NIH Grant Commission (Executive Order)

In September 2026, The Washington Post and Politico reported that the Trump Administration is drafting an executive order to establish a commission to review grants made by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In an Oval Office meeting on September 18, 2026, President Donald Trump directed Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget to draft the order.

According to Senator Susan Collins, who opposed the order, the White House will not proceed with the order.

Background

The NIH is a $48 billion agency that distributes the majority of its funding to labs in the US for research areas in the biomedical sciences, including infections diseases, heart disease, and cancer. The NIH selects projects based on an expert review of scientific merit.

During the second Trump Administration, there has been an increasing effort to expand conservative cultural changes in academia, including a pressure campaign against elite universities.

In June 2026, the administration published a new rule that would proposed rule to reduce emphasis on peer review, instead giving greater discretion to political appooints to determine what research will "advance the President’s policy priorities."

NIH Grant Commission

The proposed Executive Order would create an external commission with the power to veto biomedical research awards that do not align with Trump's initiatives. The commission would include Vought and NIH director Jay Bhattacharya, and would be required to reach unanimous decisions on grant awards.