Tag: National Institutes of Health

National Institutes of Health (NIH).

DOGE vs. the NIH: Say goodbye to the greatest engine of biomedical research ever created

Friday, the Trump administration slashed indirect costs associated with NIH grants. What does this mean, and why could it be so disastrous for biomedical research?

/ February 10, 2025
National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The attack on the NIH has begun

Donald Trump has been sworn in, and his new administration has immediately turned its sights on the NIH. The danger to US biomedical research has never been more acute.

/ January 27, 2025
An NIH study section

Are NIH study sections a waste of time?

Since the nomination of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya for NIH Director, I've been seeing a suggestion from certain contrarian doctors for a "randomized trial" of study sections vs. a "modified lottery" to determine which grant applications are funded by the NIH. Just what the heck is Dr. Vinay Prasad talking about?

/ December 9, 2024
National Institutes of Health (NIH).

RFK Jr. vs. the NIH: Say goodbye to the greatest engine of biomedical research ever created

President-Elect Donald Trump has nominated antivaccine activist and anti-pharma conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to be Secretary of Health and Human Services. I've written about the damage he will do, if confirmed, to the CDC and FDA, but what about NIH, the greatest engine of biomedical research ever?

/ November 18, 2024
Trump at Madison Square Garden

Donald Trump won. Now what for science-based federal health policy?

Last week, Donald Trump defeated Kamala Harris and will return to the White House in January. What does this mean for science-based federal health policy? Hint: Nothing good. Just like the rest of the government, the worst people are likely to be in charge of health and science policy.

/ November 11, 2024
NCCIH Logo defined

The NCCIH embraces the quackery that is “functional medicine”

The process of "integrating" quackery with medicine continues apace as the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health embraces the quackery that is "functional medicine."

/ September 30, 2024
The NIH grant process is not The Godfather.

Improving how the NIH decides which grants to fund: Reality vs. conspiracy

Last week, the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a plan to decrease the problem of reputational bias in grant funding. I couldn't help but contrast how hard the NIH tries to use the most rigorous scientific criteria to decide whose grants to fund with the conspiracy theory that Anthony Fauci personally doles out NIH dollars like a mob boss...

/ December 12, 2022

The Great Barrington Declaration Was Silenced. So Why are They Silencing Me?

The head of the NIH owed the authors of the GBD a series of public discussions and dialogues. The authors of the GDB owe me a series of public discussions and dialogues.

/ December 31, 2021

Medical science policy in the U.S. under Donald Trump eighty days in

A week after Donald Trump was elected, I speculated about how he would affect medical science policy. Now, 80 days into the Trump administration, we have some observations.

/ April 10, 2017

No, a rat study with marginal results does not prove that cell phones cause cancer, no matter what Mother Jones and Consumer Reports say

There are certain myths that are frustratingly resistant to evidence, science, and reason. Some of these are basically medical conspiracy theories, where someone (industry and/or big pharma and/or physicians and/or the government) has slam-dunk evidence for harm but conspires to keep it from you, the people. For example, despite decades worth of negative studies, the belief that vaccines are harmful, causing conditions...

/ May 30, 2016