RFK Jr. Oversees Funding for Lab With Ties to Siberian Plague Outbreak
A watchdog group alleges that nearly $800,000 in U.S. taxpayer money was directed to a research project that partnered with a Russian institute linked to a recent plague scare.
A bipartisan government watchdog group has reported that nearly $800,000 in U.S. taxpayer funds, overseen by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as part of the Health and Human Services department, were allocated to a research project with connections to a Siberian laboratory where a worker died from a suspected plague infection. The Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute in Siberia is reportedly linked to the case.
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign received two grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2025 and 2026: $389,943 in July 2025 and $389,746 in September 2026. The funds were designated for research investigating social behavior using foxes bred in Siberia. The watchdog group, White Coat Waste, which advocates against animal testing, brought attention to the grants. The researchers involved reportedly kill the animals before sending samples to the university for analysis.
White Coat Waste claimed that Kennedy's department should not have been funding this research, citing a 2022 directive from President Biden to cease funding animal testing in Russia following the commencement of the war in Ukraine.
The Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute became a subject of global concern last week after Darya Shipilova, a 28-year-old lab worker, reportedly died on October 2. Officials have stated that Shipilova died from "unidentified pneumonia," with claims her colleagues may have had COVID-19 or the common cold. However, reports suggest she was infected with pneumonic plague, a severe form of the disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis.
Following Shipilova's death, hundreds of individuals she came into contact with, along with five hospitals including a maternity unit, were placed under quarantine. Local media has subsequently reported a second death from plague in the Irkutsk region. Russian media outlets have reportedly been removing publications about the plague case.
The plague bacterium, Yersinia pestis, can cause symptoms including swollen lymph nodes, fever, and coughing up blood. Pneumonic plague, which affects the lungs, can be fatal if not treated promptly with antibiotics. The disease is endemic to Siberia, where it circulates among small wild mammals and their fleas. While cases are occasionally reported, they are generally rare among humans in the region.
Countries bordering Russia, including Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, have reportedly tightened border health controls due to the situation. Globally, an estimated 1,000 to 2,000 plague cases occur annually, with many in Africa. In the United States, approximately seven plague cases are recorded each year, primarily in the southwestern states, often linked to fleas on wild mammals.
The World Health Organization has stated it does not have definitive information on the cause of Shipilova's death and has urged Russia to provide further details.