House Appropriations Committee Approves $10 Million for the Lupus Research Program at the Department of Defense

Yesterday, the House Appropriations Committee approved the Fiscal Year 2027 Defense Appropriations bill, which includes $10 million for the Department of Defense (DoD) Lupus Research Program (LRP).

In April, more than 350 lupus advocates joined together in Washington, D.C. for the Lupus Foundation of America’s National Lupus Advocacy Summit, where they urged members of Congress to increase funding for lupus research, including the Lupus Research Program at DoD.

The $10 million funding for FY27 is a tremendous victory for the lupus community, particularly after the LRP was eliminated in Fiscal Year 2025. The program was first established in 2017 following years of advocacy led by the Lupus Foundation of America and lupus advocates nationwide and, if enacted into law, the FY27 appropriations bill would bring total funding for the program to $85 million!

The LRP funds innovative research that improves the health and lives of active-duty service members, veterans, military families, and everyone whose life has been impacted by lupus. The LRP has supported dozens of high-impact research projects focused on understanding lupus disease mechanisms, environmental triggers, immune system dysfunction, organ damage, disease heterogeneity, and quality-of-life challenges experienced by people living with lupus.

The Lupus Foundation of America extends our gratitude to Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-CA) and Ranking Member Betty McCollum (D-MN) for their leadership on the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee and their commitment to supporting these vital medical research programs.

What Comes Next

The legislation must still pass the full House and Senate before becoming law. Therefore, it will be extremely important that the lupus community continue to advocate for the LRP as the legislative process moves forward. Your advocacy does make a difference so please make sure you sign up to be an eAdvocate.