In a bid to cut bureaucratic red tape and elevate the agency’s importance, a bipartisan coalition of former FDA commissioners called for it to be made an independent federal body and potentially a Cabinet-level organization. It is currently housed under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The commissioners made their arguments during a discussion at the Aspen Ideas Festival’s Spotlight Health on Saturday, according to Politico. Speakers included nearly every agency chief dating back to President Ronald Reagan’s second term: Frank Young (Reagan appointee); David Kessler (George H.W. Bush appointee); Jane Henney (Bill Clinton appointee); Mark McClellan and Andrew von Eschenbach (George W. Bush appointees); and Margaret Hamburg (Barack Obama appointee).
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