USC to partner with various research organizations to understand NIH freeze impact
Researchers are urged to continue the research uninterrupted.
By ZELDA FISHMAN
After President Donald Trump’s administration’s proposal to cap the National Institutes of Health’s funding for research, USC is working to navigate the situation with partner organizations, such as the American Hospital Association and Big Ten Academic Alliance, so they can continue working “on behalf of the public good,” the University wrote in a statement to the Daily Trojan.
“NIH-funded research has enabled USC and other major [United States] research institutions to save countless lives, cure diseases, produce technological breakthroughs, bolster our local economy, and enhance U.S. global competitiveness,” the University said. “The recent announcement about the NIH places all of this in jeopardy.”
Trump’s executive order would establish a new indirect rate for all funding for NIH research grants at 15%.
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Indirect funding includes the costs of medical research, including facilities and administrations. Facilities are defined as buildings, equipment and capital improvements. Administrations are defined as costs deriving from director’s offices, accounting and personnel. Both of these expenditures are vital for the efficiency and dependability of medical research.
The NIH has historically been crucial for the development of medical research in the U.S. The field is so dependent on this government funding that more than 35 billion dollars were spent in the fiscal year of 2023 on research, which included 50,000 competitive grants for 300,000 researchers at more than 2,500 schools across the U.S. Out of the 35 billion spent, 9 billion was allocated to the NIH’s indirect cost rate.
The USC Office of Research and Innovation is encouraging University researchers to continue conducting their studies “without interruption.”
“The guidance issued relates specifically to reimbursements for shared university expenses like lab space, libraries, and security, not direct research funding,” the Office of Research and Innovation said.
