NIH Agrees to Evaluate and Complete Review on Stalled Scientific Grant Applicationshttps://www.aclu.org/press-releases/nih-agrees-to-evaluate-and-complete-review-on-stalled-scientific-grant-applications 🔗ACLU of Massachusetts (30 Dec 2025)
BOSTON — Grant applications that were arbitrarily frozen, denied, or withdrawn by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will now receive individual evaluations under an agreement announced today in a lawsuit brought on behalf of scientists whose careers were upended by unlawful NIH policy directives. Under a stipulated dismissal, the NIH has agreed to use its standard process to render decisions on the plaintiffs' stalled applications, which address urgent public health issues, including HIV prevention, Alzheimer's disease, LGBTQ+ health, and sexual violence.
"This agreement allows my grant application, and many others, to move forward for review after an arbitrary and destructive freeze. I'm building a career around studying the aging brain, with a particular focus on Alzheimer's disease and alcohol use, said plaintiff Nikki Maphis, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of New Mexico. "I look forward to having my funding proposal evaluated fairly so that I can continue contributing to urgent and unmet public health needs."
"Researchers deserve to have their work evaluated on its merits, not sidelined by political interference," said Olga Akselrod, senior counsel, ACLU Racial Justice Program. "NIH has now agreed to review the stalled applications individually and in good faith, without applying the unlawful policy directives."
The agreement also sets clear deadlines for the applications to be reviewed and decided on, based on when each application was originally submitted. Importantly, the agreement confirms that the close of the Federal Fiscal Year 2025 will not prevent the NIH from reviewing or awarding any applications.
