The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled by a 5-to-4 vote that the Trump administration could for now cancel more than $780 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health that the government said had been intended to explore topics like diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, “gender ideology” and vaccine hesitancy.
But a different five-justice majority let stand for now a lower court’s ruling that the administration’s underlying policy directing the cuts was probably unlawful and should be put on hold.
Only Justice Amy Coney Barrett was in both majorities.
The case will proceed to lower courts.
The grants already canceled will not be immediately reinstated but that recipients may be able to sue in a specialized court. Further cancellations may be barred.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and the court’s three liberal members — Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson — would have blocked the policy and also restored the funding. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr., Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh would have allowed the Trump policy and the cuts to be implemented.
After the N.I.H. sent out boilerplate notices terminating thousands of grants, research and advocacy groups, a union, individual researchers and 16 states sued, saying the moves were arbitrary and capricious.
I want a $500,000.00 NIH grant to study the emotional effects of losing a Tiddlywinks Game. It is a serious health issue!!!