Key Points
- The Foundation’s fifth annual congressional fly-in event was held July 11.
- Six patients joined physicians and industry representatives to advocate for focused ultrasound funding, legislation, and cross-organization collaboration.

On Thursday, July 11, the Foundation and the Advanced Medical Technology Association’s new division AdvaMed Imaging hosted a congressional fly-in event in Washington, DC, to educate policymakers about focused ultrasound. The event has been held annually since 2019, with the exception of 2021 due to the pandemic.
Patients, physicians, and industry representatives joined AdvaMed and the Foundation in 22 meetings with Congressional offices. The meetings aimed to increase awareness of focused ultrasound and address barriers to widespread adoption. Specific legislative asks included:
- Support the Ensuring Patient Access to Critical Breakthrough Products Act (HR 1691). There is often significant lag time between when a focused ultrasound procedure earns regulatory approval and when patients can access insurance reimbursement. This bill would provide Medicare beneficiaries with faster access to safe, effective breakthrough medical devices.
- Facilitate collaboration between the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the focused ultrasound stakeholder community and ensure focused ultrasound therapy is more fully accessible to veterans in need.
- Encourage more formal cross-institute collaboration within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (e.g., form a cross-institute focused ultrasound research group) to ensure better research coordination and information sharing across institutes and centers. This was detailed in FY25 appropriations committee report language approved by the House of Representatives Labor, Health and Human Services Appropriations subcommittee.
Six focused ultrasound patients participated in the fly-in event and shared their experiences, including their reasons for choosing focused ultrasound treatment and its impacts on their quality of life and the lives of their families. Three of the patients – Beverly, Michael, and Tom – were treated for essential tremor, two patients – Thomas and Bob – underwent focused ultrasound for prostate cancer, and one patient – Bobby – was treated for Parkinson’s disease. For four of the patients, this was at least the second – if not third – time they have participated in the Foundation’s fly-in events.
“We are so encouraged that these patients return year after year to help advocate for focused ultrasound therapy and share their stories,” said the Foundation’s Chief Scientific Officer and Managing Director of Government Affairs, Jessica Foley, PhD. “They provide a human connection to this technology that is essential to our advocacy efforts, and we are grateful for their time and passion for raising awareness.”
One of the most notable meetings was with Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz from Florida. Although she was already aware of the technology, during the 15-minute audience, Rep. Wasserman Schultz asked key questions and was able to engage with patients who had chosen focused ultrasound.
“We are excited that Rep. Wasserman Schultz has become a champion for focused ultrasound therapy, and we are looking forward to working with her team in the future to advance research and drive patient access to treatments,” said Dr. Foley.
In recent years, the Foundation has amplified its governmental advocacy efforts and created major wins for the technology. In March, language on focused ultrasound was included with the 2024 appropriations bill to encourage uptake of focused ultrasound by the VA. Then, in May, senators and NIH representatives highlighted focused ultrasound at a US Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies hearing on the 2025 NIH budget.
“Awareness of focused ultrasound is growing among key policymakers, in large part due to the Foundation’s work in partnership with G2G Consulting, AdvaMed, and others,” said Dr. Foley. “We are laying the foundation and building champions to drive future policy initiatives to benefit our focused ultrasound community and patients.”