Federal officials pressured HHS and NIH not to study glyphosate, threatening appropriations.
Posted by The Joe Rogan Experience, Checked
- Sources
- 2 contradict6 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 30%
The Joe Rogan ExperienceNov 6, 2026
No source independently documents federal officials pressuring HHS or NIH not to study glyphosate or threatening appropriations; the only support is the claimant's own account (Calley Means, relayed by STAT, unrated), and HHS sources show the agencies pursuing glyphosate research.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… The the amount of pressure this is the first thing I realized the pressure was not even on policy, on glyphosate and pesticides. They didn't want any inquiry there. And this is where bipartisan senators come in from agriculture states. There's tremendous pressure on the NIH not to study it. I'm saying, like, people are threatening appropriations if we even look into it. Like, the amount of aggression to not legitimize this topic and it hasn't been legitimized. The MAHA report literally saying that glyphosate might be a problem was the first time the U.S. Government has actually ever recognized even that potential reality. …
The Joe Rogan Experience · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. HHS requested an NIEHS evaluation of glyphosate and GBH health effects in late 2025, and HHS and EPA announced an MOU in September 2026 to expand research into potential human health effects; this cuts against the idea that HHS was avoiding study, though it postdates the claim's date.[2][3]
Context. A STAT report published 2026-11-06 relays Calley Means saying industry groups pressured agencies against researching glyphosate and that a White House official called a production policy 'not up for discussion'; this is the claimant's own uncorroborated account, not independent evidence.[6]
Context. Older reporting (2018–2019) documents Monsanto-linked lobbying of lawmakers against the IARC and a House appropriations rider affecting NIH funds to IARC; it concerns Congress and the IARC, not federal officials pressuring NIH not to study glyphosate.[5][7]
Context. Other sources cover glyphosate policy and RFK Jr.'s positions or the NIH funding dispute generally and do not address pressure on NIH over glyphosate research.[1][4][8]
Sources
8 sources: 1 fact-checker, 3 primary, 1 tier 2, 3 not rated
- 1Politicians Say Glyphosate Weedkiller Causes Cancer But Evidence Not Clear-Cutfactcheck.org · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 2Glyphosate and Glyphosate-Based Herbicide (GBH) Exposures and ...niehs.nih.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 3HHS and EPA Announce New Scientific Partnership to Strengthen Glyphosate Reviewhhs.gov · primary source · cited for: contradicts
- 4RFK Jr.'s battle with the public health establishment has turned to trench ...hydesmith.senate.gov · primary source · cited for: context
- 5Emails Show Monsanto Orchestrated GOP Effort to Intimidate Cancer Researcherstheintercept.com · tier 2 · cited for: context
- 6MAHA leader Calley Means castigates White House ...statnews.com · not rated · cited for: context
- 7Monsanto Drags IARC Into the Depths of Its Disinformation ...blog.ucs.org · not rated · cited for: context
- 8EXHIBIT 42courtlistener.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- The United States Department of Health and Human Services was pressured by senators and other individuals not to study glyphosate in the run-up to an EPA review.Can’t tell
- Bayer ghost wrote research for the EPA report on glyphosate and bribed EPA officials.Mixed
- The last EPA review of glyphosate was thrown out due to ghost-written research and bribery to EPA officials.False
- Lawsuits settled for billions of dollars have proven that glyphosate causes cancer in people, especially children.False
- The EPA has not reviewed glyphosate in close to 30 years.False