NIH Employees Criticize Trump Administration Cuts of Personnel and Funding

In a June 9 letter addressed to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jay Bhattacharya, numerous current and former NIH staff expressed sharp criticism of the Trump Administration’s actions this year regarding NIH that included terminating over 1,000 employees, as well as halting hundreds of grants to fund biomedical and other scientific research. The letter warns of the dire consequences these measures will have on the future of public health in both the U.S. and across the globe and calls for NIH to honors its commitment to academic freedom, quoting the NIH Director’s promise to “establish a culture of respect for free speech in science and scientific dissent at the NIH”. Subsequently, on June 16, a federal judge ordered NIH to restore certain grants the agency previously terminated, many of which focused on addressing health disparities among racial minorities, the LGBTQ+ community, and women.