Efforts at the University of Wisconsin–Madison to improve treatments for cancer, diabetes, and heart disease would be harmed by a major cut in federal funding for medical research, the Wisconsin State Journal reports; however, the cut, announced by President Donald Trump’s administration earlier this month, would reportedly have the greatest campus impact on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia research.
Of UW–Madison’s top 10 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants, five — including the top three — involve dementia. The cut would limit indirect costs on research grants to 15%, down from 50% or more for many institutions. Wisconsin joined 21 other states suing to halt the cut, and a federal judge has temporarily blocked it from taking effect.
If the cut is implemented, UW–Madison, which received $435 million from NIH last year, would lose $65 million annually. It’s current rate for indirect costs falls between 26–55.5%.
