Monica Bertagnolli, Joe Biden’s nominee to head the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is facing opposition from pro-life groups due to her support for research involving the body parts of aborted babies. At her confirmation hearing, Bertagnolli did not condemn the practice of using aborted baby body parts for federally-funded research. This stance has drawn criticism from the SBA Pro-Life group and its president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, who expressed concerns about NIH funding for research involving aborted baby body parts and the unethical market associated with it.
Dannenfelser emphasized the need for an NIH director who prioritizes ethical research and refrains from supporting experiments using the organs and body parts of aborted babies. She pointed out that Dr. Bertagnolli’s unwillingness to clearly express concerns about this issue is troubling and echoes the alignment of Biden and Harris appointees with the abortion agenda. According to Dannenfelser, this underlines the importance of having a pro-life administration to put a stop to such practices.
Monica Bertagnolli is currently the director of the National Cancer Institute and has a background as a Harvard professor and a renowned surgeon. However, her nomination is receiving criticism not only for her stance on aborted baby body parts but also for her close ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The American Accountability Foundation (AAF) expressed concerns about her long-standing connections with major pharmaceutical companies and the Senate’s consideration of her to lead a vital healthcare agency.
Additionally, Bertagnolli served as an independent director at a diagnostics company specializing in prenatal tests. The New York Times exposed this company’s prenatal tests as having an 85% failure rate. Prenatal tests are often used for eugenic purposes, leading to the selective abortion of babies with conditions such as Down Syndrome.
The NIH operates as the nation’s medical research agency and falls under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It has been without a permanent director since December 2021, following Dr. Francis Collins’s retirement, who also supported research involving aborted baby parts during his tenure overseeing the COVID-19 response. The opposition to Bertagnolli’s nomination highlights concerns over ethical considerations and her affiliations with the pharmaceutical industry and diagnostic companies involved in prenatal testing.
