Former FDA Head Calls Azar’s Rule-Making Move a ‘Distraction’

Former FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar’s move to bar agencies under his authority from signing their own rules is a “major distraction” that creates “an implication, or at least a specter” that the FDA’s independence is being eroded or influenced.

“The timing of this is really poor right now, because it’s going to distract the agency and frankly creates headlines that could leave the perception that the agency is being bullied,” Gottlieb said on CBS on Sunday.

Alex Azar has barred agencies under his authority, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ...