22 states sue to halt NIH research funding cuts
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Attorneys general from 22 states sued the Trump administration on Monday, seeking to freeze a plan that would cap National Institutes of Health payments covering overhead at universities and medical research centers.
- A federal judge later granted a temporary freeze.
The big picture: The billions of dollars in cuts to new and existing grants could lead to layoffs, disrupt clinical trials and shutter laboratories, the states charged in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.
- The plaintiffs included multiple states known for their research economies, including Massachusetts, North Carolina, Maryland and California.
Driving the news: The states charge the administration acted in an arbitrary and capricious way by not explaining the basis for the cap.
- It said the move also violated a 2018 law governing NIH spending that forbade the federal health department or NIH from developing or implementing a modified approach reimbursing the so-called indirect costs for biomedical research.
Context: NIH on Friday abruptly announced it would lower the indirect cost rate that grantees receive to no more than 15%.
- A post on X stated that $9 billion of $35 billion NIH awarded in fiscal 2023 was used for overhead and administration instead of direct research.
What they're saying: "The administration's decision to cap NIH reimbursement rates could force scientists to shutter their lifesaving research on cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's, addiction, infectious diseases, and more," New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement.
- The University of California submitted a declaration in support of the suit. "A cut this size is nothing short of catastrophic for countless Americans who depend on UC's scientific advances to save lives and improve healthcare," said UC President Michael Drake in a statement.
