Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) introduced a bill supporting the designation of a Women’s Health Research Day. Three years ago, Jan. 25, 2016, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) implemented a policy to require investigators to consider sex as a critical biological variable in federally funded research. The resolution recognizes the importance of biomedical research to women’s health, the value of sex and gender-based biomedical research, and the need for more inclusive research studies and greater participation by women and people of color in research efforts.
WomenHeart supports this legislation. Efforts to enhance women in medical research, and in particular, women’s inclusion in cardiovascular clinical trials, remains one of our top policy priorities. When we understand women’s unique biology and how women may present with various heart conditions and respond to specific treatments, women with heart disease have the chance to receive better care and better outcomes. This bill brings attention that.