On Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), chaired by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), held a hearing entitled: “An Update from Federal Officials on Efforts to Combat COVID-19.”
Officials testifying before the Committee included:
• Anthony Fauci, MD, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• David Kessler, MD, Chief Science Officer, COVID Response, United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
• Peter Marks, MD, PhD, Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
• Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Throughout the hearing, the health officials delivered a tone of cautious optimism to lawmakers, applauding the success of the COVID-19 vaccination program, but insisting that the public remain vigilant in adhering to safe practices. Some of the Republican members on the Committee voiced a sense of frustration with the status of re-openings and changing guidance on COVID-19 safety measures. The health officials noted that erring on the side of caution is most beneficial to the public’s health and well-being.
During her opening remarks, Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) noted that the pandemic has unveiled the issues that plague our nation’s public health system, and discussed legislation in progress to be developed with Ranking Member Richard Burr (R-NC) to improve the nation’s public health emergency preparedness and overall infrastructure as well as medical preparedness and response programs and capabilities.
In her testimony, Dr. Walensky stated that the CDC will continue to provide additional resources to states, tribes, and territories, and reported that infections are down 71% and deaths are down 75% nationwide. Considering the emerging variants and the current crisis in India, Dr. Walensky noted that the CDC is using $1.7 billion to expand genomic sequencing to combat emerging viral strains. On the continuing issue of health disparities, Dr. Walensky noted that the CDC has taken steps to address health equity, contributing $2.25 billion to address COVID-19 health disparities; $3 billion for vaccine confidence in hard hit communities; and $250 million to develop strategies for vaccine uptake.
In his testimony, Dr. Fauci gave credit to the decades of biomedical research for the speedy development of the currently authorized vaccines. Dr. Fauci was pleased to report to lawmakers that the currently authorized vaccines exhibit a higher effectiveness in real-world application than that of the efficacy in the clinical trials. Dr. Fauci also allayed some concerns surrounding the viral variants, noting that the mRNA vaccine is not only highly effective in preventing the wild-type virus, but also protective against the emerging variants.
In his testimony to members of the Committee, Dr. Marks was pleased to report that yesterday evening the FDA announced an expansion of the emergency use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to adolescents aged 12 to 15. During his testimony, Dr. Kessler reported that 330 million doses have been delivered, of which 260 million have been administered. Dr. Kessler noted that the “long-term fate of communities depends on getting people vaccinated.” He also stated that by late fall of 2021, enough data will be collected on the safety and effectiveness of vaccines for children under 12. Considering the emerging variants, Dr. Kessler stated that the administration is planning and made a point to emphasize— “if necessary”—to have booster doses for the American people.
