WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration’s embattled vaccine chief, Dr. Vinay Prasad, is once again leaving the agency — the second time in less than a year that he’s departed after controversial decisions involving the review of vaccinations and specialty drugs for rare diseases.
FDA Commissioner Marty Makary announced the news to FDA staff in an email late Friday, saying Prasad would depart at the end of April. Makary said Prasad would return to his academic job at the University of California, San Francisco.
In July, Prasad was briefly forced from his job after running afoul of biotech executives, patient groups and conservative allies of President Donald Trump. He was reinstated less than two weeks later with the backing of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Makary.
Prasad’s latest ouster follows a string of high-profile controversies involving the FDA’s review of vaccines, gene therapies and biotech drugs in which companies have criticized the agency for reversing itself, in some cases calling for new trials of products previously greenlighted by regulators.
In the last month, Prasad has come under fire from pharmaceutical executives, investors, members of Congress and other critics for multiple decisions at the agency.
First, Prasad initially refused to allow the FDA to review a highly anticipated flu vaccine from drugmaker Moderna made with mRNA technology. The rejection of the application, highly unusual for the FDA, prompted Moderna to go public with Prasad’s decision and vow to formally challenge it.
A week after the rejection became public, the FDA reversed course and said it would accept the shot for review after all, pending an additional study from Moderna.
Then, in the past week, the FDA engaged in a highly unusual public fight with a small drug company developing an experimental treatment for Huntington’s Disease, a fatal condition that affects about 40,000 people in the U.S.
The company, UniQure, said Monday that the FDA was demanding a new trial of its gene therapy that would involve performing a sham surgery on some of the patients in the trial. The company’s gene therapy is injected directly into the brain during a surgical procedure.
Company executives said the request for a sham-controlled trial contradicted previous FDA guidance and raised ethical concerns for patients.
On Thursday, the FDA held a highly unusual press conference with reporters to criticize the company’s therapy and defend the agency's request for an additional study.
A senior FDA official, who requested anonymity to speak with reporters, called the company’s original study “stone cold negative.”
“We have a failed product here,” he added.
The FDA typically communicates in carefully-vetted written statements when speaking about scientific disagreements, especially those involving experimental drugs that are still under the agency’s review.
Prasad’s time as the FDA’s top vaccine and biotech regulator has been marked by a series of similar disputes with the companies the agency regulates.
More than a half-dozen drugmakers studying therapies for rare or hard-to-treat diseases have received rejection letters or requests to run additional studies, adding years and potentially many millions of dollars to their development plans.
A longtime academic and critic of the FDA’s standards for drug reviews, Prasad’s approach to regulation since arriving at the FDA last May has confounded many FDA observers and critics.
On repeated occasions, Prasad joined Makary in announcing steps to make FDA drug reviews faster and easier for companies. But he also has imposed new warnings and study requirements for some biotech drugs and vaccines, particularly COVID shots that have long been a target for Kennedy, a longtime anti-vaccine activist before joining the Trump administration.
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FILE - In this undated photo provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Vinay Prasad smiles for a portrait. (U.S. FDA via AP)
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Florida, Toronto, St. Louis and so many perennial contenders not being in the mix for the playoffs turned the NHL trade deadline upside down.
Those teams and others were sellers this time or simply stood pat, opening the gates for a new set of buyers eager to take a run at the Cup. Many of the top teams did make a bunch of moves, with league-leading Colorado reacquiring gritty center Nazem Kadri on Friday as the Avalanche look to make another title run four years after their last one with him.
The newcomers include the New York Islanders, who made a big splash by getting Brayden Schenn from the Blues for fellow forward Jonathan Drouin, a goaltending prospect and first- and third-round picks in the draft this year.
“He fits exactly what we need right now,” first-year general manager Mathieu Darche said.
Schenn, who hoisted the Cup in 2019 and has captained St. Louis the past three seasons, joins a mix on Long Island led by standout rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer, the No. 1 pick whose presence has revitalized the franchise.
“He was excited for a new opportunity to go to an upstart Islander team with the most exciting young player in a long time,” said Blues GM Doug Armstrong, whose team also got first- and third-rounders as part of the return from Detroit for defenseman Justin Faulk. The Red Wings are looking to make the playoffs for the first time in a decade.
No one has a longer drought than Buffalo at a league-record 14 years, and the Sabres are on track to ending it. They added center Sam Carrick from the New York Rangers and defenseman Luke Schenn — Brayden’s brother — from Winnipeg, then made another trade with the Jets for forward Tanner Pearson.
