(Maire Clayton, Headline USA) The National Institutes of Health plans to cancel or cut back on dozens of grants that were looking into why people are reluctant to get vaccinated, according to The Washington Post.
The outlet obtained an email Monday that was titled “required terminations — 3/10/25.” The internal email said the agency “received a new list … of awards that need to be terminated, today. It has been determined they do not align with NIH funding priorities related to vaccine hesitancy and/or uptake.”
The email was reportedly sent by Michelle Bulls, director of the Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration.
The email noted there were roughly 40 grants and it instructed to send termination letters by the end of day Monday.
The memo instructed individuals to send the following message to the grants that were being cut: “It is the policy of NIH not to prioritize research activities that focuses gaining scientific knowledge on why individuals are hesitant to be vaccinated and/or explore ways to improve vaccine interest and commitment. … Therefore, the award is terminated.”
The Washington Post learned the previous week NIH terminated funding related to diversity, equity and inclusion.
It was unclear if Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. contributed to the cuts.
He previously put a 90-day stop-work hold on a multimillion-dollar contract that was going to be used to develop a new COVID-19 oral vaccine.
Kennedy was sworn in on Feb. 13 and put in charge of the “Make America Healthy Again” Commission by President Donald Trump.
The commission’s goal is “to investigate and address the root causes of America’s escalating health crisis, with a focus on childhood chronic disease.”
