Latest news with #Dormitzer
New York Post
17-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Pfizer scientist claimed delay of COVID jab results until after 2020 election ‘wasn't a coincidence,' House GOP panel alleges
WASHINGTON — The release of COVID-19 vaccine results after the 2020 election may have not been a 'coincidence' — and could have been part of an effort by senior Pfizer executives to 'deliberately slow down' the testing, according to bombshell allegations from a Republican-led congressional panel. The House Judiciary Committee revealed Thursday that Pfizer's former Global Head of Vaccines Research and Development, Dr. Philip Dormitzer, may have 'conspired to withhold public health information to influence' the presidential contest between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. 5 he release of COVID-19 vaccine results days after the 2020 election may have not been a 'coincidence' — and could have been part of an effort by senior Pfizer executives to 'deliberately slow down' the testing, a House panel alleged. frank – The London-based drugmaker GSK in an April 16 letter to Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) disclosed that Dormitzer 'approached a representative from the GSK human resources team to speak about a potential relocation abroad' in November 2024. According to the HR rep, the ex-Pfizer vaccine scientist was 'visibly upset' in the meeting and asked to be moved to Canada 'due to concerns that he could be investigated by the incoming Trump Administration over his role in developing Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.' When the GSK employee asked what his reasons were for requesting the relocation, Dormitzer apparently responded: 'Let's just say it wasn't a coincidence, the timing of the vaccine.' 5 'My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization at the very first possible moment,' Dormitzer said in March in response to the allegations. Bloomberg via Getty Images Pfizer used independent experts to review the effectiveness and safety of its vaccines and broadcast the results being shared by its scientists just five days after polls closed for the 2020 election on Nov. 3. GSK also divulged in the letter that some of its employees heard from the scientist 'in late 2020, the three most senior people in Pfizer R&D were involved in a decision to deliberately slow down clinical testing so that it would not be complete prior to the results of the presidential election that year.' But the drugmaker, in its letter, also denied that Dormitzer was copping to 'delaying disclosure of completed results,' characterizing his statements as being part of 'a situation of slowing down results before disclosure became necessary.' The Judiciary panel still fired off a pair of letters to Dormitzer and Pfizer's chairman and CEO, Dr. Albert Bourla, on Thursday demanding all records — including emails, texts, meeting notes and other documents — showing data from the clinical trials or communications with federal public health agencies. 5 The House Judiciary Committee revealed Thursday that the former head of Global Head of Vaccines Research and Development may have 'conspired to withhold public health information to influence' the 2020 election. AP 'This new information appears to suggest that you and other senior Pfizer executives conspired to withhold public health information to influence the 2020 presidential election,' Jordan wrote to Dormitzer. 'Due to the seriousness of these allegations, the Committee is compelled to request additional information to inform our oversight.' The responsive files are supposed to cover the period between March 2020 and the present, per the letters. 5 Dormitzer's comments to GSK employees were first made in the course of a federal probe by Manhattan prosecutors, which, along with the Judiciary letters, was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. LightRocket via Getty Images Jordan's panel has also demanded Dormitzer schedule a transcribed interview no later than May 29. Dormitzer's comments to GSK employees were first made in the course of a federal probe by Manhattan prosecutors, which, along with the Judiciary letters, was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. The scientist has denied that he or anyone at Pfizer tried to delay the vaccine, and said his comments to his colleagues at GSK were misinterpreted. 'My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization at the very first possible moment,' Dormitzer previously told Reuters in a statement amid the investigation by the US Attorneys' Office for the Southern District of New York. 5 President Trump has touted how 'proud' he was of 'Operation Warp Speed' being able to get Americans vaccinated from COVID. Getty Images 'Any other interpretation of my comments about the pace of the vaccine's development would be incorrect.' 'Pfizer is in receipt of the letter asking about allegations made in a Wall Street Journal story, and we will respond directly to the Committee,' a rep for the pharmaceutical company said in a statement. 'The COVID-19 vaccine development process was driven by science and guided by the U.S. FDA back in 2020,' the rep added. 'We have consistently and transparently reiterated the facts and the timeline of the tireless work of scientists, regulators, and thousands of clinical trial volunteers who made the vaccine possible. Theories to the contrary are simply untrue and being manufactured.' Reps for GSK did not immediately respond to a request for comment. President Trump has touted how 'proud' he was of 'Operation Warp Speed' being able to get Americans vaccinated from COVID, with the purchase of 200 million doses of Pfizer's vaccine and 200 million doses of the Moderna shot.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
House GOP requests records from Pfizer CEO and former executive in probe of Covid vaccine delay allegation
The GOP-led House Judiciary Committee is requesting records from Pfizer's CEO and an interview with a former company executive to investigate an allegation that clinical testing related to the development of the company's Covid-19 vaccine was purposefully delayed until after the 2020 presidential election. Pfizer's CEO has previously said that the vaccine timing had nothing to do with politics. The committee probe comes after a Wall Street Journal report that British drugmaker GSK approached federal prosecutors with a disputed allegation that a former Pfizer executive who came to work for them, Dr. Philip Dormitzer, told his new colleagues at GSK that Pfizer delayed announcing that its Covid vaccine was a success until after the election. Dormitzer disputed that account, telling the newspaper, 'My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization at the very first possible moment,' and that 'any other interpretation of my comments about the pace of the vaccine's development would be incorrect.' CNN has attempted to reach out to Dormitzer for comment. Pfizer's news about the effectiveness of its Covid-19 vaccine came nearly a week after Election Day, but Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla has said the timing had nothing to do with politics. In an interview with CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta in 2020, Bourla threw cold water on the idea that there was any political motivation behind releasing the news after voters in the United States chose their candidate for president. GSK is a rival drugmaker. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan sent a letter Thursday to Dormitzer seeking documents and information as well as his testimony in a transcribed interview. The letter cites excerpts from information the committee says it received from GSK about Dormitzer's interactions with a GSK human resources representative in November 2024. The committee highlighted information GSK provided, but CNN has not reviewed the full GSK letter. CNN has reached out to the committee to request the letter. Jordan is also seeking information from Pfizer's chief executive. 'As the human resources representative recalls, in their meeting, Dr. Dormitzer was visibly upset; he requested that he be relocated to Canada due to concerns that he could be investigated by the incoming Trump Administration over his role in developing Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine,' GSK said, according to Jordan's letter. 'According to the human resources representative, when asked what prompted his request, Dr. Dormitzer made a comment to the effect of: 'Let's just say it wasn't a coincidence, the timing of the vaccine',' the letter adds. Jordan also quoted GSK claiming that Dormitzer told his former colleagues at the company 'in late 2020, the three most senior people in Pfizer R&D were involved in a decision to deliberately slow down clinical testing so that it would not be complete prior to the results of the presidential election that year.' CNN has reached out to GSK to request comment. A Pfizer spokesperson told CNN, 'Pfizer is in receipt of the letter asking about allegations made in a Wall Street Journal story, and we will respond directly to the Committee.' 'The COVID-19 vaccine development process was driven by science and guided by the U.S. FDA back in 2020. We have consistently and transparently reiterated the facts and the timeline of the tireless work of scientists, regulators, and thousands of clinical trial volunteers who made the vaccine possible. Theories to the contrary are simply untrue and being manufactured,' the spokesperson said. CNN's Sarah Owermohle and Amanda Sealy contributed to this report.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US House panel seeks information from Pfizer over alleged COVID vaccine delay
By Ahmed Aboulenein and Michael Erman WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. lawmakers on Thursday asked Pfizer Inc for information on alleged comments by a former executive suggesting its research executives intentionally delayed clinical trial results of its COVID-19 vaccine to influence the 2020 presidential election. The House of Representatives Judiciary Committee wrote in a letter to Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla that it is looking into the comments allegedly made by Philip Dormitzer, the company's former global head of vaccine research, who helped oversee development of the COVID shot during the first Trump administration. Dormitzer has said his comments were misinterpreted. Pfizer, working with Germany's BioNTech, was the first drugmaker to show successful results for a COVID vaccine at the height of the pandemic. The company began to share its trial results on Nov. 9, 2020, just days after Joe Biden won the presidential election against President Donald Trump. Pfizer has long denied any relation between the timing of its vaccine results announcement and the U.S. election. The alleged comments made by Dormitzer were first reported by the Wall Street Journal in March. "My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization at the very first possible moment. Any other interpretation of my comments about the pace of the vaccine's development would be incorrect," Dormitzer told Reuters in March. Dormitzer left Pfizer for a new job at rival drugmaker GSK Plc in 2021. The judiciary committee said it had been informed by GSK that a "visibly upset" Dormitzer requested the company let him move to Canada in November 2024, shortly after Trump was re-elected. Dormitzer had told colleagues at GSK he feared being investigated by the new Trump administration, according to the committee's letter. "GSK further informed the Committee that Dr. Dormitzer had told GSK employees that 'in late 2020, the three most senior people in Pfizer R&D were involved in a decision to deliberately slow down clinical testing so that it would not be complete prior to the results of the presidential election that year,'" the committee's letter to Bourla said. "Dr. Dormitzer represented to GSK that Pfizer's CEO was not aware of the delay," the committee said in a press spokesperson Amy Rose said the drugmaker had received the letter "asking about allegations made in a Wall Street Journal story, and we will respond directly to the Committee." "The COVID-19 vaccine development process was driven by science and guided by the U.S. FDA back in 2020," said Rose. "Theories to the contrary are simply untrue and being manufactured." The judiciary committee has sent a similar letter to Dormitzer seeking information about his alleged remarks and asking the scientist appear for an interview. He was not immediately available for comment. GSK declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal said that GSK had reported Dormitzer's alleged comments to federal prosecutors in New York. The newspaper's report prompted the House committee to investigate the matter.
