Healthcare research agency gutted: AHRQ loses 75% of staff and $250M in grants under Trump

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the federal body responsible for advancing patient safety and care delivery methods since the 1990s, is teetering on the edge of collapse amid aggressive cost-cutting measures by the Trump administration.

Scope of the cuts#

The damage has been sweeping and rapid. Nearly three-quarters of the agency's staff have been eliminated through layoffs and attrition, while approximately 150 grant cancellation notices went out to researchers in July. The canceled grants represent more than $250 million in research funds, with projects halted across more than 30 states.

Despite Congress appropriating $345 million for the agency's 2026 budget, spending has stalled—only $15 million has been allocated to grants so far, leaving the vast majority unspent.

Ripple effects across research#

The cuts have forced researchers to shutter projects, cut jobs at their institutions, and abandon new investigative directions. The loss extends beyond abandoned data and findings; experts warn the agency is failing to cultivate the next generation of health services researchers, jeopardizing the pipeline of expertise needed for future healthcare innovation.

Expert alarm#

Health policy scholars Aaron Carroll and David Atkins recently sounded the alarm in the Annals of Internal Medicine, flagging whether the agency can "survive the second Trump administration" at all. They note that historically, Republican leaders recognized healthcare inequities as quality problems, but such concerns have become increasingly politicized in recent years.

The experts called on Congress to intervene, though they acknowledged that reversing the damage—while possible—would prove difficult.