Trump administration cutting millions in Illinois HIV prevention grants, citing 'agency priorities'

The Trump administration is planning to slash $600 million in public health grants for Illinois and three other Democrat-led states, including $5.2 million in cuts for an HIV prevention program at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital.

In total, at least $29 million in Illinois grants are on the chopping block, including city, state and other health centers' HIV prevention programs, according to a list of grants obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times. The list represents a first wave of cuts, which is anticipated to total around $600 million, and it specifically targets family planning and HIV prevention programs.

The New York Times on Monday reported the pending cuts to programs in California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota. They also included $7.2 million in grant cuts to the American Medical Association in Illinois, which supports gender-affirming care.

An HHS spokesperson confirmed the total amount of cuts, including the $5.2 million in cuts for Lurie grants.

"These grants are being terminated because they do not reflect agency priorities," a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokeperson told the Sun-Times on Tuesday.

Lurie was among several hospitals being referred by Trump administration officials for an investigation by the HHS office of inspector general last month, prompting them to further restrict gender-affirming care.

According to a list of grants obtained by the Sun-Times, the cuts include a $441,625 grant to the Puerto Rican Cultural Center for its comprehensive HIV prevention program; $600,000 for the Illinois Department of Public Health's HIV prevention and surveillance program; and $600,000 for the Chicago Department of Public Health's support and scale-up of HIV prevention in sexual health clinics — and $360,000 for its Sexually Transmitted Infection Surveillance Network.

Other cuts include $441,625 to the South Side Help Center's "comprehensive High-Impact HIV Prevention Project"; $441,625 to Alliance Care 360's HIV prevention program; and $383,599 for a University of Chicago program called "Experimental Evidence on the Effects of Academic Remediation on Violence."

There are several Illinois cuts linked to a program aimed at strengthening public health systems through national partnerships, including $6,299,354 earmarked to the Illinois Department of Public Health; $1,100,001 to the American Academy of Pediatrics; $4,116,000 to the American Medical Association of Illinois; $1,535,000 to the Health Research Educational Trust; and $3,392,043 to the National Opinion Research Center.

Illinois grants that are being cut include the Illinois Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which received no money in the fiscal year that began in July but $952,500 the prior year; $250,000 for Injury Prevention and Control Research program; and $930,841 for a medical monitoring project.

Gov. JB Pritzker's office said it had not been notified of any public health cuts but called them an attempt "to politicize and punish certain states President Trump does not like."

"It’s wrong and often illegal, so Illinois will always fight for the resources and services our taxpayers are owed," a governor's office spokesperson said. "As with most news, we have not been notified, as the Governor's Office receives information and communications from the White House through Truth Social and media reports."

U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi criticized the cuts, saying it will "weaken hospitals, undermine disease tracking, and put lives at risk in the middle of real public health threats."

"This is politically motivated cruelty masquerading as policy, and I will fight to reverse it," Krishnamoorthi wrote on X.

As of Tuesday, Howard Brown Health said it was still assessing if the proposed funding cuts will trickle down to any of its existing programs, noting that surveillance and HIV prevention has been key to reducing transmission of the virus.

“Over the past two years, the Chicago area has seen an increase in new HIV diagnoses, with a troubling number of individuals presenting with advanced disease at the time of diagnosis,” said Travis Gayles, chief executive officer of Howard Brown, in a statement. “This follows significant progress made during earlier Ending the Epidemic efforts under previous federal administrations, when expanded prevention, testing, and care initiatives led to measurable declines in new infections."

Lurie and the American Medical Association in Illinois did not immediately respond to a request for comment.