The following is from the office of Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin).

Sen. Ron Johnson, ranking member of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has requested records and communications from Moderna, Pfizer, BioNTech, and Johnson & Johnson related to the development and safety of COVID-19 vaccines.

In the letters, Johnson cited the many billions of taxpayer dollars these companies received to manufacture and deliver COVID-19 vaccines. These federally funded vaccines have since been associated with reports of myocarditis, pericarditis, thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, and Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Johnson also referenced past attempts by the Dept. of Health and Human Services to conceal records related to the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, warning vaccine manufacturers, “Any attempt to obstruct or delay responses to this request will result in compulsory process.”

The senator’s requests included internal and external communications related to reports of adverse events, clinical trials, and testing of the vaccines against variants of SARS-CoV-2. These requests encompass communications between vaccine manufacturers, the federal government, and social media platforms.

Read more about the letters in The Federalist.

Chairman Johnson’s letters are available at the following links:

• Letter to Moderna
• Letter to Pfizer
• Letter to BioNTech
• Letter to Johnson & Johnson

Read the letters sent by Sen. Johnson to each of the COVID vaccine manufacturers below.

Sen. Johnson’s letter to Moderna

To: Stéphane Bancel, Chief Executive Officer, Moderna, Inc.
Date: April 2, 2025

Dear Mr. Bancel:

On May 15, 2020, the White House announced the federal government would invest in a partnership with vaccine manufacturers—an endeavor formally named Operation Warp Speed (“OWS”)—in order to swiftly deliver a COVID-19 vaccine. By July 26, 2020, Moderna, Inc. (“Moderna”) had received a total of $955 million in federal awards to support its vaccine development program. On August 11, 2020, the federal government awarded Moderna with an additional $1.525 billion for the delivery of 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses. Under OWS, an unprecedented initiative which allowed pharmaceutical companies to accelerate the traditional vaccine development timeline, Moderna manufactured vaccine doses while simultaneously conducting clinical trials. On December 18, 2020, Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine became the second to receive Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”) from the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), but it would not receive full FDA approval until January 31, 2022, under the brand name Spikevax. Spikevax, as with other COVID-19 vaccines, has since been associated with reports of adverse events following vaccination, such as myocarditis and pericarditis.

Pursuant to Senate Resolution 94 (119th Cong.), the United States Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (the “Subcommittee”) is conducting a review of the development and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as adverse events and injuries associated with these vaccines. In order to assist the Subcommittee in its review, please provide the following information and records regarding the development and administration of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.

I expect you to fully comply with this request, but I am mindful that your company may choose to mimic the Department of Health and Human Services’ (“HHS”) past efforts to conceal records about the development, safety, and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines. Any attempt to obstruct or delay responses to this request will result in compulsory process.

Please note, in the requests below, the term Spikevax shall include all versions of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, including, but not limited to, the version approved under the EUA in December 2020 and the final fully licensed COVID-19 vaccine. Unless otherwise stated, the time period for the records requested shall be January 1, 2019 to present.

1. The names and titles, along with the dates they held those titles, of each Moderna employee involved in the development of Spikevax.
2. A complete list of entities Moderna contracted, collaborated, or otherwise worked with on the development and testing of Spikevax, including, but not limited to, the surveillance or testing of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
3. All communications referring or relating to the development of Spikevax, including, but not limited to:
   a. Clinical trials
   b. Approval process with federal agencies (HHS, CDC, FDA, NIH, etc.)
   c. Department of Defense
   d. Adverse events associated with Spikevax
   e. Adverse events associated with any COVID-19 vaccine, including communications with Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, or any of their subsidiaries
   f. Testing against variants
   g. Vaccine-associated enhanced disease(s)
4. All communications with search engines and social media platforms referring or relating to adverse events and Spikevax, including Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms, Inc., and X Corp.
5. A complete response to my December 29, 2021 letter (enclosed).

