Return to Main Menu

MUSC nurses fight to save lupus research by Heather Woolwine Public Relations Two local registered nurses are taking on Capitol Hill to save funding for lupus research and other critical health programs.   Registered nurses Tia Parker, left, and Mia Barron take on Capitol Hill to save funding for lupus research and other critical health programs.  MUSC’s Mia Barron and Tia Parker, clinical coordinators for Rheumatology and Immunology, have joined the national legislative fight for public health research funding, which sits on the cutting block.   Their work, along with many others and that of the Lupus Foundation of America Inc., resulted in the passing of the Specter-Harkin amendment to President Bush’s fiscal year (FY) 2007 discretionary spending budget request.   With the White House’s current request, National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding levels would decrease, directly affecting all levels and types of health care research, possibly facilitating detrimental effects to lupus research cultivated at MUSC.   “This is a time when research is producing tantalizing clues about the causes and treatments of lupus. Lupus is on the brink of important breakthroughs. We cannot allow this research momentum to be stopped now,” a Lupus Foundation spokesperson said in an e-mail.   “Mia and I worked in collaboration with the Lupus Foundation of America Inc., during the Lupus Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. We were happy and honored to be a part of such an extraordinary event,” Parker said. “We were able to discuss issues that lupus patients face each day, and the importance of additional funding for research to find a cure for this disease with our representatives in the Senate and House. I am proud to be a part of the success in the passing of the Specter-Harkin amendment in the Senate. It is important that we can assist those individuals that may not have the opportunity to speak for themselves.”   Supporters said the amendment, sponsored by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) and Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) would  protect and support the nation’s investment in biomedical, behavioral, and health services research; disease prevention and health promotion; targeted services to medically underserved populations, and education of a diverse health care workforce. Those favoring the measure seek to increase funding for health and education programs with an increase in total discretionary spending by $7 billion more than the president’s proposed $872 billion discretionary spending budget. Originally, the Senate set the cap at $873 billion, but with the help of 71 senators, the Specter-Harkin amendment changes the total discretionary budget request to $889 billion for the FY 2007. This proposed budget increase, according to the Lupus Foundation, would restore funding to FY 2005 levels, thereby restoring funding for public health programs that have been seriously eroded. The foundation said that last year alone, public health programs lost more than $1 billion in federal funds.   “We greatly thank Sens. Specter and Harkin along with the 71 other senators who supported this amendment. However, this is just step one. The amendment still must pass the House of Representatives and then there needs to be a conference between the House and Senate versions before the amendment becomes law. For the sake of lupus patients everywhere, we must work to get this amendment passed into law,” said the Lupus Foundation.   Barron and Parker will meet with South Carolina Sens. Jim DeMint (R) and Lindsay Graham (R) to further discuss funding and support for lupus education within the state. Friday, April 28, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publication at 849-1778, ext. 201.