Hundreds of Physicians Call on RFK Jr. to End Primate Experiments and Accelerate Human-Based Science

WASHINGTON, D.C.—More than 550 physicians are calling on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to direct the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to phase out primate experimentation in favor of modern, human-based research methods that better predict human health outcomes.

The letter, sent Monday and led by Neal Barnard, MD, FACC, president and founder of the nonprofit the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, asks for: phasing out support for the nation’s seven National Primate Research Centers, plans for retiring primates currently in laboratories, and initiatives for supporting researchers, staff, and institutions in making the transition to advanced, human-based approaches.

The physicians’ request builds on actions already underway. Secretary Kennedy has stated he is committed to ending the importation of nonhuman primates for laboratory research, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ended its monkey research programs in late 2025.

The doctors note that a growing body of scientific evidence supports replacing animal experiments with research methods based on human biology, including organoids, microphysiological systems, computational modeling, and studies using human tissues and patient data. These approaches can generate data that are more directly relevant to human health, improve research efficiency, reduce costs, and accelerate the development of new treatments while avoiding the ethical concerns associated with primate experimentation.

"Federal research policy should reflect the best available science," said Dr. Barnard. "Modern human-based methods offer a more effective path to understanding disease and developing treatments than experiments on monkeys."

To see a copy of the physicians’ letter or to speak with Dr. Barnard, please contact Reina Pohl at 202-527-7326 or rpohl [at] pcrm.org.