President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. will have a vaccine for COVID-19 “before the end of the year and maybe even before Nov.
1.”As an election looms in the United States, the declaration fuelled worry that a COVID-19 vaccine may be approved before scientific vetting is complete.In the United States, review and licensure of vaccines is the responsibility of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
But the agency’s handling of emergency use authorizations for two anti-malaria drugs and convalescent blood plasma for the treatment of COVID-19 have led to claims it has become politicized.Such is the worry about the impartiality of the FDA that pharmaceutical companies drew a line in the sand and pledged publicly only to submit a vaccine.