A federal judge on Wednesday prevented the Trump administration from implementing substantial cuts to medical research funding. Many scientists warned these cuts would put patients at risk and lead to job losses.
The proposed new policy from the National Institutes of Health would have diverted hundreds of millions of dollars from research groups to cover indirect costs related to studies on Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease, and numerous other conditions. This included a wide range of research, from clinical trials of innovative treatments to fundamental laboratory work that serves as the groundwork for discoveries.
Separate lawsuits were filed by a coalition of 22 states, along with organizations representing universities, hospitals, and research institutions nationwide. They sought to halt the cuts, arguing that they would result in “irreparable harm.”
U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley in Boston had previously issued a temporary block on the cuts last month. On Wednesday, she issued a preliminary injunction, which extends the suspension of the cuts while the lawsuits proceed.
The NIH, the primary source of funding for biomedical research, awarded approximately $35 billion in grants to research groups in the past year. This funding is divided into “direct” costs – which cover researcher salaries and lab materials – and “indirect” costs, encompassing the administrative and facility expenses required to support the research.
The Trump administration had characterized these indirect expenses as simply “overhead,” but universities and hospitals contend that they are significantly more important. These costs can include things like the electricity needed to run specialized equipment, hazardous waste disposal, personnel responsible for ensuring researcher compliance with safety regulations, and custodial staff.
Previously, the government negotiated these indirect cost rates with institutions. For instance, an institution with a 50% indirect cost rate would receive an additional $50,000 to cover indirect expenses for a $100,000 project. The NIH’s new policy aimed to cap indirect costs at a uniform rate of 15% instead, with the intention of saving the agency $4 billion annually.
