Dr. Jay Bhattacharya on Faith, Science, and Public Health
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Director of the NIH and Acting Director of the CDC, joins host Dr. Mike Chupp and regular co-host Dr. Brick Lantz for a conversation on faith, science, and public health. As confidence in healthcare institutions has declined in recent years, Dr. Bhattacharya reflects on the cultural pressures that have shaped scientific discourse, from silenced debate to the challenges of pursuing honest inquiry. He shares his perspective on NIH funding priorities, lessons from COVID, vaccine science, and the ethical complexities surrounding gender medicine, along with how his faith in Christ shapes both his convictions and his leadership. This is a meaningful episode for anyone seeking to pursue truth with integrity and lead with courage in service to others, while remembering we ultimately answer to God alone.
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Time is running out to join us! We’re incredibly grateful for our sponsors supporting CMDA’s 2026 National Convention. Our Premier Sponsors include Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine and Samaritan’s Purse. Our Diamond Sponsors are Helping Hands for Hospitals International, DLP Capital, the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition USA, Honey Lake Clinic, the Theology, Medicine, and Culture Initiative at Duke Divinity School, the Colson Center, ChenMed, and Blu by Thrivewell. Our Gold Sponsors include Beacon Wealth Consultants, America’s HealthShare, and Capstone Wellness. And our Silver Sponsors are GFA World, the American Association of Pro-life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. All of these organizations will have booths at the convention, so be sure to stop by, learn more about their work, and connect with their teams. This year’s National Convention is just one week away, April 23–26, in Loveland, Colorado. If you haven’t registered yet, there’s still time. Visit natcon.cmda.org to secure your spot.
The CMDA Learning Center is continuing to grow, and it’s an incredible resource for Christian healthcare professionals. You’ll find content from recent National Conventions, the Faith Prescriptions series, continuing education opportunities from events across the country, and a wide range of courses designed to support both your professional work and your spiritual growth. And here’s the best part. As a CMDA member, you can earn continuing education credits at no cost. To start exploring the full library, visit cmda.org/learn.
Video Podcast:
Meet Our Guest(s):
Jayanta “Jay” Bhattacharya, M.D., Ph.D., took the helm as 18th director of the National Institutes of Health, the nation’s medical research agency, on April 1, 2025. President Trump nominated Dr. Bhattacharya for the position on Nov. 26, 2024, and the U.S. Senate confirmed him on March 25, 2025.
Dr. Bhattacharya, a renowned doctor, researcher, health economist, previously held a tenured professorship in the medical school at Stanford University in California. His research focused on population aging and chronic disease, particularly on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations. He has published over 170 research papers in peer-reviewed journals in medicine, epidemiology, health policy, economics, statistics, science policy, and public health, as well as a leading textbook on health economics.
During the pandemic, Dr. Bhattacharya coauthored the Great Barrington Declaration, which called for opening schools and lifting lockdowns while better protecting older populations who were most vulnerable to the disease.
Dr. Bhattacharya held numerous additional appointments at Stanford University, including courtesy appointments at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, the Stanford Freeman Spogli Institute and Stanford’s Hoover Institution, and Economics department. Previously, he conducted research at the National Bureau of Economic Research and the SPHERE Institute, a policy research firm. Before joining Stanford, he was an economist at the RAND Corporation and worked as a visiting economics professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Dr. Bhattacharya is a longtime NIH grantee and has served as a standing member of multiple NIH review committees. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from Stanford University. He then completed medical school and earned a Ph.D. in economics also from Stanford University.
