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May 12, 2025

President’s proposed budget

We want to make sure you know we have your back. We’re actively responding, relentlessly pushing forward, and ensuring your voice is heard loud and clear on Capitol Hill. Please keep reading Capitol Hill Report—and tell your colleagues—for a rundown of how your AAN is in overdrive advocating on your behalf. We’re analyzing and monitoring all changes made by Congress and the administration to evaluate any impacts on neurology and the patients we serve. If your practice, research, or patients have been impacted by recent changes at the federal or state level, please let us know by emailing advocacy@aan.com.

Issue in focus

The AAN is aware of pending legislation in Congress that could impact Medicaid and Medicare. Once we analyze the full proposal, we will communicate any relevant information to AAN members and give you the necessary tools to take action and defend patient access.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration released its proposed budget for FY26. The document is submitted to Congress and outlines the administration’s priorities and funding requests for the upcoming fiscal year. This version of the budget does not contain specific line-item funding for individual agencies but does provide an explanatory statement on proposed funding levels. The FY26 budget proposed by the administration contains significant cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). It’s important to note that this budget cannot be imposed without action from Congress. Any cuts to funding for federal agencies must be approved through the appropriations process for FY26, which is not likely to be finalized until the end of the year. 

The proposed budget includes a 26% cut to discretionary funding at HHS, with a nearly $18 billion cut to funding at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). While the budget does not include specific monetary cuts to the institutes at NIH, it does propose that the 27 institutes be consolidated into eight. Notably for neurology, it states that the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) should be consolidated with the National Eye Institute and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research to create a new Neuroscience and Brain Research Institute. There are also significant cuts to other HHS agencies. Notably, the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration are both fully cut, with many of their functions absorbed into a new office at HHS.   

The Academy has already weighed in with appropriators in the Senate and House, asking them to support robust funding levels for federally supported neuroscience research. We also recently participated in a fly-in, organized by the American Brain Coalition in conjunction with other organizations such as the Society for Neuroscience, American Neurological Association, and others, to support continued funding for the BRAIN Initiative. The appropriations process is still taking place at the subcommittee level, with no proposed bills put forward for any federal agencies. The AAN will continue to underscore the importance of funding neuroscience research with lawmakers in Washington, DC.  

Further, any consolidations to agencies that are codified in statute need to be authorized by Congress. This cannot be done through the appropriations process, which provides funding levels but cannot authorize the creation or elimination of new entities in the federal government. That must be done by a separate piece of legislation, which would need to be considered by the committees with jurisdiction over the agency and then voted on by the full House and Senate.  

The president’s budget rarely passes the appropriations process without significant adjustments. That said, the AAN will continue to fiercely advocate to Congress on behalf of our members and the patients you serve and continue to educate policymakers about the importance of neuroscience research. To advance this effort, we will keep working with our partners across medicine in support of robust neuroscience research funding, including through adequate support for appropriate indirect costs associated with biomedical research. 

If you have any questions about the proposed budget and how it may affect your practice and patients, please contact us at advocacy@aan.com.

Latest advocacy news

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State advocacy win! Arkansas enacts Interstate Medical Licensure Compact 
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AAN submits letter supporting robust neuroscience research funding 
The AAN recently submitted a letter to congressional leadership urging strong federal investment in neuroscience research in the FY26 appropriations process. The letter emphasizes the critical role that sustained, bipartisan funding plays in advancing scientific breakthroughs and improving outcomes for people living with neurological conditions. 

AAN submits requests for information from the Office of Management and Budget 
The AAN submitted responses last week to two Requests for Information (RFIs) from the Office of Management and Budget and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. These agencies sought input from stakeholders on regulations that can be repealed in an effort to achieve the president’s goal of deregulating burdensome administrative requirements. The AAN is recommending that a number of policies be modified or rescinded, including policies relating to prior authorization, step therapy, the Merit-based Incentive Payment System Program (MIPS), and the National Institutes of Health Public Access Policy. 

AAN joins sign-on letter opposing the Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act 
The AAN recently joined a sign-on letter, led by the American Medical Association (AMA), opposing the Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act (S.106/H.R.539). This bill would allow chiropractors to use the title “physician” under Medicare Part B and grant them the ability to bill for services beyond manipulation of the spine.  

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