Telegraph
27-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
GSK accuses Pfizer of delaying Covid vaccine result until after US election
Donald Trump's justice department is investigating claims that Pfizer delayed positive news about its Covid-19 vaccine until after the 2020 election. Federal prosecutors are reportedly examining allegations from GSK, Pfizer's British rival, that the US company kept details about the success of its vaccine secret. Pfizer announced the results of its clinical trials on Nov 9 2020, six days after the presidential election and two days after Joe Biden was declared the winner, paving the way for millions of people to receive protection against Covid. Mr Trump has accused Pfizer and its German partner BioNtech of helping Mr Biden win the election, saying 'they didn't have the courage to do it before' the vote. As I have long said, @Pfizer and the others would only announce a Vaccine after the Election, because they didn't have the courage to do it before. Likewise, the @US_FDA should have announced it earlier, not for political purposes, but for saving lives! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 10, 2020 The US attorney's office in New York is reportedly examining the claims after being alerted by GSK. The company told prosecutors that a former employee, hired from Pfizer, had disclosed to GSK executives that Pfizer delayed the vaccine announcement. The investigation was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. Philip Dormitzer, Pfizer's chief scientist for viral and RNA vaccines, had a key role developing the vaccine, which was the first to be authorised in the West. He moved to GSK in 2021 as head of vaccines R&D, a prominent hire after the company's struggles to develop its own Covid-19 jab. GSK reportedly told prosecutors that Mr Dormitzer claimed Pfizer knew of the Covid vaccine's effectiveness before the 2020 election, but held the news back, potentially helping Mr Biden. The Manhattan office has interviewed two people, including a GSK executive, the WSJ reported. Mr Dormitzer, who left GSK in December, denied that he had made the comments. 'My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's [Federal Drug Administration's] emergency use authorisation at the very first possible moment,' he said. 'Any other interpretation of my comments about the pace of the vaccine's development would be incorrect.' Pfizer said it had not been contacted about the investigation and called the claims 'utter nonsense'. 'We cannot comment because we have not received any inquiry from authorities about a so-called 'delay,' but Pfizer remains ready, willing, and able to explain why any allegation of impropriety is utter nonsense,' a spokesman said. 'The Covid-19 vaccine development process was driven by science and guided by the US FDA back in 2020. We have consistently and transparently reiterated the facts and the timeline of the tireless work of scientists, regulators, and thousands of clinical trial volunteers who made the vaccine possible. Theories to the contrary are simply untrue and being manufactured.' BioNtech has previously denied Mr Trump's claims. GSK declined to comment. Mr Trump launched an project to develop a Covid-19 vaccine, dubbed Operation Warp Speed, in early 2020. The development of Pfizer's vaccine was not funded through the scheme, although the company secured a $2bn (£1.6bn) deal from the Trump administration before the 2020 election to deliver 100m doses of the vaccine if it proved effective. GSK and Pfizer are major rivals in pharmaceuticals including vaccines. The companies merged their consumer healthcare divisions in 2019 before it was spun off in 2022 as a new company called Haleon. Mr Dormitzer was hired by GSK after the British company failed to develop its own Covid vaccine as quickly as Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca. The company worked with France's Sanofi on its own vaccine but was dealt setbacks in early trials and the jab was not approved until 2022. GSK suspended its diversity initiatives in February, shortly after Mr Trump returned to office, saying it had to do so because the US government was its biggest customer.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Feds probe disputed tip Pfizer held Covid vaccine results until after 2020 vote: WSJ
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are probing a claim by British drugmaker GSK that Pfizer delayed announcing its COVID shot's success in 2020 until after that year's election, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The report said on Wednesday that GSK's former head of vaccine development, Philip Dormitzer, who joined the company after working at rival Pfizer, had told his GSK colleagues about the delay. However, Dormitzer has disputed that account. More: Parents of child who died of measles still don't support MMR vaccine "My Pfizer colleagues and I did everything we could to get the FDA's Emergency Use Authorization at the very first possible moment. Any other interpretation of my comments about the pace of the vaccine's development would be incorrect," he told Reuters in a statement. The WSJ report said the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, which includes Manhattan, is taking a closer look at what GSK has shared. More: Free COVID tests no longer available through this government site: How to get a test President Donald Trump has claimed in the past that Pfizer sat on positive data from the vaccine's clinical trials, but there has never been evidence to support the accusation. The U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan has interviewed at least two people, including a GSK executive who took notes of a conversation with Dormitzer, the report said, citing one of the people familiar with the matter. The prosecutors are planning to interview a third person in the coming days, WSJ reported, citing some of the people familiar with the probe. The report said officials from Pfizer have not been interviewed. GSK has declined to comment, while Pfizer and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comments. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Feds probe tip Pfizer sat on Covid vaccine news over 2020 vote: WSJ
