Whistleblower complaint set to lift lid on Trump pressure to push untried drug

[dajoki]

Whistleblower complaint set to lift lid on Trump pressure to push untried drug
Dr Rick Bright says he was removed as head of office working on a Covid-19 vaccine for refusing to boost hydroxychloroquine
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/30/trump-whistleblower-coronavirus-drug-complaint-rick-bright-hydroxychloroquine-pressure?

Donald Trump’s musing over whether cleaning people’s lungs with disinfectant might treat the coronavirus caused a furore but it may be the US president’s pushing of anti-malarial drugs that does far more lasting damage to his administration.

There is building anticipation over the content of an upcoming whistleblower complaint by Dr Rick Bright, who last week was abruptly removed as the head of the federal government office working on a vaccine for Covid-19.

It is understood that Bright is still working on the details of the complaint before lodging it with the Department of Health and Human Services’ inspector general.

<<snip>>

It is expected that Bright’s complaint, when revealed, will shed new light on the political pressure exerted by the Trump administration on health officials to back up the president’s sweeping praise of the drugs as a key weapon against Covid-19.

According to reporting by outlets including Vanity Fair, administration officials pushed for the widespread use of hydroxychloroquine, despite the FDA’s warnings, while also formulating a narrative where Bright was shifted from his role after mistreating his staff. His lawyers reject this characterization.

The battle between Trump and an obscure official who was in charge of a little-known office is set to touch upon broader themes that have repeatedly cropped up during this presidency, specifically the treatment of scientific advice and the use of the federal government to promote the personal views of the president over experts.

<<snip>>

[mercuryblues]

1. I hope it exposes

how trump and his buddy (the head of the VA) used veterans as lab rats resulting in an increased mortality rate.

[crickets]

3. Absolutely. It's outrageous the VA allowed that to happen.

[crickets]

2. Good to see more and more people are standing up to the tangering toddler.

“Dr Bright is a strong scientist, he is a visionary leader, he’s able to make decisions, he get things done, and he believes and he stands on strong science,” Nicole Lurie, former assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, told CNN. “I think this is about something larger than hydroxychloroquine. I think it’s really about listening to scientific opinion, scientific perspective and standing up for strong science.”

Yes! About time.