After the abrupt resignation of FDA Commissioner Lester M. Crawford, the hope was that the troubled Food and Drug Administration would soon get about the business of protecting the nation’s health and safety. But President Bush’s replacement is already raising questions.
Crawford resigned a week ago without explanation, only two months after being confirmed by the Senate. He had served as deputy and acting commissioner for more than three years. His tenure at the FDA included controversies over the disruption of flu vaccine supplies last year; concerns about the safety of previously approved medicines like Vioxx (found later to increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes); and the deference to conservative activists in the agency’s consideration of over-the-counter emergency contraception. A Senate committee has opened up an investigation into his sudden resignation.
President Bush quickly designated Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach as acting commissioner. The president apparently understood the benefits of acting quickly, but the choice of the director of the National Cancer Institute raised some eyebrows.
Von Eschenbach, the former head of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas, had drawn criticism in the past for overstating the value of potentially life-saving cancer drugs. Critics worry that under his leadership, the FDA could become too heavily influenced by the drug industry in its rush to get new medicines approved.
In addition, von Eschenbach is keeping his Cancer Institute job. Senators Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, and Edward Kennedy, D-Massachusetts, have sensibly asked the administration to appoint someone whose time will be devoted entirely to the FDA.
Last month, the FDA’s credibility plunged with a decision to stall over-the-counter sale of the morning-after pill. The decision seemed calculated to satisfy anti-abortion activists who opposed the recommendation of the medical establishment (FDA’s advisory committee, the American Association of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.) Susan Wood, director of the FDA’s Office of Women’s Health, resigned in protest.
The new commissioner needs to get the matter back on track. The FDA needs a commissioner who will direct the agency without fear of industry or political pressure.
