Tell Congress to reject $30 million to fund even more monkey experiments
Monkeys used in experiments spend their days in barren cages—except when they are being subjected to painful and terrifying procedures. These inquisitive and social animals are force-fed potentially toxic substances, infected with diseases, and immobilized in restraint chairs for hours on end.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) requested $10 million in taxpayer dollars in the federal budget for 2025 to support experiments on monkeys. Unfortunately, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved even more in designated funding — $30 million — to expand the monkey experimentation industry in their version of the annual appropriations bill that contains funding for the NIH. The House version of this bill does not include this funding. We now need your help to make sure this funding is NOT included in the final bill, which will likely be voted on later this year.
Primates have historically been used with the hope of improving human health and safety, but animal testing not only causes immense suffering for animals in laboratories—it can also hinder advances in human healthcare because testing on animals often cannot give us answers to human conditions. In contrast, non-animal testing methods can more accurately predict how the human body will respond to drugs, treatments, and substances because they are based on human biology, cells, and tissues rather than animal biology.
Please join us in urging Congress to stop this proposed expansion of monkey experiments, which have limited value and cause suffering to tens of thousands of monkeys in U.S. laboratories every year.
TAKE ACTION
Please make a brief, polite phone call to your U.S. Representative and two U.S. Senators. You can find their contact information here. You can say, "I'm calling to ask you to help ensure that the $30 million for NIH to increase primate experiments is not included in the final fiscal year 2025 Labor, Health and Human Services appropriations bill or any future funding bills. Investing in non-animal methods could yield better results for human health."
After making your call, please use the form below to send a follow-up message. Be sure to edit your message so it stands out.