Text: Scott Gottlieb on “Face the National With Margaret Brennan”, June 29, 2025

Below is a copy of an interview with the former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, a member of Pfizer and the Chairman of the Non -Executive Board of Directors at Illumina, which was broadcast on the “confrontation with the nation with Margaret Brennan” on June 29, 2025.

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Margaret Brennan: To take a look at some changes to public health policies in America under the Trump Administration, we have joined the former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who sits on the Board of Directors in Fayzer and is now the chairman of the ILUMINA. Good morning. It is good to see you.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb: Good morning.

Margaret Brennan: You know, d. Gottlieb, I worked in the first Trump administration. This second Trump administration appears to be completely different in its public health approach on many fronts. One of them was truly naked this week with this newly formed consultative committee on immunization practices, or ACIP. Minister Kennedy rejected about 17 members of the current board of directors and put some members of his choice. In a video clip, the head of the American Academy of Pediatrics said that the federal immunization policy is, “no longer a reliable process” and is politicized at the expense of children. This is an amazing statement. Do you agree with the Academy of Pediatrics?

doctor. Gottlieb: Look, you are right. I worked in the first Trump administration. I was lucky to do this and proud to serve in that administration. I think we have done a lot of important things on public health. We presided over the first approval of the cell and genes. The president tried to expand access to these treatments by the right to experience the legislation that he defended. The FDA (FDA) has supported an attempt to try to keep tobacco products outside the hands of children, the number of public approvals, and many other achievements. I think that many people on both sides of the political corridor feel that many of these policies defended by Minister Kennedy- will be contained in vaccines and not bleeding in the broader public health doctrine. I think this is not true. I think there are a lot of people who do not think these things are especially political, or should not be so, and I do not think that these decisions should be decided politically, who will find when they go to the doctor’s office who may want to protect their lives or that the lives of their families will not be available. This looks like a political process now. The secretary follows the issues that Pogabus has always been for him and his anti -tax group, to defend the health of children. I don’t think this is not applicable at this stage. I think he might admit it. He faces issues that he has for 20 years to restrict access to certain vaccines. This will grow. The menu grows, and it will start to be very concrete for people and go beyond just a Covid vaccine, which I think, what most people think when they see this administration, or the efforts of the Secretary, to try to determine access to vaccines.

Margaret Brennan: So one of the specified things of this meeting was a advice to avoid influenza vaccines that contain a ingredient called Thimosal. Almost at the same time as the meeting, the Disease Control Center removed information from its website, which exposed allegations that this component is linked to autism. Minister Kennedy says that he is for journalists who block the truth. What do people need to know about the influenza vaccine and this component?

doctor. Gotlal: Yes, this is an old component. It is a portfolio used in a multiple dose of influenza vaccine, primarily. Only a very small percentage of influenza vaccine bottles still contains it. What is an ingredient added to multi -dose bottles because those bottles that you will enter and exit from different needles are you run the vaccine for different patients. So they are not injecting one dose. They are multi -doses that are used primarily in some crowded clinics, almost exclusively in adults at the present time. In the early first decade of the twentieth century, I was in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) when we reformulated the vaccine, so the manufacturers forced us to reformulate the vaccines to remove this portfolio. Not because we thought he was unsafe, but because there was a lot of panic among the anti -fax groups that they believed was a link between this component and autism. The component does not contain small amounts of ethyl mercury, not methyl mercury, methyl mercury, the same type of mercury in fish, in very small quantities. Thus, manufacturers forced us to reformulate the vast majority of vaccines, which are still four percent of influenza vaccines that are given, most of them for adults, are these multi -doses. This was Bugabo from the secretary and his group, the Children’s Health Defense Fund. In fact, the only presentation was at the ACIP meeting of the head of that group. You are right in the presence of an anti -disease analysis of the Disease Control Center officials that there is no connection between thymeosal and autism. This- this analysis was downloaded from the site. Al-Amin made a statement that he had not- the appropriate review did not pass.

Margaret Brennan: We’ll take a break, Dr. Gottlieb, and we will talk to you more on the other side of this. These are complicated problems I want to dig with you. So we hope that you will all remain with us.

