Experts say RFK Jr.’s move to oppose animal testing in drug trials could draw animal rights voters toward the Republican Party. But the Health Secretary has taken a firm stance against factory farms and slaughterhouses.
RFK Junior Vaccine Committee changes guidelines for pediatric MMRV vaccine
Health experts say changes to the comprehensive MMRV guidelines could be confusing and affect vaccination rates.
- Criticism of animal research (usually associated with the progressive left) has increased in recent years, with animal research being blamed for the slow pace of drug development.
- The Food and Drug Administration is ramping up production of “organoids,” tiny lab-grown tissue models made from stem cells, for drug testing.
- The move has won praise from groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Secretary of Health Robert F. Kennedy Jr. added another issue to his “Make America Healthy” agenda: limiting reliance on animal research.
Criticism of animal research (usually associated with the progressive left) has increased in recent years due to the slow pace of drug development. At the same time, artificial intelligence, which is less dependent on animal test subjects, is becoming increasingly important in accelerating its development. Researchers are also creating increasingly realistic disease models in laboratory dishes, testing drugs in so-called organoids instead of in animals such as mice, rabbits and primates.
Now, as President Kennedy’s “Make America Great Again” agenda continues to eclipse Republican policy and some Democrats take up causes they have traditionally championed, several new efforts by the National Institutes of Health are making good on that promise.
The move could be a consequential crossroads between a key faction of President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement and animal rights activists, who are usually unpopular with Republicans.
But Alfred Runte, an environmental historian and former director of the National Park Conservation Association, said Kennedy’s move could help bring more independents and liberals under the MAGA umbrella.
“He will give more people confidence in the government, which is what we lack,” Runte said. “Most animal rights activists tend to be on the left. If RFK can build a following from people who don’t want animal testing as much, it will certainly bring more liberals into the Republican Party.”
Runte said animal experiments in medicine often cannot accurately predict human outcomes. The Food and Drug Administration noted in September that “animal-based data are particularly inadequate at predicting drug success for multiple common diseases, including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammatory diseases.”
In late September, the NIH launched the nation’s first dedicated organoid development center to create small organisms grown from stem cells that mimic human organs to reduce reliance on animal testing.
In December 2022, Congress repealed the requirement that all new drugs must be tested in two species, typically mice and “higher” mammals such as rabbits and primates, before human trials. The law, called the FDA Modernization Act 2.0, was the culmination of four decades of lobbying by animal rights activists.
Kennedy, a longtime vaccine skeptic who has promoted the baseless theory that vaccines cause autism, could tap into the so-called dog vaccine hesitancy, a confluence of animal rights support and anti-vaccination sentiment.
A 2023 study published in the journal Vaccines found that vaccine hesitancy in humans and pets is closely correlated and acts as a strong predictor of vaccination behavior. Researchers call this “vaccine spillover,” with more than 50% of dog owners surveyed expressing doubt that vaccines will prevent rabies and other pet diseases.
President Kennedy’s first “Make America Healthy Again” report, released in May, included a promise that the federal government would focus on “new technologies” to help reduce animal testing.
In late September, the NIH, which Kennedy now oversees, launched the government’s first dedicated organoid development center. With a total contract value of $87 million over the first three years, the Standardized Organoid Modeling Center will use and develop these cutting-edge technologies.
The NIH now also allows scientists to use grants to cover the costs of retiring or rehoming animals used in research without killing them. For years, the NIH has funded the retirement of chimpanzees used in experiments and helped house them in sanctuaries.
“No animal should ever be used in experiments. But this common-sense policy change finally recognizes that death is not the only option for animals who have experienced the worst that humanity has to offer,” Kathy Guillermo, executive vice president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, wrote in an email to USA TODAY.
PETA gives MAHA a thumbs up
PETA, the nation’s most famous and perhaps most hated animal rights group for trashing Paris Fashion Week and comparing the U.S. meat industry to serial killer (and cannibal) Jeffrey Dahmer, hailed the NIH’s recent action as a “historic move.”
“Make no mistake: this center will save countless animal lives while developing reproducible research methods that will produce positive results more quickly for human patients in need,” said PETA neuroscientist Dr. Emily Tournelle.
When President Kennedy first announced his intention to phase out animal testing, a Los Angeles-based animal rights group called the policy push “welcome but long overdue.”
“It is disgusting that medical research institutions that receive federal funding from HHS and the National Institutes of Health have been using animals as test subjects in gruesome medical experiments and tests, and torturing them for decades,” said Chris DeRose, founder and president of Last Chance for Animals.
“Regardless of politics, I’m grateful that the Trump administration, under Secretary Kennedy’s leadership, has finally put an end to this,” he said.
RFK avoids tougher health goals
RFK Jr. has targeted the food dye, ultra-processed food and pharmaceutical industries, but so far has not addressed issues affecting agribusiness, a Republican-backed industry.
But he was talking about these issues before taking office.
“America’s current agricultural policy is destroying America’s health at every level,” Kennedy said in an October 2024 video after dropping out of the presidential race as an independent and Trump supporter. “By tilting the playing field in favor of more chemicals, more herbicides, more pesticides, more concentrated single crops and feedlots, we are destroying the health of America’s soils and waters, and ultimately the health of our consumers.”
President Kennedy’s focus on animal testing, avoiding allegations of animal abuse and public health impacts associated with commercial animal farms and slaughterhouses, is similar to his approach to food additives.
The longtime environmental lawyer has distanced himself from curbing the use of the herbicide glyphosate, which some studies have linked to cancer, but has pressured food producers to phase out some chemical food dyes from processed snacks, drawing the ire of influential figures in his support base, MAHA.
MAHA activist Zen Honeycutt called the disconnect “very disappointing.”
“The sections of this MAHA committee report on pesticides are clearly influenced by chemical companies,” she wrote on her blog, claiming that the report “panders to the interests of pesticide companies and favors pesticide farmers.” (The Environmental Protection Agency says glyphosate has low toxicity to humans and is approved for use in the United States, Canada, and the European Union.)
Reduce reliance on animal testing
The Standardized Organoid Modeling Center will be located at the Frederick National Cancer Institute in Maryland, about an hour’s drive from Washington, DC.
Organoids are small, laboratory-grown tissue models that reproduce the structure and function of human organs, providing what the NIH describes as an alternative to animal models.
“This groundbreaking effort will transform the way biomedical research is conducted through innovative approaches that advance human-based technologies,” said NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharyya.
Organoid models are typically developed in academic laboratories and have been used for many years to better understand how healthy human organs function and how those functions are altered by genetics and environmental factors.
Scientists say artificial intelligence and organoids won’t eliminate the need for animals in research, but they will reduce the number of animals needed to prove a drug’s safety and effectiveness.
The National Association for Biomedical Research said President Kennedy’s call to reduce or phase out animal testing overlooks a critical truth: there is currently no complete replacement for animal models.
“We all want better, faster ways to provide life-saving treatments to patients,” said NABR Chairman Matthew R. Bailey. “However, no AI model or simulation has yet demonstrated the ability to fully reproduce all the unknowns about many complete biological systems.”
In 2024, the USDA recorded 775,297 animals used in experiments, including 42,880 dogs, 12,004 cats, and 11,656 sheep.
The USDA’s numbers do not include the use of mice, rats, or fish, making exact numbers difficult to find because the Animal Welfare Act does not require reporting of mice, rats, birds, fish, or amphibians. According to Cruelty Free International, at least 14 million animals are used in experiments in the United States.
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is USA TODAY’s White House correspondent. You can follow her at X @SwapnaVenugopal.
