BrightFocus Statement on Bipartisan Action to Protect Brain and Eye Research

BrightFocus Foundation supports the bipartisan appropriations bill for fiscal year 2026, which provides critical federal funding for brain and eye research for this year. The bill, which includes a modest increase to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) budget, diverges from the current administration’s earlier proposal to dramatically cut federal research funding from the NIH and restructure key funders of brain and eye research.

The funding package would:

• Increase the NIH budget by $415 million, including a $100 million increase in funds for Alzheimer’s and dementia research compared to fiscal year 2025. The budget for the National Eye Institute would remain the same as 2025. This differs from the administration’s original proposal, which would have cut the NIH budget by 40%.
• Preserve the National Eye Institute and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) as standalone institutions of the NIH.
• Maintain federal support for facilities and administrative expenses—often referred to as “indirect costs,” which help keep research labs running.
• Sustain funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) at the fiscal year 2025 total of $1.5 billion. ARPA-H advances high-potential, high-impact biomedical research.
• Direct $41.5 million for Alzheimer’s disease programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a $2 million increase over fiscal year 2025.

“All Americans benefit from sustained investment in medical research to deliver tomorrow’s prevention strategies, treatments, and cures,” said BrightFocus President and CEO Stacy Pagos Haller. “This bipartisan bill signals that Congress understands what’s at stake. Now, we must follow that example by trusting the scientific community to identify the most promising projects to fund and championing research as a national priority.”

The bill allows continued multiyear funding for NIH grants, which expanded significantly under the current administration. Under this approach, the NIH pays the full cost of a multi-year grant upfront instead of one year at a time. Critics argue this practice reduces the number of NIH-funded grants, limits support for early-career researchers, and slows the pace of discovery, according to Act for NIH. In January 2026, BrightFocus joined patient advocacy groups urging Congress to adopt restrictions on advance funding of multi-year research grants.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve the bill on Jan. 22, and the Senate is expected to vote this week. To avoid another partial government shutdown, the president must sign the package by Jan. 30. BrightFocus will continue to monitor developments and will update this webpage as more details emerge.

Our Commitment to Fueling Innovation

BrightFocus Foundation, through its flagship programs Alzheimer’s Disease Research, Macular Degeneration Research, and National Glaucoma Research, is a leading private supporter of research to defeat Alzheimer’s disease, macular degeneration, and glaucoma. We receive no government funding and are entirely supported by individual contributions.

We’re currently supporting 186 active brain and vision research projects around the world, a $48 million investment. Most of our grants support early-stage research, ensuring fresh perspectives are brought to the forefront and offering an increased return on research investment over time through novel discoveries that fuel the field.

On average, BrightFocus-funded researchers go on to receive eight times the amount of their initial BrightFocus grant from larger funding sources such as NIH. This follow-on support is what moves discoveries forward—without it, transformative research could be lost. Learn how to support our work and help keep the pipeline of innovation strong for generations to come.