Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Megan Ranney MD MPH @meganranney.bsky.social · Jul 29

A little known - but hugely consequential - part of the government’s changes to science funding:

open.substack.com/pub/sciencea...

A Quiet Policy Shift That Could Devastate American Science

Why NIH’s sudden move to multi-year grant funding should alarm every principal investigator and university

open.substack.com

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Jul 13

So well put. Something I am thinking about every day with research as well.

Jeremy BOO! Yoder 🎃💀🕷️ @jbyoder.org · Jul 13

“I was once so compelled by medicine’s commitment to the worth of each human life that I set out to live by it. Now I know that a doctor’s ability to fulfill this commitment—to live a moral life in medicine—depends on the systems of care that we as a society build.”
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...

Sick Children Will Be Among the Victims of Trump’s Big Bill

Cuts to federal health-care spending make it harder for doctors to make the oldest promise in medicine: that we will do no harm.

www.newyorker.com

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Jun 12

becoming a Delta + AMEX whore is the move

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Jun 5

This please 👇🏼

Adam Gracz @graczlab.bsky.social · Jun 4

This would be a great time for everyone to be cool when reviewing manuscripts and *not* request $25,000 worth of new experiments that don’t substantially advance or validate the study...

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · May 15

Now is a the time to get involved in your scientific societies. #Hematology #HemeSky
@ash.hematology.org is stepping up for Hematology - HOW CAN YOU HELP?

If you want to be on a committee nominate yourself or someone else below. I am also happy to nominate you, so just reach out.
Deadline May 31!

American Society of Hematology @ash.hematology.org · Apr 22

ASH seeks passionate members to shape the future of hematology. Nominate yourself or a colleague for an ASH committee and help drive the Society’s mission forward. Submit today: www.hematology.org/a...

📅 Nominations due: May 31, 2025

#Leadership #Hematology #MedSky #HemeSky

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Apr 30

Congratulations!!!

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Apr 18

Oh.

Science Magazine @science.org · Apr 18

After freezing all grants to Columbia University last week, the National Institutes of Health is now stopping grant and contract payments to Harvard University and four other universities. scim.ag/4ikYp2T

NIH freezes funds to Harvard and four other universities, but can’t tell them

Move follows broader White House attack on Harvard funding and stop-work orders to contractors

scim.ag

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Apr 7

😬

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Mar 26

This is where we are living.

www.cnn.com/2025/03/25/b...

Florida debates lifting some child labor laws to fill jobs vacated by undocumented immigrants | CNN Business

Florida has been working for years to crack down on employers that hire undocumented immigrants. But that presented a problem for businesses in the state that are desperate for workers to fill low-wag...

www.cnn.com

Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · Mar 25

The information I am receiving is consistent with the STAT story.

The boards are being purged of women and minoritized scientists with no other obvious pattern. And for the cases where I have some information, the effects are not subtle...Boards going from 35% women to 10% women.

3/n

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 28

💅

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 28

same with individuals 👀

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Stand Up for Science! @standupforscience.bsky.social · Feb 27

The FDA just cancelled a meeting to select flu strains for next season's flu shots.

"It's unclear what the canceled meeting will mean for Americans who want to get a flu vaccine next season."

www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

FDA cancels meeting to select flu strains for next season's shots

The canceled meeting comes just days after a CDC vaccine advisory committee meeting was abruptly postponed.

www.nbcnews.com

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Office of Mayor Michelle Wu 吳弭 @mayorwu.boston.gov · Feb 20

The City of Boston is leading 40+ mayors, cities, and counties in an amicus brief against the Trump Administration's drastic and illegal cuts to federal research funding—cuts that will lead to immediate job losses nationwide.

