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AACP Statement on NIH Facilities and Administrative Costs Impact on Colleges and Schools of Pharmacy

For immediate release

Contact: Maureen Thielemans, 703-408-6140


Arlington, Va.—The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) expresses grave concern regarding the new administration’s illegal and misguided effort to significantly reduce facilities and administrative (F&A) cost funding for research institutions by implementing a standard rate of 15% across all NIH grants for indirect costs starting today. Such actions will damage our members’ ability to maintain critical research infrastructure and will reduce research and training capacity. 

“Cutbacks in F&A funding for research at our colleges and schools of pharmacy, as well as at our counterparts in colleges of medicine, nursing, dentistry, and other health professions, will immediately compromise their ability to develop new treatments for patients. The impact will be felt for years to come, and will cost patients’ lives,” says Lee Vermeulen, B.S.Pharm., M.S., FCCP, FFIP, Executive Vice President and CEO of AACP.

These changes, which aim to restructure the allocation of indirect costs in federally funded research, will also have significant implications for pharmacy education and academic operations, making the current workforce challenges in pharmacy even more acute. Ultimately, a reduction in innovation from our colleges and schools of pharmacy will disadvantage the United States in the global pharmaceutical market. 

"The impact will be felt for years to come, and will cost patients’ lives."

Lee Vermeulen, AACP Executive Vice President and CEO

Indirect costs play a crucial role in sustaining the infrastructure necessary for groundbreaking biomedical research, ensuring that laboratories, research facilities, and administrative functions, including compliance with state and federal research requirements, operate effectively. Any reduction or reallocation of these funds threatens to jeopardize the ability of institutions to support critical research that advances patient care, medical innovation, and public health preparedness.

AACP stands ready to work with Federal partners to develop policies and legislation that strengthen, rather than hinder, scientific progress. We are also joining other associations on legal actions to safeguard the future of research. We strongly encourage the new administration to reconsider this decision, and join us in an effort to ensure continued investment in research that improves lives and strengthens our impact as global leaders in curing disease.

For further inquiries, please contact Maureen Thielemans, Senior Director of Communications, at 703-408-6140.

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