COVID-19: Top US vaccine expert says he was fired for questioning drug touted by Trump

The head of the government agency in the United States that is in charge of leading the production and purchase of coronavirus vaccines has claimed that the reason for his abrupt dismissal is that he resisted US President Donald trump against using unproved drugs on COVID-19 patients. In an unprecedented development in the US over its response to the coronavirus outbreak, Dr Rick Bright had reportedly opposed the usage of, Trump’s most touted drug, hydroxychloroquine on the patients. According to Bright, that was the reason behind him being reassigned a lower position in the medical agency. 

Since 2016, Dr Rick Bright was leading BARDA, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, until he was removed on April 21. However, a day after he was ousted for opposing the promotion of the malarial drug,  Bright reportedly said in a statement released by his lawyers on April 22 that it was “retaliation plain and simple”.  According to international media reports, Bright claimed that “science, not politics” would be beneficial in the country’s fight against the pandemic and even though he supported experimentation of drugs to cure COVID-19 disease, he wanted to limit the broad use of drugs that lack scientific evidence. 

“Specifically, and contrary to misguided directives, I limited the broad use of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, promoted by the administration as a panacea, but which clearly lack scientific merit,” Bright said.

“I also resisted efforts to fund potentially dangerous drugs promoted by those with political connections,” he added.

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While I am prepared to look at all options and to think ‘outside the box’ for effective treatments, I rightly resisted efforts to provide an unproven drug on demand to the American public,” Bright said.

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'Don't know who he is' says Trump

However, when US President Donald Trump was confronted during coronavirus task force briefings on April 22, he denied knowing Bright and left a loose end by saying “maybe”. Meanwhile, Bright and his lawyers, Debra Katz and Lisa Banks are rooting for a probe by the HHS inspector general and the Office of Special Counsel which is an independent agency that also protects the whistleblowers of the government. Bright has cited resisting “political leadership” in the department that also led to "clashes" as he was trying to invest “early in vaccines and supplies” that were essential in saving lives of US citizens. 

But, Trump said, “The guy says he was pushed out of a job. Maybe he was. Maybe he wasn’t...I don’t know who he is.”

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