
White House ordered NIH to cancel coronavirus research funding, Fauci says - icinnamon
https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/06/white-house-ordered-nih-to-cancel-coronavirus-research-funding-fauci-says/
======
DiogenesKynikos
This was obvious from the beginning. Trump was asked about the NIH grant on 17
April, and responded that he'd look into it and possibly cancel it.[1] Two
days later, the NIH emailed the EcoHealth Alliance, referencing conspiracy
theories about the Wuhan Institute of Virology and asking for additional
information.[2] A few days later, the NIH told the EcoHealth Alliance that the
grant, titled " _Understanding the Risk of Bat Coronavirus Emergence_ ", does
not "align with the program goals and agency priorities".

Just let that sink in: the NIH claims that _understanding the risk of bat
coronavirus emergence_ does not align with agency priorities. The excuse for
canceling the grant is laughable.

This is widely viewed as a major attack on the way that science is funded in
the US. Politics sets the overall funding priorities, but experts decide on
which specific grants to fund. The president intervening to cancel a
particular grant that has already been awarded - based on positive reviews by
experts - is an attack on this system.

In response, 77 US Nobel laureates in scientific fields have demanded an
explanation for the cancellation of the grant.[3]

1\. [https://youtu.be/dvXYFQRxYIA](https://youtu.be/dvXYFQRxYIA)

2\.
[https://www.sciencemag.org/sites/default/files/Lauer.Daszak....](https://www.sciencemag.org/sites/default/files/Lauer.Daszak.NIH%20grant%20killed.partial%20email%20transcripts.April%202020.pdf)

3\.
[https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/05/preposterous-77-nobe...](https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/05/preposterous-77-nobel-
laureates-blast-nih-decision-cancel-coronavirus-grant-demand)

