Congress Allocates $3 Million to CDC for Sepsis Advocacy in the United States

We are excited to announce a significant advance in the fight against sepsis: a landmark $3 million allocation to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for sepsis initiatives, secured in the FY24 Congressional Budget of the United States. This historic funding, the largest ever directly dedicated to sepsis, underscores a pivotal moment in federal commitment toward combating this life-threatening condition. We want to extend our gratitude to the team at END SEPSIS, founded in 2012 by Ciaran and Orlaith Staunton following the undiagnosed, untreated, and preventable death of their 12-year-old son Rory from sepsis, for their tireless advocacy to ensure that sepsis is prioritized at the federal level.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) has strongly advocated for strategic funding deployment for sepsis, now recognized as a public health crisis. The funding will integrate essential sepsis data into the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), allowing for more effective evaluation of sepsis care standards (Sepsis Core Elements) across healthcare facilities. This initiative aims to improve the CDC's sepsis care protocols, promote public-private collaborations, and assist in creating specific quality measures for adult and pediatric sepsis care in conjunction with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

This allocation represents a leap forward in sepsis management and prevention and sets a precedent for future federal support and initiatives. We take this achievement as validation that effort and dedication are worthwhile, and we are even more motivated to build on this momentum, advocate for continued investment, and drive global efforts to reduce the burden of sepsis.

Together, we are on a path to significantly impact sepsis outcomes – a true example of what we can achieve when we collaborate to advocate in the ongoing fight against sepsis and a blueprint for other countries worldwide to follow.