Rick Bright alleges he was removed from a high-level scientific post after warning the administration of US President Donald Trump to prepare for the pandemic.
Whistle-blower Rick Bright warned on Thursday that the United States lacks a plan to produce and fairly distribute a coronavirus vaccine when it becomes available. The nation could face “the darkest winter in modern history” unless leaders act decisively, he told a congressional panel.
He said experience so far with an antiviral drug that has been found to benefit Covid-19 patients has not given him much confidence about distribution. Hospital pharmacies have reported problems getting limited supplies. “And he said, ‘We’re in deep s***. The world is. And we need to act,'” Bright said. “And I pushed that forward to the highest levels I could in HHS and got no response. From that moment I knew that we were going to have a crisis for our healthcare workers because we were not taking action. We were already behind the ball.”
“Our window of opportunity is closing,” Bright said in his prepared testimony. “If we fail to develop a national coordinated response, based in science, I fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities.” Eager to restart the US economy, Trump has been urging states to lift restrictions, and many governors are doing so gradually, though consumers remain leery of going back to restaurants, social events and sporting competitions.
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