White House nixes tougher FDA guidelines on vaccine approval

The White House has blocked new Food and Drug Administration guidelines on bringing potential vaccines for COVID-19 to market that would almost certainly have prevented their approval before the Nov. 3 election. At issue was the FDA's planned requirement that participants in the ongoing mass clinical trials for nearly a half-dozen vaccine candidates be followed for two months to ensure there are no side effects and that the vaccines provide lasting protection from the virus in order to receive emergency approval. A senior administration confirmed the move Monday evening, saying the White House believed there was “no clinical or medical reason” to add additional screening protocols.