Child Safety Net Research Faces HHS Cuts, According To Divulged Document
More than 150 research projects at the Administration for Children and Families — including for studies of Head Start and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program — were listed for cancellation on a spreadsheet mistakenly emailed to grant recipients.
AP:
Email Discloses HHS Plans To Cut Research Of Child Welfare Programs
The Trump administration could gut research on the effectiveness of child welfare programs, with plans to terminate dozens of university grants studying improvements to Head Start and child care policy, according to a spreadsheet mistakenly made public this week. The document listed more than 150 research projects under consideration for termination by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It covered grants funded by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, which says it “builds evidence to improve lives” by helping policymakers evaluate programs that help low-income children and families. (Foley, 5/2)
Stat:
NIH Halts Funding For Research Projects With Foreign Collaborators
The National Institutes of Health announced Thursday it will no longer allow subawards to foreign institutions, as part of a national security-minded overhaul to how the agency manages its $47 billion research funding portfolio. The change is likely to cause immediate disruptions to research projects around the world. (Molteni, 5/1)
AP:
FDA To Rehire Fired Staffers Who Booked Inspection Trips, But Other Workers Remain In Limbo
For the second time in recent months, the Food and Drug Administration is bringing back some recently fired employees, including staffers who handle travel bookings for safety inspectors. More than 20 of the agency’s roughly 60 travel staff will be reinstated, according to two FDA staffers notified of the plan this week, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential agency matters. Food scientists who test samples for bacteria and study potentially harmful chemicals also have been told they will get their jobs back, but have yet to receive any official confirmation. (Perrone, 5/1)
Modern Healthcare:
HHS Must Restore Public Comment Policy, Senate, House Dems Demand
Congressional Democrats are intensifying public pressure on the Health and Human Services Department to restore transparency to a swathe of policymaking decisions. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced in February that the department would stop giving public notice or accepting public comments on a wide array of policies. The sudden shift reversed the so-called Richardson waiver policy in place since 1971, under which HHS sought feedback on most of its actions. (Early, 5/1)
MedPage Today:
Mixing Science And Politics Leads To Trouble, Former NIH Director Says
"When you mix politics and science, you just get politics." Former NIH director Francis Collins, MD, PhD, made that comment Tuesday at an event here sponsored by The Atlantic as he reflected on the lessons he learned from his early experiences during the COVID pandemic. And although the country's political polarization became more evident during that time, the seeds were sown even earlier, during the Obama administration, Collins said. (Frieden, 5/1)
Stat:
Biotech Leaders Decry Trump Disruptions In Health And Science
At an annual meeting usually focused on the industry’s future, life science leaders couldn’t help but grapple — 100 days into President Trump’s second term — with a present clouded by uncertainty. At Stanford’s Drug Discovery Symposium, biotech bigwigs spoke openly this week about how the scientific ecosystem that trains the industry’s workforce and produces many of the discoveries companies later turn into new drugs and diagnostics is now in jeopardy. (Wosen, 5/1)
KFF Health News:
KFF Health News’ ‘What The Health?’: 100 Days Of Health Policy Upheaval
Members of Congress are back in Washington, and Republicans are struggling to find ways to reduce Medicaid spending without cutting benefits. Meanwhile, confusion continues to reign at the Department of Health and Human Services. (Rovner, 5/1)
Also —
NBC News:
Trump Canceled 'Illegal DEI' Program To Stop Raw Sewage From Infiltrating Alabama Homes
A $26 million federal program to help residents of Lowndes County, Alabama, who have dealt with inadequate sewage systems for decades was stopped by an executive order. (Bunn, 5/1)
Tucson.com:
Guatemalan Who Gave Birth In Tucson Faces Rapid Deportation
A Guatemalan woman who gave birth in Tucson on Wednesday — days after entering Arizona through the desert and getting arrested by border agents — is facing rapid deportation proceedings under Trump's "expedited removal" policy, which could put her and her baby's health and safety at risk, according to an immigration attorney. (Bregel, 5/1)
