According to CNN, nearly two dozen states have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration regarding recent cuts to public health research funding.
The Democratic attorneys general from 22 states claim in the lawsuit that the newly announced cuts will result in the immediate loss of hundreds of millions of dollars already allocated for employing tens of thousands of researchers and other workers. This action threatens to halt numerous life-saving health research projects and innovative technology initiatives. The lawsuit further argues that these funding cuts could have significant ripple effects in the private sector.
The complaint states that the states are seeking a temporary restraining order to pause the proposed cuts, adding to the growing list of rapid court proceedings challenging President Donald Trump’s aggressive reorganization of the federal government.
Under the contested plan, funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) known as indirect cost rates would be capped at 15%, down from an average exceeding 27%. Some research institutions, including Harvard, have rates that exceed 60%, according to the NIH, which mentioned in a recent post on X that this policy could result in savings of over $4 billion annually.
These indirect cost rates are intended to cover essential overhead expenses—such as facility maintenance, regulatory compliance, and administrative support—that research institutions require to effectively conduct their work. If the administration’s proposed cuts are not halted, the lawsuit warns that “cutting-edge work to cure and treat human diseases will come to a standstill.” This legal action was filed in a federal court in Massachusetts.
The NIH’s parent agency, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, holds the authority to implement these changes, as stated by its director of communications, Andrew Nixon, in an email to CNN.
The White House has also defended the new policy, with spokesman Kush Desai stating, “Contrary to the hysteria, redirecting billions of allocated NIH spending away from administrative bloat means there will be more money and resources available for legitimate scientific research, not less.”
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