AAOS Continues to Advocate for Critical Research Funding

The continuing resolution that Congress recently passed to avert a government shutdown cut fiscal year (FY) 2025 funding for the Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) from $1.509 billion to $650 million—a 57 percent cut from the FY 2024 level. As a result, the Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic Research Program (PRORP) program—which included $30 million in grant funding—was eliminated entirely. This successful program helped improve musculoskeletal care for service members, veterans, and civilians.

Cuts of this magnitude would significantly disrupt research into new therapeutics for diseases and disorders that impact men and women in the Armed Services, as well as veterans, military families, and the general public. The PRORP specifically addresses the unique orthopaedic challenges faced by military personnel—challenges that would go unaddressed without this dedicated source of funding.

In May, AAOS and other physician specialty groups met with staff from the GOP Doctors Caucus to discuss recent cuts to the CDMRP funding. AAOS is leading a coalition of physician organizations advocating to mitigate these cuts for the remainder of this FY and to restore full funding for FY 2026.

Additionally, AAOS submitted testimony for the Senate Committee on Appropriations hearing titled “Biomedical Research: Keeping America’s Edge in Innovation,” emphasizing concern over the recent 57 percent cut to CDMRP and PRORP. Witnesses included researchers, stakeholder groups, and patient advocates who discussed the importance of U.S. biomedical research.

Restoring NIH grants
In February, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a 15 percent cap on indirect funding for all grants, which was then temporarily blocked by a federal judge in March. If implemented, the collateral damage caused by this policy will undermine the integrity of federal scientific research, reshape the future of scientific progress, and risk ceding the United States’ global advantage in the biomedical sciences to adversarial nations.

In April, AAOS and 21 orthopaedic subspecialty societies wrote a joint letter to NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, opposing the NIH cuts, as well as a letter to congressional leadership asking for restoration of these programs. AAOS has continued to collaborate with leaders and advocates in musculoskeletal care to restore this critical funding.

As AAOS continues to advocate for research funding across healthcare, members can take a stand by contacting their representatives via the AAOS Advocacy Action Center.