Top Science Adviser’s Resignation Shakes Up Biden Health Initiatives
Earlier in the day, it looked like Eric Lander might keep his cabinet-level job, despite a White House investigation that found "credible evidence" he mistreated and bullied his staff and colleagues. Lander's departure could set back programs he led including President Joe Biden's "cancer moonshot" and pandemic preparedness.
AP:
White House: Top Scientist Resigns Over Treatment Of Staff
President Joe Biden’s top science adviser Eric Lander resigned, hours after the White House confirmed that an internal investigation found credible evidence that he mistreated his staff, marking the first Cabinet-level departure of the Biden administration. An internal review last year, prompted by a workplace complaint, found evidence that Lander, the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and science adviser to Biden, bullied staffers and treated them disrespectfully. The White House rebuked Lander over his interactions with his staff, but initially signaled Monday that he would be allowed to remain on the job, despite Biden’s Inauguration Day assertion that he expected “honesty and decency” from all who worked for his administration and would fire anyone who shows disrespect to others “on the spot.” (Miller, 2/8)
Stat:
Lander Resigns, Potentially Imperiling The Rest Of Biden’s Scientific Agenda
When President Biden tapped Eric Lander as White House science adviser in January 2021, he tasked the renowned genomics researcher with “reinvigorating” American science. Following Lander’s stunning resignation on Monday evening, however, the question is no longer whether he’ll reinvigorate the U.S. scientific enterprise. It’s whether he’s derailed it. ... In interviews with STAT, White House aides and outside research experts worried that the scandal will delay or undercut several of the administration’s key scientific priorities: appointing a new biomedical research chief; relaunching the “Cancer Moonshot”; retooling federal pandemic preparedness; and creating a new agency geared toward biomedical breakthroughs. (Facher, 2/7)
Politico:
Biden’s Top Science Adviser, Eric Lander, Resigns Amid Reports Of Bullying
POLITICO was first to report that the White House had launched a two month investigation into Lander that found “credible evidence” that he bullied his then-general counsel, Rachel Wallace. The investigation also concluded that there was “credible evidence of disrespectful interactions with staff by Dr. Lander and OSTP leadership,” according to a recording of a January White House briefing on the investigation’s findings. In addition, 14 current and former OSTP staffers shared descriptions of a toxic work environment under Lander where they say Lander frequently bullied, cut off and dismissed subordinates. Several shared specific accusations that he belittled and demeaned women subordinates in particular. (Thompson, 2/7)
Also —
USA Today:
Can Biden's 'Cancer Moonshot' Succeed? It's Possible, Experts Say, But It Will Take More Than Words
President Biden has promised to cut the cancer death rate in half over the next 25 years and improve the experience of patients and families, "ending cancer as we know it." Cancer doctors, patients and researchers, not surprisingly, were thrilled by the "Cancer Moonshot" coming out of the Oval Office. But as with any big plan, the devil is in the details. "How do you go from the locker room motivational speech to plays on the field? You have to connect the two," said Dr. David Tuveson, president of the American Association for Cancer Research. (Weintraub, 2/6)
