Jill Biden announces $110M for women's health research, and issues a challenge | HLTH 2024

Las Vegas - Women’s health research hasn’t received nearly enough attention or funding, but Jill Biden said that is changing.

First Lady Jill Biden, shown in this White House file photo, announced the awarding of $110 million for women's health research at the HLTH conference Wednesday.

Appearing at the HLTH conference Wednesday, the First Lady highlighted the Biden administration’s announcement of $110 million in grants for women’s health research. ARPA-H, the new federal research agency created by President Biden, announced the recipients of the grants Wednesday. The agency is also taking a leading role in Biden’s “Cancer Moonshot” initiative.

“It’s a problem that’s so simple—yet often ignored: women’s health is understudied and research is underfunded,” she said. “As a result, too many of our medications, treatments, health products, and medical school textbooks are based on men.”

• Read more: Women’s health is starting to get more funding, finally

Biden noted the dearth of women’s research in the past. She also told the audience of healthcare leaders that there’s growing momentum for studies of women’s health, and a growing market as well.

“The potential in this space is too great to ignore,” she said.

The First Lady also issued a challenge to the healthcare leaders in attendance.

“I know you see these opportunities in your day-to-day work,” Biden said. “Here’s what I also want you to know. The women of America are waiting on you.”

ARPA-H is awarding grants to more than 20 recipients, including health systems, universities and tech companies.

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston is among the recipients. The medical center will receive $9.1 million to improve the study of brain disorders in women through “a novel non-invasive MRI imaging biomarker,” the White House announced. The Biden administration notes that women are more likely to grapple with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

The University of Iowa is getting $10 million to develop better treatment for late-stage and metastatic ovarian cancer. The university is aiming to boost the immune system of women through personalized nanoparticles, the White House said. Many women aren’t diagnosed with ovarian cancer until the cancer has already metastasized.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is slated to get $3 million to develop better treatments for migraines in women. “The team is working toward personalized treatment for migraines,” Jill Biden said.

Biden also praised the work of ARPA-H in advancing women’s health research, as evidenced by the grant announcements. The White House has said ARPA-H’s mission is to invest in cutting-edge studies that may be high-risk, but also high-reward.

“ARPA-H is de-risking investments in these big ideas, so that answers can get to the women who need them now,” Biden said.

The HLTH conference also heard another high-profile figure touting the need for better investments in women’s health. Halle Berry, the Oscar-winning actor, talked about the need for more funding and better treatments for menopause, a condition that has received scant attention even though it’s something that all women will experience.

• Read more: Halle Berry shares her mission to rebrand menopause

Not too long ago, the circumstances of the First Lady’s appearance at HLTH would have been very different. On the closing day of the health conference, she would have been making closing arguments for her husband’s re-election to a second term in the White House.

But Biden dropped out of the race this summer, and Vice President Kamala Harris is battling with Donald Trump for the Oval Office. Nevada has been a key battleground state, and with election day less than two weeks away, the state is getting a lot of attention from both campaigns.

Trump is slated to appear in Las Vegas Thursday. Former President Barack Obama campaigned for Harris in Vegas over the weekend.

• Read more: Partnership aims to advance women’s health