Trump administration stalls AHRQ funding, halting over a hundred health-safety grants

In mid-July, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality announced the termination of at least 104 research grants, marking a sharp slowdown after more than a year of issuing no new awards and spending less than $15 million of the $345 million Congress provided for the fiscal year. The agency, which for 27 years has been the only federal source for studies that aim to reduce medical errors and healthcare-associated infections, has seen its staff cut by about 75 percent since Donald Trump took office in January 2025.

The Society for General Internal Medicine sued AHRQ Director Roger Klein and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., claiming the funding freeze breaches a 1974 statute that places budget authority with Congress, not the President. The July 15 notice avoided the term “termination,” instead stating grants were “not awarded continued funding,” a phrasing that could affect the lawsuit’s outcome. HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard indicated a new grant-allocation framework is being crafted, but no timeline was given. Critics note that similar budget cuts have previously targeted other health agencies, raising concerns about long-term impacts on patient safety and cost savings previously attributed to AHRQ-funded research.