- The Hon. Tom Cole
Chairman
House Appropriations Committee
H-307 The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515 - The Hon. Rosa DeLauro
Ranking Member
House Appropriations Committee
1036 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Chairman Cole and Ranking Member DeLauro:
The undersigned organizations are writing to share our opposition to the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LaborHHS) Appropriations bill as currently written. We are extremely concerned about the cuts to public health and biomedical research programs, including the $48 billion funding level for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that would result in cuts to research.
Additionally, and importantly, we are alarmed that the Labor-HHS bill incorporates policy to restructure the NIH. Authorizing an entirely new structure for the NIH in an appropriations bill without hearings, data, and review of the impact on biomedical research is a violation
of process and procedures. This massive consolidation of NIH’s Institutes and Centers amounts to Congress dictating science; it would affect all research conducted at the NIH and be detrimental to the research enterprise. A policy of this magnitude—and one affecting one of our nation’s preeminent research institutions—should not be included in an appropriations bill. It must be considered by an authorizing body through an open,
transparent process that includes input from a variety of key stakeholders and follows a thorough review of NIH operations and portfolios.
Click here to view the full Neurosurgery Urges Congress to Increase NIH Funding and Expresses Concern with NIH Restructure Proposal.
