Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Reauthorization Act of 2026

Summary

Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Reauthorization Act of 2026 This bill reauthorizes through FY2031 and revises programs that support research and development of drugs and other therapies to address amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) and other neurodegenerative diseases. The bill reauthorizes grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for scientific research on investigational drugs to prevent or treat ALS for individuals not otherwise eligible for clinical trials, grants from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for research and development of therapies to prevent and treat ALS and other neurodegenerative diseases, and a Public-Private Partnership including the FDA and NIH that supports development and regulatory review of treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.  Also, the bill revises the NIH grants to require (1) the NIH, in considering grant renewal, to assess available information on the safety and efficacy of the investigational drugs; (2) grantees to promptly report available safety data from ongoing clinical trials; and (3) the NIH to determine the timeframe for enrollment in clinical trials for the investigational drugs. Additionally, every five years, the FDA must publish a plan describing actions it will take over a five-year period to foster development of safe and effective drugs, and facilitate access to investigational drugs, for ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases. Each plan must include the FDA's previous actions and recommendations for improvements. Finally, the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Health and Human Services must report on the impacts of these grants. 

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Timeline

1. 30 April 2026

   Introduced

   Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

   Source: IntroReferral

2. 30 April 2026

   Introduced

   Introduced in Senate

   Source: IntroReferral

3. 17 June 2026

   Reported

   Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

   Source: Committee

4. 16 July 2026

   Calendars

   Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 461.

   Source: Calendars

5. 16 July 2026

   Reported

   Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Cassidy with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

   Source: Committee

6. 16 July 2026

   Reported

   Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Cassidy with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

   Source: Committee

7. 4 August 2026

   Passed

   Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote. (consideration: CR S4425-4426; text: CR S4425-4426)

   Source: Floor

8. 4 August 2026

   Passed

   Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Voice Vote.

   Source: Floor

9. 10 August 2026

   Floor

   Held at the desk.

   Source: Floor

10. 10 August 2026

    Floor

    Received in the House.

    Source: Floor

11. 10 August 2026

    Floor

    Message on Senate action sent to the House.

    Source: Floor

Votes

No vote records are attached yet.

Versions

No version snapshots stored. Document URLs remain at the source.

Documents

4 official files

• Engrossed in Senate

  Engrossed in Senate · EN · 4 August 2026

  DownloadOpen at official source

• Reported to Senate

  Reported to Senate · EN · 16 July 2026

  DownloadOpen at official source

• Reported to Senate

  summary · EN · 16 July 2026

  Open at official source

• Introduced in Senate

  Introduced in Senate · EN · 30 April 2026

  DownloadOpen at official source

Sponsors

• Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK] · R · Sponsor
• Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] · D · Sponsor
• Sen. Collins, Susan M. [R-ME] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Capito, Shelley Moore [R-WV] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Curtis, John R. [R-UT] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Banks, Jim [R-IN] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. McCormick, David [R-PA] · R · Cosponsor
• Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI] · D · Cosponsor
• Sen. Barrasso, John [R-WY] · R · Cosponsor
• · sshr00 · Standing

Related records

• related to → Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Reauthorization Act of 2026