The CDC has abruptly ordered the shutdown of all monkey research laboratories in the United States due to an elevated risk of tuberculosis escaping from these facilities and sparking a pandemic among the general population.
The decision affects hundreds of macaques currently housed at the CDC’s Atlanta campus. A CDC spokesperson confirmed to Bloomberg that the agency is developing an urgent wind-down plan.
Infowars.com reports: The move follows years of criticism from animal-welfare groups and some scientists who argue that monkey models have produced limited translational value, particularly in HIV vaccine development, where decades of primate studies have yet to yield a licensed product. The CDC cited both ethical considerations and a strategic pivot to human-relevant alternatives, including organ-on-a-chip platforms, advanced cell cultures, and computational models, as factors in the decision.
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Separately, the CDC has grappled with biosecurity incidents involving imported primates. Internal data reviewed by PETA show that between 2021 and 2024, quarantine screening identified 69 cases of tuberculosis in incoming macaques, with an additional 16 cases detected after animals had been released to laboratories.
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“PETA has warned the CDC since 2022 that its monkey import pipeline is a ticking TB time bomb,” said Dr. Jones-Engel. “Yet its willful blindness has allowed a known biosecurity threat to pour into the U.S. We urge the CDC to end the importation of monkeys to laboratories—for public safety, scientific integrity, and the primates themselves.”
The phase-out aligns with broader federal efforts to reduce animal testing. Signed in 2022, the Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act 2.0 removed the mandate for animal testing before human trials, while the NIH, EPA, and FDA have all expanded funding for non-animal approaches.
“This move is historic. For the first time, a U.S. agency is choosing modern, human-relevant science over a failed system of monkey experiments,” said Janine McCarthy, acting director of research policy for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. “Now, the CDC should use that funding to transition to human-relevant research and to ensure that these monkeys are sent to sanctuaries for the remainder of their lives.”
“The CDC just sent a message to the entire biomedical establishment: The era of monkey experimentation is over,” McCarthy added.
