The National Institutes of Health reached a settlement with 16 states requiring the agency to resume ordinary peer review and to issue grant decisions on thousands of delayed applications, committing to review timetables through mid‑2026. The settlement followed months of litigation after NIH withdrew or delayed panels amid an internal directive that reprioritized grant topics. Attorneys general said the agreement restores transparency and standard review processes for over 5,000 affected grants. Meanwhile, higher‑education leaders warn funding cuts and politicized grant oversight are driving talent concerns: surveys and experts report an uptick in researchers considering opportunities abroad. Universities and research centers face a renewed push to shore up support, recruit international talent, and clarify policy guardrails to prevent a long-term erosion of U.S. research capacity.