White House attempts to freeze all federal grant and loan programs 

The Trump administration has taken various actions attempting to freeze all federal assistance funding, putting access to vital health and nutrition programs at risk for millions of people across the country. On January 27, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a memo ordering a total freeze on “all federal financial assistance” that could be targeted under executive orders issued in the preceding week. Initial reporting indicated that the freeze would impact programs essential to promoting maternal and child health, including Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the Special Supplemental Nutritional Program for Women, Infant, and Children (WIC), as well as Title X grant recipients providing vital family planning services. OMB later released a follow up memo indicating that SNAP and Medicaid would not be affected by the freeze. Nonetheless, all 50 states were unable to access the Medicaid portals that day. 

Notably, a federal judge temporarily paused the directive in an emergency order on January 28. The OMB memo was rescinded in full the next day, though confusion over the funding freeze persisted as the White House maintained that it remains in “full force and effect.”