At the end of January, we shared an update regarding a series of announcements from the new Administration and their potential implications for the brain tumor community.
NBTS’s primary concern continues to be whether any of these actions would limit the ability of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other federal agencies to provide access to care for patients and/or fund brain tumor research projects. As the situation continues to evolve quickly, we wanted to follow up regarding recent headlines concerning cuts to funding for research at the NIH. Here’s what we know as of now:
- Late on Friday evening (February 7), the NIH’s social media accounts announced that the agency would immediately introduce a 15% cap on the “indirect cost” rate research institutions (universities, cancer centers, etc.) can apply to funded grants. [More below on indirect costs].
- On Monday (February 10) morning, the Attorneys General for 22 states sued to block the implementation of this policy.
- Later on Monday, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order (TRO), blocking the policy from going into effect in these 22 states until a hearing could be held on the matter.
- On Tuesday (February 11), the same federal judge expanded the TRO to include the entire nation (following an additional suit from more organizations). The order states that the government cannot take “any steps to implement, apply, or enforce the [policy] … in any form with respect to institutions nationwide until further order is issued by this Court.”
- A hearing has been set for February 21 on this matter.
Indirect costs involve a complicated set of calculations that determine, generally, facility and administrative expenses related to research that can’t be directly attributed to the individual project a grant is supporting. These can include things like salary for support staff in a laboratory, maintenance and upkeep of lab equipment, as well as basic utility costs associated with the facility.
As it relates to the NIH, there is concern that mandating a 15% cap on indirect costs for all grants could impact the ability of many institutes to support their research staff, necessary administrative work, and purchase and upkeep of state-of-the-art scientific equipment and facilities.
How this cap would ultimately play out, specifically, on brain tumor research is not fully clear. And while this issue is paused by court order, NBTS is taking the time to talk with researchers in our field about any anticipated consequences.
We should know more once the legal process plays out and we hear from the brain tumor research world directly about how this could affect their ability to apply, receive, and effectively conduct NIH grants. As the National Institutes of Health is by far the largest funder of brain tumor research, NBTS wants to ensure that federal funding for brain tumor research remains strong and predictable.
As always, thank you for your advocacy and dedication. Please reach out to advocacy@braintumor.org if you have questions, stories of impact, or concerns as it relates to our shared work to create change for the brain tumor community.
