The US Senate has confirmed the appointment of Jay Bhattacharya, an Indian-origin professor at Stanford School of Medicine, as the director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He won the vote by 53-47 during the first session of the roll call vote in the 119th Congress.

Who is Jay Bhattacharya?

Jay Bhattacharya is a well-known professor of health policy at Stanford University. He is also a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and a senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, the Stanford Freeman Spogli Institute, and the Hoover Institution. Additionally, he leads Stanford’s Centre for Demography and Economics of Health and Ageing.

His research mainly focuses on government programs, biomedical innovation, and economics. He has published studies in various respected journals related to economics, statistics, law, medicine, public health, and health policy.

Mr Bhattacharya is also known for being a co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, an alternative to lockdowns introduced in October 2020. This declaration suggested a different approach to managing COVID-19, focusing on protecting vulnerable people instead of imposing strict lockdowns on everyone.

His role at NIH

Following his appointment, US President Donald Trump expressed his confidence in Mr. Bhattacharya’s abilities. He stated that Jay Bhattacharya and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was recently confirmed as the US Health and Human Services Secretary, will work together to restore the NIH to a "Gold Standard of Medical Research."

Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky also congratulated Mr. Bhattacharya, saying, "Voted today to confirm Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to lead the National Institutes of Health. With an extensive background in medical research, I expect Dr. J. Bhattacharya to provide sound leadership at the NIH."

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