Sanders, Democrats Press NIH Head on Vaccine Policy: BGOV Health

Feb. 4, 2026, 11:07 AM UTC

NIH Head Pressed on Trump Vaccine Policy

NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya speaks during a Senate HELP hearing Tuesday.
NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya speaks during a Senate HELP hearing Tuesday.
Photographer: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg

President Donald Trump’s medical research chief wants parents to vaccinate their kids — but he’s staying mum on whether he’s talking to his boss and longtime vaccine skeptic RFK, Jr. about it.

NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya’s appearance before a Senate health panel Tuesday became a flashpoint in the political debate over vaccines, Victoria Knight reports. Democrats on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee pressed Bhattacharya on the Trump administration’s shifts in vaccine policy that departed from decades of scientific guidance. In turn, Bhattacharya said he believes the ...

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