Advocacy Updates

As the world’s largest eye and vision research community, the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) believes strongly in advocating for open, inclusive and accessible science as well as science-informed policy. Through its mission to advance research worldwide into understanding the visual system and preventing, treating and curing its disorders, ARVO affirms the critical need for science to guide policy and provide necessary guidance to keep the public informed. ARVO stands in support of the scientific community and the collaboration of researchers worldwide.

Questions about our advocacy? Email outreach@arvo.org.

The Protecting NEI Coalition

In May, the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), ARVO and the Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology (AUPO) organized the Protecting NEI Coalition to discuss additional measures that could be taken to protect NEI from consolidation and proposed funding cuts. Additional members of the coalition include the National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research (NAEVR) and the American Academy of Optometry (AAOPT).

The coalition meets bimonthly to track progress on projects and discuss the latest information from the Administration. The coalition's focus includes the following initiatives:

• Work with NAEVR on state-specific fact sheets for use in Congressional meetings, especially targeting Republican-led states. 
• Coordinate strategic communications support for message deployment and media engagement. 
• Search for NIH/NEI grants through the NIH Reporter tool that can be used to build stories of the economic impact of research in targeted states, based on the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) programs. 
• Provide financial support for a fly-in of ophthalmology researchers from key states. 
• Assist in arranging small NEI-focused fly-ins during the August break with targeted Republican Congressional leaders in their home states. 
• Explore ongoing opportunities to put pressure on Congressional leaders/Administration, including:
  • Congressional sign-on letter(s)
  • Congressional hearing statements/questions

Collaborations with Advocacy Groups

From our early days to the past few months, ARVO has collaborated with many institutions and advocacy groups to support boosting federal investment for biomedical research carried out and funded by the NIH and other initiatives that support the eye and vision community. Some of the groups are:

• NAEVR
• The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research
• The Coalition for Health Funding (CHF) 
• Research!America
• The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)
• The National Association for Biomedical Research (NABR)