STAT+: What’s at stake in Friday’s court hearing on NIH research indirect cost cuts
A federal judge will hear arguments on whether to maintain a stay on a cap on NIH overhead cost payments
A federal judge will hear arguments on Friday in the first hearing on three separate lawsuits filed to block the Trump administration’s plan to sharply cut the amount the National Institutes of Health pays universities and other research institutions for overhead costs.
The suits were filed in rapid succession in the days after the NIH announced on Feb. 7 that it would cap so-called indirect costs at a 15% rate as of Feb. 10, leading the judge to issue a temporary restraining order that placed a nationwide pause on the measure.
At the Friday hearing, Judge Angel Kelley of the U.S. District Court in Boston will hear arguments from lawyers for the plaintiffs and the Trump administration to decide whether to maintain the stay on the Trump administration’s cap while the cases proceed. While the suits have not been consolidated, they are being heard together because they are making similar legal arguments.
