FDA Commissioner Eschenbach to Resign

Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach has told his staff that he plans to resign effective Jan. 20, 2009.

In an internal message sent Monday to FDA officials, Dr. von Eschenbach said he would work closely with President-elect Barack Obama's transition team "to ensure a seamless change in political leadership at the agency. As with any transition, there will likely be changes for other senior managers as well, although all current Deputy Commissioners and the Chief of Staff are career civil servants who have served me and FDA well."

Dr. von Eschenbach had been expected to leave the FDA, but hadn't given a specific date.

The FDA has been rocked with problems over the past few years involving the safety of popular prescription drugs, heart devices, and contaminated food and blood thinner from China. It has found congressional support for larger budgets to increase foreign inspections of food and drug manufacturing outlets, and to hire more scientists at the agency. The FDA recently opened new offices in China to increase its ability to monitor the safety of imports.

"I am extremely proud of the progress we have made together," said Dr. von Eschenbach in his note to staff. He added, "Resources are on a dramatic upward trajectory, and the gleaming new buildings and laboratories at our White Oak campus will make possible synergies and collaboration that were long beyond our reach." The White Oak campus, in a Maryland suburb of Washington, D.C., will serve as the FDA's new headquarters and is being dedicated later this week.

Source: Wall Street Journal