NEW YORK: Pfizer said on Wednesday (Sep 3) its COVID-19 vaccine has saved more than 14 million lives worldwide, after US President Donald Trump urged pharmaceutical companies to justify the success of their pandemic drugs. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had seen "extraordinary" data from firms such as Pfizer but accused them of withholding results from the public and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Pfizer said it welcomed Trump’s call for transparency and pointed to a dedicated section on its website where it publishes clinical trial results and safety updates. OPERATION WARP SPEED PRAISED Chief executive Albert Bourla hailed Operation Warp Speed, the US government’s 2020 programme to accelerate vaccine development and distribution, as a "profound public health achievement" under Trump’s leadership. He said the initiative helped avert more than US$1 trillion in healthcare costs and argued that such an accomplishment would "typically be worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize".

Source: CNA