NIH Posts Job Openings With Short Turnaround, Worrying Experts
The 12 high-level leadership positions have a two-week timeline for remaining open. Scientists worry that the short turnaround and the lack of search committees will not allow for the best candidates to be chosen and would open the door to more political appointments.
MedPage Today:
NIH Job Postings Raise Red Flags For Scientists
The NIH has posted a dozen job openings for institute directors with very tight turnaround timelines and without convening search committees -- a departure from the past that's raising red flags among scientists. These high-level leadership positions include the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), and the National Human Genome Research Institute. (Fiore, 11/17)
MedPage Today:
NIH Cuts Disrupted Hundreds Of Clinical Trials, Study Finds
Hundreds of clinical trials and tens of thousands of participants were affected by NIH grant terminations earlier this year, a cross-sectional study indicated. Between February 28 and August 15, there were 11,008 clinical trials funded by NIH grants, and 383 of these trials (3.5%) subsequently lost funding, reported Anupam Jena, MD, PhD, of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and the National Bureau of Economic Research in Cambridge, and colleagues. (Henderson, 11/17)
More from HHS on vaccine policy and nutrition —
Bloomberg:
RFK Jr. Tries To Tie Aluminum In Vaccines To Food Allergies
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continued his campaign against the aluminum in some vaccines by suggesting at a conference on Monday that they may play a role in the rise of food allergies. Kennedy acknowledged there is no science backing the connection, but said he wanted researchers to study aluminum adjuvants in childhood vaccines because he believes their use “fit the timeline perfectly” with an increased prevalence of food allergies. He added that pesticides and ultraprocessed food also could be contributing factors, without providing evidence. (Cohrs Zhang, 11/17)
Stat:
Vaccine Makers See Risk Of Shortages In Trump Reformulation Push
As the Trump administration moves ahead on what could be its most wide-reaching vaccine changes yet, the makers of the shots are weighing their options — and privately warning that officials could severely limit access to key vaccines and upend the childhood vaccine schedule for years to come. (Payne, 11/18)
The Hill:
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Plans To Release New Dietary Guidelines On Saturated Fats
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said Monday that new dietary guidelines are expected to be released next month that will end the “war on saturated fats.” Speaking at the Food Allergy Fund Leadership Forum, Kennedy discussed the actions the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken under his leadership, including incentivizing a reduction in petroleum-based food dyes and increasing oversight into infant formula. (Choi, 11/17)
The 19th:
The U.S. Wants Healthier Children. So Why Is It Scaling Back Government Nutrition Programs?
When the Trump administration released its Make America Healthy Again report in May, it lifted up the Women, Infants and Children supplemental food program, known as WIC, as a shining example of how the government can get healthy eating right. (Carrazana, 11/14)
Stat:
Inside Kennedy's Rise At HHS: Delivering On MAHA Priorities For Trump
On Independence Avenue, inside a gray brutalist building regarded by many as this city’s ugliest, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has constructed a monument to his family. (Cirruzzo, Ross and Todd, 11/18)
