Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
NIH-Funded Investigators Dropped In 2025 For First Time in Decade
CIDRAP: In 2025, The Number Of NIH-Backed PIs And Fellows Declined. Black, Hispanic Researchers Hit Hardest
Last year was tumultuous for US researchers, with numerous changes occurring at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). While the agency eliminated billions of dollars of funding and often nixed peer-reviewed grant meetings, it was unclear who the cuts impacted the most. A study published this week in JAMA found that, while the number of investigators sank overall, Black and Hispanic researchers received fewer research grants and fellowships than their peers in 2025. (Holohan, 6/10)
Stat: NIH Grant Cap Proposal Revives Debate On Fair Distribution Of Funding
Throughout Lawrence Tabak’s 25 years at the National Institutes of Health, serving first as the head of one of its institutes before becoming principal deputy director and subsequently acting director, he took many trips to universities around the country to talk to researchers. He made a point to prioritize state schools and smaller institutions. Never on those visits was there a shortage of researchers brimming with ideas they hoped would attract the funding to pursue. (Oza, 6/11)
More news from the Trump administration —
Bloomberg: Is The US Prepared For The Next Pandemic? How Trump’s Policies Weakened Defenses
Recent outbreaks of Ebola and hantavirus infections are reminders that when such rare diseases flare up, they have the potential, in our interconnected world, to spread beyond their points of origin. While neither of these deadly menaces is thought likely to provoke a global epidemic, they’ve stoked anxiety about the ability of the US to respond to such a threat. The fundamentals of pandemic preparedness include maintaining a robust public health infrastructure, including a strong surveillance system to detect threats early; investing in research to facilitate the quick development of new treatments and vaccines; and building public trust in health officials. (Nix, 6/11)
Bloomberg: Trump's Haiti Deportation Push Could Trigger Nursing Home Staffing Crisis
Thousands of Haitian immigrants who take care of ill and aging Americans could soon be forced to leave the US. Their departure, some nursing-home operators and Republican lawmakers fear, would unleash a healthcare disaster. The Supreme Court is expected to decide by the end of its current term whether the Trump administration can revoke the temporary protected status, known as TPS, of about 350,000 Haitian nationals. The court’s ruling is also expected to affect immigrants who fled turmoil in Venezuela, Syria, El Salvador and other countries. (Cattan, 6/10)
KFF Health News: Trump Bought Tobacco Stocks And Raked In Industry Donations As FDA Eased Standards
President Donald Trump, who once declared he had “saved” flavored vapes, grew his stock holdings this year to as much as $1.64 million in tobacco giant Philip Morris. He also had holdings in Altria and a third leading tobacco company, though an apparent discrepancy in his disclosures clouds the extent of his investments. In 2025, tobacco interests donated $6 million to MAGA Inc., a super PAC that supports the president, and Trump’s inauguration. And, on April 30, a week before FDA guidance that provided a critical boost to the industry, Reynolds American dropped an additional $5 million into the super PAC’s coffers. (Tahir, 6/11)
Axios: The Looming China Pharma Choke Point
U.S. drug development is heavily dependent on China — and Washington is not keeping up with the whole-of-government response many experts say is needed to change that. (Owens, 6/10)
San Francisco Chronicle: Feds Say UC Davis Med School Discriminated In Admissions
The U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday that the UC Davis School of Medicine discriminated based on race in admissions, the latest Trump administration finding against a medical school after the Supreme Court’s 2023 affirmative action ruling. (Vaziri, 6/10)
