I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 9634 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the National Institutes 
of Health from conducting or supporting research that causes significant 
pain or distress to a nonhuman primate, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 17, 2024 
Ms. MACE (for herself and Ms. MALLIOTAKIS) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the 
National Institutes of Health from conducting or sup-
porting research that causes significant pain or distress 
to a nonhuman primate, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Painful Research and 
Investigations on Monkeys Abused in Taxpayer-funded 
Experiments Stops Act of 2024’’ or the ‘‘PRIMATES Act 
of 2024’’. 
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SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON NIH RESEARCH CAUSING SIGNIFI-
CANT PAIN OR DISTRESS TO NONHUMAN PRI-
MATES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Part H of title IV of the Public 
Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 289 et seq.) is amended 
by inserting after section 495 (42 U.S.C. 289d) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘SEC. 495A. PROHIBITION ON NIH RESEARCH CAUSING SIG-
NIFICANT PAIN OR DISTRESS TO NONHUMAN 
PRIMATES. 
‘‘(a) IN
GENERAL.—The National Institutes of 
Health may not— 
‘‘(1) conduct or support any research that 
causes significant pain or distress to a nonhuman 
primate; or 
‘‘(2) transfer any nonhuman primate owned by 
the National Institutes of Health to any intramural 
or extramural laboratory for use in research that 
causes significant pain or distress. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘re-
search that causes significant pain or distress’ includes 
any study classified in pain category D or E by the De-
partment of Agriculture.’’. 
(b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub-
section (a) applies beginning on the date that is 90 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act. 
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SEC. 3. NIH REPORT ON RESEARCH CAUSING PAIN OR DIS-
TRESS TO NONHUMAN PRIMATES. 
Part H of title IV of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 289 et seq.), as amended by section 2, is fur-
ther amended by inserting after section 495A the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘SEC. 495B. NIH REPORT ON RESEARCH CAUSING PAIN OR 
DISTRESS TO NONHUMAN PRIMATES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after 
the date of enactment of this section, and annually there-
after, the Director of the NIH shall publish on the NIH 
website, and submit to the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce of the House of Representatives and to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 
the Senate, a report on the use of nonhuman primates 
in NIH-conducted and supported biomedical research. 
‘‘(b) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—Each report under 
subsection (a) shall include, for the period covered by the 
report— 
‘‘(1) a list of all ongoing or prospective research 
projects involving a nonhuman primate that are con-
ducted or supported by the NIH; 
‘‘(2) for each project— 
‘‘(A) the project title; 
‘‘(B) the grant or contract number; 
‘‘(C) the research abstract; 
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‘‘(D) the research location; 
‘‘(E) the cost to taxpayers during the pre-
vious fiscal year and since inception; 
‘‘(F) the number of nonhuman primates 
used; 
‘‘(G) the projected start and end dates; 
‘‘(H) the Department of Agriculture pain 
and distress category; and 
‘‘(I) the amount of funds obligated or esti-
mated to be obligated for each such project; 
‘‘(3) an explanation of— 
‘‘(A) efforts to phase out the use of 
nonhuman primates in research that is con-
ducted or supported by the NIH; and 
‘‘(B) any barriers to such phase out; and 
‘‘(4) the number of nonhuman primates retired 
from research conducted or supported by the NIH 
and relocated to sanctuaries. 
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘NIH’ means the National Insti-
tutes of Health. 
‘‘(2) The term ‘research that causes significant 
pain or distress’ includes any study classified in pain 
category D or E by the Department of Agri-
culture.’’. 
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SEC. 5. GAO STUDY ON NIH NONHUMAN PRIMATE RE-
SEARCH AND EFFORTS TO REDUCE USE OF 
NONHUMAN PRIMATES IN TESTING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 
of the United States shall submit a report to the Congress 
that— 
(1) reviews and summarizes the use of 
nonhuman primates in research that is conducted or 
supported by the NIH; 
(2) identifies NIH policies and initiatives aimed 
at reducing and replacing the specific use of 
nonhuman primates in research that is conducted or 
supported by the NIH; 
(3) assesses the effectiveness of any NIH poli-
cies and initiatives aimed at reducing and replacing 
the use of nonhuman primates in NIH-conducted 
and supported research; 
(4) compares NIH efforts to reduce and replace 
nonhuman primate testing to similar efforts at other 
Federal agencies; 
(5) identifies areas where the NIH can im-
prove— 
(A) efforts to reduce and replace the use of 
nonhuman primates in research that is con-
ducted or supported by the NIH; and 
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(B) public reporting on progress made; 
(6) assesses the effectiveness of any NIH poli-
cies and initiatives aimed at retiring nonhuman pri-
mates no longer needed in research conducted or 
supported by the NIH to sanctuaries; 
(7) makes recommendations for improving— 
(A) the effectiveness of efforts to reduce 
and replace the use of nonhuman primates in 
research conducted or supported by the NIH; 
and 
(B) public reporting on progress made; 
and 
(8) includes any other matter the Comptroller 
General of the United States determines important 
to assessing and improving NIH’s efforts to reduce 
and replace the use of nonhuman primates in feder-
ally funded research. 
(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘NIH’’ means the National Insti-
tutes of Health. 
(2) The term ‘‘research that causes significant 
pain or distress’’ includes any study classified in 
pain category D or E by the Department of Agri-
culture. 
Æ 
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