Collins urges White House not to move forward with NIH grant proposal

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, on Tuesday urged Trump administration officials to not proceed with an executive order that would give the White House political control over scientific grants at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

In a letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought and NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, Collins noted that the stopgap government funding bill passed earlier this month blocked a similar proposal that sought to give political appointees broader authority over approving federal research grants to ensure they meet the president’s priorities.

The proposal to establish a political review board for NIH grants would undermine “the federal government’s objective of funding biomedical research projects based on scientific merit and value rather than political ideology,” Collins wrote.

Collins has pushed back against White House efforts to exert greater control over NIH funding. Earlier this year, Collins opposed a 15 percent cap on indirect research costs.

She also issued a strong statement blasting the proposed order on Monday, along with the top Democratic appropriators Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (Conn.).

Collins in her letter Tuesday highlighted how the current NIH grantmaking process has helped drive research breakthroughs for illnesses like Alzheimer’s disease, Type 1 diabetes and cancer.

“Your proposal to establish a new committee to review NIH grants risks undermining the Congressionally-mandated peer review process that all NIH grants must undergo before they are approved for federal funding,” Collins wrote. “The rigor of the peer review process is key to NIH’s success” and has contributed to 174 scientists either working at or funded by NIH winning Nobel Prizes.

“If the administration seeks additional reforms of NIH, I urge you to submit a legislative proposal to Congress rather than pursue an executive order,” Collins continued.