Diabetes org apologizes for ejecting scientists over criticism of Trump

Key Points:

• The American Diabetes Association (ADA) forcibly removed five leading diabetes scientists from its annual meeting for distributing an editorial critical of the Trump administration's impact on biomedical research, sparking intense backlash.
• The scientists, including prominent figures such as Steven Kahn and former ADA President Desmond Schatz, were escorted out by police, had their conference badges confiscated, and were barred from returning, with the ADA initially justifying the removal on procedural and nonpartisan grounds.
• ADA CEO Charles Henderson later issued a personal apology to the scientists and the diabetes research community, acknowledging that the incident did not reflect his values and promising to work toward healing and progress.
• The ADA faced widespread condemnation from its own leaders and the broader scientific community, with several resignations and open letters demanding an unconditional apology and a review of the incident.
• Henderson announced that the ADA will commission an independent review of the events and policies to prevent similar occurrences in the future, emphasizing the need to maintain trust within the diabetes research community.