This decision by the nation’s top medical officials recognizes that destroying and exploiting unborn humans in the name of science violates both medical ethics and God’s command to protect the vulnerable.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced earlier this month that it will not renew more than a dozen grants for research that uses human fetal tissue, amid mounting pressure from lawmakers to restrict the practice.
The announcement came after the watchdog group White Coat Waste (WCW) Project reported that the NIH was supporting 17 active projects under the category of “human fetal tissue.” Many of the projects began under the Biden administration and were scheduled to continue through next year. The research received nearly $22 million in federal money during the 2024 fiscal year, according to the WCW.
In a statement provided to Breitbart News, the NIH confirmed that it was reviewing its policy and that current projects would not be renewed.
“NIH takes this issue very seriously and remains committed to the highest ethical standards in research. The referenced grants, initiated under the Biden administration, will not be renewed,” the agency said. “NIH is guided by a commitment to valuing human life and ensuring that federally funded research is conducted responsibly and transparently. We are actively reviewing these matters and will take all necessary steps to ensure our policies reflect that commitment.”
The use of fetal tissue in scientific studies has been one of the most divisive issues in federal research policy. During his first term, President Donald Trump banned new funding for fetal tissue research and ended in-house NIH studies that used tissue from abortions. That policy did not terminate existing grants, but the WCW Project reported that it led to an approximately 50 percent decline in overall NIH spending on fetal tissue.
The Biden administration reversed Trump’s restrictions in 2021. The decision allowed federally funded research involving fetal tissue to resume under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Those supporting the change argued that the studies were needed to advance treatments for diseases such as HIV. Critics condemned the research as unethical, arguing it depended on the use of body parts from aborted babies.
After Trump’s reelection, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pledged during his confirmation hearings to restore the 2019 ban. The NIH’s latest announcement follows through on Kennedy’s commitment.
The WCW, which describes itself as a bipartisan watchdog group focused on government transparency in medical research, said many of the funded projects involved animal experiments using fetal tissue. One HIV-related study described how scientists created “humanized” mice by implanting human fetal thymus and liver tissue, along with purified cells, into rodents.
The approval documents for one study stated: “Human fetal tissue was purchased from Advanced Bioscience Resources or Cercle Allocation Services and was obtained without identifying information and did not require IRB approval for its use.”
Another study highlighted by Breitbart News described similar procedures, noting that “human fetal thymus and fetal liver were obtained from Advanced Bioscience Resources (ABR). Fetal tissues were obtained without patient-identifying information. Written informed consent was obtained from patients for the use of tissues for research purposes.”
The NIH did not provide details on which grants would expire or when. The WCW claimed that the announcement marked a major win in its effort to limit controversial research practices. The group has also targeted federal spending on animal testing, describing its mission as exposing and closing what it says is a $20 billion government research system reliant on animal experiments.
Republican lawmakers in Congress have also been working to block fetal tissue research through legislation. On Sept. 9, the House Appropriations Committee approved its fiscal year 2026 NIH spending bill, which includes a provision cutting all federal funding for projects using fetal tissue obtained from abortions.
In March, Rep. Robert Onder, R-Mo., introduced the “Protecting Life and Integrity in Research Act of 2025,” which would prohibit federal funding for any research using fetal tissue derived from abortions. Supporters argue that the bills are needed to ensure taxpayers are not complicit in research they view as morally objectionable.
The Standing for Freedom Center has previously documented some of the notable battles in the battle over aborted fetal tissue. Records obtained in 2021 through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the Center for Medical Progress (CMP), for example, revealed that the NIH awarded the University of Pittsburgh a $3.2 million grant to harvest and bank fetal organs, in some cases from full-term babies delivered alive through elective abortions.
Judicial Watch, the organization’s legal representative, released hundreds of pages showing that Pitt had a weekly goal of procuring organs from at least five fetuses between 6 and 42 weeks of gestation. The documents described experiments involving fetal tissue used in animal research, noting quotas that required half of the specimens to come from minority women, including 25 percent from black women. CMP head David Daleiden called the project “an episode of American Horror Story.”
The debate over the use of fetal tissue in medical experimentation will likely continue as Congress works through appropriations for the next fiscal year. For now, the NIH’s decision means that the 17 active projects identified by WCW will not move forward after their current grant cycles.
For Christians, the NIH decision to end medical research using aborted babies is a victory in the ongoing battle for life.
The entire issue is, of course, one of cognitive and verbal dissonance: Medical researchers devise experiments and studies that demand the use of “human” tissue, even while obtaining that tissue from abortion clinics that dehumanize abortion victims as “clumps of cells.”
Scripture teaches us that every person is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). That truth extends to the unborn child, whose life is precious and purposeful, no matter how small. When research uses the remains of aborted children, it not only disregards this biblical truth but also devalues life which God has created.
The debate over fetal tissue research is a question of whether our culture will honor the sanctity of human life or sacrifice it for so-called medical progress. Christians are called to affirm that science and ethics must walk hand in hand. If research or innovation comes at the cost of destroying or exploiting innocent life, it falls short of God’s standard for what is true.
Many taxpayers never chose to support this kind of research, yet their money funds it. As believers, we must speak up for policies that reflect biblical truth and protect the vulnerable. Proverbs 31:8 instructs us: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.” Defending life at all stages is one clear way we can live out that call.
The NIH’s shift away from fetal tissue research is a moment to celebrate and to pray for continued change. May our nation rediscover a culture that values every human life from conception, as we point to the Triune God as the Author of life.
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