Congressman Cohen Condemns Plan to Further Politicize NIH Grant Decisions

WASHINGTON - Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-9), co-chair of the Biomedical Research Caucus, and whose district includes St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC), and other internationally recognized scientific research institutions, made the following statement after learning of White House plans to further politicize National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant funding decisions. The plan calls for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought and NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya to co-chair a committee to review and potentially veto projects deemed too "woke" by the White House.

Congressman Cohen's statement:

"The NIH is highly respected and highly effective at finding cures and treatments that are needed for the well-being of families, the American public and the world. In other words, the NIH is the 'National Institutes of Hope.' Early in Trump's second term, the scientific and medical research communities were thrown into chaos when National Institutes of Health funding already approved was withheld over concerns that projects could advance diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts by the grantee institutions. This new plan would make official the explicit politization of grant making. The OMB has no expertise to review scientific grants; that is what the NIH internal review panels are for. This is bad for science, bad for public health, and bad for America's role as the undisputed leader in scientific research. A depoliticized NIH is why the USA has led the world in discovering medicines to cure and treat diseases, and in being awarded Nobel Prizes. I will work with scientific and medical research institutions to make sure this plan is scuttled and that science alone guides decisions on federal funding for scientific research for the betterment of mankind."

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