The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced on Thursday a new policy ending the use of fetal tissue from abortions in federally funded research: “Effective immediately, NIH funds will no longer be used to support research involving human fetal tissue from elective abortions. The policy applies across the NIH Intramural Research Program and all NIH-supported extramural research, including grants, cooperative agreements, other transaction awards, and research and development contracts.”
NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya mentioned in a statement that it is his agency’s responsibility “to ensure that research supported by taxpayer funds is scientifically rigorous, ethically sound, and justified by a maximal return on the public’s investment.”
The official announcement from the NIH is available here.