New Delhi:
America’s elected President Donald Trump will take oath in January next year. But even before that, he has started making appointments. In this series, he has appointed Dr. Jai Bhattacharya as the Director of the National Institute of Health (NIH). The Trump government will have to get approval for this appointment of Bhattacharya from the Senate. NIH is an organization similar to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in India. Bhattacharya teaches health policy and economics at Stanford University, America. He has also done his MD and PhD from Stanford University.
Why was the lockdown criticized during the Corona epidemic?
Bhattacharya’s name came into discussion when he opposed lockdown, wearing masks and administering booster dose of Corona vaccine during the Corona epidemic. He said that the lockdown would affect the physical and mental health of the people. Because of this Bhattacharya had to face criticism. His critics also include Dr. Francis Collins. Dr. Collins is a former director of the same NIH to which Bhattacharya has been appointed.
A journalist named Bari Weiss, after analyzing the documents of X (formerly Twitter), had said that Bhattacharya’s name was included among those whose accounts were secretly blocked. When Elon Musk acquired Twitter, he invited Bhattacharya to explain how his voice was suppressed.
Went to Supreme Court against Biden government
Bhattacharya has also been a vocal critic of the Joe Biden government regarding its methods of dealing with Corona. Regarding this, he along with some people had also filed a petition in the Supreme Court. Bhattacharya’s argument was that the Biden administration is unfairly suppressing conservative views regarding Covid-19 on social media. However, in June this year, the court took the side of the Biden administration.
I’m so grateful to President Trump for this spectacular appointment. Dr. Jay Bhattacharya is the ideal leader to restore NIH as the international template for gold-standard science and evidence-based medicine. pic.twitter.com/NakHavsblX
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) November 27, 2024
In Trump’s government, he has to work with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is a vocal opponent of any kind of vaccine. NIH works under the Health Department. Kennedy was appointed by Trump on November 14. Kennedy’s appointment was criticized by the opposition Democratic Party as well as leaders of Trump’s own Republican Party. Because Kennedy has been a vocal critic of the lockdown imposed during the Corona epidemic. Kennedy had greatly appreciated the appointment of Jai Bhattacharya. He had said in a post written on X that Bhattacharya is an ideal choice to restore the reputation of NIH.
What subject do you study?
given at Stanford University resume According to Jai Bhattacharya, he has written 89 research papers and seven books and reports. The subject of Bhattacharya’s study is the impact of policies on vulnerable people. Apart from this, he had written a paper along with some other experts in 2022, in which it was told how due to the immunity of the people of countries like Japan and Korea, the infection of Covid spread less and the number of deaths there was less. People had to be admitted to the hospital.
According to Bhattacharya’s biodata, he completed his medical degree from the university in 1997. He received his doctorate in Healthcare Economics from the Department of Economics, Stanford University in 2000.
What does NIH do?
NIH conducts health and public health research in the United States. There are 27 research institutes associated with NIH with researchers in different subjects. NIH’s annual budget is about $48 billion. This amount is equivalent to approximately Rs 48 billion in rupees. If we compare this with the budget of India’s ICMR, the government had given it a budget of Rs 2,732.13 crore in 2024-2025.
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