NIH Budget Cuts Proposed for FY20

On March 11, 2019, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the Trump Administration’s proposed budget for the U.S. Government in Fiscal Year (FY) 2020. Under the budget proposal, funding for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would be reduced by $12.1 billion or 11.9 percent, compared to FY2019 levels. According to documents published by HHS, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would receive $34.36 billion in funding, which reflects a cut of $4.9 billion or 12.6 percent (compared to FY2019 levels). All NIH programs would see cuts. Among the worst affected would be:

• the National Cancer Institute, whose funding would decline by $897 million or 14.6 percent (compared to FY2019 levels);
• the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, whose funding would decline by $769 million or 13.9 percent (compared to FY2019 levels);
• the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, whose funding would decline by $486 million or 13.9 percent (compared to FY2019 levels); and
• the National Institute on Aging, whose funding would decline by $429 million or 13.9 percent (compared to FY2019 levels).

Update: 

On December 20, 2019, President Trump signed H.R. 1865 -- the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 -- into law. Division A of H.R. 1865 provides $41.7 million in funding for NIH in FY2020, an increase of 7 percent or $2.6 billion above FY2019 levels.