Baldwin Slams RFK, Jr.’s Budget That Cuts Cancer and Disease Research, While Trump Asks for $450 Billion More for Defense
Baldwin highlighted RFK, Jr.’s budget that cuts funding for combatting the opioid epidemic, health care for vulnerable people, and lowering the cost of heating and cooling bills
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS), questioned Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on the President’s budget request which cuts programs people rely on and puts the health and well-being of families across the country at risk. The proposed budget cuts funding for biomedical research, combatting the opioid epidemic, and lowering the cost of heating and cooling bills, while including a $450 billion, or 42 percent, increase in Defense spending.
Click HERE to watch Senator Baldwin’s opening remarks
Secretary Kennedy testified in front of the Senate LHHS Appropriations Subcommittee today to defend President Trump’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget proposal for the HHS, which cut $17 billion or 14% from programs under the jurisdiction of the LHHS subcommittee. Those cuts include:
- A nearly $6 billion or 12% cut to the National Institutes of Health, which supports lifesaving research into devastating diseases;
- A $3 billion or more than 30% cut to the Centers for Disease Control, which protects Americans from disease outbreaks;
- A $2.2 billion cut to Health Resources Services Administration, which provides health care to vulnerable people, including deep cuts to maternal and child health programs and health workforce programs;
- Entire elimination of Title X, which provides family planning and preventive health services; and
- Entire elimination of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps American families reduce the cost of their heating and cooling bills.
The budget request comes as, under Secretary Kennedy, the NIH awarded 22% or 2,235 fewer, new research grants last year than in the year prior. Baldwin also pushed Secretary Kennedy on his agency’s move to terminate $2 billion for 2,800 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants that support people with addiction and mental health challenges. Those grants were reinstated only after Baldwin’s pressure. Senator Baldwin also secured a commitment from Secretary Kennedy to follow the law and restore the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline “Press 3” option that provides specialized services for LGBTQ youth.
A full recording of Senator Baldwin’s opening remarks is available here.
Full recordings of Senator Baldwin’s questions are available here and here.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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