On February 7, 2025, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that it would change its maximum indirect cost rate for university research grants from 50% in some cases to 15%, as recommended by Project 2025.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funds crucial health research to address cancer, diabetes, dementia, and more. NIH funding also boosts the economy, returning >250% of the value invested. Scienceimpacts.org developed a website to depict how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwide. In total, the SCIMaP estimates that scientific research in America will lose $16 billion and 68,000 jobs.

Many of the lifesaving medicines we have today - including every one of the 210 new drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration from 2010–2016 - wouldn’t exist without years of research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Long before these drugs hit the market, NIH-supported scientists were studying how the immune system fights cancer and how certain hormones control blood sugar. Their discoveries laid the groundwork for pharmaceutical companies to develop targeted treatments that now help millions of people.

For example, NIH-funded research on the PD-1 pathway helped scientists understand how cancer cells evade the immune system, leading to drugs like Keytruda that boost the body’s natural defenses. Similarly, studies on GLP-1 hormones, supported by NIH grants, paved the way for drugs like Ozempic, which helps people with diabetes and even aids in weight loss. These breakthroughs show how public investment in medical research can lead to real-world treatments that save lives and improve health.

We must immediately reverse all cuts to scientific advancement in America and continue to invest in lifesaving medical advancements and environmental technologies to avoid losing tens of thousands of American jobs and suffering disastrous impacts to research.