White House expected to propose 20% cuts to NIH

The White House is expected to propose 20% cuts to NIH's spending in its fiscal 2027 budget request, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the planning that spoke to Roll Call.

In fiscal 2026, NIH received $48.7 billion in funding, a $415 million increase of the previously enacted level. The Trump administration last year proposed a $29.3 billion budget for fiscal 2026.

The budget request, which is slated to be released next week, will reflect President Donald Trump's policy priorities and will act as a guide for lawmakers as they draft appropriations bills for the fiscal year that starts on Oct. 1.

The sources that spoke to Roll Call, all of whom are in the medical research industry, said the Trump administration will again propose consolidating some of NIH's operations, though it's unclear whether that would mirror proposals from last year.

The White House disputed the information provided by the sources. "This story is false," said Rachel Cauley, communications director at the White House Office of Management and Budget. Cauley declined to provide additional details.

(Cohen, Roll Call, 3/27)

Trump administration delays CDC director nomination

The Trump administration is planning to delay nominating a new director for CDC, leaving NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya overseeing the agency past the 210-day limit imposed by federal law on filling Senate-confirmed positions in an acting capacity.

Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for HHS, said that Bhattacharya "will continue to oversee the CDC by performing the delegable duties of the CDC director," meaning that Bhattacharya will continue performing the duties of the CDC director without officially holding the post.

Nixon added that HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and HHS chief counselor Chris Klomp "are working with the White House on the CDC director search by evaluating candidates that can further the Trump administration's objective of restoring the CDC to its original mission of fighting infectious disease."

Bhattacharya assumed the role as interim director on Feb. 18 following several months of leadership changes. In August 2025, Susan Monarez was fired as CDC director just weeks after her confirmation. Following Monarez's firing, HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O'Neill served as acting director of CDC until he left HHS in February, leading Bhattacharya to take his place.

(Sullivan, Axios, 3/25; Muoio, Fierce Healthcare, 3/26; Mandavilli/Stolberg, New York Times, 3/25)

"Dr. Casey Means has spent her entire career as an entrepreneur, bestselling author, and researcher bringing attention to America's chronic disease epidemic and how our healthcare system is failing the American people," the statement said. "The President stands by her and the Senate should move to quickly [confirm] Dr. Means as our next surgeon general without further delay."

Trump originally nominated Means as surgeon general last May, and she was scheduled to go before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee in October, but the hearing was delayed when she went into labor. Means testified before the committee in February.

(Choi, The Hill, 3/30; Weber/Roubein, Washington Post, 3/30)

Study finds over 8M people could lose Medicaid coverage under work requirements

Over 8 million people could potentially lose their Medicaid coverage once the Medicaid work requirements are implemented as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) last year, according to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Of the 16.5 million Medicaid beneficiaries ages 19 to 64, researchers found that 50.4% of enrollees, or 8.3 million people, would be at risk of disenrollment because they worked too few hours.

Under the "community engagement" requirements that are part of OBBBA, Medicaid recipients are required to demonstrate at least 80 hours of engagement per month in employment, participation in a work program like job training, enrollment in an educational program at least half of the time, community service activities, or a combination of these activities.

The requirements will take effect on Jan. 1, 2027, and apply only to the 40 states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as well as the District of Columbia.

"The findings should give states pause," said Rishi Wadhera, of the Smith Center for Outcomes Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an author on the study. "A core assumption behind work requirements is that most nonworking enrollees are able-bodied and simply need an incentive to work. Our data challenge that directly — the majority of those at risk have functional limitations that would make compliance genuinely difficult, yet they don't meet formal disability criteria that would exempt them."

(Frieden, MedPage Today, 3/30)