The White House has put a freeze on billions of dollars in federal grants and loans, potentially halting public programs that affect millions of Americans.
An internal memorandum sent Monday directs all federal agencies to stop any grants that might conflict with President Donald Trump's executive orders.
The funds were already approved by Congress. This is causing widespread confusion among organizations that are trying to figure out if their federal funding is about to be gutted.
“Any delay in care is a detriment to the patient. We don't want anything to stop or interrupt these flow of services,” said Ethan Suarez, CEO of Pineapple Healthcare.
Pineapple Healthcare is a nonprofit clinic offering primary care and HIV/AIDS care in Lakeland, Kissimmee and Orlando. The pause in funding could prevent them from fulfilling their mission of free HIV testing.
"If we weren't able to provide those tests, because they are granted by the federal government and the state, it makes people unaware of their status. That's the whole thing. You need to know your status. If we have a decline in testing then we're going to see a rise in new HIV infections,” Suarez said.
This pause in aid has the potential to impact everything from disaster relief to cancer research. The directive does not say how long the freeze on these grants will last.
Local organizations are closely monitoring this cut off in funding, including the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
“Many social services organizations receive some form of federal funding or federal grant. So, I think within the social service industry a lot of organizations are paying attention to this and trying to see what the impact would be,” said Ken Gibson with Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
Medicare and social security benefits and individual assistance will not be affected, according to the White House.
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