The recent announcement comes in the wake of remarks made by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has gained attention for his anti-vaccine stance. In a podcast aired on May 27, he characterized renowned medical journals as being “corrupt.”
Kennedy specifically mentioned his intention to cease publishing in respected outlets such as the Lancet, the New England Journal of Medicine, and JAMA, claiming these journals serve as a “vessel for pharmaceutical propaganda.” He asserted that unless these publications undergo significant changes, the federal government would restrict NIH scientists from submitting their work to these platforms and instead, establish “in-house” journals.
Access to leading scientific and medical journals is critical for federal scientists to remain informed about advancements in their fields and to disseminate impactful research findings. One employee from the NIH expressed concerns to Nature news, stating that the proposed changes would “suppress our scientific freedom, to pursue information where it is present.”
