A top virologist and member of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel who supported granting emergency use authorization for the COVID vaccine has died suddenly.
Dr. Almyra “A” Oveta Fuller, 67, an associate professor of microbiology and immunology and member of the FDA vaccine and biological products advisory committee, died suddenly on Friday morning.
Fuller died on November 18, 2022, after a brief non-COVID-related illness, according to her obituary.
She played a crucial role in securing the emergency use authorizations for the three COVID vaccines.
“Obviously, we’re in a pandemic of coronavirus, and we need to use every tool available that is safe and effective,” Fuller told Michigan Daily when asked why she voted to recommend the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for pediatric use.
“Based on the data that was presented for the clinical trials with 5- to 11-year-olds, as well as the rollout effects of the Pfizer vaccine over the last 10 months in millions of people, the benefits seem to far outweigh the risk. So I voted yes, to make that available as something that parents who choose to have their children vaccinated can do. My opinion was not so much to make it mandatory but to make it accessible,” she continued.
Dr. Fuller also favored including COVID-19 vaccinations on the CDC’s list of mandatory immunizations for school entry, according to Dr. Panda.
She also advocated for the use of the COVID vaccine among pregnant women.
She also celebrated when her colleagues voted to recommend a booster shot to stop the spread of the virus.
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