The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) is urging Congress to pass the 21st Century Cures Act, which includes provisions important to the rare disease community such as additional funding for NIH and continuation of the FDA Patient-Focused Drug Development Initiative.
This legislation also would reauthorize the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher Program, which incentivizes development of treatments for rare pediatric diseases. Through this program, priority review vouchers are awarded to companies that develop new treatments for children with rare diseases. The program will expire at the end of this year, and NORD is advocating its long-term reauthorization.
Watch the NORD website for opportunities to join NORD and its policy partners in supporting this legislation and reauthorization of the voucher program.