Trump's pick to lead NIH, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, confirmed by Senate in party line vote

The Senate put its final stamp of approval on the nomination of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, approving his nomination to become the next NIH director Tuesday evening.

A physician, Stanford professor of medicine and senior fellow at the university's Institute for Economic Policy Research, Bhattacharya was a leading voice during the COVID-19 pandemic against lockdown measures and vaccine mandates. He was one of the co-authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, a document published in October 2020 by a group of scientists advocating against widespread COVID lockdowns and promoting the efficacy of natural immunity for low-risk individuals as opposed to vaccination.

Bhattacharya was probed by the Senate HELP Committee earlier this month over various issues related to his potential role as NIH director. However, for much of the hearing he was forced to defend the president's decision to cut certain research funds at NIH, including a 15% cap on indirect research costs, also known as facilities and administrative costs, dispersed by the NIH.