/https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5fcea69add70637d57088086/0x0.jpg?cropX1=0&cropX2=7952&cropY1=94&cropY2=4569&w=1200&resize=1200,675&ssl=1 "Pfizer And Moderna Steer Clear Of White House Vaccine Summit")
Topline
Executives at Pfizer and Moderna, the two drugmakers whose coronavirus vaccines could be approved within days, turned down invitations to attend a “vaccine summit” at the White House on Tuesday, health news site Stat first reported Monday.
Doctor in protective gloves & workwear filling injection syringe with COVID-19 vaccine.
getty
Key Facts
Neither Pfizer nor Moderna will participate in the event, spokespeople from the companies confirmed to Forbes (Pfizer did not give a reason, and Moderna said it was invited to a White House meeting but learned “its participation would not be required” based on the agenda).
The event is expected to draw companies like CVS, Walgreens and FedEx, which will distribute and administer the vaccines, Stat reported, citing unnamed sources.
Some administration officials believe the summit could turn into a forum for President Donald Trump to either take credit for the Covid-19 vaccines or lobby the Food and Drug Administration to hurry up its approval process, Stat and the Daily Beast reported.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Tangent
Trump has been triumphant about Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccine candidates and eager to take credit for them, leading to occasional clashes with executives. When a Pfizer executive said the company didn’t participate in the federal vaccine acceleration program Operation Warp Speed, Trump publicly lashed out at the company (Pfizer signed a deal to sell the federal government vaccines through Warp Speed but did not receive any taxpayer funding). The president also baselessly claimed Pfizer deliberately held off on releasing data on its vaccine’s effectiveness until after Election Day, in a plot to deprive Trump of any political advantage.
Key Background
Last month, Moderna and Pfizer released data indicating that their vaccine candidates are extremely effective. Both companies are seeking emergency use authorizations from the FDA, and approval could come as soon as this week for Pfizer and Dec. 17 for Moderna, though the Trump administration is reportedly urging the FDA to move faster. After receiving approval, the two vaccines are expected to be distributed en masse, and federal officials hope to vaccinate millions of Americans by the end of the month.
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