Controversial FDA official Dr. Vinay Prasad departs agency
'Dr. Prasad did not want to be a distraction to the great work of the FDA in the Trump administration and has decided to return to California and spend more time with his family,' a spokesperson for the US Department of Health and Human Services told CNN on Tuesday.
Prasad, a hematologist oncologist, was named head of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research in early May, giving him purview over vaccines and biologic medicines. He was subsequently also given the role of FDA chief medical and scientific officer. Like a number of Trump administration health appointees, Prasad had been a harsh critic of the government's response and vaccine policies during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Prasad's departure came amid fresh pressure from the White House for him to resign, according to a person familiar with the matter who was granted anonymity to describe the internal dynamics, and followed days of criticism from Laura Loomer, a right-wing activist with extraordinary access to President Donald Trump.
Loomer had taken shots at him on her website and on social media, attacking him publicly for days as a 'progressive leftist saboteur' who was 'undermining President Trump's FDA.'
Loomer focused on Prasad's previous social media posts and podcast episodes, where she said he aligned himself politically with liberal politicians and expressed 'disdain' for Trump. Her posts were followed by others from figures including former US Sen. Rick Santorum, who called Prasad 'the man destroying @POTUS legacy for helping patients,' and a Wall Street Journal opinion piece headlined, 'Vinay Prasad Is a Bernie Sanders Acolyte in MAHA Drag.'
Prasad didn't respond to requests for comment. A White House spokesperson referred a request for comment to HHS.
Prasad had been defended by FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary just days ago; in an interview with Politico, Makary said Prasad is an 'impeccable scientist … one of the greatest scientific minds of our generation.'
'We thank him for his service and the many important reforms he was able to achieve in his time at FDA,' the spokesperson for HHS said.
Prasad assumed his role at the FDA after years of being a vocal critic of some of the agency's drug approvals. In particular, he had railed against a decision to approve Sarepta's drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Elevidys, arguing that there was little evidence it helped stall or reverse symptoms of the rare, fatal genetic disorder.
This month, the FDA requested that Sarepta halt shipments of the drug after a reported death in a young patient in Brazil. Just one day before Prasad's departure, the agency made a surprising reversal and allowed Sarepta to resume shipments for certain patients.
Prasad also drew criticism from former officials and vaccine experts after internal memos from May revealed that he overrode FDA scientists on recommendations for two new versions of Covid-19 vaccines. The then-CDER director rebuked recommendations for broad use of the shots; the FDA eventually approved the vaccines for use in older and immunocompromised people but did not advise them for younger Americans who don't have underlying conditions.
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