BEAVERTON, Ore. -- The director of Oregon Health & Science University's primate research center admits the last few months haven't been easy. A medical ethics group launched an advertising blitz against the research center. Oregon's governor called for the facility to shut down. And the Trump administration's effort to slash research grants has put funding in jeopardy.
"When I was in veterinary school, I don't remember taking a class in public relations," said Skip Bohm, director of OHSU's National Primate Research Center. Bohm and OHSU staff provided KGW access to the Beaverton facility on Friday. "I very deeply believe what we are doing here and the impact on society."
The Oregon National Primate Research Center has a rather non-descript entrance. There's an apartment complex on one side and a mini-storage facility on the other.
But beyond the fencing, there's a sprawling 200-acre facility teeming with monkeys. Many of them are held in a zoo-like setting, with large, open spaces and equipment. Others are housed in covered shelters.
In all, the research center is home to nearly 4,500 primates -- although only about a third of them are used in medical research.
KGW wasn't provided with access to caged primates, OHSU said, because exposure to outsiders could jeopardize the animal's health and disrupt research.
OHSU says the primate center is crucial for advancing science, and studies on animals have led to new treatments and vaccines.
"Just in recent years, the development of COVID vaccine saved millions of lives, and that wouldn't have been done without non-human primate research," said Bohm.
The Beaverton facility, founded in 1962, has faced persistent opposition from animal rights groups. Recently, a medical ethics group, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has turned up the heat on the primate center, running ads showing scenes of monkeys in small cages.
"The writing is really on the wall," said Dr. Neal Barnard of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. "The research that the public wants to invest in and wants to see conducted doesn't involve monkeys in a cage."
The advertising blitz was aimed at forcing OHSU to close the primate center as a condition of buying Legacy Health. Although the merger fell through, the campaign gained traction. More than 10,000 Oregonians petitioned for the center to shut down, and Oregon Governor Tina Kotek publicly urged OHSU to plan for a humane closure, although her authority is limited.
In Salem, animal activists pushed Oregon lawmakers to add an amendment to a bill in hopes of shutting down the primate research center.
"If we didn't have to use animals, I wouldn't. But because we use animals, we do whatever we can to improve their lifestyle, psychological well-being and their health," said Bohm.
The director of OHSU's primate research center said animal testing only happens when scientists can't use other research methods. The center faces strict regulation and oversight, including regular audits.
The lab's work is critical, said researchers, including Dr. Larry Sherman who is studying how the brain deals with multiple sclerosis.
"It may actually tell us how MS starts, which would be a great finding because it would allow us to eradicate MS altogether," said Sherman.
Closing OHSU's primate research center wouldn't just impact the 420 employees that work there or the monkeys they care for, the center's director warns. It would be detrimental to research throughout the U.S. and the lives of patients hoping for a medical breakthrough.
"We're bigger than Oregon, bigger than Portland, bigger than OHSU," said Bohm.
At the state capitol this week, members of the House Committee on Emergency Management, General Government and Veterans listened to public testimony on Senate Bill 181 A. Activists want a current bill aimed at protecting dogs and cats from painful research to also include primates, taking aim at the Oregon National Primate Research Center.
READ THE FULL STORY: OHSU primate research center faces renewed scrutiny with animal testing bill
Meanwhile, OHSU has been pushing back on accusations of mistreatment at the hospital's Oregon National Primate Research Center, responding to a recent TV and social media ad campaign from the nonprofit Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) that calls for the facility to be closed down.
READ THE FULL STORY: OHSU posts lengthy defense of primate research center amid calls for the facility to close down
Said ads have been recently popping up on TV and social media, with the founder of PCRM telling KGW, "It's an old-fashioned science and we really can do better."