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THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR EYE AND VISION RESEARCHVolume 4, Number 1 (February 2008) Welcome to NAEVR’s E-ZINE, which highlights breakthrough eye and vision research funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as defense-related vision research funded by the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).The nation's investment in vision research is vital, as vision impairment/eye disease costs the United States $68 billion annually in healthcare expenditures, reduced productivity, and diminished quality of life. In this edition:
February 26 Visual Imaging Briefing Features Real-Time OCT Imaging The briefing Visual Imaging: Revolutionizing the Diagnosis and Treatment of Eye Disease will feature a real-time three-dimensional analysis of the retina of the eye using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), an imaging technology that emerged from collaborative research between the NEI and the National Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB). Since OCT is increasingly accepted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an outcomes measure, it also can potentially reduce the cost and time it takes to complete clinical trials, expediting new therapies to patients. Visual Imaging: Revolutionizing the Diagnosis and Treatment of Eye Disease RSVP to Dina Beaumont at 202-530-4672 or dina.beaumont@bm.com
March 6 Glaucoma Briefing/Screening Being Held on World Glaucoma Day The briefing Glaucoma: Awareness and Early Detection Can Prevent Blindness will feature real-time optic nerve and pressure evaluation of the eye. It is just one of more than 300 events being held globally during the first-ever World Glaucoma Day. Glaucoma, the second leading cause of preventable vision loss in the U.S., is a group of diseases that damages the optic nerve and lead to vision loss. Every American over the age of 60 is at risk of developing glaucoma, which disproportionately affects minority populations. African Americans have a three times greater risk of developing this disease than white Americans, and it is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss in both African Americans and Hispanics. Glaucoma: Awareness and Early Detection Can Prevent Blindness RSVP to Dina Beaumont at 202-530-4672 or dina.beaumont@bm.com
NAEVR Disappointed in President’s Proposed FY2009 NIH/NEI Funding, Cites Lost Opportunities in Vision Research The President’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 budget, released on February 4, proposes to flat fund the NIH and to increase the NEI budget by $650,000, less than 0.1 percent of its FY2008 funding level of $667.1 million, which was the same as FY2007. NAEVR Executive Director James Jorkasky commented as follows: "NAEVR is disappointed in the President’s proposed FY2009 NIH/NEI funding level, as the lack of any inflationary increase continues to reduce purchasing power and threatens the ability to follow up on previous breakthroughs resulting from past investment. The resulting loss of 18 percent of its purchasing power over the past five funding cycles jeopardizes the NEI’s mission to ensure the vision health of all Americans, especially with the growth of the population susceptible to aging eye disease." Examples of vision research that is jeopardized due to flat-to-negative NEI funding include:
NAEVR’s FY2009 NIH/NEI Budget Talking Points are at: http://www.eyeresearch.org/pdf/FY2009_NIHNEI_Talking_Points.pdf
NAEVR Requests FY2009 NIH Funding at $31 Billion, NEI at $711 Million NAEVR supports an FY2009 funding increase for the NIH/NEI of 6.6 percent, which represents the current biomedical inflation rate of 3.6 percent, plus a 3 percent increase to begin restoring the NIH/NEI purchasing power. The 6.6 percent increase would result in NIH funding of $31 billion and NEI funding of $711 million. In a statement on the request, NAEVR’s James Jorkasky said: "Flat funding has precluded NEI’s ability to follow up on past breakthroughs in vision research, which have been responsive to NIH Director Dr. Zerhouni’s goal of a 21st century paradigm for research and clinical practice that is preemptive, predictive, personalized, and patient-focused." NAEVR’s FY2009 NIH/NEI Funding Position Paper is at: http://www.eyeresearch.org/pdf/FY2009_NIHNEI_Position.pdf
Independent Budget Urges FY2009 DOD Funding Eligibility for Vision Research Within the past week, as the House and Senate have begun hearings on FY2009 appropriations for the VA, key veterans organizations and their supporters have issued The Independent Budget, an annual set of recommendations to Congress regarding funding. This document—developed by AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and supported by 54 other organizations—has made recommendations regarding Special Needs Veterans, specifically Blinded Veterans. Foremost among these in NAEVR’s advocacy include:
NAEVR has issued its request that eye and vision research remain eligible for funding in the FY2009 DOD/PRMRP program. Eye and vision research has been listed as eligible in FY2006-FY2008 which enables researchers to compete for a pool of $50 million of peer-reviewed funding. In FY2006, its first year of eligibility, the vision community submitted 52 grant requests to the DOD, or 8 percent of all submissions, and was awarded 6 grants out of the 51 issued, for a funding total of $5.4 million, or 12 percent. Examples of this research include: corneal healing, as well as ways to improve corneal transplantation by regulating the lymphatic pathway servicing the cornea; corneal wound infection control; laser injuries; and support for ongoing work on a "Retinal Implant" to restore vision through electronic stimulation of the retina. NAEVR’s FY2009 DOD/PRMRP Request is at: http://www.eyeresearch.org/pdf/Final_FY2009_DOD_PRMRP_Justification.pdf
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