December 18, 2018

Dear Members of Congress,

The undersigned scientists, legal scholars, and other professionals urge you to support the Primate Protection and
Research Modernization Act of 2018 in order to eliminate the use of nonhuman primates for research and testing
that does not meet the highest standard of scientific scrutiny, to encourage the use of superior human-relevant
methods of research, and to ensure that nonhuman primates used for research live in environments that promote
their physical and psychological well-being.
Medical conditions such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, influenza, and pneumonia
are among the leading causes of death for United States citizens.1 Data show that studies on animals are not the
best way to further knowledge in the field of human health,2 yet nearly half of funding from the National Institutes
of Health, the largest funder of biomedical research in the world, goes toward such experiments.3 When the utility
of using animals in research is systematically examined—as it was by the Institute of Medicine for the use of
chimpanzees,4 the closest genetic relatives of humans—it is clear that our limited resources are being misplaced.
We have the obligation to extend this judicious examination to the use of other species.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 110,000 nonhuman primates are currently held in 15
federal laboratories, 159 research facilities, and seven federally-funded National Primate Research Centers.
Nonhuman primates exhibit abnormal behaviors in laboratory housing.5 They experience immense suffering
before, during, and after approved experimental procedures even when protocols are correctly followed.6
Behavioral and physiological abnormalities in captive nonhuman primate populations contribute to poor data and
skew experimental results.7
Given the difficulties associated with meeting the physical and psychological needs of primates in laboratory
settings and the problems inherent in reliably applying data from primates to humans, we should reconsider the
allocation of enormous sums of money and resources into experiments on primates and divert those resources to
relevant human-relevant research methods that offer greater promise for addressing human health concerns.
Therefore, we urge Congress to pass the Primate Protection and Research Modernization Act of 2018, which
contains the necessary framework for addressing this complex issue.
Sincerely,
Marc Bekoff, Ph.D. Barbara King, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Professor Emerita of Anthropology
Biology College of William & Mary
University of Colorado, Boulder

Ellen F. Crain, M.D., Ph.D. Nihkil Kulkarni, M.D.

Pediatrician Anesthesiologist
Professor Emerita of Pediatrics and Emergency Anesthesia Associates of New Mexico
Medicine
Albert Einstein College of Medicine

William Crain, Ph.D. Josh P. Novic, M.D.

Professor of Psychology Neurologist
City College of New York Santa Cruz, CA
Nicholas Dodman, B.V.M.S, D.V.A., D.A.C.V.B., Crystal L. Park, Ph.D.
D.A.C.V.A.A. Professor of Psychology
Massachusetts State Representative University of Connecticut
Humane Society Veterinary Medical Association

Hope Ferdowsian, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.P.M. John Pippin, M.D., F.A.C.C.

Internist and Preventative Medicine Physician Director of Academic Affairs
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

Brent B. Geary, Ph.D. Narda Robinson, D.O., D.V.M., M.S., F.A.A.M.A.

Psychologist CuraCore
Phoenix, AZ

John Gluck. Ph.D. Carol Tavani, M.D., M.S., D.L.F.A.P.A.

Professor Emeritus of Psychology Medical Director
University of New Mexico Christiana Hospital Consultation Psychiatry
Executive Director
Christiana Psychiatric Services

Lori Gruen, Ph.D. Jeff Sebo, Ph.D.

William Griffin Professor of Philosophy
Professor of FGSS and SiSP
Coordinator, Wesleyan Animal Studies
Clinical Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies
Affiliated Professor of Bioethics, Medical Ethics, and
Philosophy
Director of the Animal Studies M.A. Program
New York University

Lawrence Hansen, M.D. Emma Seppälä, Ph.D.

Professor of Pathology Science Director
University of California San Diego Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and
Education
Stanford University

Kathrin Herrmann, D.V.M. David Sukuzi, Ph.D., CC, OBC, FRSC

Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing Scientist, Broadcaster, Author, Activist
Johns Hopkins University Co-Founder
David Suzuki Foundation

Melanie Joy, Ph.D., Ed.M. Martin Wasserman, M.D., J.D.

Professor of Psychology and Sociology Former Secretary of Health & Mental Hygiene, 1994-
University of Massachusetts Boston 1999
Founder and President, Beyond Carnism State of Maryland

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D. James Yahr, M.D., F.A.C.S.

Ophthalmologist Surgeon
Assistant Professor Carlsbad, CA
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Affiliations of signatories are provided for the purposes of identification only; signatories sign as individuals, not
as representative of their institutions.

1
National Center for Health Statistics. 2016: With Chartbook on Long-term Trends in Health. Hyattsville, MD. 2017.
2
Pound, P., & Bracken, M. B. 2014. Is animal research sufficiently evidence based to be a cornerstone of biomedical
research? The BMJ, 348, g3387; Bailey, J. 2014. Monkey-based research on human disease: The implications of genetic
differences. Alternatives to Laboratory Animals, 42(5), 287-317.
3
Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. 2012. International Animal Research Regulations: Impact on
Neuroscience Research: Workshop Summary. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
https://doi.org/10.17226/13322.
4
Altevogt, B. M., et al. 2011. Chimpanzees in Biomedical and Behavioral Research: Assessing the Necessity. National
Academies Press. Ed. Institute of Medicine (US) and National Research Council (US) Committee on the Use of Chimpanzees
in Biomedical and Behavioral Research
5
Balcombe, J., Ferdowsian, H., Durham, D. 2011. Self-Harm in Laboratory-Housed Primates: Where Is the Evidence That
the Animal Welfare Act Amendment Has Worked? Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 14(4), 361-370.
6
Ferdowsian, H., Merskin, D. 2012. Parallels in Sources of Trauma, Pain, Distress, and Suffering in Humans and Nonhuman
Animals. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 13, 448-468.
7
Garner, J. 2005. Stereotypies and Other Abnormal Repetitive Behaviors: Potential Impact on Validity, Reliability, and
Replicability of Scientific Outcomes. ILAR Journal, 42(2), 106-117.