Trump admin censored FDA vaccine benefit studies
▼ Summary
– Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy promised “radical transparency” but agencies under him suppress research conflicting with his anti-vaccine agenda.
– The FDA blocked publication of studies showing the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 and shingles vaccines, as confirmed by HHS to The New York Times.
– The CDC scrapped a scientifically vetted study finding COVID-19 vaccines sharply cut emergency care and hospitalization risk, rejected by Kennedy’s acting director.
– Two FDA studies on COVID-19 vaccines accepted for publication were withdrawn by unnamed FDA officials.
– The suppressed FDA study concluded that “the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks,” according to a copy of the manuscript.
Despite a public promise from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy to usher in an era of “radical transparency,” the federal health agencies he oversees are actively burying research that challenges his well-documented anti-vaccine stance. The latest example comes from the Food and Drug Administration, which has been accused of blocking the release of studies that affirm the safety and effectiveness of vaccines.
On Tuesday, The New York Times reported that the Department of Health and Human Services confirmed the FDA had prevented the publication of research examining the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 and shingles vaccines. This follows a separate incident from last month, when The Washington Post revealed that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had scrapped a peer-reviewed study, already scheduled for publication, which found that COVID-19 vaccines significantly reduced the risk of emergency room visits and hospitalizations among healthy adults. That study was ultimately rejected by Kennedy’s acting CDC director, who cited unspecified concerns over its methodology.
The situation at the FDA appears to be a mirror image. According to the Times, two separate studies authored by FDA scientists on COVID-19 vaccines had been accepted for publication in medical journals. However, unnamed FDA officials then ordered the researchers to withdraw their work. One of the studies had a preliminary abstract presented at a conference last fall, which remains available online. The Times obtained the full manuscript of that study, and its conclusion is unequivocal: “Given the available evidence, FDA continues to conclude the benefits of vaccination outweigh the risks.” The suppression of this data raises serious questions about the administration’s commitment to scientific integrity.
(Source: Ars Technica)
