On Thursday, the Minnesota Senate unanimously passed legislation to provide $20 million in grants for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) research and $5 million for ALS caregiving. The disease is commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the Hall of Fame baseball player who died of ALS. The effort began after Senator David Tomassoni (DFL-Chisholm) was diagnosed with ALS last year. 

“I was proud to join my colleagues today to support Senator Tomassoni and glad to see 67 green votes up on the board,” Senator David Osmek (R-Mound) said. “Even now, Senator Tomassoni has continued to fight for the people of Minnesota, and more broadly everyone who is suffering from ALS, and we must commend his effort. While we might not find a cure immediately with this bill, we can make progress, we can increase hope, and ultimately, we can move closer to ending this terrible disease.”

S.F. 3372 gives $20 million to the Office of Higher Education to award competitive grants to conduct research into the prevention, treatment, causes, and cures of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It also includes $5 million for ALS caregivers.
 

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and there is no known cure. It ultimately robs people of their ability to walk, talk, and eventually breathe. At any given time roughly 450 Minnesotans are living with the disease with the average lifespan of someone diagnosed being two to five years. 

There are six clinics in Minnesota that are currently working on ALS research: Essentia Health (Duluth), HealthPartners (St. Paul), Hennepin Healthcare (Minneapolis), Mayo Clinic (Rochester), the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis), and the VA Medical Center (Minneapolis).  

“I was proud to join my colleagues today to support Senator Tomassoni and glad to see 67 green votes up on the board,” Senator David Osmek (R-Mound) said. “Even now, Senator Tomassoni has continued to fight for the people of Minnesota, and more broadly everyone who is suffering from ALS, and we must commend his effort. While we might not find a cure immediately with this bill, we can make progress, we can increase hope, and ultimately, we can move closer to ending this terrible disease.”

S.F. 3372 gives $20 million to the Office of Higher Education to award competitive grants to conduct research into the prevention, treatment, causes, and cures of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It also includes $5 million for ALS caregivers.
 

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and there is no known cure. It ultimately robs people of their ability to walk, talk, and eventually breathe. At any given time roughly 450 Minnesotans are living with the disease with the average lifespan of someone diagnosed being two to five years. 

There are six clinics in Minnesota that are currently working on ALS research: Essentia Health (Duluth), HealthPartners (St. Paul), Hennepin Healthcare (Minneapolis), Mayo Clinic (Rochester), the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis), and the VA Medical Center (Minneapolis).