GWI CDMRP Authorizing Language

Last Updated: March 4, 2012

The most comprehensive Senate authorization language for the Peer Reviewed Gulf War Illness (GWI) Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) was contained in the FY09 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This language comes from S. Rpt. 110-335, accompanying S. 3001 (110th Congress, 2nd Session), the FY09 NDAA, in the section entitled, Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (Army), and reads as follows: "Army medical advanced technology development * * * [T]he committee recommends an increase of $13.0 million to support the continuing Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Research Program. The committee directs the Secretary of the Army to utilize the authorized funding for this program to undertake research on Gulf War illnesses. The committee directs that activities under the program should include studies of treatments for the complex of symptoms commonly referred to as Gulf War Illness, and identification of objective markers for Gulf War Illness. The committee recommends that no studies based on psychiatric illness and psychological stress as the central cause of Gulf War Illness be funded under the program. The committee directs that the program be conducted using competitive selection and peer review for the identification of research with the highest technical merit and military value. Further, the committee directs that this program be coordinated with similar activities in the Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Institutes of Health."

This language, except for the first sentence, having been passed by the Senate was also contained in Conference Report 110-477 that accompanied the FY08 NDAA (H.R. 1585, 110th Congress, 1st Session). Since the FY09 NDAA, the language has been very brief, presumably because the program had already been previously described. For example, the FY11 SASC report language says only, under "Army advanced medical research and technologies": "The committee further recommends . . . $12.0 million to support research on Gulf War illnesses." (page 54) The House has consistently provided appropriations for the GWI CDMRP, but has not separate authorizing language.