Please provide the information and records requested by April 16, 2025. To expedite the Subcommittee’s review, please submit the information and records responsive to this request as they become available, rather than waiting to provide them all at once. To avoid any unnecessary delays, please carefully review the Procedures for Transmitting Documents to the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and contact the Subcommittee to discuss the method and timing of Moderna’s production.

Sincerely,
Ron Johnson
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

cc: The Honorable Richard Blumenthal
Ranking Member
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

Sen. Johnson’s letter to Pfizer

To: Albert Bourla, Chief Executive Officer, Pfizer Inc.
Date: April 2, 2025

Dear Mr. Bourla:

On May 15, 2020, the White House announced the federal government would invest in a partnership with vaccine manufacturers—an endeavor formally named Operation Warp Speed (“OWS”)—in order to swiftly deliver a COVID-19 vaccine. On July 22, 2020, through OWS, Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE entered into a $1.95 billion advance-purchase agreement with the federal government. On December 11, 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine became the first to receive Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”) from the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), and received full FDA approval on August 23, 2021, under the brand name Comirnaty. Comirnaty, as with other COVID-19 vaccines, has since been associated with reports of adverse events following vaccination, such as myocarditis and pericarditis.

Pursuant to Senate Resolution 94 (119th Cong.), the United States Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations is conducting a review of the development and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines, as well as the adverse events and injuries associated with these vaccines. In order to assist the Subcommittee in its review, please provide the following information and records regarding the development and administration of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine.

I expect you to fully comply with this request, but I am mindful that your company may choose to mimic the Department of Health and Human Services’ past efforts to conceal records about the development, safety, and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines. Any attempt to obstruct or delay responses to this request will result in compulsory process.

Please note, in the requests below, the term Comirnaty shall include all versions of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Unless otherwise stated, the time period for the records requested shall be January 1, 2020 to present.

1. The names and titles, along with the dates they held those titles, of each Pfizer employee involved in the development of Comirnaty.
2. A complete list of entities Pfizer contracted, collaborated, or otherwise worked with on the development and testing of Comirnaty, including variant surveillance.
3. All communications referring or relating to the development of Comirnaty, including communications between Pfizer employees and:
   a. Clinical trial collaborators (including BioNTech and other external entities)
   b. HHS, CDC, FDA, NIH, or other federal health agencies
   c. Department of Defense
   d. Concerning adverse events
   e. Communications with other manufacturers (J&J, Moderna, etc.)
   f. Variant testing
   g. Vaccine-associated enhanced disease(s)
4. Communications with search engines and social media platforms about adverse events and Comirnaty, including Alphabet Inc., Meta, and X Corp.
5. A complete response to my December 29, 2021 letter (enclosed).

Please provide the information and records requested by April 16, 2025. To expedite the Subcommittee’s review, please submit the information and records responsive to this request as they become available, rather than waiting to provide them all at once. To avoid any unnecessary delays, please carefully review the Procedures for Transmitting Documents to the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and contact the Subcommittee to discuss the method and timing of Pfizer’s production.

Sincerely,
Ron Johnson
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

cc: The Honorable Richard Blumenthal
Ranking Member
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

Sen. Johnson’s letter to BioNTech

To: Richard Gaynor, President and Chief of Research and Development, BioNTech US Inc.
Date: April 2, 2025

Dear Mr. Gaynor:

On May 15, 2020, the White House announced the federal government would invest in a partnership with vaccine manufacturers—an endeavor formally named Operation Warp Speed (“OWS”)—in order to swiftly deliver a COVID-19 vaccine. On July 22, 2020, through OWS, Pfizer and BioNTech entered into a $1.95 billion advance-purchase agreement with the federal government, to be paid upon delivery of 100 million vaccine doses. On December 11, 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine became the first to receive Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA, and received full approval on August 23, 2021, under the brand name Comirnaty. As with other COVID-19 vaccines, Comirnaty has since been associated with reports of adverse events such as myocarditis and pericarditis.

Pursuant to Senate Resolution 94 (119th Cong.), the Subcommittee is conducting a review of the development and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines. Please provide the following information and records regarding the development and administration of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

I expect full cooperation with this request. Any attempt to obstruct or delay responses will result in compulsory process.

