“Trump Administration actions are endangering life-saving research and economic growth in Massachusetts and across the country.”

“The chaos caused by the Trump administration is unacceptable—and you owe researchers and patients in Massachusetts and beyond an explanation about what is going on at your agencies.” 

Text of Letter (PDF) 

Washington (February 12, 2025) – Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) today wrote to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) with concerns about the ongoing Trump Administration funding cuts at Massachusetts research institutions. 

The NIH and NSF are the largest public funders of research in the United States — fueling the development of lifesaving treatments for diseases like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes, tools for the early detection of Alzheimer’s disease, and more. This funding is particularly indispensable in Massachusetts, where dozens of world-renowned universities, hospitals, and research institutions rely on NIH and NSF grants to support cutting-edge research that benefits the U.S. economy and patients around the world.

Within days of taking office, the Trump Administration called for an immediate pause on all public communications from HHS, NIH’s parent organization, and one week later, paused all activities related to the disbursement of funds. This pause was blocked by a federal judge, but the Trump administration has refused to fully comply with the order to unfreeze funds. 

On February 7, the NIH announced that all new and existing research awards would face major cuts, due to reduction in the “indirect cost rate.” Following a legal challenge by 22 state attorneys general, led by Massachusetts Attorney General Campbell, a federal judge issued a temporary order blocking the cut within those states. Still, researchers, students, and institutions are facing huge budget cuts and continued uncertainty.

These “Trump Administration actions are endangering life-saving research and economic growth in Massachusetts and across the country,” wrote the lawmakers. 

“The chaos caused by the Trump administration is unacceptable—and you owe researchers and patients in Massachusetts and beyond an explanation about what is going on at your agencies,” continued the lawmakers.

The Senators’ offices conducted interviews with institutions who are among the top recipients of NIH and NSF funding in Massachusetts about the impact these cuts would have on researchers’ projects, careers, and on the local economy. These interviews revealed that: 

1. The funding freezes and cuts at NIH and NSF have caused chaos and confusion at Massachusetts research institutions. Representatives at Massachusetts research institutions described a “hunger for clear guidance on what is impacted and what isn’t” as investigators scramble to save their work and plan for the years and months ahead. They are concerned about existing grants being clawed back, afraid to ask for clarification for fear they’ll have a “target on their back,” and in some instances even unable to “buy a book or a pencil.” 
2. The funding cut offs are impeding research carried out by Massachusetts institutions that enable critical, lifesaving care. NIH and NSF funding saves Americans’ lives by sponsoring life-saving clinical trials, many of which are conducted at Massachusetts institutions. Thus, for some, the consequences of the funding pauses could be life or death: “if you’re a cancer patient in a clinical trial, it is not a theoretical undertaking, it is treatment.” 
3. Federal funding disruptions at Massachusetts institutions puts the future of a highly skilled STEM workforce at risk.Nearly half of all science and engineering doctoral recipients graduating from U.S. research institutions have received federal research funding during their graduate studies. According to conversations with Massachusetts research institution representatives, “higher education is a big industry in Massachusetts, we’re training the workforce at every level;” pulling back this funding risks “a situation where you can only earn a PhD if you’re already wealthy.” 
4. Freezes and cuts in federal research funding at Massachusetts institutions will be a critical hit to the innovation that has cemented the United States as a vanguard in healthcare.Massachusetts scientists are using NIH grants to create new cancer drugs; develop new technologies—like the bionic pancreas—to treat disease; study ways to combat the opioid epidemic; and identify risk factors for heart disease, among other critical endeavors. As representatives from Massachusetts-based research institutions said, “if anyone in the world has a serious disease and they want to come to the US - they want to come to Boston.” 
5. Federal funding disruptions will harm the Massachusetts and United States economies.The NIH is the largest single public funder of biomedical and behavioral research in the world, and in fiscal year 2023 NIH funding generated over $90 billion in economic activity in the United States. In Massachusetts along that same year, the NIH awarded $3.5 billion in grants in contracts that directly supported 28,842 jobs and nearly $7.5 billion in economic activity. 

“The unprecedented actions taken by the Trump Administration will undermine the United States’ research edge—whether through abandoned research projects, staffing shortages, or a “brain drain” in our biotech workforce as young, budding scientists opt for other careers and countries with greater certainty,” concluded the lawmakers. 

The Senators urged the agencies to end the funding freeze and threats to cut grant expenditures and provide clarity on their directive-issuing processes and the rationale behind the indirect cost cap reduction by February 26, 2025. In 2017, following President Trump's budget proposal seeking massive cuts to the NIH, Senator Warren released a report detailing the importance of NIH funding to Massachusetts. 

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