Renowned geneticist Francis Collins retires from NIH, urging ‘respect’ for embattled workers

Dr. Francis Collins, a renowned geneticist, and former longtime director of the National Institutes of Health, is retiring from the government agency and urging “respect” for its embattled workers. In a statement Saturday, Collins gave no reason for his abrupt departure from the NIH, which is in turmoil from the Trump administration’s budget cuts and layoffs. But Collins, known for finding common ground between religion and science, says NIH employees “deserve the utmost respect and support of all Americans” for work that has led to decades of treatments and cures. Dr. Francis Collins, a renowned geneticist, and former longtime director of the National Institutes of Health, is retiring from the government agency and urging “respect” for its embattled workers. In a statement Saturday, Collins gave no reason for his abrupt departure from the NIH, which is in turmoil from the Trump administration’s budget cuts and layoffs. But Collins, known for finding common ground between religion and science, says NIH employees “deserve the utmost respect and support of all Americans” for work that has led to decades of treatments and cures.  AP Technology and Science