Thread by @RetroReport

Here's an update on an earlier thread:

1/7 Dr. Rick Bright, who was formerly in charge of the agency overseeing development of a coronavirus vaccine (@BARDA), claims he was fired for resisting President Trump’s push to widen the use of the unproven drug #hydroxychloroquine.

2/7 In a statement Dr. Bright said: “Rushing blindly towards unproven drugs can be disastrous and result in countless more deaths. Science, in service to the health and safety of the American people, must always trump politics.”

There are #LessonsFromHistory

3/7 With limited evidence that it works and concern over side effects, Trump has touted #hydroxychloroquine, made by Novartis and others, to treat #COVID19. In authorizing use of the antimalarial, @US_FDA bypassed its approval process set up in the ’60s, after a medical tragedy.

4/7 The drug involved was thalidomide, marketed to pregnant women for morning sickness by its German maker.

5/7 In 1962, after thalidomide, Congress passed tougher regulations on new drug approval, requiring companies to demonstrate the effectiveness of their products in clinical trials, and report side effects.

6/7 Recent reporting by @katie_thomas @nytimes showed that thalidomide affected more Americans than initially understood, despite @US_FDA withholding approval in the 1960s.
nytimes.com/2020/03/23/hea…

7/7 The @US_FDA has the authority to bypass some of its process in public health emergencies, which it has invoked for #COVID19. To learn more about the legacy of thalidomide, watch our doc: