The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently announced two leadership changes at key institutes and centers (ICs). At the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Dr. Dorothy Fink took over as Deputy Director on August 9 and will serve as Acting Director until a permanent director is selected. Meanwhile, NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya announced that Dr. Judy Cho will lead the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) beginning August 7. With Dr. Cho’s appointment, 11 of the 27 ICs remain without permanent directors.
Dr. Fink earned her medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine and completed a combined pediatrics and internal residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She also has training in endocrinology and is a menopause practitioner. Her research has focused on infant and maternal health, osteoporosis, diabetes, and lifespan conditions affecting women.
Prior to this new role, Dr. Fink served at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) during both Trump administrations. In 2018, she became deputy assistant secretary for women’s health and later director of the HHS Office on Women’s Health. In 2025, she served as acting HHS Secretary until the Senate confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for the position. Significantly, in this role, Dr. Fink reportedly directed the department to immediately pause all public communications (see previous FABBS reporting) leading to many months of limited engagement and considerable confusion. Additionally, during her tenure as HHS Acting Secretary, NIH attempted to set a cap on indirect cost rates, a policy eventually struck down in the courts (see previous FABBS reporting).
Dr. Rohan Hazra has been serving as NICHD’s Acting Director since February and will return to his role as Director of the institute’s Division of Extramural Research.
At NHGRI, Dr. Cho will take over for Dr. Carolyn Hutter, who had been serving as Acting Director since April 2025. Prior to joining NIH, Dr. Cho served as Dean and Professor of translational genetics at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. She specializes in gastroenterology, having earned her medical degree from the Ohio State College of Medicine. Although this is her first internal role at NIH, Dr. Cho has served on the agency’s National Advisory Council for Human Genome Research and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Board of Scientific Counselors. She is also a member of the National Academy of Medicine.
Additionally, POLITICO reports that Steven Quay, MD, PhD, a pharma executive, is in line to take over as Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), although final vetting is still underway. POLITICO’s sources indicated that NIH officials did not advance his nomination; Secretary Kennedy selected Dr. Quay over other finalists.
This institute has been without a permanent director since April 2025, when Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo was initially placed on leave (she was later fired in September). Dr. Quay is perhaps best known in the scientific community for his books claiming that Covid-19 came from a Chinese lab leak and has alleged a cover-up involving U.S. scientists. While Dr. Quay is a physician and pathologist, he would be the first NIAID director to come from the pharmaceutical industry, raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest. Further, he does not have formal training in infectious diseases.
