Is flat 15% fair? An NIH funding policy is misguided and damaging

An NIH funding policy is misguided and damaging On 7 February 2025, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) set a 15% cap on facilities and administrative (F&A) cost reimbursements to grantee institutions: payments for indirect costs that are shared across multiple projects such as buildings and administrator support. In response to multiple lawsuits, on 5 March 2025, US District Judge Angel Kelley issued a nationwide preliminary injunction while the court considers the case. If implemented, this ill-informed and misguided policy would cut NIH?s F&A reimbursements by about $4 billion, leaving universities unable to maintain the quality and level of their research. In addition, a 15% flat rate is inherently unfair along several dimensions. The system proposed by NIH cannot accomplish its stated goal of cutting costs while maintaining a high-quality national research system. Far more productive approaches to reform are possible.