Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios
House appropriators this morning released a FY25 Labor-HHS spending bill that calls for a 7% spending cut to HHS and a reorganization of NIH that would consolidate 27 research centers into 15.
Why it matters: The blueprint is certain to trigger a fight with President Biden and congressional Democrats while showcasing spending pressures under the caps outlined in the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023.
- It contains contentious anti-abortion riders, a prohibition on funding for gender-affirming care and calls for eliminating funding for Title X family planning, per a GOP summary.
By the numbers: Discretionary funding for HHS would be $107 billion — a 7% cut from the FY24 enacted level and $14 billion below Biden's budget request.
- NIH funding would remain flat, at $48 billion.
- The bill includes NIH reforms recently proposed by the House Energy and Commerce Committee that would streamline research areas and impose more congressional oversight over the agency.
- CDC funding would be cut 22%, or $1.7 billion, and the draft would eliminate programs for climate change and gun research.
- Republicans are also recommending eliminating 23 "duplicative and controversial" programs at the CDC to focus on "communicable diseases rather than social engineering."
The draft would increase funding for SAMHSA Substance Misuse Prevention and Mental Health Services block grants, but reduce funding for programs that "support the active misuse of narcotics."
- The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response is also slated to receive a $200 million boost above President Biden's request.
The anti-abortion riders include:
- Long-standing Hyde Amendment prohibitions on federal funds for abortion.
- Eliminating funding for the Title X grants that goes to family planning clinics including Planned Parenthood.
- Prohibiting funding for any Biden administration activities that promote abortion.
The other side: Appropriations Ranking Democrat Rosa DeLauro blasted the funding cuts and "multiple attacks on women" in the bill.
- "This bill is dangerous and threatens programs and services that Americans depend on at every stage of their life," DeLauro said.
What's next: The bill will be marked up in the House Appropriations Labor-HHS subcommittee on Thursday morning.
