Trump Administration Terminates NIH Infectious Disease Network That Provided No Help During Recent Ebola and Hantavirus Outbreaks

The Trump administration terminated grants for a network of 10 research centers established by the National Institutes of Health in 2020 to expand knowledge on re-emerging and emerging infectious diseases. The centers were not positioned to assist when Ebola and hantaviruses caused outbreaks in recent months.

The NIH informed grantees in May 2025 that the network had been deemed unsafe for Americans and not a good use of taxpayer funding.

The terminations formed part of broader cuts targeting work related to Covid-19 and pandemic preparedness. 9 million remained unspent, according to data collected by Grant Witness. The centers were not on the front lines of outbreak responses like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or USAID.

Some researchers involved in the network said the NIH cuts have weakened relationships with experts in other countries that they spent years fostering. Those researchers had hoped the relationships would streamline outbreak responses and the creation of diagnostics and treatments.

The article was written by Anil Oza, a general assignment reporter at STAT focused on the NIH and health equity, and published on June 3, 2026.