Funding freeze rollback further confuses health providers and researchers
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Health providers and researchers got a reprieve of sorts on Wednesday when the White House rescinded a memo that froze many federal funding sources. But the turnabout didn't entirely make clear what happens next.
The big picture: The whiplash from President Trump's executive orders and directives over the first week and a half of his term portends a tense four years for a heavily regulated sector that's very dependent on federal funding.
- "I think across the board you're going to see some trepidation and uncertainty about how to go about continuing important scientific research, among so many other activities," Richard Hughes, a lawyer at Epstein Becker Green, wrote in an email after the memo was rescinded.
Where it stands: The White House on Wednesday afternoon withdrew the controversial memo, which had already been temporarily paused by a federal judge. But Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later said while the memo itself would be scrapped, the White House was not rescinding the federal funding freeze.
- "The President's EO's on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented," she posted on X.
- Leavitt's comments added another layer of confusion, because the now-rescinded memo — not the executive orders Trump signed previously — outlined the "temporary pause," Axios' Zachary Basu reported.
What they're saying: The Coalition for Health Funding is glad the Office of Management and Budget withdrew its memo, said executive director Eric Gascho.
- "However, we are still alarmed by the idea and will continue to oppose future attempts to withhold vital support for large swathes of the American public that Congress has enacted or will enact," he told Axios.
The funding freeze threatened to at least temporarily cut off medical research institutions, hospitals, community health centers and others from the federal spigot.
- The administration later tried to clarify that it didn't cover Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, among other direct benefit programs.
