Seven former commissioners of the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday condemned the White House for threatening to overrule the agency when it comes to a coronavirus vaccine.
“The White House has said it might try to influence the scientific standards for vaccine approval put forward by the FDA or block the agency from issuing further written guidance on its criteria for judging the safety and benefits of a potential Covid-19 vaccine,” wrote Drs. Robert Califf, Scott Gottlieb, Margaret Hamburg, Jane Henney, David Kessler, Mark McClellan, and Andy von Eschenbach in The Washington Post on Wednesday.
The FDA has proposed strict standards for granting emergency approval to a coronavirus vaccine, once one is ready, which President Donald Trump has indicated “may or may not” be approved by the White House.
“On Sept. 15, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar revoked the FDA’s authority to establish rules for food and drug safety, instead claiming that sole authority for himself,” they continue.
“This came in the wake of acknowledged acts of political influence on the FDA’s coronavirus communications, significant misstatements by the secretary and other political leaders about the benefits of hydroxychloroquine and convalescent plasma, and the overruling of FDA scientists on the regulation of covid-19 laboratory tests. At risk is the FDA’s ability to make the independent, science-based decisions that are key to combating the pandemic and so much more.”
The former commissioners, who served in both Republican and Democratic administrations, said that the Trump administration’s actions have undermined the public’s trust in the agency, which could cause them to avoid getting vaccinated.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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