Leaders at Vanderbilt Medical Center announced that they have to reduce their research budget by $250 million because of alterations in federal policies implemented during the Trump administration.
The spokesperson announced in a statement issued this week that the reductions will impact recruitment for specific roles.
In light of new administrative directives affecting funding for medical studies, VUMC must take strategic steps to cut back on operational expenses related to research,” stated the spokesperson. “Recruitment for nearly all research roles has been put on hold, along with additional budget-reducing actions.
Despite the reductions in research funding, VUMC plans to keep hiring for roles required to support the new wing set to open this year.
The spokesperson stated, “VUMC is currently recruiting additional frontline personnel for their healthcare network to manage the expanding demand for patient services and to prepare for the scheduled October launch of the 180-bed Jim Ayers Tower.”
As stated in a report by WSMV4 out of Nashville
, the spokesperson said the cuts are a direct result of the restructuring ordered by President Donald Trump against the National Institutes of Health, which provides federal funding to universities and hospitals for biomedical research.
In 2023, the NIH granted around $35 billion to various research teams, which were utilized for a wide range of purposes including researchers’ wages, lab equipment, and overheads such as management fees and infrastructure expenditures necessary for conducting their studies. It’s been reported that during the Trump administration, these additional costs were labeled dismissively as “overhead.”
In a video address, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. denounced the Department of Health and Human Services as an unwieldy “vast bureaucracy” and blamed the department for the deteriorating health among Americans.
According to reports, the health department is reducing staff by 10,000 positions through layoffs and an additional 10,000 employees have opted for early retirement or accepted voluntary departure packages as part of the organizational overhaul.
The tale was initially featured by WSMV4 Nashville.