Foundation Fighting Blindness Submits Testimony to Congress for NEI Funding

The testimony urged US Senate subcommittee to deliver strong, sustained funding for the NEI and maintain the NEI’s status as an independent NIH institute in the FY2026 appropriations cycle.

By
Sarah Fackler
June 20, 2025
2 min

Optometric Management

Objective:

To advocate for increased funding for the National Eye Institute (NEI) in Fiscal Year 2026.

Approach:

Testimony Submission: Jason Menzo, CEO of the Foundation Fighting Blindness, submitted expert testimony to the US Senate Appropriations Subcommittee emphasizing the importance of NEI.

Key Findings:

NEI is the only federal institute dedicated exclusively to vision research.
NEI-supported research has led to significant advancements, including the first FDA-approved gene therapy for an inherited disease.
Diseases like retinitis pigmentosa and macular degeneration affect millions and cost the US economy approximately $134.2 billion annually.
Each dollar invested in NIH research funding generates $2.56 in new economic activity.