US health secretary and agency sued by 23 states and DC over $11bn funding cut

Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia are suing the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, alleging the abrupt terminations of $11bn in public health funding were “harmful” and “unlawful”.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Rhode Island, says that in March 2025, HHS unexpectedly ended a wide array of grants supporting immunizations, infectious disease tracking, mental health and substance abuse services. The federal government justified the cuts by claiming that the funds were “no longer necessary” because their “limited purpose” had ended along with the Covid-19 pandemic.

“These termination notices and substantially similar subsequent notices immediately triggered chaos for State and local health jurisdictions,” the lawsuit says. “If the funding is not restored, key public health programs and initiatives that address ongoing and emerging public health needs of Plaintiffs will have to be dissolved or disbanded.

“The result of these massive, unexpected funding terminations is serious harm to public health,” it states.

The Biden administration originally awarded the funds to bolster pandemic response and public health infrastructure.

The lawsuit argues that the justifications given for the funding cuts were legally flawed, and that the cuts violate federal law and jeopardize public health. It states that the terminated grants were intended to address broader public health needs beyond the pandemic and that Congress never required the funds be spent only during the period of the pandemic.

“The Trump administration’s illegal and irresponsible decision to claw back life-saving health funding is an attack on the well-being of millions of Americans,” New York attorney general Letitia James said in a statement. “Slashing this funding now will reverse our progress on the opioid crisis, throw our mental health systems into chaos and leave hospitals struggling to care for patients.”

The suit also says that Congress previously reviewed and chose not to rescind these funds during a budget negotiation that took place after the pandemic was declared over.

The HHS is accused of violating the Administrative Procedure Act, a federal statute that governs the procedures of administrative law. The plaintiffs claim HHS failed to provide notice or individualized assessments and disregarded state reliance on the funding.

Several states reported immediate impacts, including canceled public health programs and layoffs of hundreds of staff.