Defense Health Research Consortium

What Defense Health Research Consortium does

Defense Health Research Consortium (DHRC) is a nonprofit advocacy coalition founded in 2014 by CRD Associates and headquartered in Washington, D.C. It comprises 70–80+ member organizations — primarily patient advocacy groups, along with medical societies, foundations, and veterans' organizations — collectively representing tens of millions of Americans affected by cancer, neurological conditions, rare diseases, and other chronic health challenges. DHRC's singular mission is to protect and expand funding for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the U.S. Department of Defense, which supports research on conditions prevalent among service members, veterans, and their families.

DHRC operates as a community-led, coalition-based advocacy organization. Its core 'products' are membership services: direct access to congressional staff and Appropriations and Armed Services Committee members, timely legislative updates, an annual meeting with the CDMRP Director and program officers, a members-only document portal, and coordination of coalition letters, congressional fly-ins, and sign-on advocacy campaigns. The consortium has no proprietary technology, no software products, and no revenue-generating activity. It is administered by CRD Associates, with Mark Vieth serving as DHRC Coordinator and Senior Vice President at CRD Associates.

Since its founding, DHRC's advocacy has been credited with helping double CDMRP funding from approximately $600 million to over $1.2 billion. CDMRP funding has contributed to 56 FDA-approved treatments and more than 600 clinical trials. DHRC's most recent advocacy wins include securing $1.27 billion in FY2026 CDMRP funding (January 2026) above the FY2025 continuing resolution level, and organizing a 211-organization sign-on letter in May 2026 calling for further increases. The organization is actively advocating for FY2027 funding restoration to at least the FY2024 level of $1.51 billion.

Name

Defense Health Research Consortium

Legal name

Defense Health Research Consortium

Website

https://defensehealthresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Defense Health Research Consortium is a nonprofit advocacy coalition of 70–80+ patient advocacy groups, medical societies, foundations, and veterans' organizations that collectively lobbies Congress to protect and expand CDMRP medical research funding at the Department of Defense.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Policy Advocacy Services

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Public–Private Partnerships (PPPs) for Global Health (HLAJAOAD)

Keywords

• Medical research advocacy
• Defense health funding
• Patient advocacy coalition
• Congressional appropriations
• Biomedical research funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Defense Health Research Consortium (DHRC) is a coalition of 70–80+ patient advocacy groups, medical societies, foundations, and veterans' organizations that collectively advocates for the preservation and expansion of funding for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) at the Department of Defense. The consortium delivers its advocacy through coalition letters, congressional testimony, direct lobbying, annual meetings with CDMRP leadership, and a members-only resource portal for participating organizations.

Product overview

The Defense Health Research Consortium (DHRC) is a coalition of patient advocacy organizations, medical societies, foundations, and veterans' organizations united to advocate for the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). DHRC is not a technology product company but rather an advocacy coalition that provides membership services including access to congressional meetings, legislative updates, a members-only document portal, and coordinated advocacy programs. The organization was formally established in 2014 and has grown to represent over 70 member organizations advocating collectively to protect and grow CDMRP funding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DHRC Coalition Membership Membership in the Defense Health Research Consortium provides patient advocacy organizations, medical societies, foundations, and veterans' organizations with access to annual meetings with Defense Appropriations staff, House and Senate Appropriations and Armed Services Committee members, timely legislative updates, and a collective advocacy platform to protect and expand CDMRP funding.
• Members-Only Website Portal Password-protected member portal containing key documents, advocacy letters, and resources for member organizations' individual advocacy efforts with Congress and CDMRP program leadership.
• Annual CDMRP Director Meeting Annual in-person meeting bringing DHRC members together with the CDMRP Director and key program officers to facilitate exchange of ideas on highlighting CDMRP-funded research and communicating member priorities.
• Congressional Advocacy Coordination Services Coordinated advocacy services organizing congressional fly-ins, sign-on letters, and collective lobbying efforts to protect and increase CDMRP funding through the annual Defense Appropriations Act, including submission of testimony to Senate Appropriations Committee hearings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 56 FDA-approved treatments contributed through CDMRP
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CRD AssociatescoreOthers · 1 January 2014CRD Associates founded and manages the Defense Health Research Consortium. DHRC was created by CRD Associates to bring a diverse community together to advocate for CDMRP funding. CRD Associates provides administrative support including coordination by Mark Vieth, Senior Vice President.
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP)coreOthersDHRC's core mission is to protect and grow funding for CDMRP at the Department of Defense. CDMRP provides grant funding to researchers studying diseases and disorders prevalent among service members, veterans, and their families.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• American Medical Association (AMA): AMA is a national professional medical association that conducts extensive federal advocacy on healthcare policy, including research funding. It is a broader incumbent that shares DHRC's congressional advocacy and coalition-style representation of medical stakeholders.
• AdvaMed: AdvaMed is the leading medical device industry trade association that advocates for federal policies and funding affecting medical technology. While broader in scope, it operates a similar Washington-based federal advocacy model targeting Congress and federal agencies on health-related funding and policy.

Direct peers

• Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN): PanCAN is a patient advocacy organization that actively lobbies for federal research funding including CDMRP appropriations for pancreatic cancer. It is a comparable single-disease advocacy member of coalitions like DHRC.
• National Health Council: National Health Council is a coalition of patient advocacy organizations that advocates for policy and funding that benefits patients with chronic diseases and disabilities. It mirrors DHRC's model of mobilizing a multi-stakeholder coalition for federal health-research policy advocacy.
• American Heart Association (AHA): AHA is a major voluntary health organization that conducts federal advocacy for cardiovascular and stroke research funding, including NIH and DoD research programs. Like DHRC, it leverages grassroots mobilization to influence federal appropriations.
• Paralyzed Veterans of America: Paralyzed Veterans of America is a veterans service organization that advocates for veterans' health research including spinal cord injury and other conditions funded through CDMRP. It is directly comparable as a member organization advocating for the same federal research programs.
• American Association for Cancer Research (AACR): AACR is a professional scientific organization that, alongside its research mission, actively advocates for increased federal cancer research funding including CDMRP cancer programs. It shares DHRC's focus on congressional appropriations advocacy for medical research.
• Research!America: Research!America is a nonprofit advocacy alliance that pushes for increased federal funding and policy support for medical and health research. Like DHRC, it operates as a coalition of stakeholders engaging Congress and the executive branch on research appropriations, making it a direct advocacy peer.
• Friends of Cancer Research: Friends of Cancer Research is a nonprofit advocacy organization that works with Congress, federal agencies, and the research community to accelerate cancer research policy and funding. It is highly comparable to DHRC's mission of preserving and expanding federal medical research appropriations.

Others

• CRD Associates: CRD Associates is a Washington-based government relations firm that founded and administers DHRC. It is the parent/administrator rather than a peer, but it operates similar federal advocacy coalitions for other client groups, providing a directly relevant administrative and advocacy infrastructure model.

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DHealthResearch
• Facebookfacebook.com/DHRCinfo

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Defense Health Research Consortium