Continuing his two year long probe into conflicts between academic researchers and funding from industry, Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), recently sent a letter to the National Institutes of Mental Health director Tom Insel to provide phone records, email and calendar since early 2009, along with correspondence from NIMH staffers in response to Grassley’s investigations (here is the letter sent by Grassley).
Accordingly, Grassley’s ongoing search into NIMH results from three incidents involving the psychiatry chair at , the psychiatry chair, and three psychiatrists. All of the cases involved grants from NIMH and physicians who the senator alleges failed to disclose financial relationships with industry.
In his most recent letter to Francis S. Collins, Ph.D., M.D., Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Senator Grassley asked for the following:
– All communications and/or emails sent and/or received by the director of the NIMH. The time span of this request covers May 2, 2009, to the present.
– All phone records of the director of the NIMH. The time span of this request covers January 1, 2009, to the present.
– The calendar of the director of the NIMH. The time span of this request covers May 2, 2009, to the present.
– All communications and/or emails sent and/or received by NIMH staff regarding Senate investigations and/or conflicts of interest. The time span of this request covers June 1, 2008, to the present.
Senator Grassley requested that the NIH respond to his request by no later than February 3, 2010.
It will be interesting to see what if any information is sent over to the Senators office, as going through emails of institute directors is not standard operating procedure and these requests if they go through will discourage others from taking similar positions at NIH.