AstraZeneca denies White House is stepping up its Covid-19 vaccine

This study, conducted by researchers at the University of Oxford who developed the vaccine, has enrolled over 11,000 people in the UK, South Africa and Brazil. Those overseas trials began in June and are expected to end later this year, the company said. AstraZeneca is planning a similar trial in the United States which it hopes will recruit 30,000 people.

The company struck a $ 1.2 billion deal in May to provide the United States with 300 million initial doses of the vaccine.

Why is this important: Rumors of the impending authorization of the AstraZeneca vaccine come at a delicate time for the FDA. President Donald Trump urges the FDA to act faster on coronavirus vaccines, and FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn is working to boost public confidence that it will not sacrifice safety or l efficiency in favor of speed.

But it is not clear whether the agency is supporting pressure from the White House. The FDA last week delayed the authorization of emergency use of blood plasma for coronavirus patients, fearing the data supporting its use was thin. Days later, the agency reversed itself – after Trump accused it of slowing down the clearance of damaging her chances of re-election.

“Data is the driving force behind the development of all COVID-19 countermeasures. A reckless speech about the careers of FDA experts somehow approving a dangerous and ineffective vaccine just for the sake of politics only undermines confidence in the public health system, ”HHS spokesman Michael Caputo said in a press release Monday.