Federal judge blocks billions in NIH cuts
Photo | Courtesy of Chris Lisinski, State House News Service
The Massachusetts State House
A federal judge issued a nationwide preliminary injunction Wednesday that temporarily blocks the Trump administration from slashing federal health and research dollars, Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office announced.
Campbell on Feb. 10 had led a coalition of 22 attorneys general in suing the Trump administration over the abrupt cut to National Institutes of Health funding that covers overhead and administrative costs tied to research projects. A judge in the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order hours later, which is now replaced by the injunction that Campbell's office said will stay in effect until there's a final ruling in the case.
"This is a major win for research institutions across the country – in both red and blue states – that rely on NIH funding to conduct innovative research, as well as for the individuals and families who depend on these medical advancements to improve and even save their lives," Campbell said in a statement.
The order applies to the Trump administration, NIH and the Department of Health and Human Services, which are blocked from "cutting billions of dollars in funds that support cutting-edge medical and public health research at universities and research institutions across the country, regardless of whether their states have joined the lawsuit," Campbell's office said.
Gov. Maura Healey escalated her focus on NIH funding last week, telling business leaders the loss of funding would devastate the commonwealth's economy and cost people their lives.
NIH provided $3.46 billion to 219 Massachusetts organizations in fiscal 2024, according to Campbell's office.
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