Trump “spent months spreading misinformation, intimidating and pressuring scientists and public health officials to cut corners and speed up the development process to help him politically” 

“…we remain worried that [Trump] will once again pressure public health officials…to make emergency approvals in violation of their released guidance”

 Washington, DC – Today, Accountable Pharma released a new report highlighting the past nine months of COVID-19 politicization, misinformation, pressure, and intimidation of career scientists by President Trump and his political appointees. This new report comes in advance of tomorrow’s key FDA Advisory Committee meeting and as President Trump is growing increasingly desperate to deliver on his promise that a vaccine is coming “momentarily.”

Opening from the report below – read the full report here.

“As we head into the final weeks before what President Trump called “that special date” that he hopes to have a vaccine approved and announced by and he is clearly becoming increasingly desperate, it is critical that people remember that he has spent months spreading misinformation, intimidating and pressuring scientists and public health officials to cut corners and speed up the development process to help him politically, and eroding public trust in the government’s vaccine development process.”

“In the coming weeks we fully expect President Trump to continue misleading the public to make it seem like vaccine and treatment approvals are imminent, which would erode public trust even further as people realize it’s not true. And we remain worried that he will once again pressure public health officials in his Administration to make emergency approvals in violation of their released guidance and against the advice of their career scientists and public health experts.”

“We need safe and effective vaccines to be developed and approved as quickly as possible and we need people to be able to trust them. That’s why it’s so important that the public understand his history on this and that people push back against any attempt by Trump to politicize and undermine this process even more in the coming weeks than he has already.” 

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