Funding cuts to the National Institutes of Health’s, the United States’ leading medical research agency, biomedical research grants may deeply impact Alabama institutions, researchers and residents.

“I literally have 5 months before I retire from UAB. I’m deeply saddened for so many of my colleagues and friends. This will definitely take a toll on research,” Montreal Billups commented on a Facebook post about the news Saturday.

President Donald Trump’s administration plans to slash support for research grant overhead from as much as 69%, charged by some universities, to 15%. The White House argues that federal dollars should not be used to support so much institutional overhead.

Elon Musk, who is running President Trump’s government efficiency program, praised the NIH decision on social media this weekend.

“Can you believe that universities with tens of billions in endowments were siphoning off 60% of research award money for ‘overhead’?” Musk wrote on X. “What a ripoff!”

What are Alabama reactions to pending NIH cuts?

NIH grants support research across Alabama, including work on heart health, kidney disease and diabetes. Indirect research costs also support work on clinical trials, new drugs and new procedures.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham, HudsonAlpha and Southern Research Institute are all major recipients of federal grants.

Some Alabama residents, who said their lives depend on clinical research, are worried about what the funding cuts will mean for them.

“Research is what saved my life,” Helen Beasley McDonald Dodd said on Facebook.

“My life was saved there because of advanced research at UAB,” Janet Hinton commented.

“All sorts of research is going on in the Magic City, including cancer research. As a cancer survivor, that is very important to me. Would you rather we die?” Noel Fendlason commented.

A UAB spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from AL.com Sunday.

Sen. Katie Britt on Saturday said she supported efforts to make federal dollars work efficiently, but would discuss the topic with incoming Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who will oversee the NIH.