Federal judge orders HHS to restore $12m in funding to American Academy of Pediatrics

A federal judge late Sunday ordered the Trump administration to restore nearly $12 million in grants to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), after the organization’s funding was abruptly cut last month.

Judge Beryl Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a preliminary injunction that will restore the grants and block the cuts from taking effect while the case proceeds. 

Howell concluded that the Department of Health and Human Services had a likely “retaliatory motive” for the terminations, due to the AAP’s outspoken opposition to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

“This is not a case about whether AAP or HHS is right or even has the better position on vaccinations and gender-affirming care for children, or any other public health policy,” Howell wrote. “This is a case about whether the federal government has exercised power in a manner designed to chill public health policy debate by retaliating against a leading and generally trusted pediatrician member professional organization focused on improving the health of children.” 

The AAP, the nation’s largest professional organization of doctors who treat children, said the canceled grants funded initiatives including preventing sudden unexpected infant death, improving early detection of developmental disabilities and birth defects, and strengthening pediatric care in rural communities. 

The grants represent almost two-thirds of AAP’s federal funding, and if allowed to take effect, would have forced the organization to lay off about ten percent of its staff. 

AAP in its lawsuit alleged the cuts were made in retaliation for the group speaking out against the Trump administration’s positions and actions, including changes to vaccine policy and gender-affirming care for minors.

AAP alleged a First Amendment violation designed to chill the organization’s speech on vaccines and other important public-health issues that differ from the views of the current HHS leadership. 

HHS said that the grants were cut because they no longer aligned with the department’s priorities. 

The agency defended the decision, saying it was protecting taxpayers from waste, and criticized the AAP’s hiring of progressive-aligned legal organization Democracy Forward. 

“HHS is not obligated to fulfill AAP’s employment or spending desires with American taxpayer dollars,” agency general counsel Mike Stuart said on X. 

“The arrogance behind this lawsuit is staggering — AAP seems to believe it’s their money to spend as they please. Wrong! It’s our money, and it’s HHS’s duty to protect taxpayers from wasteful spending,” Stuart wrote.  

Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, said the 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.”