United States President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday appointed Indian-American Professor Dr Jay Bhattacharya as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, a part of the US Department of Health and Human Services, is the nation’s medical research agency. In the announcement Trump said that Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, will serve as Director of the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Bhattacharya will work in cooperation with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to direct the Nation’s Medical Research, and to make important discoveries that will improve Health, and save lives.

Who Is Jay Bhattacharya?

56- year-old, Jay was born in Kolkata. Jay is a Professor of Health Policy at Stanford University, a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economics Research, and a Senior Fellow by courtesy at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Stanford Freeman Spogli Institute, and the Hoover Institution.

He directs Stanford’s Center for Demography and Economics of Health and Aging. His Research focuses on the Health and Well-Being of vulnerable populations, emphasizing the role of Government programs, Biomedical Innovation, and Economics.

Jay is also co-author of the Great Barrington Declaration, an alternative to lockdowns proposed in October 2020. His peer- reviewed research has been published in Economics, Statistics, Legal, Medical, Public Health, and Health Policy Journals. He holds an MD and PhD in Economics from Stanford University. He has published 135 articles in top peer-reviewed scientific journals in medicine, economics, health policy, epidemiology, statistics, law, and public health among other fields.

Dr. Bhattacharya’s recent research focuses on the epidemiology of Covid-19 as well as an evaluation of policy responses to the epidemic.

Jay Bhattacharya Thanks Donald Trump

Following his appointment, Jay thanked Donald Trump and asserted to reform American scientific institution. He wrote on X, “I am honored and humbled by President @realDonaldTrump’s nomination of me to be the next @NIH director. We will reform American scientific institutions so that they are worthy of trust again and will deploy the fruits of excellent science to make America healthy again!”