NIH Hospital Board Chair: Unfunded Clinic Risks Reputation

Jack Leslie warned the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center Research Hospital board that a new vaccine injury clinic could hurt the institution's reputation.

The hospital has served patients with rare conditions for decades. It is often called the "house of hope" because it treats people who have exhausted other medical options. Leslie noted that the facility serves some of the most vulnerable patients in the country.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently opened the clinic at a ribbon-cutting ceremony. He appeared without notice at the hospital. A panel of individuals who claimed vaccine injuries sat behind placards during the event. They spoke with Kennedy and other high-ranking Trump administration officials.

Leslie addressed the board at a regularly scheduled meeting. He delivered a six-minute critique of the secretary's activities. He argued that the anti-vaccine focus of the launch could tarnish the hospital's standing. Leslie stated that silence would be a failure of the advisory board's duty.

"But I think that that would be a failing as an advisory board if we were silent," Leslie said. He clarified that his concern was not with scientific inquiry. He affirmed that serious vaccine reactions are rare but real. He added that patients who believe they were injured should be taken seriously.

The new clinic does not add new funding or physical space to the hospital. The NIH already maintains a center that studies vaccine injuries. Jonathan Green, the hospital's CEO, supported Leslie's account during the meeting. Green described the new facility as one individual protocol among many existing studies.

Green noted that the NIH has researched vaccine safety and efficacy for decades. The work is continuing without a break. The board chair and the CEO both emphasized that the clinic is a modest addition to existing research.

The remarks highlight a distinction between the public ceremony and the clinic's operational reality. The clinic operates within the current budget and footprint of the hospital.