Jennifer Surtees’ View on NIH Grants Being Back
The Chronicle of Higher Education quoted Jennifer Surtees, chair of biochemistry in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, in a story about the reinstatement of NIH grants.
A federal judge recently ordered the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to restore about 900 research grants that were cut by the Trump administration earlier this year. Many scientists are relieved, but the situation is still chaotic. Some grants have been reinstated with no funding attached, others face delays, and researchers are worried the money could be pulled again.The cuts had disrupted studies, forced layoffs, and created uncertainty, especially for projects involving LGBTQ+ health, diversity, and public health. Now, even with funding returning, new restrictions tied to federal executive orders make many researchers cautious about their work and wording.
Jennifer A. Surtees, a biochemist at the University at Buffalo, summed up the mood well in an article from The Chronicle of Higher Education: she feels an urgent need to complete expensive tasks like genome sequencing quickly, fearing the funding could vanish again. Many scientists share her anxiety, struggling to plan their research or careers while living under constant uncertainty.
