NIH Reviews Policies to Promote Academic Freedom

One of my key priorities as NIH Director is to foster a culture in which scientists are incentivized to engage in open, academic discourse in pursuit of NIH’s mission to seek fundamental knowledge and improve the health of all Americans. Open debate is the cornerstone of scientific progress as interrogating evidence and challenging the status quo are essential for ensuring scientific rigor and meaningful results.

Starting today, NIH will undertake a comprehensive review of all policies and practices within its Intramural Research Program (IRP) to establish academic freedom as the rule and not the exception. With principles of academic freedom in place, NIH scientists can be certain they are afforded the ability to engage in open, academic discourse as part of their official duties and in their personal capacities without risk of official interference, professional disadvantage or workplace retaliation.

NIH policies have always supported the public dissemination of research. However, academic freedom matters most in the edge cases where scientists are pursuing evidence that others find inconvenient or objectionable. By prioritizing academic freedom across the agency, we can work to restore public trust in NIH’s ability to carry out its mission.

Jay Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D.
Director, National Institutes of Health