Senators Grill Bhattacharya on NIH Grants, Budget Free

During a Senate Appropriations Committee budget hearing yesterday, NIH director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, was criticized by senators from both parties over the agency’s termination of research grants and the Trump administration’s proposed cuts to its budget. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) noted that the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, which would slash NIH funding to $18 billion a year––just 60% of current levels––would “delay or stop effective treatments and cures” and would risk allowing China to advance in front of the United States in biomedical research. Should the budget pass, the NCI will see its yearly funding drop from $7.2 billion a year to $4.5 billion annually, a nearly 38% decrease.