Policy & Advocacy Priorities

The Parkinson’s Foundation is committed to championing policy changes to help make life better for people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) by improving care and advancing research toward a cure. We build on the energy, experience and passion of our Parkinson’s community to identify our priorities — and our policy work is no exception.

Parkinson’s is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disease, with more than 1.1 million Americans living with PD and 90,000 new people diagnosed each year. Yet there is no clear cause, no cure, and too many people experience delayed diagnoses and uneven access to quality care. That is why the Parkinson’s Foundation focuses on federal and state policy priorities that:

• Increase research support toward better treatments and a cure
• Strengthen care systems
• Expand access to high-quality education tools and resources
• Promote prevention strategies, including efforts to reduce exposure to environmental threats tied to Parkinson’s

By working together on our policy priorities at the federal and state levels with policy makers and the PD community, we will improve the lives of people with Parkinson’s and their loved ones. Our aim is to make strides today to change the trajectory of Parkinson’s in the future.

Policy Priorities

Research

We are at a pivotal moment in Parkinson’s research. We are closer than ever to developing treatments that could slow or stop PD, not just manage symptoms. However, federal support for research has not kept pace with the rise of Parkinson’s.

To keep moving forward, we must increase and sustain research support across federal agencies. Agencies like the National Institutes for Health (NIH) need the tools and the authority to keep supporting new Parkinson's treatments and care breakthroughs, including identifying people accurately earlier in their disease.

The Parkinson’s Foundation is championing $600 million a year in NIH-funded PD research by 2028.

While federal support is essential, states are also advancing research with their own investments. This is why we are working to strengthen both federal and state public health programs and investments to ensure that we're moving toward better treatments and a cure for PD.

Our goal is to help deliver new and better therapies to people with Parkinson’s as quickly as possible. Accelerating access to promising new treatments requires an efficient, patient-centered regulatory process. We are working to increase transparency at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and ensure a review process that considers the experiences of people living with PD. We want clinical trials that are easier to access, and studies focused on the outcomes that matter most to people living with PD.

Care & Prevention

We are advancing policies that improve quality of life now, transforming the future of care, and working toward a world where fewer people develop PD.

Navigating the complex health care system is challenging, particularly for people with PD. As PD prevalence increases, access to quality care is not keeping pace. Shortages of health care professionals can mean long travel distances, lengthy wait times for appointments, and limited access to specialists and rehabilitative care. Coverage and costs can be unpredictable and quality varies.

We are focusing on policies that improve quality of life for people with PD and their care partners now. At the same time, we are laying the groundwork to transform care — ensuring in the future every person who receives a PD diagnosis has easier access to timely, quality and affordable care.

We are also working to create a world where fewer people develop PD. This starts with prevention. We know that exposure to chemicals like paraquat and trichloroethylene (TCE) have been tied to PD. Groups like veterans and farmers are more likely to be exposed to these chemicals and other environmental health threats due to their jobs. This is where targeted policy changes can make a big difference.

Despite strong evidence of paraquat’s harms and its ban in more than 70 countries, chemical companies can make this dangerous chemical elsewhere and then sell it in the U.S. — even though there are safer alternatives. We are working at the federal and state level to end the use of paraquat and other harmful chemicals.

Learn more about environmental factors & PD

Education

Knowledge is power — especially when it comes to PD prevention and early diagnosis. This is why we are advancing policy changes to improve education about PD, empowering people to make informed decisions about their health and ensuring healthcare providers have access to the latest training.

People living with PD, families, health care professionals and the public deserve high-quality, accessible information that is tailored to their needs. For example, people with early-onset PD may experience the disease differently and therefore it can take years to receive an accurate diagnosis. Policy changes can help improve access to specialized training for providers to make early diagnoses more accurately and implement tailored care practices.

We are also focused on expanding access to the latest information about key issues, including environmental health threats, the role of exercise and other lifestyle changes in managing PD, and developments that improve quality of life for people living with PD and their care partners.