More than 100 million Americans suffer from migraines, arthritis and other chronic pain conditions with an annual economic toll of nearly $600 billion in medical bills and lost productivity. To help address this problem, Congress directed the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Affordable Care Act, to create a new Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee. Its members, announced today by the National Institutes of Health, include biomedical researchers, representatives from nonprofit public advocacy organizations, and representatives of seven federal government organizations that deal with pain research and patient care.