Advocating For Research

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H.R. 1443 - The Tinnitus Research and Treatment Act of 2013
Our 2011 Congressional Champions
Our 2010 Congressional Champions
Our 2009 Congressional Champions
Our 2008 Congressional Champions
ATA Honors its 2007 Congressional Champions
 

Take Action! Bill Reintroduced to Help Increase Tinnitus Research to Help Veterans With Tinnitus

Rep. Mike Michaud (D-ME), the current ranking Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs (VA) Committee, has reintroduced a bill to help spur research into tinnitus by the VA and to encourage tinnitus research cooperation and support by the Department of Defense (DoD) and the DoD Hearing Center of Excellence. 

H.R. 1443, the Tinnitus Research and Treatment Act of 2013 would require the VA to: (1) recognize tinnitus as a mandatory condition for research and treatment by VA Auditory Centers of Excellence, (2) ensure that research is conducted at VA facilities on the prevention and treatment of tinnitus, and (3) ensure VA cooperation with the DoD Hearing Center of Excellence.

We need other Members of the House to add their name as a cosponsor to this small, but important bill. Please take time to call and/or email your House Member of Congress to urge him/her to cosponsor H.R. 1443. You can access information on your House Member at the U.S. House of Representatives website at: House.gov/representatives/find/. If you are able to speak to the legislative assistant for your member who handles veterans-related issues, please do so.

And please remember - that just because this bill is aimed at veterans it will have greater impacts for all those who suffer from tinnitus. Research conducted by the VA and DoD will help advance the science toward new treatments and a cure for tinnitus for all who suffer.

Here are some other helpful facts that you can use to help support the case to your House Member of Congress!

Honoring our 2011 Congressional Champion

In May 2012, ATA traveled to Tulsa, Oklahoma to present Senator James Inhofe, (R-OK) with our 2011 Congressional Champion award. Senator Inhofe is a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and proposed an amendment in the FY 2012 Department of Defense (DoD) Authorization Bill regarding the progress being made on tinnitus, and the DoD Hearing Center of Excellence's progress on its mandate to research tinnitus on the returning military and veteran population. Click here to learn more about the ATA-advocated for Department of Defense Hearing Center of Excellence and it's mission to fund tinnitus research. Senator Inhofe was extremely grateful for the award - as a veteran and pilot himself, he understands first-hand the challenges being faced by our brave men and women in uniform - particularly when it comes to tinnitus. Please read the following press release for further information on the award:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), recently received the Senate Legislative Champion Award by the American Tinnitus Association (ATA) for his dedicated efforts to include tinnitus research and funding to the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012 (FY12). Ultimately, an amendment that would have addressed hearing injuries and hearing loss of service members failed, but will be resubmitted to this annual legislation for FY13.

Honoring our 2010 Congressional Champions

This year, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D, WA) and U.S. House Representative Phil Roe (R-1,TN) were presented awards for their leadership and support of tinnitusresearch and treatments for 2010.

Specifically, Senator Patty Murray was honored for her support of including tinnitus in the Department of Defense’s Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP). This program, since tinnitus first became eligible in 2008, has granted close to $6 million in tinnitus

 research funds over the past three years. This new money is helping to fund clinical trials as well as basic research. 

Representative Phil Roe is a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee as well as a co-chair of the Invisible Wounds Caucus. His work on the caucus, in particular, allowed for a hearing in September 2010 exclusively on tinnitus (you can read the article that appeared in the December 2010 Tinnitus Today by clicking here) as the number one service-connected disability for veterans.

Our 2009 Congressional Honorees

This year we again honored two superb Members of Congress for their outsanding leadership toward promo

ting a cure for tinnitus. Rep. Harry Teague (D-NM, 2) and Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK, 4) were our 2009 Congressional Champions.

