White House threatens FDA chief’s job over vaccine approval
Associated PressWASHINGTON — Hours before the Food and Drug Administration authorized the first COVD-19 vaccine late Friday, a high-ranking White House official told the agency’s chief he could face firing if the vaccine was not cleared by day’s end, two administration officials said. President Donald Trump said late Friday that Pfizer had “passed the gold standard of safety” and hailed the vaccine as “one of the greatest scientific accomplishments in history.” But the move followed tense discussions between White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn, according to a senior administration official who was familiar with the call but was not authorized to discuss private conversations. Trump tweeted directly at Hahn earlier Friday, complaining that FDA “is still a big, old, slow turtle.” Trump has publicly bashed the pace of the FDA’s vaccine review process. Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University’s school of public health, called the pressure an “unforced error” by the White House that could chip away at public confidence in a vaccine.
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