OMB targets NIH with an $18B cut while NSF loses half its budget

The Office of Management and Budget released reconciliation instructions targeting the National Institutes of Health with an $18 billion funding reduction and the National Science Foundation with a 50 percent budget cut, eliminating thousands of active research grants. NIH Director Jayanta Bhattacharya announced the cuts would terminate approximately 3,400 ongoing studies. Scientific organizations warned the cuts would end American leadership in biomedical and basic science research.