Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Must Appoint NIH IC Directors

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Becerra failed to follow the Constitution and the law to reappoint 14 senior NIH officials when their terms expired in December 2021.

In fact, on May 5th, 2023, HHS agreed with Committee Republicans about the requirements to reappoint officials in a letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers – the same requirements they FAILED to meet.

WATCH Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA) share more:

“I'd like to read a letter from the Department of Health and Human Services, from the Assistant Secretary for Legislation, Melanie Egorin, … and it says ‘NIH IC Directors are recommended for appointment by the NIH Director and approved for appointment by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.’

“It goes on to say, ‘once a suitable candidate has been identified, a selection package is forwarded to the HHS Secretary for review and approval. After the HHS Secretary approves the appointment, ethics and security clearance checks are conducted and the NIH processes the appointment action.’"

Anyone suggesting that the NIH Director can solely appoint NIH IC Directors is misinformed. Read the law:

To the extent anyone is claiming the NIH Director can or did appoint these officials, HHS has not provided any documents that support any appointment by former NIH Director Francis Collins.

At every step in our investigation, the Biden administration REFUSED to provide any concrete evidence that Secretary Becerra reappointed these top NIH officials as required by the Constitution and by law.

Our request is simple: Show us the proof that Secretary Becerra lawfully reappointed these officials. To date, they have not.

In fact, HHS’s lawyers had Secretary Becerra sign affidavits because there were no valid appointments. HHS has tried to spin these retroactive affidavits as additional “insurance" against any legal challenges. Notably, these affidavits didn’t include two NIH IC Directors, like Dr. Anthony Fauci, because they retired after December 2021.

We know the truth. Secretary Becerra signing these affidavits amounts to a confession that he never signed off on the appointments in December 2021 as required by law.

Bottom line: 14 NIH officials were unlawfully in positions and exercising authority they didn’t have, including approving $26 billion of grants.

CLICK HERE to read more about our investigation.

CLICK HERE to read Constitutional Law Professor Jonathan Turley’s analysis of the Committee’s investigation.

CLICK HERE for a recap of E&C’s press conference.