Diversion of NIH Funds to Gain-of-Function Moratorium Debate

Years of political controversy over gain-of-function virus research diverted $200 million in NIH funds from critical virology studies between 2014 and 2017, while underlying biosafety questions remained unresolved. The inconsistent moratorium, applied only to 3 out of 12 proposed experiments, left 40% of high-risk projects untouched. This misallocation resembles the UK austerity cuts at #6 in its bureaucratic waste, but its 70% failure rate in achieving its stated goals makes it even more ineffective.