The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has proposed a major update to the federal grant-making process. These new rules may limit the funding available for research into health disparities.

白宮管理與預算局 (OMB) 擬議對聯邦撥款流程進行重大更新。這些新規定可能會限制健康差異研究的可用資金。

The proposed 412-page update aims to move decision-making power from expert peer-review panels to political appointees. A key part of this plan is Section 200.218, which stops federal funds from supporting 'Theories of Disparate-Impact Liability.' This legal concept helps researchers identify discriminatory results caused by policies that seem neutral. Consequently, health experts and ethicists argue that banning this type of group analysis will make it harder to understand why health outcomes differ between populations.

這份 412 頁的擬議更新旨在將決定權從專家同行評審小組移交給政治任命人員。該計劃的關鍵部分是第 200.218 節，禁止聯邦資金支持「差異影響責任理論」。這個法律概念幫助研究人員識別由表面中立的政策所引起的歧視性結果。因此，健康專家和倫理學家認為，禁止這類群體分析將使人們更難以理解為什麼不同人群之間的健康結果存在差異。

This change comes after a period of strong support for health equity research during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the current administration has started a campaign against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. This has led to the cancellation of several National Institutes of Health (NIH) projects. Furthermore, some researchers feel they must remove terms like 'disparities' and 'social determinants of health' from their applications to avoid being flagged by administrators. Critics suggest these measures promote a 'colorblind' approach that ignores historical systemic inequalities.

這次變更發生在新冠疫情期間大力支持健康公平研究之後。然而，現任政府已開始發起一場反對「多元、公平與包容」(DEI) 計劃的運動。這導致了數個美國國家衛生研究院 (NIH) 項目被取消。此外，一些研究人員覺得他們必須在申請書中刪除如「差異」和「健康的社會決定因素」等術語，以避免被行政人員標記。批評者指出，這些措施推動了一種「色盲」方法，無視歷史上的系統性不平等。

On the other hand, the OMB claims these changes are necessary for better accountability. A spokesperson asserted that previous processes allowed for 'wasteful' projects under the name of health research. The administration emphasizes that the updated guidelines will ensure taxpayer money is spent wisely by removing projects they believe are based on political ideology rather than science.

另一方面，OMB 聲稱這些變更是為了提高問責制。一名發言人堅稱，之前的流程允許以健康研究之名執行「浪費」的項目。政府強調，更新後的指引將通過刪除他們認為基於政治意識形態而非科學的項目，確保納稅人的資金得到明智使用。

The proposed OMB regulations face strong opposition from the scientific community, while the administration continues to focus on financial accountability and the removal of DEI criteria from federal funding.

OMB 擬議的規定面臨科學界的強烈反對，而政府則繼續將重點放在財務問責以及將 DEI 標準從聯邦撥款中剔除。