Here are three things to know about Dr. Califf.
1. He joined the FDA as deputy commissioner last year from Duke University, where he had served as a professor of medicine, a leading pharmaceutical researcher and the vice chancellor for clinical and translational research.
2. His appointment was confirmed in a vote of 89 to 4, following weeks of opposition from some lawmakers who had blocked his nomination over what they said was the FDA’s poor record on prescription painkillers, according to the report.
Mounting data has illuminated a national opioid and heroin addiction epidemic. Each year, more Americans die from drug overdoses than they do in car crashes. Data from the CDC show opioids were involved in 28,648 deaths in 2014. The agency also found a steep increase in heroin-involved deaths and an emerging increase in deaths involving synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl.
3. Dr. Califf will replace Stephen Ostroff, MD, who has served as acting commissioner since Margaret Hamburg, MD, stepped down in March 2015.
At Becker's 4th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable, taking place November 2–5 in Chicago, more than 1,500 hospital and health system executives tackle decisions that determine whether organizations thrive or merely survive: protecting margins under cost pressure, choosing where to grow, renegotiating payer relationships, stabilizing the workforce and proving real ROI on technology. This is where leaders work through them together, face-to-face. Apply for complimentary registration now.