Author Archives: Jennie Spotila

RFA Ticker, 2/22/16

Posted on February 22, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

The RFA Ticker continues to show a big fat ZERO for ME/CFS research, but there is one interesting bit of research-related bit news. NIH has issued an updated notice about the Lipkin samples. These samples were collected as part of … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

2015 NIH Spending on ME/CFS Studies

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Update: This post was revised on October 29, 2016 to correct mathematical errors and update the included research. Since Dr. Collins’s announcement in October 2015 that NIH was renewing its focus on ME/CFS, I’ve been wondering when we would see … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

RFA Ticker, 2/15/16

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Total RFAs Issued by NIH: 136 (October 2015 to date) Total Dollars Committed to RFAs: $1,554,500,000 (October 2015 to date) Total RFAs for ME/CFS: ZERO (October 2015 to date) Week Beginning RFAs Issued Total Commitment RFAs for ME/CFS 2/8/16 5 … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

RFA Ticker, 2/8/16

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Total RFAs Issued by NIH: 131 (October 2015 to date) Total Dollars Committed to RFAs: $1,545,000,000 (October 2015 to date) Total RFAs for ME/CFS: ZERO (October 2015 to date) Week Beginning RFAs Issued Total Commitment RFAs for ME/CFS 2/1/16 8 … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

RFA Ticker, 2/1/16

Posted on February 1, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Why do I keep updating this RFA (Request for Applications) tracker every Monday? Because an RFA comes with set aside funds to stimulate research in a particular area. The last ME/CFS RFA was issued in 2006. Over the last ten … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

NIH: Who Reviewed Grants in 2015

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

In order to get NIH funding, a researcher has to succeed in several levels of application review. A persistent controversy in the field of ME/CFS is the allegation that grant applications are not reviewed by ME/CFS experts. So let’s take … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

RFA Ticker, 1/25/16

Posted on January 25, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Total RFAs Issued by NIH: 117 (October 2015 to date) Total Dollars Committed to RFAs: $1,507,450,000 (October 2015 to date) Total RFAs for ME/CFS: ZERO (October 2015 to date) Week Beginning RFAs Issued Total Commitment RFAs for ME/CFS 1/18/16 2 … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Grief: Too Many Words

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

When my mother died, I could not sculpt words around my grief. Even several months later, I still could not express how grief felt to me. Now, a year later, I find I have too many words to shape and … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

NIH RFA Ticker, 1/18/16

Posted on January 18, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

Total RFAs Issued by NIH: 115 (October 2015 to date) Total Dollars Committed to RFAs: $1,502,950,000 (October 2015 to date) Total RFAs for ME/CFS: ZERO (October 2015 to date) Week Beginning RFAs Issued Total Commitment RFAs for ME/CFS 1/11/16 10 … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on NIH RFA Ticker, 1/18/16

Long Term Disability Insurance/ERISA

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Jennie Spotila

If you are fortunate, then your employer provides you with disability insurance. When you become disabled, this insurance pays you a percentage of your salary, and you are not solely dependent on Social Security Disability. In real life, it is … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Long Term Disability Insurance/ERISA