02.03.20

President Trump’s Dangerous Pattern Of Slashing Global Health Programs

President Trump’s reckless policy of slash-and-burn budgeting has consistently proposed devastating cuts to programs meant to prevent the outbreak and contain the spread of infectious diseases like the Wuhan Coronavirus (2019 Novel Coronavirus).  Bipartisan coalitions in Congress have rejected these cuts and increased investments in global and domestic health programs. 

Global Health Programs

Department of State and U.S. Agency for International Development global health programs support a wide range of public health activities, including pandemic preparedness to prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks and to identify unknown zoonotic viruses with pandemic potential.

Fiscal Year 2019 Global Health Programs

  • President’s request: $6.7 billion ($2 billion – 24 percent – below fiscal year 2018 enacted)
  • Enacted: $8.8 billion ($147 million above fiscal 2018 enacted)

Of which: Pandemic Preparedness

  • President’s request: $72.5 million ($100 million – 58 percent – below fiscal year 2018 enacted)
  • Enacted: $140 million*

*Included $40 million from reprogrammed fiscal year 2015 Ebola emergency funds

Fiscal year 2020 Global Health Programs

  • President’s request: $6.3 billion ($2.5 billion – 28 percent – below fiscal year 2019 enacted)
  • Enacted: $9.1 billion ($300 million above fiscal 2019 enacted)

Of which: Pandemic Preparedness

  • President’s request: $90 million ($50 million – 35 percent – below fiscal year 2019 enacted)
  • Enacted: $100 million

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID):

Primarily through the NIAID, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) supports research on the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of infectious and immunologic diseases, including the ongoing threat of seasonal influenza and the potential for pandemic influenza to arise.

(Note: The below figures represent the overall funding level for NIAID, not pandemic preparedness funding, which NIH does not specifically track as a Research, Condition, and Disease Category.)

Fiscal Year 2019 NIAID:

  • President’s Request: $4.76 billion ($506 million below fiscal year 2018 enacted)
  • Enacted:  $5.5 billion ($263 million above fiscal year 2018 enacted)

Fiscal Year 2020 NIAID:

  • President’s Request: $4.75 billion ($768 million below fiscal year 2019 enacted)
  • Enacted: $5.88 billion ($318 million above fiscal year 2019 enacted)

Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund (PHSSEF):

The PHSSEF coordinates across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the federal government to prepare for, respond to, and recover from the consequences of a wide range of medical and public health threats.

Fiscal Year 2019 PHSSEF:

  • President’s Request: $2.304 billion ($260 million below fiscal year 2018 enacted)
  • Enacted: $2.631 billion ($68 million above fiscal year 2018 enacted)

Fiscal Year 2020 PHSSEF:

  • President’s Request: $2.666 billion ($35 million above fiscal year 2019 enacted)
  • Enacted: $2.737 billion ($106 million above fiscal year 2019 enacted)  

The Infectious Disease Rapid Response Reserve Fund:

Created in fiscal year 2019, the Reserve Fund provides the CDC with immediate resources to prevent, prepare for, and respond to infectious disease emergencies domestically and around the globe.  Instead of establishing a separate fund to allow CDC to initiate a timely and effective response to infectious disease emergencies, the Trump administration proposed broad transfer authority allowing HHS to cut other health care programs in order to address emerging infectious diseases.  This proposal was rejected by Congress, which then created CDC’s Infectious Disease Rapid Response Reserve Fund as an initial investment for these activities.  

Fiscal Year 2019 Reserve Fund:

  • President’s Request: NA
  • Enacted: $50 million

Fiscal Year 2020 Reserve Fund:

  • President’s Request: $50 million (flat compared to fiscal year 2019 enacted)
  • Enacted: $85 million ($35 million above fiscal year 2019 enacted)

Miscellaneous:

Department of Veterans Affairs fiscal year 2020 Infectious Disease Research: $31.6 million

Military Medical Research on Coronavirus clinical trial in fiscal year 2015: $1.1 million

Military Medical Research on Coronavirus clinical trial in fiscal year 2018: $2.1 million

*Approximately 70 percent of military medical research funding is directed by