The conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board expressed relief on Wednesday at a “welcome FDA walkback” as Dr. Vinay Prasad, the agency’s head of vaccine oversight, got overruled on a controversial move to block a new flu shot.
Prasad, who was briefly forced out of the agency by far-right influencer Laura Loomer before returning shortly, has become notorious for blocking experimental medicines based on no solid logic — as he did recently by trying to shut down approval for a Moderna mRNA flu vaccine, using similar technology to the vaccines that helped get COVID under control. “StatNews reported that Dr. Prasad overrode his staff. His rejection cast a pall of uncertainty on vaccine and drug development,” wrote the board.
On that particular move, however, he didn’t get his way.
“After critical media coverage and a political uproar, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary blamed Dr. Prasad’s decision on career FDA staff. This isn’t the first time he has used agency staff as an excuse to protect his biologics chief from the fallout from bad decisions,” wrote the board. Fortunately, “the White House appears to have intervened, and the FDA reversed course and said it would review Moderna’s application, albeit with a notable caveat. The FDA will consider approval for seniors over 65 based on Moderna’s immunogenicity data, which showed its vaccine produced higher antibody levels than a high-dose flu shot.”
The administration, wrote the board, ought to fire Prasad before he does this again.
“Dr. Prasad’s kill shot last week is part of a broader pattern in which he has arbitrarily changed standards for approving new drugs and reversed the agency’s prior guidance. The uncertainty is discouraging companies from launching new trials,” wrote the board. “The Trump team may find itself cleaning up after Dr. Prasad many more times in the next three years unless he gets the boot.”
The Journal is not alone among conservatives in calling for Prasad’s ouster. Derek Hunter, a staffer for the late Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT), also demanded he leave the agency in a column for The Hill.
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