The White House Office of Management and Budget Jan. 29 rescinded a memo it issued two days earlier directing federal agencies to temporarily pause federal grants, loans and other financial assistance programs implicated by President Trump’s recent executive orders. 

Following the rescission of the memo, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “This is NOT a recission of the federal funding freeze. It is simply a recission of the OMB memo…the President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented.” 

The Jan. 27 OMB memo that has been rescinded directed federal agencies to “temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”  

The pause was not going to affect Social Security, Medicare benefits, Medicaid or “assistance provided directly to individuals.” 

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., had temporarily halted the pause shortly before it was set to take effect on Jan. 28 at 5 p.m. ET. 

In a separate court case brought by some Democratic attorneys general, U.S. District Judge Jack McConnell said Jan. 29 that even though the OMB memo had been rescinded he was considering blocking the freeze, according to reports. “I fear … that the administration is acting with a distinction without a difference.”

Related News Articles

Headline
The AHA Aug. 28 published a blog responding to a series of reports from the Paragon Health Institute alleging large-scale “fraud” in health care, this time…
Headline
The AHA Aug. 28 expressed support for the Preserving Patient Access to Accountable Care Act in comments to House and Senate sponsors of the bill. The…
Blog
Public
The Paragon Health Institute has published a series of new reports once again alleging large-scale “fraud” in health care. This time their target is enrollment…
Headline
The Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Aug. 21 announced the creation of a Healthcare Advisory…
Headline
A JAMA study published Aug. 18 found that plan design changes by Medicare Part D insurers, particularly for Medicare Advantage plans, following passage of the…
Headline
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today announced a nationwide initiative aimed at reinforcing eligibility standards for Medicaid and the…