Since taking office, President Trump has issued a number of executive orders (EOs), directives, and leadership appointments consequential to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). With so much information coming out of Washington, FABBS is working to keep our members informed of the developments most relevant to our sciences.
FABBS is building on our advocacy tools and urges scientists to communicate with elected officials in the service of helping them understand the real-world consequences of the proposed indirect costs caps, withheld funding, communications pause, and EOs affecting NIH.
Facilities & Administration (F&A) Costs
On Friday, February 7, just after 5 pm, NIH surprised the biomedical community by issuing new guidance on indirect cost rates, also known as facilities and administration (F&A) costs. NIH summarized the guidance on its official X account: the maximum indirect cost rate is now 15%, intended to be in line with the rates offered by foundations and other common sources of private research funding. In the post, NIH stated that this change would save the agency $4 billion per year, but did not indicate where those savings would be passed (e.g., to direct research funding). This change, made at the behest of the Trump administration, would have devastating effects for research institutions and universities, and could severely damage the country’s scientific infrastructure and achievement. The new indirect cost cap was intended to go into effect on February 10.
Democratic State Attorneys General (AGs) quickly filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO), arguing that the proposed change violates the law as Congress had prohibited NIH from altering indirect cost rates without proper authorization in 2018, a provision included in every appropriations bill since. (This general argument – that Trump is taking actions that only Congress is legally authorized to do – is also being used to challenge the attempted shuttering of USAID.) Judge Angel Kelley granted a TRO on February 10, covering just the states involved in the lawsuit; however, the order was later expanded to cover all states. Arguments in the case have been scheduled for later this month.
Government-Wide Funding Freeze
FABBS has previously reported on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) January 27 directive freezing federal grant, loan, and other financial assistance programs. As a result, science-funding agencies, including NIH and the National Science Foundation, could not fund new or existing research grants. Following a stay issued against the directive in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, OMB rescinded the order on January 29. However, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), indicated that while the memo was rescinded, the funding freeze remained in place, and it appears that funds are still being withheld.
In light of this information, District Judge John McConnell went ahead with responding to a second lawsuit filed by Democratic State Attorneys General (AGs) by again blocking the freeze, arguing that such an action is not in the President’s authority. Furthermore, as it increasingly appeared that funds were not being released, plaintiffs in the two lawsuits – one filed by two non-profit organizations and the second by the state AGs – asked the courts to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO). On February 10, Judge McConnell ruled that the Trump administration violated his earlier order to restore funding. In this ruling, he specifically cited restoring funding to NIH as an example of what needed to be done. In response, the Trump administration filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.
(A memorandum in support of the emergency motion can be read here.)
Notably, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), Chair of the Senate Appropriations committee, opposed this move. She, too, argued that the proposed cuts violate Congressional law. Senator Katie Britt (R-AL) also raised concerns about the impact that this change would have on her state.
Communications Pause at HHS
On January 21, Health and Human Services (HHS) Acting Secretary Dorothy A. Fink, MD, issued a directive, Immediate Pause on Issuing Documents and Public Communications. NIH Acting Director Matthew Memoli, MD, sent a clarifying memo to staff a week later. More detail about this directive and its implications for NIH can be found in a previous article.
The directive included an end date, February 1, but so far, no announcement – officially or unofficially – has lifted the pause. Notably, all NIH-sponsored meetings have been cancelled until further notice despite being well past the order’s original expiration date.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at NIH
Trump has issued dozens of executive orders in the first few weeks of his term, with several targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts across the federal government. These orders include, for example:
In response, several federal agencies, including NIH, have removed from their public-facing websites any information that might be related to DEI. At NIH specifically, there have been reports that a program intended to help diversify the biomedical workforce has been dropped, but given the communications pause that seems to still be in effect, it is difficult to know how exactly NIH has been directly affected by these EOs.
On Tuesday, Judge John Bates ordered several agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to restore webpages and data that had been scrubbed in compliance with the EOs. A non-profit organization, Doctors for America, had sought a TRO, arguing that this removal violated federal law.
NIH Leadership
In the weeks after winning re-election in November, Trump announced several nominees for top science and health positions within his administration. He tapped former presidential candidate and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead HHS, which oversees NIH. Despite contentious confirmation hearings with the Senate Appropriations and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) committees, it appears that Kennedy will be confirmed, with Senator Cassidy recently indicating his support.
Dr. Monica Bertagnolli resigned as Director of NIH just days before Trump’s inauguration. Trump had indicated early on that he would not keep her in the position, as he did with Dr. Francis Collins, an Obama appointee, during his first term. Instead, Trump has nominated Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a health economist at Stanford University, for the position. Dr. Bhattacharya’s confirmation hearing has not yet been scheduled, so it is unclear when he will officially take over. In the meantime, Trump named Dr. Memoli, a researcher at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Acting Director. Dr. Larry Tabak, who was expected to serve as Acting Director, unexpectedly resigned from his position as NIH Principal Deputy Director on February 12.
NIH Reauthorization
Congress has not formally reauthorized NIH since 2006, suggesting that it could be on the agenda during the next four years. NIH reform – including possible cuts and reorganization of the Institutes and Centers (ICs) – was a priority for Republicans in the 118th Congress, with both Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and then-Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) releasing possible frameworks. However, we do not know if or when the 119th Congress will take up the issue.
