The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has halted the review of new grant applications, delaying decisions on $1.5 billion in research funding for diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease. The freeze follows a Trump administration directive blocking NIH from publishing notices in the Federal Register, which are required for grant review meetings.
The disruption has already forced the cancellation of meetings evaluating 16,000 grant applications. NIH officials are working to lift the freeze to prevent long-term funding gaps, but researchers warn that proposals are currently going into a “black hole.”
The move has intensified concerns that the administration is dismantling federal research funding. The NIH has already lost about 1,200 employees due to layoffs, and a pending policy aims to cap indirect research costs at 15%, a move critics say would cripple medical research.
The administration has defended the pause as part of a routine review, but scientists and lawmakers fear it signals broader restructuring efforts that could reshape NIH’s funding system.
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