Arthur Allen, Senior Correspondent, writes about the FDA and the pharmaceutical industry as well as COVID-related topics. He joined KHN in April 2020 after six years at Politico, where he created, edited, and wrote for the first health IT-focused news team. Previously, he was a freelance writer for publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Smithsonian, Lingua Franca magazine, The New Republic, Slate, and Salon. Earlier in his career, he worked for The Associated Press for 13 years, including stints as a correspondent based in El Salvador, Mexico, and Germany. He is the author of the books Vaccine: The Controversial Story of Medicine’s Greatest Lifesaver, Ripe: The Search for the Perfect Tomato, and The Fantastic Laboratory of Dr. Weigl.