RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Within the span of a few days, President Trump announced and reportedly took back a proposal to give the White House control over grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). A local biotech company is still feeling the pressure despite immediate danger. This isn't t he first time NIH grants have been targeted. When Trump took office in 2025, he cut or froze upwards of $3 billion in previously approved research grants. Evizia is a Richmond-based company developing a device to improve DNA sequencing and genetic analysis. Last year, it received $2.2 million in grants from the NIH through the Small Business Innovation Program. But that funding was delayed, and the company wasn't able to hire new staff to support their project. “It worries me that we’re now going to be negatively impacted in terms of our competitiveness and developing new technologies, new therapies, new diagnostic methods that can help people," said Evizia Chief Technology Officer Jason Reed. Trump's proposed plan would have given political appointees the authority to approve or veto grants, a power currently held by the NIH with a peer review process. Reed says genetic analysis has revolutionized medicine. Evizia is working on technology that could directly identify a number of diseases, including some cancers. He says without those tests, which could lead to better patient care and therapies, patients could be directly affected. “We do not need another layer of bureaucratic oversight to slow things down," Reed said. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle warned against the move. The White House has not officially said whether it's scrapping the plan. ...read more read less