Administration abandons plan to expand oversight of NIH grant decisions
The White House has decided not to pursue an executive order that would have given the Office of Management and Budget more control over National Institutes of Health grantmaking, according to a person familiar with the matter. The proposal faced opposition from Senate appropriators, including Republican Chair Susan Collins and Democratic Ranking Member Patty Murray, who argued it would politicize scientific funding. The decision follows a continuing resolution that already delayed implementation of a related rule on grant review.
The decision follows a May proposal known as the Uniform Guidance rule, which would have required politically appointed officials to examine discretionary grants for consistency with presidential priorities and would have broadened agencies' authority to cancel grants "for convenience." That rule's implementation is already postponed by the continuing resolution funding the government through mid-December.
Senator Collins' Tuesday letter to NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya and OMB Director Russ Vought urged the administration to drop the executive order idea, arguing it would undercut the CR provision and the federal government's aim of funding biomedical research based on scientific merit rather than political ideology. Murray characterized the move as part of a broader effort to strip funding from research the administration deems "woke."
This decision could affect patients and families who depend on NIH-funded research for new treatments and cures. By keeping grant decisions rooted in scientific merit rather than political alignment, the outcome may help preserve public trust in biomedical research funding. However, the underlying Uniform Guidance rule remains pending, and future administrative actions could still reshape how research dollars are allocated, potentially influencing which diseases receive attention and how quickly breakthroughs reach the public.