"Dr. Fishbein took a courageous stand in demanding full whistleblower protection in the face of a hostile federal bureaucracy," Attorney Stephen Kohn said. "Other Title 42 employees with information about wrongdoing can now blow the whistle and obtain protection."

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, who championed Fishbein's case, hailed the decision.

"Any step that improves the environment for whistleblowers to come forward is a step in the right direction. Whistleblowers are patriotic Americans who stick their necks out and risk it all to commit truth. They deserve rewards, not reprisals," he said.

Fishbein was hired in 2003 under Section 42 by NIH, the nation's premier medical research agency, to

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help improve AIDS research practices at a salary of $178,000, or slightly more than Cabinet secretaries made at the time.

He alleged he was fired for uncovering concerns about sloppy research practices that might endanger patient safety, including a project in Africa that violated federal patient safety rules.

NIH said he was fired for poor performance but settled the case late last year after evidence emerged that Fishbein had been recommended for a performance award and may have been retaliated against.

The Department of Health and Human Services employs thousands of Title 42 workers in such key research agencies as NIH, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.