Trump proposes cutting billions to health programs in 2027 budget: Questions and answers

President Trump is once again proposing substantial cuts in federal spending on health programs.

The White House released its 2027 spending plan on Good Friday, and the Trump administration is looking to cut billions of dollars in spending on health programs.

Congress must approve spending plans, so the president’s 2027 budget is hardly the final word. But it sets the stage for discussions on spending programs, and hospitals and other healthcare advocacy groups apparently will have some work to do to preserve funding for some key programs.

Here are some questions and answers surrounding the budget plan.

Q: What’s proposed for the Department of Health & Human Services?

A: The Trump administration has proposed $111.1 billion for the Health Department, which would represent a cut of $15.8 billion, or 12.5 percent.

Last year, Trump proposed cutting the department by $40 billion, or a third of its budget, but much of the funding was restored.

Q: What’s proposed for the National Institutes of Health?

A: The NIH, the largest source of federal funds for medical research, would take a hit in Trump’s plan.

The White House is seeking to cut the NIH’s budget by $5 billion in the 2027 spending plan. And the White House assessment of the NIH differs sharply from past administrations.

“NIH broke the trust of the American people with wasteful spending, misleading information, risky research, and the promotion of dangerous ideologies that undermine public health,” the budget states.

The spending plan calls for eliminating the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, saying it is “replete with DEI expenditures.”

Q: What about the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention?

A: The CDC’s budget would be cut by $2.9 billion, or 31%, in Trump’s plan.

Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington state, says that the proposal would eliminate most of the CDC’s Chronic Disease Center, which supports maternal health and HIV prevention programs.

Q: What about the Hospital Preparedness Program?

A: The White House has proposed eliminating the program, which provides aid to hospitals to plan and respond to public health emergencies. The administration says the program’s activities can be supported by the CDC, along with stronger state efforts.

Healthcare preparedness expert Tom Cotter told Chief Healthcare Executive® in an interview last year that the program is “the funding stream for all things emergency preparedness at health care facilities.”

Q: What’s proposed for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality?

A: The AHRQ would see a reduction of $129 million under the 2027 budget. The White House says much of the agency’s research is “wasteful or duplicative of research conducted at NIH.”

The administration also says the agency has “pushed radical gender ideology onto children,” citing funding of a telehealth project to support gender-affirming care.

Q: How are Democrats in Congress responding?

A: Democrats panned the spending plan. They also contrast the cuts to Trump’s request for a $1.5 trillion increase in defense spending.

Sen. Ed Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, wrote on X that the proposed reductions for health programs come after the White House and Congress signed off on cuts to Medicaid in the coming years.

“Republicans already gutted Medicaid and health care and drove up costs; and now Trump wants to cut MORE,” Markey wrote.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro of New York, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, derided proposals to “eviscerate medical research funding.”

Q: How are healthcare advocates reacting?

A: The Association of American Medical Colleges said Trump’s budget “would have far-reaching adverse effects on the future of American health care.”

“If enacted, this budget request would undermine federal support for medical research, public health, and health professions education,” the AAMC said. “We are deeply concerned that the outlined proposal does not serve the American people.”

Hundreds of healthcare organizations, including the AAMC, American Cancer Society and the American Heart Association, have called for a $51 billion budget for the NIH, which would be an increase of almost $4.1 billion, or 8.7 percent.

The AAMC also said proposed cuts to the CDC would weaken public health programs.

Mary Woolley, president and CEO of Research!America, said in a news release she was disappointed by the research proposals. The group also criticized planned cuts to the CDC and the Agency for Health Research and Quality.

“From cutting biomedical research at NIH to slashing other STEM funding at NSF, this budget would make our 250th year one of restricting, rather than realizing, our full potential,” Woolley said.

Q: Will the proposed cuts in health programs become reality?

A: Not necessarily.

The NIH still retains strong bipartisan support. A year ago, Trump sought to cut the NIH budget by about 40%, from $47 billion to $27 billion, for the 2026 fiscal year. But lawmakers, including Republicans in Congress, wouldn’t go for it. The NIH ended up getting a $415 million increase for 2026.

Lawmakers in Congress also averted cuts to the CDC, and the overall budget for the Health Department, in the 2026 budget.