WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) – US President Donald Trump suggested on Saturday (Aug 22) that employees at the US Food and Drug Administration are attempting to sabotage his re-election campaign by slowing down research on coronavirus treatments.

Mr Trump tweeted, without evidence, that members of “the deep state” at the regulatory agency are making it hard for drug companies to “get people in order to test the vaccines and therapeutics” and “obviously” want to delay progress until after Nov 3, Election Day.

The president tagged FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn in his message.

The “deep state” is a term used by Mr Trump to describe employees of government agencies that he believes are manipulating policy to work against his interests.

Mr Trump also recycled criticism of the FDA’s decision in June to revoke an emergency use authorisation of the malaria drug hydrochloroquine for treating Covid-19.

“Many doctors and studies disagree with this!” Mr Trump tweeted.

Separately, the Department of Health and Human Services announced this week that more individual labs could develop their own tests for Covid-19 and other diseases after a policy shift no longer requiring them to get FDA review before use.

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