National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins, M.D., will be stepping down from his position after more than 12 years in the public research agency’s highest role, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced this morning.
Collins is the agency’s 16th director and held the role longer than any of his presidentially appointed predecessors, according to HHS. His tenure will end before the end of this year.
“I love this agency and its people so deeply that the decision to step down was a difficult one, done in close counsel with my wife, Diane Baker, and my family,” Collins said in the announcement. “I am proud of all we’ve accomplished. I fundamentally believe, however, that no single person should serve in the position too long, and that it’s time to bring in a new scientist to lead the NIH into the future. I’m most grateful and proud of the NIH staff and the scientific community, whose extraordinary commitment to lifesaving research delivers hope to the American people and the world every day.”
Collins, who is 71, is set to continue leading his research laboratory at the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), which is currently investigating Type 2 diabetes and Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria syndrome research.
The agencies did not announce who will be replacing Collins as the NIH’s interim director or successor.
The open slot comes as the Biden administration has already struggled to replace former FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn, M.D., who had departed the role with the end of the Trump administration.
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Since Collins' appointment by President Barack Obama in 2009, the research agency’s budget has grown 38% from $30 billion in 2009 to $41.3 billion in 2021. That money has funded research into diseases ranging from Alzheimer’s to COVID-19, as well as the employment of 6,000 research scientists.
Collins’ tenure also includes the launch of numerous national research initiatives, including the All of Us Research Program, the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, and the Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) public-private partnership, among several others.
His time in the NIH’s top role followed a 15-year stint as the director of the NHGRI. He was best known there for his role in the international Human Genome Project, which was declared complete in 2003 and served as a foundation for years of genetics research.
Outside of the government, Collins helped identify the genes for cystic fibrosis and collaborated on the isolation of genes for several other genetic diseases. He has also been vocal on his belief that science and religion can work in harmony, having founded and led the BioLogos Foundation Christian advocacy group in 2007.
“Few people could come anywhere close to achieving in a lifetime what Dr. Collins has at the helm of NIH,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. “It takes an extraordinary person to tackle the biggest scientific challenges facing our nation—and under three presidents, amidst three distinctly different chapters of American history. Dr. Collins, master of scientific breakthroughs and scientific reason—from mapping the human genome to fighting the most devastating pandemic of a century—has routinely broken ground to save countless lives, while unleashing innovation to benefit humanity for generations to come.”
Collins’ departure announcement comes as a new research agency backed by the scientist and President Joe Biden still awaits consideration by Congress. Called the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), it’s modeled after the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and asks for an initial $6.5 billion in funding.