Oregon Governor presses for the closure of state’s controversial primate research center
The taxpayer-funded center, which holds more than 5,000 monkeys, has been accused of killing hundreds of animals in cruel and painful experiments.
A controversial primate research center in Oregon is under increasing public and political pressure to shut down its operations.
The Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), which holds more than 5,000 non-human primates who are bred and used in experiments, is run by the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).
Animal welfare campaigners say the center has used and killed hundreds of primates over the years, as part of “stressful”, “painful”, and “often lethal” experiments. Some public health groups argue that such research could have been instead ethically and effectively studied in humans rather than require animal testing.
Now, the center’s future is uncertain after political and public pressure has ramped up in recent weeks.
The University is currently planning a merger with Portland's Legacy Health system as part of a $8 billion overhaul. As the proposed plan must undergo a review by the Oregon Health Authority, the merger has put a spotlight on the university’s current operations and presented an opportunity for authorities to set certain conditions for the approval.
Amid the ongoing review, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has publicly endorsed calls for the university to shut its primate center in order for the merger to go ahead.
“While the Governor has very limited authority under Oregon law to weigh in on the proposed merger, she does believe that OHSU should figure out how to close its primate research center, just like Harvard University did ten years ago,” Kotek’s office said in a statement, local news reports. “The Governor has directly advocated for OHSU leadership to complete their current research obligations and move towards shutting the center down in a humane and responsible manner.”
Kotek says she has received messages from constituents who request that the OHSU must close its primate center for the merger to go ahead. The Oregon Health Authority, which took public comments over the proposed merger, received over 7,000 statements in support of closing the primate center.
“Wasted” taxpayer dollars on animal experiments
The center is one of seven National Primate Research Centers (NPRCs) across the US. The country’s NPRC system was first established by the federal government back in the early 1960s, and receives billions in taxpayer money from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) each year.
According to industry figures, NIH spent $23 billion on animal testing in 2024.
But animal welfare groups, government watchdogs, and medical experts say that government funding for “painful” and “pointless” animal experiments should be cut.
Animal testing is increasingly being seen as inadequate and wasteful, with stats showing that 90 percent of basic research, most of which involves animals, fails to lead to effective treatment for humans. Alarmingly, 95 percent of new drugs that test safe and effective in animals later fail in humans.
Studies at the Oregon National Primate Research Center can be used as examples of “wasted” taxpayer dollars. In one study, two primates were used in an experiment to evaluate the relationship between maternal diet and offspring behavior. However, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), which has more than 17,000 doctor members, says this relationship has already been “extensively studied in humans.” Ultimately, both infants used in the study were sedated, anesthetized, and bled from the heat until their death at around 1 year old.
The PCRM agrees that the merger cannot go ahead unless the primate center is closed.
“OHSU is spending millions of dollars each year on a problematic primate experimentation facility housing 5,000 monkeys. Monkeys are being tortured and killed—using your tax dollars!,” the committee wrote in a post on its website.
The committee says the wasted taxpayer money spent on the primate center could be used more effectively elsewhere.
“The money spent on the enormous monkey facility could be better spent improving patient care—hiring more health care providers—and better pay for current staff—to ensure this merger means Oregon residents have the best possible care.”
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