PETA praises RFK Jr. for looking into ending importation of monkeys for laboratory research

People For The Ethical Treatment Of Animals (PETA) Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for suggesting the federal government may move to halt the importation of monkeys for laboratory research and convert some of the nation’s primate research centers into sanctuaries.The comments were made during an appearance by Kennedy on My View with Lara Trump on Fox News. Kennedy said HHS is examining whether to end the practice of bringing monkeys into the United States for research purposes and whether several of the seven National Primate Research Centers could be transitioned away from experimentation.
Kathy Guillermo, PETA’s senior vice president, called the potential shift a major step forward for both public health and animal welfare. 
She said the move could mark the beginning of the end of federally funded primate experiments that PETA concludes have produced little benefit while costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars for decades.
Guillermo said PETA has provided Kennedy with documentation showing that monkeys imported from Asia and Africa can carry serious zoonotic diseases, including tuberculosis, malaria, Herpes B, and Chagas disease, posing risks to both laboratory workers and the broader public. She also cited past PETA investigations that alleged violations at national primate research centers in Oregon, Wisconsin, and Washington.
“Our investigations into violations in the Oregon, Wisconsin, and Washington National Primate Research Centers; and years of intense PETA campaigns on both issues. It means we can start the new year by protecting humans and monkeys from dangerous diseases, paving the way for the adoption of superior animal-free research methods, and providing lifetime care to the monkeys who have been caged, cut up and killed in disturbing, repetitious experiments that have benefited no one,” she said.
“We hope that the Oregon National Primate Research Center will be the first facility to toss out its scalpels and restraint chairs and become a true sanctuary for the monkeys now caged there,” she added.
According to PETA, transitioning research facilities into sanctuaries would not only reduce disease risks but also accelerate the adoption of non-animal research methods and provide long-term care for monkeys currently housed in laboratories. 
HHS has not yet announced a formal policy change, but Kennedy’s remarks have fueled renewed debate over the future of primate research in the United States.

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