'Research labs would literally go dark,' academic groups warn of NIH cuts – Columbus Business First – Columbus Business First

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"Without support of (facilities and administration) costs, research labs would literally go dark," said a joint statement from several academic research coalitions.
Ohio State University, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and others stand to lose tens of millions of dollars that support many jobs because the National Institutes of Health abruptly slashed grant support for overhead expenses.
The NIH in a Friday announcement cut the so-called indirect expense rate for facilities and administration to 15% of direct research costs. Indirect costs include support staff, utilities, building maintenance, data storage, safety and regulatory compliance.
“Reduced NIH funding will lead to fewer research projects, fewer opportunities for collaboration with industry partners, and ultimately, job losses in both academia and the private sector,” said a statement from Ohio Life Sciences Association, representing 4,900 research, medical and biotech establishments.
Ohio State’s negotiated rate ranges from 26% for off-campus research to 57.5% for on-campus research, so the new rate could be as little as one-fourth the previous support for overhead.
Research has not been interrupted, a university spokesman said via email.
“Without support through (facilities and administration) costs, research labs would literally go dark,” said a federal lawsuit from the Association of American Medical Colleges, with other academic and hospital coalitions.
“It will impede progress on American medical, scientific, technical, and economic priorities; result in fewer jobs and slower economic growth; cede to other nations American companies’ competitive advantage as a catalyst of new industries; and threaten the nation’s long-term competitiveness against global adversaries,” the complaint said.
The cuts were paused late Monday under a nationwide temporary restraining order from a U.S. District Court judge in Massachusetts, where the case was filed.
OSU’s Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge “worked through the weekend” to determine the impact, according to an email to staff on Sunday. Meanwhile OSU lobbyists and other units joined industry and national academic organizations in advocating for “continued support for lifesaving research.”
Statewide, $1 billion in NIH funding supports 13,000 jobs, according to an analysis last spring by advocacy organization United for Medical Research.
Ohio State is by far the largest recipient.
NIH grants support half of the research from the OSU College of Medicine.
Indirect costs totaled $75.2 million of OSU’s $260.9 million in NIH grants in fiscal 2024, according to NIH data.
The amount of the cut can’t be calculated without a breakdown of location and activity. The university could not supply the dollar amount, a spokesman said via email.
The Wexner Research Institute of Nationwide Children’s Hospital said it received $69.1 million in NIH funding in FY24, $21.5 million of that indirect – which only partially covered those overhead expenses. Its negotiated rates range from 28% to 56%, according to an archived contract through 2024.
“These cuts would undermine critical progress in cutting-edge research focused on serving and saving children in our region and across the country,” the pediatric hospital said in a statement.
Battelle received $31.8 million in NIH grants in FY24, but indirect costs are not broken out in its data. Representatives were not immediately available.
Overall, Central Ohio organizations, including several biotech startups, received a total $365.5 million in NIH grants.
The cuts are illegal, according to two parallel lawsuits.
“Congress has twice explicitly considered, but did not adopt, an across-the-board cap on (indirect) costs,” said the American Medical Colleges complaint.
Instead, individual institutions negotiate the rates with the agency. Expenses are audited.
Deviations from negotiated rates are allowed for specific conditions for single research projects or group of related projects, not across the board nationwide, the complaint said.
The complaint asks the court to declare the cut unlawful and prevent it from taking effect.
A similar lawsuit was filed by 22 state attorneys general, mostly Democrats, resulting in a separate restraining order for those states. A message seeking comment was left with Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican running for Ohio governor.
In his first term, President Donald Trump proposed capping indirect costs at 10%.
“Since 2018, Congress has explicitly prohibited NIH from implementing changes to the (facilities and administration) cost rate program,” said the academic groups’ lawsuit.
Messages seeking comment were left with the offices of U.S. Reps. Joyce Beatty and Mike Carey, whose districts include Columbus, and Ohio’s U.S. Sens. Bernie Moreno and Jon Husted.
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