Trump Reversal on NIH Diversity Cuts Questioned by Appeals Court

The Trump administration’s attempt to undo an order on the National Institutes of Health’s slashing of diversity-related grants turned back on itself as an appellate judge suggested the agency’s about-face should instead end the appeal.

The government Tuesday urged a three-judge First Circuit panel to overturn a Boston federal judge’s July order finding NIH lacked a rationale for cuts to scientific research grants related to gender, diversity, and other topics.

A Department of Justice attorney argued Tuesday that the research agency’s December abandonment of the prior memos—which caused the grant terminations challenged by researcher organizations and a coalition of states—rendered ...