MDI Bio Lab Responds to Announced Cuts in NIH Research Grants

General News

MDI Bio Lab Responds to Announced Cuts in NIH Research Grants

• February 15, 2025

The National Institutes of Health this month issued Supplemental Guidance announcing a 15% cap on reimbursements for support services for direct biomedical research, such as electricity, heat, animal care, safety systems and regulatory compliance.

The decision was stayed, for the moment, by a federal court in Massachusetts. But it remains a major threat to MDI Biological Laboratory's mission to make life-changing discoveries for human health while training a new generation of science leaders.

The consequences of the rate cap would reach far beyond Mount Desert Island. It would undermine the nation's global leadership in biomedical science, choke off the job-creating engine of biomedical innovation, and interrupt the steady pace of medical breakthroughs to combat deadly diseases and save lives.

At MDI Bio Lab, we estimate that in a typical year, existing grant support would be reduced by $1.9 million annually, including about $580,000 in subawards to Laboratory partners in a statewide training network the Lab leads, called the Maine INBRE, and others.

That represents a 27% decrease in expected funding to support ongoing grants that are at the core of our research, training and outreach programs.

The measure would slow, and in some cases may end, front-line biomedical research projects. It would severely limit training opportunities for college students and early-career scientists. Perhaps most dishearteningly, it would imperil the job stability of the dedicated people in our workforce.

"Now is the moment for all those who stand with science to speak out," said Hermann Haller, M.D., President and CEO of MDI Biological Laboratory. "We are profoundly grateful for the support we've received from our community. It's urgent that we keep pressing the case for our work to transform human health for the better."

• National Institutes of Health
• NIH