WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. government watchdog agency has recommended the temporary reinstatement of a whistleblower who says he was removed as director of a government research office because he raised concerns about coronavirus preparedness, his lawyers said on Friday.
Rick Bright, recently ousted director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, or BARDA, is seen in his official government handout portrait photo from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services taken in Washington, U.S. in 2017. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Handout via REUTERS
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) made a “threshold determination” that the Trump administration unlawfully sidelined disease expert Rick Bright because he “made protected disclosures in the best interest of the American public,” Bright’s lawyers said in the statement.
OSC’s recommendation is not binding on the administration.
Bright’s complaint could eventually be referred to the Merit Sys