Judge Temporarily Blocks HHS From Rescinding $600 Million In Grants

U.S. District Judge Manish Shah issued a 14-day temporary restraining order preventing the rescission of roughly $600 million in CDC public health grants to California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota, the court said.

The states sued after federal agencies were directed to identify and terminate grants deemed inconsistent with revised CDC priorities that align with an administration shift away from health equity, court filings and HHS statements show.

HHS said the grants do not reflect agency priorities, and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and other state lawyers argued the cuts impose retroactive conditions and amount to unlawful retaliation, their filings said.

Much of the funding supports disease outbreak tracking and programs fighting HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, and attorneys general warned the loss of funding would force layoffs of hundreds of public health workers.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said the states will seek to extend the pause for the duration of the lawsuit as the legal challenge proceeds in federal court, filings show.