ORWH works closely with other government agencies in its efforts to promote participation from women and other underrepresented groups in clinical research.

  • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Women's Health, established by Congress, supports initiatives to increase women's participation in clinical trials and funds research to collect these data.
  • For decades, the HHS Office on Women's Health (OWH) has worked to support the inclusion of women in clinical trials. In 1985, the Public Health Service Task Force on Women's Health identified women's health research as a national priority. The Task Force was the precursor of the HHS Coordinating Committee on Women's Health, which is chaired by the OWH Director.
  • The NIH's National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute oversees the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) , launched a year after ORWH was established in 1990. The WHI, one of the largest studies of postmenopausal women's health ever conducted, enrolled more than 160,000 women and has been extended through 2020.
  • Women in Clinical Trials
    The FDA presents information about women's participation in clinical trials, including where to learn about ongoing research and 15 things to ask before joining a clinical trial.