Cathy McMorris Rodgers - the Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee | Official U.S. House headshot
Cathy McMorris Rodgers - the Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee | Official U.S. House headshot
Washington, D.C. — In a letter to National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Monica Bertagnolli, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Subcommittee on Health Chair Brett Guthrie (R-KY), and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) addressed concerns regarding NIH's efforts to recover misused funds from recipient institutions.
"While NIH funding has resulted in significant advances in science and aided in medical breakthroughs, it is also susceptible to fraud and other misconduct. With more than $35 billion in extramural grants awarded in fiscal year 2023 alone, it is essential that the NIH ensures grant funds are used appropriately and identifies and recovers any misused or abused funds," the letter stated.
The NIH can become aware of financial misuse or fraud through allegations and complaints made by colleagues at recipient institutions, whistleblowers, or anonymous sources. Between fiscal years 2013 and 2022, the NIH received over 200 allegations of grant fraud, including embezzlement and theft of funds.
Several public reports have revealed cases of misuse of NIH funding. Notably, researchers at Harvard University and Scripps Research Institute were found to have improperly charged or overcharged the NIH for time spent on grant activities. This led to refunds exceeding $1.3 million from Harvard University and $10 million from Scripps Research Institute.
During the same period, the NIH also received more than 1,000 allegations of research misconduct. The Office of Research Integrity's website summarizes nearly 30 cases of substantiated research misconduct—including falsification, fabrication, or plagiarism—since 2018. These cases involve hundreds of millions of dollars; however, it remains unclear how much funding was specifically misused by those found guilty of misconduct.
There are few public instances where the NIH has successfully recovered funds from institutions failing to protect the integrity of NIH funding. For example, Duke University agreed in 2019 to repay $112.5 million to resolve allegations that applications and progress reports submitted to the federal government contained falsified research.
For further details on this issue, please refer to the full letter available online.
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