NASA has halted its current procurement plan for commercial space stations, instructing the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Destinations (CLD) program to rethink its Phase 2 strategy rather than proceed with the firm-fixed-price contracts it had intended to award this year. The directive, issued by Sean Duffy of the Space Operations Mission Directorate, calls for a reassessment of industry capabilities and business models before the agency commits to long-term services purchases. The change injects fresh uncertainty into efforts to replace the International Space Station, which the United States aims to deorbit by 2030. Contractors—including Voyager Space, Blue Origin, and Axiom Space—will have to revise station concepts, while newer entrant Vast, whose lean Haven-1 module is scheduled to launch with SpaceX hardware, appears better aligned with NASA’s call for smaller, incremental outposts. Agency officials and lawmakers acknowledge the shift could create a gap in continuous U.S. human presence in low Earth orbit if commercial stations are not ready in time. NASA’s rethink comes as its draft fiscal-year 2026 budget seeks additional funds for human exploration of Mars, heightening pressure to streamline low-Earth-orbit spending. Congressional committees have begun hearings on whether the revised CLD framework—as well as broader management reforms—can keep exploration goals on track without inflating costs.