FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) announced on March 18 that it will take part in a congressional briefing titled “Food Allergy Research and Public Health,” hosted by the Congressional Food Allergy Research Caucus. The event is scheduled for March 19 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The briefing aims to address recent evidence-based developments in food allergy prevention and treatment, focusing on federally funded research that has influenced clinical practice and could help prevent food allergies in hundreds of thousands of children across the country.
Panelists at the event will include Sung Poblete, PhD, RN, CEO of FARE; Hugh Sampson, MD, Professor of Pediatrics at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Michelle Huffaker, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor at Stanford University; and R. Sharon Chinthrajah, MD, Professor at Stanford University. The panel will be moderated by Stephen Tilles, MD, clinical professor at the University of Washington Medical Center and FARE's Research and Strategic Innovation Advisor.
According to FARE, more than 33 million Americans are affected by food allergies. Recent data estimate the societal cost of food allergy in the United States to be $370.8 billion per year, with an annual cost of $22,000 per patient. Despite this impact, investment from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the Consortium for Food Allergy Research has been about $12.1 million per year over the past three years.
“We have seen important breakthroughs achieved with existing funding—remarkable returns from federal research investment,” said Dr. Poblete. “Expanding support for food allergy research would reduce the growing economic burden of this disease while accelerating progress toward a cure. There is real momentum in this field, and now is the time for the federal government to strengthen its commitment so we can finally stem the tide of food allergy.”
More information about FARE can be found at www.foodallergy.org.
