Jay Bhattacharya, a physician and economist trained at Stanford University, is reportedly the leading candidate for the role of director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. The NIH, a nearly $50 billion agency, is responsible for overseeing biomedical research across the United States.
According to a report by The Washington Post, Dr. Bhattacharya recently met with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has been chosen by President-elect Trump to head the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the agency that oversees NIH and other key health organizations. The report, citing three sources, indicated that Dr. Bhattacharya impressed Kennedy with his ideas to reform the NIH. His proposals include shifting the agency’s focus to more innovative research and reducing the influence of long-serving career officials. The NIH plays a pivotal role in awarding research grants, overseeing clinical trials, and advancing drug and therapeutic development.
As reported by medicalbuyer, the President-elect’s transition team has not made an official announcement, and the final decision will rest with Mr. Trump, who is known for occasionally diverging from his advisers’ recommendations. Other candidates for NIH leadership are also reportedly under consideration.
Who Is Jay Bhattacharya?
Born in Kolkata, India, in 1968, Jayanta “Jay” Bhattacharya is a Professor of Health Policy at Stanford University and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He earned both his MD and PhD in economics at Stanford and currently serves as the director of Stanford’s Center for Demography and Economics of Health and Aging.
According to Stanford’s official website, Dr. Bhattacharya’s research focuses on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations, with a particular emphasis on the role of government programs, biomedical innovation, and economics. His recent work includes studying the epidemiology of COVID-19 and evaluating policy responses to the pandemic.
His broader research interests span the implications of aging populations on healthcare systems and spending, measuring physician performance in relation to payment systems, and assessing the impact of biomedical innovation on public health. Dr. Bhattacharya has published 135 articles in top peer-reviewed journals across medicine, economics, health policy, epidemiology, law, and public health.
Dr. Bhattacharya gained national attention during the COVID-19 pandemic as a vocal critic of the federal government’s response. In October 2020, he co-authored the Great Barrington Declaration, an open letter advocating for the rollback of COVID-19 lockdowns while focusing protection on vulnerable groups, such as the elderly. The proposal garnered support from some Republican leaders and those eager to return to normal life, but it faced significant criticism, including from World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who deemed it unethical and impractical.