Who is Jay Bhattacharya, Kolkata-Born Covid Skeptic Picked by Trump to Lead to Top Health Agency

Washington: President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Indian origin Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a critic of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates, to lead the National Institutes of Health, the nation’s leading medical research agency.

Physician and Stanford Professor

Jay Bhattacharya is an Indian-American professor of medicine, economics, and health policy at Stanford University. He is known for his research on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations, focusing on the intersection of government programs, biomedical innovation, and economic strategies.

He is a professor at Stanford University and directs the Center for Demography and Economics of Health and Aging. He is also a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and holds senior fellow positions at various Stanford institutions.

 A Vocal Critic of Lockdowns and Vaccine

Bhattacharya was a vocal critic of lockdowns and vaccine mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. He co-authored the Great Barrington Declaration in 2020, which advocated for a focused protection strategy.

Trump, in a statement Tuesday evening, said Bhattacharya, a 56-year-old physician and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, will work in cooperation with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, “to direct the Nation’s Medical Research, and to make important discoveries that will improve Health, and save lives.”

“Together, Jay and RFK Jr. will restore the NIH to a Gold Standard of Medical Research as they examine the underlying causes of, and solutions to, America’s biggest Health challenges, including our Crisis of Chronic Illness and Disease,” he wrote.

The decision to choose Bhattacharya for the post is yet another reminder of the ongoing impact of the COVID pandemic on the politics on public health.

Bhattacharya was one of three authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, an October 2020 open letter maintaining that lockdowns were causing irreparable harm.

With inputs from AP