TDFP Exclusive: HHS Inspector General Opens Review of How NIH Vets Scientists at Montana High-Risk Pathogen Lab

The Health and Human Services Department's Office of Inspector General has opened a review of how the National Institutes of Health vets employees at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana, a federal lab that works with some of the world's most dangerous pathogens.

The inspector general's office announced the project on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, in its online work plan, under project number OEI-01-26-00560. Its status is listed as "Active."

The review follows a May request from Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) for an investigation of the lab, and federal charges filed in June against two Rocky Mountain Laboratories scientists accused of bringing deactivated mpox virus samples into the United States without declaring them.

What the Rocky Mountain Laboratories Vetting Review Covers

The project page says NIH operates laboratories that conduct research "with high-risk pathogens, such as smallpox."

"Recognizing the potential public health risks associated with the mishandling of dangerous pathogens, some members of Congress have raised concerns about the vetting process of employees at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Montana," the inspector general's office wrote.

According to the page, the study "will assess NIH's general personnel vetting processes for Rocky Mountain Laboratories staff with access to high-risk pathogens, as well as the vetting of scientific staff who may work directly with these pathogens."

The work is assigned to the inspector general's Office of Evaluation and Inspections. The page does not name any lawmaker or employee, and it does not give a date for a final report.

Rocky Mountain Laboratories is part of NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. It employs about 450 people on its Hamilton campus and is one of 15 Biosafety Level 4 labs in the country, the highest level of containment, the Daily Montanan reported.

Sheehy's "Next Wuhan" Warning

On May 26, Sheehy wrote to HHS Inspector General T. March Bell, citing a whistleblower complaint and two lab incidents. "I urge a formal investigation into the safety, security, and personnel practices at RML," Sheehy wrote.

His letter said that in November 2025 a lab employee's protective equipment was breached by a bite and the employee was exposed to Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and that in February 2026 another employee was potentially exposed to the same virus because of a hole in protective equipment.

"These events raise serious questions about the safety and security procedures at RML, including NIH's hiring and personnel management practices for scientists handling dangerous pathogens," the letter said. "It is critical that scientists, especially those with foreign connections, are thoroughly vetted given the potentially catastrophic impacts of their work on our nation's health and security."

Sheehy asked the inspector general to review, among other things, the lab's "background checks, oversight, and clearance processes for staff who handle high-risk pathogens."

"We don't want Montana to be the next Wuhan," Sheehy wrote on X when he released the letter, as reported by Politico and the Daily Montanan.

The Mpox Case

In early June, federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Michigan charged Vincent Munster, chief of the Virus Ecology Section in the lab's Laboratory of Virology, and his research fellow, Claude Kwe. According to the criminal complaint, as reported by the Daily Montanan, Munster is a citizen of the Netherlands and Kwe is a citizen of Cameroon.

The complaint says the two arrived at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Jan. 25, 2026, from the Republic of Congo, where they had been studying an mpox outbreak, and told Customs and Border Protection officers that their case held "diagnostics." Officers seized 113 vials. FBI testing of 20 samples found deactivated mpox virus DNA in 17, according to the complaint.

They are charged with conspiring to import the samples contrary to law and with making false statements to federal officials. Each count carries up to five years in prison. Science magazine reported that both pleaded not guilty.

Kwe's attorney told the Daily Montanan that his client is "presumed innocent and we will await future proceedings before commenting further."

When the charges were announced, Sheehy said: "This announcement by DOJ is exactly why I called for the Department of Health and Human Services to investigate the security protocols at Rocky Mountain Laboratory."

NIH said in a statement reported by the Daily Montanan that it was cooperating with law enforcement and had taken steps that included "securing relevant laboratory spaces, restricting access to affected areas, and conducting a comprehensive audit and inventory assessment." The agency said it "took appropriate personnel actions and took all relevant steps to confirm that there was no risk at any time to the staff or public in or around the RML facility."

Asked for comment, a public affairs specialist for the HHS Office of Inspector General said that because the review is underway, "the extent of the information we can provide appears in our Work Plan," pointing to the office's public listing for the project. TDFP has also asked the National Institutes of Health and Sen. Sheehy's office for comment.

Sources: HHS Office of Inspector General, "Rocky Mountain Laboratory Employee Vetting," project OEI-01-26-00560 (announced Oct. 15, 2026): https://oig.hhs.gov/reports/work-plan/browse-work-plan-projects/rocky-mountain-laboratory-employee-vetting/ ; Sen. Tim Sheehy, "Sheehy Calls for HHS Investigation into Alleged Misconduct by Rocky Mountain Laboratories" (May 26, 2026, with the full letter): https://www.sheehy.senate.gov/news/press-releases/sheehy-calls-for-hhs-investigation-into-alleged-misconduct-by-rocky-mountain-laboratories/ ; Sen. Tim Sheehy, statement on the DOJ charges (June 3, 2026): https://www.sheehy.senate.gov/news/press-releases/doj-charges-scientists-from-rocky-mountain-laboratory-with-smuggling-monkeypox-into-the-u-s/ ; Daily Montanan, "Two NIH scientists in Montana charged with 'smuggling' virus" (June 8, 2026): https://dailymontanan.com/2026/06/08/two-nih-scientists-in-montana-charged-with-smuggling-virus/ ; Politico (May 29, 2026): https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/29/montana-monkey-ebola-nih-sheehy-00942683 ; Science (June 3, 2026): https://www.science.org/content/article/nih-scientists-criminally-charged-bringing-monkeypox-virus-us-although-samples