Keating Amendment to Increase Duchenne Research Passes House Floor

Press Release

Yesterday evening, an amendment authored by Rep. Bill Keating to increase funding for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (Duchenne) research passed the House floor and will be included in the Department of Defense Appropriations bill.

The Defense Appropriations bill had allocated $3.2 million for Duchenne research. The Keating Amendment increased that amount by $1 million, bringing the total to $4.2 million in critical research funds.

"I have met with many Duchenne patients and their families, and have seen the impact this disease has on every part of their lives," said Rep. Keating. "There have been very promising advances in recent years, including the development of a new drug which has achieved success in early clinical trials. Much more work still needs to be done, however, to find a cure for this disease, and better understand what causes Duchenne in the first place. By increasing funding for peer reviewed research, institutions across the country will have additional resources necessary to making progress on eliminating this devastating disease. We as a nation are on the cusp of historic progress in advancing critical research. Now is the time to recommit to robust support for our country's biomedical research infrastructure."

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