Federal officials cited the end of the Covid-19 pandemic in halting the research. But much of the work was focused on preventing outbreaks of other pathogens.
The Trump administration has canceled funding for dozens of studies seeking new vaccines and treatments for Covid-19 and other pathogens that may cause future pandemics.
The government’s rationale is that the Covid pandemic has ended, which “provides cause to terminate Covid-related grant funds,” according to an internal N.I.H. document viewed by The New York Times.
But the research was not just about Covid. Nine of the terminated awards funded centers conducting research on antiviral drugs to combat so-called priority pathogens that could give rise to entirely new pandemics.
“This includes the antiviral projects designed to cover a wide range of families that could cause outbreaks or pandemics,” said one senior N.I.H. official who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
The vaccine research also was not focused on Covid, but rather on other coronaviruses that one day might jump from animals to humans.
Describing all the research as Covid-related is “a complete inaccuracy and simply a way to defund infectious disease research,” the official said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, has said that the N.I.H. is too focused on infectious diseases, the official noted.