Exclusive | US medical school Johns Hopkins bars foreign scientists over intellectual property risk

The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine has halted a visiting scientist programme in response to a national investigation over whether scientists in the US are sharing research results with foreign governments, in particular China, the South China Morning Post has learned.

Although the suspension affects scientists from many countries who plan to conduct research at the top medical school, the move is primarily aimed at Chinese scientists and China’s flagship science talent recruitment programme, researchers for Beijing’s Thousand Talents Plan have said.

“Effective immediately, the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine is temporarily halting the appointment of visiting scientists due to concerns voiced by the National Institutes of Health [NIH] about threats to biomedical research and loss of intellectual property,” read an email late last month from the Johns Hopkins Hospital to its faculty, the Department of Neurology, which was seen by the Post.

The university’s fraud unit has also discovered that some individuals have fabricated their funding documentation, the email said.

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“Therefore, Johns Hopkins will not be hosting any visiting scientists [aside from those already here] until the NIH feels we can safely allow foreign nationals to be involved with government-sponsored research.”