The FDA is preparing to scale back on routine drug inspections following widespread layoffs in support staff, multiple officials told CBS News.
Around 170 employees were cut from the FDA’s Office of Inspections and Investigations, according to two health officials who were not authorized to comment publicly.
The HHS has said broader layoffs ordered by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. with 10,000 workers let go from the department would not directly impact FDA’s inspection staff.
“These administrative functions are being streamlined as part of HHS’ transformation initiative to make the agency more efficient and responsive. FDA inspectors were not impacted and this critical work will continue,” an HHS spokesperson said in a statement to CBS.
However, one official told the news outlet that in meetings among federal officials, the remainder of leaders have had to figure out how to deal with major delays and disruptions from the loss of administrative and management staff.
One leader said FDA leaders from the inspections and investigations office are now working with the FDA’s drug, device and food centers to reprioritize workloads, shifting focus from “surveillance inspections” to more urgent tasks such as safety alerts and follow-up visits.
A pilot program for unannounced foreign drug inspections has been paused due to staffing cuts, further complicating oversight of pharmaceutical manufacturers. One of the biggest immediate impacts on the agency’s inspectors, one official told CBS, is the elimination of the FDA’s travel operations division.
“As of yesterday, all front-line investigators will now be spending significant time processing their own travel and related administrative requirements, rather than spending that time in firms ensuring the American consumer is protected,” said one FDA official.