“It's new for me,” captain Rasmus Dahlin said of the Sabres adding rather than unloading players at the deadline. “This is why you play hockey. This is what it should feel like.”
Toronto joined the sellers by trading fourth-year forward Bobby McMann to the Seattle Kraken for a fourth-round pick in the draft this year and a 2027 second-rounder.
Colorado getting Kadri back from Calgary put the rest of the league on notice: The Avalanche are not content to ride the speed of their top two lines.
They got Kadri and a '27 fourth-rounder from the Flames for Victor Olofsson, the rights to unsigned pick Max Curran, a conditional 2028 first-round pick and conditional 2027 second-rounder. The Flames even retained 20% ($1.4 million) of Kadri’s salary as part of the trade.
The Avalanche had already bolstered their depth down the middle by acquiring Nicolas Roy from Toronto.
The Kadri stunner came hours after Minnesota got 38-year-old forward Nick Foligno from Chicago for future considerations. He now gets to play with brother Marcus and chase the Stanley Cup for a beefed-up Wild team that has made five prominent trades since December to put itself in the mix for the championship after failing to advance beyond the first round since 2015.
In the East, Tampa Bay brought back winger Corey Perry in a trade from Los Angeles for a 2028 second-round pick, with the Kings retaining half his salary. Perry, who turns 41 in May, has reached the final and lost in five of the past six years, including 2022 with the Lightning. The pesky winger has a Cup ring from 2007 with Anaheim and gives coach Jon Cooper’s team veteran experience and an edge.
Eastern Conference-leading Carolina has plenty of skill, and the Hurricanes got tougher in the final hour before the deadline by acquiring forward Nicolas Deslauriers from Philadelphia for a conditional 2027 seventh-round pick.
“We have a group of guys that has that internal toughness, that fight,” general manager Eric Tulsky said. “We do have that fire. But of course, it’s easier to have that toughness when you’ve got a guy like Deslauriers out there with you.”
The Rangers held on to center Vincent Trocheck, the U.S. Olympic champion who was considered the top player available on a lot of lists, and Philadelphia did not trade big defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. Each player is under contract beyond this season.
St. Louis was active, getting goalie prospect Marcus Gidlof from the Islanders and forward Dmitiri Buchelnikov from the Wings, but goaltender Jordan Binnington, forwards Robert Thomas and Jordan Kyrou did not get moved.
“I don’t spend a lot of time on trades that didn’t happen," Armstrong said.
The Panthers also held on to two-time Vezina Trophy-winning netminder Sergei Bobrovsky, who backstopped them to consecutive championships and could now re-sign.
John Carlson going to the Anaheim Ducks just after midnight made it seem like the Washington Capitals were selling in what could be Alex Ovechkin's final NHL season, especially after also trading veteran center Nic Dowd to Vegas. Then they turned around and added Carlson's replacement on defense from San Jose by sending a fourth-rounder this year to the Sharks for Timothy Liljegren.
After trading Perry and sending Warren Foegele to Ottawa, the Kings got Scott Laughton from Toronto. The Ducks also sold after buying, sending center Ryan Strome to Calgary for a seventh-round pick.
AP Sports Writers Aaron Beard, Greg Beacham, Dave Campbell and Dan Gelston and AP freelance writer Denis P. Gorman contributed to this report.
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Ottawa Senators' Jordan Spence, left, checks Calgary Flames' Nazem Kadri during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Calgary, Alberta, Thursday, March 5, 2026. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)
Los Angeles Kings right wing Corey Perry (10) and Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Jeremy Lauzon (5) fight in the second period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
Chicago Blackhawks left wing Nick Foligno, left, redircts a shot into the glove of Colorado Avalanche goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood in the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
From left, St. Louis Blues defenseman Justin Faulk, defenseman Philip Broberg, right wing Jimmy Snuggerud, and center Robert Thomas celebrate after a goal by Thomas during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Seattle Kraken, Wednesday, March 4, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Maddy Grassy)
New York Rangers' Vincent Trocheck (16) reacts after scoring a goal during the shootout of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
FILE -Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) in action during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)
Vancouver Canucks' Conor Garland (8) watches as Winnipeg Jets goaltender Eric Comrie (1) stops the puck during the third period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, B.C., on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026. (Ethan Cairns/The Canadian Press via AP)
Vancouver Canucks right wing Conor Garland (8) looks to pass in the second period against the Seattle Kraken during an NHL hockey game Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Kevin Ng)
