In a First, OB-GYN Medical Group Refuses Federal Funding Over Policy Changes

Early last year, the US federal government amended its research policies, including slashing funding for scientific research and censoring diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. These changes created a domino effect, resulting in widespread layoffs of federal scientists, reduced PhD admissions, and halted clinical trials.

Recognizing the consequences of these new policies and unsure whether they could continue their work independently without inviting legal repercussions, the members of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) took a stand in August 2025. They decided to walk away from federal funding that supported their work on maternal health, immunization, and more. This appears to be the first instance of any medical organization rejecting federal funds over conditions placed by the administration.

In a correspondence published last month in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health, ACOG’s president Steven Fleischman and chief executive officer Sandra Brooks detailed some of the reasons behind this decision and how the organization aims to move ahead.¹

ACOG’s leadership team began planning to transition away from federal funding when “it became clear that changes made to federal funding requirements in 2025 would impede our ability to meet some of our program goals and provide timely, evidence-based guidelines and recommendations for care,” Fleischman wrote in an email.

In a statement to The Scientist, Health and Human Services (HHS) spokesperson Andrew Nixon said “This is great news for the American taxpayer. ACOG taking itself off the federal payroll might be the most responsible budgeting decision they’ve made. At HHS, we will ensure that the women's preventive services guidelines reflect gold-standard, evidence-based science and in partnership with those who can deliver this guidance in accordance with the law.”

Federal Funding and ACOG

Founded in 1951, ACOG comprises more than 60,000 medical students, physicians, and healthcare professionals specializing in obstetrics and gynecology across the US, Canada, and Central and South America. The organization advocates for providing evidence-based care for patients through initiatives focused on improving gynecological healthcare. Aside from offering easy to access and reliable information for patients through their website, ACOG also communicates research through its official journals.

ACOG is backed by the ACOG Foundation, which supports the work of ACOG members through charitable, educational, and scientific efforts. This non-profit arm of ACOG received $950,000 from HHS in 2025 to oversee the updating of guidelines for women’s healthcare and its work on maternal and child health. In 2024, the foundation received grants of more than $1 million from HHS to support similar work and expand their fetal alcohol spectrum disorder prevention program.

However, recent policy changes such as those regarding maternal immunization do not align with the organization’s work, Fleishman and Brooks noted in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health correspondence. They also defended physicians who train or practice in the US under J-1 or H-1B visas who are affected by the restriction of DEI programs.

Despite walking away from such significant research funding, Fleischman noted that this move does not affect ACOG members directly, unless they were independently affected by federal cuts to research funding.

In their correspondence, Fleischman authored in The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Women’s Health, he and Brooks described that the organization is working on new ways to continue its mission without federal funding or the restrictions it imposes. “ACOG will have more to share soon regarding the new systems and programs that will continue the mission and work previously funded by federal government grants and contracts,” Fleischman wrote in an email.

Pushing Back on Federal Government Policies

Rejecting federal funding is not the first time ACOG has pushed back against the administration. Last year, when the HHS announced that taking Tylenol during pregnancy is linked with autism spectrum disorder, the ACOG released a statement affirming the safety and benefits of acetaminophen during pregnancy. Amid HHS’s changes to vaccine recommendations, the ACOG last month announced that they are withdrawing from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

ACOG rejecting federal funding is a “very bold yet important statement and action,” said ACOG member Melissa Simon, an obstetrician and gynecologist at Northwestern University, who was not involved in the decision. This move by ACOG is particularly important given the “policies and practices that are being driven by ideology and not by science and not by the intent of what health and healthcare should be,” she elaborated.

Sending a Strong Message

Simon believes that rejecting such a significant amount of federal funding sends a strong message to the government as well as other research organizations. “ACOG taking this stand was very powerful, in [a] way saying that we are a professional organization…and we stand for health and families and communities and especially women,” she said. “If the government is going to undermine any of those…values that we hold, then we will not accept your funding.”

While she hopes that other organizations dedicated to caring for women will follow suit in rejecting federal funding, she acknowledged that this may not be logistically possible. “Unfortunately, in some situations, some organizations are not as strong and don't have as big a membership and may have to take federal funds because they have no other alternative sources in order to do the work,” she said.

Fleishman agreed. “ACOG is fortunate to have funding opportunities and resources which made declining federal funding possible and recognizes that not every organization can afford to do so,” he wrote.

He added that the organization has not permanently shut the door on federal funding. “ACOG will evaluate opportunities to partner with the government in the future where our program goals align,” he wrote.