Leaked HHS Passback Budget Includes NIH Reorganization, Cuts to Health Agencies

On April 10, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) passback budget was leaked to the public. A passback budget is a preliminary proposal in which Federal Agencies and the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) negotiate discretionary funding and legislative priorities for inclusion in the Presidential Budget Request (PBR). It should not be considered the final version to be included in the PBR when it is released.

Notable provisions within the leaked passback:

• A reorganization of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including collapsing its 27 institutes and centers (ICs) into eight. This is a more extreme directive than previous proposals made by Congress, including a framework published by Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers and the fiscal year (FY) 2025 appropriations bill released by the House last July (see previous COSSA coverage).
• Significant cuts to health agencies, including:
  • 40 percent cut to the NIH budget, decreasing their budget to $27.3 billion.
  • 44 percent cut to the CDC budget, decreasing their budget to $5.2 billion.
• A policy directive to cap the NIH indirect cost rate at 15 percent (see previous COSSA coverage).
• A new Administration for a Healthy America (AHA), which would absorb the following priorities:
  • Maternal and Child Health
  • Mental Health
  • Environmental Health
  • HIV/AIDS
• Various programs would be moved to different agencies:
  • The National Center for Health Statistics (NCES) and the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), both currently housed under CDC, would be moved under the jurisdiction of AHA.
  • The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) would be housed under AHA.
  • The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) would be consolidated into the new Office of Strategy.

The Presidential Budget Request (PBR) is rumored to be released in May with the possibility of a skinny budget sooner. Stay tuned to COSSA’s continued coverage on the new Administration.