Overview
- A proposed class-action filed Sept. 16 by 13 named and four anonymous researchers accuses the NIH of screening grant applications and active awards for a reported list of 235 keywords tied to topics like gender, DEI and climate change.
- The complaint seeks an injunction to stop the term-search screening, asks courts to vacate the policies that enable it, and demands restoration of grants the researchers say were unlawfully terminated.
- A separate NIH court filing acknowledged using search terms and keywords to identify grants presumed to express viewpoints HHS-NIH did not wish to subsidize, while NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya has publicly denied the existence of 'banned word lists.'
- Plaintiffs say the screening was applied after scientific peer review, adding an ideological layer to funding decisions that has led some researchers to change language, with others reporting canceled awards and self-censorship.
- The case builds on mixed rulings from earlier litigation—district courts, an appeals court and the Supreme Court have reached differing outcomes—and could prompt further high-court review that will shape how political views are handled in federal research funding.