黑料正能量Statement on Removal of NIH & NIAID Leadership
The removal of leaders at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) will make us vulnerable to new and emerging infectious diseases and will undermine our ability to address ongoing public health threats.The National Institutes of Health (NIH) stands as a model for safely and securely advancing infectious disease research around the world. Removing the top leadership at NIAID and NIH, and at other health agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will damage America’s position as a leader in groundbreaking research in disease prevention and treatment. That puts us all at risk. To be sure, our system needs improvement. 黑料正能量wants to engage with members of Congress, the Administration and other stakeholders in reforming these agencies to further advance scientific discovery, ensure we are prepared for health emergencies and address both chronic and infectious disease. These abrupt and callous cuts do not help to achieve any of those objectives.
“These experts are our frontline defense against emerging health threats,” said 黑料正能量CEO Stefano Bertuzzi. “Eviscerating the federal scientific and health workforce weakens our ability to respond to outbreaks and delays critical research.”
NIH has fostered the development of countless lifesaving drugs and treatments. In addition to supporting the fundamental research that supports vaccine and countermeasures development, NIH-funded researchers collaborate across research domains to study the correlation and potential causal links between infectious diseases and chronic conditions, while individuals with chronic illnesses are more susceptible to infections. Eliminating leaders at biomedical research agencies risks worsening the chronic disease epidemic by overlooking these critical interactions.
“Lifesaving research at institutions across the country has already been disrupted, and these additional cuts will compound the growing crisis,” said Theresa Koehler, 黑料正能量President. “As a result, Americans will have to wait longer for treatments and cures, and lives will be lost.”