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Margaret Brennan: Welcome to the nation. We return to our conversation with the former FDA Dr. Gotlal, only to capture a reserve, we were talking about the meeting held last week with the newly formed consultative committee on immunization. Republican Senator Bill Cassidy, you know him, he is a doctor. He has censorship and the spirit of the health committee. He called for the cancellation of the meeting because he said that there is no director of the Disease Control Center. When it comes to these appointed, he said that many of them “have no great experience in studying microbiology, epidemics, or immunology” and they may have “prior prejudice” against the seated Rana vaccines. This- I am not a doctor, but it seems to me that the experiment in immunology will be important if you recommend immunization. His lawyer was ignored here. Is there any check on Kennedy, at this stage? Is there a need for the director of the Disease Control Center quickly?

doctor. Gottlieb: Yes, well, the director of the Disease Control Center had a confirmation session this week, and we hope it will be valid. I think it is very strong and a good choice for this position. The Council, this ACIP plate, is not fully formed. There are only seven members on the blackboard. At its peak, it has about 15 years. You are right, many people who have been appointed do not have a deep experience, or any experience, completely frankly, in vaccine science. They are people who were ideally agreed with Minister Kennedy in the past and worked with him, and many of them, not all of them. I think this is not even that the secretary may oppose this at this time, and this has led to some embarrassing moments in this meeting. For example, as you know, one of the members had to explain to him the difference between the prevention of antibodies and vaccine. Therefore, there was evidence in that discussion, as the managers of the Disease Control Center had to provide some, completely frankly, therapeutic assistance to help inform these organs on the basis of vaccine science. So, in the hope, as soon as you form this council completely, you will get more balanced. I think some people are skeptical. I still hope there will be some good members who eventually sit.

Margaret Brennan: As you know, one of the things related to the American health system is the question of continuous innovation. Earlier this month, the FDA (FDA) has agreed to inject twice annually for HIV prevention called LenacAPAVIR. How important is innovation like this, and given the environment you are talking about, will these new advisers object to the ability to obtain this type of things in the market?

doctor. Gottlieb: Yes, this should not come before Acip. So this is my treatment. It is an antivirus that has been a long -term behavior that provides six months of protection against HIV and was very effective in preventing HIV in a large number of HIV infection. So, it is a change in the formulation of an antiviral that allows its management only twice a year and provides continuous exposure to the benefits of that antiviral. We see a lot of innovation like this. There was also news this week from a small biotechnology company that I had no participation with, which developed a pill that could provide sustainable protection protection. So it is antiviral, but it is formulated in a way that can be given once before the influenza season, to provide protection during the entire season, and it seems very effective. So we see a lot of innovations like this. What I feel anxious is innovation in vaccine science. I work on the side of the investment capital, where we make investments in new companies, and there was a retreat from startups in the field of biotechnology that are looking to develop new vaccines, for example, Epsin Barr Virus vaccines, which we know are linked to some B-Cell lymphoma, and may be linked to multiple pollution. This- this is a new field of science, and the possibility of vaccinating children against it, like us, like us to vaccinate children against the HPV at the present time, prevent cervical cancer and other types of cancer. Perhaps in the future, we may match the EBV, but there was a lot of retreat to this type of investment. So I think we will see less innovation in vaccine sciences as a result of the environment in which we are.

Margaret Brennan: Soon, Secretary Kennedy was asked this week about statements in some states to start removing fluoride from water. Oklahoma has taken some moves in this direction. He said you will see “perhaps a little more than cavities”, but there is a direct reverse relationship between the amount of fluoride in your water and your loss of intelligence. “What should parents think when they hear things like that?

doctor. Gottlieb: Well, see, this was a long -term issue, another issue by Minister Kennedy in his professional defense, and this perception is that there is a link between fluoride, water and some neurological effects of this. It was well studied. It was, I think, completely exposed. There are very small amounts of fluoride in the water, and at the levels that are placed in the water supply, it is proven safe. CDC’s- data shows that there is a 25 % decrease in tooth decay as a result of the routine added to the water supply. It is not just a matter of increasing the dental cavity, but also oral health, which we know is linked to methodological health.

Margaret Brennan: Dr. Gottlieb, it is good to get your vision today. We will return.