US FDA blocked publication of COVID, shingles vaccine safety studies

Andrew Nixon, a spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the ​FDA, said the studies were pulled over concerns about their conclusions. “The ​studies were withdrawn because the authors drew broad conclusions that ⁠were not supported by the underlying data. The FDA acted to ​protect the integrity of its scientific process and ensure that any work associated ​with the agency meets its high standards,” he said in an email to Reuters.

In August last year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ​said it would wind ​down nearly $500 million ⁠in mRNA vaccine development, cancelling 22 federal projects overseen by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a ​government-backed funding body. Last June, a Centers for Disease Control and ​Prevention ⁠panel backed by Kennedy voted to remove mercury-based preservative thimerosal from flu shots, despite long-standing clinical evidence of its safety. British drugmaker GSK markets Shingrix, a vaccine for ⁠shingles, ​a painful viral infection that causes blisters and ​rashes, while Pfizer and Moderna are the leading makers of COVID-19 vaccines.