Deluzio Joins with Workers for Roundtable Discussion on Danger of NIH Funding Cuts to Western Pennsylvania

CARNEGIE, PA - Today, Congressman Chris Deluzio (PA-17) joined a roundtable discussion with unionized workers represented by United Steelworkers (USW) to discuss the local impact of funding cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Congresswoman Summer Lee (PA-17), Pennsylvania Secretary of Policy and Planning Akbar Hossain, USW International Vice President Roxanne Brown, USW District 10 Director Bernie Hall, and USW members representing Pitt faculty, staff, and graduate workers were also in attendance.

"The 'Eds and Meds' part of our community is huge-it's a major driver of jobs and has a huge economic impact in this region," said Congressman Deluzio. "This Administration's proposed funding cuts to NIH are a threat to our economy in Western Pennsylvania and to the future of lifesaving treatments and cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer's. I was glad to hear directly from USW members who count on NIH funding to do their work at today's roundtable, and I will continue fighting to do whatever I can to protect NIH-funded jobs and important research in Western Pennsylvania."

In 2024, the NIH distributed almost 1,400 grant awards for research across both Congressman Deluzio and Congresswoman Lee's congressional districts in Western Pennsylvania. These grants totaled more than $745 million and created close to 22,000 jobs across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

In Congress, Congressman Deluzio is fighting back. So far, he has sent letters to the Acting Director of the NIH on the impacts these cuts could have on Alzheimer's and cancer trialsand calling out the illegal move to slash reimbursement rates for costs that support research efforts. He also released a video on social mediaand is soliciting stories from impacted constituents.

Additionally, Congressman Deluzio has dug into the impacts of these funding interruptions on research and studies related to the East Palestine derailment. According to the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences within the NIH, none of the contracts given out for health monitoring related to the East Palestine derailment have been impacted or interrupted so far. This includes the six public health-monitoring research grantsat universities like Pitt, Case Western, Texas A&M, and others that were announced by President Biden in 2024. He will continue to monitor this and make sure this long-term health monitoring continues.

Photos of today's roundtable are available to the press here.

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