Federal Judge Orders NIH to Restore DEI Grants

A lawsuit claimed that directives to terminate research grants linked to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives were arbitrary and unconstitutional.

The National Institutes of Health Gateway Center is seen in Bethesda, Md., on June 8, 2025. Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo/Reuters

A federal judge ruled on June 16 that the Trump administration’s directives to terminate certain federal research grants were void, urging the government to immediately restore the funding.

The ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by researchers and public health associations, which alleged that directives from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to terminate research grants linked to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives were arbitrary and unconstitutional.

District Court Judge William Young of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts stated that the NIH’s directives were unlawful, as he determined that they represent “racial discrimination and discrimination against America’s LGBTQ community.”

“Any discrimination by our government is so wrong that it requires the court to enjoin it and at an appropriate time, I’m going to do it,” Young said during a non-jury trial on June 16.

The judge has also ordered the agency to immediately release the funds to grant recipients, according to a statement released by plaintiffs announcing the ruling.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees the NIH, said it plans to appeal the decision. It said it will continue to ensure that taxpayer money is not used to support research that has “prioritized ideological agendas.”

“Under the leadership of [HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] and the Trump administration, HHS is committed to ensuring that taxpayer dollars support programs rooted in evidence-based practices and gold standard science—not driven by divisive DEI mandates or gender ideology,” HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said in a statement.

In line with a series of executive orders issued by President Donald Trump, federal agencies were directed to halt funding for programs that promote “gender ideology” and to withdraw support from DEI initiatives the administration considers discriminatory. Following those directives, the NIH began advising staff to cancel grants involving DEI, transgender-related research, or projects with potential links to Chinese institutions.

The American Civil Liberties Union, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said the court’s order served as a “major victory” for public health.

“Today’s ruling confirms that science must be guided by evidence, not ideology,” Olga Akselrod, senior counsel in the Racial Justice Program at the American Civil Liberties Union, said in the statement.

“By blocking NIH’s unlawful directive, the court has protected the integrity of scientific research and ensured that critical studies, especially those focused on underserved and marginalized communities, can continue without political interference.”

More than 100 NIH employees signed a letter on June 9 calling on the agency to reverse the termination of research grants and firings of staff. According to the employees, the NIH has terminated 2,100 grants totaling about $9.5 billion, and an additional $2.6 billion in contracts.

They said in the declaration that the NIH has improperly targeted universities with such actions as terminating grant submissions, ending funding for research that focuses on DEI initiatives, and firing NIH workers “without thought to their purpose or need.”

An HHS spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email that the administration is intent on ensuring that federal funding is spent properly, and that grants will be suspended if they involve “ideological narratives” rather than “provable and testable hypotheses.”

Zachary Stieber and Reuters contributed to this report.