The Friends of VA Medical Care and Health Research (FOVA) coalition, for which the AAMC serves on the executive committee, issued a Dec. 2 letter to House and Senate appropriations committee leadership in support of fiscal year (FY) 2025 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) research funding (PDF). FOVA is a diverse coalition representing nearly 80 national academic, medical, and scientific societies; voluntary health and patient advocacy groups; and veteran-focused associations that work in concert with the Independent Budget veterans service organizations to advocate for continued, necessary funding for the research and health programs that serve the nation’s veterans.
The letter called on Congress to include “meaningful funding at least equivalent to the FY 2024 level of $943 million for the VA research programs and as close as possible to FOVA’s FY 2025 recommendation of $1.05 billion.” Both the House-passed and Senate Appropriations Committee-approved appropriations bills included cuts to VA research [refer to Washington Highlights, June 7 and July 12]. In addition, the letter urged Congress to reverse harmful policies that would limit the VA’s ability to employ the use of animal models in research studies and states that “FOVA remains concerned about the impending budget shortfalls within the VA.”