Jay Bhattacharya

​Jay Bhattacharya is a professor of health policy at Stanford University, where he also directs the Center for Demography and Economics of Health and Aging. Holding both an MD and a PhD in economics from Stanford, his research focuses on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations, emphasizing the role of government programs, biomedical innovation, and economics. In 2020, Bhattacharya co-authored the Great Barrington Declaration, advocating for “focused protection” during the COVID-19 pandemic, a stance that sparked significant debate within the public health community. In November 2024, President-elect Donald Trump nominated him to lead the National Institutes of Health, highlighting his prominence in health policy discourse.