White House is trying to overcome some Senate Democrats’ opposition to Janet Woodcock as FDA Commissioner, while also looking for other candidates for the job. Josh Sharfstein, long thought to be Woodcock’s main competition, is not a strong contender.

More than 5% of participants in J&J’s vaccine trial chose to be unblinded because they were eligible to receive a vaccine that had already gained a US FDA emergency use authorization.

Senate Finance confirmation hearing concluded without a vote on Xavier Becerra’s nomination as Health and Human Services Department secretary. Republicans continued to express concerns with his background and views. But he is expected to win enough votes to clear the committee.