The National Institutes of Health canceled 67 percent of early-career training grants and 42 percent of postdoctoral awards by early 2026, according to a new report from the Milken Institute's Science Philanthropy Accelerator for Research and Collaboration. The report, published in 2026, calls on private philanthropists to fill funding gaps threatening the US biomedical research workforce. Early-career researchers—postdoctoral scientists and faculty in their first five to ten years—drive new and innovative research that fuels America's biomedical leadership, but recent federal cuts have put that engine at risk.
By early 2026, the federal government had terminated billions of dollars in life sciences research grants, including nearly 100 active postdoctoral grants, and withheld or canceled thousands of new ones. Training programs for the next generation of scientists were among the hardest hit. In 2023, more than 20 percent of academic research funding came from philanthropic sources. The NIH estimates that every dollar invested in foundational biomedical research generates more than $2.50 in economic activity. The path to a traditional academic career in biomedical research spans a decade or more, including five to six years of graduate training followed by three to five years of postdoctoral research before competing for a faculty position.
The report finds that "long-standing systemic challenges, including extreme competition for funding and uncompetitive academic salaries, have punctured the academic career pipeline." As a result, PhD researchers increasingly pursue private-sector roles, contributing to a shrinking US postdoctoral workforce and a loss of talent from academia. Other nations are leveraging federal funding changes to recruit displaced US researchers. According to former NIH Director Elias Zerhouni, speaking at the Milken Institute Global Conference 2026, philanthropy "has a role. It's not a money role. It's a vision role." The report notes that while some NIH funding has been restored, federal workforce reductions and departures will continue to slow grant review, delay funding disbursement, and disrupt ongoing research programs in the near term.
The report explains that while private companies generally bring new treatments to market, the early-stage science that makes those treatments possible usually emerges from publicly funded academic research, largely driven by early-career researchers. The US leads the world in biomedical innovation, accounting for more than half of global biotechnology research and development, built through coordinated federal and philanthropic investment since World War II. Federal investment has fueled breakthroughs that improve the lives of billions, including mRNA vaccines and a cure for sickle cell disease. But the report warns that government funding alone can't sustain the ecosystem through this period of instability. Universities are ill-equipped to fill the gaps: while US universities currently spend roughly $30 billion annually from their endowments, much of that funding is restricted and reserved for non-research purposes.
The report identifies four areas where additional philanthropic support would have the greatest impact: postdoctoral fellowships that retain graduates in academic research, transitional funding that helps postdocs move into faculty roles, early-career bridge funding for innovative early-stage research, and support for career skills like communication and entrepreneurship. The Milken Institute's program evaluated nearly 100 nongovernmental biomedical research funding programs and found that recent policy shifts have led some funders to reduce support. SPARC recently guided a private family foundation in providing funding to support nearly 80 postdoctoral fellows over two years. The report concludes that rebuilding and sustaining America's biomedical workforce will require a coordinated philanthropic commitment, warning that the future of US biomedical innovation depends on the choices philanthropy makes today.