Halle Berry, along with a group of bipartisan senators, is advocating for legislation that aims to allocate $275 million for research and education on menopause. This funding would support efforts to better understand and address the significant hormonal changes women experience during middle age.
The act directs the federal government to invest more in menopausal clinical studies, as well as hormone therapy to address hot flashes and other symptoms.
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Berry, 57, shouted about menopause outside the US Capitol on Thursday. She stated that her own doctor was afraid to say the phrase in front of her.
“I’m in menopause, OK?” Berry exclaimed, prompting laughter from the audience. We must remove the stigma associated with menopause. We need to talk about this extremely natural phase of our lives. Our doctors can’t even mention the phrase to us, let alone guide us through the process.”
Margie Szaroleta of the Associated Press says that actor Halle Berry will visit Capitol Hill to advocate for menopause research funding.
In recent months, the top Hollywood actor has been open about her unpleasant symptoms during perimenopause, which occurs before menopause when a woman’s estrogen levels begin to drop. Berry’s doctor first misdiagnosed her with herpes, a sexually transmitted disease that neither she nor her partner tested positive for.
Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska proposed allocating $125 million to clinical trials, public health, and medical research on menopause. The remaining funds would support menopausal detection and diagnosis, doctor training in menopause treatment, and public awareness campaigns.
“Menopause is not a bad word; it’s not something to be ashamed of, and it’s not something Congress or the federal government should ignore,” Mr. Murray said.
17 senators support the bill, including three Republicans, 13 Democrats, and one independent, all of whom are women. Several senators said Thursday that they think the law will encourage doctors, women, and men to talk more openly about the health milestones that all women face.
Aside from Berry, other celebrities have begun to discuss menopause on talk programs and in interviews, and some have even begun to sell menopause-related items. Last year, President Joe Biden announced a new commitment to strengthen the federal government’s study into women’s health, including menopause. The director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Monica Bertagnolli, has stated that too little is known about women’s health at all stages of life. Her agency is the federal government’s primary medical research arm.
While the legislation has overcome what is traditionally one of Congress’s most difficult hurdles—bbipartisan support—its future is uncertain. The division on Capitol Hill and the dwindling number of legislative days before the November elections exacerbate the difficulties of pushing laws through Congress at any time.
To make menopause research a reality, women will need to get the support of their male colleagues. Men make up the vast majority of congressional representatives.
Murkowski expressed a desire to have support from her male peers. “If men went through menopause, we would have adequately and appropriately funded the research into menopause decades and decades ago.”
