NewsFinale
  • Home
  • News
  • Local News
  • Business
  • Health
  • Finance
  • Celeb Lifestyle
  • Crime
  • Entertainment
  • Advertise Here
Gleammour AquaFresh
NewsFinale
  • Home
  • News
  • Local News
  • Business
  • Health
  • Finance
  • Celeb Lifestyle
  • Crime
  • Entertainment
  • Advertise Here
Home Local News Judge says NIH grant reductions are illegal due to unprecedented discrimination in 40 years

Judge says NIH grant reductions are illegal due to unprecedented discrimination in 40 years

Judge rules some NIH grant cuts illegal, saying he’s never seen such discrimination in 40 years
Up next
Cambodian Refugees Find Sanctuary in Australia 50 Years After the Khmer Rouge
Published on 16 June 2025
Author
NewsFinale Journal
Share and Follow
FacebookXRedditPinterestWhatsApp


WASHINGTON – A federal judge ruled Monday it was illegal for the Trump administration to cancel several hundred research grants, adding that the cuts raise serious questions about racial discrimination.

U.S. District Judge William Young in Massachusetts said the administration’s process was “arbitrary and capricious” and that it did not follow long-held government rules and standards when it abruptly canceled grants deemed to focus on gender identity or diversity, equity and inclusion.

In a hearing Monday on two cases calling for the grants to be restored, the judge pushed government lawyers to offer a formal definition of DEI, questioning how grants could be canceled for that reason when some were designed to study health disparities as Congress had directed.

Young, an appointee of Republican President Ronald Reagan, went on to address what he called “a darker aspect” to the cases, calling it “palpably clear” that what was behind the government actions was “racial discrimination and discrimination against America’s LGBTQ community.”

After 40 years on the bench, “I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this,” Young added. He ended Monday’s hearing saying, “Have we no shame.”

During his remarks ending the hearing, the judge said he would issue his written order soon.

Young’s decision addresses only a fraction of the hundreds of NIH research projects the Trump administration has cut — those specifically addressed in two lawsuits filed separately this spring by 16 attorneys general, public health advocacy groups and some affected scientists. A full count wasn’t immediately available.

While Young said the funding must be restored, Monday’s action was an interim step as the ruling could be appealed.

The Trump administration is “exploring all legal options” including asking the judge to stay the ruling or appealing, said Andrew Nixon, a spokesman for NIH’s parent agency, the Department of Health and Human Services.

“HHS stands by its decision to end funding for research that prioritized ideological agendas over scientific rigor and meaningful outcomes for the American people,” he said in an email.

While the original lawsuits didn’t specifically claim racial discrimination, they said the new NIH policies prohibited “research into certain politically disfavored subjects.” In a filing this month after the lawsuits were consolidated, lawyers said the NIH did not highlight genuine concerns with the hundreds of canceled research projects studies, but instead sent “boilerplate termination letters” to universities.

The topics of research ranged widely, including cardiovascular health, sexually transmitted infections, depression, Alzheimer’s and alcohol abuse in minors, among other things. Attorneys cited projects such as one tracking how medicines may work differently in people of ancestrally diverse backgrounds, and said the cuts affected more than scientists — such as potential harm to patients in a closed study of suicide treatment.

Lawyers for the federal government said in a court filing earlier this month that NIH grant terminations for DEI studies were “sufficiently reasoned,” adding later that “plaintiffs may disagree with NIH’s basis, but that does not make the basis arbitrary and capricious.” The NIH, lawyers argued, has “broad discretion” to decide on and provide grants “in alignment with its priorities” — which includes ending grants.

Monday, Justice Department lawyer Thomas Ports Jr. pointed to 13 examples of grants related to minority health that NIH either hadn’t cut or had renewed in the same time period — and said some of the cancellations were justified by the agency’s judgement that the research wasn’t scientifically valuable.

The NIH has long been the world’s largest public funder of biomedical research.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Share and Follow
FacebookXRedditPinterestWhatsApp
You May Also Like
Hawaii and parts of Japan downgrade tsunami warnings to advisories
  • Local News

Tsunami Warnings Downgraded to Advisories in Hawaii and Parts of Japan

TOKYO (AP) — One of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck Russia’s…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
'He thought he was safe’: SC family calls for change after son’s death from amoeba
  • Local News

‘Sense of Security Shattered: South Carolina Family Urges Reform Following Son’s Tragic Amoeba Death’

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WSPA) – A South Carolina family is mourning the heartbreaking…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
As US grapples with China relations, Taiwan's president scraps stop on American soil
  • Local News

As US Navigates Tensions with China, Taiwan’s President Cancels US Stopover

WASHINGTON – The Taiwanese government has called off a plan for its…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Special meeting held to address Bluffton fire chief position
  • Local News

Wildfire Consumes 29 Acres at Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge

BLUFFTON, S.C. () – The Wildland Crew for the Bluffton Township Fire…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Nebraska plant explosion killed 2 girls and an employee, and the fire is still burning
  • Local News

Tragic Nebraska Plant Explosion Claims Three Lives; Fire Continues to Burn

FREMONT, Neb. (AP) — Two girls and an adult missing since a…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
FDA vaccine chief leaving agency after less than 3 months
  • Local News

FDA Vaccine Chief Departs Agency After Brief Tenure of Less Than 3 Months

WASHINGTON – The Food and Drug Administration’s polarizing vaccine chief is leaving…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Healthy Benedictine looks to reclaim top spot in Class AAAA
  • Local News

Benedictine Aims to Regain Top Position in Class AAAA

SAVANNAH, Ga. () — The expectations are always high for Benedictine football.…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 29, 2025
'We know where you all live': Man charged after threatening 4 Treasure Island commissioners
  • Local News

'We know where you all live': Man charged after threatening 4 Treasure Island commissioners

TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. (WFLA) — An Indian Rocks Beach resident has been…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 29, 2025
Ellen guest makes new bullying claims about disgraced host
  • US

Ellen’s Former Guest Alleges New Bullying Incidents Against Controversial Host

Comedian Adam Carolla has made a series of startling new claims about Ellen…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Jeffrey Epstein files: Democrats turn to obscure rule
  • US

Jeffrey Epstein Documents: Democrats Utilize Little-Known Regulation

Senate Democrats are turning to an obscure rule in their push to…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Johnson Co. man faces charges of Sodomy and Child Cruelty
  • Local News

Johnson County Man Accused of Sodomy and Child Cruelty

JOHNSON COUNTY, Ga. () – On July 16th, 59-year-old Rocky Dennis of…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
Colorado dentist James Craig found guilty of murdering wife in poisoning plot
  • US

Colorado dentist James Craig found guilty of murdering wife in poisoning plot

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! This story discusses suicide.…
  • NewsFinale Journal
  • July 30, 2025
NewsFinale Journal
  • Home
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Sitemap
  • DMCA
  • Advertise Here
  • Donate