Rep. Crow, Colorado Democrat Delegation Fight to Stop Cuts to Life-Saving Medical Research

WASHINGTON — Today, Congressman Jason Crow (D-CO-06) has sent a new letter to House and Senate Republicans urging them to raise alarm about the Trump Administration’s cuts to life-saving medical research grants for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If enacted by the Trump administration, these deep cuts would hurt research efforts to find a cure for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s and hurt Colorado’s economy by eliminating thousands of jobs. The letter was also led by Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO) in the Senate.

Congressman Crow and Senator Hickenlooper were also joined by Michael Bennet (D-CO) as well as Reps. Brittany Pettersen (D-CO-07), Diana DeGette (D-CO-01), and Joe Neguse (D-CO-02).

“I’m all for efficiency and government reform. But cutting cancer and Alzheimer’s research is not the right approach. Cutting federal grants to the National Institutes of Health will cost lives, lay off thousands of Coloradans working in medical research, and hurt our state’s economy,” said Congressman Crow.

In addition to cancer and Alzheimer’s research, NIH grants help to support research areas of substance abuse, infectious diseases, down syndrome, behavioral health, and more. 

NIH is the primary source of federal funding for biomedical research in Colorado and the U.S.—the loss in Colorado alone would be more than $90 million annually. These proposed cuts would impact essential state institutions like Colorado State University, Fort Lewis College, National Jewish Health, the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs, and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Center.

Recently, Colorado joined 21 other states to file a lawsuit against the Trump administration to stop these cuts. On February 10, 2025, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order, but these cuts could be reinstated.

A PDF of the letter can be found here, with full text appearing below:  

Dear Chair Collins, Ranking Member Murray, Chair Cole, and Ranking Member DeLauro, 

We write to express our deep concern with the Trump Administration’s recent decision to cut previously-approved and appropriated funding for essential biomedical research awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). We urge you to reiterate and strengthen longstanding bipartisan, bicameral Congressional intent to fully support this critical research funding and maintain the United States’ leadership in innovation in the world. 

Federal commitment to cutting edge research in health care results in real medical and scientific advancements which benefits us all. As we see life expectancy fall in this country for the first time in decades, we can’t cut the very funding that supports the research responsible for the drastic improvement in life expectancy due to widespread vaccine adoption and clean drinking water. 

In Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23), NIH awarded $575 million to researchers across Colorado supporting more than 7,141 jobs across the state. These awards support advancements in the research areas of cancer, substance abuse, infectious diseases, behavioral health, Alzheimer’s disease, and more. The indirect funding that the Administration seeks to cut supports this research, and funds lab equipment, technology, infrastructure, and utilities. 

The NIH is the primary source of federal funding for biomedical research in Colorado and the United States. These proposed cuts, result in less funding research in Colorado. The massive proposed funding limitations would not be able to be absorbed by research institutions or private foundations – the loss in Colorado alone would be more than $90 million annually. 

Patients and researchers will experience the most negative consequences. The proposed cuts could reduce important research activity on support for children with Down Syndrome at Colorado State University. They would slow efforts to identify new treatment options for colon and pancreatic cancer at Fort Lewis College. Cuts would harm leading research into asthma treatment and pulmonary function at National Jewish Health. They would hamper next-generation research at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs into the sequencing of chromosomal interactions. And they could halt important work on type 1 diabetes, breast cancer, and heart disease at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Center. These are just some examples. 

This research is critical for advancing medical breakthroughs, and it provides economic benefits to the entire state. The $575 million in awards to Colorado researchers generated more than $1.56 billion in economic activity. Cutting critical resources for researchers in Colorado will have ripple effects across the state at major employers like academic and health care institutions. 

The Colorado Attorney General’s Office joined 21 other states in filing a lawsuit against the Administration to stop this funding cut. On February 10th, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to prevent this cut from moving forward – for the time being. 

In light of the uncertainty ahead for thousands of important research endeavors in Colorado and across the country, we urge you to reverse these cuts and provide clarity and stability for future grant funding to NIH grantees. This will reverse the harm grantees have experienced and free them to get back to focusing on crucial research

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