The Trump administration will be keeping on Obama-appointed NIH director Francis Collins, according to a report from The Hill.
The decision comes after 4 key Republicans urged Trump to keep him in his role in a letter sent last December, which stated that “his distinguished scientific experience, effective leadership skills, and long standing relationships with members of Congress, researchers, and advocates will service the nation and your administration well,” according to the report.
Collins has operated as NIH director since 2009, and served as lead of the Human Genome Project prior to that, The Hill said.
The move was opposed by a group of 40 House Repubs who urged Trump last month to choose a new NIH director which was more aligned with their anti-abortion agendas, according to the report.
Last month, the U.S. Senate voted 57-42 to confirm Dr. Scott Gottlieb as commissioner of the FDA.
Gottlieb, 44, is a former FDA deputy commissioner who has advocated a loosening of requirements needed for approval of new medical products. He is also a resident fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute think tank, a partner at venture capital firm New Enterprise Assoc., and sits on the boards of multiple healthcare companies. The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee approved Gottlieb on a 14-9 vote last month.
