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ARTICLE | Politics, Policy & Law

Trump contradicts Hahn, says White House will decide on COVID-19 vaccine rules

Trump undermines assertions that FDA's COVID-19 decisions are not influenced by politics

September 24, 2020 12:40 AM UTC
Updated on Sep 30, 2020 at 12:03 AM UTC

The Trump administration’s top public health officials spent Wednesday morning trying to persuade the Senate and the American people that career staff will make COVID-19 vaccine decisions free from political influence.  The heads of FDA and CDC stressed that the public can have confidence that COVID-19 vaccines will be safe and effective because science, not politics, will guide every regulatory decision. 

A few hours later, President Donald Trump stuck a pin in the balloon, stating repeatedly at a press conference that the White House will make the final decision about criteria for approving vaccines and accusing FDA of attempting to delay approvals for political reasons. ...