Moncef Slaoui, PhD, said he is unable to explain President Donald Trump's executive order signed Dec. 8, which claims to prioritize shipment of a COVD-19 vaccine to the U.S. over other countries, Politico reported.
Dr. Slaoui, who is head of Operation Warp Speed, the White House's initiative to speed COVID-19 vaccine and drug development, was asked to clarify the president's order in an interview on ABC's Good Morning America, where he said: "Frankly, I don’t know, and frankly, I’m staying out of this. I can’t comment. I literally don’t know."
Dr. Slaoui also told Fox News that "what the White House is doing is what the White House is doing," according to Politico.
The order states it will ensure Americans receive COVID-19 vaccines before they're distributed to other countries. It lays a framework for the U.S. to assist foreign nations in getting the vaccine after people in the U.S. are vaccinated.
It's unclear how the order would be enforced, since drugmakers have already signed contracts with other countries to deliver them vaccines, Politico reported.
Scott Gottlieb, MD, a former FDA commissioner, said Dec. 8 on CNBC that there may be "authorities that the administration could invoke" to force drugmakers to break vaccine distribution deals with other countries, according to Politico.
National security adviser Robert O'Brien said he and his team will figure out the details of the executive order.
Read the full article here.