Public Health Watch: What Is the State of American Science?
Are you worried that the U.S. will lose its preeminence in science if DOGE manages to achieve massive cuts in spending?
Universities are loudly lamenting the termination of grants and the slashing of the “overhead” portion that goes to the institution rather than to the researcher. “The weeks ahead may be the greatest test the US scientific community has ever faced,” writes editor-in-chief H. Holden Thorp (Science 2/28/25). But is the threat to science a loss of funding—or the lock that the system places on innovation or discoveries that disrupt the status quo, as shown below.
Any scientists who challenge ideas now considered “settled science” (a contradiction in terms) may not only be deprived of grants but may be shut out of the system entirely, and be accused of being “anti-science” or practicing “pseudoscience.”
About 900 grants have been terminated, and some researchers and the American Public Health Association are suing NIH, HHS, and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Many of the projects serve an ideological agenda, such as LGBTQ+ issues, gender identity, and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
What will come after the wrecking ball? A recent letter by President Trump called for blazing a trail to the next frontiers of science. Key proposals include accelerating research and development, eliminating regulatory constraints, reinforcing domestic supply chains, and invigorating private sector investment.
RFK, Jr., has been demanding data to show that vaccines are safe and that food guidelines are based on sound science, instead of industry interests.
After a period of turmoil, a renaissance could dawn.
Additional Information:
- The Negative Impact of Government Funding on Medical Research: AAPS 2003 annual meeting. Lecture by Arthur Robinson
- List of terminated grants
- Paradigm Lock. AAPS News, April 2025
About the author Jane Orient, M.D., is the Executive Director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons and may be reached by email at jane@aapsonline.org.