Scott Atlas, MD, a member of the White House's COVID-19 task force, resigned Nov. 30 from his post in the Trump administration.
President Donald Trump added Dr. Atlas, a radiologist, to the COVID-19 task force in August. He joined the Trump administration as a Special Government Employee, and his 130-day window in which he could serve closes this week, according to Politico.
"I always relied on the latest science and evidence, without any political consideration or influence," Dr. Atlas wrote in his resignation letter, which he posted to Twitter Nov. 30. "As time went on, like all scientists and health policy scholars, I learned new information and synthesized the latest data from around the world, all in an effort to provide you with the best information to serve the greater public good."
Dr. Atlas, a senior fellow at Stanford University's conservative Hoover Institution, criticized Michigan's COVID-19 restrictions in November and downplayed the value of masks to curb the spread of COVID-19. Stanford University sought to distance itself from his statements.
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