Half the Country, a Fraction of the Research

The useful part

For decades, Democratic and Republican administrations alike presided over a medical research system that routinely excluded women. Modern medicine was built on incomplete science—and women are still paying the price. It wasn't until the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 that federally funded clinical trials were required to include women.

How it works

• Yet changing who participates in research does not rewrite decades of medical knowledge overnight.
• Federal agencies also came under pressure to scrutinize or reject grant proposals containing terms such as women, leading to paused or cancelled fellowships and research on conditions such as uterine...
• There are signs, however, that Congress may finally be beginning to treat women's health across the lifespan as a serious policy issue.
• Meeting the Moment to End the Menopause Care Gap in America" will examine the nation's lack of menopause research, informed medical care and provider training—and make the case for greater federal investment.
• In 2025, the Trump administration has proposed cutting the NIH's budget by roughly 43 percent (equivalent to $20 billion per year).

What to take from it

Its broader HHS budget proposal called for eliminating or consolidating several programs supporting family planning and maternal and child health. 16, the Senate Special Committee on Aging will hold Congress' first-ever hearing devoted to menopause. Regardless of which party holds power, it must become a permanent priority within American policy and medicine.

Details worth keeping

Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), "Half the Country, Zero Hearings: The hearing represents an overdue step forward. Women's health cannot remain vulnerable to political cycles.