Attorney General Clark Announces Appeals Court Affirms Permanent Injunction Against Trump Administration for Defunding Medical and Public Health Research

Attorney General Charity Clark today announced that the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling permanently preventing the Trump Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from implementing a policy that would cut billions of dollars in funds that support cutting-edge medical and public health research at universities and research institutions across the country, regardless of whether their state joined the lawsuit.

The ruling protects critical funds that facilitate biomedical research, like lab, faculty, infrastructure, and utility costs. Without them, the lifesaving and life-changing medical research in which the United States - and Vermont, in particular - has long been a leader, could be compromised.

On February 10, 2025, less than six hours after AG Clark and a coalition of 21 other attorneys general filed their lawsuit against the Administration, a judge in the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order against NIH, barring its attempts to cut the critical research funding. The court subsequently issued a permanent injunction preventing the Trump Administration from implementing its policy restrictions on this important category of funding. The Trump Administration appealed that ruling to the First Circuit.

NIH is the primary source of federal funding for medical research in the United States. Medical research funding by NIH grants have led to innumerable scientific breakthroughs, including the discovery of treatment for cancers of all types and the first sequencing of DNA. Additionally, dozens of NIH-supported scientists have earned Nobel Prizes for their groundbreaking scientific work.

Joining Attorney General Clarkin filing the lawsuit were the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin.

CONTACT: Amelia Vath, Senior Advisor to the Attorney General, 802-828-3171