This is a bad look for @pfizer. We have multiple instances of CEO Albert Bourla giving Fauci market-moving info the night before it's released publicly. (Although it's important to note there's no record of Fauci personally trading off of these tips.)
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) July 27, 2026
Nov. 8, 2020, Bourla at… pic.twitter.com/4D8vTxD2EX
This is a bad look for
@pfizer
. We have multiple instances of CEO Albert Bourla giving Fauci market-moving info the night before it's released publicly. (Although it's important to note there's no record of Fauci personally trading off of these tips.)Nov. 8, 2020, Bourla at 7:45 p.m. calls Fauci to tell him what the Data Safety Monitoring Board had just seen: 94 infections in the first interim look at the mRNA vaccine trial. Four in the vaccine arm, 90 in placebo. "95% efficacy."
Fauci wrote it down in his diary, exclamation points & all, adding (p. 460): "This will be announced tomorrow."
Nov. 4, 2021, Bourla called again — "late at night," Fauci notes — to alert him that Pfizer would announce Paxlovid's "extremely favorable results" the following morning (p. 914). As before, Fauci gets the numbers first.
In July 2021, Pfizer got out ahead of the administration on boosters without warning. Fauci's entry (p. 806): "I received a phone call from Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla who was very sorry and apologetic that he did not Alert me about the Pfizer announcement ahead of time."
Nobody apologizes for skipping a courtesy they never extended. The apology means they had a standing arrangement.
Fauci also helped Pfizer with their European competitor,
@AstraZeneca
.On Aug. 24, 2020, Bourla called "expressing concern about AstraZenica [sic] likely trying to get an EUA [emergency use authorization] for their vaccine before the big companies (Moderna, Pfizer, J & J) complete their phase 3 trials."
Fauci recounts: "We discussed what to do." (p. 313)
Bourla wanted the companies to sign a mutual agreement. Fauci's counter-proposal was to mobilize the scientific community to publicly demand the FDA show its data before authorizing anything, knowing that would delay AstraZeneca's application.
Earlier that month, Fauci recounted a meeting where EUA was being considered for AstraZeneca, & Fauci frets that this happening would help Trump & hurt Pfizer's ongoing trials:
"An EUA will likely get in the way of completing the RCTs that are going on. Clearly. This is politically driven and will be a ploy for Trump to get re-elected."
Ultimately Pfizer received the first EUA in December. AstraZeneca never received it.
Six months later, at Yale University's "Legend in Leadership" award, Bourla and J&J's Alex Gorsky delivered tribute speeches to Fauci.
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