A rate cut at the National Institutes of Health could cost the University of Alabama at Birmingham about $70 million a year, officials said today.

“Drastically lowering NIH indirect cost recovery jeopardizes life-saving research, and it would also result in job and economic loss in Birmingham and Alabama,” the university told ALcom in a statement.

A federal judge on Monday afternoon temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s cut to the NIH’s indirect cost rate, a move that went into effect earlier in the day. The cut would impact universities nationwide, but especially UAB, the largest employer in Alabama. The NIH had planned to cut the rate to 15%.

UAB’s indirect cost rate is 48.5%, well above the 26% average the NIH says it pays on the billions of grants it disburses annually.

“Advancements in virtually all areas of research would slow,” the statement read, “including those addressing the leading causes of death in the United States, from cancer to Alzheimer’s, stroke, Parkinson’s, heart disease and diabetes, among other diseases and disorders that devastate lives and families.

In 2023, UAB received $413 million in grant funding from the NIH, the university said today. Last year, NIH grants to the university totaled $407 million.

The indirect rate cut to 15% would cost UAB approximately $70 million annually, the university said.

“To be clear, these cuts are to real costs for equipment, facilities, digital security, and other infrastructure necessary to conducting critical research,” the official said.

In 2023 NIH grants in Alabama supported 4,769 jobs for an economic impact of $909 million,” according to United for Health. They impact almost 13,000 jobs at more than 1,200 businesses, it was noted.

On Monday, 22 state attorneys general – all Democrats — filed a federal lawsuit in Massachusetts against the Trump administration and NIH, seeking a court order to prevent implementation of the rate cut.

The attorneys argue that the cut violates the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs how federal agencies create and implement regulations.

U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley granted their request for a temporary restraining order.

In a statement, Massachusetts AG Kim Campbell said: “We will not allow the Trump Administration to unlawfully undermine our economy, hamstring our competitiveness, or play politics with our public health.”

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Over the weekend, Sen. Katie Britt said she will work with Health Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. “to not hinder life-saving, groundbreaking research at high-achieving institutions like those in Alabama.”

Sen. Tommy Tuberville said he supports the cuts.

“UAB will continue to closely monitor and assess rapidly evolving developments,” the university said.