Eight biotech CEOs wrote "An Open Letter to the Biopharmaceutical Industry" Sept. 3, in which they urged the industry and the federal government to hold themselves accountable during the race to develop a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine.
The open letter comes just days after results from a recent survey conducted by STAT and the Harris Poll revealed that 78 percent of Americans think the vaccine approval process is too politics-driven.
Below are the five requests included in the letter:
- Vaccine trials should be conducted in alignment with best practices to ensure a volunteer population reflective of the country's demographics and data credibility.
- Drugmakers should release clinical data through legitimate scientific meetings or peer-reviewed journals. If they need to release any data before publication, drugmakers should not do so via press release alone and should emphasize that the full data is being submitted for peer review.
- The FDA should maintain its independence and reject external influences when making regulatory decisions.
- Any use of new products should be data-driven, as they could cause different reactions for various populations. The public should be educated about the data behind these new products if they are used.
- Federal task forces for COVID-19 should be bipartisan, and politicians should assure the public that political motivations are not influencing their decisions regarding COVID-19 treatments.
Read the full letter here.
Read the full letter here.