Trump Appoints Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Lockdown And Vaccine Mandate Critic, To Lead National Institutes Of Health

OAN Staff Blake Wolf
12:45 PM – Wednesday, November 27, 2024

President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Dr. Jay Bhattacharyya, a Stanford University health researcher and critic of COVID-19 lockdowns, will be the next director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

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President Trump said in his announcement that Dr. Bhattacharyya will work closely with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump's nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services.

“Dr. Bhattacharya will work with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to lead the nation's medical research and make critical discoveries that improve health and save lives,” President Trump announced.

“Jay is a professor of health policy at Stanford University, a research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a senior fellow courtesy of the Stanford Economic Policy Institute, the Stanford Freeman Spogli Institute, and the Hoover Institution. His research focuses on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations and the role of government programs, biomedical innovation, and the economy. “I'm emphasizing that,” Trump continued.

Dr. Bhattacharya is credited as one of the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration and was a sharp critic of the mandated COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.

The letter, published in October 2020, claimed that lockdowns are having a “devastating impact on short- and long-term public health” and that “people at minimal risk of death are We will allow people to live their lives as normal and develop immunity.” Stopping the virus through natural transmission while better protecting those most at risk. ”

“Together, Jay and RFK Jr. will investigate the root causes and solutions to America's biggest health problems, including the chronic disease and disease crisis, and restore NIH to the gold standard in medical research. Together, we will work hard to make America healthy again!'' Trump's post concluded.

Mr. Bhattacharyya's new position will allow him to oversee the health department, which is responsible for more than 18,000 employees and about $48 billion in scientific research funding. It directs more than 300,000 researchers and more than 2,500 universities and medical schools.

Shortly after, Kennedy logged onto social media platforms to congratulate Dr. Bhattacharyya and express his excitement for the future.

“We are very grateful to President Trump for this outstanding appointment. Dr. Jay Bhattacharyya is the ideal leader to restore NIH as the international template for the gold standard of science and evidence-based medicine.” wrote Kennedy.

Dr. Bhattacharyya's appointment marks a sea change, as he was blacklisted by Twitter for his views on the pandemic but is now at the helm of a major health organization, according to a 2022 Twitter file. There is.

“I am honored and humbled that President @realDonaldTrump has nominated me to be the next Director of the NIH. Expand to make it healthy,” Dr. Bhattacharyya posted on X.