PREVIEW

Trump Picks White House Adviser Heidi Overton To Lead FDA. U.S. President Donald Trump has chosen White House policy adviser Heidi Overton to lead the Food and Drug Administration, according to a source familiar with the matter. If confirmed by the Senate, Overton would take charge of an FDA that has lost more than 3,000 staff, including senior division heads, over the past year. The agency is facing pressure to rebuild confidence among the pharmaceutical industry and public health groups amid concerns that the regulator has become increasingly politicised. Overton, a doctor by training, currently serves as deputy director of the White House Domestic Policy Council and previously worked at the conservative America First Policy Institute. She received her medical degree from the University of New Mexico and trained in general surgery and clinical research at Johns Hopkins. Overton recently appeared at a White House event where Trump announced an order calling for a reduced childhood vaccine schedule and separate measles, mumps and rubella shots. Acting chief Kyle Diamantas has led the FDA since May, when former Commissioner Marty Makary resigned after 13 months in the role. Makary’s tenure was marked by controversy over issues including flavoured vapes, an abortion-pill review and disagreements with drugmakers over medicines and vaccines.
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