Federal judge says she will temporarily block billions in health funding
cuts to states
[April 04, 2025]
By DEVNA BOSE
A federal judge will temporarily block President Donald Trump’s
administration from cutting billions in federal dollars that support
COVID-19 initiatives and public health projects throughout the country.
U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy, appointed by Trump in 2019 but first
nominated by former President Barack Obama, in Rhode Island said
Thursday that she plans to grant the court order sought by 23 states and
the District of Columbia.
“They make a case, a strong case, for the fact that they will succeed on
the merits, so I’m going to grant the temporary restraining order,” said
McElroy, who plans to issue a written ruling later.
New York Attorney General Letitia James tweeted about the judge’s
decision immediately after the hearing, saying: “We’re going to continue
our lawsuit and fight to ensure states can provide the medical services
Americans need."
Assistant U.S. Attorney Leslie Kane objected to the temporary
restraining order in court but she said she was limited in the argument
she could make against it, adding that her office was unable to
thoroughly review the thousands of documents under the time limitation.
The states’ lawsuit, filed Tuesday, sought to immediately stop the $11
billion in cuts. The money was allocated by Congress during the pandemic
and mostly used for COVID-related initiatives, as well as for mental
health and substance use efforts. The lawsuit said losing the money
would devastate U.S. public health infrastructure, putting states “at
greater risk for future pandemics and the spread of otherwise
preventable disease and cutting off vital public health services.”
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Lynn Sokler, who retired from the CDC three weeks ago after working
there almost two decades, protests with others in support of the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in front of the
headquarters in Atlanta, on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben
Gray)
 The U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services has defended the decision, saying that the money was
being wasted since the pandemic is over.
State and local public health departments already have laid off
people, including nearly 200 employees at the Minnesota Department
of Health. North Carolina says it stands to lose about $230 million,
and California officials put their potential losses at $1 billion.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is also part of the lawsuit,
said half a billion dollars in public health grants that support
long-term care for the elderly and immunizations for children were
at stake in his state.
“As a result of taking the Administration to court, these dollars
will now start flowing again,” he wrote on X.
The temporary block on chopping health funding is the latest legal
setback for the Trump administration, which is facing some 150
lawsuits on issues ranging from immigration to deep financial and
job cuts at federal agencies to transgender rights. Federal judges
have issued dozens of orders slowing — at least for now — the
president’s ambitious conservative agenda.
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AP reporter Lindsay Whitehurst in Washington contributed to this
report.
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