Scientists Defend Fauci's Pandemic Work As Senate Hearing Turns Bitter

THURSDAY, July 30, 2026 (HealthDay News) — More than 155 physicians, scientists and public health advocates signed a public letter defending Dr. Anthony Fauci, as he faced a hostile Senate hearing over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fauci led the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from 1984 until his retirement in 2022 and advised presidents of both parties.

He also served as the government's top infectious disease expert during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The letter, organized by activists who worked closely with Fauci in the fight against AIDS during the 1990s, condemned what the signers described as relentless attacks on science and scientists, reports The New York Times.

The show of support came as Fauci appeared Wednesday before the Senate Homeland Security Committee, where he repeatedly declined to answer questions and invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination more than 100 times.

"On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer based upon my rights under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution," he said, repeating the phrase throughout the nearly three-hour session.

Republicans on the panel, who hold the majority, accused Fauci of causing the pandemic and profiting from his years in public service. Democrats praised his career and criticized the hearing as an effort to trap him, The Times reported.

Sen. Rand Paul, the committee's chairman, said the panel would vote next week on whether to hold Fauci in contempt of Congress, arguing that he was not entitled to Fifth Amendment protection.

Fauci received a preemptive pardon from former President Joe Biden that covers actions through Jan. 19, 2025. But legal experts said it would not shield him from being accused of lying under oath, according to The Times.

Central to the hearing were more than 1,100 pages of Fauci's typewritten diary, which Sen. Paul released over the weekend and Republicans used to revisit disputes over vaccines, lockdowns and mask guidance.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said he provided the diary, describing the pages not as personal journals but as government records created on a federal computer, reported The Times.

Kennedy, who wrote a 2021 book criticizing Fauci, promoted his book on social media after the hearing.

At the center of Sen. Paul's inquiry is his claim that Fauci's institute funded risky virus research in China that sparked the pandemic — an accusation Fauci denies.

The work, known as gain-of-function research, involves altering viruses to study how they might evolve. 

The U.S. National Institutes of Health has said the viruses studied with U.S. funding were different from the one that caused COVID-19. President Donald Trump announced fresh restrictions on such research Tuesday.

More information

Visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more information about COVID-19.

SOURCE: The New York Times, July 29, 2026