BALTIMORE, MD—Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown on Tuesday announced that he has joined a multi-state lawsuit (PDF) challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) abrupt termination of nearly $11 billion in public health grants. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, alleges that the terminations, announced on March 24 by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., are illegal and threaten vital public health services across the country.
The grants, which support a wide range of public health needs including infectious disease management, mental health and substance abuse services, and emergency preparedness, were abruptly terminated without warning or explanation. Attorney General Brown warned that Maryland could lose approximately $200 million in funding, jeopardizing critical programs like vaccination initiatives and disease outbreak tracking.
“The Trump Administration’s reckless and unlawful termination of $11 billion in critical public health grants is a dangerous assault on our State’s ability to protect our residents when infectious diseases like the measles or bird flu are on the rise,” said Attorney General Brown. He emphasized the Administration’s lack of transparency and disregard for the consequences of these cuts, stating, “I am outraged that the President would cut this lifeline with zero warning, threatening to dismantle vital health services our communities depend on. I will fight with every legal tool available to reverse this indefensible decision before it costs Marylanders their lives.”
The coalition of 22 attorneys general and two governors argues that the HHS terminations violate federal law. Congress authorized and funded new and increased grants through COVID-19 legislation to support public health. Many of these grants originate from specific programs, like block grants from Congress for mental health and substance abuse and addiction services. They assert that the end of the pandemic, cited by HHS as justification for the cuts, is not a valid “for cause” basis for terminating the grants. Furthermore, they point out that some of the grants cannot be legally terminated “for cause.”
The lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order to immediately halt the grant terminations and prevent HHS from implementing any further actions related to the cuts. The coalition argues that the terminations violate the Administrative Procedure Act and are jeopardizing the public health of millions of Americans.
This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.
Photo by Sora Shimazaki from Pexels
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