With American’s trust in its health agencies hovering low, their newly nominated leaders have a large task before them.
Trust in the public health agencies has decreased since the pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has taken the lowest dip. According to polls conducted by researchers at Harvard, in 2021, more than half of the American population trusted the CDC a great deal. However, subsequent polls funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and CDC showed that trust dipped to less than 40 percent in 2022 and 2023. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the NIH were similarly affected, though to a lesser degree.
The newly nominated agency heads hold views that differ from those of the departing leaders, creating a potentially tense dynamic between the agencies and their new leadership.
What are the nominees’ stances on the key health issues, and how may their leadership shape the agency?
NIH Director: Dr. Jay Bhattacharya
The National Institutes of Health is the largest funder of biomedical and behavioral research in the United States and worldwide.
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a professor of medicine at Stanford University and the new pick for the head of the NIH, would be making decisions on allocating potentially $50.1 billion of funds into research that would benefit American’s interest.
Katy Talento, former White House health advisor to the Trump administration, told The Epoch Times over email that she would expect Bhattacharya to reform the funding process to ensure that priorities for research grant approvals are driven by uncovering the root causes of the chronic disease epidemic in the United States rather than symptom mitigation medications.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said in his campaign videos that he would direct the NIH to fund research that looks into the cause of America’s chronic health crisis, which may explore the safety of food additives and various chemicals in the environment. He is also calling for thorough randomized controlled research on the benefits and risks of vaccinations.
This would likely change the direction of the NIH’s research funding.
By Marina Zhan
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