NIH Director Bhattacharya Testifies Before Congress on Modernizing the Agency
On February 3, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Jayanta Bhattacharya appeared before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee to discuss Modernizing the National Institutes of Health: Faster Discoveries, More Cures . During the hearing, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chairman of the Committee, expressed a bipartisan concern over the unprecedented NIH grant award cancellations in the last year, a lack of public trust in the NIH and science institutions, as well as national and personal health security risks. This hearing comes nearly two years since Cassidy’s release of a white paper on recommendations to improve the NIH in 2024 (see previous COSSA coverage). Efforts to modernize the agency have also included a framework released by Sen. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), who previously served as the House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair before retiring during the last election cycle, which outlined potential reforms that would implement structural changes in the organization with new term limits on leadership and grant reforms that limit gain of function and foreign research (see previous COSSA coverage). Alternatively, in his opening remarks, Ranking Member of the HELP Committee, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), raised concerns about the financial burden imposed by prescription drugs on American families and looked towards the NIH as a potential leader in reducing those costs.
Throughout the hearing, Dr. Bhattacharya assured the committee that, under his leadership, using “taxpayer dollars more responsibly” is a key priority, and that he hopes to create more opportunities for scientific breakthroughs to improve public health and restore public trust in the NIH.
During the hearing, several members questioned Dr. Bhattacharya on the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) handling of vaccination recommendations, including Ranking Member Sanders who cited a statement from the American Medical Association saying there is no evidence of a link between vaccines and autism. After continued questioning from the Ranking Member, Dr. Bhattacharya stated that he was not aware of any study that had found a relationship between vaccines and autism. Further, he attributed aversion to vaccination to the public’s mistrust of scientific research but fell short of providing a plan to improve vaccination rates in the U.S., claiming that “more children will be vaccinated” under the recent change of vaccine guidance for children (see previous COSSA coverage). Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) requested Dr. Bhattacharya provide evidence to support his answer, to which he claimed that the move would simply improve public trust in the NIH. Chairman Cassidy continued the conversation, raising concerns that Dr. Bhattacharya and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s statements about vaccinations could instead exacerbate public distrust and result in fewer vaccinations.
Multiple Congressional members also voiced concerns about the Trump Administration’s unprecedented grant terminations, including Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) who asked what the agency was doing to mitigate the detrimental effects of grant termination. She raised concerns that the result will not only temper scientific breakthroughs today but also have long-lasting effects on the pipeline of U.S. scientists. Further, Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on the NIH’s unified funding strategy and questioned the effect it would have on early-career scientists, and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) detailed several in-state examples of how grant terminations and budget cuts have harmed scientific universities and organizations through project cancellations and layoffs. To this end, Dr. Bhattacharya assured Congress that NIH was committed to providing scientists, with a focus on early-career scientists, with opportunities to pursue their research and emphasized that the entire NIH budget was spent in fiscal year (FY) 2025 despite the Administration’s grant cancellations. Senator Collins further underscored the importance of fully funding the NIH, stating, “We don’t need any more of these huge budget cuts submitted as part of the President’s budget.” Later, Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) also raised concerns over Dr. Bhattacharya and the NIH’s unprecedented terminations of career scientists in favor of political appointees, as well as the continued vacuums of leadership in several institutes and centers.
Gain of function research was also raised during the hearing, which has been a point of contention for many Congressional Republicans since the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the research. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) raised concerns about the perceived dangers of gain of function research. In response, Dr. Bhattacharya pointed to the Administration’s termination of funding for projects or programs relating to gain of function research (see previous COSSA coverage). Further, he explained that the NIH intends to adopt a risk-based approach to independently evaluate each project to determine if it poses a threat to the American people. Later, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) attributed public distrust, which Dr. Bhattacharya repeatedly cited as a priority for the agency, to the NIH’s funding of gain of function research as well as concerns about the origins of COVID-19. To this end, Senator Hawley requested a review of all potential NIH funding streams to gain of function research, and Dr. Bhattarchya confirmed he is already working on a long review on the topic.
Senator Jim Banks (R-IN) also expressed concern over the perceived disparity between NIH funded programs across academic institutions, to which Dr. Bhattacharya indicated that the NIH is prioritizing working with smaller state research facilities.
A recording of the hearing can be found here. Stay tuned to COSSA’s continued coverage of the NIH.
This article was contributed by COSSA Intern Malia Gunterman.