Dr. Anthony Fauci and his wife’s net worth grew by $5 million during the COVID-19 pandemic as thousands of US residents struggled financially, according to a government spending watchdog group.
The combined wealth of the 81-year-old retiring director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and his bioethicist wife, Christine Grady, soared from $7.5 million in 2019 to $12.6 million at the end of 2021, according to a report from the non-profit OpenTheBooks.
“Despite becoming a figure of controversy, the system has rewarded Dr. Fauci handsomely,” the group’s CEO, Adam Andrzejewski, told Fox News Digital. “While Dr. Fauci has been a government bureaucrat for more than 55 years, his household net worth skyrocketed during the pandemic.”
The couple’s wealth boost was due in part to major salary increases, cash awards and royalties, according to the report.
“Fauci’s soaring net worth was based on career-end salary spiking, lucrative cash prizes awarded by non-profit organizations around the world and an ever-larger investment portfolio,” Andrzejewski said.
“He is the top-paid federal employee, his first-year golden parachute retirement pension is the largest in federal history, and he’s accepting $1 million prizes from foreign non-profits,” he added.
Last year, Fauci raked in lucrative awards from nonprofits, including $1 million from the Dan David Foundation for “speaking truth to power” and “defending science” during the Trump Administration.
He kept $910,400 of that award, while roughly 10% went to scholarship winners, according to OpenTheBooks report.
His total compensation was $456,028 last year, up from the $434,312 he earned in 2020.
Overall, the couple’s investments also increased by more than $900,000 in 2021 while their portfolios — which included trust, retirement and college education accounts — jumped $800,000 in 2020, according to the analysis.
At the end of last year, Fauci’s account totaled $10.2 million and Grady’s had reached $2.4 million in investments.
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