WASHINGTON, D.C. — At a recent hearing on the efforts to develop a vaccine for the novel coronavirus, House Democrats grilled executives from AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Moderna, and Pfizer.

What You Need To Know

  • House Democrats questioned drug makers about COVID-19 vaccine

  • Rep. Brett Guthrie appreciates the questioning and wants Americans to trust the process

  • Dr. Fauci believes a vaccine could be available by next year

"I mean I want to make sure that you will guard against any pressure that comes from the FDA to lower its standards or to approve something that you know doesn't meet the standards," said House Energy & Commerce Chairman Frank Palone (D-NJ).

Democrats suggest the Food and Drug Administration under President Donald Trump can't be trusted and asked pharmaceutical executives to commit to reporting any safety concerns during vaccine trials even if the FDA loosens its standards. The executives said there are no indications the FDA is planning to change those standards.

Republican Congressman Brett Guthrie, who serves as Ranking Member on the Energy and Commerce Oversight subcommittee, says he's glad the questioning was so rigorous because he wants Americans to trust the process. 

"I was glad quite honestly that the Democrats asked the questions they answered because we need to get confidence. When a vaccine comes out, people need to be confident it was done correctly," said Guthrie.

The liberal-leaning watchdog group Public Citizen has also raised concerns. They say nearly $6 billion have gone to Pharma corporations in unpublished contracts that should be made public. But Guthrie says this criticism of the corporations involved in vaccine development and the Trump administration's Operation Warp Speed is unwarranted​.

"They are funding it too. As a matter of fact, Pfizer is only taking money to manufacture the vaccine, not to develop the vaccine. Most of them are only taking money to manufacture, not to develop the vaccine. The question becomes how much is a vaccine worth? The federal government has already spent three trillion dollars for COVID. It’s a very valuable vaccine and I think for the American people, it’s a good use of taxpayer money," said Guthrie.

The nation's top infectious disease specialist Dr. Anthony Fauci says a coronavirus vaccine could be ready to distribute to Americans by next year.

"Moderna just went into phase 3. Pfizer is going into phase 3 and we expect phase 3 to end, end of September, early October," said Guthrie.