Please note, Comirnaty shall include all versions of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Unless otherwise stated, the time period for the records requested shall be January 1, 2020 to present.

1. The names and titles, along with the dates they held those titles, of each BioNTech employee involved in the development of Comirnaty.
2. A complete list of entities BioNTech contracted, collaborated, or otherwise worked with on the development and testing of Comirnaty, including, but not limited to, the surveillance or testing of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
3. All communications referring or relating to the development of Comirnaty, including, but not limited to:
   a. Clinical trials
   b. Approval process with federal agencies (HHS, CDC, FDA, NIH, etc.)
   c. Department of Defense
   d. Adverse events associated with Comirnaty
   e. Adverse events associated with any COVID-19 vaccine, including communications with Johnson & Johnson, Moderna, or their subsidiaries
   f. Variant testing
   g. Vaccine-associated enhanced disease(s)
4. All communications with search engines and social media platforms referring or relating to adverse events and Comirnaty, including Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms, Inc., and X Corp.

Please provide the information and records requested by April 16, 2025. To expedite the Subcommittee’s review, please submit the information and records responsive to this request as they become available, rather than waiting to provide them all at once. To avoid any unnecessary delays, please carefully review the Procedures for Transmitting Documents to the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and contact the Subcommittee to discuss the method and timing of BioNTech’s production.

Sincerely,
Ron Johnson
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

cc: The Honorable Richard Blumenthal
Ranking Member
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

Sen. Johnson’s letter to Johnson & Johnson

To: Joaquin Duato, Chief Executive Officer, Johnson & Johnson
Date: April 2, 2025

Dear Mr. Duato:

On May 15, 2020, the White House announced the federal government would invest in a partnership with vaccine manufacturers—an endeavor formally named Operation Warp Speed (“OWS”)—to quickly develop a COVID-19 vaccine. Johnson & Johnson received $456 million in federal funding in March 2020, and an additional $1 billion in August 2020 for delivering 100 million vaccine doses. On February 27, 2021, J&J’s vaccine received Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA, though it was never fully approved and the EUA was voluntarily withdrawn in 2023. The vaccine has since been associated with reports of Guillain-Barré Syndrome and Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome.

Pursuant to Senate Resolution 94 (119th Cong.), the Subcommittee is conducting a review of the development and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines. Please provide the following information and records regarding the development and administration of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine.

I expect you to fully comply with this request. Any attempt to obstruct or delay responses will result in compulsory process.

Please note, Janssen shall include all versions of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine. Unless otherwise stated, the time period for the records requested shall be January 1, 2020 to present.

1. The names and titles, along with the dates they held those titles, of each employee involved in the development of Janssen.
2. A complete list of entities Johnson & Johnson contracted, collaborated, or otherwise worked with on the development and testing of Janssen, including, but not limited to, the surveillance or testing of SARS-CoV-2 variants.
3. All communications referring or relating to the development of Janssen, including, but not limited to:
   a. Clinical trials
   b. Approval process with federal agencies (HHS, CDC, FDA, NIH, etc.)
   c. Department of Defense
   d. Adverse events associated with Janssen
   e. Adverse events associated with any COVID-19 vaccine, including communications with Moderna, Pfizer, or their subsidiaries
   f. Variant testing
   g. Vaccine-associated enhanced disease(s)
   h. Withdrawal of EUA and related communications
4. All communications with search engines and social media platforms referring or relating to adverse events and Janssen, including Alphabet Inc., Meta Platforms, Inc., and X Corp.

Please provide the information and records requested by April 16, 2025. To expedite the Subcommittee’s review, please submit the information and records responsive to this request as they become available, rather than waiting to provide them all at once. To avoid any unnecessary delays, please carefully review the Procedures for Transmitting Documents to the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and contact the Subcommittee to discuss the method and timing of Johnson & Johnson’s production.

Sincerely,
Ron Johnson
Chairman
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

cc: The Honorable Richard Blumenthal
Ranking Member
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations