NIMHD republishes the NIH-designated health disparity populations list with gender minorities deleted

NIMHD's canonical page "NIH-Designated Populations with Health Disparities" carries a publication date of March 7, 2025. As republished, it lists five designated populations: Low Socioeconomic Status (SES); Underserved Rural Populations; Racial and/or Ethnic Minority Populations; People with Disabilities; and "Sexual Minority Groups," defined as "an individual whose sexual orientation differs from the heterosexual majority." The words "gender," "transgender," and "gender minority" do not appear anywhere on the page. This narrows the October 6, 2016 designation — announced by NIMHD Director Pérez-Stable as covering "sexual and gender minorities (SGMs)" — to its sexual-orientation component only, removing gender identity as a recognized axis of NIH-designated health disparity. Because the designation is the predicate for health-disparities research authority and for eligibility under disparities-focused funding mechanisms, the narrowing operates prospectively on all future research, not merely on existing awards. The change was made by republication; no rescission notice was issued in the NIH Guide or the Federal Register.