Biosecurity Risk

Two weeks ago, I ordered all work to halt at a high biosecurity risk @nih lab located in Frederick, MD. I did this because of a serious incident involving biosafety that had occurred in early March, but which did not cross my desk until weeks later.
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— Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD (@NIHDirector_Jay) May 7, 2025

… biocontainment suit over a personal dispute with a co-worker.

Researchers are supposed to wear these suits when they do experiments with dangerous pathogens. This is how lab leaks can happen!

An ongoing investigation revealed a pattern -- going back to the Biden administration -- of safety not taken as seriously as it ought. So with @SecKennedy 's blessing, I immediately ordered all work to halt & all dangerous pathogens secured.

I won't reopen the lab until I am satisfied that that it can be done with zero risk to public safety. No more lab generated pandemics!

@SecKennedy as anti-science. He was acting responsibly to protect the public from a high-risk lab with a poor safety record, but they ignored that in their story. Sheesh!

RFK Jr.’s HHS Orders Lab Studying Deadly Infectious Diseases to Stop Research, Wired