Press Release  AG Campbell Sues Trump Administration For Defunding Medical And Public Health Innovation Research

BOSTON — Massachusetts Attorney Andrea Joy Campbell co-led 21 other attorneys general in today suing the Trump Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for unlawfully cutting funds that support cutting-edge medical and public health research at universities and research institutions across the country.

The coalition is challenging the Trump Administration’s attempt to unilaterally cut “indirect cost” reimbursements at every research institution throughout the country. These reimbursements cover expenses to facilitate biomedical research, like lab, faculty, infrastructure, and utility costs. Without them, the lifesaving and life-changing medical research in which the United States - and Massachusetts, in particular - has long been a leader, could be compromised.

Indirect cost reimbursements are based on each institution’s unique needs, negotiated with the federal government through a carefully regulated process, and then memorialized in an executed agreement. The Trump Administration’s purports to toss those agreements aside, putting public health and medical advancements at risk. The coalition’s lawsuit seeks to prevent that reckless and illegal conduct.     

The lawsuit was filed today in U.S. District Court for Massachusetts and can be found here.

“Massachusetts is the medical research capital of the country. We are the proud home of nation-leading universities and research institutions that save lives, create jobs, and help secure a better future,” said AG Campbell. “We will not allow the Trump Administration to unlawfully undermine our economy, hamstring our competitiveness, or play politics with our public health.”   

On Friday, February 7, the NIH announced it would abruptly slash indirect cost rates to an across-the-board 15% rate, which is significantly less than the cost required to perform cutting edge medical research. The NIH purported to make this cut effective the very next business day, Monday, February 10 – giving universities and institutions no time to plan for the enormous budget gaps they are now facing. Without immediate relief, this action could result in the suspension of lifesaving and life-extending clinical trials, disruption of research programs, layoffs, and laboratory closures.

The coalition argues that this action violates the Administrative Procedure Act, including a directive Congress passed during President Trump’s first term to fend off his earlier proposal to drastically cut research reimbursements.  That statutory language, still in effect, prohibits the NIH from requiring categorial and indiscriminate changes to indirect cost reimbursements. The coalition is seeking a court order barring the Trump Administration and NIH from implementing the action.

The NIH is the primary source of federal funding for medical research in the United States. Medical research funding by NIH grants have led to innumerable scientific breakthroughs, including the discovery of treatment for cancers of all types and the first sequencing of DNA. Additionally, dozens of NIH-supported scientists have earned Nobel Prizes for their groundbreaking scientific work.

Most NIH-funding research occurs outside of federal government institutions such as both public and private universities and colleges. In Fiscal Year 2024, 219 organizations in Massachusetts received approximately $3.46 billion in NIH funding to support 5,783 research projects. At the University of Massachusetts Amherst, NIH funding is used for research that improves healthy aging and the care of people living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Other institutions that receive NIH funding include the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Brigham & Women’s Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

This lawsuit is being co-led by the attorneys general of Massachusetts, Illinois, and Michigan. Joining this coalition are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. 

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