A major part of the work of AARDAs Ad Hoc Advocacy Committee has been to assure the inclusion of clear, correct wording in the FY 2007 Senate Labor and Health and Human Services Appropriations Bill. That goal has been achieved, and we know that not only the work of the Advocacy Committee but also the communications from AARDA members to their representatives were effective. We share with our readers the report language from that bill.

  The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases [NIAID] is commended for its support of research into the cause and treatment of autoimmune diseases. NIAID programs play a key role in understanding the roots of autoimmune disease and developing new treatments to stop disease without life-long suppression of the patients immune systems. The Committee encourages NIAID to support communication between researchers studying different autoimmune diseases so that findings in one disease can quickly be applied to related conditions. As part of this effort, NIAID is urged to expand its interactions with the National Center for Biotechnology Information [NCBI] to establish a database where results of studies can be readily accessed by the research community.

  Congress commends the NIH Autoimmune Diseases Coordinating Committee for fostering collaborative, integrated multi-Institute research on issues affecting the genetically related family of autoimmune diseases. The ADCC should focus on the role of environmental and infectious agents in the initiation and/or exacerbation of autoimmune diseases. Additionally, the Committee encourages the ADCC to be proactive in identifying promising areas of autoimmune research where collaboration among the NIH institutes enhances the potential for major advances.