Biden Attempts to Protect NIH from Potential Trump Reforms
Fearing potential reforms to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under a Donald Trump presidency, the Biden administration is implementing new measures to prevent political interference at the premier health research agency, as reported by Politico on Monday.
In response, NIH has appointed an official to identify political interference within the agency and will establish a scientific integrity council to review such cases.
The White House acknowledges that Trump could undo these initiatives if elected, but believes they will make interference more challenging.
Lyric Jorgenson, NIH’s scientific integrity official, emphasized the importance of protecting the agency’s independence, stating, “Interfering with science for political motives is inappropriate and must be prevented.”
She stressed that safeguarding NIH’s independence is crucial for the public to trust the agency’s evidence in informing public health decisions.
NIH, which funds health researchers with $40 billion annually, has historically operated without significant political influence.
As part of the strategy, the White House has directed other health agencies to enhance their scientific integrity plans, ensuring research rigor, bias-free outcomes, and nonpartisan decision-making by civil servants.
Critics aligned with Trump consider these actions as protecting ideologically driven scientists and shielding a bureaucratic system that is closely tied to grant recipients from scrutiny.
Roger Severino, formerly with the Department of Health and Human Services under Trump and now at the Heritage Foundation, advocates for significant reforms at NIH, including reorganization and executive orders to streamline federal worker dismissal.
Joel Zinberg, who worked on health policy during Trump’s administration, describes NIH as a politically influential institution with directors lobbying Congress for funding.
While complete elimination of institutes or centers is unlikely, Zinberg suggests that less science-focused groups like the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences may face cuts, mergers, or restructuring under a Trump administration.
He predicts a move towards decentralizing power at NIH for a more democratic decision-making process.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.
