On May 1, 2024, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) along with Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and 14 other colleagues introduced a historic bipartisan legislation aimed at enhancing federal research on menopause and coordinating the federal government's existing programs related to menopause and mid-life women’s health. The Advancing Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act, authorized at $275 million over five years, is designed to bolster federal research on menopause, healthcare workforce training, awareness and education efforts, as well as public health promotion and prevention to better address menopause and mid-life women’s health issues.
The legislation has received support from actress Halle Berry who has been vocal about her experiences with menopause in an effort to challenge the stigma surrounding it. "Menopause has been overlooked and stigmatized for too long, with so many women suffering due to a lack of research and education,” said Senator Hirono. “This legislation is a long-overdue investment in women’s health and will provide funding for important research to better understand and address menopause and other mid-life health issues in women.”
Currently, there are 75 million women in the U.S. experiencing perimenopause, menopause or post-menopause — with an additional 6,000 women reaching menopause each day. Despite these numbers representing half of the U.S. population, there has been a significant lack of investment in menopausal research. There are few federally funded clinical trials on menopause and hormone therapy related to it. Furthermore, only 30% of U.S. residency programs offer a formal curriculum on menopause according to recent surveys.
The proposed Advancing Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act aims to address these gaps by expanding federal research on menopausal health; supporting public health promotion activities that focus on chronic conditions affecting mid-life women’s health; establishing a national public health awareness, education, and outreach program on menopause; improving professional training resources for healthcare providers; and designating Centers of Excellence in Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health.
The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Susan Collins (D-ME), Shelley Moore-Capito (R-WV), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tina Smith (D-MN), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ).