Straight talk on the FDA’s tumultuous weekend — and new questions about its independence

This weekend, the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency clearance to convalescent plasma, a treatment in which blood from patients who recovered from Covid-19 is used to treat those who had the disease. The decision is controversial, as are the circumstances around it. STAT senior writers Matthew Herper and Adam Feuerstein sat down together to gather their thoughts. Here is their conversation.