“The director of the office involved in developing a coronavirus vaccine says he was abruptly dismissed from his post in part because he resisted efforts to widen the availability of a coronavirus treatment pushed by President Donald Trump.”
“Dr. Rick Bright had led BARDA, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, since 2016 until Tuesday, when was reassigned to a narrower position. He also announced he will file a whistleblower complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general.”
“‘I believe this transfer was in response to my insistence that the government invest the billions of dollars allocated by Congress to address the Covid-19 pandemic into safe and scientifically vetted solutions, and not in drugs, vaccines and other technologies that lack scientific merit,’ Bright said in a lengthy statement issued Wednesday. ‘I am speaking out because to combat this deadly virus, science — not politics or cronyism — has to lead the way.’”
“He cited ‘clashes with political leadership’ as a reason for his sidelining, as well as his resistance to ‘efforts to fund potentially dangerous drugs promoted by those with political connections…’” Read the full article here.
Source: Director of key federal vaccine agency says his departure was retaliation – By Kaitlan Collins, Jeremy Diamond and Betsy Klein, April 22, 2020. CNN.
