Illustration: Shoshana Gordon/Axios
House appropriators this morning advanced an FY25 Labor-HHS spending bill that calls for a 7% funding cut to HHS and a large-scale reorganization of NIH.
Why it matters: The Republican blueprint, approved by voice vote, is likely to trigger battles with Democrats and the Biden administration over reproductive health, public health programs and spending levels within caps set out by the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
- It contains numerous contentious riders, in what's expected to be a stark contrast with Senate appropriators, who've indicated they want to continue to craft bipartisan spending bills.
- Republican leaders still are hoping that they can use the appropriations process to overhaul parts of NIH and CDC in the wake of GOP criticism over the agencies' COVID response.
Zoom in: The House Labor-HHS bill which was unveiled by the committee yesterday, calls for a 7% cut to HHS, to $107 billion, which is $14 billion below President Biden's budget request.
- NIH funding would remain flat at $48 billion, while CDC would face a 22%, or $1.7 billion, cut.
The bill contains a proposed NIH restructuring that would shrink the number of research centers and streamline research while increasing congressional oversight.
- It also includes contentious anti-abortion riders like the Hyde Amendment, as well as prohibitions on funding for the Title X family planning program and for gender-affirming care.
The other side: House Appropriations Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro slammed the bill during the subcommittee markup, predicting that Democrats will strip out riders that affect a woman's right to choose.
What's next: The full Appropriations Committee markup of Labor-HHS is scheduled for July 10.
- GOP leaders have set an ambitious goal of wanting to get all of their funding bills to the House floor before the August recess.
