Directors of national research institutes

The Director of the National Cancer Institute shall be appointed by the President, and the Directors of the other national research institutes and national centers shall be appointed by the Secretary, acting through the Director of National Institutes of Health. Each Director of a national research institute or national center shall report directly to the Director of National Institutes of Health. A Director of a national research institute or national center who is appointed by the Secretary, acting through the Director of National Institutes of Health, shall be appointed for 5 years. At the end of the term of a Director of a national research institute or national center, the Director may be reappointed in accordance with standards applicable to the relevant appointment mechanism. There shall be no limit on the number of terms that a Director may serve. If the office of a Director of a national research institute or national center becomes vacant before the end of such Director’s term, the Director appointed to fill the vacancy shall be appointed for a 5-year term starting on the date of such appointment. Each Director of a national research institute or national center who is serving on December 13, 2016, shall be deemed to be appointed for a 5-year term under this subsection beginning on such date. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit the authority of the Secretary or the Director of National Institutes of Health to terminate the appointment of a director referred to in subparagraph (A) before the expiration of such director’s 5-year term. Appointments and reappointments under this subsection shall be made on the basis of ability and experience as it relates to the mission of the National Institutes of Health and its components, including compliance with any legal requirement that the Secretary or Director of National Institutes of Health determines relevant. The restrictions contained in section 202 of the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1993 (Public Law 102–394; 42 U.S.C. 238f note) related to consultants and individual scientists appointed for limited periods of time shall not apply to Directors appointed under this subsection. In carrying out the purposes of section 241 of this title with respect to human diseases or disorders or other aspects of human health for which the national research institutes were established, the Secretary, acting through the Director of each national research institute— shall encourage and support research, investigations, experiments, demonstrations, and studies in the health sciences related to— Support for an activity or program under this subsection may be provided through grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements. The Secretary, acting through the Director of each national research institute— may make grants and cooperative agreements under paragraph (1) for research, training, or demonstrations, except that— Before an award is made by a national research institute or by a national center for a grant for a research program or project (commonly referred to as an “R-series grant”), other than an award constituting a noncompetitive renewal of such a grant, or a noncompetitive administrative supplement to such a grant, the Director of such national research institute or national center shall, consistent with the peer review process— take into consideration, as appropriate— In carrying out subsection (b), each Director of a national research institute— may, in consultation with the advisory council for the Institute and with the approval of the Director of NIH—