'There is data': CBS host busts Trump's FDA head by reading study results to him
"Face the Nation" host Margaret Brennan continually called out Donald Trump's choice to head the FDA on Sunday morning for making blanket statements about vaccine studies and undergoing a conversion to align himself with HHS head Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
With Dr. Marty Makakry batting away the host's questions on why he's dismissing previous studies of the safety of vaccines, Brennan put him on the spot about pregnant women.
"We're saying it's going to be between a doctor and a patient until that committee meets or more experts weigh in, or we get some clinical data. If there's zero clinical data, you're opining. I mean, you're just, it's a theory, and so we don't want to put out an absolute recommendation for kids with no clinical data at this point," he stated while talking about inoculating children," he told the host.
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"So you made this pronouncement as well on pregnant women. There is data," she pressed before reading from a document. "Researchers in the UK analyzed a series of 67 studies, which included 1.8 million women, and the journal BMJ Global Health published it. People can Google it at home, and it says the COVID vaccine in pregnant women is highly effective in reducing the odds of maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospital admission and improves pregnancy outcomes with no serious safety concerns. This is data that shows that it is recommended or could be advised, for pregnant women to take this vaccine. Why do you find otherwise?"
"There's no randomized control trial. That's the gold standard," he parried "Those 67 studies are mixed. The data in pregnant women is different for healthy versus women with a comorbid condition. So it's a very mixed bag. So we're saying your obstetrician, your primary care doctor, and the pregnant woman should together decide whether or not to get it. 12 percent of pregnant women last year got the COVID shot. So people have serious concerns, and it's probably because they want to see a randomized trial data, the randomized trial of pregnant women-."
"But in the meantime, the world moves on," the CBS host protested. "And you published in the New England Journal of Medicine on May 20. In that report, you referenced, you listed pregnancy as an underlying medical condition that increases a person's risk for severe COVID. You said that. So then seven days later, you joined in this video announcement saying you should drop the recommendation for the COVID vaccine in healthy pregnant women. So what changed in the seven days?"
"In the New England Journal of Medicine, we simply list what the. what the CDC has traditionally defined as high risk, and we're just saying, decide with your doctor. We're not saying the other-," he replied only to be interrupted again.
"But doctors want data and information as well from you," Brennan pointed out.
"-- and the randomized trial," Makaray continued.
"So here's the data on pregnant women," he attempted. "A randomized control trial was set up, and it was closed without any explanation. We wanted to see that trial complete so women can have information that in a randomized control trial, which is the gold standard, this is what the data shows. We don't have those data."
"All right. It is still unclear what pregnant women now should do until they get the data that you say--," Brennan replied as Makaray interjected, "I'd say talk to their doctor."
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