COALITION OF MAYORS ACROSS U.S. FILE AMICUS BRIEF IN OPPOSITION TO TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S DRASTIC CUTS TO FEDERAL RESEARCH FUNDING
Led by the City of Boston, MA, City of Cleveland, OH, the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, TN, the Mayor of Gainesville, FL, and the Mayor of Salt Lake City, UT, over 40 mayors, cities, and counties argue that NIH cuts will cause job losses, economic disruption, and undermine U.S. competitiveness

BOSTON - Thursday, February 20, 2025 - Late yesterday, Mayor Michelle Wu co-led a coalition of Mayors from across the United States in writing and filing an amicus brief in federal district court in Boston to stop the Trump Administration's drastic and illegal cuts to federal research funding and immediate job losses in cities nationwide. Over 40 mayors, cities, and counties from across the country joined the brief. These cities are home to universities and hospitals that employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in cutting edge medical and scientific research, and the federally-funded research in these communities has made the United States the global leader in scientific discovery. The brief seeks a temporary restraining order against the Trump Administration, alongside the research universities, medical schools, hospitals, and 22 states that are plaintiffs in the three cases filed last week in federal district court.

“For decades, Congress has made a clear choice to use federally-funded research to invest in cities, build a broadly-distributed infrastructure for scientific discovery, create jobs, and drive economic growth in communities across the United States,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “We join with cities across the country – in red states, purple states, and blue states – to stop this illegal action that will cause layoffs, lab closures, and undermine scientific progress in American cities. I thank Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell for her leadership on behalf of the research institutions of Boston.”

This amicus brief is in response to the abrupt February 7, 2025 announcement by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of an immediate reduction in funding for scientific and medical research institutions across the country. Under the NIH’s new policy, which temporarily went into effect on Monday, February 10, payments for indirect costs reimbursed to research universities would be capped at 15%, down from 30-70%. The brief makes clear that NIH funding cuts would devastate research institutions in cities across the county, cause job losses, create severe economic disruption, and undermine a critical pillar of strength and civic pride in cities across the United States. The cuts would also undermine critical medical and scientific research that residents are counting on, including cancer, diabetes, and heart disease, and jeopardize the cities’ and country’s position of global leadership on scientific advancement.
“The Gainesville community depends on this highly efficient, dependable investment of our tax dollars back into our city’s innovation economy,” said Harvey L. Ward, Mayor, City of Gainesville, Florida. “I’m glad to join other mayors in highlighting the vital role NIH funding plays in the lives of everyday hardworking American families.”
“The breadth and diversity of this coalition highlights the devastating and widespread impact of these NIH funding changes, from Alzheimer’s research to cancer clinical trials,” said Jill Habig, Founder and CEO of Public Rights Project. “We’re proud to partner with mayors, cities, and counties in opposing this threat to critical federal funding and the health and vitality of our communities.”
On Monday, February 10th, twenty two states and associations of medical schools, hospitals, and universities, filed three related cases, and secured a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump Administration from slashing the reimbursement rates. That initial order will be revisited this week in a hearing scheduled for Feb. 21.

The Public Rights Project served as amici counsel. The full list of mayors, cities and counties who joined the brief is below.

Local Governments and Mayors

City of Boston, Massachusetts
City of Cleveland, Ohio
Harvey L. Ward, Mayor, City of Gainesville, Florida
Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee
Erin Mendenhall, Mayor, City of Salt Lake City, Utah
City of Alameda, California
City of Albuquerque, New Mexico
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
City of Baltimore, Maryland
Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, Mayor, City of Burlington, Vermont
Township of Canton, Michigan
Town of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
City of Chicago, Illinois
Sandra Welch, Mayor, City of Coconut Creek, Florida
City of Columbus, Ohio
City of Easthampton, Massachusetts
Daniel Biss, Mayor, City of Evanston, Illinois
City of Fairfax, Virginia
Harris County, Texas
Ravinder S. Bhalla, Mayor, City of Hoboken, New Jersey
Quinton Lucas, Mayor, Kansas City, Missouri
Indya Kincannon, Mayor, City of Knoxville, Tennessee
City of Madison, Wisconsin
Jeff Silvestrini, Mayor, City of Millcreek, Utah
Anissa Welch, Mayor, City of Milton, Wisconsin
Montgomery County, Maryland
City of New Haven, Connecticut
Dontae Payne, Mayor, City of Olympia, Washington
Adrian O. Mapp, Mayor, City of Plainfield, New Jersey
Sue Noack, Mayor, City of Pleasant Hill, California
City of Pittsburgh and Ed Gainey, Mayor, City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
City of Providence, Rhode Island
John Clark, Mayor, Town of Ridgway, Colorado
City of Rochester, New York
City of Sacramento, California
City and County of San Francisco, California
City of Santa Monica, California
Constantine H. Kutteh, Mayor, City of Statesville, North Carolina
Lisa Brown, Mayor, City of Spokane, Washington
Tishaura O. Jones, Mayor, City of St. Louis, Missouri
City of St. Paul, Minnesota
Dennis R. McBride, Mayor, City of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

The New York Times @nytimes.com · Feb 22

The Trump administration blocked key parts of the federal government’s apparatus for funding biomedical research, effectively halting progress on much of the country’s future work on illnesses like cancer and addiction despite a federal judge’s order to release grant money.

Trump Administration Stalls Scientific Research Despite Court Ruling

Using an arcane law, officials have effectively delayed funding from the National Institutes of Health, leaving medical studies in jeopardy.

www.nytimes.com

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Mark Peifer (He, him) @peiferlabunc.bsky.social · Feb 21

Ok scientists & those who love science 🧪: here is another exhortation. Call Congress TODAY about the freeze on NIH Council Meetings and Study Sections. Emphasize that this means NO new grants are being funded & labs will soon start to shut down and fire employees. Phone numbers are at:
5calls.org

5 Calls

Spend 5 minutes. Make 5 calls. Make your voice heard.

5calls.org

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Nature @nature.com · Feb 20

Almost all grant-review meetings under Trump 2.0 remain suspended at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), preventing the world’s largest public funder of biomedical research from spending much of its US$47 billion annual budget.

https://go.nature.com/4gM6oW4

Revealed: NIH research grants still frozen despite lawsuits challenging Trump order

The Trump administration is exploiting a loophole to keep a funding freeze in place, leaving researchers in limbo.

go.nature.com

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 20

Is there an open access link to share?

Reposted by Kellie Machlus

Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · Feb 20

This is a red alert for US science, for new cures & treatments for diseases that afflict everyone in this country. This isn't "oh, it will blow over." Soon we will have reached the point of no return destroying what it has taken decades to build. WE NEED TO BE BANGING DOWN THE DOORS IN CONGRESS.

Dr. Becca @docbecca.bsky.social · Feb 19

If the block on the Federal Register isn’t removed in the next few months, I fear a majority of labs will close within a year. This small procedural wrench has the power to kill US science indefinitely, losing an entire generation of discovery and innovation.

Brian Stevenson Ph.D. spirochete lab @bstevensonlab.bsky.social · Feb 19

I had two grant proposals up for review in the NIH Bacterial Virulence (BV) study section. It was canceled without notice this morning.
Without those grants, my lab must close within a year.
And so the purge of scientific research in the US continues
🤬
#MicroSky 🦠🧫🧪🧬🔬

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 19

Study section freeze hits NIH

Science Magazine @science.org · Feb 19

A freeze on meetings of expert panels that peer review grant proposals at the National Institutes of Health is kicking in this week.

Follow Science’s coverage of President Donald Trump’s impact on U.S. research and science globally. ⬇️ scim.ag/40XtSSi

Trump Tracker: Firings, lawsuits, and U.S. science in chaos

Follow President Donald Trump’s impact on U.S. research and science globally

scim.ag

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Reposted by Kellie Machlus

The Transmitter @thetransmitter.bsky.social · Feb 18

A large portion of grants awarded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health cannot be funded for the foreseeable future because of an indefinite hold on submissions to the Federal Register, according to an email reviewed by The Transmitter.

By @avaskham.bsky.social

bit.ly/3X8ngz8

Federal Register hold makes ‘end run’ around court pause on NIH funding freeze

www.thetransmitter.org

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 16

\same!

Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 16

Current inspiration as I continue doing my science as a form of protest and resistance. 🧪🩸💪

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 14

Obviously that was my position too 💪🏼

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Kellie Machlus @kmachlus.bsky.social · Feb 10

You’re the one who literally posted that you don’t care about what’s happening.
If you don’t want to send that message, don’t post it. It is taken at face value.

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