Overview
- Guinea‑Bissau judicial police raided researchers’ offices and seized doses of hepatitis B vaccine on Monday as part of an investigation into the project and its approvals.
- A lead researcher, Frederik Schaltz‑Buchholzer, posted that the study will not move forward because necessary government approval was not granted, effectively stopping plans to enroll newborns.
- The project drew reported funding of about $1.6 million from the U.S. CDC plus matching grants from the Pershing Square and Bluebell foundations for a total near $3.2 million.
- Critics and public‑health experts had argued the trial design would delay the birth dose for many infants and raised ethical comparisons to historical abuses while the WHO called the protocol unethical.
- The police statement said seizure did not imply vaccine quality or safety problems, and the halt now raises questions about CDC oversight, Congressional review, and protections for vulnerable participants.