The NIH has ended funding for research using aborted fetal tissue, shifting focus to ethical alternatives that respect the dignity of every unborn human life. On January 22, 2026, the eve of the March for Life, the United States’ National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that “NIH funds will not be permitted for research using HFT [human fetal tissue] from elective abortions,” effective immediately. Now that the funding is being cut off, scientists must either change their method, seek funding from other sources, or cancel their projects. An elective abortion can provide tissue from a healthy individual (when he or she is not aborted due to having health problems). However, the NIH press release states that there are a growing number of other options: “advances in organoids, tissue chips, computational biology, and other cutting-edge platforms have created robust alternatives that can drive discovery while reducing ethical concerns.”