Lupus Research Institute: Pleased at On-Going Congressional Support for National Lupus Health Education Program
New York, NY, July 25, 2009 --(PR.com)-- The U.S. House of Representatives today approved its Fiscal Year 2010 appropriations bill for health programs and included $1 million for a second year of funding to continue the national lupus health education program for physicians and healthcare providers. The education program is being led by the Office of Minority Health in the federal Department of Health and Human Services in partnership with the U.S. Surgeon General and the Office of Women’s Health.
“We are very pleased that the House of Representatives is continuing its strong commitment to lupus education among healthcare providers,” said Margaret G. Dowd, president of the Lupus Research Institute (LRI). “Lupus is most prevalent in underserved communities. This program will help to eliminate the barrier of racial disparity in the diagnosis and treatment of lupus.”
“The entire lupus community, including the families and friends of everyone with lupus, is deeply indebted to the House Appropriations Committee for its on-going concern about the need for early diagnosis of lupus,” continued Dowd. “We thank all those in our LRI National Coalition of state and local lupus organizations who invested their time and energy into the effort to continue funding of the clinical education programs on lupus.”
Member groups of the LRI National Coalition began their outreach in to underserved communities 10 years ago with the creation of the first neighborhood Lupus Cooperative in East Harlem, which was founded by S.L.E. Lupus Foundation of New York in 1999. Cooperatives have since been opened in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn and the South Bronx, both areas with large African-American and Hispanic populations.
Over the years, the LRI National Coalition has created visibility for the needs of underserved populations through awareness building and advocacy and education programs on the national, state, and local levels. Highlights have included:
“Invisible No More” forum on race and lupus at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2004.
Educational panel on heart disease and lupus presented at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2005.
Spanish language public awareness campaign to alert Hispanic women to the dangers of lupus in 2005.
Congressional briefing on racial disparities in lupus in 2006.
Five-city series on the increased risk of heart disease in people with lupus, particularly young women and African-American women. Presented in 2007 in conjunction with the Association of Black Cardiologists. The series was held in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Detroit.
The Lupus Research Institute
Pioneering Discovery to Prevent, Treat and Cure Lupus
The Lupus Research Institute (LRI)—the world’s leading private supporter of innovative research in lupus—champions innovation, encourages scientific creativity, and risks exploring uncharted territory to bring new scientific solutions to the complex and dangerous autoimmune disease of lupus. Founded by families and shaped by scientists, the Institute mandates sound science and rigorous peer review to uncover and support only the highest-ranked novel research. Its bold and proven research strategy places the LRI at the forefront of lupus science as the Institute consistently achieves the breakthrough discoveries, novel insights and solid results that are changing the course of lupus research and bringing new hope to people with lupus nationwide. To learn more about lupus and the Lupus Research Institute, visit www.lupusresearchinstitute.org.
About the Lupus Research Institute National Coalition
The LRI National Coalition is the advocacy network of state and local lupus organizations united to prevent, treat, and cure lupus.
The LRI National Coalition:
Promotes education and awareness of the seriousness of lupus.
Advocates for the eradication of lupus through rigorous public and private supported research.
Collaborates to increase funding for novel research in lupus.
Empowers lupus patients to effectively advocate for improved treatments and a cure.
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“We are very pleased that the House of Representatives is continuing its strong commitment to lupus education among healthcare providers,” said Margaret G. Dowd, president of the Lupus Research Institute (LRI). “Lupus is most prevalent in underserved communities. This program will help to eliminate the barrier of racial disparity in the diagnosis and treatment of lupus.”
“The entire lupus community, including the families and friends of everyone with lupus, is deeply indebted to the House Appropriations Committee for its on-going concern about the need for early diagnosis of lupus,” continued Dowd. “We thank all those in our LRI National Coalition of state and local lupus organizations who invested their time and energy into the effort to continue funding of the clinical education programs on lupus.”
Member groups of the LRI National Coalition began their outreach in to underserved communities 10 years ago with the creation of the first neighborhood Lupus Cooperative in East Harlem, which was founded by S.L.E. Lupus Foundation of New York in 1999. Cooperatives have since been opened in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn and the South Bronx, both areas with large African-American and Hispanic populations.
Over the years, the LRI National Coalition has created visibility for the needs of underserved populations through awareness building and advocacy and education programs on the national, state, and local levels. Highlights have included:
“Invisible No More” forum on race and lupus at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2004.
Educational panel on heart disease and lupus presented at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2005.
Spanish language public awareness campaign to alert Hispanic women to the dangers of lupus in 2005.
Congressional briefing on racial disparities in lupus in 2006.
Five-city series on the increased risk of heart disease in people with lupus, particularly young women and African-American women. Presented in 2007 in conjunction with the Association of Black Cardiologists. The series was held in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Detroit.
The Lupus Research Institute
Pioneering Discovery to Prevent, Treat and Cure Lupus
The Lupus Research Institute (LRI)—the world’s leading private supporter of innovative research in lupus—champions innovation, encourages scientific creativity, and risks exploring uncharted territory to bring new scientific solutions to the complex and dangerous autoimmune disease of lupus. Founded by families and shaped by scientists, the Institute mandates sound science and rigorous peer review to uncover and support only the highest-ranked novel research. Its bold and proven research strategy places the LRI at the forefront of lupus science as the Institute consistently achieves the breakthrough discoveries, novel insights and solid results that are changing the course of lupus research and bringing new hope to people with lupus nationwide. To learn more about lupus and the Lupus Research Institute, visit www.lupusresearchinstitute.org.
About the Lupus Research Institute National Coalition
The LRI National Coalition is the advocacy network of state and local lupus organizations united to prevent, treat, and cure lupus.
The LRI National Coalition:
Promotes education and awareness of the seriousness of lupus.
Advocates for the eradication of lupus through rigorous public and private supported research.
Collaborates to increase funding for novel research in lupus.
Empowers lupus patients to effectively advocate for improved treatments and a cure.
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Contact
Lupus Research Institute
Liane Stegmaier
212-812-9881
www.LupusResearchInstitute.org
Liane Stegmaier
212-812-9881
www.LupusResearchInstitute.org
Contact
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