Me and @asiddons watched yesterday's nine hour FDA advisory committee meeting so you don't have to.

Because these are important for transparency and public trust, here are some moments that stood out —>

Q: Can health care workers (first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine) be required to take one if it's not FDA approved?

A: NO.

Paul Offit, a Trump critic, says the FDA's emergency use authorization requirements for a COVID vaccine look more like full FDA approval than an EUA for say, hydroxychloroquine.

FDA could also use something more limited called "expanded access": https://www.statnews.com/2020/10/23/fda-shows-signs-of-cold-feet-over-emergency-authorization-of-covid-19-vaccines/

Q: Why did Operation Warp Speed invest in so many two dose vaccines? (this is going to be a logistical nightmare)

A: We might invest in more one dose vaccines in the future.

Q from the public: Why are vaccine trials only testing whether they protect against mild disease, not severe disease?

Will covid-19 vaccines save lives? Current trials aren’t designed to tell us: https://www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m4037

Q: Aren't taxpayers paying billions of dollars for Operation Warp Speed? Why can't we require pharmaceutical companies to make their clinical trials diverse and test for protection against severe disease?

FDA responds that testing for protection against severe disease would require clinical trials that are 10x as big.

Finally, some explanation for the two month follow-up period for safety data.

This is the FDA guidance the White House tried to suppress because it interfered with a pre-election vaccine. But some committee members said it's not long enough for unknown vaccine technology.