06-15-25 Federal News Update
Please note: Federal actions by the current Administration can be reversed or paused at any point by actions of the court. Montgomery County Medical Society will endeavor to keep you updated on this very fluid situation.
Overview
Opinion: “Beneath this golden gloss lies a return to strategies that threaten to weaken federal science, dismiss scientific findings, and open the door to political manipulation of evidence-based policy,” write scientists Jacob M. Carter and Gretchen T. Goldman.
CDC
Good news: CDC backtracks, will rehire more than 450 people it laid off.
Separate documents indicate that numerous initiatives axed from the CDC through a reduction in force (RIF) in April will be resurrected with reduced funding within the AHA — or not at all. Funding lines at the CDC for tobacco control, nutrition and obesity, school health, heart disease and stroke, diabetes, and cancer prevention and control are among those that are zeroed out and slated for elimination.
CMS
Republicans back off Medicare changes in GOP megabill. An effort to get savings from reforms to popular Medicare Advantage plans is failing to gain ground in the Senate.
FDA
FDA approves expanded use of Moderna’s RSV shot, but uncertainty remains.
NIH
Several hundred NIH employees sign a letter of protest to Jay Bhattacharya, the agency’s director, to rebuke many of the agency’s actions since President Trump took office. The letter expresses concern over the cancellation of research on health disparities, climate change, and LGBTQ+ people; the proposed cut to funding for research indirect costs; and the firing of “essential” NIH employees, among other moves. Read more.
Trump’s steep proposed cuts to medical research funding draw bipartisan flak. After being pressed on proposed $18 billion in NIH cuts, Bhattacharya tells senators he will work with them to find an acceptable spending level
President Trump’s 2026 budget proposes cutting the NIH’s central function — supporting research by awarding grants to universities, academic medical centers, and other institutions — by 43% compared to 2025 levels. Documents show an $11.6 billion cut in this funding, to $15.1 billion, which would both reduce the number of new grants awarded as well as existing grants for ongoing research.
The agency walked back a policy requiring universities and other research institutes to certify that they do not have unlawful diversity, equity, and inclusion programs or boycotts of Israel in order to receive research dollars. The rule, which was initially posted in April, was seen as the next stage of using research funds as leverage against private universities and efforts to increase diversity in the sciences. It is unclear what prompted the rescission of the policy, which is effective immediately. Read more.
A new analysis from the Association of American Medical Colleges found NIH grant terminations have pulled almost $2 billion in funding away from U.S. medical schools and hospitals, including $314.5 million intended to train biomedical and health researchers.