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GOP Senators Demand Release of Withheld NIH Research Funds

Delays under an ideological review jeopardize critical research; American jobs—alongside U.S. biomedical leadership—face serious risk.

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Overview

  • Sen. Katie Britt led 13 GOP senators in a July 25 letter to OMB Director Russell Vought urging immediate release of FY25 NIH funds that have been held since Congress’s March appropriation.
  • The group said the Trump administration’s review of NIH grants for compliance with President Trump’s DEI ban has stalled more than 2,100 awards valued at over $9 billion.
  • They warned that the funding freeze jeopardizes thousands of research projects, the jobs they support and the U.S.’s position in biomedical science.
  • The senators balanced criticism by voicing confidence in NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as leaders capable of restoring agency trust.
  • They insisted that fulfilling congressional intent for timely NIH disbursements is essential to sustain research on cancer, rare diseases and vaccines.