Today, Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton announced the introduction of a new bill which aims to fund research into environmental causes of neurodegenerative disease.
Wexton, a Democrat from Virginia, has been diagnosed with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a form of atypical parkinsonism, which has significantly impacted her movement, gait, and speech. As a member of Congress, she has valiantly used her national platform to raise awareness of neurodegenerative conditions and was instrumental in the passing of the Dr. Emmanuel Bilirakis and Honorable Jennifer Wexton National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act, which was recently signed into law and is now known as the National Parkinson’s Project.
Wexton, along with Representative Gus Bilirakis of Florida, introduced the bill called the “Harmonizing Environmental Analyses and Launching Therapeutic Hubs to Yield Bolstered Research And Innovation in Neurological Science (HEALTHY BRAINS) Act,” H.R. 9233, into the House of Representatives. The Healthy Brains Act builds on the success of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) previous Centers for Neurodegeneration Science to catalyze the advancement of research into the environmental risks for neurodegenerative diseases.
