Former Baltimore health official Dr Leana Wen has sparked backlash after she asked outgoing President Joe Biden to authorize bird flu vaccines ” and inject “vulnerable” Americans with them before he leaves office.
Chinese born Wen, the former Commissioner for Baltimore’s health department, told Face The Nation that Biden should do as much as he can to battle the avian influenza outbreak during his last days as president.
‘She said: “There are two main things they should be doing in the days that they have left…the first is to get testing out there… we should have learned out lesson from Covid that just because we are not testing, it doesn’t mean the virus isn’t there.”
Wen then added that the second very important thing” is that the Biden admin secure FDA athorization for the already-developed vaccine for bird flu”.
Amid concerns about the bird flu, the Biden administration should be making rapid tests available and ask the FDA to authorize the already-existing H5N1 vaccine, says former Baltimore health commissioner @DrLeanaWen.
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) December 29, 2024
"I feel like we should've learned our lesson from COVID, that… pic.twitter.com/Hb38r1RWJ7
The Mail Online reports: Wen said Biden should make the move ‘because we don’t know what the Trump administration will do about the bird flu‘.
She added Trump has ‘people coming in with anti-vaccine stances’ and thus it’s possible that his White House could ‘hold up’ the vaccine authorization or ‘withhold testing.’
The H5N1 vaccine is already developed and contracted with manufacturers to make almost 5million doses, but awaits FDA approval.
‘There’s research done on it. They could get this authorized now, and also get the vaccine out to farm workers and to vulnerable people,’ Wen added.
Wen’s comments struck a nerve with many X users who recalled her asking Biden to implement vaccine mandates in federal workplaces and public venues in their jurisdiction during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The health policy expert controversially stated the unvaccinated should not be allowed to go out in public.
One X user said: ‘Dr. Leana Wen pushed to take away fundamental human rights…why would anyone listen to her again? This should be entirely disqualifying.’
Another added: ‘Leana Wen is a politician, not a doctor. Her health advice should be completely ignored.’
However, many have also taken to social media to support Wen, with one user writing: ‘Disappointed to see Dr. Leana Wen being viciously attacked again for some reasonable comments about bird flu.’
Another X user said: ‘I am not an epidemiologist (but I have family and best friends who are) and they say it’s not if, but when. Since we now have RFK on the case you can find me gathering my quarantine supplies. Again.’
