HHS budget proposal details significant cuts to National Institutes of Health, other agencies
A budget proposal for the US Department of Health and Human Services details extensive cuts to funding for the National Institutes of Health, part of an effort to consolidate the work of its 27 institutes into just eight while reducing the agency’s budget nearly 40%.
The proposed cuts to federal health agencies were first revealed in a preliminary memo from White House budget officials in April. A newly released Budget in Brief document for fiscal year 2026 lays out HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plan to prioritize his Make America Healthy Again initiative with a $94.7 billion discretionary budget.
The budget for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would be slashed from more than $9 billion to just over $4 billion and funding for the US Food and Drug Administration cut from about $7 billion to just over $6.5 billion.
However, some of the biggest changes will be felt at the NIH, where the budget document lists 2026 funding at $27.5 billion, down from nearly $48.5 billion in 2025.
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Research!America, a nonprofit that advocates for science and innovation, said it was “alarmed” by the budget proposal.
“If the proposal is enacted, Americans today and tomorrow will be sicker, poorer, and die younger,” President and CEO Mary Woolley said in a statement. “American research has a proven track record of increasing survival, reducing the burden of illness, and creating jobs. Cutting research funding helps no one; instead, it hurts everyone.”
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