Regulation under the Chemicals Omnibus. Prior to the vote, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have a chance to introduce amendments to the proposed legislation from the European Commission to achieve a majority vote in the Parliament. Recognizing that cosmetics are a source of exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), the Endocrine Society and European Society of Endocrinology (ESE) drafted a joint letter to MEPs on the Environment (ENVI) and Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) Committees urging them to adopt amendments that would strengthen the regulation and reduce exposure to EDCs.
We understand that important protections have been included in the negotiated text, including restrictions on carcinogens, mutagens, and reprotoxic substances without exemption for certain routes of exposure. Additionally, and consistent with our requested amendments proposal, a faster timeline for restrictions on hazardous substances is included to ensure that implementation of regulations moves quickly.
Our societies faced an uphill battle as the chemicals industry lobbied extensively to weaken the overall regulation. This week, Martin Hojsik, Vice President of the European Parliament, responded to our letter saying that our support was “crucial” as very few organizations contacted the Parliament in support of stronger standards for safe cosmetics. We will continue to work with ESE on all aspects of the Chemicals Omnibus as they come up for debate to urge policymakers in the EU to implement strong regulations to minimize exposure to EDCs throughout consumer products.
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.
