President Donald Trump’s first budget proposal for his second term, released Friday, calls for cutting the National Institutes of Health budget by nearly $18 billion next year, citing the agency’s role in the COVID-19 pandemic and recent transgender medical research as the primary justification for the massive cuts.

The White House wants to reduce U.S. health spending by more than a quarter next year, with the National Institutes of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention facing the brunt of billions of dollars in cuts.

Science research funding and programs that help students access college are on the chopping block as Trump aims to cut at least $163 billion.