Mr. Teague was honored on behalf of his leadership of introducing  H.R. 2506, The Veterans Hearing and Assessment Act which would mandate pre- and post-deployment hearing screenings for all members of the Armed Services as well as mandate tinnitus research be conducted by all VA Medical Centers with the capacity to do so. Mr. Teague has also made tinnitus a prominent issue before the Invisible Wounds Caucus which will hold a hearing on "Blast-Induced Tinnitus," on September 22, 2010.

ATA chose Mr. Cole as a 2009 honoree because of his outstanding leadership introducing H.R. 5203, "The Tinnitus Research for Military Health Improvement Act." This bill, as introduced, would establish a Department of Defense Center of Excellence on tinnitus as well as provide historic funding for tinnitus research over five years.

The ATA community is so grateful to both Rep. Teague and Rep. Cole for standing up on behalf of tinnitus patients everywhere by helping bring attention to this growing problem. Their efforts were truly worthy to be called our 2009 Congressional Champions. We look forward to working with both Congressmen over the coming years toward enactment of both of these crucial pieces of legislation.

ATA Honors its 2008 Congressional Champions

After our first year of Advocacy success, the ATA Advocacy and Public Policy Committee (a group comprised of ATA Board members, past and present and other volunteers with specific interest in ATA’s Advocacy agenda and success), discussed and created ATA’s Congressional Champion recognition program.

The idea was to personally thank U.S. legislators who took leadership on making all of the above referenced advocacy successes a priority issue for them. Though there have been many Senators and Representatives who have supported ATA’s ambitious advocacy agenda, there are some who have truly gone above and beyond and demonstrated leadership toward legislative language that promotes researching and curing tinnitus.

Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Harry Reid (D-NV) were honored by ATA Board Members, Scott C. Mitchell, J.D., John Bates, and Michael O’Rourke, ATA Director of Public Affairs, Jennifer Born and ATA government relations counsel, Deborah Outlaw for their leadership during the 111th Congress (FY 08-09) in May 2009.

 

 

From left to right: ATA Board member John Bates; Government relations counsel Deborah Outlaw; The Honorable John Cornyn; recent ATA Board chair Scott C. Mitchell J.D.; and ATA Director of Public Affairs, Jennifer Born.

 

 

 

 

 

From left to right: recent ATA Board chair, Scott C. Mitchell J.D.; ATA Government Relations counsel Deborah Outlaw; ATA Director of Public Affairs Jennifer Born; accepting the honor on behalf of The Honorable Harry Reid's are senior staff Robert Herbert and Joe Martin, and ATA Board member Michael O'Rourke. 

 

 

 

ATA Honors its 2007 Congressional Champions

In May 2008, representatives of ATA made a trip to Washington, D.C. to acknowledge our 2007 Congressional Champions (pictured below). Those bestowing this honor included board members Scott C. Mitchell, J.D. and Michael O’Rourke; ATA's Director of Public Affairs, Jennifer Born and government relations counsel, Deborah Outlaw. The four outstanding lawmakers honored helped ATA achieve success in attaining landmark appropriations that will benefit tinnitus research. These included a Congressional appropriation in the FY 2008 Department of Defense (DoD) appropriations bill and directive report language in both the House and Senate versions of the Labor Health and Human Services (Labor HHS) bill. Both of these have led the way to increased funding for tinnitus research by the federal government. These particular policymakers have been and continue to be essential to ATA fulfilling its mission to cure tinnitus.

2007 Congressional Champions
Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK)
Representative Jason Altmire (D-PA, 4)
Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Representative Jim Walsh (R-25, NY)

	Scott C. Mitchell, J.D.; Ron Anderson who accepted the award on behalf of Rep. Jim Walsh; Jennifer Born
	Jennifer Born; Senator Ted Stevens; Scott C. Mitchell, J.D.

	Scott C. Mitchell, J.D.; Rep. Jason Altmire; Jennifer Born; Deborah Outlaw
	Scott C. Mitchell, J.D.; Senator Tom Harkin; Jennifer Born

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), a key supporter of tinnitus research, and ATA's government relations counsel, Deborah Outlaw, who advocates for ATA issues on Capitol Hill.