Donald Trump Signs Off On Plan To Oust FDA Commissioner Marty Makary

President Donald Trump has signed off on a plan to oust Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, according to a senior administration official and other reporting that the decision is not yet final.

“President Trump has signed off on a plan to fire Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, though insiders caution that the plan is not final and could change, according to several media reports”

Ars Technica

CNN reported that Trump demurred when asked by Kristen Holmes Friday evening if he planned to fire Makary, saying, “I’ve been reading about it, but I know nothing about it.”

Ars Technica

Fierce Pharma said the Wall Street Journal reported Trump is set to fire Makary, ending the “stormy tenure” of the former Johns Hopkins surgeon, who first drew attention during the COVID-19 pandemic with criticism of vaccine mandates and pushing back on masks for children.

STAT reported that Makary was supposed to give an address at an annual FDA 5K race held on the White Oak, Md., campus on Friday and to run with staff, but he was absent, and “two agency sources told STAT.”

Multiple outlets tied the reported firing plan to Makary’s handling of flavored e-cigarettes, including a flashpoint where the FDA chief resisted internal efforts to approve the sale of fruit-flavored e-cigarettes and then the FDA reversed course this week.

CNN said Trump directly pressed Makary over the vapes decisions, and it quoted David Williams, president of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, saying, “It’s frustrating because President Trump, during his first term, said that he wanted to move forward with approving these products.”

BioSpace

The CNN account also linked the pressure to abortion pill mifepristone, noting that senior White House staffers were scheduled to meet with anti-abortion activists Friday who have sharply criticized both Makary and Trump personally over a lack of action on restricting mifepristone.

In a separate statement carried by CNN, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser demanded, “FDA Commissioner Makary should be fired immediately,” arguing that “Indifference is completely unacceptable to millions of pro-life voters expecting the administration to act to save lives.”

If Trump follows through on firing Makary, CNN said it would create yet another vacancy at the top ranks of the health department with just months to go until the midterm elections, while the department already lacks a permanent director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a surgeon general.

“President Donald Trump has signed off on a plan to oust US Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr”

CNN

STAT added that the appointment of a permanent FDA commissioner requires Senate confirmation and that neither of the agency’s main divisions that regulate the biopharma industry are led by permanent officials.

MedPage Today reported that Makary’s tenure was marked by turmoil and that WSJ noted the plan “isn’t finalized and could change,” while also describing that the FDA chief had sparred with both the White House and other health department officials.

Ars Technica said the planned exit comes after a tumultuous year for Makary that included controversy over abortion pill oversight and vape regulation, and it reported that the administration had not decided who would serve as acting director upon Makary’s departure.