Loading ...

Editors of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and its specialty journals published an opinion-editorial Thursday condemning the “silencing” of US scientific discourse stemming from Trump administration orders.

The editorial highlighted the “flurry” of actions the White House has taken in recent weeks, including removing clinical guidance and data from federal health websites, firing thousands of workers from federal health agencies and halting distribution of federal scientific research grants.

While some of these actions have been stalled by court orders, “disruptive uncertainty continues,” the editorial noted.

“For those of us who are part of the biomedical enterprise, the silencing of this scientific discourse and the prohibition of communication of information for patients and clinicians directly threaten the professional oaths that many have taken to protect the health of patients and the public,” the authors, led by JAMA editor-in-chief Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, PhD, MD, MAS, wrote. “The silence with which many of us and our institutions are meeting this moment must be challenged.”

The editorial’s defense of scientific integrity comes at a time when some physicians have criticized leading medical groups — including the JAMA journals’ parent organization, the American Medical Association — for its silence on White House actions.

The editorial also highlighted the “muted response” from nongovernment biomedical institutions that grew louder only after the Trump administration announced plans to slash administrative overhead for research grants to universities.

Earlier this month, the journal Nature reported, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) required that studies by its researchers currently under review at a journal be withdrawn “so that certain language relating to gender can be stripped from them.”

CDC researchers were advised to withdraw their names from studies with external authors whose language did not comply with Trump’s executive order on gender. In some cases, researchers were told not to submit articles to outside journals regardless of topic, NPR reported.

The JAMA editorial’s authors said JAMA journals would continue to adhere to the standards set by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors but also acknowledged “the realities of the current environment and the specific injunctions some authors may be under.”

“We will act flexibly, where appropriate, to ensure that censoring efforts will not silence the integrity of the scientific process or clear communication of scientific information important for health…and we will strive to pursue this goal regardless of the external environment.”

Barbara Feder Ostrov @barbfederostrov.bsky.social is editorial director, Business of Medicine, for Medscape Medical News.