Barrasso: FDA Approved Covid Vaccine ‘Thanks to Trump’
The FDA (Food & Drug Administration) has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, calling it a 'key achievement for public health.'
And it was.
The Pfizer vaccine is a two-dose deal, meaning those who receive it will get two shots, spaced about two or three weeks apart. Despite what somebody might read in comment sections on social media, the side-effects of the Pfizer vaccine are few and far between. Rarely does the vaccine result in blood clots leading to death. More typically, side effects include pain, swelling, and redness in the arm where you got the shot. Additionally, side effects may include tiredness, headache, muscle pain, chills, fever, and nausea. This information comes from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
Now that the FDA has approved the Pfizer vaccine, even more public figures on both sides of the political spectrum are suggesting Americans get it. This includes Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon, as well as one of Wyoming's senators, John Barrasso.
Barrasso took to Twitter on Monday to encourage Wyomingites to get the vaccine, but he also gave credit for the FDA approval to former president, Donald Trump.
"Thanks to the Trump Admin and Operation Warp Speed, the FDA approved the COVID-19 vaccine in record time," Barrasso wrote. "If you're eligible, I encourage you and your family to get vaccinated at one of the many sites across Wyoming."
Barrasso is echoing statements that Trump himself made when he took credit for the development of the Pfizer vaccine, even though the developers behind the Pfizer vaccine did not accept any government money to develop, test or expand manufacturing capacity under Trump's 'Operation Warp Speed.'
“As a result of Operation Warp Speed, Pfizer announced on Monday that its China virus vaccine was more than 90% effective. ...," Trump wrote. "Pfizer said it wasn’t part of Warp Speed, but that turned out to be an unfortunate misrepresentation.”
The Chicago Tribune reported that Pfizer 'opted not to join Operation Warp Speed initially, but is following the same general requirements for the vaccine's development as competitors who received government research money. The company says it has risked $2 billion of its own money on vaccine development and won't get anything from Washington unless the effort is successful."
A spokesperson for Pfizer told Forbes that "While it is proud to be one of various manufacturers participating in Operation Warp Speed and had reached an advanced purchase agreement with the U.S. government 'the company did not accept BARDA funding for the research and development process. All the investment for R&D was made by Pfizer at risk.'"
Regardless of who is taking credit for the FDA approval, the fact that the Pfizer vaccine is approved is the real key point. The FDA said that the approval means that 'the public can be very confident that this vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product."
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House's Chief Medical Adviser, told NPR that he believes the FDA's 'official stamp of approval' has the potential to convince as many as 20% of the 90 million vaccine-eligible people in the United States to get the vaccine.