Hamburg Resigns as FDA Commissioner

After serving as FDA commissioner for six years, Margaret Hamburg has resigned, ending a tenure during which the agency boosted its focus on drugs for unmet needs, strengthened policing of compounding pharmacies and increased drug approvals.

In 2014 alone, the agency approved more than 40 new drugs, the largest number in nearly two decades.

FDA Chief Scientist Dr. Stephen Ostroff will take over as interim commissioner when Hamburg departs at the end of March. There is no word from the White House on who it will nominate to fill the post, though some have suggested Duke University cardiologist Robert Califf, the newly appointed deputy commissioner, may be a logical choice.

Hamburg’s six years represents the longest tenure in the commissioner’s office since David Kessler, who served from 1990 to 1997. In a Thursday letter sent to FDA staff, Hamburg said she was proudest of several achievements, including persuading Congress to increase the agency’s annual budget by nearly $2 billion and overseeing creation of the breakthrough therapy designation for novel drugs that treat underserved patient populations. — Lena Freund