Whistleblower says FDA minimized safety risks at Merck vaccine plant
https://www.politico.com/amp/n…erck-vaccine-plant-478757
Food and Drug Administration inspection officials downplayed critical safety and hygiene concerns at a Merck factory that is being retrofitted to help produce Johnson & Johnson's coronavirus vaccine, according to a complaint filed by the Office of Special Counsel.
Former FDA safety officer Arie Menachem alleges in the complaint that inspectors downgraded the Merck facility in Durham, N.C., from a category requiring immediate corrective action to a less-urgent category after a 2017 inspection — without following established procedure and despite serious hygiene and public health concerns the safety officer later discovered