Burgenland, Lower Austria, and Caritas Socialis announce the rapid launch of care projects at stakeholder conference
Vienna (LCG) – Two years ago, after financing research projects and raising awareness of the serious illness ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome), the Ströck family’s WE&ME Foundation launched an ongoing process involving all stakeholders. Today, Tuesday, the eighth and largest stakeholder conference to date was held in Vienna at the Ströck company premises, with over fifty participants from the health professions, institutions, politics, and representatives of those affected – including former health ministers Maria Rauch-Kallat and Rudolf Anschober.
Norbert Darabos presented the plans of the province of Burgenland for the rapid establishment of a treatment center. Caritas Socialis announced the launch of the project “NORDLICHT – Care and Support for People with ME/CFS” for the second quarter of 2026.
Gabriele and Gerhard Ströck welcome the fact that concrete projects are finally being implemented: “The federal states of Salzburg—thanks in part to the commitment of the Green Party and a very active group of patient representatives—Styria, Lower Austria, and Vienna have announced the creation of care services. Burgenland (Oberwart/Bad Tatzmannsdorf region) is now getting serious and implementing them. We greatly appreciate these activities, as well as the Caritas Socialis project, but by 2026, the initial projects must have developed into comprehensive medical care, as has long been the norm for other serious illnesses!”
At the stakeholder conference, Burgenland’s former health minister Darabos announced the rapid implementation of the planned structures in Burgenland: “The government program ‘Zukunftsplan Burgenland 2030’ (Burgenland Future Plan 2030) established an ME/CFS contact point in Burgenland. Now it is being realized with an important addition: an outpatient clinic with inpatient and outpatient care. In the first quarter of 2026, a pilot group for a maximum of ten people is to be established. The final expansion is to take place this year with a holistic approach involving a multi-professional team (doctors, psychologists, occupational therapists, and physical therapists).”
“NORDLICHT”: New project by Caritas Socialis
Caritas Socialis will launch “NORDLICHT – Care and Support for People with ME/CFS” in the second quarter of 2026. The aim is to advise people with ME/CFS and their relatives and friends, to support them at home and to relieve their burden. Caritas Socialis will also hold an ME/CFS specialist conference at Schönbrunn Palace on October 13, 2026. Detailed information will be announced in February 2026 at cs.at/nordlicht.
For the first time, the German Federal Association of Rescue Services is also part of the WE&ME Foundation’s work process.
Paramedics are often the first point of contact for people with ME/CFS, for example in cases of extreme fatigue or post-exertional malaise (PEM). Without specific training and guidelines, there is a risk of misinterpretation and wrong decisions, which can lead to serious crashes. As key multipliers in the healthcare system, paramedics can make a decisive contribution to improving care for those affected through awareness-raising and adapted operational management. The German Federal Association of Rescue Services is therefore calling for the integration of clinical pictures such as ME/CFS into training and continuing education, as well as the development of interdisciplinary guidelines to improve preclinical emergency care and qualified patient transport,” said Clemens Kaltenberger, President of the German Federal Association of Rescue Services.
WWTF and WE&ME Foundation: €3.1 million already raised for research since 2024
The Vienna Science, Research and Technology Fund (WWTF) reports on exploratory calls for proposals from 2024, which are funding seven projects for in-depth research into pathogenesis, diagnostics, and/or therapy with €700,000. With the consolidated call for proposals in 2026, one or two of the best follow-up projects can be supported with a budget of around €2 million.
The ME/CFS Fellowships 2026 can support up to five outstanding researchers with around €200,000 to learn new methods/techniques in other working groups abroad.
Thanks to the privately organized charity gala, the MedUni Vienna Biobank, headed by Eva Untersmayr-Elsenhuber, will also be able to finance the first phase until 2027 with an additional €100,000. The total budget is €200,000.
“We hope for cooperation and lively exchange between science, reference centers, and clinical contact points in Austria and beyond at the EU level. We therefore particularly appreciate the participation of Jörg Heydecke, founder of the non-profit ME/CFS Research Foundation in Germany, who will report at the meeting on the German government’s €500 million research decade for post-viral diseases,” said the two foundation directors, Gabriele and Gerhard Ströck.
