“This has been a tough day for our entire community. The terminating of more than $800 million in U.S. International Development funding is now forcing us to put down important work in Baltimore and internationally,” the university said in an official press release.
The layoffs will affect 1,975 employees in projects and 247 positions in 44 countries. These cuts are expected to seriously affect several key university courses, including the Bloomberg School of Public Health, School of Medicine and JHPiego, a global health nonprofit organization that was founded more than fifty years ago. JHPIEGO’s work focuses on improving health conditions in developing countries, especially efforts to care for mothers and babies, combat disease and provide clean drinking water.
The statement continued: “Johns Hopkins is extremely proud of the work our colleagues have done at JHPiego, Bloomberg School of Public Health and Medical School to take care of mothers and babies, fight disease, provide clean drinking water, and promote countless other important, life-saving efforts around the world.”
The decision made Johns Hopkins one of the universities with the biggest impact of the Trump administration’s reduction of foreign aid, which critics argued would have a devastating impact on millions of people around the world. The university receives approximately $1 billion in revenue each year from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is currently conducting 600 clinical trials, and is a plaintiff in federal lawsuits challenging clinical lawsuits that cut federal research funding.
The move was conducted under the executive order of President Donald Trump in January, which freezes all foreign aid in the United States and allows for a review of overseas spending. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) distributes humanitarian assistance worldwide, carrying out health and emergency programs in approximately 120 countries.
The reduction in U.S. International Development Funding is part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to reduce foreign aid, a policy that critics argue will harm vulnerable people around the world.
