Today, Johns Hopkins resumed federally funded research studies involving human subjects. The government suspended the hospital's privileges last week, following the death of a volunteer involved in an asthma study. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) reinstated the hospital's privileges after Johns Hopkins officials submitted a corrective action plan.

In 2000, Johns Hopkins received $301 million in research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), more than any other institution. Currently, the hospital is conducting about 2,400 medical studies involving tens of thousands of human test subjects.

Ellen Roche died while taking part in an asthma study where participants were given the blood pressure drug hexamethonium. Roche was otherwise healthy when she began the study.

According to government officials, among other errors, Johns Hopkins failed to adequately disclose the dangers of the drug to study participants.