The Donald Trump administration in the US has given seed money to a Republican to test a possible COVID-19-fighting blood plasma technology, but the company involved only exists within the premises of the luxury condo of Eugene Zurlo, the majority owner, a report by Associated Press said.
The money was reportedly given to the well-connected donor after a note was made of the “manufacturing facilities”, but as stated, the company has no such facility and exists only on paper.
However, Associated Press reported that Zurlo’s company could received almost $65 million in taxpayer money which would be enough to start work on an actual production plant.
This deal, among others, is driven by Dr Robert Kadlec, a senior at the Department of the Health and Human Services, who has reportedly come under pressure to act with more urgency regarding COVID-19, leading to investments in untested companies, the report says.
Associated Press also found that Plasma Technologies only came into the limelight after former Republican senator Rick Santorum became part-owner in the company. Despite not holding any office since 2007, he has remained influential.
Plasma Technologies was founded in 2003, records show. The company’s latest address is Zurlo’s condominium in Charleston’s French Quarter and has no other physical presence in South Carolina.
The fact that a company with no physical existence has managed to catch the attention of the government is another sign of the problematic response of the Trump administration towards COVID-19.
(With inputs from Associated Press.)
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