House legislators are looking to require the National Institutes of Health to write a plan for using fewer monkeys and other primates in medical research labs and moving them to sanctuaries once they’re retired.

The provision, included in funding legislation that is moving through the lower chamber, is a response to the fears of some scientists and animal rights activists who worry about the primates’ well-being and who question the usefulness of animal testing in developing medicines for people. The findings for nonhuman primates don’t always translate well, they say.

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