A Senate health panel on Wednesday voted to send President Biden’s nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health to the chamber’s floor, moving Monica Bertagnolli one step closer to taking the longtime vacant role of permanent director.
The Senate HELP Committee advanced her nomination on a 15-6 vote, with many Republicans voting in support and only Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) breaking with the Democratic caucus to vote against her.
Sanders said Tuesday that he would oppose Bertagnolli’s nomination because she had “not convinced me that she is prepared to take on the greed and power of the drug companies and health care industry and fight for the transformative changes the NIH needs at this critical moment.”
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