-  HHS Family of Agencies      -  HHS Agencies & Offices 
  -  Regional Offices 
  -  Advisory Committees, Task Forces & Initiatives 
  -  Organizational Chart 
-  Leadership 
-  Budget & Performance      -  FY 2025 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2025 Annual Performance Plan and Report 
  -  FY 2024 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2024 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2024 Annual Performance Plan and Report 
  -  FY 2023 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2023 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2023 Annual Performance Plan and Report 
  -  FY 2022 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2022 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2022 Annual Performance Plan and Report 
  -  FY 2021 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2021 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2021 Annual Performance Plan and Report 
  -  FY 2020 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2020 Budget in Brief 
  -  FY 2020 Annual Performance Report 
  -  FY 2019 Contingency Staffing Plan 
  -  FY 2019 Annual Performance Report 
-  Strategic Plan FY 2022 - 2026      -  Message from the Secretary 
  -  Introduction: About HHS 
  -  Overview: Strategic Plan FY 2022 - 2026 
  -  Strategic Goal 1: Protect and Strengthen Equitable Access to High Quality and Affordable Healthcare 
  -  Strategic Goal 2: Safeguard and Improve National and Global Health Conditions and Outcomes 
  -  Strategic Goal 3: Strengthen Social Well-Being, Equity, and Economic Resilience 
  -  Strategic Goal 4: Restore Trust and Accelerate Advancements in Science and Research for All 
  -  Strategic Goal 5: Advance Strategic Management to Build Trust, Transparency, and Accountability 
  -  Appendix: Plan Updates 
-  News 
-  I Am HHS 
-  Careers 

                      -   
                      -   
                      -   
                      -   
                      -   

# National Institutes of Health

**Topics on this page:**Summary of Activities that Continue | Summary of Contingency Staffing Plan

----

## Summary of Activities that Continue

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) activities that will continue are largely centered on the ongoing operations at its biomedical research hospital, the NIH Clinical Center, to maintain safety and continue care of its patients. These patients are part of research focused on fostering fundamental creative discoveries, innovative research strategies, and improving human health.  NIH will provide basic care services to protect the health of NIH animals as well as retain staff to safeguard ongoing experiments or operations, and facilities and infrastructure.

## Summary of Contingency Staffing Plan

In the event of a lapse in appropriations, 4,543 (24%) of NIH staff will be retained.  This total includes 231 exempt staff (slightly more than 1%) whose activities or position are already funded or otherwise exempted as well as 4,312 (22%) who are excepted given their activities are deemed necessary by implication, or for the safety of human life or protection of property.

**Exempt Staff:**

A total of 231 (1%) NIH staff will be exempt. This estimate includes the new Director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) recently appointed by the President. (The other Presidentially appointed position, the Director of NIH, remains vacant.)  Another 230 employees would be supported by unobligated balances (carryover) from no-year or multi-year accounts such as FY 2020 COVID-19 supplemental appropriations and recurring 21st Century Cures Act (CURES) allocations.  NIH will use the carryover funds to continue support for priority research projects, grants research oversight and contracting activities that avoid negative impacts that would occur from interruption.

**Excepted Staff:**

A total of 4,312 (about 22%) NIH staff are considered excepted and can legally continue their activities in the absence of appropriations. These staff fall into three categories; 1) those whose work is necessary for the safety of human life, 2) those whose work is necessary for the protection of property, and 3) those whose work is "necessarily implied" from the authorized continuation of other activities.

Excepted NIH staff will continue to perform vital tasks related to imminent threats to human health or life specifically by providing patient care. Patients receiving treatment at the NIH Clinical Center are participants in important investigational procedures, and often no other treatment options are available. Providing care to existing patients (inpatient and outpatient) will require the hospital to operate at least initially at approximately 90% of normal patient load. NIH will continue to provide the right amount and type of staff to ensure the proper care of its patients no matter the percent of patient load over time. The excepted staff in this category comprise the multidisciplinary patient care team needed for safe and effective direct patient care and support.

Excepted staff will also continue activities ensuring the protection of government research property, animals, and inanimate property. Examples include the care and feeding of any animals associated with research activities and maintaining research property used for on-going medical experiments. These staff will also be responsible for maintaining cell lines and other invaluable research materials.

Additionally, staff will also be considered exempt and continue to work if their duties are necessary to protect ongoing NIH experiments or operations, or if they are needed for the orderly phase down and suspension of non-funded activities. For example, NIH will retain personnel to maintain computerized systems supporting research and clinical patient care. Most of these excepted staff will maintain the hospital data network, clinical research information system, picture archiving and communications systems, radiology information system, and other components directly related to the electronic patient medical record. A smaller group of excepted staff will continue to operate elements of the National Library of Medicine data center that interact with external biomedical databases essential for the provision of non-Federal health care.

An estimated 230 employees would continue to work on activities related to COVID-19 supplemental funds and CURES Act projects in the event of a lapse in FY 2022 annual appropriations.

----

<< FY 2023 HHS Contingency Staffing Plan

Top of page

FY 2023 Lapse Plan Office of the Secretary (OS) >>

Content last reviewed September 29, 2022