Former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius worries over 'devastating' cuts to research funding [View all]

Source: The Hill

03/26/25 8:08 PM ET


Former Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is concerned about the Trump administration’s recent cuts to research grants through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). “I’m worried on a lot of fronts,” Sebelius said during The Hill’s “Health Next Summit.” “The kinds of cuts that were just announced are devastating and will set science back and set research back.”

The Trump administration and billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have eliminated whole agencies and made sweeping cuts to others over the past two months, including to NIH. Recently, the Trump administration announced it would cancel all NIH grants on equity issues, which include work studying HIV and black maternal health.

The administration also recently issued a 15 percent cap on indirect costs of NIH grants. Indirect funding in NIH grants is used to cover overhead and administrative costs at universities and other research institutions.

A federal judge recently ordered the NIH to stop its plans to cut its grant funding amount to universities, hospitals and other institutions following a number of lawsuits from state Democratic attorneys general and the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5216617-former-hhs-secretary-kathleen-sebelius-worries-over-devastating-cuts-to-research-funding/