The Senate Subcommittee on Appropriations, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee convened a May 20 hearing to review President Donald Trump’s proposed fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget request (PDF) for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) [refer to Washington Highlights, May 2]. Lawmakers pointed out multiple areas of concern and questioned HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about his commitment to investments in key research agencies, HHS reorganization, reductions in force, health care workforce programs, and the rural health workforce shortage.
In her opening statement, subcommittee Chair Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) emphasized the critical role of a sustained investment in the National Institutes of Health (NIH). “NIH-funded basic research is also behind many of 600-plus new cancer treatments the FDA has approved over the last 20 years,” she stated. Capito also highlighted the role of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) health workforce programs in recruiting health providers to local communities and expressed concern with the implications of the proposed cuts to HRSA programs on rural health care challenges, access, and equity. Additionally, she asked how the budget request considers folding HRSA into the newly proposed HHS agency, the Administration for a Healthy America.
Throughout the hearing, members expressed concern over potential disruptions to funding for agencies within the HHS portfolio. Capito highlighted that proposed changes to facilities and administrative (F&A) cost policies and broader HHS reorganization efforts could hinder biomedical research progress. She noted that a group of organizations is considering alternative models for distribution and urged Kennedy to engage with the research community on these issues.
Ranking Member Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) criticized the administration’s approach to appropriated funding, warning that ongoing changes could reduce access to lifesaving treatments. “You are implementing changes right now that are ripping away hope and lifesaving cures from American families,” Baldwin said. “If you aren't already, I think this administration is heading down the road of illegally impounding funding across HHS.”
At the hearing, Kennedy outlined HHS and HRSA initiatives aimed at strengthening the rural health workforce, citing community health centers, the National Health Service Corps, and the graduate medical education program. He also pointed to the use of telehealth, artificial intelligence, wearable technologies, and mobile applications as innovative tools to expand access to care in underserved areas.
- Washington Highlights