WASHINGTON — The controversy over research conducted by the National Institutes of Health on the health impacts of moderate drinking has reached Capitol Hill, where a lawmaker on Wednesday stridently questioned the agency’s director, Francis Collins, over the NIH’s reportedly cozy relationship with the alcohol industry.
In response to a question about reports that the NIH had allowed industry partnerships to influence research into alcohol use and the impact of alcohol marketing, Collins told Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.) that the NIH is “looking into this in a very aggressive way.”
“I’ve instructed my staff at the Office of Management Assessment to look at the details of exactly what happened in terms of the relationship between NIH employees and the beverage industry, and the formulation of a possible research plan,” Collins said.
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