Big News: HHS Exploring Ban on Monkey Imports, Turning Monkey Labs Into Sanctuaries
It could change scientific research forever—and for the better!
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, announced tonight on “My View with Lara Trump” that the department is looking into ending the importation of monkeys for experimentation and turning the seven national primate research centers (NPRCs) into sanctuaries for any monkeys who remain.
The Secretary’s groundbreaking commitment follows a meeting with PETA in which we shared evidence revealing that tuberculosis, malaria, Herpes B, Chagas, and other deadly zoonotic pathogens are entering the U.S. in monkeys shipped from Asia and Africa; our investigations into violations in and many exposés of the Oregon, Wisconsin, and Washington National Primate Research Centers; and years of intense PETA campaigns on both issues.
A monkey import ban would save tens of thousands of monkey lives every year, allowing endangered monkey species to repopulate the world’s forests, free from fear of abduction so they can fill U.S. laboratory cages. It would also eliminate the risk of an outbreak of many dangerous diseases that monkeys bring into the country.
Closing down operations at the failed, federally funded NPRCs would mean ending cruel and scientifically bereft experiments on monkeys that waste hundreds of millions of federal dollars, hijack scientific progress, and fail to produce needed treatments for human patients desperate for them. It would usher in a new era of biomedical advancement using sound, cutting-edge, and human-relevant research techniques that, for too long, have been starved for funding while tax dollars were spent on pointless cruelty.
Kennedy’s announcement shows that the Trump administration is open to hearing—and, we hope, acting on—the evidence. It shows that the voice of the experimentation industry, which profits from the status quo, is no longer the loudest in the room. It shows we’re being heard.
The conversation has changed. It’s now: How quickly can we end this morally bankrupt, scientifically bereft, and financially imprudent practice?
Which national primate research center will be the first to transition to a sanctuary? Let’s not waste this moment.
Note: PETA supports animal rights, opposes all forms of animal exploitation, and educates the public on those issues. PETA does not directly or indirectly participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office or any political party.
