Former NIH officials and researchers warned that the agency has dramatically reduced proactive funding signals to the research community, publishing just 14 Notices of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) by mid‑March 2026 versus several hundred in prior years. A veteran program officer detailed how NOFOs target specific scientific gaps, set aside funds, and mobilize investigators—functions that are diminished if the practice wanes. The drop in NOFOs, documented by an ex-program official, raises questions about how federal biomedical priorities will be set and how emerging public‑health needs will be resourced. Researchers and patient-advocacy groups rely on NOFOs to direct work toward underserved populations, new pathogens and translational priorities; fewer NOFOs could slow coordinated responses and leave important topics underfunded.