The Trump administration has narrowed its search for a permanent FDA commissioner to three candidates: White House domestic policy aide Heidi Overton, MD, oncologist Jeffrey Vacirca, MD, and Pentagon health official Stephen Ferrara, MD, according to a June 26 Axios report.
All three are being vetted, with sources generally most favorable toward Dr. Ferrara, the Pentagon’s principal deputy assistant secretary for health affairs and a radiologist at Bethesda, Md.-based Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, who had a 25-year Navy career, according to the report. Dr. Vacirca is CEO and chairman of New York Cancer & Blood Specialists and a past president of the Community Oncology Alliance. Dr. Overton is deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council and a former fellow at the America First Policy Institute.
One source told Axios that Dr. Overton, a protégé of former commissioner Marty Makary, MD, could unsettle investors, industry and FDA career staff given concerns about a repeat of the turbulence that defined Dr. Makary’s tenure. Dr. Ferrara and Dr. Vacirca were described as less well-known but with management credentials.
The search for permanent leadership comes after Dr. Makary resigned in May following reported clashes with White House and HHS officials. His departure triggered a wave of additional exits, including Tracy Beth Høeg, MD, PhD, who was fired as acting director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research days after Dr. Makary stepped down. Kyle Diamantas, the agency’s deputy commissioner for food, has been serving as acting commissioner since.
Whoever the White House nominates will face Senate confirmation. No timeline for an announcement has been set.
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