Judge Reverses Retaliatory Cuts Targeting Pediatricians for Defending Evidence-Based Care
Washington, D.C. — A federal court has granted a preliminary injunction blocking the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from cutting nearly $12 million in federal public-health funding from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), ordering the government to restore the funding while the case proceeds. The ruling stops HHS’s unlawful retaliation against the nation’s leading organization of pediatricians for speaking out in defense of children’s health.
Represented by Democracy Forward, AAP sued HHS after the agency abruptly terminated seven long-running federal grants administered through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration. The funding supports critical pediatric public-health programs serving communities nationwide, including efforts to prevent sudden unexpected infant death, improve early detection of developmental disabilities and birth defects, strengthen pediatric care in rural communities, support adolescents facing substance use and mental health challenges, and improve standards of care for newborns.
Without court intervention, AAP warned these programs would abruptly cease, staff would be laid off, and children and families across the country would lose access to life-saving health services. Today’s order prevents that immediate harm.
“Today’s court action offers welcome relief for children and families, who benefit from these important services that make communities safer and healthier,” said Mark Del Monte, J.D., AAP Chief Executive Officer/Executive Vice President. “The federal government remains an essential partner to improving the health of children. The AAP will continue to do all we can to support children’s health and wellbeing, just as we’ve always done, and we will continue to speak out and take action against threats to children’s health, just as we’ve always done.”
“Once again, we took the administration to court to defend children, communities, and the Constitution—and once again, we won,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “The court shut down a dangerous attempt to use federal funding as a political weapon and punish pediatricians for speaking the truth. This ruling sends a clear message: no administration gets to silence doctors, undermine public health, or put kids at risk, and we will not stop fighting until this unlawful retaliation is fully ended.”
AAP’s lawsuit argues that the funding cuts violate the First Amendment, pointing to public statements by administration officials targeting AAP for its protected advocacy and to evidence that similarly situated grantees were not terminated.
The case is American Academy of Pediatrics v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, et al. The Democracy Forward legal team includes Joshua Salzman, Allyson Scher, Michael Torcello, Joel McElvain, and Robin Thurston.
