US Senate confirms Trump's picks to lead FDA, NIH

(Reuters) -The U.S. Senate connected Tuesday confirmed President Donald Trump's nominees Martin Makary and Jay Bhattacharya arsenic heads of the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health, respectively.

The Republican-controlled Senate voted 56-44 to corroborate Martin Makary arsenic the commissioner of the FDA, which is presently embroiled successful a contention implicit the wide firing of national employees.

The Senate voted 53-47 to corroborate Jay Bhattacharya arsenic manager of the NIH, the nation's premier aesculapian probe agency, overseeing a astir $50 cardinal fund and backing for thousands of technological projects.

Bhattacharya is acceptable to look contiguous challenges, including ineligible battles implicit Trump's projected cuts to national probe funding. A U.S. justice blocked the cuts earlier this month.

In the caller roles, Makary and Bhattacharya volition study to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr who oversees the agencies.

(Reporting by Mariam Sunny successful Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)