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Democratic lawmakers in Congress are speaking out about an agreement that would allow the Department of Defense (DoD) to tap into billions of dollars in funding designated for the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The interagency agreement, which was discovered by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), would give the DoD access to funds that Congress provided to NIH for biomedical research into treatments or cures for infectious diseases such as Ebola, malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, and influenza. According to reporting by Nature, the yet-to-be finalized agreement would move funding from the NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to military biodefense programs at the DoD and will last 10 years.

“This secretive attempt to siphon research funds away from NIH is outrageous,” DeLauro said in a statement. “The interagency agreement needs to be terminated immediately.”

Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) said the agreement, which was not proactively shared with Congress, could mean that a “substantial proportion” of NIAID’s budget is not spent on NIAID programs.

“We cannot allow this administration to shred patients’ hopes of new, lifesaving cures and treatments so that President Trump and Secretary Hegseth can secretively fund their own priorities in defiance of Congress,” Murray said in a news release. 

Bhattacharya defends deal

DeLauro, who serves as ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, suggested the agreement is an effort to divert congressionally appropriated funding to DoD to help the department cover for the growing cost of the war with Iran.

In a post on the social media site X, NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, rejected the suggestion that the agreement is siphoning money away from research and said that the partnership will “focus on research projects that will drive discoveries to improve the health of American citizens and members of the military.”

“Led by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, all work will be 100% aligned with our public health mission,” Bhattacharya said.