JUDGE TEMPORARILY BLOCKS TRUMP CUTS TO PUBLIC HEALTH AFTER CA ATTORNEY GENERAL FILED LAWSUIT

By Miriam Raftery

April 7, 2025 (Oakland, CA)—California Attorney General Rob Bonta has scored a keyvictory in federal court. Trump-appointed judge,  Mary McElroy, issued a temporary restraining order to stop the Trump administration from clawing back over $11 billion in public health funding from state and local health departments. California stands to lose over $972 million, according to Bonta.

The action came in a lawsuit led by Bonta, joined by 23 states and the District of Columbia. The suit was filed against the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services and its director, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

“The likelihood of success on the merits is extremely strong,” Judge McElroy stated after a hearing. She stated that the record is “voluminous” with “allegations of irreparable harm” if funding stops.

On March 24, HHS sent termination notices with no advance warning to state and local public health agencies nationwide. HHS sought to end federal funds appropriated by Congress through COVID-19 related laws.

Bonta says in a press release, “Without this essential public health funding, vital programs that serve millions of Californians, including children rural communities, and nursing homes, will bejeopardized.”

The administration claims the grants are “no longer necessary” because the pandemic is over.

But  the state attorneys general allege in their suit that termination is illegal for several reasons:

First, terminations of grants for cause are only allowed if there was a material failure to comply with grant terms.

Second, federal law requires advance notice and a right o a hearing before a grant may be terminated for substance abuse and mental health services, which are included under the state grants.

Third, the suit contends that the termination is “arbitrary and capricious”, assuming among other things that all appropriations were only for use during the pandemic. But HHS granted many extensions, and no individual assessments of grants were done.

The money was already in the hands of state and local health departments,  and were allowed to be used for non-COVID purposes—including responding to the deadly measles outbreak in Texas.

Judge McElroy has proposed scheduling a hearing on the preliminary injunction on April 13, The Hill reports.