Lawmakers cite internal documents alleging concerns were identified but not publicly addressed during early rollout period.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A Senate investigation is drawing renewed scrutiny to how federal health officials handled early safety data related to COVID-19 vaccines, following the release of an interim report discussed during a Senate hearing on April 29.
Unmasked: How Biden Health Officials Purposely Turned a Blind Eye Toward COVID-19 Vaccine Safety Signals, PSI Hearing 4.29.26 https://t.co/eKJf9LoPeQ
— Senator Ron Johnson (@SenRonJohnson) April 29, 2026
The 39-page report, made public by Ron Johnson, examines internal communications and data analysis conducted by officials within the Food and Drug Administration during the early months of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in 2021.
Senate PSI Majority Staff Interim Report April 29 2026 FINAL by yourNEWS Media
Johnson, who chairs the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, said the findings suggest federal officials were aware of potential safety signals but did not act on them in a transparent manner. During the hearing, he urged the public to review the findings, stating they present “evidence of how federal health officials avoided creating a paper trail to prevent transparency and public disclosure in discussing how they’ve been warned of a major limitation of the FDA’s data mining system.”
The report centers on work conducted by Dr. Ana Szarfman, a senior medical officer at the FDA at the time, who used an updated data analysis method that identified multiple statistically significant safety signals associated with COVID-19 vaccines. According to the report, her findings were shared internally with other officials responsible for monitoring vaccine safety.
The document states that these signals included potential associations between certain vaccines and adverse events such as acute myocardial infarction, embolism and thrombosis, and other serious outcomes. It also references signals involving cardiac inflammation and mortality-related events identified through data mining.
According to the report, Szarfman was later directed by senior officials within the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research to delay further reporting of her findings. The directive cited concerns that releasing the data could create conflicts that might contribute to vaccine skepticism.
Despite those instructions, the report indicates Szarfman continued to advocate for broader use of her analytical approach, arguing it was more effective at identifying potential safety concerns.
The findings also state that federal agencies did not adopt the recommended changes to their data analysis methods, nor did they immediately communicate certain identified risks to the public, including those related to cardiac conditions.
Johnson said the investigation was made possible with cooperation from the Department of Health and Human Services, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., adding that the materials provide what he described as “a clear picture” of how officials responded to internal warnings.
The report does not constitute a final conclusion, and further review is expected as the investigation continues.
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