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🚨 NIH head Bhattacharya is about to testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee. We'll be keeping a close watch. Follow along for updates HERE⬇️ (🧵):

Sen. Baldwin with opening statement: "if this administration has its way, it will dismantle biomedical research enterprise...w/o NIH there would be no cancer immuno therapy, no overdose reversal treatment...Congress has spent 100 years building up NIH as the world's premier biomedical institution."

"current administration terminating 2,370 active grants..." Baldwin: political appointees making decisions about which grants are terminated and paid is unprecedented and will result in the politicization of science.

Baldwin: Administration says that we will remain the global leader in biomedical research, but their actions will achieve the opposite.

Bhattacharya : Lists all of the amazing advancements of the NIH. Then he says that the public doesn't trust the NIH... (evidence does not support this) www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Sen Collins: 19 billion reduction (40%) is disturbing and would undo years of investment, delay and stop effective treatments and cures from development. We also risk falling behind China and other nations increasing investment in biomedical research.

Collins: "Why is the administration proposing to cut the funding to the Nat Instituties of Aging when we are making progress on dementia?"

JB: says he supports a "wide range" of hypotheses on dementia. We still don't have a sufficient way to manage, prevent, and cure the disease. Committing the US to being the leader in the world. Notes the budget "is a collaborative effort" between congress and Administration.

Collins: NIH announced 15% IDC for grantees. This is poorly conceived & is harmful. Leads to brain drain, halting clinical trials, abandonment of research. Against federal law! Alarmed that after commitment during your hearing, this remains in the proposed budget. considering other models of IDC?

JB: Can't speak to 15% because it is under litigation. Opportunity to rethink institutional support and reform.

Collins: FY 2026 budget proposal = significantly fewer grants this year and next. OMB made a BIG change to grant funding that hides deeper cut than 40%. 1/2 of grants will be forward funded > billions will be put in escrow and will not be spent. Cutting funding by AN ADDITIONAL 7 billion.

Collins: 15,000 FEWER grants next year. WHY would NIH implement this policy? Intentional sabotaging biomedical research. (Collins and JB back and forth) JB: Forward funding is a proposal that "in the long run allows more money towards research..." Collins: "That's funny math"

Sen Capito: IDEA program. Geographic diversity of research--certain states get most of the funding from NIH, middle states have trouble securing grants. How do we support this?

Hey, it was Baldwin, not Collins, who said "That's funny math."