MA AG Sues Trump Admin. For Defunding Medical Research

MASSACHUSETTS - Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell joined 21 other attorneys general in a lawsuit against the Trump administration, accusing it of unlawfully cutting medical and public health funding.

"Massachusetts is the medical research capital of the country, Campbell said in a news release. "We are the proud home of nation-leading universities and research institutions that save lives, create jobs and help secure a better future."

The lawsuit also includes the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The group of state leaders is challenging President Donald Trump's administration's cutting of "indirect cost" reimbursements at every institution across the country. Such reimbursements cover expenses for biomedical research and lab and facility costs.

On Friday, Feb. 7 the NIH said they would cut those cost rates at a cap of 15%. Universities and institutions were given nearly no time to respond, as they took effect Monday. Life-extending clinical trials are expected to be suspended, and layoffs and lab closures are also likely.

The coalition is seeking a court order barring the Trump administration and NIH from implementing the cuts, citing that it violates the Administrative Procedure Act and a directive Congress passed during Trump's first term.

The statutory language in the directive restricts the NIH from mandating categorial and indiscriminate changes to indirect cost reimbursements.

The suit is being co-led by the attorneys general of Massachusetts, Illinois and Michigan. The following states joined the group:

• Arizona
• California
• Connecticut
• Colorado
• Delaware
• Hawaii
• Maine
• Maryland
• Minnesota
• Nevada
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• Oregon
• Rhode Island
• Vermont
• Washington
• Wisconsin

"We will not allow the Trump administration to unlawfully undermine our economy, hamstring our competitiveness or play politics with our public health," Campbell said.