The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention refuses to publish large amounts of COVID-related data, fearing that “information might be misinterpreted”, according to The New York Times.
In a bombshell report, the Times revealed that the CDC did not share information on the effectiveness of boosters in adults aged 18-49, who are considered to be the least likely to benefit from getting a booster.
CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said in defense that the data was not released “because basically, at the end of the day, it’s not yet ready for prime time.”
Nordlund also said that the data only represents a small percentage of the population in the U.S. and that the agency would only publish data if it is “accurate and actionable.”
The revelation has brought outrage to scientists, saying that information should not be withheld.
“We have been begging for that sort of granularity of data for two years,” epidemiologist Malaty Rivera. “We are at a much greater risk of misinterpreting the data with data vacuums, than sharing the data with proper science, communication and caveats.”
Much of the withheld information could have also helped health officials bring the virus under control, as detailed and timely data on hospitalizations by age and race would help health officials identify and help the populations at highest risk, according to the report.
Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert and adviser to the Food and Drug Administration, said that without the booster data on the 18-49 age group, American scientists had to rely on Israeli data to make their recommendations on the shots.
“There’s no reason that they should be better at collecting and putting forth data than we were,’ Offit said. “The CDC is the principal epidemiological agency in this country, and so you would like to think the data came from them.”
CDC deputy director Dr. Daniel Jernigan came to the agency’s defense and said that the CDC is not up to handling large volumes of data due to the ongoing pandemic.
“We want better, faster data that can lead to decision making and actions at all levels of public health, that can help us eliminate the lag in data that has held us back,” Jernigan said in response to the backlash.
