{"id":143343,"date":"2026-02-17T12:10:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T17:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kendallharmon.net\/?p=143343"},"modified":"2026-02-16T17:57:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T22:57:36","slug":"wsj-editorial-vinay-prasads-vaccine-kill-shot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kendallharmon.net\/?p=143343","title":{"rendered":"(WSJ editorial) Vinay Prasad\u2019s Vaccine Kill Shot"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s hard to recall a regulator who has done as much damage to medical innovation in as little time as Vinay Prasad. In his latest drive-by shooting, the leader of the Food and Drug Administration\u2019s vaccine division rejected Moderna<\/a>\u2019s mRNA flu vaccine without even a cursory review. This is arbitrary government at its worst.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FDA rarely refuses to review a drug or vaccine application. Our sources say the FDA has rejected only about 4% of applications without a review, typically when they are missing important information. That wasn\u2019t the case with Moderna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Prasad spiked Moderna\u2019s flu vaccine because its Phase 3 trial was putatively not \u201cadequate and well-controlled.\u201d He quibbled that the control group in Moderna\u2019s late-stage trial didn\u2019t receive the \u201cbest-available standard of care.\u201d He decides what is \u201cbest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moderna launched a global randomized controlled trial in September 2024 with 41,000 participants, half of whom received its vaccine. The other half received a standard flu vaccine as a control. The FDA blessed its trial design, and agency staffers gave Moderna a thumbs up to apply for approval last August based on the results. Its vaccine was 27% more effective at preventing symptomatic cases of flu and 49% more effective against hospitalization than the standard flu vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>

The WSJ Editorial Board weighs in:
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to recall a regulator who has done as much damage to medical innovation in as little time as Vinay Prasad. In his latest drive-by shooting, the leader of the Food and Drug Administration\u2019s vaccine division rejected Moderna \u2019s mRNA flu\u2026<\/p>— Amy Siskind 🏳️‍🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) February 13, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>