First of Ice Bucket Challenge donations earmarked

After the generous outpouring of support from people around the globe in this summer's Ice Bucket Challenge, the Board of Trustees of The ALS Association has approved an initial expenditure of$21.7 millionto support six programs and initiatives to search for treatments and a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Additionally,$12.5 millionin matching donations bring the total commitment to$34.2 million.

Four of these projects involve global research cooperative alliances that would not have moved forward without this significant funding from The Association, made possible through the generosity of donors worldwide, along with matching gifts.

"We recognize the sense of urgency felt by people living with the disease and their families and I want to assure everyone that our number one commitment is to making decisions that get treatments to patients in the fastest way possible," saidBarbara Newhouse, president and CEO of The ALS Association. "Our roadmap to treatments involves collaboration with other ALS organizations and with industry, university investigators, government agencies, pharmaceutical and biotech companies and other nonprofit organizations committed to the fight against ALS."

During a 30-day period this summer, The ALS Association received more than$100 millionin donations. Over the last few weeks, The Association has convened key stakeholder groups, including a panel of advisors made up of people living with ALS, to give input into a comprehensive plan The Association will release in early November.  

The bulk of initial$21.7 millioncommitment — $18.5 million — will advance four new alliances for the next one to three years involving research considered critical to finding new treatments for ALS: ALS Accelerated Therapeutics (ALS ACT), The New York Genome Center, the Neuro Collaborative, and Project MinE. These projects would not have been possible without Ice Bucket Challenge donations.  

There will be synergies between these four initiatives that will increase the quantity and value of data  available to the ALS research community worldwide. The ALS Association will play a pivotal role in coordinating these efforts.

In addition to the abovementioned collaborative alliances to drive forward ALS research, The ALS Association's Board of Trustees also approved two other projects to expedite the search for treatments and a cure for the disease through care services and public policy efforts.

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